My Jury Duty Was a Master Class in Government Inefficiency
Some court workers work hard, and many want to help people. But they're stuck in a system where saving people's time brings them no rewards.
Government failure
Why Are California's Governments So Lousy at Fighting Wildfires?
Bigger agencies, higher spending, and expanded workforces don't always make government more effective.
Protesters in France and Spain Are Angry at Government Failure—and Demanding More Government
France’s education crisis and Spain’s housing shortage will not be solved with yet more government intervention.
Terrorists and Criminals Reportedly Got $37.5 Billion From COVID Relief and Other U.K. Aid Programs
Britain has long wasted taxpayer money on frivolous projects. A secret dossier suggests it has now outdone itself.
Samurai vs. Squatters: On the Street With the Hired Swords Reclaiming California Property Owners' Stolen Homes
California has failed to protect private property from squatters. Desperate owners are turning to katana-wielding enforcers to reclaim their homes.
An Alabama Mom Delivered a Preterm Baby in a Jail Cell. She Says Staff Refused To Help.
The mother is suing after she delivered her preterm baby on the jail's floor following 24 hours of labor with no medical assistance.
California Spent $450 Million on a Failed 911 System. Now, the State Is Restarting the Project.
The state’s attempt to overhaul its antiquated 911 system resulted in delays and lost calls.
Chernobyl Wasn't a Nuclear Disaster—It Was a Communist Disaster
Forty years after the Chernobyl meltdown, too many people are still drawing the wrong conclusions.
Judge Orders Takeover of Arizona Prison Health Care Following Years of Barbaric Medical Neglect
A federal judge ruled in 2022 that "no legitimate humane system would operate" like Arizona's prison health care system. Three years later, that same judge found the problems still hadn't been fixed.
Uvalde Cop's Acquittal Shows Why It's Hard To Criminalize Failing To Stop a Mass Shooting
A Texas jury found Adrian Gonzales not guilty of endangering children by failing to confront the gunman at Robb Elementary School.
Inspector General Report Finds Serious Failures Led to an Inmate Wasting Away From Treatable Cancer
Frederick Bardell died from treatable colon cancer after waiting six months for a colonoscopy.
Britons Are Beginning To Admit It: Their Beloved National Health Service Is Broken
“Free” healthcare costs a lot in personal time and taxpayer money.
From Nixon to Trump, the 'War on Drugs' Has Been a Disaster for Americans' Freedom
The Trump administration's chest-pounding approach is costing lives and eroding freedoms.
Alligator Alcatraz Was Built on Secrecy, Expansive Emergency Powers, and an Unprecedented State Power Grab
Shadowy deals and unilateral powers created Florida's notorious immigration detention camp.
The Trump Administration Misses Key Deadlines for Imposing Restrictions on Gain-of-Function Research
Biosafety advocates worry the administration is backtracking on its promise to implement meaningful restrictions on the type of research that likely caused the COVID-19 pandemic.
FBI Blunders and Internet Panic: How the Search for Charlie Kirk's Killer Went Off the Rails
The alleged shooter was turned in by his family and roommates while the surveillance state remained clueless.
Navy SEALs Reportedly Killed North Korean Fishermen and Mutilated Their Bodies To Hide a Failed Mission
It’s impossible to tell how many other times U.S. special operations failed and killed innocent bystanders in the process.
The Freedom of Information Act Is Failing Due to Government Bloat
In FY 2024, over 200,000 Freedom of Information Act requests were backlogged, according to the Government Accountability Office.
'We Can't Let These Sheep Go'
A New Deal–era program nearly eradicated the sacred Navajo-Churro sheep—and still reverberates through the Navajo Nation today.
Overcrowding and Dysfunction Produced a Quiet Riot at a Miami Federal Prison Holding ICE Detainees
Half the elevators at Federal Detention Center Miami are broken. Immigrant detainees are kept on lockdown, and lawyers can barely reach their clients.
Gavin Newsom Should Work on Governing Rather Than Podcasting
California once was the state where a visionary might start up a gee-whiz concept in a garage. Now bureaucrats and powerful unions would crush that concept in its infancy.
