Fans of a large and intrusive state are fond of arguing that leaving people alone is fine for simple, primitive societies, but that the growing complexity of the modern world requires a strong hand and centralized control. It’s a convenient position for authoritarians to take, since it leaves them eternally amassing power unless the rest […]
The defining moment in the “rules for thee but not for me” ethos of the ruling class during the COVID-19 pandemic may have come when Neil Ferguson, the epidemiologist behind Britain’s lockdown policy, met with his married girlfriend in defiance of the restrictions he promoted. Eager to threaten the common people with penalties if they […]
Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, recently cautioned that if governments stifle the flow of vaccines around the world in order to favor their own constituents, COVID-19 will continue to infect unprotected populations at enormous cost in lives and wealth. That comes as experts warn of the dangers of “vaccine nationalism” […]
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many governments have implemented policies intended to minimize the risk of infection, but which impose very real costs on people on the receiving end. In the case of COVID testing policies, requirements have frequently been implemented before the means to easily satisfy that they exist. So, it’s no […]
Despite much posturing by President Donald Trump and his supporters, it’s increasingly likely that Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States. In response, Republicans seem bent on petty vengeance in the form of non-cooperation with the new administration’s transition team—an empty gesture that ruffles feathers while accomplishing nothing. […]
Despite years of verbal fireworks, charges of foreign election interference, and political warfare culminating in an impeachment trial, it’s quite likely that the inconclusive outcome of the 2020 election comes down to the events of the last eight months. Pundits and political junkies may fret over Russia, immigration policy, personal temperament, and the like, but […]
As already unimpressive government schools fail the test put to them by the pandemic, families have turned to alternatives old and new to see that their children are educated. Among the popular responses have been learning pods of cooperating families, either to facilitate and enhance the online offerings of public-school systems or else to replace […]
Digging through a modern major-party candidate’s proposals for good ideas is like wading into a cesspool in search of treasure; maybe you’ll find it, but don’t get your hopes up. But Democratic nominee Joe Biden—who looks likely to win the presidential election—actually has a gem hidden amidst a lot of, well, what you’d expect to […]
With their survival on the line amidst a new round of government restrictions targeted at slowing the spread of COVID-19, many Illinois restaurants and bars are refusing to comply. It’s the sort of defiance that erupted during the early days of the pandemic, but more widespread and better organized by business owners who say they […]
With November 2020 looming, Americans look forward to the end of a seemingly permanent election campaign and perhaps some reduction in the raging fever of national tensions that ail the country. Dream on. Even if we have a clear winner on election night, the selection of next year’s lucky White House resident seems bound to […]
