#American

The American political system is under attack from far-right extremists and white supremacists. This battle for the democracy and diversity that define America has already spilled into violence and insurrection. It begins not in the streets but in the shadows of online chat rooms and social networking sites that spread lies and disinformation, foment anger and hatred, and coordinate dangerous action.

On Thursday, President Joe Biden signed into law the federal government's addition of Juneteenth to its list of paid holidays. The move paves the way for greater acknowledgement of a day that has slowly been gaining traction in the American consciousness.

It was tempting to view Thursday's signing of the Juneteenth bill and the Supreme Court's rebuff to an Obamacare challenge as a signal that progressives have history on their side -- and that there's more to come. But commentators noted that it's also impossible to ignore the long record of reversals that have followed progress on race and social reform.

Some 30 years ago, Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon were propelled to new heights of stardom for their leading roles in crime drama Thelma & Louise. In the 1991 film, the American actors played two women whose characters' journey challenged traditional notions of femininity. Now Hollywood royalty, the pair attended...

The American drummer Roger Hawkins was never a flashy performer. Playing his part on such hit records as Aretha Franklin’s I Never Loved a Man (the Way I Love You), Respect and I Say a Little Prayer, Percy Sledge’s When a Man Loves a Woman, Wilson Pickett’s Mustang Sally and the Staple Singers’ Respect Yourself, he simply found the essential groove of a song and made it stick. That instinct made Hawkins, who has died aged 75, particularly prized by singers and record producers who knew that he would find a way of making their great song even greater.

Since he took office, President Biden has been the opposite of his predecessor. He has under-promised and over-performed, nominated diverse judges, reassumed U.S. leadership in the world, stayed out of phony cultural fights and supported inclusion and racial justice. This week, he managed to check most of those boxes. The...

Even with all those screaming cicadas, you can hear the rumblings of disappointment in Democratic Washington — complaints that President Biden is too willing to compromise, that he’s not moving boldly enough on progressive priorities. The reality, though, is that Biden may be the only thing standing between his party’s...

Simone Manuel and Nathan Adrian own a combined 44 Olympic and world championships medals. Their Tokyo fates should come down to fractions of a second on the final day of U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials on Sunday. Manuel and Adrian must finish in the top two of their 50m freestyle finals...

Deloitte has announced the opening of the second cohort in its launchpad program for Israeli growth-stage startups aiming to expand operations in the U.S. market. This equity-free 7-week program is designed to help seven selected Israeli growth-stage companies contend with central challenges founders face upon entry to the U.S. market and adjust to the 'new normal' in the aftermath of the pandemic. The selected companies will benefit from working closely with senior members of both Deloitte U.S and Deloitte Israel and the program will provide personalized content to address important topics such as strategy for expansion, building a solid foundation for a future relocation, creating a solid sales infrastructure, and access to top tier venture capital funds in the U.S.

In the months leading up to Jan. 28, 1986, the day the space shuttle Challenger crashed, killing everyone onboard, there were ominous portents. As journalist Kevin Cook recounts in his solid, gripping new book, “The Burning Blue: The Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and NASA’s Challenger Disaster,” the bad signs piled up: A teenage gunman had entered the New Hampshire high school where McAuliffe taught social studies and was killed by police after taking hostages. When McAuliffe and other astronaut hopefuls took a trip to an amusement park, a young employee, trying to impress them, got tangled in the machinery of a ride and died.

Several passengers were removed from American Airlines flight 1174 from Philadelphia to Miami on Saturday after a man threw up in the coach lavatory prior to departure. Robert G. was on board on a paid first class ticket sitting in 2B. He had noticed the sick man with what he described as “a weird walk” when they were still at the gate. As the man was coming forward from the back of the plane he stopped at row two and vomited all over this first class passenger.

McDonald’s operates in 39,000 locations in 100 countries. Its “home”, the U.S. still has the largest number at 13,439 locations. The number of stores varies widely, mostly based on state population. McDonald’s was started as a restaurant by Richard and Maurice McDonald in 1940 in San Bernardino, California. It grew...