Opinion and analysis

Recent opinion and analysis pieces written by UW-affiliated experts. See The Conversation for only the analysis pieces.

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Full archive of opinion and analysis stories

• Analysis: ‘Beauty of the Beasts’ review | WSJ12 hours ago
  "'Beauty of the Beasts' is chock-a-block with wonderful scientific and cultural facts. We get a clear-eyed look at disgust, a nearly universal human response to the likes of maggots, cockroaches, ticks, leeches, slugs and lice," writes David Barash, professor emeritus of psychology at the UW.
• Opinion: Amid Trump's threats on judges, these legal minds offer hope | USA Today4 days ago
  "You may not have heard it yet, but America’s legal community recently let out a roar here in the Emerald City, a collective call from retired federal judges and a bipartisan array of academics and legal organizations: The rule of law matters, and it will be protected," writes Rex Huppke. Robert Harlan Henry, jurist-in-residence in law at the UW, is quoted.
• Opinion: They championed DEI — now they're divided | The New York Times1 week ago
  Four former DEI leaders come together to examine the system they once built — and question what it’s really doing. The UW is mentioned.
• Analysis: ‘Infinite Jest,’ the internet, and the politics of reading | Los Angeles Review of Books1 week ago
  "David Foster Wallace's novel 'Infinite Jest,' which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, is the perfect parable for reading in the internet age. This is true of the novel itself, but it is even truer of its extremely online reception: It’s hard to think of a work of literary fiction that belongs to the internet more than 'Infinite Jest,'" writes Melanie Walsh, assistant professor in the Information School at the UW.
• Opinion: RFK's FDA peptide plan fails to deliver the safety consumers need | Bloomberg1 week ago
  "The Food and Drug Administration will hold meetings this summer to discuss whether compounding pharmacies should be allowed to manufacture half a dozen commonly sought, yet unproven peptides ... Something must be done to rein in the current free-for-all," writes Lisa Jarvis. Matt Kaeberlein, professor of laboratory medicine and pathology in the UW School of Medicine, is quoted.
• Opinion: WA law banning noncompete clauses goes too far in voiding existing ones | The Seattle Times3 weeks ago
  "The policy debate over noncompetes is real and legitimate. But in its rush to win that debate, Olympia made a choice that has received almost no public attention: It made the ban retroactive," writes Victor Menaldo, professor of political science at the UW.
• Opinion: Request access for surprise visits? Only ICE would do that | Tacoma News-Tribune3 weeks ago
  "For decades, complaints about the water quality, food and general sanitation have surfaced in written grievances and accounts collected by groups who support people held in the detention center," writes Laura Hautala. The UW Center for Human Rights is mentioned.
• Analysis: Why the Persian Gulf has more oil and gas than anywhere else on Earth | The Conversation3 weeks ago
  "It has been said that Persian Gulf countries are both blessed and cursed by their vast oil and gas reserves. Geologic forces over millions of years have meant the region is an energy-rich global flash point, as it is now with a war underway that’s causing a global energy crisis," writes Scott Montgomery, lecturer of international studies at the UW.
• Opinion: Going analog in the writing classroom | The Seattle Times3 weeks ago
  "As a writing teacher based in college classrooms around Seattle, I find myself returning to a question each time I prep for a new quarter: How should I use or refuse technology?" writes Joe Concannon, part-time lecturer of English at the UW.
• Opinion: What grief taught me about emotional regulation | The Seattle Times4 weeks ago
  "On Dec. 30, 2024, my mother, Brenda Louise Baker, died. I have known grief most of my life. I was 9 when my uncle died. By high school, death no longer felt shocking. It felt familiar. I decided I wanted to become a pathologist, as if understanding the science of death might quiet the ache it caused," writes KD Hall, affiliate instructor of communication leadership at the UW.
