The Bush Administration is right to demand the dismantling, not just the suspension, of North Korea’s nuclear program.
POLITICS
Smithsonian Denies Slavery in Africa Was “Dehumanizing”
The Smithsonian’s African American history museum in Washington, D.C., states that while instances of slavery can be found throughout human history, the practice of slavery did not become “dehumanizing” until white Europeans came along and took...
Daniel Pipes Visits Hamilton College
On January 27, 2003 the Hamilton College Objectivist Club, Chaplaincy, Hillel, Dean of Students’ Office, Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center, and government department brought Dr. Daniel Pipes to Hamilton College. Dr. Pipes began his visit with a Q&A...
Victims of The Phillips Curve
Let’s talk about the economics of mass destruction — the single most dangerous idea in economic policy… the Phillips Curve. Even if you don’t know it by that name, you’ve been its victim. The Phillips Curve is the formal construct...
Academy Award Winner Michael Moore’s Fictitious Life
He calls Bush, Cheney, and Ashcroft the “real axis of evil.” He blamed 9-11 attacks on too many White people and not enough Black men on the planes. And in his Oscar Night diatribe, film-maker Michael Moore used his win of an Academy Award to rant against...
Let the Steel Tariffs Die
A little over a year ago, on March 5, 2002, President Bush made a serious mistake by imposing tariffs on imported steel. At the time, there were many, including myself, who said that the negative impact of this action on steel consumers would be much greater than any...
Random Thoughts for March 2003
Random thoughts on the passing scene: Never before in history has the word “unilateral” been thrown around so gratuitously when the issue was war. Only in recent years has there been any question that a sovereign nation takes the solemn step of going to...
The Evasion of the Century
The most common reason I hear people opposing war against Iraq — indeed, any war initiated in defense of the United States — is opposition to “violence on principle.” This is what I hear from young people particularly often: “We have no...
The Old Europe’s Paper Armies
When it came down to it, two of America’s closest Cold War allies — France and Germany — were unwilling to bear the responsibility of major powers when it came to Iraq. They weren’t there when we — and the world — needed them....
Untrustworthy Trust Accounts
Most Americans have never heard the acronym “IOLTA,” but if you’ve ever been involved in a real estate closing or had an attorney hold your funds in escrow, than you’ve probably been affected by IOLTA. What does that mean? It means the...
Smashing Windows for Peace
The attack was well-choreographed. Moving in successive waves, they executed a perfect assault. Some moved to cut off their enemies’ supply lines, seizing control of crucial bridges and roadways, while others worked to surround and besiege key command and...
Thoughts on Tax Cuts and Supply Side Economics
The Senate’s surprise vote Tuesday to reduce the value of President Bush’s proposed tax-cuts by more than half has been played in the press as a major setback for the President’s agenda. But the way I see it, it’s actually great news: a tax-cut...
National Security Versus Pork
Should our tax dollars fund our troops fighting in Iraq, or the Smithsonian’s national worm collection? If it’s business as usual up at the Capitol, then this is the type of question Congress will grapple with in the coming weeks. And if history is our...
A Pot Belly of Gold: Tobbaco Style Lawsuits Aimed at Food Processors and Restaurants
Two years ago, journalists – hot for a story – began calling John Banzhaf, the telegenic George Washington University law professor who led the anti-smoking legal crusade from its early stages. “Would tobacco-style lawsuits,” he was asked,...
Keep the War in Perspective
Many observers, intoxicated by the initial promise of the March 19 decapitating air strike against Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, now are unrealistically impatient with the progress of the war against Iraq. In particular, some elements of the American and...
Cutting Government Waste: A “Painful Sacrifice”?
There they go again: Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., calls it “immoral.” Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle says it would be a “painful sacrifice.” The war in Iraq? Try the budget recently passed by the House Budget Committee, which seeks to...
Murder in the 101st Airborne
How did the enemy get into our camp?” That’s what Bart Womack, a command sergeant major of the elite 101st Airborne Division, asked himself as a grenade rolled past him after 1 a.m. on Sunday at an American camp in Kuwait. The attacker worked methodically,...
