I guess I've been too busy to blog. My day job has hit a busy period, and it's been using up most of my mental energy. And when I do have time to goof off, I've been filling it by playing Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel.The original Borderlands was kind of a half-assed project build around a neat system of randomly generated weapons and power-ups. It was fun to play, but a … [Read more...] about Back to the Borderlands
The First Rule of Everyone
Much has been written about the so-called First Rule of Law Enforcement, "go home alive." But this line by ExCop-LawStudent gets it exactly right: I believe in the First Rule of Law Enforcement, but I also believe that our citizens have that same right to go home at the end of their day. That is in agreement with the classical liberal concept of human rights: Your rights are … [Read more...] about The First Rule of Everyone
What If We Eliminated Plea Bargaining?
Scott Greenfield is complaining about people who propose simplistic solutions to the ills that infest the criminal justice system. This time it's the Economist, and their solution is the ever-popular one of eliminating the problems of plea bargaining by eliminating plea bargaining. Scott's not happy with that for the usual reason criminal defense lawyers aren't happy with … [Read more...] about What If We Eliminated Plea Bargaining?
Greg Laden Illustrates the Case For a Carbon Tax
Science blogger Greg Laden is having trouble figuring out whether or not to install a solar electric power system in his home. I want to put a solar panel on my roof so that I am releasing less greenhouse gas into the environment. But then I hear that manufacturing solar panels causes the release of greenhouse gasses, so I have to subtract that from the good I think I’m doing. … [Read more...] about Greg Laden Illustrates the Case For a Carbon Tax
A Monstrous New Constitution
Someone at @Popehat (no idea which one) pointed out that Andrew Burstein at Salon is calling for a new constitutional convention. I'm generally against the idea, because although I can think of a few things I'd like to change, I'd be worried that we'd lose way too many freedoms if we rewrote the Constitution in this fearful day and age. Burstein's article is an excellent … [Read more...] about A Monstrous New Constitution