• Opinion: Judge made right call in striking down RFK Jr.’s vaccine plan | The Seattle Times1 month ago
  "I was in graduate school studying infectious diseases in the early 2000s, just before rotavirus vaccines became available. When we learned about pathogens that cause diarrhea, I wrote in my notes, 'Rotavirus: the democratic diarrhea.' It earned that nickname because it infected children across the social order — rich and poor, in both low- and high-income countries. Nearly every child was infected with rotavirus by the time they reached their fifth birthday," writes Karen Levy, professor of environmental and occupational health sciences at the UW.
• Opinion: Over 400 million barrels will be added to the oil market soon – what are strategic reserves and what can they do? | The Conversation1 month ago
  "In the second week of the Iran war – with the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed, cutting off shipping of 20% of the world’s oil supply – the International Energy Agency announced the largest release of strategic oil reserves in history. Thirty-two countries will sell a combined 412 million barrels from their reserves into the global market over four months, beginning in late March 2026," writes Scott Montgomery, lecturer of international studies at the UW.
• Opinion: Dr. André Ritter: A month in Spokane to advance oral health | The Spokesman-Review1 month ago
  "Keeping your mouth healthy is one of the most important things you can do for your body and your mind," writes André Ritter, dean of the UW School of Dentistry.
• Opinion: From where I sit, ICE should target dangerous criminals, not random folks | Yakima Herald-Republic1 month ago
  "Yakima is experiencing an immigration raid upswing. In the past, ICE generally focused its arrests on immigrants with serious criminal records. A recent University of Washington Center for Human Rights report suggests the focus has changed," writes Yakima resident Peter Fretwell.
• Editorial: Indiscriminate ICE enforcement harms Eastern Washington farms | Tri-City Herald1 month ago
  "As spring arrives in Eastern Washington, farmers need workers to prepare their fields and orchards. It is getting harder to find those workers, however, because federal immigration enforcers have made the region a hot spot for arrests and deportations. These enforcement actions disrupt lives and communities with little regard for the disastrous consequences," writes the Tri-City Herald editorial board. A report from the UW Center for Human Rights is mentioned.
• Opinion: Iran is a $1.3M-a-minute war | The New York Times1 month ago
  "Let’s ponder for a moment the vast sums that we’re pouring into the war with Iran," writes Nicholas Kristof, an opinion columnist. Dr. Linda Eckert, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the UW School of Medicine, is quoted.
• Opinion: Trump’s threats to judicial independence in United States | Tacoma News Tribune1 month ago
  "Although the phrase has not been used, the horror many Americans have felt over recent events is the breakdown in our rule of law. Warrantless searches, masked agents, the lack of independent investigations, the denial of court hearings, the defiance of court orders and the entire 'justice' process being carried out summarily on the street," writes Robert Harlan Henry, jurist-in-residence in law at the UW.
• Editorial: Dems ignore shaky legality of millionaires tax | The Columbian2 months ago
  "As of early Tuesday, the Legislature appeared poised to pass Senate Bill 6346, which would impose a 9.9 percent tax upon annual household earnings of more than $1 million. Washington is one of nine states that does not have an income tax, although the Legislature did pass a capital gains tax in 2021," writes The Columbian's editorial board. Hugh Spitzer, associate dean emeritus and retired professor in the UW School of Law, is quoted.
• Opinion: Iranian voices in Seattle may not be unified, but we still must listen | The Seattle Times2 months ago
  "As much as it might complicate the hyperpartisan, left-right U.S. political paradigm, local Iranian American perspectives on the war don’t fit into neat ideological boxes," writes Naomi Ishisaka. Aria Fani, associate professor of Middle Eastern languages and culture at the UW, is quoted.
• Opinion: Behind every ‘study rat,’ a struggling international student | The Seattle Times2 months ago
  "What looks like quirky internet humor to outsiders is, for many of us, a coping mechanism for deeper realities: intense academic pressure, cultural distance and an education system that demands constant performance without offering equal emotional support," writes Yvette Tian, graduate student of public policy and governance at the UW.
• Opinion: UW journalism students provide ‘civic infrastructure’ covering Olympia | The Seattle Times2 months ago
  "The 2026 legislative session is scheduled to end next week in Olympia, but as teaching professors of journalism at the University of Washington, we are thinking about the beginning," write Andrea Otáñez and Caley Cook, both teaching professors of communication at the UW.
