Author Archives: Brett Edkins

I came back from summer hoping to have a lazy senior year. But in August, I got an e-mail from Nick Shalek, who said he was running for alderman. We sat down and went through the problems facing New Haven and possible solutions. I challenged him and pressed him for details and numbers. Slowly but »

I was taught in AP U.S. History that since the presidency of Ronald Reagan, Republicans have developed domestic policy around a simple three-word maxim: screw the poor, or STP. We’ve seen the STP policy in the concept of trickle-down economics, attempts to cut programs like Head Start, and George W. Bush’s tax cuts. Now, with »

Liberals all across the country claimed a willingness to reform. We saw that we were out of touch. We saw that the metropolitan mindset didn’t hold in rural America. And so we set out to change the Democratic party. Now, three months after the November election began our soul-searching quest, I have to ask, what »

I watched the debate last Friday with a few friends. We took a shot every time President Bush said his job was “hard work” and whined like an irritated teenager. Overall, I was more impressed with the president than in the first debate. Then again, he had nowhere to go but up. So after listening »