The Gays and Ron Paul

Andrew Sullivan explains why they aren't very worried about him.

More on Those Ron Paul Newsletters

From Brian Doherty.

Those Ron Paul Newsletters

Here's a good take on the matter from Steve Horwitz, and check out Bill Woolsey's thoughts in the comments.

Communists and Nazis

I don't agree often with Ronald Radosh, but this column is right on the money.

Frosty the Snowman

Maybe you Should Cry for Her

Eva Peron was lobotomized as part of her cancer treatment.

American Manufacturing Rebounds

The latest from Joel Kotkin.

Headline of the Day

I'm glad I don't have siblings.

President Obama or His Economists

Arnold Kling asks where the problem lies.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Christopher Hitchens on the Nanny State

Cato has posted video of a talk he did on Michael Bloomberg.

How the Internet Ruins Things

This guy is certainly right about Olivia Munn.

NBA Nerds

Why are pro basketball players dressing like Carlton Banks?

Deporting American Citizen

Relax, you have nothing to worry about...if you are white.

Maybe Glenn Beck Was Right

Newt Gingrich doubles down.

Government Of, By and For Goldman Sachs

Mario Rizzo has a tellingchart.

Gingrich and Obama

There's a reason they both want to claim the mantle of Roosevelt.

The only thing that separates Gingrich from Romney and Obama is his lack of self discipline. The only thing that separates Romney from Gingrich and Obama is that is self regard isn't as obvious.

House Democrats Want to Censor Newspapers

Reason magazine explains how.

Albama GOP Rethinks Anti-Immigation Law

You can't attract foreign companies without attracting foreigners.

RIP Dobie Gray

Rizzo vs. Krugman, Hayek Vs. Keynes

Mario Rizzo slaps down Paul Krugman.

Krugman Tries To Write Hayek Out of Economic History

Nothing Kurgman does these days surprises me.

Dear Liberals

Jason Brennan writes the left a letter.

Don't Check Asian

USA Today reports that Asian students are getting hip to the Rampant racism against them in higher education.

Achor Babies Away?

Kstherine Mangu-Ward looks at illegal immigration and fertility.

Ron Paul Barred from GOP "Debate"

More from Reason.

Church Bans Interacial Marriage

In Kentucky.

Financial Crises, Then and Now

A comparison from the Mises Institute.

Headline of the Day

Being a jolly old soul is against the law.

Can the Bulldog Be Saved?

Well, only be making it something other than a bulldog.

Headline of the Day

I always am.

Prince of Peace

America Before the Welfare State

It was a land of great charity.

E-Verify and Wages

Wages for native-born Americans in Arizona did not go up after the state mandated that businesses use E-Verify.

Too Soon?

A new baseball team's name is bringing criticism.

The UFC Sues the State of New York

I wish them luck, but I'm not sure the First Amendment is the best basis for their lawsuit.

A Tax on Both Their Houses

The latest from Dalton's own Wyle Wingfield.

The New Jim Crow

Shika Dalmia's latest column.

The Modern Bastiat

Frederic Bastiat may have been that greatest economist who wrote for a popular audience of all time. Several econ blogs have been discussing who is the modern Bastiat. My old grad school professor Don Boudreaux weighs in.

A Day at Immigration and Customs Enforcement

A dialogue by Bryan Caplan.

Eternally Blue

Alabama Has Jobs

But no one wants to take them.

Government Doesn't Even Redistribute Wealth Well

Arnold Kling has the numbers.

Correction of the Day

I didn't realize math would be involved.

What Herman Cain Doesn't Know

Peter Suderman says the sex scandal is actually diverting attention to what a horrible candidate Cain actually is.

Fox's Plans for the UFC

Don't sound good. Any time Brock Lesnar gets near a microphone it's a disaster, so I'm not sure what they are thinking making him an announcer. The rest of it sounds equally bad.

The 1 Percent, Today and Yesterday

Don Boudreaux was one of my professors in grad school. He's still teaching, but he has also become a prolific writer of letters to the editors of various publications. Here's his latestt.

Jim Cornette

Talks to Alex Marvez.

Headline of the Day

Here.

Libertarians without Borders

Johnny Isakson's Latest Bill

Gets panned by the folks at the Cato Institute.

Why Was There No Autumn of Love?

Steve Sailer looks back at Haight-Ashbury in 1967.

Telemundo's Plan to Reach More Hispanic Viewers

English.

How Not to Cut the Federal Budget

A new paper from the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

Boom Boom

And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

Mitt Romney supports a national ID and E-Verify.

John McCain vs. Pat Buchanan

Steve Sailer asks which is the extremist.

Hot Shots and High Spots

Alex Marvez talks to wrestling photographer George Napolitano about his new book.

The Sad World of the Misunderstood Spider

Poor little guy.

Barr vs. Graves

Bob Barr may run for Congress again.

Politico on Tom Graves

The Georgia congressman isn't backing down on his principles.

UFC on Fox

I've not been impressed at all by their early promotional efforts. The latest commercial is pretty bad.

Mil Mascaras Named to the WWE Hall of Fame

I wonder if his nephew will induct him.

I Made Myself a Sandwich Sunday

But this guy was just a little more active.

Facebook and Twitter

Dave Meltzer writes:

I was in a discussion yesterday with the head of a major promotion talking about how that every major company (UFC, WWE and TNA) that has embarked on usage of twitter and Facebook has ended up having their key business metrics (ratings, PPVs) decline, while the former two bring in literally millions of fans. There is a reason why. Stars killing their aura as stars. They get people to talk about them, but they also make people less want to pay to see them because they come across like they aren't stars. Not saying some people don't come across as stars or it's a negative, but the ones that do are the minority.,

Herman Cain's Business Record

Is it really as impressive as he claims?

