Off to a Good Start by Michael Reagan If Sen. Mitch McConnell’s pledge to get behind the movement to ban the cynical practice of earmark spending is any indication that Republicans heard the message voters sent them in the recent Congressional elections, the GOP is off to a good start. It’s about time. Over the years members of Congress have acquired a lot of bad habits … [Read more...] about Off to a Good Start (Guest Voice)
The Best Reason Yet to Hate the Lottery
I've always hated the lottery. Then today I learned from this Freakonomics Radio podcast of a lottery idea I like: Prize-Linked Savings (PLS). In a nutshell, PLS is a kind of savings account that pools some of the interest from all depositors and pays out a big lottery prize every month or so. It combines the thrill of the lottery with the safety of a savings account. It’s … [Read more...] about The Best Reason Yet to Hate the Lottery
TSA Grandparents
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The Long Emergency
Tainter makes this observation; substantial increased costs occurred late, shortly before collapse and were incurred by a population already weakened by a pattern of declining marginal returns. It was not a challenge that caused the collapse but a system that had been unproductively complex was unable to respond. Tainter says that the only solution for over complexity is … [Read more...] about The Long Emergency
Googling and Tweeting Curious George
I thought I’d write about all the random stuff I’ve been thinking lately. I don’t think Curious George was curious. I think George was a very intellectually limited monkey. By labeling him curious, the man with the yellow hat was being irresponsible. I guess Dumb George isn’t the best title for a children’s book, but it would have been a more accurate title. … [Read more...] about Googling and Tweeting Curious George
Publication Announcement
I'm pleased to announce the publication of my Comment: David Schraub, The Price of Victory: Political Triumphs and Judicial Protection in the Gay Rights Movement, 77 U. Chi. L. Rev. 1437 (2010). Enjoy! … [Read more...] about Publication Announcement
“Yes We Can”? (Guest Voice)
“Yes We Can”? by Peter Gabel It’s now been two weeks since the midterm elections, and I’m noticing that many folks I know are depressed—not consciously about the elections, which have receded somewhat from view, but about various things in their lives. One is exhausted from all the pressures in her life, raising children, caring for parents, working too hard or … [Read more...] about “Yes We Can”? (Guest Voice)
A Bank Robber’s Great Economic Insight
In recent days we've been presented with two bipartisan plans to address America's horrific annual deficits. The spending cuts suggested in both these plans are similar. They envision extremely painful reductions in Social Security payments, much higher co-pays for Medicare recipients, and a sharp decrease in military spending. The tax-related ideas in these plans, however, … [Read more...] about A Bank Robber’s Great Economic Insight
Did You Know that NPR is Run By “Nazis?”
That's what Fox News chairman Roger Ailes says. Howard Kurtz's interview with Ailes now fully explains where Fox News gets its demonizing, always in attack mode tone. It starts at the top. UPDATE: Others note this, too. … [Read more...] about Did You Know that NPR is Run By “Nazis?”
Goodbye to Compassionate Conservatism
EDITOR'S NOTE: Due to a short technical glitch this column appeared under the wrong byline on TMV for about 20 seconds. We regret the glitch. WASHINGTON -- Will the tea party sell out for a mess of pottage in the form of a ban on earmarks? That’s one possibility. But another is that this embrace of a purely symbolic approach to deficit reduction is a sign that the … [Read more...] about Goodbye to Compassionate Conservatism
Quote of the Day: On Lisa Murkowski’s Write In Win In Alaska and Sarah Palin
Our political Quote of the Day comes from MSNBC's First Read, commenting on Sen. Lisa Murkowski's historical win as a write in candidate, resulting in her re-election despite opposition from nemesis Sarah Palin: *** “Poke in the eye” to Palin: The AP writes that Lisa Murkowski’s apparent victory yesterday “was a political poke in the eye” to Sarah Palin. The reason: Palin … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: On Lisa Murkowski’s Write In Win In Alaska and Sarah Palin
TSA Security Measures
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Government-by-Spite
The Washington climate recalls V-E Day in World War II: hours before the armistice, hordes of refugees streaming westward to the American zone with whatever they could carry to escape the oncoming Russians before the official deadline. In the same way, Democrats are scrambling to salvage what they can in these last days, and the sight is just as saddening--the President and … [Read more...] about Government-by-Spite
TSA Chief Defends Body Imaging, (Falsely) Asserts It Would Have Foiled Christmas Bomber
On Wednesday, TSA Director John Pistole testified before two Congressional committees. Citizen backlash at whole body imaging (WBI) screening and aggressive physical searches made its way into his testimony. Media continue to report claims made by government officials without advising the reader than the official is, to be polite, severely stretching the truth. I have … [Read more...] about TSA Chief Defends Body Imaging, (Falsely) Asserts It Would Have Foiled Christmas Bomber
Palin Target Murkoswki Declares Victory as Historical Write In Victor
It's a historical victory for a politician defending her seat -- and a political embarrassment for a perceived candidate for the 2012 Republican nomination all rolled into one. Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski has declared victory in her rocky-roaded election bid: historical because she's the first write in Senate candidate victor in 50 years. And the Republican's win is seen as an … [Read more...] about Palin Target Murkoswki Declares Victory as Historical Write In Victor
Sarah Palin Thinks She Can Beat Barack Obama in 2012
As I've noted often here, the confidently stated conventional wisdom has a way of being swept quietly under the rug when it's in tatters and proven wrong and some area already reacting to this story with disdain: Sarah Palin says she is seriously considering a run for the White House, and she believes she could beat President Obama in 2012, the former Alaska governor told … [Read more...] about Sarah Palin Thinks She Can Beat Barack Obama in 2012
What Americans Want
Extending Bush's tax cuts for families making over $250,000 a year may be popular with Mitch McConnell and John Boehner, but it isn't with most Americans: … [Read more...] about What Americans Want
Democracy in Peril
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Sounds Like Sarah Palin Is Running for President
Sarah Palin has given an interview in which it sounds like she is seriously thinking of running for President in 2012 -- and so far she has not said anything to refudiate the interview. MSNBC's First Read: The inner circle of Sarah Palin’s political organization is notoriously difficult to crack, but in an over-7500-word piece in the New York Times Magazine posted online … [Read more...] about Sounds Like Sarah Palin Is Running for President
Colombia Should Ditch U.S. ‘Special Relationship’: El Espectador, Colombia
Under its new president, Juan Manuel Santos, Colombian policymakers are preparing for a change in relations with the United States, which, according to columnist Alvaro Forero Tascon of Colombia's Semana, has been based on Colombian weakness and the-now-diminishing American influence. For Semana, Alvaro Forero Tascon writes in part: What President Santos calls … [Read more...] about Colombia Should Ditch U.S. ‘Special Relationship’: El Espectador, Colombia