Mitchell Bard, 02/24/13

Writer and Filmmaker

Republicans in Congress are willing to take the pocketbooks of the American people hostage, all to try and ransom spending and entitlement cuts that would, in the opinion of many economists, cause further economic damage to all but the wealthiest Americans.

Dr. Dean Ornish, 02/25/13

Medical editor, The Huffington Post; Founder and president, Preventive Medicine Research Institute

An article just published in the New England Journal of Medicine claims that a Mediterranean diet is much more effective than a "low-fat diet" in preventing cardiovascular disease. A careful reading of the study reveals that this is simply not true.

Michelangelo Signorile, 02/25/13

Editor-at-large, HuffPost Gay Voices

It's unlikely that Pope Benedict resigned because he was pushed out by an all-powerful "gay lobby" within the Vatican; it's more probable that that at 85 years old, he is simply not up to the task of purging the church of the secret gays whom the Vatican sees as the cause of its problems.

Anna Leahy and Douglas Dechow, 02/24/13

If we can hear the constituents of the universe, we must remember that we, too, are part of this universe. The Earth emanates natural and manmade radio waves. What do we sound like?

Robert Reich, 02/25/13

Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy, University of California at Berkeley; Author, 'Beyond Outrage'

President Obama has the bully pulpit. Americans trust him more than they do congressional Republicans. But he is letting micro-tactics get in the way of the larger truth.

Dr. Peggy Drexler, 02/23/13

Author, research psychologist and gender scholar

Kids who have no desire to entertain themselves -- or even any idea how -- are increasingly common. Parents are confused, because isn't that why they bought all those racing cars, coloring books, puzzles, and Legos stashed in the playroom?

John Pavley, 02/25/13

CTO @ The Huffington Post, Blogger

As a society we talk about outsourcing, downsizing, and retraining but not specifically how important is for everyone everywhere to learn some coding skills. The world as a whole is barreling down a path where those who know how to code will own those who don't.

Matthew Hutson, 02/25/13

Science writer; author, 'The 7 Laws of Magical Thinking'

A bat and a ball cost $1.10 in total. The bat costs $1.00 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost? Your answer to this question will help me guess whether you believe in God.

Michael Russnow, 02/25/13

Screenwriter; former member, WGAW Board of Directors; former U.S. Senate aide

MacFarlane is a very, very funny guy, I love his TV shows, but sometimes what might seem funny in your head or even in your living room might better go unsaid.

Ralph Nader, 02/25/13

Consumer advocate, lawyer and author

Large corporations have essentially become private governments with an enormous effect on the lives and livelihoods of Americans, but without any accountability to them.

Lisa Belkin, 02/23/13

Senior Columnist on Life/Work/Family, The Huffington Post

What others see as the future of the workplace, and what parents see as a most important tool for juggling home and work, Marissa Mayer apparently sees as disposable.

Oren Frank, 02/25/13

Co-founder and CEO, www.talktala.com

A good therapist will care for us, accept and even love us, in her or his own way, and thus allow us to accept and love ourselves a little more. I don't know if we can ever achieve such a relationship without a human connection.

Robert Kuttner, 02/24/13

Co-founder and co-editor, 'The American Prospect'

Obama can proclaim big, bold initiatives as he did in the State of the Union Address, but they are all mere gestures -- because there is no money to spend on any of them, thanks to the bipartisan obsession with budget cutting.

Nisha Chittal, 02/25/13

Digital Strategist and Writer

We have so few examples of powerful women that we hold the few that we do have -- like Sandberg -- up to impossibly high standards and expect them to represent all women everywhere. We never expect a powerful man to represent all types of men in all demographics.

Dean Baker, 02/25/13

Co-director, CEPR; author, 'The End of Loser Liberalism: Making Markets Progressive'

In the culture of Washington, D.C., the best way to demonstrate your manhood is to express your willingness to cut Medicare and Social Security. There's no better way to be admitted into the club of the Very Serious People.

