A groundbreaking new report was published last week by the Harvard Business School that could change the way we think about politics altogether.

Most people think of politics as its own unique public institution governed by impartial laws dating back to the founders. Not so. It is, in fact, an industry—most of whose key players are private, gain-seeking organizations,” say authors Katherine Gehl and Michael Porter.

These are the best of times—and the worst of times—for independents striving to disrupt and transform our broken politics.

The Best of Times

Though it can be obscured in the dust and smoke of moment-by-moment partisan rancor and wrangling, tangible progress is apparent in vital areas:

1. Poll after poll shows rising, record numbers of citizens declaring themselves as Independent.

Given the extensive privileges in law and custom accorded to the Republicans and Democrats, this is no small change.

The Appeals Court of Kansas is being asked to allow access to the audit tapes for voting machines in Sedgwick County. The court heard oral argument in the case on Tuesday.

The case was initially brought by Dr. Beth Clarkson, a statistician and engineer, who claims there are suspicious trends that strongly indicate ballot tampering of the electronic voting machines in the state.

“There are statistical indications that are consistent with concerns about deliberate manipulation,” Clarkson said.

The revelation that President Trump's former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, was in fact wiretapped in Trump Tower, is just the latest example of why news consumers have such little trust in partisan national media.

Let me qualify this article with an important point: outlets like FoxNews and Breitbart are culpable of their efforts to distort, omit, and present facts in a way that supports their own partisan narrative.

But today's wiretapping revelation is a perfect example of why so many people agree with the #FakeNews label the commander-in-chief has ascribed to CNN.

Were you unhappy with your choice of candidates in the 2016 election cycle? Do you want to see a broader slate of candidates that are passionate about working to solve the big issues that really affect you and your family in 2018 and beyond? Candidates that aren’t controlled by special interest groups and big money, corporate donors? Then you need to support open primaries in Florida.

Even though primaries are financed by all taxpayers, they are 100% controlled by the Democratic and Republican Parties. Consequently, the message to voters is also controlled by the two parties.

On September 11th, the US remembers its fallen citizens, murdered in the worst terrorist attack since the Oklahoma City bombing.

In unison, they #neverforget the 3,000 people who were murdered that day. But, people have forgotten so much -- or have never known -- 16 years later, how 9/11 has effected US war, culture, and law.

US citizens did what its founder, Ben Franklin, warned never to do -- they exchanged freedom for security.

It's shaping up to be a big weekend for San Diego State University's football team.

The Aztecs host the #19 Stanford Cardinal Saturday night at the stadium formerly known as Qualcomm. The crowd is estimated to be larger than 50,000 as the Aztecs are off to a 2-0 start and the Pac-12 is sending one of their better teams south.

It's also the first opportunity for big-stage football since the San Diego community lost their NFL team.