Some California Cities Are Making It Harder to Quit Smoking
Bans of flavored tobacco products end up leaving smokers with few options for kicking the habit, and do little to improve public health.
Nanny State
U.K. Goes Full Nanny State With Proposed Nationwide Plastic Straw Ban
Want to cut back on plastic marine waste? Focus on waste management systems, not drinking straws.
Relax—You'll Probably Survive Until Tomorrow
Americans have a poor sense of risk, and media panics don't help.
Backpage Plea to Texas Sex Trafficking Charge Turns On CEO's Admission to Brokering Adult Prostitution
Backpage CEO Carl Ferrer turned over the company and seven other executives in exchange for leniency.
S.C. Bill Would Make It a Crime to Let Teenagers Drink Red Bull
A state legislator says energy drinks pose a deadly threat to minors.
Backpage Founder's 93 Charges Lack Actual Sex-Trafficking Claims
Indictment reveals money-laundering, conspiracy charges, and a tricky federal law known as the Travel Act.
Beware Censorship by Proxy
Prodding private companies into self-censorship is a dangerous government tradition.
Feds Seize Control of Backpage.com; Founder Faces 93-Count Indictment
Site had long been a target for sex work and sex trafficking advertisements.
Open Season on Russian Oligarchs, Prison Porn Ban Heads to Court, How the Media Got the Pulse Massacre Wrong: Reason Roundup
Plus: YouTube shooter bought and registered gun legally.
Dear Politicians: Stop Taxing Us to Death
Philadelphia's soda tax is the latest example of government run amok.
New Backpage Ruling Lays Bare Some of the Lies Undergirding FOSTA
The ruling allows a civil suit against Backpage to proceed for one of the case's three plaintiffs.
Trump Says Syria Withdrawal Coming 'Soon,' Weed 'Beer' Promises Buzz With No Alcohol, California May Slap Cancer Warning on Coffee: Reason Roundup
Plus: Billy Corgan says he's a "free-market libertarian capitalist" and Westworld's robots are on a rampage.
State Kills Anti-Porn Bill After Discovering More About Its Backer, Free Speech Win for FX's Feud, FISA Warrants Under Scrutiny: Reason Roundup
And President Trump is mad at Amazon for...ruining the postal service?
Shhh! Virginia Bars Can Host Happy Hour, but Can't Talk About It
Advertising "half-priced drinks" is legal. Advertising "two-for-one" drinks is not. Huh?
Dentist Threatens to Report Parents for Neglect Unless They Bring in Their Kids (and Wallets)
Mandatory abuse reporting requirements lead to a novel marketing scheme.
FDA's Low-Nicotine Cigarette Scheme Is an Invitation to Black Market Vendors
People will find sources for what they want no matter what presumptuous regulators say.
Hours After FOSTA Passes, Reddit Bans 'Escorts' and 'SugarDaddy' Communities
The great content crackdown has begun.
FOSTA Passes Senate, Making Prostitution Ads a Federal Crime Against Objections from DOJ and Trafficking Victims
The measure will "make it harder, not easier, to root out and prosecute sex traffickers," said Sen. Ron Wyden, one of only two senators to vote no on FOSTA.
Sign Referencing Civil War Hero Is Sexual Harassment, Says Massachusetts Lawmaker
Rep. Michelle DuBois wants to remove a statehouse sign that reads "General Hooker Entrance" because it is an affront to "women's dignity."
If SCOTUS Lets States Legalize Sports Betting, Will They Be Ready?
The black market will continue to thrive if taxes and regulations are too burdensome, a new CEI report warns.
Drunk History: When the Government Banned Female Bartenders
A shameful chapter in U.S. law.
Stossel: The Philly Soda Tax Scam
John Stossel fights with a Philadelphia City Councilman about the city's new soda tax.
There Ought Not Be a Law
The world is an imperfect place, but laws tend to make things worse, not better.
Indiana Allows Sunday Alcohol Sales, Keeps Cold Beer Laws on Books
Prohibition isn't totally defeated yet.
$20 Fee for Porn Access Proposed in Rhode Island
Device makers would be required to block porn, prostitution hubs, and all content that fails "current standards of decency."
Florida Lawmaker Drops Proposal to Let Victims of Sex Trafficking Sue Hotels
Disney allegedly lobbied against the bill behind the scenes.
Stone Age Statue Was Too Racy for Facebook
How can a company be expected to arbitrate "fake news" when it can't even tell ancient artifacts from porn?
Trump's Tariffs Will Crush the Beer Industry
And they'll make lots of other things more expensive too.
Are Health Advocates Finally Wising Up About the Nature of Risk?
Everything we do entails risk. The question is our tolerance for it.
House Passes 'Anti Sex-Trafficking' Bill Opposed by Both DOJ and Trafficking Survivors
The bill makes "promoting prostitution" a federal crime, holds websites legally liable for user-posted content, and lets states retroactively prosecute offenders.
USDA's 'Harvest Box' Food-Shipping Proposal Is Truly Absurd
Poor people are likely to make better food choices for themselves than the government.
People Will Eat What They Want, Not What Government Prefers
Nanny efforts in the U.S. and Chile to shape eating habits continue to accomplish little.
If You Really Wanted to Ban Porn, Here's What It Would Take
Prohibition never works, and internet smut is no exception.
California Food Nannies Shutter Startup for Home Cooks
Josephine, in the Bay Area, linked aspiring food entrepreneurs with hungry neighbors.
New Jersey Cop Fired for Having Once Appeared in Fetish Films
Meanwhile, drunk driving and vehicular assault by officers are not firing offenses in Hudson County.
'Family Values' Republican Accused of Paying for Sex Also Voted to Raise Penalties for Paying for Sex
Last year, Utah's Jon E. Stanard voted to raise the penalty for soliciting prostitution to $2,500. And this year...
What Jimmy Carter and Jerry Brown Can Teach Us About Deregulation
As we prepare for a new "era of limits," Democrats may need to reclaim their party's forgotten history of rolling back government.
New Orleans Nixes Plan for Strict Cap on French Quarter Strip Clubs
"There is nothing inherent" to strip clubs "that causes crime," say city planners.
New York Legislators Unveil Legislation Banning Tide Pods
The next stage of the safety hysteria cycle
'Keep Your Tyranny Off Our Titties,' Say New Orleans Strippers
In a series of protests, strip club workers and their allies are pushing back against abusive policing.
