Author Archive | Dale Carpenter

I’ve been looking at which party is going to control the Senate after the election, and I’m a bit surprised at some of the juxtapositions. The Friday prices on the Iowa Electronic Markets show a 83.5% chance of Democrats gaining control of the House and a 33% chance of gaining control of the Senate (i.e., […]

The four military papers — the Army Times, Air Force Times, Navy Times and Marine Corps Times — will on Monday call for the resignation of Donald Rumsfeld (tip to Instapundit). These papers are owned by a subsidiary of Gannett, so that represents little more than the opinion of their editorial staff or the publisher. […]

As I write this on Saturday, Nov. 4, I can’t help but think that we might be in for a big November surprise that may bode ill for the Republicans in the 2006. The focus of the news on Sunday and Monday might look very different than it does today. According to news reports, the […]

There is a new report on global warming done by the reputable economist Nicholas Stern. The Stern Review’s conclusion (tip to Instapundit and TCS): Using the results from formal economic models, the Review estimates that if we don’t act, the overall costs and risks of climate change will be equivalent to losing at least 5% […]

The big story on some of the local TV news shows tonight is about Barack Obama’s ties to Rita Rezko, the wife of Tony Rezko, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s former chief fundraiser. Tony Rezko has been indicted in a massive scandal involving giving government jobs and contracts to Blagojevich’s contributors. Apparently, the Rezkos live in […]

William Eskridge and Darren Spedale, coauthors of the book “Gay Marriage: For Better or For Worse? What We’ve Learned From the Evidence” (Oxford University Press, 2006), have looked at marriage rates and other evidence of the social effects of recognizing same-sex relationships in the 17 years since Scandinavian countries began doing so. In an op-ed […]

According to the headlines on the internet, a new study by Todd Kendall of Clemson University (using regression analyses of panel data) finds that having computer access to the internet at home, and thus better access to internet porn, is consistent with the hypothesis that more porn REDUCES the incidence of rape (tip to Instapundit). […]

The New Jersey court gave the state legislature 180 days to do one of two things: either (1) amend the state marriage laws to permit same-sex couples to marry or (2) create a parallel statutory system “which will provide for, on equal terms, the rights and benefits enjoyed and burdens and obligations borne by married […]

This is the first of two posts on the New Jersey marriage decision, the first judicial opinion from a state supreme court anywhere in the nation to hold unanimously that gay couples are entitled to all the benefits and protections of marriage. In this post, I’ll discuss some of the state constitutional arguments and how […]

In what looks like a Vermont-style ruling, the New Jersey Supreme Court has unanimously ordered the state to grant all of the privileges and rights of marriage — but not necessarily the word “marriage” — to same-sex couples. The opinion is here. The legislature has 180 days to act. The court leaves open the possibility […]

So says the state supreme court’s media notices page. Expect a decision at 3 p.m. Eastern. UPDATE: The oral argument, from last February, is available for viewing here.

Three days ago, I posted about a decision of Minneapolis transit officials to accommodate a bus driver’s religious objection to driving a bus with an external ad for a local gay magazine. Now transit authorities have partially reversed themselves. From the AP: Metro Transit said Friday that it inadvertently sent the wrong message about tolerance […]

Over the objections of the transit union, Minneapolis transit authorities have exempted a bus driver from operating a bus that carried a large external ad for a gay magazine. The full story is here. Excerpts: A city bus driver who complained about a gay-themed ad got official permission not to drive any bus that carries […]

Here’s my take on one aspect of the scandal involving former Rep. Mark Foley. It’s an excerpt from a somewhat longer column: The Foley mess reaffirms some things we have long known about the nature and characteristics of anti-gay prejudice. William Eskridge, a Yale law professor, has written that anti-gay prejudice has been marked historically […]

“Hastert and Boehner need to get on the same page or Republican troubles will continue to mount.” — From an editorial in The Hill, October 5, 2006.