In his clumsy, populistic way, Senator Tom Coburn (R,OK) has hit on something really important: Since it's clear Kagan is not an originalist (although it's not clear what she is), it's not surprising that natural rights strike her as a distraction from the proper work of a Supreme Court justice. When she says D.C. v. …
It's Easier to Have a Permanent Majority When You Know What You're Doing
Ari Berman at The Nation worries: But Democrats, beset by internal dysfunction and legislative gridlock, also run the risk of throwing their majority away. “Their chief challenge now is governance, which is daunting in its own right,” Teixeira writes. “They have an ambitious agenda in areas such as health care, financial reform, education, energy, and …
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Russian Spying: "It Didn't Do Us Much Good"
The recent arrest of a "ring" of Russian spies in the US brings back memories of the Cold War--well, for those of us who were alive and aware at the time. Readers of this blog know that I have a lifelong interest in Russia that ended up with some interesting business and other types of …
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Kagan's Confirmation: Getting the Judiciary to do the Legislature's Job
E.J. Dionne is sounding awfully triumphalistic these days: This week's hearings over Elena Kagan's nomination to the Supreme Court will mark a sea change in the way liberals argue about the judiciary. Democratic senators are planning to put the right of citizens to challenge corporate power at the centre of their critique of activist conservative …
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An Aggie Explains John 10:11-16
Where we read the following: I am the Good Shepherd; and I know my sheep, and my sheep know me-- Just as the Father knows me and I know the Father--and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep besides, which do not belong to this fold; I must lead them …
Book Review: The Fifty Year Wound: The True Price of America's Cold War Victory
It's hard for some of us to contemplate, but any "traditional" student wandering around today's college campus--to say nothing of those coming up behind them--has no living memory of the Cold War. For Boomers, it's a different story: the Cold War, and its hot portions such as Vietnam, basically framed the world view of an …
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Obama Not Daddy? Oh, Yes, He Is
Tina Brown thinks that Barack Obama should move from father figure to raw politics: Tomorrow he’s announcing something concrete—an escrow account out of BP to get the cash to all the Gulf workers whose livelihoods have been trashed. But will this be deemed leaderly enough to assuage the angst among his supporters that the oil …
What Palestine Would Look Like Under Turkish Rule
Or, more accurately, what it did look like... I've posted this before, but in view of recent events (i.e., the sea fight between the Israelis and the Turks/Palestinians) it bears repeating. I think it's fair to say that the recent changes in Turkey have as their long-term objective the recapturing of Ottoman glory, caliphate included. …
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A Nation Behind Bars
While going through a few things, I stumbled upon this graph showing the growth in the Federal prison population from 1950 to 2005. That's just to 2005. And it doesn't include the state and local prisoners either. Irrespective of the causes--breakdown of society, too many laws, whatever--the incarceration rate in this country is (or at …
Mexico: The Tax Haven for Those Who Survive the Lead Rain
No kidding, this, from Rubin on Tax: A theme we have often mentioned is that capital flows to where it is best treated. Obviously, the level of tax imposed on businesses is a key element of how capital is treated in any given jurisdiction. A 2010 KPMG guide analyses the current tax competitiveness of 10 …
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Positive Infinity 