The most startling fact about Edwin O'Connor's life was its brevity The acclaimed author of such mid-century Irish and Catholic classics as 'The Last Hurrah' and 'The Edge of Sadness' seemed a fit and healthy man. Yet he died when he was just 49 in 1968.

Where does terrorism come from and how far ought any government go to both defeat terrorists and protect citizens’ rights, not least their right to life?

Mike Davis is a lively and gifted writer of the left with the flair—even if often polemical—of a born journalist.

Even the guilty have a right to life, but that is not the only reason to stand against capital punishment.

An essay by Dorothy Day from April 19, 1933.