Buddy Colt vs. Paul Jones

From Florida, circa 1973

Headline of the Day

With a name like that he never had a chance.

Funky Mama

Dan Brown and Retro Hipsters

Save the Masons.

The Georgia State TSPLOST

Dalton native and Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist Kyle Wingfoot says it won't even put the money where it is needed most.

Arts Center Disappoints

Attendance at events hosted by the new arts center in Fairfax county, Virginia, have been less than one-third what supporters promised when they lobbied to have it built. Now, they say the need the government to kick in even more money to keep it open.

FBI Warns Clint Eastwood

Don't portray J. Edgar Hoover as gay.

Meet the New Boss

Steve Sailer looks at Mitt Romney's foreign and defense policy team.

Alabama and Mexico

The economy, not new laws, is driving people back to Mexico, according to the Mises Institute.

Herbert Hoover: Father of the New Deal

The latest from economist Steve Horwitz.

Scottsdale Man Faces Jail Time

Over an illegal tree.

RIP Charles Napier

Roger Clemens and Eric Holder

William Anderson says the Justice Department is treating the two men very differently.

Great Balls of Fire

This Would Be a Great Premise for a Movie

Charter boat leaves a piar of scuba divers behind.

How Steve Jobs Made Business Cool Again

Virginia Postrel wrote this a few weeks ago. It seems timely now.

Colorado Farmers Hire Locals to Pick Their Crops

They quit after six hours.

Why the Japanese Suddenly Hate Cars

And love bicycles

You Just Can't Forget Him

I always thought Tracy Nelson was one of the most underrated singers of the 1970s and 1980s.

Mitt Romney's Plan to Cut Federal Spending

Peter Suderman is underwhelmed.

Stanford Football

The Los Angeles Times look at how Stanford University has become a competitive football school despite high academic standards.

Anti-Latino Racism in Atlanta

One CNN reporter experiences it.

No One Doing Jobs Americans Won't Do

Georgia agriculture is shrinking thanks to new state law.

The Beckham Law

Shikha Dalmis says the United States can learn something from Spain.

Tom Graves Eyes Senior Leadership Post

Wil he move up? Or be moved out?

RIP Peter Gent

I'm not a football fan, but I really enjoyed North Dallas Forty.

As the World Ages

ARnold Kling points to a new article on how aging populations will affect the world, especially Mexico and the United States.

The Last Outlaw

Alex Marvez talks to Stan Hansen.

Iron Man

William Shatner debuts his version of the heavy metal classic.

Moneyball and the Military

National Review says defense spending cuts could help the Pentagon.

Moneyball

Steve Sailer reviews it.

Immigration, the Republicans and the End of White America

The latest from Ron Unz in The American Conservative.

Nice Car Company You Got There

It would be a shame if anything happened to it.

Take It with a Grain of Salt

The left says there's no such thing as a war on salt. But Lucy Steigerwlad notes that there real position is that the

moment something is proven or suggested to be harmful by enough experts, to resist heavy-handed regulations (or to fear them) is to be anti-science.

Five Myths About Millionaires

They are debunked in the Washington Post.

The Bayonne Bleeder

Chuck Wepner will be the subject of a new documentary and, maybe, a movie staring Liev Schrieber.

Hagler vs. Leonard

A look back at that fight, with interviews with many of the people involved. I remember thinking Leonard lost. i don't recall him being such a bitch.

Regime Uncertainty

Economist Don Boudreaux explains what prolonged the Great Depression and the Great Recession.

Pakistan Isn't Really on Our Side

Steve Sailer explains why we have been ignoring that.

Groupie (Superstar)

This song is credited to Bonnie Bramlett and Leon Russell, but I've read that Delaney actually wrote many, maybe all, of the songs credited to Bonnie. He let her have the credit because he had a music publishing deal he didn't like.

Will Georgia Execute an Innocent Man?

Why should Texas have all the fun?

Obama Administration Deports 1 Millionth Person

He is way ahead of the pace set by George W. Bush.

Was Nathan Deal Right to Can the State Climatologist?

Master Resource, a conservative site dedicated to energy and environmental issues, says he was not.

What Ron Paul Should Have Said, Part II

Bryan Caplan responds to Rod Long and says Paul basically got it right in his answer to Wolf Blitzer's healthcare question.

Tea Partiers vs. E-Verify

Some of them, anyway. Despite their claims to oppose larger, more intrusive government, Georgia Tea Party groups supported a law state law enacted this year that will force businesses to use E-Verify.

Neoconservatism Taken Down

David Gordon reviews Bradley Thompson's new book.

What Ron Paul Should Have Said

Rod Long answers Wolf Blizters' question about patients lacking health insurance.

The Big Car Companies Love Big Government

Eric Peters explains why.

The Skeptical Environmentalist: 10 Years Later

Bob Bradley looks back at the influential book.

It's the Investment, Stupid II

More from Steve Horwitz.

The World's Largest Employer

Ike warned us about this.

Whiskey, Weed & Women

A little Hank Williams III.

It's the Investment, Stupid

Steve Horwitz looks at what really ails the American economy.

Media Bias

Arnold Kling as some thoughts.

Georgia Program That Obama Touted

Doesn't work very well and is almost broke.

In Defense of Tax Havens

The latest from my old college pal Dan Mitchell.

Truther Comic

This doesn't sound as promising as Veitch's work on Swamp Thing.

A World Without Borders?

Economist Michael Clemens sys it makes sense.

Children of the Night

They are making music in France again.

