Author Archives: Robert Nelb

Like millions of Americans across the country, I found myself on the National Mall for President Barack Obama’s inauguration last Tuesday. It was cold, it was crowded, and I could hardly see anything, but still I was inspired. If millions of average citizens from all walks of life can come together for a day to »

The news coverage about the presidential election has reached epidemic proportions. Even when there is nothing substantial to report, journalists resort to endless analysis of the candidates’ strategies and tactics. In the end, all this back and forth is enough to make your head spin. Rather than add to this deluge of analysis in this »

Like many 22-year-olds, I like to think that I am invincible. But this past week, when my computer broke, the markets tanked and I almost got hit by a car running a red light in New Haven, I was reminded once again of my own vulnerability and the need we all have for a dose »

For any astute policy analyst, convention-watching can be particularly painful. Buzzwords replace real issues and the truth depends on who’s talking. Perhaps this is just politics as usual, but the lack of reality in today’s rhetoric is a disturbing trend that concerns us all. In Denver, Barack Obama at least tried to describe what he »

It is Bulldog Days once again, which means that thousands of prefrosh will flock to the Lanman Center this afternoon for the semi-annual extracurricular bazaar. Expect lots of flyers, free candy, and sign-up sheets. I admit that I will be among the crowd, losing my own voice as I make a sales pitch for the »

This weekend the population of Yale College will increase by nearly 50 percent as more than 2,000 public health students and leaders from 54 counties come to New Haven for Unite for Sight’s annual global health conference. Even the law school auditorium is not large enough for the keynote addresses by Jeffrey Sachs and Jim »

It’s about the economy, stupid. No matter how much pundits pontificate about issues like health care and energy, race and religion, this year’s presidential election and the policies of the new administration will most likely be determined by the economy. I’m not just talking about the way that macroeconomic indicators predict presidential elections with startling »

With the melting of the winter snow, graduation season appears on the horizon. As a senior, I’ll be sad to leave behind the “bright college years,” but as a health advocate, I’m more concerned about another pressing matter. We may never break the friendships formed at Yale, but we will lose our health insurance. A »

In honor of Sex Week at Yale, it’s time to tackle an age-old question: What would you rather sacrifice for eternity — oral sex or cheese? As simple as it sounds, the question isn’t easy. The Sex Week at Yale magazine may have found that only 8 percent of males and 16 percent of females »

Last Thursday, a major French bank, Societe General, reported that it was victim to one of the largest trading frauds in history: $7.2 billion was lost in a series of unauthorized trades made by a single employee, Jerome Kerviel. On the same day, the American Diabetes Association reported a scandal of even greater magnitude: $116 »

Everyone’s been talking about how our nation’s health care system is sick: 47 million Americans are uninsured, $480 billion is wasted each year when U.S. spending is compared to other countries and health care costs are expected to double in the next 10 years. But now it’s time to get personal; now it’s time to »

If an epidemic disease were killing more people than AIDS each year, would we notice? If over 170 million people in the developing world were crippled by illness, would we care? If we knew of cost-saving interventions that could avert death for these millions of people, would we act? Diabetes is the disease that I’m »