Ukraine and Iraq: A Reminder

Professor of Literature, Yale University

Obama's Brussels oration bore a striking resemblance to his Nobel Prize speech in 2009. Yesterday's effort was shorter and less pompous, but, in Brussels as in Oslo, Obama's words again carried the patina of American superiority. The attitude emerged most starkly where he went furthest to disown it: "We Americans remember well the unimaginable sacrifices made by the Russian people in World War II, and we have honored those sacrifices." Do we remember those sacrifices? How exactly have we shown that we honor them -- in which administration and by what series of actions? If President Obama wanted to help us remember, he could have cited some numbers. Three hundred thousand Americans died in the Second World War: a terrible and frightening number. Twenty million Russians died -- one Russian out of eight. Educated Europeans know this. Few Americans of any generation know it.

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Putin's Iron-Fisted Message

Jill Dougherty

Shorenstein Center fellow

Only national unity, in which the individual sets aside his own welfare for the good of the country, Putin believes, can ensure the nation will survive. Russia is a unique civilization, fully entitled to reject the values forced down its throat by the West.

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On Noah, Climate Change, and Exxon Valdez

Darren Aronofsky

Filmmaker

This is our garden. We have dominion over it. Are we tending it? Are we keeping it? Will we stand before it with Awe and Reverence, or will we corrupt our way upon it?

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How to Overcome the Fear of 'Putting Yourself Out There'

Susan Cain

Author, New York Times Bestseller 'QUIET: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking'

In honor of Arianna Huffington's marvelous book THRIVE, I want to write about a very specific aspect of well-being: freedom from fear of sharing one's ideas.

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Have We Taken the Common Sense Out of Parenting?

Kelli Catana

Blogger, www.kellidaisy.com

I am a bad parent. And I am a good parent. I am your typical, average parent. I had four kids in five years and I'm pretty sure that I was a bit insane for about three and a half of them. I am guilty of being bossy and I am guilty of shoving electronics into my children's hands if it buys me peace.

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4 Ways the NCAA Is Like the Fast Food Industry

Seamus McKiernan

Senior Blog Editor, Special Projects, Huffington Post

Maybe it makes sense for Burger King and the NCAA to partner on TV commercials this March Madness. But it's wrong that college athletes and fast food workers are forced to play the serfs in a feudal system that only rewards the overlords.

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5 Things You Might Not Know About Spring Allergies

Dr. Tim Mainardi

Physician, researcher and educator

Spring is finally rolling around the corner, and for most of us, that's a big relief. For many others, however, this revival of life also means the return of sneezing, coughing, wheezing, itching and other vexing symptoms of spring allergies, commonly known as hay fever.

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How to Thrive

Jacqueline Novogratz

Founder and CEO of Acumen

Arianna Huffington has nailed it. We Thrive when we move from a place of wonder and generosity. We Thrive when we are used for good. It is not always easy, and rarely connected to a more facile quest for "happiness." To Thrive, really, is to be grounded in a state of grace.

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Bittman, Butter, and Better Than Back to the Future

David Katz, M.D.

Director, Yale Prevention Research Center

Mr. Bittman is absolutely not qualified to assert the health effects of butter based on a recent meta-analysis I rather doubt he read in its somewhat excruciating detail.

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Come Clean on Deadly Drone Activities

Rep. Alan Grayson

U.S. Congressman for Florida's 9th District

It's time for our government to shed some light on its drone practices. Transparency, as uncomfortable as it may sometimes be, is an essential part of our democracy. Americans need the facts -- the who, what, when, where, and (most importantly) why -- in order to decide if the benefits of these strikes outweigh the negatives.

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Will the Press Let Chris Christie Clear Himself?

Eric Boehlert

Senior Fellow, Media Matters for America

The pressing, constitutional question wasn't whether Nixon himself had drawn up the harebrained scheme to break into Democratic Party offices inside the Watergate apartment complex in 1972. It was whether Nixon knew his underlings were running a criminal enterprise from inside the executive offices. The same holds true for Christie today.

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New Monopoly Rules to Turn America's Children Into Little Socialists

Mark Gongloff

Chief financial writer, The Huffington Post

Monopoly's new "house rules" will probably not be popular in the houses of Ron Paul or Rick Perry. Many of those rules are straight out of their Fed-hating nightmares.

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A Lot of Top Journalists Don't Look at Traffic Numbers. Here's Why.

Dan Lyons

Marketing fellow at HubSpot and creator of 'The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs'

That phrase -- "traffic whore" -- tells you everything you need to know about why some journalists have an aversion to chasing traffic. They fear it creates an incentive to do the wrong things.

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World Vision's (Failed) Attempt at Justice for Gay Christians

Paul Brandeis Raushenbush

Executive Religion Editor, The Huffington Post

World Vision just announced that they have reversed their policy, announced only two days ago, to accept gay Christians as employees. This is so sad, and so bad for everyone.

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To the Class of 2014

Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly

Today, you are more important than we are. It's up to you to lead. Make the choice to serve. Endeavor to do something extraordinary. And when life throws setback and challenges your way, grit your teeth and keep on going.

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Dear Media: This Is What People Who Use Marijuana Look Like

Sharda Sekaran

Managing Director of Communications, Drug Policy Alliance

It would seem that marijuana has finally entered the mainstream of U.S. and international politics. However, someone has neglected to tell the many news outlets that continue to recycle the same old "Cheech & Chong" images that should have been retired decades ago.

