Alrighty, JU, here's the deal. I'm stumped. A certain outspoken and intensely focused member of our community has recently made the following comment: "For the average American to be unable to buy as much this year as they did last year with their income is not economic growth. As far as jobs are concerned it depends of how much they pay and what benefits are included. IF A PERSON HAS A JOB(S) THAT DO NOT PROVIDE THE INCOME NEEDED TO LIVE, THAT IS NOT A SOLUTION." I guess I missed t...

I read The Corner , a Conservative group blog. I read it because it is equal parts relaxed and uptight, frivolous and serious, boring and interesting. I read it because it consists of constant interaction between several intelligent conservatives who agree on many things, and disagree on many others. I read it because it's a running commentary on current events. I read it because of the unique combination of Star Trek references and debate about the core principles of conservat...

I've changed my mind about the Supreme Court decision to allow eminent domain seizures of private property for private development. So if you care about such things, here it is: I was wrong. Those of you who have been laboring over the past day to convince me to see things your way, have succeeded. Thanks! Edit: To clarify, in the comments to another article, I had been arguing that all SCOTUS had done was say that if a local government wanted to seize private property for private de...

Okay, not really. But check this out. It's got the usual exaggeration for comic effect that we've all come to know and love (or hate) from Ann Coulter, based, as usual, on a solid premise. But I'll let the conclusion speak for itself: "Chuck Schumer could be the last Democrat in the Senate and the new rule would be: Unanimous votes required for all Senate business. But at least we could count on Sens. Lindsey Graham, Mike DeWine, John McCain, John Warner, Olympia Snowe, Susan Colli...

I hang out at Democratic Underground . Not all the time! Hardly ever, in fact. But every so often, I drop by to see how the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy looks from the outside. I like to browse the forums, read what these people are saying about all the issues of the day. One thing I've noticed is that the forums often contain predictions of the future. Many of them are incredibly paranoid and cynical. Some of them are amazingly optomistic. I've often considered the idea of publishing...

What if the Democratic Party abandoned the whole "us vs. them" calculus? Obviously, the Republicans would have to follow suit pretty quickly, but okay--what if either party abandoned the "us vs. them" calculus? I imagine something like this: "The Democratic Party pledges itself to the well-being of all Americans, of every color and creed. We recognize no barriers between fellow citizens. We dedicate our party to working together with all Americans. Nobody will be turned away. W...

There's been a lot of speculation about Evil Totalitarian Dictatorships lately. I thought I'd cut through all the uncertainty and hype, and clear up a few things. There are two very simple rules, for figuring out if you live in an Evil Totalitarian Dictatorship. Rule 1: The only people who say you're not living in an Evil Totalitarian Dictatorship are the ones who are afraid of the secret police, or who suspect you of being a govenrment informer. This rule covers pretty much ever...

What's wrong with the Ten Commandments, anyway? Name one Commandment that doesn't have a universal application. Name one Commandment--just one!--that doesn't communicate a valuabe principle that every healthy community should firmly believe in. "Thou shalt have no other gods before me"? How about this: Know what you believe, and be true to it. Christians, study your scriptures, practice what you preach, avoid hypocrisy. Likewise all you other people with core principles to believe in....