Big Government Conservatives

The latest from Barton Hinkle.

Whatever Else you May say About Brock Lesner

You can't say he's afraid of tough competition. He's signed to fight Alastair Overeem in December. Based on the caliber of fighters he's defeated lately, Reem can lay a solid claim to best heavyweight in the world right now.

Don't know who to pick in this one. But I'm sure it ain't going five rounds. It might not go two.

Christians, Immigrants and Liberty

The latest from Tony Woodlief.

Thug State

Paul Gregory looks at Russia.

Take That FEMA

How Waffle House responds to natural disasters.

Government vs. Google

Arnold Kling spots the difference.

I Ain't Afraid of Your Husband

All Blue Collar Work Is Not the Same

Economist Steve Horwitz looks at (one reason) why the stimulus did not work.

UPDATE: Steve has more thoughts here.

UFC: Very Dumb or Very Smart

They've announced that their first show on Fox will feature Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos for the heavyweight belt. If they put that on PPV, it would be guaranteed to generate at least 700,000 buys. So they are leaving a lot of money on the table. On the other hand, it is a high-profile matchup that should be an action-filled fight, so they are kicking off the Fox series with a big bang.

You Are Right. The Experts Are Wrong

Government econmics statistics are meant to mislead.

The Spoiler, Killer Karl Kox and a Young Gary Hart

Bachmann's Crusade

Shikha Dalmia looks at the presidential candidate's latest tactic.

Hayek's Ghost

Haunts Julianne Hough.

Mises Wins the Nobel Prize

Sort of.

Flair's Agent Responds

Apparently, he hasn't read Flair's book, where the Nature boy himself says he has alcoholic cardiomyopathy.

Mass Transit

The private sector delivers.

Ric Flair Has Become Randy the Ram

Sad article about the Nature Boy.

Headline of the Day

From Greece.

The Rock and Jerry Bruckheimer Team Up

We can only hope this will be as good as "Learning the Ropes."

The Republican Reading List

The Washington Post looks at what the GOP's presidential contenders (say they) are reading.

RIP to the Wrestling Rabbi

Rafael Halperin was a noted Torah scholar and founder of Israel's largest optometry chain. He was also, briefly, a pro wrestling star in the 1950s in the Northeast United States. But with all due respect to the rabbi, the claims that he didn't do worked matches is hooey. There's video of him out there on Youtube, and he appears to have been pretty talented.

The Washington Post's Voodoo Economics

Russ Roberts dissects a recent article.

Meltdown

I just finished Tom Woods' book on the financial crisis/recession. It's an excellent primer for the lay audience on exactly what went wrong and what continues to go wrong.

UFC on Fox

Dave Meltzer has the details of the new network deal.

Brad DeLong Is an Ethics-Free Partisan Hack

Arnold Kling has the latest.

It Takes Balls to Execute an Innocent Man

Texas Gov. Rick Perry likely presided over the execution of an innocent man. When Kay Bailey Hutchison challenged him in the 2010 primary, she considered raising that issue, but a focus group of Republican voters found that killing innocent people actually impressed them.

The Best Songs of the 1980s?

No, ZZ Top?

Does This Make Ron Paul Rorschach?

former Enron adviser recommends alien invasion.

The Top 20 Political Contributors

Via Mark Perry.

The Fuhrer Principle

Mario Rizzo looks at how tired the left has become of democracy.

Obama and Hoover

Jonathan Bean compares two presidents.

Bedrock Must Have Been a Swinging Town

A Stone Age toe could rewrite the human family tree.

Left and Right Now Agree on Obama

The latest from Dalton's own Kyle Wingfield.

Home Prices Fall Again

We haven't seen the end of this.

Catch-22 at 50

The Cato Institute observes the 50th anniversary of the novel by posting an interview it did with Joseph Heller many years ago.

Tom Renesto - The Original Heel Promoter

Arrest First

Figure out if a crime has been committed later.

Still Longing for Camelot

Gene Healy looks at the remaining Obamaphiles.

More American Soldiers Have Died Under Obama Than in Bush's First Term

So where are all the antiwar protestors?

He's Forgotten Everything Ayn Rand Taught Him

Alan Greenspans says the United States won't default on its debt because it can always print more money.

Lemonade Stands and Immigrants

Conor Freidersdorf looks at what they have in common.

Poor Immigrants Are Leaving Los Angeles

For Atlanta.

Glamour Is Fading

Virginia Posttrel looks at Barack Obama's lack of charisma.

Defending Invasive Species

Some environmentalists ask why we should prefer native plants and animals.

Sunset Flip Into a Supflex

Whatever Happened to Joe Pedicino?

And Bonnie Blackstone.

From Serbia to Cape Cod

Jamie Kirchik reports that American students just can't hack it when it comes to seasonal work.

Texas Pride

One man has it.
HT: Radley Balko.

The Return of Salty Soup

Health nazis pressured Campbell's into reducing the salt in its canned soups. Customers didn't like it. Now, as Radley Balko notes, Campbell's is bringing back the salt.

Georgia Restaurants

They are reporting labor shortages.

Illegal Immigrants Stream Across the border

Back into Mexico.

Abdullah the Butcher Sued

An indy wrestler says the Butcher gave him hepatitis in a bloody match. Abby denies this and says he doesn't have the disease.

Damn Those Innovators

Another LTE from Don Boudreaux.

The Toughest Plane Ever Built?

Here's one contender.

Anti-Jihadists React to Norway

The Washington Post has the scoop.

No. 2 Was No. 1

Mike Monneyham talks to Johnny Walker.

The Reid Plan

At National Review, Larry Kudlow is mildly pleased.

