March 2024

It is not easy to hide when you are a runaway Russian spy. It is even harder to hide when your hiding spot happens to be an island in northern Finnmark whose population hovers right around 70 people [1]. Hiding becomes nearly impossible when you are also a 14 foot long, 2,700-pound beluga whale.

Last December, I wrote about the underlying causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in light of the recent violence in Gaza. Since then, the death toll has risen to nearly 30,000 people, including over 10,000 children [1]. Seventy percent of all homes in Gaza have been destroyed [2]. Millions of Gazans have been displaced, most crowding in the southern city of Rafah, squeezed against the Egyptian border, unable to escape [3]. Israel has promised to launch a ground invasion of Rafah if Hamas does not free all hostages by March 10 [4]. Calls for a ceasefire in the UN have been vetoed by the United States [5]. Israel has been accused of genocide in the International Court of Justice [6]. Experts have called Israel’s bombing of Gaza the most destructive bombing campaign in recent history [7].

In BYU’s last graduating class, about 11% were considered first generation students [1]. Although there are many ways people consider what a first generation student is, it is generally accepted that the parents of these students did not complete a four year college degree, or that they have had very little exposure to college growing up [2]. Many times, these students face specific challenges that add more stress and unfamiliarity to an already challenging college experience. Studies show that the largest obstacles for these students are “lack of college readiness, familial support, and financial stability, racial underrepresentation, low academic self-esteem, and difficulty adjusting to college.” [3] This can be especially true if both parents are immigrants from another country.

Government bureaucracies, often criticized for their inefficiency, are a burden on taxpayers compared to the private sector. The debate over the size of America's public sector and whether to cut back on government agencies is paramount, especially when considering international comparisons. I think that the United States' expansive public sector is bloated and overly burdensome, leading to excessive spending and inefficiency. Why is this the case?

As the nation prepares for yet another presidential election matchup between Donald Trump and Joe Biden–a scenario where the two oldest presidents ever elected to first terms face off against each other again–it's hard not to notice that the average age of our candidates seems to be creeping higher and higher. That President Biden and former President Trump are both well into their early eighties and late seventies, respectively, begs the question: are we stuck with old geezers as the only viable options for leading the free world?

In the 1900s, the now largely abandoned dependency theory ruled the study of international relations. It claimed that developing nations were economically dependent on developed (mostly European) nations that benefited off of that dependency. As such, it was in the interest of developed nations to control and limit the development of poorer countries and the interest of those poorer nations to become independent from the developed world. Import Substitution Industrialization (ISI) is an economic policy that many developing nations applied during these years to overcome their dependence on the developed world. ISI meant, as the name suggests, substituting importation of secondary goods from the developed world with domestic industrialization and emphasized state support of specific industries. Some countries in Latin America (such as Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico) and Eastern Asia (such as Japan, South Korea, and China) implemented the policy. Notably, while in Latin America this policy made little difference, the countries in Eastern Asia that applied ISI have become world powers and significant global trade partners. Why?

As a church, service is a key tenet of what we believe and practice. After all, pure religion is to “visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction” [1]. Beyond that, Americans are a generous people. We ranked third most generous in the world in 2022, giving just over $499 billion [5]. Giving, whether of time or money, is good, and it generally makes us feel good. Yet I’m sure many of us have felt ambivalence of one sort or another while giving. Recently, I participated in a stake food-packing activity—with three one-hour shifts, they cut off the work about 20 minutes into our shift to save some work for the next shift. Was this type of service really helping anyone?

At 34, Taylor Swift has a net worth of 1.1 billion dollars, over 280 million followers on Instagram, and 14 Grammys. [1] Her Eras Tour alone has generated over $1 billion and her public relationship with football star, Travis Kelce, has propelled her even further into the public eye. Whether you’re a fan of hers or not, you’re likely to understand that her prowess has an impact on the lives of many across the world. While earning a career as a singer and songwriter, some begin to question, with all of this influence, should she move beyond singing and begin using her platform to address political issues? While I think that she absolutely does have a role to play in promoting social justice, equality, civic engagement, etc. I think it’s unfair of us to expect her to have a stance on every issue (whether the magnitude) when we don’t hold ourselves to the same level of accountability.

On a freezing December day in 2020, I realized the government had a technology problem. My mission companion and I had dropped by a friend’s house for a visit, but noticed sounds coming from a car in the driveway. Sure enough, our friend and her 15-year-old daughter were sitting inside, surrounded by piles of blankets and enough food for several days. As it did for many people, COVID-19 brought dramatic upheaval to her life, and she ended up unable to pay her bills. Technically, anticipating several weeks of bitter cold, the state of Indiana had passed a bill that would allow people like her to have emergency energy assistance. The assistance required her to fill out an online form–an interesting choice, considering that the program was aimed at rural people unable to pay bills, the very folks least likely to have reliable internet. When she went to the library to fill out the form, she found that she couldn’t submit the form due to problems with the sign-in process. The help for which she should have qualified was inaccessible.