Liberty and Letters

Thoughts on the History and Literature of Freedom
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  • B.K. Marcus

#IStandWithAhmed Tells Us Something about Public School Sep 18, 2015

There's zero tolerance for drawing outside the lines.

By B.K. Marcus Vote27 16

Could We Survive a World of Rent-a-Cops? Aug 12, 2015

Can we really imagine a private company doing a better job of protecting us?

By B.K. Marcus Vote28 6

County Clerk Claims Constitution Guarantees Her a Job Jul 30, 2015

Apparently the Bible and Constitution Agree That She Can't Be Fired

By B.K. Marcus Vote17 9

Is Michelle Obama a Brilliant Experimental Economist? Jul 6, 2015

The first lady uses kids as guinea pigs in a mad social experiment.

By B.K. Marcus Vote10 0

How Ice Cream Won the Cold War Jun 18, 2015

Central planners have never understood the importance of tasty frozen treats.

By B.K. Marcus Vote9 0

Should We Respect the Law? May 31, 2015

Which is the greater threat to freedom, too little respect for the law — or too much? With ever more laws on the books serving to curtail individual rights, suppress human flourishing, and cripple the process of wealth creation, it would seem that the healthy attitude for advocates of liberty would be one of unequivocal disrespect. That's precisely what Reason.com's managing editor, J.D. Tuccille, advocates in a recent Hit & Run post: The key to rendering stupid laws irrelevant … [is] an overall attitude of defiance.… And the enemy of that defiance isn't tough cops or clever politicians; it's respect...

By B.K. Marcus Vote7 3

Do university students really prefer to be infantilized? May 26, 2015

If you're college age, you're a child. Or so says Salon writer Eric Posner. No, he's not confused about the legal age of majority. What he means is that college students are immature and need to be treated accordingly. Paternalism, according to Posner, is entirely appropriate: you and your peers "must be protected like children while being prepared to be adults." Furthermore, he argues, it's what you really want, whether you know it or not. Here's the context: Lately, a moral panic about speech and sexual activity in universities has reached a crescendo. Universities have strengthened rules prohibiting offensive speech...

By B.K. Marcus Vote8 0

Self-Righteous Voters Create Silent Majorities May 18, 2015

“Believe it or not,” the gym teacher told me, “I voted for Reagan.” “You did what!” said my young teenage self. He looked sheepish. “Yeah, that really tells you how awful the economy is.” I couldn’t make sense of his answer. Mr. Z, my gym teacher throughout middle school, seemed to be saying that, while he preferred to vote for Democrats, the Republicans were right about economic policy. That wasn’t the message I was getting at all in my Keynesian home, where I learned that Reagan was simply wrong on all counts: repulsive in his social conservatism and dangerous in...

By B.K. Marcus Vote0 0

Abolition, Brazil, and the Last Confederates May 15, 2015

Picture thousands of country folk down south, gathered for fried chicken, barbecue, and beer. "I Wish I Was in Dixie" plays on infinite loop. The stars and bars of the Confederate battle flag are everywhere, including belt buckles and trucker caps. Many of the partiers are descended from Confederate soldiers. Not all are white, and very few speak English. It is the 150th anniversary of the end of the American Civil War, and the unlikely locale of this unusual gathering is Santa Barbara d'Oeste, a rural Brazilian town colonized by Southern families fleeing the (re-)United States. "For many of the...

By B.K. Marcus Vote4 1

Oh, the Humanity! May 7, 2015

Labor Unions and the Chinese Exclusion Act

By B.K. Marcus Vote4 0

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