PROFILE
FROM Peter Wood
Who Shapes American History? The College Board designs advance placement courses for high-school students, providing what critics call a monopoly on American History. But historians disagree about slavery, the rationale for various wars, the nature of government and what’s called "American Exceptionalism." College Board standards set last year were called "unpatriotic" by conservatives, including the Republican National Committee, which accused the Board of a "radically revisionist view…the emphasizes negative aspects of our nation’s history while omitting or minimizing positive aspects." Now they have been revised--but the controversy is not going away. Is "neutrality" even possible?
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Janesville and the American Dream Janesville, Wisconsin is the hometown of Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan. But he couldn’t prevent the closing of the General Motors factory after 100 years. On this Memorial Day rebroadcast of To the Point, we hear what’s happened to what once was a model of American middle-class unity.
Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder Just days before an election, Britain is coping with a rash of deadly terrorism, and Prime Minister Theresa May is on the defensive. And again today, President Trump has tweeted criticism of the Mayor of London. Later, a double murder in Portland, Oregon has revealed the ugly past of a supposedly “progressive” city. One immediate question: is “hate speech” protected by the First Amendment?
The longest US war: Will Trump send more troops to Afghanistan? The Trump White House is divided over the Pentagon's request for more troops in Afghanistan—where the US has been fighting for the past 16 years. Is there a formula -- either for "victory" or a political settlement? Is there an end in sight for America's longest war?
Replacing Obamacare: Now you see it… now you don’t As the Senate deliberates replacing Obmacare, health coverage for millions of people is at stake. There've been no public hearings, and a draft measure won't be made public. Is the House version so unpopular that that Senate is hiding a version that looks much the same?