Anthony Picciano

Dear Commons Community,

Elaine and I are traveling to Paris today on our way to Bayeux, Normandy where we will stay for six days.  We are looking forward to taking in the sights of this beautiful small […]

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The New York Daily News commented on  Donald Trump’s wild Wednesday when the President stomped out of a meeting with Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats and did an impromptu press co […]

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Speakers this time of the year are fond of saying that graduations are a commencement — a start, not a finish — but yesterday’s 112th commencement was the end of the College of New Roc […]

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The Chronicle of Higher Education has a an article on Victoria Bateman, an economics historian at the University of Cambridge, who strips naked at various professional events […]

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The New York State Legislature is taking aim at restricting President Trump’s presidential pardon powers.  Yesterday it passed legislation tightening a “double-jeopardy loophole” that c […]

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For those of us who are fans of Robert Caro biographies, his new book, Working: Researching, Interviewing, Writing, is a gem.  In it, he gives us  more than a look at his research t […]

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This past week we heard a lot of saber-rattling among White House staffers and especially from National Security Adviser John Bolton.  Maureen Dowd in her New York Times column […]

Robert F. Smith
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Robert F. Smith, the billionaire investor who founded Vista Equity Partners and became the richest black man in America, told the crowd at commencement exercises at […]

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Dozens of graduates and faculty protested the selection of Vice President Mike Pence as the commencement speaker at Taylor University in Indiana yesterday by walking out moments before […]

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Representative  Justin Amash is the first Republican to call for the impeachment of President Donald Trump.   He came to that conclusion after reading the full report from special co […]

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The backlash against the new anti-abortion law passed this week in Alabama has been furious especially among Democrats, progressives, and women’s rights groups. However, it was s […]

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The College Board announced yesterday that the SAT  will be adding  an “adversity score” to test results to help level the playing field for students of diverse social and econo […]

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New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio entered the 2020 Democratic presidential primary this morning.  As reported by CNN:

“De Blasio’s Thursday entrance into the race, which was fi […]

Sackler Family Donation at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art announced yesterday that it would stop accepting gifts from members of the Sackler family […]

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The Associated Press is reporting that Democrat Elizabeth Warren is saying no to a televised town hall on Fox News and slamming the network as “a hate-for-profit racket that gives a […]

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Alabama is one signature away from enacting a near-total ban on abortions after the state Senate passed a controversial bill that makes performing the procedure a felony […]

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For many New Yorkers, Trump Tower once represented the pinnacle of luxury living.

Celebrities such as Steven Spieberg and Johnny Carson called the tower home.

But now, […]

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The Chronicle of Higher Education has recently released a special report entitled, “The Outsourced University: How Public-Private Partnerships Can Benefit Your Campus,” that provides an […]

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Valerie A. Smith, Swarthmore College’s president, said in a written statement on Friday that, based on a  task force’s recommendations, the college would no longer allow Greek life on i […]

Dear Commons Community,

Last month the National Rifle Association showed that there was a deep rift within its leadership between former NRA President Oliver North and CEO Wayne LaPierre.  A series of […]