Some of the results in this new article by Zeljka Buturovic and Dan Klein in Econ Journal Watch (a peer-reviewed journal of economics) are startling: 67% of self-described Progressives believe that restrictions on housing development (i.e., regulations that reduce the supply of housing) do not make housing less affordable. 51% believe that mandatory licensing of […]
Archive | May, 2010
Discourteous to Wear American Flag Images on Cinco de Mayo?
Maureen Downey (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) writes: This is one of those stories that turns into a cause celebre and riles up lots of folks. But at the heart of the issue — five California high school students were kicked off their campus Wednesday for wearing t-shirts and bandannas emblazoned with American flags on Cinco de Mayo […]
Sex Discrimination in Child Naming Law
If the parents of a child disagree about what last name give the child, who prevails? Today’s Mississippi Supreme Court decision in Rice v. Merkich applies a Mississippi statute that generally favors the father’s name. I think that’s probably an Equal Protection Clause violation, based on precedents dating all the way back to Reed v. […]
Quite a Warning Label
© Wilder Publications 2008 This book is a product of its time and does not reflect the same values as it would if it were written today. Parents might wish to discuss with their children how views on race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and interpersonal relations have changed since this book was written before allowing them […]
Immigration: Costs and Benefits, in Liberty and Otherwise
This is an obvious point, but I think it’s worth mentioning. Immigration has many possible benefits (economic, social, national security, domestic security, and liberty benefits) and many possible costs (economic, social, national security, domestic security, liberty, and congestion costs). These benefits and costs vary by type of immigrant — well-educated vs. uneducated, rich vs. poor, […]
More on the Religious, Cultural, and Personal Right To Eat Bacon — Even When Your Foster Parents Don’t Allow It in Their Home
Last month, I blogged about an incident in which Contemporary Family Services, Inc. — an organization that the state of Maryland licensed to screen prospective foster parents — refused to license a couple (the Crudups) because their religious beliefs led them to bar pork from their home. Maryland state authorities are now investigating CFS for […]
The Palestinian Authority and the ICC
My Opinio Juris co-blogger, Julian Ku, has posted up a note on submissions recently made to the International Criminal Court prosecutor’s office on the question of ICC jurisdiction: Last year, the Palestinian National Authority filed a declaration accepting the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. This declaration is controversial, to say the least, because it […]
An Important Case on Compensation for Takings
In recent years, the Supreme Court has addressed many cases on property rights issues. But it has done very little with the Just Compensation Clause of the Fifth Amendment, which requires that owners be compensated when their property is condemned by the government. The longstanding rule has been that owners deserve “fair market value” compensation. […]
California High School Sends Kids Home for Wearing American Flag on Cinco de Mayo
From the Gilroy Dispatch: Five Live Oak High School students’ First Amendment rights were challenged this morning when they were asked to leave school because they donned American flag T-shirts on Cinco de Mayo. Officials at the school chose not to comment on the situation, but one student said an official called the T-shirts “incendiary.” […]
Iowa Constitution’s Due Process Clause Bars Propensity-to-Commit-Crime Evidence
State and federal evidence rules generally bar the prosecution from introducing evidence of defendant’s past crimes to show a propensity on the defendant’s part to commit similar crimes. If, for instance, the defendant is charged with child molestation, the prosecution can’t introduce evidence that defendant had molested other children to show that defendant likes molesting […]
Colorado State University board rescinds ban on licensed firearms carry
The ban at the Fort Collins and Pueblo campuses, had been scheduled to take effect on August 1. The prospective ban had been imposed last winter, by a unanimous vote of the Governing Board, and against the express vote of the Student Senate. Congratulations to Rocky Mountain Gun Owners for bringing the case. As the […]
California Court Rejects Santa Barbara Beach Club’s Attempts to Suppress Criticism
An interesting unpublished decision, handed down Monday. The court’s opinion strikes me as clearly correct, both in rejecting the plaintiff’s unsound constitutional tension method argument and in more broadly rejecting the defamation claim and related tort claims. As the court concludes, “Residents of a community seeking to express their disagreement with what they perceive to […]
My Favorite on That List of North Korean Jokes
That’s the funny Radio-Free-Asia-compiled one, not the not funny North Korean Television one: Two men are talking on a Pyongyang subway train: “How are you, comrade?” “Fine, how are you doing?” “Comrade, by any chance, do you work for the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party?” “No, I don’t.” “Have you worked for the Central […]
Reuters on North Korean Comedy
I might be missing something, but there seems to be a singularly poor (and misleading) juxtaposition in this Reuters piece (which has been picked up in various places, such as here): A comedy show on North Korean TV has the distinction of being one of the longest-running in the world, although there’s very little that’s […]
“Supreme Court Upholds Freedom Of Speech In Obscenity-Filled Ruling”
From The Onion, of course, and worth looking at if only to see the photograph. Thanks to John Crawford for the pointer.