When my daughter started talking about maybe going to see Adele when she appears in Austin TX, I had to admit I did not know who Adele is. So I researched a bit, Google of course, and found out Adele was shocked at her tax rate. This was due to her multi-platinum selling recording “19”. What’s worse, her next, “21” is out selling the first. … Continue reading Adele Shrugs
Michelle Malkin celebrates the defeat of proposed rule changes to Scrabble. Allegedly, proper names were going to be allowable. As a conservative I applaud this as well. Liberalism has infiltrated too many areas of our daily life. … we were initially horrified to hear the rumors started by Time Magazine that Scrabble was succumbing to the lowest common denominator and changing its rules to allow … Continue reading Kwyjibo
Ed Morrissey at Hot Air has linked to a video that has to be seen. Its a nice reflection on the iPad and healthcare legistlation. Here is the video as well … A great commentary, and I hesitate to improve on it, just let it sink in. (Especially the fake O-Pad display in black and white. Har har har.) Continue reading Can’t afford the iPad? There’s hope and change in the O-Pad.
That’s what Bart Simpson told his family in “Homer v. the Eighteenth Amendment.” “I’ll go with you!” said Homer. Marge put a stop to it, and that was that—except, of course, that Bart’s drinking started a temperance campaign that led to prohibition. As the episode illustrates, things get complicated when the government gets involved. That’s perhaps the moral of this story of a University of … Continue reading “I’m going down to Moe’s for a couple of beers.”
Arnold Kling reflects on the fact that the Clintons made $109 million over the past seven years. (Maybe John Edwards is on to something with that “Two Americas” thing.) What’s remarkable is not the amount of private wealth, however, but the amount of wealth and power that government officials control: Montgomery County, Maryland, has an annual budget of $3.8 billion. This sum is under the … Continue reading Kling on Inequality
And George McGovern has discovered the value of liberty and the limitations of government. Since leaving office I’ve written about public policy from a new perspective: outside looking in. I’ve come to realize that protecting freedom of choice in our everyday lives is essential to maintaining a healthy civil society. Why do we think we are helping adult consumers by taking away their options? We … Continue reading Pigs Fly!
Mark Tapscott (HT: Instapundit): I don’t see how McCain could avoid being a vigorous supporter of proposals to expand the regulatory reach and severity of campaign finance law. Otherwise, it will take the Democrats about 10 seconds to accuse McCain of flip-flopping, or worse, if he doesn’t aggressively support their certain efforts to expand the FEC’s budget, staff and regulatory authority. The inevitable result will … Continue reading The Future of Free Speech
Many have noticed that the Social Security system is essentially a Ponzi scheme, a pyramid that depends on the entry of increasing numbers of people. People who entered the system early profited immensely. People entering it when I did are fated to receive poor returns, assuming the system survives. People entering it now—that means YOU, graduates!—are going to lose big. John Hinderaker notes that the … Continue reading Another Ponzi Scheme
Various pundits and Democratic candidates for President have been arguing about ways of bringing health insurance to those who currently lack it. One idea is health insurance mandates—require people to buy health insurance, and subsidize the cost for those who have trouble affording it. Greg Mankiw today says what I’ve been thinking about this: “a mandate is only as effective as the penalty backing it … Continue reading Mandates
The View from Alexandria 