UN Weapons Inspector Hans Blix: Fading Away into the Dustbin of History
As I watched the 24 hour war coverage on Monday I saw a most amusing spectacle, UN weapons inspector Hans Blix was professing to be excited about going to Iraq after Saddam is gone so that he can resume his weapons inspections. Apparently the Swede has yet to realize...
Who is “Pro-War”?
We have heard a lot about anti-war demonstrators. Indeed, we have heard a lot from anti-war spokesmen, as the media continue their corrupt practice of providing free air time to those whose antics provide them with footage for their news broadcasts. But what about...
Milking the Cigarette Tax Cow
With many states now running large budget deficits, legislators are looking anew at higher cigarette taxes. Even though these taxes have been raised sharply in almost every state in recent years — on top of price increases mandated by the tobacco settlement...
High-Powered War Technology
Early March, Mrs. Williams and I abandoned the snow and the cold to vacation in Panama City, Fla. We savored the hospitality of our many friends, not to mention several fresh fish dinners served at Captain Anderson’s restaurant and at the homes of our friends....
FDA Stamp of Approval: Prozac for Kids
The FDA has okayed Prozac for kids 8-years-old and up. While some physicians have prescribed to kids for years, this puts the stamp of approval on a practice that is still highly controversial due to a lack of studies. The drug’s maker, Eli Lilly, has agreed to...
Nike, Free Speech and the Constitution
Nike v. Kasky presents the Supreme Court with an opportunity to undo some of the constitutional damage resulting from the so-called “commercial speech doctrine,” the Court’s test for deciding whether self-interested speech is entitled to First...
Why the Left Loves Osama (and Saddam)
Has anyone noticed an indifference in the precincts of the far Left to the fatalities of 9/11 and the horrors of Saddam Hussein? Right after the 9/11 attack, German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen called it “the greatest work of art for the whole cosmos.”...
Artificial Stupidity
A recent news story about a teacher who assigned her students to write anti-war letters may have seemed like just an isolated episode, but teachers using students for their own little ego trips is by no means uncommon. Perhaps the worst recent example was a teacher...
Dixie Chicks in the Frying Pan, but Free Speech Isn’t
Dixie Chicks lead clucker Natalie Maines has fans wanting to kick her in the tail feathers. Cumulus Broadcasting is even banning the Chicks from all its 260 stations. Some have suggested, however, that the Cumulus decision violates Maines’ First Amendment...
Loving Saddam, Hating America
As the war began Wednesday evening most Americans realized that whatever their position in the war debate was, hostilities had commenced and the time for debating was over. Except of course those who could be seen protesting in major cities and getting arrested, they...
Philosophical Detection: Dissecting Slate’s Michael Kinsley
The closer a con artist gets to being exposed definitively, the more desperate he becomes. If his con relies on moral intimidation, his threats and denunciations become more and more hysterical. This is the source of Saddam Hussein’s threatening bluster in the...
Free Education from the Grip of Government
Each year Drexel University sends hundreds of freshmen (at the threat of not graduating) to Philadelphia public schools as part of the service-learning program managed by Junior Achievement Inc. While the alleged benefits of “forced volunteerism” in our...
Dreaming of Bonds
Last year, investors pulled $25 billion out of stock mutual funds and added $125 billion to bond mutual funds. You can hardly blame them. It’s scary out there, and, as war nears, it’s getting scarier. My view, as readers of this column have heard many...
America’s ‘Debt’ to the French
For the second time, the French have been instrumental in securing the independence of the United States of America. At the birth of our country, the assistance of the French monarchy was vital in our struggle against King George III. Today, the assistance of the...
A Free Market Will Solve America’s Energy Problems
In recent weeks American consumers have experienced two-dollar-per-gallon gasoline prices, and predictably, many politicians and commentators blame the “greed” of U.S. oil and power companies. The truth, however, is that shortages occur when demand exceeds...
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