Articles by: Nancy Spannaus
By Nancy Spannaus May 20, 2020—Almost two months ago, the U.S. Congress passed the CARES Act, which committed to spending half a trillion dollars for relief of states and municipalities. Yesterday, the two Administration officials responsible for allocating that money told the Senate Banking Committee that they were still planning […]
By Nancy Spannaus May 8, 2020—Over the front steps of the National Postal Museum in Washington, D.C. is engraved the following message: Carrier of News and Knowledge Instrument of Trade & Industry Promoter of Mutual Acquaintance Of peace and of good will among men and nations. Are you surprised? This […]
By Nancy Spannaus April 22, 2020—An op-ed by two economists in the April 12 edition of the Dallas Morning News put forward a message of hope for navigating the current virus-sparked crisis in the United States. “The founders faced economic collapse after the American Revolution. We can learn from their […]
By Nancy Spannaus April 14, 2020—On April 14, 1876, the great orator and champion of ending slavery, Frederick Douglass, keynoted the dedication of the Freedman’s Memorial in Washington, D.C. On this anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, I am reprinting the full commemorative speech below. The Freedman’s Memorial , also called […]
In Memoriam By Nancy Spannaus April 12, 2020—It was 75 years ago today that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt departed this life. His relatively early death at the age of 63 meant that much of his vision for bringing the United States and the world into a new era of prosperity […]
By Nancy Spannaus April 9, 2020—The editorial in the April 8 online newsletter of the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) calls for a “Bold Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic” by the creation of a program of national service for public health. This FDR-style idea deserves immediate attention and action. […]
A Book for Our Time of Crisis April 5, 2020—A horrific crisis we could have minimized, if not avoided, is already upon us, but this is no time to simply sit back and let it proceed. It’s time to read my book Hamilton Versus Wall Street: The Core Principles of […]
By Nancy Spannaus March 18, 2020—American journalist Andrew Spannaus updated his report on the fight against the coronavirus in Italy yesterday. His conclusion: The country is “on the brink” of seeing its hospital system overwhelmed. (His full report can be found on Consortium News) Given that Italy is a G-7 […]
By Nancy Spannaus March 17, 2020—The United States, and its predecessor colonies, have ample historical precedents for taking aggressive action to protect public health. It’s high time we put appropriate modern versions into effect. One of the first significant actions came during the Revolutionary War itself. The Continental Army had […]
By Nancy Spannaus June 14, 2020—On March 31, Representative Danny Davis (D-Ill) introduced a new bill calling for the creation of a National Infrastructure Bank. H.R. 6422 is cosponsored by Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass); it has been referred to a several Congressional Committees for deliberation. The bill’s magnitude and import […]
Lessons Still to Be Learned By Angela Vullo May 31, 2020–Those of us who never bought into the last 50-year economic shift into de-industrialization and financial speculation should not be shocked at the social unrest which has been unleashed in our country. The murder of George Floyd, a Minneapolis black […]
What Would George Washington Have Done?
By Nancy Spannaus May 2, 2020—The upsurge of public demonstrations against the public health measures being taken to slow the spread of COVID-19 – and even denouncing them as “tyranny” — triggered this question in my mind: What would George Washington have done in the face of such resistance? General […]