News and Announcements

As we celebrate this Memorial Day, we should consider some of the important issues facing our service members.

On a national level, an extension of the Veterans Choice Program -- a new, temporary benefit that allows eligible Veterans to receive health care in their communities rather than waiting for a VA appointment or traveling to a VA facility -- has resulted in budget cuts to VA benefits, as a tradeoff. While the merits of proposed tradeoff is certainly debatable, many veteran groups, especially the older VA groups, such as American Legion and Vietnam Veterans of America, have been critical of the proposed cuts because it adversely impacts the older veterans the most.

On a local level, the following initiatives have been introduced to the NYC Council:

1. Int. 1259-2016 to Add Veteran and Military Status to the NYC Human Rights Law.

2. Int. 1304-2016 to Implement the Alternative (School Tax) Exemption for Veterans.

3. Res. 1196-2016 to Support Complete Passage of “Fairness for Veterans Act” Provisions.

4. Int. 1303-2016 to Provide Appropriate Protections for Veteran Street Vendors in “Street Vending Modernization Act.”

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Looking ahead, next month’s calendar offers a chock-full of interesting events, including:

This is a multi-part discussion series examining the ostensibly-sudden rise of nationalism in different parts of the world, including the U.S.

For Part One, we'll explore the current political and socio-economic climate in Europe, including the following:

• "Nationalism" as a political ideology, giving rise to "Ethno-Nationalism" and "religious-based" nationalism.

• The emergence of the "Identitarian movement."

• Influences and precedents from Brexit and Grexit.

• Trends and patterns from key elections in the Netherlands, Austria, France, and Germany.

• Backlash from the refugee crisis, sudden demographic changes, and the recent terrorist attacks.

• When and how "Populism" spills over into "Nationalism."

• When and how "Populism" can trigger to economic and military isolationism.

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** For Parts Two to Four, we'll examine Nationalism in other parts of the world, including in East Asia, India, Russia, Turkey, Latin America, and the U.S.

*** This discussion series will segue into an upcoming discussion on the historical roots of modern "nationalism," stemming out of the Treaty of Versailles and the prelude to World War Two.

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Here's a soundtrack for this discussion:

Columbia Professor Steven Nemerovski will discuss his two-volume book, "“Third Party” -- Volume One: "Starting In The Middle” and Volume Two: "Strange Bedfellows.”

Additionally, Prof. Nemerovski will discuss more about "None Of The Above," an initiative to confront and develop solutions for political dysfunction and polarization.

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EVENT FORMAT:

Part One: intro by Prof. Nemerovski
Part Two: one-on-one interview lead by Thomas
Part Three: Q&A from the audience

Columbia SIPA students will be joining this event.

Discussion topics may include the following:

• Myths and common misconceptions about third parties.

• A viability of a third party in the upcoming election cycles.

• Partisan dilemmas, pitfalls, and strategic challenges for both sides of the isle.

• Historic factors giving rise to the current partisan gridlock.

• What are the sensible reforms for either or both parties?

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For this meeting, we'll read and discuss the Plessy v. Ferguson decision, 163 U.S. 537 (1896).

(Once upon a time, state racial segregation laws for public facilities were upheld and justified, under the doctrine of "Separate But Equal." It was overruled five decades later in Brown v. Board of Ed -- the Brown decision will be discussed in the upcoming LHP series.)

*** PLUS, we'll discuss the confirmation of Justice Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court. We'll discuss his previous high-profile opinions, as well as the political controversy surrounding his nomination and the eventual Parliamentary-rulemaking maneuver for his confirmation.