#opinions / Page 6

The recent Iran conflict spiked gas prices to above $4 a gallon. Beyond inflation and gas prices, another quieter force is shaping these pressures.

Every new home in America costs $100,000 more than it should because of zoning rules and permitting delays. That's the bureaucrat tax.

Our children aren't learning to read -- first because we've forgotten how to teach them, then because we're outsourcing their education to screens.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, Maryland Democrat, talked recently about the separation of church and state.

'Let's face it: "Humane" farming is an oxymoron at its core. Why continue to consume dairy and meat products at all when an abundance of cruelty-free, health-promoting and delicious alternatives exist?,' writes an L.A. Times reader.

Anyone with children has heard the line, "He/she started it." Both Republicans and Democrats engage in gerrymandering; yet each side complains when the other does it. It is so childish.

President Trump is one in a million. Not only does he represent power and strength; he exudes it.

It's your life in their hands, but what kind of life is that? No wonder a wearied, confused public has mobilised into tribes - or just tuned out, says Guardian columnist Marina Hyde ...

'In a moment when so many environmental debates turn adversarial more often than not, this is a model worth expanding,' writes an L.A. Times reader.

'Already, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are each reporting a slight downturn in traffic, leading to predictions of further increases in the prices of consumer goods as higher fuel prices ripple through the supply chain,' writes an L.A. ...