POLITICS

At a memorial service for the sailors killed in the terrorist attack on the USS Cole, President Clinton declared, in the tone of intense emotional sincerity he is so practiced at faking, that "justice will prevail." It was a cruel lie to tell to the sailors' mourning...

The big news this campaign season has been the debate between the candidates over what to do with the Federal budget surplus. Depending on how you massage the numbers, the surplus of tax revenues over government expenditures is forecast to be in the trillions of...

The Mashantucket Pequots are in trouble again. And with the new controversy, an old question resurfaces: If an Indian tribe isn't really Indian, why does the federal government allow it to take advantage of special programs, legal exemptions, and enormous wealth? A...

Early this year during a dinner discussion, a high-level manager at a well-known brokerage firm announced to the table that within a few years "value" managers [e.g. Warren Buffet] will be extinct, and that the greatest fear he had about his personal portfolio was...

If you want to know why the Bush campaign is foundering, you don't need to look any farther than last week's battle (week of September 4th, 2000) over prescription drugs. Proving that the era of big government is far from over, Al Gore has proposed a $253 billion...

In responding to a crisis, most of us feel more comfortable employing some sort of action rather than inaction. Their is a call to "Do Something" -- even when nothing needs to be done. That is why politicians and sundry financial gurus from around the world have been...

Grab a bag of popcorn and get out your hankies. This one's a real tear-jerker -- for taxpayers, that is.Movie theaters are shutting down all across America. The stock prices of major multiplex chains are plummeting. Cinema companies are declaring bankruptcy,...

Vice President Al Gore -- Mr. Environmentalism, Mr. Encyclopedic Mind -- went blank during the second presidential debate this week when challenged on one of the most alarming land issues facing the nation. Highlighting the difference in their approaches to...

What an exciting election season. Just think of the campaign issues everyone's talking about. Al Gore gave his wife a long smooch at the Democratic convention; will this endear him to suburban women? George W. got in trouble when he called a reporter an unpleasant...

Our genes are stretches of DNA that we got from mom and dad. They have been with us since our beginning. Genes built our bodies. They exist in each and every one of our cells. It seems reasonable that our genes shouldn't be anybody else's property. Yet, many...

The West Nile virus came to my neck of the woods last week, when four dead crows turned up in southern Maryland and Washington, D.C. Am I scared? Yes, the possible presence of infected mosquitoes in my lakeside neighborhood is worrisome. But even more disturbing is...

If individual rights (or lack thereof) are the fundamental issue in politics, then one should judge political candidates for President based upon their stated adherence to (or lack of adherence to) the preservation and expansion of individual rights -- that is, to be...

Whose money is it?In a muddled political contest, where there is no basic disagreement on prescription drugs, education, or even foreign policy, the biggest issue might be: Which candidate, if any, thinks you have a right to your own money?Al Gore's answer is clear:...

Al Gore claims he is trying to fight for "those who need a champion, those who need to be lifted up so they are never left behind." Exactly who is Al Gore championing, and in what name? Is he championing the ideas of independence and self-responsibility? The idea of...

One of the perennial complaints made of investment analysts is "why didn't you warn me about this before the crash?" While difficult, it is sometimes possible to identify the makings of a country's downfall beforehand, while the news about it is still positive. One...