A Scottish man was recently convicted for sending a tweet that was deemed offensive. The tweet was disgusting, saying that the only good British soldier is a dead one. Freedom of speech protects our right to make offensive and disgusting statements. Rather than prosecute those who are intentionally offensive, we should recognize such statements for…
Rock singer Graham Nash recently slammed Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for using a Nash song—“We Can Change the World”–for an anti-vaccination campaign. Nash said, I do not support his anti-vaccination position as the history of the efficacy of the Covid19 vaccines is well documented. When I wrote “We Can Change the World” I did not…
Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that the Biden Administration did not have legislative authority to issue a mandate that employers with more than 100 workers require vaccination. The Court did not say that vaccine mandates are unconstitutional or a violation of individual rights. It simply said that Congress hasn’t authorized such a rights-violating mandate….
Last week, a judge ordered New York State to reopen its portal for rental assistance. The portal was shut down in November. On one hand, the state is dawdling in its efforts to provide relief to tenants (and by extension landlords) impacted by the pandemic. On the other hand, with its eviction moratorium and other…
Those who can’t and don’t produce values are quick to tell actual producers how they should operate their businesses. The latest example comes from Sen. Bernie Sanders, who sent a letter to Warren Buffett imploring the latter to intervene in a labor dispute at a company owned by Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. Buffett is one of…
While the world’s poor nations complain about their inability to vaccinate their citizens, one African nation recently destroyed a million doses of vaccine. Nigeria had received the vaccines knowing that they would expire in a few weeks, but the government was unable to use them in time. The executive director of Nigeria’s health agency said…
Scott Alexander at Astral Codex Ten makes an interesting point about the term “no evidence” (HT-Gus Van Horn). Alexander notes that the term is used to mean “this is plausible but we haven’t really proven it” as well as “this is false.” There is a huge difference between the two meanings. The former means that…
New York City is considering a law that would prohibit landlords from considering most criminal convictions while screening prospective tenants. One ex-convict told a reporter, “Just think of the worst thing you’ve ever done, and suppose someone held that against you for the rest of your life.” Context matters. There is a huge difference between…
City council members in Boulder are pushing for more housing. At a recent meeting, they demonstrated that they are a major obstacle to that occurring. A developer wants to build fifty-nine new homes on a parcel of land. Fourteen will be townhomes with a price tag of $2.4 million. The developer is required to include…
NBC news reports that in early 2020 the Trump administration gave $100 million to a federal agency for the purpose of fixing the supply chain of COVID medical supplies. At the time, the agency was run by a college friend of the President’s son-in-law. As of the time of the report in mid-November, no money…
Residents of Chicago’s South Shore are concerned that the Obama Library will gentrify the neighborhood and lead to their displacement. They have issued a number of demands to the mayor and city council, including giving long-time residents $20,000 each to repair their homes. It’s only fitting that the residents near the library want a handout….
Legislators in New York are considering a “just cause” eviction bill that opponents have labeled Lease for Life. The bill would prohibit landlords from evicting a tenant as long as the tenant pays the rent, isn’t intentionally damaging the property, and isn’t subletting or violating the lease. The bill would also subject most rental housing in…