Setting the Economic Record Straight

Ira Stoll does the honors via Reason.

The Norwegian Shooter Hates Immigrants

And libertarians.

UPDATE: David Boaz has more.

We Are All Criminals

A good piece in The Wall Street Journal on the growth of federal criminal laws.

C.M. Punk Invades Comic Con

Lost in Translation

Japanese courts may not have the best translators.

Obama's Anti-Immigration Stance

Shikha Dalmia looks at what the administration is up to.

How Many Wars Are We Fighting Now?

The Nation looks at the one in Somalia.

C.M. Punk Interview

A talk with the man of the moment.

Breed Like Beckhams

Bryan Caplan asks why it is wrong for David and Victoria Beckham to have four children.

WWE Back on Top

It has been at least a decade since the WWE got the sort of mainstream coverage it has over the past few weeks with the C.M. Punk storyline. (Well, not counting the Chris Benoit situation.)

I didn't see tonight's PPV, but all the message boards said that they really delivered. Let's see if they can build on this. Heck, I might start wathicng again if they do.

Funeral Strippers

A new documentary on the tradition in Taiwan of hiring strippers for the funeral procession. It's a rural custom that embarrasses city dwellers.

Headline of the Day

Yes, yes it was.

Never Has a Tattoo Been More Accurate

Wow.

Ox Baker Starts a Riot

I love the way Ernie Ladd sells the heart punches like they are killing him...until the chairs start flying.

Cleburne's Proposal

The state erects a new historical marker in Dalton.

The CIA's Man in the White House

Barack Obama Sr.'s connections to the CIA have been mentioned in most biographies of the president, as haas the fact that his son's first job was with a CIA front company. But most mainstream biographers and reporters have not devled too deeply into those matters. In a review of several new biographies of Barack Obama Jr. and his parents, Angelo Codevilla becomes the first mainstream writer to really put the pieces togther.

Natural Gas Subsidies

Ron Bailey looks at one of the downsides of T. Boone Pickens' proposal to switch commercial trucking to natural gas.

11,000 Unfilled Jobs

On south Georgia farms.

Nancy Grace

The Onion has a scoop.

Headline of the Day

Read the story to figure out why

The Witch Hunt Against Banks

My former editor Paul Sperry looks at Washington's latest crusade.

Better Buy Gold and Bullets

The Federal Reserve doesn't seem to be content with mere inflation. They may just push us into hyperinflation.

Imagine What I Could Do to You

Adrian Street was what they called a big heat magnet back in the day.

Undocumented Doesn't Mean Unskillled

Megan McArdle has more on the impact of Georgia's new anti-immigration law.

There Goes the Farm

At The Atlantic, Adam Ozimek looks at the impact of Georgia's new imnmigration law on farmers.

All of this is to say if you're going to stop illegal immigrants from doing a job you should be prepared for the job, and perhaps even the business itself, to go away. You may think this is worth it, but you should at least be acknowledging the risks and weigh them against what, if anything, you think is being gained.

Cutting the Budget

How about ending the Department of Energy?

Net Migration from Mexico

It has slowed to a trickle thanks largely to increased economic opportunities south of the border.

Newspaper Graphic of the Day

From USA Today.

Burning Coal Reverses Global Warming

But apparently only when the Chinese do it. When Americans do it, it apparently causes global warming. Go figure.

The Key to Natural Disaster Survivial

Well, I'm screwed.

A True American Hero

Don Boudreaux looks at George Ballas.

The Soul of Houston

What makes the city, and the state of Texas, so successful.

The Ballad of Kathryn Johnston

Shawn Mullins sings about the 92-year-oldwoman murdered by the Atlanta police.

What to the Slave Is Your Fourth of July?

Frederick Douglass devlivered this address in 1852.

Why Is the Government Minting So Many Dollar Coins?

No one seems to want them. Russ Roberts explains.

Cartoon of the Day

Here.

Brad DeLong Is Still An Ethics-Free Partisan Hack

David Gordon has the latest.

I Thought Ralph Reed Found Relgion

Funny, how those religious conservatives hang out with.

Ted Nugent Is Such a Gentleman

After Tom Petty and Katrina and the Waves asked Michele Bachmann to stop using their songs for her campaign, the Nuge offered her two of his.

Headline of the Day

Good question.

Why I don't Sing the Star-Spangled Banner

A Mennonite explains his church's stand:

I love my country, but I sing my loyalty and pledge my allegiance to Jesus alone.

The NBA Draft

Steve Sailer takes a look.

The Debut of Bam Bam Bigelow

Twenty five years ago this month. I remember this well. It was one of the last great runs for Memphis. Bam Bam went on to have stints with both the WWF and WCW, but he was never really used right.

They Died with Their Boots On

Today is the anniversary of the Battle of the Little big Horn, where Indians wiped out U.S. Army troops under the command of George Armstrong Custer, or, as they called him, Womankiller.

Jefferson's

Much like a cornhole contest, I'd never even heard of Jefferson's until recently. But it's apparently a regional chain, and a franchise opened in Summerville. So I tried it for lunch today. I got the barebecue platter. It's supposed to come with coleslaw, but somehow they were out of coleslaw by 11:30. I got baked beans and fries instead. The barbecue was good for a chain joint. The beans were excellent , and the fries were too salty. Portions were decent, as were the prices. The service was excellent. I'll probably try it again.

Fortunately, I Use Only Paper Plates

And never drink coffee.

Jon Huntsman Eats Food

What reporters will do when they have copy to file.

