Yesterday, I wrote a column in the Hill discussing how Trump is unlikely to go to Congress in launching an attack on Iran and how he has history on his side in acting unilaterally. The column noted that many Democratic politicians and pundits who were supportive of such unilateral actions by Democratic presidents such as […]
Back in 2013, I debated Joe Biden’s top economist on the death tax. Everything I said then (and wrote four years before then) is still true today. In the interview, I mentioned nations that have abolished their death taxes, including Australia. I should have mentioned Sweden as well. As a general rule, I don’t want […]
The Herald reports: A key donor of Wellington mayoral candidate Ray Chung has been revealed, with rich-list philanthropist Sir Mark Dunajtschik confirming his financial backing for the mayoral hopeful. Chung, currently a first-term city councillor, is running to lead the capital city on a platform of cutting key projects to implement zero rates increases. … […]
On June 18, 2025, Health New Zealand published extensive data (March 2025 quarter) in a two-page spread contained in The Post. I assume this was replicated in other New Zealand newspapers. Included were childhood immunisation rates. At the bottom of the table for full immunisation at 24 months are Northland and Tairawhiti districts (improving trend) followed…
Yesterday, the Supreme Court issued its 6-3 ruling upholding a Tennessee ban on transgender medical treatments for adolescents. The ruling has major implications for pending transgender cases, particularly the concurrence of Justice Amy Coney Barrett rejecting the claim that transgender status qualifies as a group entitled to heightened scrutiny under the Constitution. One of those […]
TweetHere’s a letter to the Wall Street Journal: Editor: You’re correct that “Trump has no China trade strategy” (June 12). Nearly all trade talk coming from this administration is economically incoherent bluster from which we Americans can expect only diminished prosperity. You err, however, in describing China as having a “stranglehold on rare-earth minerals.” China…
In 2023, Tennessee passed a bill to restrict access of minors to “affirmative care”, though only minors who wanted blockers or hormones to assume the identity of his/her non-natal sex or to relieve gender dysphoria. Tennessee is now one of 15 states that has passed laws restricting affirmative care. Note, though, that hormones and blockers […]
Stuff reports: There has been a lot written about Cook Strait ferries lately but far off in the distance, a new ship that will sail between the North and South Islands is slowly making its way here. Called Livia, the ship has had a fresh coat of paint to transform it from the Stena Line colours into […]
The Herald reports: Ngāti Hine leader Pita Tipene is ruling out a settlement under this Government after remarks made by Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith. Goldsmith said on Tuesday the Government would not agree to Treaty settlements that disputed whether the Crown is now sovereign. Under the previous Labour Government, an initial deed of settlement […]
LPL Financial analyzed 25 major geopolitical episodes, dating back to Japan’s 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. “Total drawdowns around these events have been fairly limited,” Jeff Buchbinder, LPL’s chief equity strategist, wrote in a research note on Monday. (Full recoveries often “take only a few weeks to a couple of months,” he added.) Deutsche Bank analysts […]
The government has drawn a line in the sand on sovereignty: Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says the Government will not agree to Treaty settlements that dispute whether the Crown is now sovereign. Goldsmith made the comments to the Māori Affairs select committee this morning amid ongoing negotiations with East Coast iwi Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and […]
Chris Bishop announced: The derelict and unsafe Gordon Wilson Flats in Wellington will lose its protected heritage status and become eligible for demolition through an amendment to the Resource Management Act (RMA) in the coming weeks, RMA Reform and Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Gordon Wilson Flats were used as social housing until 2012, […]
Here’s the comedy/news bit from yesterday’s “Real Time”: another New Rules bit called “The MUSKeteers,” so you know what the subject is. Maher takes up Musk’s suggestion that we create a new political party comprising the 80% of Americans “in the middle.” Maher admires Musk’s engineering ability, but not his ability to manage the government; […]
There was an extraordinary moment this week in Los Angeles where City Councilmember Imelda Padilla asked LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell to monitor and warn citizens whenever the federal authorities are conducting an operation or seeking to make an arrest. Padilla asked McDonnell if they could use “AI” and other means to give immigrants a heads […]
In the United Kingdom, the mental health of politicians has traditionally commanded relatively little attention, perhaps due to popular cynicism and distrust towards elected officials. Still, those involved in UK political life have characterised it as a ‘rough old game’, with MPs referencing broken marriages, overwork, loss of friendships and poor sleep. Over time, MPs […]
Why Evolution is True is a blog written by Jerry Coyne, centered on evolution and biology but also dealing with diverse topics like politics, culture, and cats.
In Hume’s spirit, I will attempt to serve as an ambassador from my world of economics, and help in “finding topics of conversation fit for the entertainment of rational creatures.”
“We do not believe any group of men adequate enough or wise enough to operate without scrutiny or without criticism. We know that the only way to avoid error is to detect it, that the only way to detect it is to be free to inquire. We know that in secrecy error undetected will flourish and subvert”. - J Robert Oppenheimer.
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