• Opinion: Fix broken, profit-driven health care model | The Seattle Times2 months ago
  "Kevin Nollette’s tortured effort to find a new doctor or new Medicare insurance plan reveals the sad truth about the U.S. health care system: It is perfectly designed to maximize profits and profit-seeking behavior but poorly designed to make it easy for people to get the care they need from the right care provider at the right time for an affordable price," writes Aaron Katz, a principal lecturer emeritus of health systems and population health at the UW.
• Analysis: War in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz — are there winners and losers? | Forbes2 months ago
  "To say that investors are nervous about what lies ahead would be an underestimation. No one expected such a sudden and intense attack from the U.S. and Israel, let alone one that would succeed in killing Iran’s Supreme Leader, Khameini, plus key military leaders," writes Scott Montgomery, lecturer of international studies at the UW.
• Analysis: What decades of research reveal about involuntary substance use treatment – and why evidence points elsewhere | The Conversation2 months ago
  "Throughout my three decades in the field, my research has focused on what works when it comes to substance use treatment, including among people experiencing homelessness. What I have learned is that involuntary treatment for adults with substance use disorders is necessary in extreme cases, but it does not outperform voluntary care and raises serious concerns about patient safety," writes Susan Collins, co-director of the Harm Reduction Research & Treatment Center at the UW School of Medicine.
• Opinion: University of Washington is expanding access to health care, education for Eastern Washington | Spokane Journal of Business2 months ago
  "At a time when the public is questioning the value of higher education, UW’s contributions in Eastern Washington offer some of the strongest examples of the power of our partnerships — and our commitment to improving the lives of all Washingtonians," writes UW Provost Tricia Serio.
• Opinion: Driverless cars aren’t much of a revolution | The Seattle Times2 months ago
  "In late January, one of Waymo’s self‑driving vehicles struck a child near an elementary school in Santa Monica, Calif. Although the company, which recently announced its plan to come to Seattle, has framed this as an isolated incident, the broader narrative that treats the machine as inherently superior and places blame on citizens is anything but accidental," writes Nassim Parvin, professor in the UW Information School.
• Opinion: Washington is being left behind as other states pass phone-free schools laws | Washington State Standard2 months ago
  "When you consider that Washington state spends more than $30 billion per biennium on public education, 25% of school hours being siphoned up by Big Tech’s addictive social media platforms adds up to a significant amount of money," writes Ashley Gross. Dr. Dimitri Christakis, professor of pediatrics in the UW School of Medicine, is quoted.
• Editorial: Tri-Cities has a lot on the line at WA legislative midpoint | Tri-City Herald2 months ago
  "New laws could shape how nuclear innovation takes root in the Tri-Cities, limit how Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers may operate and impose a controversial income tax on millionaires," writes the Tri-City Herald's editorial board. A report by the UW is referenced.
• Analysis: Who does TrumpRx actually benefit? | STAT3 months ago
  "The Trump administration is preparing to launch TrumpRx.com, an initiative aimed at lowering drug costs by aggregating direct-to-consumer access to branded prescription medications at discounted cash prices. The promise is seductive: lower prices on brand-name medications, available to anyone willing to bypass their insurance and pay out of pocket. But for most Americans, this initiative represents not a solution to our prescription drug price dilemma, but rather a distraction from it," write the UW's Sean Sullivan, professor of pharmacy, and Ryan Hansen, professor and chair of pharmacy.
• Analysis: What parents need to know about kratom | Boston Herald3 months ago
  "You may have seen Kratom products at gas stations, vape shops or online. Marketed as “natural” and often sold in forms such as powders, capsules and gummies, kratom is gaining popularity in the U.S. among teens. But while it comes from a plant, that doesn’t make it safe," write Dr. Chris Buresh, associate professor of emergency medicine in the UW School of Medicine, and Dr. Gary Kirkilas.

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