Imagine going through childhood thinking that you are somehow, someway very different. The cutting and self-mutilation, a persistently-depressed mood or the thoughts of ways to hang yourself is your normal. But you don't have these thoughts because you want to hurt yourself; rather, you either want the pain to stop...

America has a violence problem.

We love violence. We pay to watch violence at the movies. Parents pay money for kids to play violent video games. Certain businesses make money off of violence. We cheer when there is a fight in hockey. Mixed Martial Arts is more violent than...

Ever since the awful shootings in Newtown, Conn., two groups have been treated unfairly. The first group is the law-abiding gun owners. The second group are people with mental health issues.

The issue of gun violence is near and dear to me. I spent a good portion of my...

Just as people should not be discriminated against based on race, religion, gender, sexual orientation and a host of other issues, people should not be discriminated against based on mental health. Yet, they are, and too often.

Real People

We all know of people living with mental illness. My family,...

Since the Newtown, Conn., shooting, liberals have put gun control at the front of their agenda. I am a Democrat but worry that the solutions that are pushed and ultimately pass into law may do more harm than good.

The Liberal Approach

Since Newtown, there has been a renewed...

In Georgia: "Gun rights groups say Georgia home invasion proves their point."

In Massachusetts: "Choirboy, 13, gunned down."

In Texas: A shooter walks into a cafe in Texas on Oct. 16, 1991, and executes innocent customers before turning the gun on himself. One survivor, Suzanna Hupp,...

The Definition of 'What Works'
'What works' is defined as a statistically significant reduction in the occurrence the crime. Statistically significant means that the intervention or program is responsible for the reduction in the occurrence, and the reduction is not due to chance or part of a trend.

For...

In the wake of the devastating Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut, mental health reform is back in the national spotlight. There are risks associated with mental health reform when it comes to crime prevention. These risks include, but are not limited to, stigma associated with seeking...

In the wake of the most recent school shooting, and in the wake of any mass shooting, pundits and politicians fill the airwaves and cable TV stations with the need for greater gun control or the need for more guns. Both sides of the issue use statistics to make their...

NRA CEO and Executive Vice Prisdent Wayne LaPierre said that the assault weapons ban didn't work because the 4/20/1999 shooting at Columbine occurred. In the same interview he said that the only way to keep kids safe at school is to have trained armed guards protect the schools....

On Sunday, Dec. 23, 2012 the NBC program Meet the Press, NRA CEO and Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre repeatedly called people afflicted or suffering from mental illness who may do harm 'lunatics.' This view is so completely out of touch with what it means to be a...

When we think of a female offender, Andrea Yates, Lindsay Lohan, or even the acquitted Casey Anthony come to mind. But these are high profile cases and not representative of the norm.

Most people never get to see the inside of a prison. When I was a graduate student, I...

Persistent Concerns

In the American media, there is a persistent concern that Iran has decided and is pursuing a nuclear weapons program. This narrative has made its way into the belief system where 84 percent of Americans believe that Iran has a nuclear weapons program.

Yet the...

The best policy depends on the context, not the ideology, yet there is a fundamental disagreement over what is holding our economy back from a full recovery.

• The 'Uncertainty' argument states that uncertainty is the reason that businesses are not investing. This is generally a Republican argument rooted in...

Yesterday's disappointing news about the slight bump up in the unemployment rate has led to contradictory statements.

• When the national unemployment rate was going down, Republicans said it was because people are dropping out of the job market.


• When the unemployment rate went up, Republicans say it is because Obama's...

Misguided Narratives

There are two competing narratives on how to deal with Iran. But the idea that there are only two narratives or options is misguided.

The first dominant option claims that since Iran can't be trusted, they must be producing nuclear weapons and therefore if they...

Pounding the War Drums

Anyone who declares that Iran must not enrich any uranium is on a war path (or least a path to military strikes on Iran and some degree of retaliation from Iran). The question if this is right or wrong is another issue.

Iran has said categorically...

Close to Home

Prescription drug abuse and addiction is prevalent in America yet it lurks in the shadows. We don't like to talk about it because of the stigma associated with it. But if you are still reading this, you probably know someone close to you it has affected. This...

Republicans and Democrats are so firmly convinced that their ideas are in the best interest of the people they claim to serve. However, the ideas they push serve their party ideology more than the people. This is because there is no one right solution that applies to all conditions.

In any crisis, an examination of both sides is important. No nation can blindly go forward successfully without considering the point of view of its adversary.

Much has been written about the American and Israel point of view regarding Iran's nuclear program, so there is no need to address...