Ending Marijuana Prohibition

Ron Paul and Barney Frank introduce a bill to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level Explicitly based on the constitutional amendment that ended Prohibition, it would let states set their own marijuana policies and limit the federal government to fighting the smuggling of marijuana into those states that ban it.

The Return of E-Verify

Reason magazine looks at what those small goverment Republicans have wroght.

Why the Federal Budget Won't Be Cut

Well, not until it absolutely has to be cut, anyway. Surveys show that the cuts people have absolutely not idea where their money goes.

How Walmart Discriminates Against Women

I really hadn't followed the case that closely. But this column explains that Walmart requires managers to move to a new store from the one they are promoted out of and to work 50 to 60 hour weeks, things men are more willing to do than women. And that is how it discriminates.

Galveston

Glenn Campbell announced he has Alzheimer's today. He was a tremendous talent.

Headline of the Day

Of course, they are.

What Ben Barnanke Has Wrought

Inlfation is up to 3.6 percent and getting worse each month.

You Learn Something New Everyday

We got a press release from the rec department today about the festivities they will be hosting on July 4. Along with live music and fireworks and kids rides, they will be holding a cornhole contest. I found that involves throwing a beanbag through a hole in a piece of wood.

Just a Few Minor Errors

Reason tears apart Slate's latest attack on libertarianism.

Georgia's New Immigration Law

It hasn't taken effect yet, but Jay Bookman says it's already working.

Texas Two Step

Rick Perry supported Al Gore in 1998.

Jon Stewart's Blackilist

One victim speaks out.

Netflix

Content isn't king.

Trophy Kids in Therapy

Joanne Jacobs looks at what modern child-rearing has wrought.

Josh Barnett Channels Dusty Rhodes

Starting at about 3:24.

LeBron James = Ric Flair

Makes sense to me.

I Think i Just Saw a Pork Chop Pass By My Window

Hmm.

Easy As

You can get them in college education departments.

Not Enough Drugs

Walter Olson looks at why there's a shortage of dozens of critical drugs.

Hicks from the Sticks

Steve Sailer has more on white American basketball players.

Why Aren't There More White Americans in the NBA?

Steve Sailer has some thoughts.

Muddled Masses

Reason magazine looks at immigration law.

The Honorable?

Don Boudreaux looks at Anthony Weiner.

Sounds Like a Win-Win Proposal

David Simon reveals what it would take for him to create another season of The Wire.

The Worst Family in American History?

No, it wasn't the Jukes.

Terrorist-Proof Toilets

From Russia, naturally.

Jackie Fargo vs. The Sheik

Headline of the Day

From the New York Post.

Too Many Books

One couple has a problem.

That's Not in the Bible

Biblical verses that aren't.

Where the Boys Are

There's big money to be made.

Confederates on the Rhine

The Atlantic looks at the popularity of Civil War reenactments in Germany.

Why Indians Dominate Spelling Bees

Slate has the answer.

The Good Old Days

They were actually more violent that the present, notes Bryan Caplan.

Jailed for Serving Others

Lew Rockwell looks at immigration enforcement.

Immigration Myths

From the Ghetto to the NBA?

A new study finds most NBA players came from middle-class or better families. There are actually more middle-class whites than poor blacks in the NBA.

More Reckless Endangerment

David Henderson looks at the new book on the housing meltdown and the economic collapse.

Unknown Union Soldier Finally Identified

In the Marietta National Cemetery.

Do Skyboxes Cause Crime?

Mickey Kaus wants to know.

The Roots of the Housing Crisis and Economic Collapse

The Washington Post reviews a new book on the matter.

The Top Colleges for Free Market Economics

My former grad school colleague Pete Boettle ranks them.

The Wisdom of T. Boone Pickens

The Master Resource blog compares Pickens views on government then and now.

America's Top Young Scientists Are Immigrants' Children

Childern of immigrants dominate the nation's science and math competitions.

Ric Flair Headed to Jail?

A judge found him in contempt of court for not paying back money he'd promised a company.

Before He Was Randy Savage

Sports Illustrated looks at the baseball career of Randy Poffo.

Japan May Sign the Hague Treaty

Thirty years after most other developed nations did.

Bill Clinton Is Right

You don't hear National Review say that every day.

The Apex of Pro Wrestling

Bill Simmons on Randy Savage.

Yes, Mom

Economist Bryan Caplan inspires an experiment in parenting.

The Super Immigrants

Slate says bring them on.

Could You Really Become Batman?

No.

Ask a Mexican Already

More immigrants, Less Crime

Former cop Peter Moskos blogs over at The Agitator.

How Bush Lost Bin Laden

He didn't put resources into Afghanistan because he was already getting ready to invade Iraq. If you raed any accounts by the commanders on the ground during the initial parts of the war in Afghanistan, they repeately requested more resources, are convinced they hd Bin Laden cornered at one point and say the reason they didn't get him was that they didn't get the additional men they asked for.

Why didn't Washington send more resources. Those commanders say they were given three reasons 1) Donald Rumsfeld was convinced that he'd found a new high-ech way to wage war that didn't require large anounts of men; 2) The admistration didn't want to be seen as invading Afghanistan and wanted to rely on Afghan forces, despite being told how unstrustworthy they were; and 3) those forces were being held in reserve for a planned invasion of Iraq.

The First Mother's Day

In honor of moms everywhere, here's Julia Ward Howe's proclamtation.

Right-Wing "Journalism" As Usual

Stephen Hicks wants to know why he was called a Marxist on Andrew Breitbart's Big government web site. Hicks is fairly well know within conservative intellectual circles. But clearly those circles are a very small, and increasingly smaller, subset of the conservative movement. Still, one quick Google search would have shown the man is about as far from Marxist as you can get.

