OtherWords

OtherWords is a free, non-profit editorial service published by the Institute for Policy Studies. Each week, OtherWords distributes a batch of publication-ready op-eds, along with a cartoon, to thousands of readers — including hundreds of editors of small and medium-sized newspapers. Each year, these op-eds appear thousands of times in local newspapers throughout the country, as well as in a growing number of online outlets. We believe that strong social movements need informed citizens, and that people learn best from conversations in their own communities — neighbor-to-neighbor. But between a consolidated, corporate-controlled mass media and a deafening social media echo chamber, it’s gotten harder than ever to have these conversations, especially in smaller communities with few local media options.

Through OtherWords, we’re able to provide millions of readers in America’s heartland with intelligent commentary on a range of progressive causes — on climate, inequality, war and peace, the movements for race and gender justice, and beyond. Through the trusted local papers that use our service, we reach readers in red, blue, and purple states alike with well-written, timely commentaries on the national issues that affect their lives. To read our work or get information about publishing it in your community, check out OtherWords.org.

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Latest Work

Tied to the Tracks

It’s beginning to look as though President Obama is going to be run over by the train that is the Angry American Voter.

Pop Goes Our Anti-Poppy Policy in Afghanistan

Our troops are defending a country that routinely fuels America’s narcotics problem.

It’s Still Not Easy to Die Peacefully

Patients everywhere writhe in pain and indignity, families languish in grief, and physicians fidget in perplexity.

Whitman’s House

Billionaires in glass houses are castigating the employment of undocumented immigrants.

The Lineup: Week of October 11-17, 2010

Terry O’Neill reminds us that Alan Simpson is still co-chairing Obama’s deficit commission weeks after his unbelievable Social Security gaffe and Sam Pizzigati points out the government is redistributing wealth in a way that makes the rich richer.

Washington at Work–for the Wealthy

Uncle Sam is concentrating America’s wealth, not sharing it.

Four Hundred Thousand Reasons to Vote

Millions of women could be pushed out of the middle class and into poverty.

Rattling Democracy in Latin America

Ecuador’s recent crisis proves that a decisive and unified response from the international community can help determine the outcome of an illegitimate coup.

The Faces of Government

Dissing civil servants can shore up and rally pro-business sentiments in troubled times.

Confronting the Reality of Climate Change

I think anything we do is going to be too little, too late.

Save the Billionaires’ Tax Loophole

These pampered people say being taxed like us commoners would amount to persecution.

Trim NASA Down to Size

Manned space flights are geared to the bright future of the leaders of corporations who sell all the stuff that’s used to make the shuttles, the space suits, the moon landers, the space stations, and the astronaut capsules.

Save the Billionaires

The very thought of fair taxation threatens their existence.

The Lineup: Week of October 4-10, 2010

Marge Baker weighs in on a “new breed of congressional candidate” and Donald Kaul puts this trend in historical perspective.

More Jobs, Less War

We should cut the military budget and use that money to fund our transition to a greener economy.

A Radical Agenda in Troubled Times

In a Congress controlled by the emerging far-right wing of the Republican Party, the winners would be the people who are already winning.

Really ‘Making It Right’ on the Gulf Coast

That those who dared to speak out paid the price with their livelihoods is a moral travesty.

Farm-to-School’s Teachable Moment

Teaching the value of healthy eating in schools is a great way to fight obesity.

Hot Fudge Sundae Diet

Republicans are promising to solve all our problems without cost or pain.

Dead Miners and Ethically Dead Senators

Here’s the perfect cure for lawmakers’ job grievances: Become coal miners for a while.