Michael Shaw, 12/05/12

Publisher of BagNewsNotes, topping LIFE.com's 2011 Best Photo Blogs

Beyond the pitched cries of editorial impropriety, perhaps it's not all clear what the subway photo is really about. When you think about it, for example, what the photo offers is not the story of what happened so much as its consequence.

Jedediah Purdy, 12/05/12

Professor, Duke Law School; Author, 'A Tolerable Anarchy'

Is having fewer children the mark of decadence? The New York Times' cultural conservative, Ross Douthat, has been arguing that. But he is seriously, even dangerously wrong, and that the people he's criticizing are the ones who are taking responsibility for the future.

Oprah Winfrey, 12/04/12

Chairman and CEO, Oprah Winfrey Network

At the end of each school year in South Africa -- which is right now -- I teach a class to the 12th graders at the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls. It's my last chance before they move out into the world of college and beyond to try and cram everything I wish someone had told me into a week's curriculum.

Robert Reich, 12/05/12

Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy, University of California at Berkeley; Author, 'Beyond Outrage'

If we had a functional government America would address three "cliffs" posing far larger dangers to us than the fiscal one.

Bill Moyers and Michael Winship, 12/05/12

Until now, this hasn't been the best year for media mogul Rupert Murdoch. But Murdoch's luck may be changing.

Rebecca Hughes Parker, 12/05/12

Attorney, Journalist, Editor of FCPA Report

Twins for Kate? The princess's hyperemesis gravidarum has led to speculation that she is having twins. With this speculation about twins comes the misconceptions about twin zygosity and twin inheritance that have persisted, even among skilled medical professionals.

Joseph A. Palermo, 12/04/12

Associate professor, historian, author

Before the liberals write the GOP's obituary it would be wise to acknowledge the role other "bubbles" play in inventing new and ingenious ways to get people to vote against their own self-interests.

Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, 12/05/12

Senior Religion Editor, The Huffington Post

What are we to make of the morality tale of giving the homeless man a pair of shoes when the man is not homeless, has an undesirable past and has apparently discarded the shoes?

D.L. Hughley, 12/05/12

Actor and stand-up comedian

No one likes kids blasting their crappy music. No one likes babies crying on airplanes either. But you don't get to kill them.

Arianna Huffington, 12/03/12

Whether or not we go over the fiscal cliff, around the fiscal curve, or down the fiscal slope remains to be seen, but one thing is already certain: Our political debate has already gone over the cliff.

Kitty Kelley, 12/03/12

America’s bestselling investigative biographer

Born poor, Stanley Tretick became prosperous through hard work and immense talent, which earned him many professional prizes as well as the respect and affection of his peers.

Tom Engelhardt, 12/04/12

Editor, TomDispatch.com

Dear President Obama, Don't these "accomplishments" of yours sometimes amaze you? Don't you ever wake up in the middle of the night wondering just who you are?

Ben Greenfield, 12/05/12

Fitness and Triathlon expert; Get-Fit Guy podcast host

This season, consider not succumbing to peer pressure and societal acceptance of holiday weight gain and instead stay physically active and avoid unplanned eating. Your body will thank you when the New Year rolls around.

Adam Goldberg, 12/05/12

Front Page Editor at The Huffington Post

Thriller turned 30 a few days ago. This album is beyond compare. It's not pop music. It's Michael's music. This album doesn't pander, it brings joy. Pure and simple.

Neil Steinberg, 11/27/12

Columnist, Author

New York's a nice place to visit: museums, theater, that lady with the torch. But I wouldn't want to live there, not when Chicago is such a much better place to live. Why? That's easy. Here are the top 15 reasons.

Sen. Chris Coons and Sen. Johnny Isakson, 12/05/12

Scientific advances and their successful implementation -- as well as the leadership of the United States -- have brought us to the brink of an AIDS-free generation. The last 10 years have seen tremendous progress and millions of lives saved -- and we can't stop fighting now.

The Foodcommander, 12/04/12

The Foodcommander is the creation of NY-based private chef and performer Daniel Isengart.

The Foodcommander's first seasonal offering is a challenge: He is urging you to make cookies that are decidedly un-American, won't ever be available as a semi-homemade commercial product, and will never be served on a plane.

Richard (RJ) Eskow, 12/04/12

Writer; host, 'The Breakdown'; Senior Fellow, Campaign for America's Future

The GOP "counter-offer" to the president's fiscal-cliff proposal isn't really an offer at all: It's a rehash of the tired and extremist right-wing economic warfare which the American people soundly rejected last month.

Gordon Brown, 12/05/12

Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom; UN Special Envoy for Global Education

Just 72 hours ago in the Indian capital of Delhi, 14 children were freed from slave labour. They were being held in dark, insanitary conditions and forced to work for up to 15 hours a day making Christmas decorations.

Mike Ryan, 12/04/12

Senior Entertainment Writer, The Huffington Post

Yes, there's a new Hobbit movie coming out soon. (The first of three Hobbit movies, actually.) But, most of the buzz -- both good and bad -- stems from the fact that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will be shown on a special kind of film with a rate of 48 frames per second. Truth be told, I had no idea what this meant when it was first announced.

Devon Corneal, 12/04/12

Lawyer, Mother

Where I saw a little boy being a too interested in clothing, Dapper Husband understood that this was not about style. It was about a boy wanting to dress like his dad.

Brian Clark Howard, 12/03/12

Author, Journalist

When I first told my mother I was co-writing a funny photo book on ugly Christmas sweaters, she was mildly offended.

Marlo Thomas, 12/04/12

Award-winning actress, author and activist

As the holidays approach I can already taste the fabulous holiday meals. But then anxiety rushes in when I think of all the weight I can gain from them -- and after trying so hard all year not to pack it on!

Napoleon Perdis, 12/05/12

Makeup artist

While the average woman won't be stripping down to her skivvies alongside Justin Bieber on national TV this December, the holiday party season calls for scene-stealing glamour and a hint, if not a generous helping, of sex appeal.

Kathleen Rea, 12/04/12

Former National Ballet of Canada Company Dancer

My calculated "career move" soon became my nightmare. I became borderline anorexic and then bulimic. After dieting intensely for days, a famished "creature" would seize control, and an intense desire to eat would overcome my willpower.

Brendan DeMelle, 12/04/12

Executive Director, DeSmogBlog.com

If Shell is this ill-prepared to operate critical safety equipment in the calm waters of Washington State, then they clearly have no business drilling for oil in the Arctic.

Debra Macleod, 12/04/12

Relationship expert and couples’ mediator

As often as not, men withdraw from their wives for non-sexual reasons. Check out these eight Do's and Don'ts to see whether any of them might help reignite his spark for you.

Will Bunch, 12/04/12

Author, 'The Backlash'

So if Barack Obama and Mitt Romney were afraid to talk about guns (and they were), no wonder America was so shocked when Bob Costas spoke Sunday night, shocked that a man in his position didn't know the right time to talk about guns in this great nation.