Author: Eric Scheie

Earlier I was reading about judicial versus constitutional conservatism. And Calhounian versus Heinleinian libertarianism. I’m beat and have to get up before dawn, so I have no time for Venn Diagrams, but I’m wondering how much overlap there would be if you had a circle for both of the above kinds of conservatism and both of the…

It is axiomatic that if there were no laws, there would be no lawbreaking. In logic, if laws = crime, then no laws = no crime. Sounds simple, but as we all know, in life what we think of as crime is not merely illegal conduct, but immoral and dangerous conduct — the sort of…

Yet again, Jon Stewart has lifted my spirits: But never mind that! According to The Man himself, Obamacare is whatever Obama says it is. Well then, is that settled? What’s also funny is that the Democrats are starting to panic, and are acting for the world like rats deserting a sinking ship. You’d almost think…

You Break the Law Every Day … Without Even Knowing It Estimates of the current size of the body of federal criminal law vary. It has been reported that the Congressional Research Service cannot even count the current number of federal crimes. These laws are scattered in over 50 titles of the United States Code,…

I am appalled that this sort of thing is happening in the United States: Gang Of Teens Playing Disturbing Game Of ‘Knock Out The Jew’ Activists, Victims’ Families Say 8 Incidents Not About Robbery, But About Hate […] released surveillance video that shows one group attacking a Jewish man. The video shows from a few different…

I’m fascinated by what the earth looked like at the time many of fossils found in this area were living creatures. Here’s a reconstructed view (showing Michigan and the nearest “field area” to Ann Arbor being underwater): If viewed from space, it would be completely unrecognizable as earth. Yet the way environmentalists who want to…

A vicious attack in which a Berkeley teenager riding a public bus was set on fire is not — in my opinion — getting the sort of national attention it ought to be getting. Luke Fleischman, who also goes by the name Sasha, was asleep Monday on an AC Transit bus in Oakland when police…

Today is Veterans Day. For years it was a bit of a tradition for me to always call an old friend who was a WWII vet, but this is the first Veterans Day without him. Longtime co-blogger M. Simon is a veteran and he has an interesting war-related post up today. While I’m of course grateful…

Earlier I read something that made me remember that 70s environmentalist slogan “SPLIT WOOD, NOT ATOMS!” Now that they have real power, the greenie weenies at the EPA have decided to ban most wood burning stoves. And the rules are the same no matter how cold the location: …the most dangerous aspect of the EPA proposed…

Earlier I thought I recognized a very familiar character actor in the 1933 film, Goldiggers of 1933. Trouble is, he was so young I wasn’t 100% sure, but I had seen him in so many things that even though I didn’t know his name I knew I could find him by Googling. Sure enough, looking…

Anyone who trusts “science” should read “When Trans Fats Were Healthy.” …surprisingly, science has only been against trans fats for the past few decades. Through the late 1980s, animal fat substitutes like Crisco and margarine were all the rage, and for a brief moment were even considered a health product. Here’s the story of how…

Article with this headline: Is America Being Deliberately Pushed Towards Civil War? Well worth reading, if scary. Excerpt: History teaches us that most economic crisis events are followed or preceded immediately by international or domestic conflict. War is the looming shadow behind nearly all fiscal disasters. And: What’s the greatest weakness of conservatives? It’s their…

Marriage penalty in Obamacare? Yes, and it appears to be substantial. Any married couple that earns more than 400 percent of the federal poverty level—that is $62,040—for a family of two earns too much for subsidies under Obamacare. “If you’re over 400 percent of poverty, you’re never eligible for premium” support, explains Gary Claxton, director…

Virginia voters have spoken, and unfortunately for them, they elected a total Clinton hack — Democrat toady and stooge Terry McAuliffe — governor. I would never have even considered voting for McAuliffe in my wildest dreams, but I would have had trouble voting for Cuccinelli because of his support for sodomy laws. I am sure I am…

Not that we really needed more reminders about how we are living in a police state, and while I really don’t have anything new to say and I’m in a hurry to get to a class, I would feel amiss if I didn’t mention two appalling incidents which illustrate how out of control things have…

One of the things which hasn’t received all that much attention yet (because it doesn’t kick in until after the next presidential election) is the so-called “Cadillac Tax.” Employers are already responding by shifting costs to workers: Employers at risk of being hit with the “Cadillac tax” provision in the Affordable Care Act are shifting…

I have been carping and kvetching about Obamacare — especially the “if you like your health insurance you can keep it” lie –for years now. But beyond complaining in blog posts, there was little I could do. Obama and his allies lied — malevolently, in my opinion — to put this horrific piece of social engineering…

A lot of men — and older women — argue that it doesn’t apply to them, so why should they have to have coverage for it? Um, is there such a thing as paternity coverage? If not, why not? Can anyone enlighten me please? I am honestly trying not to be sexist. How can there…

It is gloomy, dark, dank, cold, and clammy. But this cartoon always cheers me up.   A pair of toy robot dogs I bought for a buck a piece at a recent garage sale needed no cheering up. All I had to do to make them come to life was to put batteries in them.…

Over the years, I have become quite accustomed to wars against various holidays and celebrations. There is a longstanding war on Christmas, a war on Thanksgiving, and of course the annual war on Columbus Day, and these wars are pretty much run by the politically correct left, for the usual politically correct reasons. But a…