An interesting discussion broke out in the blogosphere last week. It all started with Andrew Cohen in The Week, complaining about the legal fiction of "good faith." When I was a young man learning the law, I was taught about the "good faith" in which all public officials are always and forevermore presumed to be acting. This presumption, this so-called "implicit covenant," is … [Read more...] about Good Faith, Bad Policy
2013 Road Trip Report – Part 1: The Road to Toledo
Chicago TrafficIt looks like I never got around to posting about last year's summer road trip. Since it's getting close to time for my next one, I figure I better post something. Excuse me if I ramble a bit...I started the trip the way I always do, working through checklists of things to pack -- clothes, meds, toiletries, still camera, video camera, computer -- and … [Read more...] about 2013 Road Trip Report – Part 1: The Road to Toledo
Awaiting the List
Journalist Glenn Greenwald has announced plans to publish his final big leak from the Snowden files: A list of U.S. citizens that the NSA has spied on. Naturally, this raises a very important question: Am I on the list? 'Cause it would really help my badass libertarian rep if I was. I'm just beside myself with excitement!Truthfully, I doubt they've ever spied on me, except … [Read more...] about Awaiting the List
Elliot Rodger’s Motive Says Very Little About Anyone Except Elliot Rodger
A young man named Elliot Rodger apparently killed six people Saturday in Isla Vista California. I say "apparently" because the story is new enough that it keeps changing. When I first heard it, he had shot six people dead, but now it appears that three of them were stabbed, according to a recent version of the story. Apparently most of his targets were women, although not all … [Read more...] about Elliot Rodger’s Motive Says Very Little About Anyone Except Elliot Rodger
Don’t Disinvite, Just Don’t Invite
It's graduation season again, which means it's time for the usual round of news stories about controversial graduation speakers and the attempts by protesters to get them disinvited. For example, after protesters at Rutgers got Former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice to back out of giving the commencement address, the normally wonderfully cynical P. J. O'Rourke went into full … [Read more...] about Don’t Disinvite, Just Don’t Invite