I’m also one of those who are skeptical of the federalism brief against DOMA. But I have a few questions, based on perusing the recent posts here and elsewhere by Dale, Randy, Jonathan, Nick, and my former boss Ed. (I read the brief itself a while back, but declined to sign; forgive me if the […]
Archive | March, 2013
Debating DOMA and Federalism
As Dale noted here, several VC contributors joined a federalism scholars amicus brief in United States v. Windsor arguing that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act transgresses the limitations on federal power. Our brief questions whether it is proper for the federal government to seek to defend a traditional conception of marriage in […]
On the Lighter Side
In a week filled with news of threats of nuclear war from North Korea, the death of Latin American tyrants, scary assertions of executive power to execute Americans without due process, not to mention highly impertinent questions asked of prominent law professors, here is some lighter news–my son at four months with his evil twin.
Earring to Cufflink Converter?
So here’s what I really need — well, actually, what I really want: A pair of cufflink bases into which I could stick a pair of earrings. I like wearing cufflinks, but there are so many more earrings available than cufflinks (and generally cheaper, too). If I could only have this sort of earring-to-cufflink converter, […]
Blogospheric Rubbernecking
Paul Campos may have closed his “Inside the Law School Scam” blog, but his longstanding feud with Brian Leiter continues (see here and here), and is spilling over onto other blogs. If you ask me, it’s getting a bit ridiculous. UPDATE: Brian Leiter responds to Campos’ latest charges in an addendum to this post. FURTHER […]
DOMA and Federalism: What are the limits of Congress’s power to define terms in federal statutes? A Reply to Whelan and Rosenkranz
Because I am facing a hard deadline for revisions for a second edition of Restoring the Lost Constitution, I have not been able to formulate a reply to the criticisms of the amicus brief I joined — along with co-bloggers Ilya, Jonathan and Dale — in which we contended that DOMA exceeded the enumerated powers of […]
Attorney General Eric Holder Responds to Rand Paul’s Question on Domestic Use of Drones Against US Citizens
Attorney General Eric Holder has sent the following response to Republican Senator Rand Paul’s question about when the president has the authority to use drones to target US citizens on American soil: Dear Senator Paul: It has come to my attention that you have now asked an additional question: “Does the President have the authority […]
University of Michigan Law School Talk on Property Rights Since Kelo
On Thursday, March 14, I will be giving a talk on “Property Rights Since Kelo” at the University of Michigan Law School. The event will run from 11:45 to about 12:50. I will cover both the legislative and judicial reactions to the Supreme Court’s controversial 2005 decision in Kelo v. City of New London, which […]
Michael McCann with Lance Armstrong
Michael McCann of UNH Law School (and a regular on legal issues for SI) has snagged an interview with Lance Armstrong. Update: I should’ve added that I think that Michael has a piece in the print version of SI and this is an online accompaniment to the print story. He also has an online interview […]
Ian Millhiser of Think Progress on Paul and Lochner
Attorney Ian Millhiser of the “liberal” Center for American Progress is quite agitated by Sen Paul’s speech yesterday, and not because he is concerned about potential abuses of executive authority. Rather, it’s because Paul had the temerity to refer favorably to Lochner. This provoked Millhiser’s response (h/t Alex Tabarrok), which is full of disingenuous statements: […]
Gas Laws, Flocking Behavior, and the Mosh Pit
This article has been making the rounds of social media (H/T Insta), but (while not pretending to fully understand the math) I found it cute and so bring it to your attention: “Collective Motion of Moshers at Heavy Metal Concerts.” Human collective behavior can vary from calm to panicked depending on social context … we […]
Debate at Rutgers University Law School in Camden on Whether the Constitution Protects Economic Rights
On Monday, March 11, I will be debating Georgetown Law Professor Michael Seidman at the Rutgers University School of Law in Camden, NJ, on the subject of whether the Constitution protects economic rights, broadly defined to include property rights as well as freedom of contract. The event will begin at 11 AM and continue for […]
Insurance, Moral Hazard, and Collective Action in Ilf & Petrov’s The Golden Calf
A few weeks ago, I posted on Competition, corporatism, collusion, and antitrust themes in Ilf & Petrov‘s early-Stalinist-era comedy, The Golden Calf. Today, the topic is insurance, moral hazard, and collective action. This scene concerns the residents of a communal apartment, Apt. 3, nicknamed “The Rookery” (Voron’ia slobodka). The inhabitants, described in a previous chapter, […]
Hollywood discovers hacking
That might sound like breaking news from 1983, but this time we’re not talking movie plots, we’re talking business. Specifically how Chinese cyberespionage could affect Hollywood’s bottom line. The Hollywood Reporter asked me to talk about that impact in a guest column, out this week. Here’s some of what I said: Hollywood might be blinded by […]
Transcript of Rand Paul’s References to Lochner and the Presumption of Liberty
Josh Blackman has posted here the excerpt from the transcript of second hour of Rand Paul’s filibuster floor speech in which he discusses Lysander Spooner, Lochner v. New York, Buchanan v. Warley, and the Presumption of Liberty: Ours wasn’t perfect. Our founders allowed and left slavery to occur. Interestingly, if you read the Constitution, I […]