Commentary

Ask someone about the best decade for music and chances are they’ll look back at their adolescence. Baby Boomers believe the greatest music hits were created before 1970. Millennials hold up the 1990s as an exemplar. And for Generation Z, it’s after 2010.

What on earth is happening with young voters? A New York Times/Siena College poll of six battleground states found Joe Biden with a one-point lead over former president Trump among 18 to 29 year old registered voters, representing a 25-point swing from the 2020 election.

With just a few months before the first votes are cast in the Republican primary, Donald Trump commands a 41-point lead according to the polling average calculated by Real Clear Politics. Even more impressive, his lead appears to have grown in recent months. But Trump’s position is more tenuous than it appears.

The rapid increase in liberal identity among young women has led some to speculate that young men are moving in the opposite direction.

When Roe v. Wade was overturned last year, many white evangelical Protestants didn’t just see the Supreme Court’s ruling as a political win — it was a spiritual victory. For decades, religious conservatives have been singularly focused on ending the constitutional right to abortion, a priority that few other demographic groups shared.

Americans are trapped in a loneliness epidemic. Across the country, people are having fewer social interactions, spending more time alone, and reporting fewer close friends.

The issue of abortion could be one of former President Donald Trump’s biggest weaknesses in the Republican primary — and Ron DeSantis is trying to take advantage of it. “He won’t answer whether he would sign it or not,” the governor of Florida said on Tuesday, referring to a ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy.

The United States seems to have lost its way as a country. Americans have generally low regard for our political leaders, little faith in our institutions, and even less in each other. Our politics are defined by acrimony and division.

A full work week. Hours on housework, yard work, time spent with your kids or partner. Then there’s all the time we spend online. Where is the time for friends?

Research shows that the more friends we have, the less likely we are to be depressed or anxious, and work friendships boost productivity and worker retention