As Virginia Postrel noted, "The level of stupidity and sloppiness here is breathaking." the post, and the comments from Breitbart's readers, live up to every caricature the left has of conservatives.

The Failure of Nuclear Power

Master Resource looks at how governmetn policy has both sustained and hinered nuclear power.

Bin Laden May Be Dead

But he still won, says Radley Balko.

Bobby Vee

He was one of the 1960s biggest-selling singers, so it's no surprise that he has a new collection coming out. Here's his memory of working with Leon Russell:

He didn’t talk it all. He didn’t make eye contact with anybody. When it was over with, he just left,” He recalled. “That’s the way he was. I went on to do a lot of work with him over the years.”

Southern Poverty

Why did the South develop so much more slowly tan the rest of the nation. Blame the culture of clannishness, distrust of outsiders and racism.

Bunny Tales

Vanity Fair has an oral history of the Playboy Clubs.

The New York Times Bestseller List

I see that Ron Paul's newest book is No. 3 this week.

The Great Los Angeles Novel

Benjamin Schwartz looks at Mildred Pierce.

Overthinking Star Wars

The guys at Overthinking It look at the economics of planetary destruction.

Fight of the Century

High School Student Does What Defense Department Couldn't

He compiles a digital record, complete with photos, of all the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans buried in Arlington National Cemetery and puts it online.

We Could Use a Man Like Jimmy Carter Again

Michael Lynch reminds us that Jimmy Carter was pro-coal and pro-nuclear.

Guantanamo Bay

Wikileaks revelations look at what those who actually ran the prison thought about the claims by the Bush administration that it housed only the worst of the worst.

Atlas Shrugged and Energy Policy

Parts four and five of Bob Bradley's series.

Leon Russell

HT: Jimmy Espy

The Cowardly King & Spalding

The Volokh Conspiracy points to why Atlata's most prestigious law firm backed out of a case it had taken on.

In Praise of History

Robert Wenzel says read Ralph Raico's new book.

The Georgia GOP's Situational Conservatives

The latest from Jay bookman.

HT: Jimmy Espy

Making Obama Look Presidential

Steve Sailer says that is what John McCain has been doing for three years.

Japan's Long Haul

National Review says it will feel the effects of the recent earthquake for long, long time.

Atlas Shrugged and Energy Policy

Parts two and three of Bob Bradley's series.

Highest-Paid Athletes in the World

By sport and by national origin.

China's High-Speed Train Wreck

Charles Lane reports.

Donald Trump

Scott Adams praises him.

Healing America

Pete Boettke points to Richard Corneulle as an underappreciated giant of libertarian thought.

Roll Over Beethoven

The Elites Are Angry with Germany

For not wanting to go to war.

The War Was About Oil, After All

Says Anthony Gregory.

Worst Names in Human History?

Here.

Atlas Shrugged and Energy Policy

bob Bradley looks at the real-world insights of Ayn Rand's novel. Plus Walter Donway smacks around Roger Ebert.

Someone Is Going to Get the Shaft

Economist Arnold Kling looks at the federal budget fight and finds there's one outcome no matter what happens.

Surprise

Tea Partiers aren't with the federal budget deal.

Atlas Shrugged, the Movie

It isn't playing around here, so I haven't seen it. Critics hated it. But most of the reviews I've read from fans are pretty positive, though few seem to like the performance of the actress who plays Dagny. It will be interesting to see how the box office does.

China's Coming Economic Crash

Nouriel Roubin says it will be very ugly.

Have More Kids

Pay less attention. Parenting advice from an economist.

Sandy Springs

TEPCO's HQ

They just spent a lot of money to refurbish it.

Honky Tonk Women

Life Is Starting to Imitate Ayn Rand

The New York Post looks at the movie version of Atlas Shrugged.

Defending Bob Dylan

Brian Doherty looks at claims he allowed himself to be censored to play in China.

Child Labor Hypocrisy

Robin Hanson has a few questions about child labor laws.

Exploiting Immigrants

Shikha Dalmia looks at proposals to get rid of birthright citizenship.

Peak Oil

Don Boudreaux says don't worry.

Japan Needs More Freedom

Jim Dorn looks at what it will take to turn the nation's economy around.

Japan and Gold

They like it.

South African Rugby Player

Might have overreacted.

Polciing for Profit

Taxes and Government Spending Destroy

Why the left should try to reduce both.

Cheese-Eating Surrender Monkeys

Dominic Lintner looks at the French.

Return of the Neocons

Objectivist Richard Salsman looks at Barack Obama's adventures in Libya.

Bull

Crony Capitalism Strikes Again

David Stockman looks at how central banks are ruining the economy.

Conscience on the Battlefield

A classic by Leonard Read.

How Japan's Governemnt Is Hurting Disaster Relief

Fortunately, the yakuza don't care much for the law.

The Politics of Disasters

Judge Richard Posner looks at why Japan wasn't better prepared for a nuclear accident.

Rainy Day Woman

Waylon featuring the late Ralph Mooney

Guilty

Barack Obama on the Constitution

‎The President does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation.

Dec. 20, 2007

The End of Japan

Can it really be this bad?

Grant Hill Pwns Jalen Rose

The use of Latin is a nice touch. But the last line really kills.

The Trust Fund Fraud

Economist Don Boudreax looks at Social Security.

Hugo Chavez Has Gone Too Far

He's now attacking breast implants.

Is E-Verify in Trouble at the Supreme Court?

Attorney Stewart Baker, who supports the program, says it is.

This Was Prescient

Check out this story from last March.

UFC Buys Strikeforce

Dave Meltzer explains what it means.

