Two weeks ago prosecutors released a 261-page grand jury indictment detailing horrific crimes against poor minority women and their newborns at an abortion clinic in West Philadelphia.

Prosecutors charged Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 69, with eight counts of murder in the deaths of Karnamaya Mongar, 41, a refugee from Nepal, who received high doses of anesthetic for an illegal late-term abortion performed in 2009 and the murder of seven infants who were born, killed and then disposed of in Gosnell’s clinic, the Women’s Medical Society.

In listening to President Obama’s “State of the Union Address” this year, one of the things that struck me is how many of us have been taken in by this whole hoopla around “…big government is bad; small government is good…” In fact, much of what Obama suggested was a contradiction in terms whereby he was advocating greater investment in the future, while at the same time, slashing budgets and freezing wages. So, let me offer a few thoughts.

First, what no one in elite politics seems to want to talk about is that the budget deficit and debt are largely the result of the reckless spending of the Bush administration in getting us into two wars, compounded by declining revenues as a result of the Great Recession. Thus, the discussions about cutting domestic spending in order to address the deficit miss the point entirely. To address the deficit, we really need to end the wars and occupations.

Dear Editor:

As a longtime Pittsburgh jazz vocalist and lover of jazz I was quite saddened to hear of the decision of Duquesne University to sell WDUQ Radio. I have found their format of jazz and news to be a most wonderful mix for our city. Its ratings apparently show that I was not the only listener who felt that way. In that ‘DUQ’ has for many years been the leader in jazz in this market, any significant loss of jazz at 90.5 FM would, in so many ways, be a death knell for the life of jazz in the region.

(NNPA)—The cry for change and freedom across Egypt sheds a prophetic light on the future of the entire continent of Africa.  As the media from around the world continues to be focused on the massive street demonstrations that called for a change of the leadership in Egypt, it is incumbent for African-Americans to see the broader socioeconomic, political, and cultural implications.  Egypt is one of the oldest nations in the world.  It has a diverse population of more than 80 million people.  While the Western media characterizes Egypt as an Arab nation located in the Middle East, it is actually located in Northern Africa and is an African nation.