We just passed the fifth anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq, and the staff of Reason magazine have been looking back to 2003 to review their positions on the war in Iraq then and now. I figure I might as well go on the record about where I stood then and where I stand now. Back then, I knew I didn't know enough to have a well-informed opinion (and I was still … [Read more...] about Five Years Later In Iraq
Click Here For an FBI Raid
There's no way this could possibly go wrong: The FBI has recently adopted a novel investigative technique: posting hyperlinks that purport to be illegal videos of minors having sex, and then raiding the homes of anyone willing to click on them. Undercover FBI agents used this hyperlink-enticement technique, which directed Internet users to a clandestine government server, to … [Read more...] about Click Here For an FBI Raid
Obama’s Big Speech on Race
Everybody's still talking about Obama's speech on race, so I might as well put in my two cents. Was it self serving? Of course. He's a politician in an election year. But I mostly thought it was damned good. Too many politicians, when confronted with embarassing statements by a friend, will either dissemble---"I didn't know", "that's out of context", "you're just bringing … [Read more...] about Obama’s Big Speech on Race
What’s Up With Bear Stearns?
I've been trying to make sense of what the Federal Reserve has been doing with Bear Stearns. My usual source for smart thinking about financial issues, Kip Esquire, is so far silent, so I'm trying to figure this out myself. It's not going well. The argument against government bailouts of private businesses is that it's a bad idea for the government (even in the form of the … [Read more...] about What’s Up With Bear Stearns?
Spitzer’s Women
As is often the case, a lot of women are getting hurt by the Spitzer scandal. My wife feels particularly bad for Spitzer's wife Silda. Aside from cheating on her, Eliot Spitzer also seems to be dragging her to all his humiliating press conferences. As Maggie Gallagher puts it: No animal would plan for its mate as exquisite a humiliation as Eliot Spitzer inflicted on his wife, … [Read more...] about Spitzer’s Women