Political Science

A friend of mine was concerned a few days ago that the anti-gay-marriage amendment might actually pass, which would cause her some personal heartache. I told her I thought it was just a stunt, and not worth worrying about. Other people seem to think so too. For example, the D.C. Examiner supports a ban on same-sex marriage, but thinks trying to pass an amendment is a waste … [Read more...] about On the Unlikelihood of a Constitutional Ban on Same-Sex Marriage

People are sometimes puzzled when they ask me about my politics and I tell them I am something of a libertarian. That's not a familiar word to them. So for their benefit, from a comment in the Hit & Run blog, here's one of the best descriptions ever: When Duke was running for president in the Doonesbury strip as a Libertarian he explained: Democrats are for pot and … [Read more...] about Libertarianism Defined

Last year, the California government had a really great idea. (No, that's not the start of a joke.) Many California taxpayers have income only from regular employment and don't have any unusual deductions. This means that their state income taxes can be calculated entirely from the payroll data already in the state's tax database. As part of a pilot program, California sent … [Read more...] about Why Your Taxes are Hard to Prepare

Or President. Singer-actress Jessica Simpson, the star of "Dukes of Hazzard," spurned an offer to attend the National Republican Congressional Committee gala fund-raiser tonight because she didn't want to politicize her favorite charity. According to Reuters, those close to Simpson said she declined a request to appear that same evening at the fund-raiser for the NRCC -- even … [Read more...] about It’s Good To Be King

My wife's boss's son, Matthew, has a school assignment to write letters to his Congressional representative and to one of the Senators from Illinois. He's trying to think of questions to ask them. I thought I could make a few suggestions: There's a piece of the World Trade Center in the Drug Enforcement Agency's exhibit on the link between terrorism and drug trafficking, even … [Read more...] about Questions for Matt to Ask the G