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The Debt Tax: What Owing Money Costs You

Adam Levin

Former Director New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs; Chairman of Credit.com and Identity Theft 911

When it comes to debt, there really are no free lunches. Indeed, it is always harder to get out of than it is to get into. The best thing you can do is to change your own thinking when it comes to money. When you are in debt, even the price tag has a price tag.

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Open Government: Building Trust and Civic Engagement

Gavin Newsom and Zachary Bookman

Cities and states are now the driving force in a national movement to harness technology to share a wealth of government information and data. Many forward thinking local governments now provide effective tools to the public to make sense of all this data.

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The New Billionaire Political Bosses

Robert Reich

Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy, University of California at Berkeley; author, 'Beyond Outrage'

Charles and David Koch should not be blamed for having more wealth than the bottom 40 percent of Americans put together. But in using their vast wealth to change those rules and laws in order to fit their political views, the Koch brothers are undermining our democracy.

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What 40-Year-Old Me Would Say to 25-Year-Old Me

The Unappreciated Pastor

Pastor of a small church in the Bible Belt

I was 25 when I became a senior pastor. That was 15 years ago. Time has gone by so quickly. I have been reminiscing about life in the ministry. In looking back I have come to the conclusion that it would have been great if there were a mentor in my life to prepare me for ministry.

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Brazil Should Give Asylum to Edward Snowden

Pablo Ortellado

Activist and professor

Brazil will only provide asylum to Snowden if the citizenry of Brazil pressures the government to do so. Accomplishing this is our responsibility.

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Mr. President, Time to Act on Syria

Alon Ben-Meir

Senior Fellow, NYU's Center for Global Affairs

Obama has not acted decisively with Western allies in an effort to end the horrific civil war in Syria. The tragic loss of nearly 150,000 Syrians, 9 million internally displaced persons and refugees, and the massive destruction would still pale in comparison to the near-complete devastation of the nation if nothing is done soon.

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One-Sentence Financial Rules

The Motley Fool

To Educate, Amuse & Enrich

Ninety-nine percent of personal finance can be summarized in nine words: Work a lot, spend a little, invest the difference. Master that, and the other 2.999 billion words are filler.

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Campbell's Scoop No. 3: Energy

Naomi Campbell

Model, Actor, Activist, Mentor and Executive Producer of The Face

Being aware of your energy levels makes a big difference, because when you're working long hours, it is vital to keep your energy up in order to deliver the best performance.

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To Land a Job, Know How Employers Use Technology to Hire

Susan P. Joyce

Editor and chief technology writer, Job - Hunt.org

In the last few years, the widespread use of search engines and the growth of social media have changed recruiting in ways that are transparent to most job seekers. Not understanding those technological changes makes job hunting more challenging (and discouraging).

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Congress Expected to Vote Today on GOP Bill Attacking National Parks, Antiquities Act

Bob Cesca

Managing Editor for The Daily Banter, Host of The Bob & Chez Show

In order to build the National Park Service for posterity, we all have to make at least a small effort to block attempts to destroy it. Clearly, the GOP is only concerned with scoring points with fringe wackadoodles who can't seem to remember anything that happened prior to January 20, 2009.

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Bill Clinton and Steny Hoyer: The 'Wall Street Democrats' Fight Back

Richard (RJ) Eskow

Senior Fellow, Campaign for America's Future; Host/Managing Editor, The Zero Hour

If progressive and populist ideas resonate with most voters, some people have asked, why isn't the Democratic Party doing better in the polls? Here's one reason: Some of the party's most prominent leaders are still pushing Wall Street's unpopular and discredited economic platform.

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The Cold War Is NOT Back

Marwan Bishara

Al Jazeera's senior political analyst and host of the Al Jazeera program 'Empire'

Nowadays, many of those who use the term "Cold War," do so casually to warn against the dangers of a widening Moscow-Washington divide. That's commendable. But others use the term to advocate a renewed military build-up in Europe. That's both flawed and dangerous.

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Wonderful Versus Wonder-Free Companies

Jonathan Haidt

Henry Kaufman Visiting Professor in the Business and Society Program Area, New York University Stern School of Business

Should leaders who want to create high-performing companies try to foster feelings of wonder in their employees? The evidence suggests that the answer is yes.

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Brown Is the New Black in Russia

John Feffer

Co-director, Foreign Policy In Focus

The new spring season is just around the corner, and it looks as though the new "in" color is brown. That's brown as in "brown shirts." Perhaps you thought that fascism went out of fashion in the 20th century. But there's nothing like a lingering economic crisis to bring out the vintage ideologies.

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I Didn't Find the American Dream in New York City

Christian Gabriel

Artist, writer and musician

Being poor anywhere sucks, but there's perhaps a particular kind of soul crushing that one experiences being poor in New York City. On average, after rent and bills, I probably had less than three hundred dollars per month to put toward food, other expenses and social activities.

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POLITICS

David Bromwich

Ukraine and Iraq: A Reminder

WORLDPOST

Jill Dougherty

Putin’s Iron-Fisted Message

HEALTHY LIVING

Susan Cain

How to Overcome the Fear of "Putting Yourself Out There"