Thanks to so many of you, the ability of Stars and Stripes journalists to report the news independently and thoroughly has been on a path of gaining strength. Mostly.

The act of burdening a Navy ship from the outset with a name open to ridicule by others does nothing to nurture the pride of the crew members serving onboard. And, unfortunately with Bill Clinton’s history, such ridicule is fed by his spotted history.

The United States desperately needs leadership to heal these divides and end the senseless violence. Yet this leadership is unlikely to come from our government — politicians remain too polarized, and public trust has eroded significantly. This is where veterans can make a crucial difference.

The terrifying devastating wildfires in California are a terrible disaster in one part of our country that will have continuing national impacts — humanitarian, economic and political.

The journey from the military to the corporate world is not easy, but it’s one that many of us are well-equipped to navigate.

A broad stroke of traditional medication and talk therapy is not enough to combat the complexities involved in the veteran mental health and suicide crisis. Exploring innovative treatments, such as psychedelics that show potential, can make progress on the issue.

President Donald Trump delivered a direct, to the point speech from the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol that made it precisely clear what he intends to do over the next four years, starting immediately, to fix what he called a “crisis of trust” in government.

To the more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza who have lost their loved ones, homes and livelihoods, the announcement of a ceasefire was the best news they could have received. The same can be said for the families of the hostages in Israel, some of whom have already been reunited. But this is only half the story, and it could go one of two ways — peace and rebuilding or a return to conflict.

The three popular pillars of Donald Trump’s electoral success have been grievances about immigrants, unfair trade practices by other countries, and American “forever wars” overseas.

A system built on luck is not a durable system. It is already strained, and it risks breaking down in a world of greater and more frequent wildfires.