‘One sentence in the Constitution is causing America huge problems’
David French at The New York Times
Many of the “Constitution’s flaws remain hidden when America is governed by decent men but become obvious and dangerous when it is not,” says David French. Nowhere are “those flaws more apparent than in Article II, the article that created the American presidency. We should consider a change.” It “immediately raises two questions: What is executive power? And crucially, what are its limits?” Our “nation is not supposed to have coequal branches. Congress is supposed to reign supreme.”
‘Why we often blame violent acts on mental illness’
Victor Petreca at Time
Within “hours of any mass shooting, high-profile murder, or targeted attack, a familiar speculation about the perpetrator’s mental state begins,” says Victor Petreca. The “verdict is in before the facts: This person must be mentally ill.” This “reflexive response serves a comforting, but dangerous, purpose.” It “provides the rest of us with the reassuring fiction that such acts stem from a diagnosable condition rather than from the darker possibilities that exist within ordinary human behavior.”
‘Putin must return Ukraine’s children’
Irwin Redlener at Newsweek
This is “precisely the moment for Vladimir Putin to demonstrate that he is serious about ending the war in Ukraine,” says Irwin Redlener. Imagine “if the Russian leader were to announce not only a commitment to peace but also an unconditional pledge to return the 20,000 Ukrainian children his forces have illegally abducted.” There “must be no ambiguity: A credible peace agreement requires the unconditional return of every abducted child. Anything less would legitimize kidnapping.”
‘I have a secret trick to beat the crowds at national parks’
Abby McIntyre at Slate
What national park “sorcery allowed us to beat the crowds in peak season? All it took was an alarm clock,” says Abby McIntyre. The “early bird gets the worm, and the early national parks visitor gets a hassle-free experience.” That “means you are going to have to get up early, especially if you are staying far away from the park, but the reward is more than worth it.” Get in “early, and you’ll still have a good time.”
Opinion, comment and editorials of the day