For those seeking a guiding principle (this sounds much better than "sound bite") for health care reform here it is: "Health care is a basic human right."

Or put another way: "As members of American society, we have a fundamental right to health care."

It is striking...

The juxtaposition on the front page of yesterday's New York Times was chilling. A photograph showed an irate town hall attendee screaming at Arlen Specter with the accompanying caption "You're trampling on the Constitution." Beneath, was an unrelated article entitled "Two US Architects of Harsh Tactics in 9/11's Wake." The...

You may not know it, but June 26 is United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. It was on this day 25 years ago, that an international treaty banning torture, cruel inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment went into effect. Our country is a signatory to this...

Misconceptions and distortions about torture by former Vice President Cheney and other former Bush administration officials are, if nothing else, impressive for their hubris. In a speech last Thursday, Mr. Cheney asserted that "tough" or "enhanced" interrogation methods were legal, essential, effective, and were not torture.

Mr. Cheney is...

Tis the season. Santa had his naughty or nice gift list and checked it twice. President Bush is still working on his list-the one granting pardons. And while a Brooklyn developer at the center of a fraud scheme has already been scratched, will those who conceived and implemented this...