Pandemic Lockdowns Made the World Ruder
The new, coarser world will likely be with us for years to come.
Self-Interest Helps Everyone
Entrepreneurial greed is why we have iPhones, refrigerators, cars that usually work, supermarkets that stay open all night, and many of the things that make our lives better.
Covering for Their Own Failures, U.K. Officials Blame Violent Crime on Access to Knives
Politicians who’ve dropped the ball inevitably see the solution as reducing people's freedom.
IRS Failed To Properly Dispose of Sensitive Tax Documents, Report Finds
Some IRS offices routinely threw away sensitive material with regular trash, while others used unlocked or damaged storage bins.
Donate to Reason To Keep the New Prohibitionists at Bay
Give us your money to keep the government out of your cocktails, your cherries, your raw milk, your psychedelics, and other forms of fun.
Abolish the DEA
The DEA's attempts to enforce the nation's drug laws have been a resounding failure by pretty much any measure.
FEMA's Targeting of Trump Supporters Makes the Case for Less Government
Government agencies and officials can’t be trusted, so we should give them less to do.
Urban Living Would Be Better if Big City Governments Were Less Incompetent
Unions and other special interests seem to get what they want before many urban residents get basic services.
Review: A Fun, Chaotic Moon Landing Conspiracy
Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum star in a movie about government incompetence.
A Federal Prison Was Warned About Synthetic Marijuana. Then Inmates Started Overdosing.
"We are living in pure chaos," an incarcerated woman at a federal prison in Minnesota tells Reason following a string of suspected overdoses.
The Best of Reason: What Caused the D.C. Crime Wave?
Don't blame criminal justice reform or a lack of social spending for D.C.'s crime spike. Blame government mismanagement.
What Can You Do While Waiting for a FOIA Response?
It often takes almost a year or more to get public records from the federal government. Here are some things you can do while you wait.
The Government Screwed Up College Financial Aid Applications
The new FAFSA form is like HealthCare.gov but for college students.
What Caused the D.C. Crime Wave?
Don't blame criminal justice reform or a lack of social spending for D.C.'s crime spike. Blame government mismanagement.
Floating Failure
Plus: Taiwan heats up, Robert Moses and Rockaway Beach, CBDCs, and more...
California Lawmakers Might Resurrect Failed 'Urban Renewal' Program
In practice, these programs have empowered local governments to use eminent domain to seize property to redistribute to developers.
West Virginia Declares State of Emergency Over FAFSA Chaos
Due to persistent glitches in the financial aid form, Gov. Jim Justice issued an executive order lifting the FAFSA requirement for several state grants.
How Michigan Lost $1 Million of Liquor
Sadly, not by drinking it—the government just lost a fifth of the state’s inventory.
In Godzilla Minus One, Government Won't Save Anyone When the Crisis Comes
To fight the King of the Monsters, private citizens must band together.
Why Are California's Animal Shelters Killing So Many Pets?
Blame lingering pandemic-era restrictions that make it harder for people to find a dog or cat they'd like to adopt.
Californians Are Discovering Why Government Is a Terrible Landlord
When everyone owns something, no one does.
Full Extent of COVID Fraud Will 'Never Be Known With Certainty'
A new GAO report details federal prosecutors' attempts to put the horse back in the barn.
You Can't Fix Him (the IRS)
Plus: Tanks in Gaza, quitting the DSA, Gen Z hates a sex scene, and more...
Government-Run Grocery Store Is Predictably Losing Money
The folly of government-run grocery stores is sadly not a historical relic like the USSR.
After Losing Billions to Scammers, This COVID Aid Program Won't Require All Loans To Be Repaid
But that decision seems to violate federal law.
A New Podcast Explains Why We Can't Have Nice Things
The answer? Because special interests and government prevent the free market from working the way it should.
The IRS Misplaced Millions of Taxpayer Records. Again.
The only effective means of keeping tax collectors from misusing data is keeping it from them.
