Perspectives

Our research finds that leaders who claim the blame for their governments’ performance when crises strike also can reap rewards, writes Andrew Reeves.

Take care of yourself, take care of each other and let’s all do whatever we can to support one another in the coming weeks and months, writes Tim Bono.

Boccaccio does not have all the answers, but he does provide an enduring model of ethical response to a crisis, writes Michael Sherberg. As we await the end of this pandemic, we would do well to pause and ask what kind of world we want to inhabit when it’s over.

Constitutional law expert John Inazu writes an op-ed in The Atlantic calling for all churches to suspend worship services and other gatherings, as some already have done, in response to the coronavirus pandemic. He also argues Supreme Court precedent would permit a government order that they do.

In St. Louis, if our past is any indication, we have what it takes to dig in and do what is needed to pull through, writes Chancellor Andrew Martin. We’re already seeing this happen in the actions of our leaders, institutions and citizens. We must stay focused, brace ourselves for what comes next, and know that whatever happens, we’ll face it together.

Here in Missouri, it is easy to have the same casual response as the Florida revelers, or as the administration during its tortured path toward deciding this was serious, writes Ken Schechtman.

The public-health evidence makes clear that houses of worship should limit their gatherings, whether mandated or simply encouraged by government officials, writes John Inazu.

The estimates of total cases and fatality rates are rapidly changing, writes Darrell Hudson. There is no way to accurately account for how many people have the virus. Our best-case scenario during this pandemic is the prevention paradox.

Reformers have rightly focused attention on many aspects of American criminal justice that are broken, writes Dan Epps. Some reforms are easier than others. Creating a defender general is an unusually simple one, with the potential to provide large benefits for millions of people.

The loopholes in our campaign financing laws will continue to advantage billionaires like Michael Bloomberg, writes Clarissa Rile Hayward. But the outcomes of our elections should be not be shaped by the power of his checkbook.