Robert Koehler, 9/1/11

Syndicated writer

Cars aren't merely symbols of power, but power itself, indispensable for countless purposes both life-affirming and pointless.

Alex Pasternack, 9/1/11

Editor, Motherboard.tv

If you weren't alive to witness Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech, you might try to switch on YouTube and dial it up. But you won't find it there or anywhere else.

Barbara & Shannon Kelley, 9/1/11

Coauthors, Undecided

The shirt's slogan, emblazoned front and center in colorful girly writing, was this: "I'm Too Pretty to Do Homework, So My Brother Has to Do it For Me." Color me outraged.

Katie Campbell, 9/1/11

Editor, Bestcovery.com

If your idea of celebrating Labor Day involves cooking and setting up for hours, you've missed the point. There are plenty of tricks to try that will ensure your Labor Day celebration is a hit, without it taking a toll on you.

Victoria M. DeFrancesco Soto, 9/1/11

Assistant Professor of Political Science, Northwestern University; Faculty Fellow at Northwestern’s Institute for Policy Research

Just as Goldwater won his party's nomination, so may Perry. Perry can play to the party base and capitalize on his Thompson-like, tough, law-and-order persona, but in the end, it is unlikely that a Thompson-Goldwater hybrid can carry the general.

William Lazonick, 9/1/11

Director, University of Massachusetts Center for Industrial Competitiveness

The theory of perfect competition enables economists to ignore the conditions under which, through innovation, business enterprises grow large and often come to dominate their industries.

Tavis Smiley, 9/1/11

PBS talk show host, PRI radio host

Earlier today, Congressman James Clyburn appeared on my radio program The Tavis Smiley Show from PRI and was asked about the scant representation of people of color and women on the congressional super committee.

Anthony Gregory, 9/1/11

Research Editor, The Independent Institute

Obama the politician talks about gay rights like a Stonewall activist, while as chief executive, he takes positions to the right of Dick Cheney.

Elana Estrin, 9/1/11

Features writer at the Harry Ransom Center

Correspondence can speak volumes about the letter-writer. From idiosyncratic letterheads to sketches, stamps, cartoons and multiple-choice form letters, what do a letter's illustrations reveal?

Naomi Wolf, 9/1/11

Bestselling Author, The End of America: Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot

As I listen to the news coming out of England after the recent wave of urban riots -- and as I read Robert Douglas-Fairhurst's compelling new biography of Charles Dickens, Becoming Dickens -- life and art seem to be echoing each other.

Gary A. Officer, 9/1/11

President and Chief Executive Officer of Rebuilding Together, Inc.

Labor Day, at its core, is one of our nation's most symbolic national holidays. It recognizes the hard work and sacrifice of generations of Americans, who by virtue of their toil, helped to build our great nation.

Dina McQueen, 9/1/11

Author, 'Finding Aster: Our Ethiopian Adoption Story'

The time has come to see that choosing adoption as a first choice, not a last option, for growing your family is the right thing to do -- for the planet, for a woman's body, and for the parentless children who ache for family.

Cheryl Forberg, RD, 9/1/11

Award-winning chef, Nutritionist for "The Biggest Loser"

At one point or another we've all suffered from an embarrassing health issue -- be it minor or a large nuisance that we just aren't comfortable talking about in public. People ask me health- and diet-related questions online everyday.

Cenk Uygur, 9/1/11

Host of The Young Turks

Obama has changed the day of his address to Congress to accommodate the GOP. This leads to the eternal question of whether he is just weak or if he is a brilliant strategist.

Mark Steinberg, 9/1/11

Satirist with Satyrist Aspirations

President: "Why can't I drive down Pennsylvania Avenue before or after the time that the pizza is supposed to be delivered?" Boehner: "The caucus feels that allowing you to precede the pizza man would make them look weak."

Gene Marks, 9/1/11

Small business management columnist, author, speaker, and business owner

My hair is growing faster than our economy. And I'm bald. But hold on, because September is potentially shaping up to be even more disruptive for my company than August.

Steven Weber, 9/1/11

Actor, wise-ass

To return home from being abroad is to see America as it is and marvel at the mess it's become, like looking at a celebrity from a strictly verboten angle and seeing the scars, the stitches, the ooze.

Ted Kaufman, 9/1/11

Fmr. U.S. Senator from Delaware

The only way to restore confidence in our markets is to reinstitute time-tested rules on short selling and make certain that the new market structures and trading mechanisms are understood and properly regulated.

Sen. Michael Bennet, 9/1/11

U.S. Senator from Colorado

When women had to choose between becoming teachers or nurses, we could convince them to teach Julius Caesar for 30 years with a small salary. Not anymore.

Katie Halper, 9/1/11

Co-founder, Laughing Liberally

I doubt that any members of the Congressional Black Caucus got any sleep last night. I'm sure they were tossing and turning, sick with worry and regret, trembling in fear over Allen West's threat to leave the caucus.

Michael Hughes, 9/1/11

Foreign Policy Strategist, New World Strategies Coalition

Afghan native and humanitarian award winner Hasan Nouri waited nearly 25 years to see Osama bin Laden brought to justice for the murder of his dear friend, journalist Jim Lindelof. However, Nouri's joy has been fleeting.

Farryn Weiner, 9/1/11

Adventurer. Photographer. Writer. Monkey Connoisseur. Adrenaline Junkie.

From the heavy hitting house of Boys Noize to the trance tunes of Armin Van Buuren, from the new sounds of Guti to the classic beats of Moby, there's something for everyone.

Kerry Trueman, 9/1/11

Co-founder, EatingLiberally.org

"We have to alleviate the pressure on ourselves that dinner has to be this fancy affair, three courses and a homemade apple pie. If you're having peanut butter and jelly on whole grain, that's good enough."

Ian Fletcher, 9/1/11

Author, 'Free Trade Doesn't Work: What Should Replace It and Why'

America doesn't need to cut itself off from the world entirely, but it does need to get wise to the fact that the rest of the world views trade (correctly) as an arena of national rivalry, and start playing the game.