Karen Kruse Thomas

2 weeks ago | magazine.publichealth.jhu.edu | Karen Kruse Thomas

On January 11, 1983, Johns Hopkins President Steven Muller strode across the stage of the Wolfe Street Building’s East Wing Auditorium, sat on a stool, and lit a cigarette. He gave the gathered faculty a frank update on the University’s steep budget deficit—and the School’s record $1.2 million shortfall ($3.8 million in today’s dollars). Muller declared that each University division must secure its own support, without help from the central administration.

Aug 28, 2023 | thenation.com | Christopher Blackwell |John Nichols |Jeet Heer |Karen Kruse Thomas

Environment / If we get caught in the path of raging flames, what will be the plan for those of us locked behind bars? Ad PolicyLast Monday, I woke up at 5 am, coughing. It felt like I’d smoked a pack of cigarettes the night before. Careful not to awaken my cellmate, I climbed off my top bunk, found my cup on the shelf, and made my way to the bathroom to get some water. Still groggy, I wondered if I was getting sick. But then I remembered the wildfires.

Aug 15, 2023 | thenation.com | Sara Franklin |Jeet Heer |Steve Brodner |Karen Kruse Thomas

Sara Franklin: In the essay “Thin Skin,” you excerpt from an interview with Marian Naranjo who says, “We were the experiments.” It struck me as a profoundly true statement about America: This nation has always been an experiment, and we are seeing more and more clearly all the ways in which it has been a failed experiment. What does that stir for you at this point? Jenn Shapland: The Covid-19 pandemic really gives you a lens onto that; how we are the experiments.