Raymond J. Learsy, 02/24/13

Author, 'Oil and Finance: The Epic Corruption Continues'

We have an anomaly in our courts, irresponsibly supported by the executive and legislative branches of our government, in the manner that our courts interpret Sovereign Immunity and, in turn, its impact on our day to day lives.

Rick Sloan, 02/22/13

President and CEO, Cooperative for Union Services and Products

A purchasing co-op of unions offers a complex solution to a perplexing problem -- how to strengthen unions financially in these perilous times. It is not a panacea. It simply must prove its value by saving significant sums for its member unions. And it is starting to do exactly that.

Michael Brenner, 02/25/13

Senior Fellow, the Center for Transatlantic Relations; Professor of International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh

Is the drone phenomenon yet another example of technical innovation driving changes in how we do things without a full and open debate of its consequences? The answer seems to be an unequivocal 'yes.'

William K. Black, 02/25/13

Assoc. Professor, Univ. of Missouri, Kansas City; Sr. regulator during S&L; debacle

There is a clear answer to how to help our nation. Both parties should agree tomorrow to do a clean deal eliminating the sequester without any conditions. By doing so, Obama would demonstrate that he had no desire to inflict the Grand Betrayal.

Nick Turse, 02/25/13

Managing Editor, TomDispatch.com

Try not to think about dying, because there's nothing you can do about it, because you're tied down, because someone is pouring that water over your face, forcing it into you, drowning you slowly and deliberately. You're helpless. You're in agony.

Mike Ryan, 02/25/13

Senior Entertainment Writer, The Huffington Post

There was a slavery joke, there was a Jewish joke, there was a gay joke and there was a joke about Hispanic accents. This is lazy.

Sophia Kerby, 02/25/13

Special Assistant for Progress 2050, Center for American Progress

Sequestration will impact all Americans but will have a particularly harmful effect on communities of color, who were hit first and worst by the Great Recession and have yet to significantly feel the effects of the recovery.

Peter Diamandis, 02/25/13

Chairman/CEO, X PRIZE Foundation

When you log into certain websites, sometimes the site makes you copy a bunch of blurry, squiggly, "drunken" letters to prove you're a human instead of a bot. Did you know that when you're typing in those letters, you're actually helping to digitize old books and newspapers?

Jerry L. Ross, 02/23/13

Former astronaut and author of 'SPACEWALKER'

The Space Shuttle's three main engines and two solid rocket boosters spewed fire and smoke, and their deafening noise roared in my ears during seven launches into space.

Joseph A. Palermo, 02/24/13

Associate professor, historian, author

When fiscal crises become the "new normal" the public begins to remember that they elected politicians to do a job. And part of their job description is to take care of the public purse and not to create problems where none exist.

Amy Larkin, 02/25/13

Author, 'Environmental Debt: The Hidden Costs of a Changing Global Economy'

Many iconic American corporations have invested billions of dollars and hired many of the world's best scientists to work on renewable energy breakthroughs. But these scientists are sworn to secrecy in order to protect their companies' investments.

Bonnie Fuller, 02/25/13

President & Editor-in-Chief, HollywoodLife.com

Seth MacFarlane did it! We won't be grabbing our pitchforks and torches -- he turned the 85th Oscars into the best in years. Nothing was off limits for the Family Guy creator.

Shelley Emling, 02/25/13

Editor, Post 50

About six months ago, an unspeakable evil entered our house -- the college essay process. Until then, we'd always been a fairly typical family, neither sensational or completely unremarkable. Just typical, with three kids, a dog, a cat and a fish named Nini. But that was before the Essay. Oh, the Essay.

HuffPost Radio, 02/24/13

Reagan & Matalin debate if the GOP opposes voter fraud or voters, supports one-acre/one-vote presidentially, wants to end the '65 Voting Rights Act? Is voter impersonation a Loch Ness monster?