Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sinwar’s killing – long a major objective of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) – would signal the “beginning of the end” of the war. But he made clear the war is not over. Benny Gantz, a former defence minister and member of the war cabinet, said the IDF would continue to operate in Gaza “for years to come,” while Netanyahu wants to demolish Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Commentary
Politicians Love to Warn of American Decline
Politicians’ warnings of decline persist because they invoke fear for the country’s security, anxiety about another country gaining more power and anger about the United States’ various problems. While Trump’s messages of American carnage are dramatic, exchanges of this sort are not uncommon in U.S. politics.
Looking Past Trump’s Lies to Understand Temporary Protected Status
Former President Donald Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. JD Vance, have criticized the Biden administration’s decision to allow Haitian nationals who are in the U.S. to apply for permission to stay under a legal classification called Temporary Protected Status. Here is what this designation means and how it’s made.
Will Rogers’s Charitable Political Wisdom
For those trying to come to terms with a particularly tumultuous election year full of deep divisions, ideological invective and personal insults, guidance can come from Will Rogers, a historical figure whose insights into American politics still prove useful.
The Nobel Peace Prize to Japanese Atomic Bomb Survivors’ Group
The 2024 Nobel peace prize has been awarded to Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese grassroots organisation created by survivors of the two US atomic bombs that were dropped on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.
Trump’s Lies Politicize FEMA’s Disaster Relief
Rumors and lies about government responses to natural disasters are not new. Those rumors don’t usually come from former presidents. Yet in the wake of hurricanes Helene and Milton, former President Donald Trump spread falsehoods about the federal government’s response to the disaster. Misinformation on the topic became so widespread that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, known as FEMA, set up a webpage to debunk the rumors spawned by Trump.
Before You Complain: Your Grocery Bills Are Still the Cheapest In the World
The cost of food has been a big concern for Americans since the height of the Covid pandemic, with U.S. food prices rising 25% between 2019 and 2023. While U.S. food inflation slowed considerably in 2024, grocery prices are still up from prepandemic numbers. For all that, food prices in the U.S. — relatively speaking — are the cheapest in the world, and have been for a long time. This is the case whether measured in terms of disposable personal income or in terms of percentage of household expenditures.
Colorado’s and Washington’s Lessons on Regulating Pot
Colorado and Washington have more than a decade of experience writing and enforcing laws to control the marijuana marketplace. They provide models and lessons on how to regulate recreational marijuana. With the reclassification, 26 states where cannabis is currently illegal will need to decide whether they want to take action to stop the sale of cannabis in their state or figure out how to regulate the newly legal drug.
From Charley to Milton, 20 Years of Hurricanes and Florida Learned Nothing
Back in 2004, the Florida Department of Community Affairs ensured that evacuation times from flood-prone zones known as Coastal High Hazard Areas took less than a day. The law said the development density in those areas should not make the evacuees need more than 16 hours to get away from a Category 5 storm. Then Rick Scott and the Legislature killed the agency. Evacuation times have been getting worse, making life on those islands more dangerous.
Why People Choose to Stay in Harm’s Way Instead of Evacuating
Evacuating might seem like the obvious move when a major hurricane is bearing down on your region, but that choice is not always as easy as it may seem. Evacuating from a hurricane requires money, planning, the ability to leave and, importantly, a belief that evacuating is better than staying put. Evacuating requires transportation, money, a place to stay, the ability to take off work days ahead of a storm and other resources that many people do not have.