Over the next two weeks, I will be doing two out-of-town speaking engagements that may be of interest to some of our readers. On Thursday, October, 3, 12:00-1:15 PM, I will be doing a talk on my new book Democracy and Political Ignorance: Why Smaller Government is Smarter, at Columbia Law School in Jerome Greene […]
Author Archive | Ilya Somin
Democracy and Political Ignorance – The Book Tour
It’s not actually an integrated book tour, but merely a set of individual speaking engagements. But, for readers who may be interested, here is a list of upcoming talks I will be giving about my book Democracy and Political Ignorance: Why Smaller Government is Smarter. In most cases, these events will last about 60 to […]
Steven Teles on “Kludgeocracy” and the Role of Government in Society
By Ilya Somin on September 25, 2013 11:15 am in Federalism, Growth of Government, Political Ignorance, Public Opinion, Separation of Powers
In the fall issue of National Affairs, Johns Hopkins political scientist Steven Teles has an interesting article on what he dubs the problem of “kludgeocracy” in American government: In recent decades, American politics has been dominated, at least rhetorically, by a battle over the size of government. But that is not what the next few […]
Upcoming Radio Interview About Democracy and Political Ignorance
This Sunday from 3-4 PM eastern time, 12-1 Pacific, I will be discussing my new book Democracy and Political Ignorance with talk radio host Bob Zadek, on his Bob Zadek Show. Although you listen to it on the air only in California, you should be able to listen to it online here. Based on my […]
Erwin Chemerinsky on Originalism
UC Irvine Law School Dean Erwin Chemerinsky, one of the nation’s leading constitutional law scholars, recently posted a critique of originalism on the ACS Blog. Unfortunately, the points he makes are uncharacteristically weak. University of San Diego law professors Michael Ramsey and Michael Rappaport do a good job of explaining why. Chemerinsky’s most dubious point […]
The Devil is Doing a Poor Job of Persuading People he Doesn’t Exist
It is said that “the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was to convince the world he didn’t exist.” Well, it obviously wasn’t all that great a trick, because recent survey data shows that 57% of Americans still believe he does exist, including 72% of African-Americans, 65% of Republicans, and 61% of women (but only […]
The VC (Apparently) Produces Results at Amazon
In my Amazon bleg yesterday, I asked for readers’ help in contacting Amazon to persuade them to fix the mistake of charging an unrealistically high price for the Kindle version of my book Democracy and Political Ignorance: Why Smaller Government is Smarter. I am happy to be able to say that, today, Amazon lowered the […]
Is there a Generational Divide over “Judicial Restraint” Between Reaganites and Libertarians?
By Ilya Somin on September 19, 2013 4:23 pm in Conservatism, Federalism, Health Care, Individual Mandate, Judicial Power, Libertarianism
Various commentators such as Garrett Epps, Mark Tushnet, and recent guest-blogger Josh Blackman argue that there is a generational divide among right of center jurists between Reaganite advocates of “judicial restraint” and later, more libertarian figures who are less willing to defer to legislatures and more eager to strike down laws they consider unconstitutional. They […]
Amazon Bleg
This is a request to readers who may have contacts at Amazon, or work there. Amazon recently inexplicably raised the price for the Kindle version of my book Democracy and Political Ignorance from the initial $15.37 to 20.19, even though (judging by Amazon’s own rankings) the Kindle version was doing well at the initial price. […]
Federal Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Challenging Richmond, CA’s Plan to Condemn Underwater Mortgages, on Procedural Grounds
Federal District Judge Charles Breyer recently dismissed a lawsuit by mortgage lenders challenging the constitutionality of the City of Richmond’s plan to condemn over 600 underwater mortgages, while paying compensation far below market level. Judge Breyer dismissed the case on procedural grounds, because it is not yet “ripe” due to the fact that the city […]
My New Article on the Supreme Court’s Important Recent Takings Clause Decisions
My new Cato Supreme Court Review article on the Supreme Court’s major recent Takings Clause decisions is now available on SSRN. Here is the abstract [But see important update on technical issues with the PDF below.]: Property rights protected by the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause have long been “relegated to the status of a poor […]
New Jersey Adopts Dubious Post-Kelo Eminent Domain “Reform” Law that is Likely to Endanger Property Rights More than it Protects Them
New Jersey recently became the 45th state to adopt an eminent domain reform law in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s controversial 2005 decision in Kelo v. City of New London, which ruled that it was constitutionally permissible for government to condemn private property and give it to another private owner in order to promote […]
The Rise of Movements Seeking to Create New States Through Secession
Over the last week, secession movements seeking to create new states have made some progress in northern California and rural Colorado. Back in 2011, I wrote about the secession movement in southern California. All three movements are examples of rural jurisdictions seeking to secede from state governments they perceive as dominated by urban interests and […]
Interesting Interview with George Will
Reason TV has an interesting interview with famous Washington Post columnist George Will. Among other things, Will describes how and why he has become more libertarian over the years.
Upcoming Talk on Property Rights at Cato Constitution Day
Next Tuesday, Sept. 17, from 1 PM to 2:15, co-blogger Ken Anderson and I will be taking part in a panel at the Cato Institute’s annual Constitution Day symposium, which will cover the major decisions of the Supreme Court’s 2012-13 term. My talk will focus on the Court’s important property rights decisions in Koontz v. […]