Wednesday Open Thread
Playing around with the post time (shifting to the start of the day to midday). "It is an experiment, as all life is an experiment."
Politics
Chinese AI Enters the Chat
Plus: Federal employees offered buyouts, immigration crackdown continues, and more...
Like Biden, Trump Does Not Control the Price of Eggs
Though he promised to lower costs on Day 1, Trump remains just as beholden to the laws of supply and demand as his predecessor.
No More Government Assistance
Plus: RFK Jr.'s plan to squash Big Pharma, J.D. Vance vs. the bishops, and more...
Rise of the 'Constitutional Sheriffs'
Two new books dissect the "constitutional sheriffs" movement, which seeks to nullify laws adherents see as unconstitutional.
The Cultural Consequences of Trump's Victory
Plus: A listener asks the editors to name their least favorite national emergency from the list of those currently in effect.
El Salvador's Bukele: Authoritarian or Model President?
Frontier magazine's Peter Gietl and Salvadoran journalist Ricardo Avelar debate the merits of Nayib Bukele's criminal justice policies.
Neocons Wage a Rearguard Action Against Trump's Middle East Peace Drive
Trump wants to negotiate instead of bombing Iran. Jilted war hawks are blaming his advisers.
Vance Picks a Fight With the Bishops
Plus: Israel's ceasefire(s), Chinese AI arms race, Waymo vandalism, and more...
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.
Short Circuit: A Roundup of Recent Federal Court Decisions
Hoary doctrines, lurking theories, and atomic bombs.
Mexico Embraces You
Plus: Sovereign children, Angela McArdle interview, botox fraud, and more...
Why Companies Are Ditching ESG
Many have started to recognize a need to focus on their core business rather than virtue-signaling.
Trump's Aggressively Broad Executive Order on Transgender People
Like many of his other "Day 1" decrees, the order seems more concerned with scoring points in the culture war than advancing sensible policy.
The Country's Largest Police Union, Which Repeatedly Endorsed Trump, Is Dismayed by His Capitol Riot Pardons
The Fraternal Order of Police mistakenly thought that the president "supports our law enforcement officers" and "has our backs."
Angela McArdle: What Role Did the Libertarian Party Play in Freeing Ross Ulbricht?
The Libertarian Party national chair talks about the role the party played in securing a presidential pardon for Ulbricht on the latest episode of Just Asking Questions.
36 Hours
Plus: Inside the DOGE disputes, Day 1 analysis with Mike Pesca, fleeing San Francisco, and more...
Biden and Trump Show Presidents How To Abuse Clemency
Biden’s preemptive pardons and Trump’s blanket relief for Capitol rioters both set dangerous precedents.
Trump's Blanket Clemency for Capitol Rioters Excuses Political Violence
The president drew no distinction between people who merely entered the building and people who vandalized it or assaulted police officers.
Day 1
Plus: Pardoning the Proud Boys, revoking birthright citizenship, Elon Musk's not-a-Nazi-salute, and more...
Do You Feel Equal Yet?
Plus: Fauci preemptively pardoned, hostages released, Inauguration Day, and more...
Another Terrible Hostage Deal
The Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal that went into effect today exchanges hundreds of terrorists for 33 Israeli hostages. It will predictably incentivize more hostage-taking and terrorism.
Regulation, Prohibition, and Litigation: Joe Biden's Busy Lame-Duck Period
Why should an unpopular president shape so much policy on his way out?
Why Donald Trump Made a Deal To Free Ross Ulbricht
A second chance for the creator of the dark web drug site the Silk Road might be coming…from an unlikely savior.
