Category: Politics
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On Jury Nullification
Image via Wikipedia I have jury duty tomorrow morning, so I thought I would share some thoughts on the moral and contractual obligations of a juror: A trial is, or ought to be, a fact-finding process, conducted in order to determine whether pre-existing legal principles are applicable to a specific case. It should not be…
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Do fat people deserve medical treatment?
Faced with an “obesity epidemic“, that has dramatic consequences for medical costs, pundits have proposed different solutions, ranging from excluding obesity from health insurance, government-run prevention campaigns, higher taxes on junk food, or higher premiums for fat people. The possibility of greater government involvement in medicine with the passing of ObamaCare puts this debate in…
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Consumerism will not save us
The conventional view of economic growth now being discussed in the news prescribes higher consumer spending as the solution to the current economic recession. The idea is that if people buy more big screen TV’s for Christmas, manufacturers will increase production, hire more workers, raise wages, and we’ll all live happily ever after. As practiced…
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On Freedom and Toleration
This post is inspired by the State of Texas’ recent abduction of 416 kids from a polygamist compound. One way to measure the degree of freedom in a society is by looking at the kinds of associations made by its members. A free people can choose to enter into any association they wish, and are…
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Recessions are created by greedy politicians, not businessmen
Sen. John McCain this morning said “greedy” Wall Street investors are partly to blame for what he said is probably an economic recession the nation is now suffering. “There has to be a modification of the greedy behavior of some of these people,” he said, using the word “greedy” repeatedly in remarks to the Associated…
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Ignorant creationists accidentally vote for evolution
The creationist ignoramuses on the Florida Board of Education officially upheld evolution yesterday when they voted to approve “the scientific theory of evolution” as the “the fundamental concept underlying all of biology.” Presumably, they thought that the inclusion of the word “theory” is a slight to science – demonstrating an utter ignorance of the scientific…
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Ron Paul on open immigration: what's the worst that could happen?
One of the more disturbing things about Ron Paul’s popularity is his staunch opposition to legal and illegal immigration. I pick on him not because his views on immigrants are especially harsh, but because they stand in stark contrast to his reputation as an advocate of free markets and Austrian economics. On his campaign issues…
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Where do rich Candian leftists go for Health Care when it matters?
Far from being a health care paradise, Canada’s system is in disarray — and getting worse. That’s why it’s pursuing private-sector reforms, even as we consider national health care. In 1998, 212,990 Canadians were on hospital waiting lists for surgery, waiting on average 13.3 weeks. Today, more than 800,000 Canadians are on waiting lists, waiting…
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Have the WMD’s finally been found? Let’s hope Bush has the guts to follow up… (Thanks, RE)