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Don't worry! Trump is the Pillsbury Doughboy

By Paul Callan
Paul Callan calls on Thanksgiving Parade balloon metaphor to comfort liberal friends as Trump era looms: Trump, with long record of flexible, malleable views, won't bring down the republic.
alt right gathering hail trump sot ac _00001816.jpg

When deviance comes to America

By Ethan Zuckerman
Trump, Steve Bannon have helped white supremacist views force way into realm of legitimate discourse. How can citizens disagree democratically when we no longer seem to know what's beyond the pale?, asks Ethan Zuckerman.
A school bus is carried away Tuesday, November 22, in Chattanooga, Tennessee from the site where it crashed on Monday. The bus driver, Johnthony Walker, has been arrested on charges including vehicular homicide, reckless driving and reckless endangerment.

What Tennessee laws say about bus crash

By Danny Cevallos
Danny Cevallos: if convicted, Chattanooga school bus driver Johnthony Walker will face a prison sentence shaped by Tennessee's counterintuitive legal standards.

What Moana gets right (Opinion)

By Jeff Yang
New movie Moana shows the incredible depth and richness that the world offers when we invite others in to share their stories, writes Jeff Yang.
MANCHESTER, NH - APRIL 12: Donald Trump speaks at the Freedom Summit at The Executive Court Banquet Facility April 12, 2014 in Manchester, New Hampshire. The Freedom Summit held its inaugural event where national conservative leaders bring together grassroots activists on the eve of tax day. Photo by Darren McCollester/Getty Images)

Trump's welcome mat for extremism

By Frida Ghitis
As he prepares for office, Donald Trump is showing worrying signs that the excesses of his campaign were a sign of things to come, says Frida Ghitis.
CLEVELAND, OH - JULY 19: Donald Trump Jr. (L), along with Ivanka Trump (2nd-L), Eric Trump (2nd-R) and Tiffany Trump (R), take part in the roll call in support of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on the second day of the Republican National Convention on July 19, 2016 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. An estimated 50,000 people are expected in Cleveland, including hundreds of protesters and members of the media. The four-day Republican National Convention kicked off on July 18. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Nepotism looms over presidency

By Ted Galen Carpenter
Nepotism is nothing new in the history of the US presidency, but the Trump administration looks as though it may be especially susceptible, says Ted Carpenter.
ROME, ITALY - DECEMBER 08: Pope Francis prays in front of the statue of the Immaculate Conceptionon at Spanish Steps December 8, 2013 in Rome, Italy. Following a tradition laid out by his predecessors, Pope Francis celebrated the Feast of the Immaculate Conception by travelling to Spanish Steps where he venerated the statue named for the Marian Feast. The statue of the Immaculate Conception was consecrated on December 8, 1857 several years after the dogma which states that Mary was conceived without the stain of original sin was adopted by the Church. (Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Images)

Did Pope's abortion letter send another message?

By Heidi Schlumpf
Beyond extending priests' ability to forgive abortion, the pontiiff may be signaling, after the American election, that Catholics should widen their focus to refugees and poor, writes Heidi Schlumpf.

How should we respond to our own deaths?

By Robert Klitzman
The case of a 14-year-old girl who asked that her body be cryopreserved after her death raises important questions about life and death, writes Robert Klitzman.
ST. PAUL, MN - JULY 07: A couple hold a sign protesting the killing of Philando Castile outside the Governor's Mansion on July 7, 2016 in St. Paul, Minnesota. Castile was shot and killed the previous night by a police officer in Falcon Heights, MN. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

It matters what police are thinking

By Joey Jackson
CNN legal analyst Joey Jackson explains the significance of the charges in the death of Philando Castile, in the context of recent violence by and against police officers.

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                QAQORTOQ, GREENLAND - JULY 30: Calved icebergs from the nearby Twin Glaciers are seen floating on the water on July 30, 2013 in Qaqortoq, Greenland. Boats are a crucial mode of transportation in the country that has few roads. As cities like Miami, New York and other vulnerable spots around the world strategize about how to respond to climate change, many Greenlanders simply do what theyve always done: adapt. 'Were used to change, said Greenlander Pilu Neilsen. 'We learn to adapt to whatever comes. If all the glaciers melt, well just get more land. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
                QAQORTOQ, GREENLAND - JULY 30: Calved icebergs from the nearby Twin Glaciers are seen floating on the water on July 30, 2013 in Qaqortoq, Greenland. Boats are a crucial mode of transportation in the country that has few roads. As cities like Miami, New York and other vulnerable spots around the world strategize about how to respond to climate change, many Greenlanders simply do what theyve always done: adapt. 'Were used to change, said Greenlander Pilu Neilsen. 'We learn to adapt to whatever comes. If all the glaciers melt, well just get more land. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

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                  QAQORTOQ, GREENLAND - JULY 30: Calved icebergs from the nearby Twin Glaciers are seen floating on the water on July 30, 2013 in Qaqortoq, Greenland. Boats are a crucial mode of transportation in the country that has few roads. As cities like Miami, New York and other vulnerable spots around the world strategize about how to respond to climate change, many Greenlanders simply do what theyve always done: adapt. 'Were used to change, said Greenlander Pilu Neilsen. 'We learn to adapt to whatever comes. If all the glaciers melt, well just get more land. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

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                The most important number you've never heard of

                By John D. Sutter, CNN
                If the world warms more than 2 degrees Celsius, we're all in a lot of trouble. See how you can get involved below.

