This week’s internet community protests against congressional anti-piracy legislation was monumental. In a crucial election year- as Congress already faces unprecedented public disgust- they couldn’t have happened at a more opportune time.

Wednesday’s protests against the House’s Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Senate’s Protect IP Act (PIPA) made headlines for facilitating deep citizen engagement. The tangible results are based on reliable online metrics and not on a controlled sample.

California State University-Fresno was awarded a $3 million, two-year contract by the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service to train U.S. marines and government officials how to promote agricultural self-sufficiency and food security in Afghanistan.

A periodic review of the current presidential election campaigns:

A new poll finds that a third-party bid by presidential hopeful Ron Paul would help re-elect president Obama, but not before taking away 9% of the President's independent support and 17% of independent voters from Romney. In a separate poll, Paul was found to be competitive against Obama in a head-to-head contest as the GOP nominee.

The United States is facing a trillion dollar plus deficit. The only way to solve it is to reduce spending and/or increase tax revenues. In the current political environment, raising taxes has zero chance of approval. But there is another way to raise revenues – collect the taxes that are owed.

"Energy Security needs to be one of the first things we think about, before we deploy another soldier, before we build another ship or plane, and before we buy or fill another rucksack"

-- Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Michael Mullen

What do the wine and tomato industries have in common? Besides the fact that they both play a major role in California agriculture, both could potentially be courted by cigarette manufacturers looking to market a safer, more “green” product. Here's why:

Americans say they're tired of the partisanship and bickering in Washington, and political leaders are always promising-- though never seeming to deliver-- a new level of discourse with each new White House administration or party majority in Congress.