March 21—This AP Press article looks at American citizens killed by police tactics, such as that used by Derek Chauvin against George Floyd, which are not expressly intended to be lethal. Contraty to popular conceptions, the problem is not confined to "White" on "Black" policing but affects every racilaized demographic. As a token of just how violent policing is in the United States, a Wikipedia article listing citizens killed by police in the United Kingdom from 2010 - 2019 lists 26 total victims (yes, that isn't a typo).

March 21—The Economic Policy Institute reports that workers at the low end of the income scale experienced post-pandemic wage growth not seen in the U.S. for decades. The think tank notes, however, that millions still work for less that a living wage, and point to the need for worker-centered policy to assure continued progress in this major social democratic priority.

March 7—This AP article look at problems in the UK's single-payer healthcare system reminds us that for social democracy to really work, it must be implemented efficiently.

March 5—Though TSD would never question but that the United States is a working democracy, there are several respects in which our democracy could be improved. One of these is the primary system, which gives outsized influence to voters living in early primary states. This AP articles looks at the issue on the even of Super Tuesday.

January 3—This Reuters article looks at the state of play with the green energy transition in the United States since the passage of the Biden administration's Inflation Reduction Act. Though high interest rates, inflation and supply chain bottlenecks have fostered delays, informed observers still see steady progress.

January 3—While Republican presidential candidates denigrate the Biden administration's push for electric vehicles, the economies of important swing states are benefiting significantly from the $128 billion in EV investment spawned by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

December 29—Significant strides were made around the world over the last year in moving away from a carbon-based energy economy to one based on non-polluting, renewable resources. This AP article evaluates the state of play at the end of 2023.

December 28—This Reuters article describes how, with frontal court challenges to restrictive abortion laws having largely played out, abortion-rights advocates are focusing on exceptions for medical emergencies and the right, now challenged in some anti-abortion states, to travel to other states for the procedure.

December 28—Two articles, one from Reuters and the other from AP News, look at the record of the 117th Congress in 2023. In a year marked by divided government and intra-party chaos among Republicans in the House, little of substance was accomplished.

December 01—In this article, AP News offers a primer on how delegates are selected to attend the major parties' nominating conventions.

November 17—This article from Governing.com looks at how localities will be using funds from the Biden administration-sponsored 2021 Infrastructure bill to come up with ways to reduce the horrid toll in human suffering—42,939 deaths and 2.5 million injuries in 2021—caused by America's car culture. The Social Democrat sees traffic deaths and fatalities as an under-reported crisis of modern America and supports all efforts to create built environments geared toward people, safety and comfort, not merely machinery and speed.

In the wake of Republican setbacks in Ohio and Virginia, this Reuters article explains, strategists from both major parties agree that Republican attempts to narrowly restrict abortion rights has become a liability for the GOP. Pragmatic Republican pols will be seeking a middle ground between the Roe second-trimester threshold and draconian measures designed to completely end abortion access.

November 5—This Governing article looks at primary challenges to far-left candidates from more centrist Democrats in local elections around the country. Chatham University political scientist Jennie Sweet-Cushman is quoted as saying, "There's this shift for voters in [Allegheny County, PA] where the [Demcratic] party has moved so left in many ways that they're starting to entertain more moderate Republicans." For more on the county executive race in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh), seen by some as a bellwether for the nation, see this Washington Post link: "How a Pittsburgh county election foreshadows the 2024 presidential race".

November 3—A vital component of social democracy is the preparation of youth for viable career paths. Maryland, under Democratic leadership, is addressing the issue as it creates a Blueprint for Maryland's Future: with more technical education, apprenticeships and better tracking of career readiness. A report from Maryland Matters.

November 1—If you're mystified by concepts like the "Fed balance sheet" or "open market operations," CNN offers a primer on one of the key mechanisms by which the federal government tries to control inflation while maintaining the economy as close to full employment as possible.