Disaster and Recovery

A timely post from David Henderson.

Creepy Cellphone

From Japan, of course.

Cal Thomas, Plagiarist?

What do you think?

The Wrong War

The Washington Post reviews Bing West's new book.

Are Wisconsin Government Workers Overpaid?

One economist says they are.

Fat China

Fired for Clapping

Sports Illustrated cans a reporter for applauding when Trevor Bayne won Daytona.

Pro Wrestlers and Women in Bikinis

Really, if Hilary Clinton thinks Baywatch is why the United States has a bad image overseas, she's dumber than I thought she was.

How to Reduce Poverty

Charlie Sheen, Muammar Qaddafi or Glenn Beck

I got 12 out of 15 on this one.

Sheen Family Circus

Try it.

Charlie Sheen or Muammar Gadaffi

I got seven out of 10 on this one.

Movie Math

Michael Kinsely runs the numbers and asks

Did you watch the Oscars on Sunday? Did that look like a crowd in need of a government subsidy?

NFL Players Are Like Other Americans

Many live paycheck to paycheck.

T.J. Hooker

Has nothing on this woman.

Graveyard Shift

The Top 40 Libertarian Web Sites

Based on traffic. It's interesting that the top spot and three of the top five and six of the top 10 sites are paleo-libertarian sites.

Is Going to Class Obsolete?

For big lecture course, the answer is yes.

Saving the Spotted Owl

Means killing a lot of barred owls.

The Art ofthe Police Report

The best of police writing might make a good anthology.

Charlie Sheen or the Ultimate Warrior

I got 13 out of 18 on this one.

Inflation It Is

Gerald O'Driscoll looks at the havoc the Federal Reserve is wreaking around the world.

How More Immigration Can Save California

Economist Bryan Caplan explains.

The Truth About U.S. Manufacturing

It's far from dead.

Inflation Is on the Way

Actually, it's already here.

Parents Are Taking the Fun Out of Toys

This sounds bad.

Agnostics for Pacifism

Bryan Caplan looks at the Middle East.

New Zealand, Huh?

Not even on a dare.

Maybe Wisconsin Isn't Like Egypt

Brad DeLong Is an Ethics-Free Partisan Hack

More proof.

A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall

Tom Tancredo Talks About Mexicans

And Mother of Exiles listens.

Lacrosse Without Helmets

It may actuall be safer than playing with helmets.

The Guys We Put in Charge

The Iraqi government wanted the United States to pay $1 billion for the damage it has caused in Baghdad.

Big Brother and the Immigration Crackdown

You can't have the latter without enabling the former, says former cop Peter Moskos.

Strangers Nowhere in the World

Pete Boettke reminds us that classical liberalism is about more than small government.

The Middle East

It's amusing to see all of the GOP's Insta-hacks alternately giving credit to the "Bush doctrine" for all of the protests in the Middle East and blasting Barack Obama for "losing Egypt", praising protestors for rising up against dictators and calling them a bunch of anti-semitic Islamists.

Anything to take your attention of the fact that Republicans are failing to push even the modest budget cuts they campaigned on.

Headline of the Day

Nerds.

Race to the Bottom

Jeffy Jacoby says that the government is still trying to force Americasns into increasingly irrelevant racial categories.

Despair

NSFW language.

Watching MMA Pays Off

For this man, at least.

Listen, YAF

Lew Rockwell revives this piece from Murray Rothbard.

RIP Kenneth Mars

Yes, he'll probably be best remembered for his roles in Mel Brooks films, but his single funniest moment may have been as an alien abductee and advocate of chinodontics on Fernwood Tonight.

Kids Today

Maybe there is some hope for them.

How to Attract Educated People to Your Town

Affordable housing and job opportunities matter more than cool amenities and hipness.

IBD editors must believe their readers to be uninformed morons

Ouch!

The Genius of F.A. Hayek

Is recognized by the American Economics Review.

Ron Paul

David Henderson says he made a major error in his first hearings on the Federal Reserve. He's right.

Atlas Shrugged Trailer

Why Boeing Is Imploding

Because they began running their commercial aircraft division like they ran their defense business.

The Mississippi Sons of Confederate Veterans

Just what are they thinking?

Obama Pushes Job Creation

This is probably the best plan I've seen from this administration.

The Fridge

Sad story here.

Walter Williams

Economist Pete Boettke writs about what it is like to work with him.

The NFL

Crony capitalism at its worst.

The Reagan Fraud

Jeff Riggenbach looks at Ronald Reagan's real record.

The Daly Snooze

Mark Potts isn't impressed with Rupert Murdoch's iPad newspaper.

China's Next Mega-City

How many people will have to be deprived of their property and uprooted to make this plan come true?

A Note to Conservative Bloggers

When you work for a law firm that makes $32 million a year representing Indian tribes, you probably should write something stupid about Indians.

Driving Without a License

One Georgia lawmaker wants to make it possible.

The WWE Should Be Less Like the NBA

And more like the NFL, says a columnist on the Wrestling Observer Web site.

Why John Edwards Finally Told the Truth

The Huffington Post looks at just how weaselly he is.

There Is No Social Security Trust Fund

And there never has been, says economist Randall Holcombe.

Why You Can't Trust the Inflation Numbers

Brett Arands explains.

Is Japan at the Tipping Point?

Reuters looks at Japan's government finances.

Obama Is Pro-Business

But economist Don Boudreaux says he isn't pro-market.

Pentagon Pork

Col Andrew Bacevich explains why it is so hard to cut "defense" spending.

S&P Downgrades Japan

Ambrose Evans-Prtichard says that's not just bad news for Japan but for Europe and the United States as well.

