New Orleans       The off-year election returns in the United States are a stark reminder about what happens to political power when it is forced to measure its weight in democratic elections.  In elections, votes are actually counted.  Unlike courts appointments, the packing of the judiciary or gerrymandering, when a party can draw magic …

            Marble Falls      A little more than a year out from the US election, it’s getting really scary out there.  The sides are forming, and there’s little middle ground, with the space in between often being filled with little more than the impunity of power answering only, “because I could.” Sure, the top of …