The Big Picture

Inequality and Growth
5 Awesome Fireworks Shows for July 4th
Slow Death of the Death Penalty in America
July 4th Park Rules
10 July Fourth Reads
Porsche 918

Posted: 05 Jul 2014 02:00 AM PDT

Posted: 04 Jul 2014 05:00 PM PDT

America celebrates its Independence Day on Friday. Ranx looks at five U.S. cities with awesome fireworks display for the occasion.

Slow Death of the Death Penalty in America

Posted: 04 Jul 2014 01:00 PM PDT

Source: The Economist

July 4th Park Rules

Posted: 04 Jul 2014 09:00 AM PDT

Freedom:

Source: The Vulgar Trader

10 July Fourth Reads

Posted: 04 Jul 2014 05:00 AM PDT

Rust never sleeps, and neither do I. Here are your July Fourth holiday reads:

• Why are the super-rich so angry? (New Yorker) see also Paulson's Puerto Rico Paradise Woos Rich Fleeing Taxes (Bloomberg)
• Uh Oh: No doubt aboot it: Canada is better than America in at least seven ways (Vox)
• Segway Inventor Dean Kamen Thinks His New Stirling Will Get You Off the Grid For Under $10K (Forbes) see also Stirling Engines (DEKA Research)
• Corporations are people — and they have more rights than you (Daily Dot)
• Tax cuts in Kansas have cost the state money — and job creation's been terrible (WonkBlog) see also Kansas Tax Cut Leaves Brownback With Less Money (The Upshot)
• How the American diet has failed (WonkBlog)
• Obama no longer cares whether the GOP is outraged (MSNBC) see also Obama's annoyance with Congress boils over (WaPo)
• John Roberts, abysmal failure: How his court was disgraced by corporations and theocrats (Salon)
• Google is being forced to censor the history of Merrill Lynch — and that should terrify you (Business Insider) see also Peston’s Picks: Merrill’s Mess (BBC)
• Censorship and What Freedom of Speech Really Means: Comedian Bill Hicks’s Brilliant Letter to a Priest (Brain Pickings)