You say goodbye, I say Kelo
Justice John Paul Stevens is retiring after a long and distinguished career with many applaudable decisions. But, before we all start to tear up, Lexington reminds us about his opinion in Kelo v New...
Monthly Archive: April 2010
More on Confederate Apologia
I should have linked this yesterday, but Transplanted Lawyer’s barrage on Confederate apologia makes a fitting companion piece to the Ta-Nehisi Coates post. Not only fitting, but a particularly succinct disposal of virtually all...
“The Ghost of Bobby Lee”
There are few things in life I find more intellectually compelling and challenging than a considered piece by Ta-Nehisi Coates. This is such a piece.
Some clarifications and further thoughts on new atheism and the Church
I’ve gotten some good pushback on my new atheist post, and probably – quite likely even – my thoughts on the matter were not quite clear enough going in to craft as cogent a...
Coverture Chronology; Default Rules and Signaling
I’m going to be as charitable as I can be to Bryan Caplan about coverture. I think he was largely ignorant of the history of coverture when he first started writing. His choice of...
Responsibility of Education
by Mike at the Big Stick A recent conversation has led me to do some deep thinking on the issue of school integration, more commonly known as ‘busing’. Let me preface this post by...
Empedocles: (Material) Change we can believe in
“Blessed is the man who has gained the riches of divine wisdom; wretched he who has a dim opinion of the gods in his heart.” 179. One rather strange argument against reading the canon...
Arizona passes the nation’s strictest – not to mention silliest – immigration law
Sometimes I’m embarrassed to be an Arizonan. Indeed, I think I would be a far more vociferous defender of state’s rights were I a citizen of some other state. Today is one of those...
Beating the 10 Books Horse
Ezra at Popehat is still playing the “10 Influential Books” game. I’d hate to allow him to feel like he’s the only one still playing, and besides, today is the single best day of...
New atheism and the cult of victimhood
[updated] ‘Odious as the physical abuse of children by priests undoubtedly is, I suspect that it may do them less lasting damage than the mental abuse of bringing them up Catholic in the first...
Kaus for the Court!
My extreme long-shot replacement idea for John Paul Stevens is … Mickey Kaus! In one surprise move, Obama would have saved Barbara Boxer from a dark-horse primary threat and confounded all the partisans lining...
The Advance of Hungary’s Far-Right
Somewhere, Lajos Kossuth is turning over in his grave. The rise of extreme Hungarian ethno-nationalism is frighteningly documented in this Spiked article.
The last word on porn
For those interested, co-blogger Matthew Schmitz posted a link to the Witherspoon Institute pornography study discussed at length here.
It’s Called the Law of EQUAL Freedom, You Know.
The above is my contribution, in one sentence, to the extraordinarily embarrassing discussion now going on among libertarians (and those who enjoy mocking us) about how great the 1880s were. Simply put, the 1880s...
Why Glee Should Only Be One Season
Glee returns tomorrow night for the second half of its first season. What should be its only season in my book. I say this as a big fan of the show–a Gleek even perhaps....
Who’s Afraid of a Populist Party?
Could a populist political party be good for America? Jon Chait points to some fascinating data that suggests it would appeal to the views of many Americans: The most thorough breakdown of the electorate...
Plato: Timaeus, Critias, and Mystical Thinking
So, how does Plato explain interaction between the Forms, which are eternal, unchanging Being; and the physical world, which is changing (and mortal) Becoming? In the Timaeus treatise, he adds the clarifying concept of...
Who is the Intended Audience of the Nuclear Posture Review?
The Obama administration has declared publicly that the United States will not retaliate with nuclear weapons against a nation that attacks us with chemical or biological agents, provided that nation is also in compliance...
