Most US Presidents have done dubious pardons – Clinton re Marc Rich and Joe Biden re Hunter Biden etc. But as the libertarian Cato Institute point out, Trump’s pardons are in a different league: Biden’s pardons eliminated roughly $680,000 in financial penalties (fines, restitution, and forfeitures) owed to victims or the government. In contrast, Liz Oyer,…
Corrupt pardons
Corrupt pardons
21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA
The True Story of the Great Escape
21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, movies, war and peace Tags: Nazi Germany, World War II
During World War II, one of the most daring and ambitious prisoner-of-war (POW) escapes in history took place in the German POW camp Stalag Luft III. Known as “The Great Escape,” Allied airmen executed this remarkable event, which demonstrated extraordinary resilience, ingenuity, and bravery in their pursuit of freedom. While the escape itself was a […]
The True Story of the Great Escape
The 1943 German law that denies justice to be done.
19 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, war and peace Tags: extradition, Nazi Germany, World War II
In 1943 a law was passed in Germany which gave all foreign Waffen SS members the German nationality by default. This law still prevents extradition of WWII War criminals to be extradited to their native countries, because these men have the German nationality , and Germany does not extradite it’s own citizens. These are just […]
The 1943 German law that denies justice to be done.
Selective Outrage and the Erosion of Genocide Meaning
08 Mar 2026 1 Comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, law and economics, laws of war, liberalism, Marxist economics, war and peace
There is something profoundly wrong with a moral culture that shouts genocide at Israel’s war against Hamas while averting its gaze from an actual genocide unfolding in Sudan. Words matter, especially words that name humanity’s gravest crimes. When they are deployed selectively—loudly against one conflict, quietly or not at all against another—they cease to illuminate injustice and instead reveal hypocrisy. […]
Selective Outrage and the Erosion of Genocide Meaning
Jack Smith’s Secret Orders Targeting Patel and Wiles Should Alarm Us All
04 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: 2020 presidential election, 2024 presidential election
Below is my column on Fox.com on the new disclosures of secret orders targeting now FBI Director Kash Patel and…
Jack Smith’s Secret Orders Targeting Patel and Wiles Should Alarm Us All
The Clintons and the Politics of Scandal
03 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA
Below is my column in the Hill on the deposition of former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State…
The Clintons and the Politics of Scandal
So much for being a refugee
01 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, Economics of international refugee law, law and economics, politics - New Zealand
The Herald reports: New Zealand citizen and Algerian political activist Ahmed Zaoui has been released from prison after more than two years behind bars. Zaoui was arrested at gunpoint in the city of Medea in 2023 for holding a political meeting at his home and commenting on the “political and human rights situation” in the country. He…
So much for being a refugee
LINDSAY MITCHELL: HOW THE SALLIES HAVE EVOLVED TO BECOME PART OF THE PROBLEM
28 Feb 2026 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economics of crime, economics of education, labour economics, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, welfare reform Tags: Maori economic development, racial discrimination
The 2026 Salvation Army State of the Nation Report revealed their official conversion to wokeism by repeatedly finding excuses for Maori over-representation in poor social stats because of victimisation through colonisation. This caused a number of readers to ponder future contributions to the organisation. But it isn’t just this development that should concern donors. The…
LINDSAY MITCHELL: HOW THE SALLIES HAVE EVOLVED TO BECOME PART OF THE PROBLEM
The history of anti-semitism
27 Feb 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economic history, economics of crime, law and economics, liberalism, politics, war and peace Tags: Nazi Germany, The Holocaust racial discrimination, World War II
Ashley Church writes: The Holocaust did not begin with the gas chambers of Auschwitz or Treblinka. It began much earlier, with ideas, laws, exclusions, and the slow normalisation of cruelty. The part that history often forgets. When Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933, there was no plan to exterminate the Jews. What did exist…
The history of anti-semitism
“Tough on crime” is good for young men
26 Feb 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, econometerics, economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: crime and punishment, criminal deterrence, law and order
Using data from hundreds of closely contested partisan elections from 2010 to 2019 and a vote share regression discontinuity design, we find that narrow election of a Republican prosecutor reduces all-cause mortality rates among young men ages 20 to 29 by 6.6%. This decline is driven predominantly by reductions in firearm-related deaths, including a large reduction in firearm…
“Tough on crime” is good for young men
“It’s Not Going to End Well for Them”: Susan Rice Joins Call for a Revenge Purge After Democrats Re-Take Power
22 Feb 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA
As Democrats plan for the possible takeover in the midterms and 2028 election, they are already openly discussing their push…
“It’s Not Going to End Well for Them”: Susan Rice Joins Call for a Revenge Purge After Democrats Re-Take Power
Greens announce their new crime policy is to pretend there is none!
20 Feb 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - New Zealand
An amazing interview at The Spinoff: Swarbrick said she had regularly told Beck that contributing to a media narrative of the city centre being all “chaos and crime and knives and guns” resulted in less foot traffic, less vibrancy and less safety. “I have personally contacted Viv and spoken to her at a number of meetings…
Greens announce their new crime policy is to pretend there is none!
A course of indoctrination at the University of Chicago
19 Feb 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, discrimination, economic history, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: economics of colonialism, Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, war against terror, West Bank
There are many courses in universities that seem not to be exercises in objective teaching and learning, but rather courses designed to foist certain political ideologies or points of view on students. One of them at this university was called to my attention by several in our community; it seems to be a course on…
A course of indoctrination at the University of Chicago
In support of a pragmatic alliance
13 Feb 2026 1 Comment
in constitutional political economy, economic history, economics of crime, economics of religion, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, property rights Tags: free speech, political correctness, regressive left
For centuries, atheists, Christians, and Jews have regarded one another as intellectual and cultural adversaries. Their disagreements are real and often profound. They disagree about the existence of God, the authority of scripture, the nature of morality, the meaning of history, and the destiny of humanity. These disputes have generated entire libraries of argument and […]
In support of a pragmatic alliance
Two killers who shouldn’t get parole
12 Feb 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, health economics, law and economics Tags: crime and punishment
The Herald reports on Scott Watson: That’s a pretty good sign that Watson shouldn’t be released. Unprovoked violence. And they also report on Clayton Weatherston: The reports referred to his diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder – specifically characterised as “gross narcissism”. They also mentioned “psychopathy” and categorised Weatherston as being a high risk of reoffending. …
Two killers who shouldn’t get parole
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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