As I listened, it occurred to me that interest in and affection for the animals that share the planet with us may be a more unifying force than any other.

Those who actually hate animals to the point of being cruel to them are outcasts to the rest of us, no matter where in the world they live.

Perhaps our Irish friends should not so completely turn their backs on their historical dishes, no matter how many jokes they might have to endure.

When runaway inflation and bank failures struck in Germany in the 1920s, the middle class was destroyed, which led directly to the rise of the Nazis.

Our actions in the Middle East over the last 15 years have already guaranteed radical Muslims quite enough ammunition to kill Americans for the next century, even if Guantanamo did not exist.

America has faced much more difficult times, including potential national extinction, without flinching.

Currently, 94 out of 100 of us pay the Social Security tax all year round.