Thomas Knapp

Opinion

Op-Ed: The end of privacy is on sale, and we're buying

Thomas Knapp | November 27

Like it or not, these days the reason for the season seems to mostly be: Shopping. Even if you weren't among the millions lining up outside brick and mortar establishments on "Black Friday," you've probably got your eyes peeled for holiday deals on the web. The hottest bargains this year come with microphones and the promise that those microphones will put the world at your beck and call. Amazon's Alexa-powered line of devices and Google's new Home appliance augur an increasingly voice-powered world.

Protestors stand together against the Dakota Access Pipeline at the University of New Mexico Thursday, Sept. 8, 2016.

Opinion

Op-Ed: Dakota Access vs. the American Way

Thomas Knapp | October 30

CNN reports that protesters from around the world continue to congregate in North Dakota in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux and their struggle to stop construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline through (or placed so as to negatively affect) tribal lands. The issues and the divide between sides seem to be fairly conventional: Promises of jobs and economic growth motivate the pipeline's supporters. Its opponents cite environmental concerns (especially the prospective damage to tribal lands) and allege violations of the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 in Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners' wheedling of land use permissions out of federal and state governments.

Opinion

Op-Ed: Farm Follies: The Cheese Stands Alone (With Its Hand Out)

Thomas Knapp | August 29

On August 23, the US Department of Agriculture announced its plan to purchase 11 million pounds of cheese, at a cost of $20 million. The cheese will be "provided to families in need through USDA nutrition assistance programs," but the real purpose of the purchase is to reduce excess cheese inventories, "assisting the stalled marketplace for dairy producers whose revenues have dropped 35 percent over the past two years.

Op-Ed: The end of privacy is on sale, and we're buying

Op-Ed: Dakota Access vs. the American Way

Op-Ed: Farm Follies: The Cheese Stands Alone (With Its Hand Out)

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