As I write this, Hurricane Katrina is climbing up the Gulf toward the mouth of the Mississippi and the City of New Orleans. The winds have slowed from 175 miles per hour to about 160, but the warm Gulf water could drive it faster at any time. If you've ever stuck your hand out the window of your car at 55 miles per hour, you know how much force that is. Katrina's cyclone … [Read more...] about The City That Care Forgot
The Greatest Art Of Our Time
Over on Hit & Run, they're discussing in the comments the comparative merits of Survivor, The Sopranos, and Six Feet Under. Which of these will future art historians most admire? Which of these television shows will future historians look back on as our Madame Bovary, as our Moby Dick? I say none of them. A hundred years from now, historians will describe this as the … [Read more...] about The Greatest Art Of Our Time
Fighting High Prices With Scarcity
The government of Hawaii just made a terrible mistake: In an effort to gain some control over what motorists pay at the pump, Hawaii on Wednesday became the first state in the U.S. to set caps on the wholesale price of gasoline. Economists have observed that setting below-market price caps on a good causes that good to become scarce. It has nothing to do with producers being … [Read more...] about Fighting High Prices With Scarcity
“It’s Called Courage”
Glenn Reynolds has already linked to this, but it's an amazing story. Independent journalist Steven Vincent was killed in Basra a few weeks ago. Professor Juan Cole at the University of Michigan (who had previously been the subject of criticism by Vincent) looked into rumors that Vincent was having an affair with his female Iraqi translator, Nour Weidi, and suggested strongly … [Read more...] about “It’s Called Courage”
Fast Food Predation
Here's an unusual way to demonize fast food: In the battle against childhood obesity, well-intentioned government policies that encourage healthy eating face a daunting challenge from the proliferation of fast-food establishments right outside the schoolhouse door, a new Chicago-based study shows. The median distance from any Chicago school to the nearest fast-food … [Read more...] about Fast Food Predation