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                      Official portrait of President Barack Obama in the Oval Office, Dec. 6, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) This official White House photograph is being made available only for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photograph. The photograph may not be manipulated in any way and may not be used in commercial or political materials, advertisements, emails, products, promotions that in any way suggests approval or endorsement of the President, the First Family, or the White House.

                      Barack Obama: America will take the giant leap to Mars

                      By Barack Obama
                      One of my earliest memories is sitting on my grandfather's shoulders, waving a flag as our astronauts returned to Hawaii. This was years before we'd set foot on the moon. Decades before we'd land a rover on Mars. A generation before photos from the International Space Station would show up in our social media feeds.
                      MADISON, WI - JUNE 28: A research specialist at the AIDS Vaccine Research Labs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison processes blood samples taken from pregnant rhesus macaque monkeys infected with the Zika virus on June 28, 2016 in Madison, Wisconsin. Researchers at the University released a study today detailing how research at the facility has found the Zika virus persisted in the blood of pregnant monkeys for 30 to 70 days but only around 7 days in others. The study also found that monkeys previously infected with the virus were resistant to a second infection, which suggests the animals have a naturally occurring immunity. Health professionals in the United States are preparing for the possibility of an epidemic of Zika which can be transmitted by mosquitoes. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

                      Could Zika be the next HIV?

                      By Laurie Garrett
                      Global health expert Laurie Garrett evaluates the very real risk that Zika, like HIV or Ebola, will become widespread as a sexually transmitted disease
                      An all-gender restroom at Santee High School in Los Angeles, California.

                      'We need a restroom revolution'

                      By John D. Sutter, CNN
                      Before I launch into the argument for making all restrooms in the United States gender neutral -- that is, removing "men's" and "women's" labels -- I want to show you a photo.
                      LAS VEGAS, NV - FEBRUARY 02: Donald Trump speaks to members of the media before endorsing Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney at the Trump International Hotel & Tower Las Vegas February 2, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Romney came in first in the Florida primary on January 31 and is looking ahead to Nevada's caucus on February 4. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

                      The four big questions about Donald Trump

                      By Michael D'Antonio
                      Now that he's likely GOP candidate, voters must scrutinize Trump's claims of success, his political beliefs, temperament and character, says Michael D'Antonio.
                      President Richard Nixon meets with Elvis Presley on December 21, 1970 at the White House.

                      Which generation has it worse?

                      Editor's Note: Generation whining has become nearly a national pastime. Millennials say they have it the worst. Generation X feels neglected. Baby boomers are tired of being called narcissistic. In articles and cartoons everywhere -- from CNN to The New York Times to Gizmodo and beyond -- critics call out this generation's sense of entitlement, that generation's self-absorption. We invited writers, activists and CNN contributors from different generations to hash it out.
                      Mosaic of the Valles Marineris hemisphere of Mars projected into point perspective, a view similar to that which one would see from a spacecraft. The distance is 2500 kilometers from the surface of the planet, with the scale being .6km/pixel. The mosaic is composed of 102 Viking Orbiter images of Mars. The center of the scene (lat -8, long 78) shows the entire Valles Marineris canyon system, over 2000 kilometers long and up to 8 kilometers deep, extending form Noctis Labyrinthus, the arcuate system of graben to the west, to the chaotic terrain to the east. Many huge ancient river channels begin from the chaotic terrain from north-central canyons and run north. The three Tharsis volcanoes (dark red spots), each about 25 kilometers high, are visible to the west. South of Valles Marineris is very ancient terrain covered by many impact craters. : NASA/JPL-Caltech

                      Is it ethical to colonize Mars?

                      By Brian Patrick Green
                      With the recent NASA announcement of liquid water flowing on Mars and the movie "The Martian" making a splash at the box office, we might well ask whether humans should go to Mars.

                      Why can't America have high-speed trains?

                      By Michael Smart
                      Imagine being able to travel from New York to Los Angeles without having to step on a plane, yet be able to do so in a fraction of the time it would take to drive. On the surface, that tantalizing prospect took a step closer with the news last month that a Japanese maglev train had reached a top speed of close to 400 mph, breaking its own world record in the process.

                      Ready for the marriage apocalypse?

                      By Carol Costello, Anchor
                      The marriage apocalypse may be coming. Talk to any millennial and you can envision an America virtually marriage-free, with everyone happily single.
                      Beautiful clouds over the sea

                      Why you don't need God

                      By Ryan Bell
                      Atheists are accused of having no source of meaning in their lives, but it is popular Christian theology that saps the meaning from our daily experiences.
                      Powerful businesswoman standing with back with business team at background.

                      Why more women choose not to marry

                      Pepper Schwartz
                      Some revolutions happen in a single day; others over decades. The rise of the voluntarily single woman has been happening in Western societies slowly, over time, concomitant with well-paying jobs, legal protection from economic or physical abuse, reliable birth control and the possibility of fulfilling careers and adventures.