The Poor Are not Getting Poorer

Economist Steve Horwitz looks at the evidence.

Fired for Telling the Truth

Reason looks at what happened to one Border Patrol agent.

Track and Field

Have we reached the limits of human performance? And how do you explain Usain Bolt? I think that's pretty obvious.

LBJ Orders Pants

Yes, this really is him. Language maybe NSFW.

Put This On: LBJ Buys Pants from Put This On on Vimeo.

Pro-Regulation Republicans

No amount of paperwork, no burden on business, no intrusion on personal privacy is too great when it comes to fighting illegal immigration.

Tennessee First

Local officials spent a lot of time, effort and money trying to get some spinoff from Chattanooga's Volkswagen plant. Me? I expected this all along.

The Anti-Illinois?

The Wall Street Journal praises Georgia's pla to cut its income tax rates and to remove many exemptions on sales tax.

But maybe they should wait and see if the General Assembly passes it before praising the state.

The Guys We Put in Charge

The New York Times looks at the last Christian in a formerly Christian town in Iraq.

They Had to Destroy the Village to Save It

No, really.

The Overlords of immigration

Bryan Caplan looks at the statist and collectivist philosophy behind the anti-immigration movement.

Virginia Isn't Southern Anymore

Well, at least the D.C. Metro area isn't.

I, Toaster

Kane for Governor?

Pro wrestler Glenn Jacobs talks politics.

The Fabulous Fargos

Jackie and Don reunite in Nashville.

Gov. Nathan Deal Says

Putting drug users in prison is draining the state's treasury. So he wants to put them in halfway houses and treatment centers.

John Green

Paul Krugman's Inferiority Complex

Robert Wenzel nails it.

Japan Takes Another Giant Step in Bathroom Technology

They are so far ahead of us it isn't funny.

Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior

Amy Chua writes:

I've thought long and hard about how Chinese parents can get away with what they do. I think there are three big differences between the Chinese and Western parental mind-sets.

First, I've noticed that Western parents are extremely anxious about their children's self-esteem. They worry about how their children will feel if they fail at something, and they constantly try to reassure their children about how good they are notwithstanding a mediocre performance on a test or at a recital. In other words, Western parents are concerned about their children's psyches. Chinese parents aren't. They assume strength, not fragility, and as a result they behave very differently.

For example, if a child comes home with an A-minus on a test, a Western parent will most likely praise the child. The Chinese mother will gasp in horror and ask what went wrong. If the child comes home with a B on the test, some Western parents will still praise the child. Other Western parents will sit their child down and express disapproval, but they will be careful not to make their child feel inadequate or insecure, and they will not call their child "stupid," "worthless" or "a disgrace." Privately, the Western parents may worry that their child does not test well or have aptitude in the subject or that there is something wrong with the curriculum and possibly the whole school. If the child's grades do not improve, they may eventually schedule a meeting with the school principal to challenge the way the subject is being taught or to call into question the teacher's credentials.

The Guys We Put in Charge

Ten percent of the Iraqi workforce is employed by the government, making it the largest employer in the nation.

The Economics of the Dave Matthews Band

Dave makes a lot of money.

Killer Mochi

And I thought firing guns in the air at midnight was dangerous.

Dignity Doesn't Travel

Brain Doherty looks at airport insecurity.

The Federal Government Isn't America

Robert Higgs explains.

Star Trek Fan Survey

My pal Virginia Postrel is doing this for a book she's working on. If you've got a little time, pleass fill it out.

Don't Tell Al Gore

The New York Times has a very good article on for-profit education in India that contains this observation:

A few months earlier, power blackouts that rural Indians always suffered silently triggered a violent reaction. Why? Umred was just another small town in the middle of nowhere, dusty and underwhelming. But Umred had begun to dream, townspeople told me, because of television, because of cousins with tales of call-center jobs and freedom in the city. Once Umred contracted ambition, blackouts became intolerable. A psychological revolution, a revolution in expectations, had taken place.
Enlarge This Image

“Electricity is essential to ambition,” an energetic young man named Ravindra Misal explained to me.

Youth Unemployment in Europe

The jobless rate for people under 30 is well into the double digits in much of the Eurozone, and the New York Times reports that strong worker protection laws are to blame:

The problem goes far beyond youth unemployment, which is at 40 percent in Spain and 28 percent in Italy. It is also about underemployment. Today, young people in Southern Europe are effectively exploited by the very mechanisms created a decade ago to help make the labor market more flexible, like temporary contracts.

Because payroll taxes and firing costs are still so high, businesses across Southern Europe are loath to hire new workers on a full-time basis, so young people increasingly are offered unpaid or low-paying internships, traineeships or temporary contracts that do not offer the same benefits or protections.

“This is the best-educated generation in Spanish history, and they are entering a job market in which they are underutilized,” said Ignacio Fernández Toxo, the leader of the Comisiones Obreras, one of Spain’s two largest labor unions. “It is a tragedy for the country.”

Yet many young people in Southern Europe see labor union leaders like Mr. Fernández, and the left-wing parties with which they have been historically close, as part of the problem. They are seen as exacerbating a two-tier labor market by protecting a caste of tenured older workers rather than helping younger workers enter the market.

The Year in Review

By Dave Barry.

If the Federal Government Were a Private Business

Congress would be raking its executives across the coals.

Sarah Jarosz

HT: Rick Henderson

The Top 50 Headlines of 2010

No. 25 is particularly apt.

Japanese MMA

Dave Meltzer reports it is on the ropes.

When the SHTF

Will hipsters survive?

China Has Seen the Future

And it's coal.