Author: Eric Scheie

It’s not every day that I feel as if I am the equivalent of Paul Krugman (or that my lay economic opinion is equally as valuable as his), so today is a day I can rejoice. But first I will explain. Greg Mankiw linked an influential essay by Kartik Athreya, Ph. D. (a senior economist…

When we think of eminent domain, normally we think of the government taking private land in order to put it to public use, although the controversial (and incorrect, IMO) Kelo decision expanded the concept to include government takings for private use — if that private use can be said to improve a city’s tax base.…

The topic of collusion is of longstanding interest here, as I am always fascinated by the way politics makes strange bedfellows, especially the way sworn political enemies can end up working towards the same goal. This can take many forms; the following are only a few examples selected from some of my blog posts over…

Over the years, I’ve seen a number of attempts attack, malign, regulate, categorize, and otherwise mess with bloggers, blogging, and the blogosphere, but today I stumbled across an entirely new potential avenue of approach. Apparently specialized software has been developed which purports to psychiatrically analyze bloggers’ writing styles, diagnose them as ill, and direct them…

I don’t like to chide anyone for his or her sexual peccadilloes, and that includes even the very ridiculous Al Gore. The woman’s statement–which could be mistaken for R-rated Vice Presidential fan fiction–describes Gore as a man with a “violent temper as well as extremely dictatorial commanding attitude besides his Mr. Smiley Global Warming concern…

Like many people, I like taking nature walks. There’s something about getting away from humanity that I find emotionally appealing. What I don’t like is the increasing tendency by other humans — especially meddlesome humans — to interrupt the natural beauty with constant, ugly reminders of their relentless and intrusive presence. And what a domineering…

(Forgive my cynicism but that’s what happens when you’re subjected to non-stop government spin and relentless bullshit day after day, week after week, and year after year…..) Right now there’s a tornado warning in effect for the City of Ann Arbor, and the city sirens are sounding. “Take shelter” is being texted in emergency emails.…

Many people are reacting to President Obama’s latest encounter with a fly; the incident caused Ann Althouse to “reminisce about the time when Obama seemed to have superhuman power.” Ditto here. Well maybe microditto. Certainly it is beyond dispute that our president did once have the power to swat flies…. Now, our president (whom a…

I often read things that bother me. Sometimes they are opinions with which I disagree, and other times they involve inaccuracies. Usually, I forget all about them, but sometimes, an item will still be bothering me the next day, and this is one of them. I did a bit of a doubletake when I read…

When I read about the Obama $7.00 a gallon gasoline “Global Warming” agenda, my reaction to the “plan” was to exclaim, “I’m beginning to think that these people don’t want to get reelected!” I didn’t want to write a post, though, for I’m worried that the direction of the “spill spin” is still undetermined, and…

The previous post about the kid who was forbidden to wear a hat with plastic toy soldiers on it illustrates a problem which won’t go away. Although the principal announced he would try to change the policy to allow images of guns if carried by soldiers and police officers, it is not entirely clear that…

There’s an old rule of polite society to “never discuss religion or politics,” and the reason is that people get emotional about such things, and take them personally. Hurt feelings result, and even occasional fights. In view of what went on in Los Angeles recently, I’m wondering whether the rule should be amended to include…

Via Jamie Glazov, I found a link to a truly appalling video in which a UCSD student makes light of the charge that the Muslim Student Association hosted a “Hitler Youth Week,” and after questioning, finally expresses approval of a second Holocaust: David Horowitz: “I am a Jew. The head of Hezbollah has said that…

With the aid of a geographical map, Ann Althouse makes a plausible argument that Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (a.k.a “da U.P.” — where the inhabitants call themselves “Yoopers”) appears to have been stolen from Wisconsin by Michigan: That is ours, baby. It’s like that mitten is reaching up there an yanking off our manhood. And speaking…

I don’t know whether to cal this independent investigative journalism or pure self indulgence, but I have noticed an interesting discrepancy in the reporting of a local story, and as I possess additional relevant evidence (which the local authorities probably wouldn’t appreciate), I don’t know what to do with it other than to put it…

While the deliberate censorship of toy soldiers with guns is not a new topic on this blog, I see that those I characterized as “decadent bureaucrats” in an earlier post just keep on doing it: PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Christan Morales said her son just wanted to honor American troops when he wore a hat to…

Today is the 38th anniversary of the famed Watergate break-in. The topic is of longstanding interest to me, and I continue to marvel over the fact that after all these years, the reasons for the burglary are still unsettled. Historians and Nixon scholars continue to wonder, while pondering various theories. The one thing that stands…

This oil for golf/golf for oil stuff is getting old, but it’s just so damned true: Remember how critical the left was of Bush for golfing, instead of dealing with more pressing matters? Yes, I remember! And how! Such associations formed the irrational basis of many a stoner’s revelations about Bush, thanks to Michael Moore.…

The topic of extending adolescence for health care purposes generated some extensive (and even heated) discussion in Glenn Reynolds’ post — much of it occasioned by a piece by Michael Barone (“The price of perpetual adolescence”) which I found grimly ironic, as well as true. Here’s Barone: An article in the New York Times examines…

While I don’t like stereotypes and hate to sound like some kind of bigoted crackpot, occasionally I notice things which force me to ask basic “why” questions. And because this one simply doesn’t make sense, I thought I would share it with the readers, who can hopefully fill me in on what I am missing.…