Author Archive | Jim Lindgren

Pat Quinn, our new governor

Via Breitbart comes speculation on Justices Ginsburg, Souter, or Stevens resigning soon. Justice Ginsburg’s remarks at a Boston speech on Friday sparked the most recent discussions. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has hinted at a possible vacancy “soon” at the US Supreme Court, without indicating who would be leaving. Speaking Friday at New England Law Boston’s […]

In a good move today, President Obama removed Bush Administration barriers to some forms of stem cell research [funding]. Executive Order of March 9, 2009: Sec. 1: . . . For the past 8 years, the authority of the Department of Health and Human Services, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to fund and […]

The new Kindle 2 has been released, offering more memory and a longer battery life than the original Kindle. Those who have it already, what do you think?

The most dangerous proposal in the new budget is the institution of a cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions. Indeed, the single largest source of new tax revenue in the budget going forward are these payments to be made by businesses for the right to emit excess carbon. The goal is an 83% reduction in carbon […]

On February 24, Amazon is releasing a new version of the Kindle, the Kindle 2. Priced at $359, the Kindle 2 is brighter and has a longer battery than the original Kindle. If any of you have experience with the original — or when it comes out the newest version 2 — feel free to […]

In his brief speech on energy today, President Obama addressed the conservation side (i.e., car mileage standards, weatherizing homes and government buildings, better transmission lines), saying nothing about nuclear power or offshore drilling. Further, he proposed to saddle the auto industry with increased fuel economy standards. As it becomes clear that Obama

Investment Guru Meredith Whitney has an article arguing that the banks need to sell off their assets: America

Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, who is the chairman of the usage panel of The American Heritage Dictionary, quotes me in an op-ed in today’s New York Times. His topic isplit verbs, which I discussed below. Pinker writes in the Times: Oaf of Office On Tuesday, Chief Justice John Roberts joined the Flubber Hall of Fame […]

Treasury nominee Timothy Geithner had several tax issues that are mentioned in this matter of fact Senate Report. Among Tim Geithner’s chief tax problems are: 1. Geithner

In the President’s Oath of Office, the Constitution used the normal placement for an adverb

The latest bailout request is from the porn industry. From TMZ: [Larry] Flynt (the “Hustler” guy) and [Joe] Francis (the “Girls Gone Wild” dude) are asking the government for a $5 billion bailout, claiming the adult entertainment industry has taken a huge shot to the face because of the downturn — citing the fact that […]

Regarding my earlier query about the ASUS netbook, Glenn Reynolds mentions that he likes the HP 1035NR netbook’s keyboard even better than the ASUS‘s. Reviews invited in the comments below.

Ezra Merkin, the (presumably outgoing) Chair of GMAC, funneled large amounts of other people

In his brief press conference today, Barack Obama announced that there would be no earmarks allowed in his stimulus package. He stated that there would be no unreviewed projects. It was unclear whether he meant that the Administration would be picking the projects under a broad grant from Congress, or whether any projects inserted by […]