Edward Steers Jr.

Author

Napoleon Bonaparte once famously observed "history is a set of lies agreed upon." For those who look for the truth, it is often far too easy to believe in fraudulent history and science when they tell us what we want to hear.

Jared Bernstein

Fmr. Obama administration economist; CNBC and MSNBC contributor

Because they can indefinitely shield their foreign profits from U.S. taxes, meanwhile engaging in endless (legal) schemes to avoid taxes in countries where they book those earnings, the link between the profitability of American companies and the well-being of America is broken.

Joanne Harris

Author, Chocolat

You see, there are things they never tell you when you become a parent. One is that, from the day you give birth, some part of you will be afraid -- always and forever. The other is that, someday, the child you love will love someone else even more than they love you.

Trita Parsi

President, National Iranian American Council

While a very slight glimmer of hope existed after the fraudulent elections in 2009 that the negative trajectory could be reversed through the ballot box, even that small probability may now have been eliminated.

John Dramani Mahama

President, Ghana

The goal of Universal Access to prevention, treatment care and support and to ensuring zero transmission of HIV in children may appear to be a daunting task. But it is achievable. The driving force for realization of this goal is the mobilization of resources for implementation.

Amitai Etzioni

Professor of international relations, George Washington University

The president is either moping or muttering defensively about the abuses by the IRS and the tragedy of Benghazi. As I see it, if he wakes up tomorrow and is willing to speak up, there are a few things he could fairly state. First, any suggestion that "the IRS" went after the Tea Party are bogus.

Tom Engelhardt

Editor, TomDispatch.com

To destroy our planet with malice aforethought, with only the most immediate profits on the brain, with only your own comfort and wellbeing (and those of your shareholders) in mind: Isn't that the ultimate crime?

Alison Spiegel

Associate Blog Editor, The Huffington Post

Even if you're short on time, don't skip these six steps. They can make all the difference.

Richard (RJ) Eskow

Writer; host, 'The Breakdown'; Senior Fellow, Campaign for America's Future

Apple's $100 billion in offshore profits is managed in Reno, tracked by accountants in Austin, and stored in Manhattan banks. That's called having your apple and eating it too. It's up to our leaders, not corporate executives, to fix this problem.

Ernest Owens

Communication & Public Service scholar, University of Pennsylvania

Unlike many rappers in hip-hop who are obvious industry pinheads just trying to cash into the bank, Kanye West knows more. Yet, that is perhaps the very problem: he knows more and yet does nothing to actually fix the problem.

Tara Ellison

Author, Synchronized Breathing

He had his arms around his new wife, protecting her, as if she was a tiny delicate flower and a strong wind was approaching. They were clearly in love in a way that we had never been. It was riveting to behold and yet also tremendously liberating.

Meaghan Garvey

Illustrator, writer

Kanye West is white America's worst nightmare. Because as much as one may attempt to dismiss him, you still have to turn on your regularly scheduled late night comedy program and stare him in the face. You can't avoid Kanye. He's made very sure of that.

Keli Goff

Author and Special Correspondent, TheRoot.com

Much like Matthew Shepard's death in 1998, the recent violence in New York will hopefully inspire some people who have been on the fence, and believe that LGBT rights is not their problem, to understand that regardless of your skin color, or sexual orientation, the fight for equal rights matters to all of us.

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach

Rabbi and Writer

Whatever the variation on this theme of the holocaust as punishment, let's be clear. These theories are ignorant, repulsive, and wrong.

Keesha Beckford

Master modern and jazz dance teacher

When you are asked to work at something because that is simply what one does, many of you ask "Why should I? So-and-so made this thing and it went mad viral." A few people are genuine overnight sensations -- results of our spectacle-hungry, media-addicted culture.

Dr. John Pierce

Wellness Specialist

Doctors and therapists often encourage people to decrease stress and "stop and smell the roses," but how can you accomplish this when your day-to-day life is hectic and overwhelming? Here are a few simple lifestyle changes you can make to help reduce stress and improve your quality of life.

Marcia Cross

Award-winning actress

When I think about how lucky I am that my husband survived, it only reinforces my dedication to taking action against this disease. My wish for every man faced with a cancer diagnosis is to have the same success story.

Ramzi Kassem

Professor, City University of New York School of Law

In his years in office, Obama has retreated from the moral argument against Guantánamo. If he is serious about closing the prison and not repeating the errors of the past, then he should reclaim that moral high ground.

Maureen Ryan

TV critic, The Huffington Post

One thing is clear from this episode, which was amped up and tap-filled and yet came off as filler: Good Lord, those flashbacks to Young Dick Whitman have to go.

Beth Woolsey

Writer, humorist at the Five Kids Is A Lot of Kids blog

If you pay attention, kids will teach you how to laugh loudly, how to love deeply and how to live fully. They will also ruin all your stuff.

Geoffrey R. Stone

Edward H. Levi Distinguished Service Professor of Law, University of Chicago

Striking the right balance between the government's legitimate need for confidentiality, the press' legitimate need to obtain information about government action, and the public's "right to know" what its representatives are up to, is a difficult and delicate task.

Hollye Harrington Jacobs

Nurse, Social Worker, Educator, Author www.TheSilverPen.com

The important thing to know is that children take their coping cues from us, the trusted adults in their lives. This isn't to say that we should cover our emotions. Not at all. Rather, we need to model healthy coping mechanisms for our children.

Wray Herbert

Author, 'On Second Thought: Outsmarting Your Mind's Hard-Wired Habits'

The elderly have never been honored in American society. They have more often been stereotyped, stigmatized and pitied. And according to Princeton University psychological scientist Susan Fiske, this unfair ageist stereotyping could become even darker with the new influx of seniors.

Ken Harbaugh

Executive Director, ServiceNation

I realize how lucky I am. I have a job I love, with health care, and a family I can talk to whenever I want -- thank you Skype. But every time I fall asleep in some distant hotel room, I ask myself, "Is what I did today worth more than tucking my kids into bed?"

Rep. Steny Hoyer and Rep. Barbara Lee

From infants to seniors, the sequester affects at-risk Americans in every age bracket, and its cuts will harm families trying to put food on the table. Simply put, the sequester will erect road blocks along the pathways out of poverty.

Nico Lang

Blogger; correspondent, WBEZ

Two-thirds of our most hated celebrities are women, and females count for seven of the top 10 slots. What makes Gwyneth Paltrow 20 times more hateable than Chris Brown?

Jennifer Rowe Walters

Mother, Wife, Okie

Tornadoes. For me and my fellow Okies, it's probably one of the first words we hear as children. We play "tornado" with our friends. But this. This is something that no amount of experience, no ingrained, Okie-native understanding of the weather or geography can ever prepare you for.

Bob Greenstein

Founder and President, Center on Budget & Policy Priorities

In today's Senate debate on the farm bill, Senator David Vitter offered -- and Senate Democrats accepted -- an amendment that would increase hardship and will likely have strongly racially discriminatory effects.

Ocean Robbins

Author, Speaker, www.foodrevolution.org

Have you noticed that when it comes to food policy, the U.S. Congress isn't always an unflinching champion of the public interest? Today, you have an opportunity to do something about that.