Are We a Democracy? Intellectuals and Politics. The Stone is a forum for contemporary philosophers and other thinkers on issues both timely and timeless.
The Stone is featuring occasional posts by Gary Gutting, a professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, that apply critical thinking to information and events that have appeared in the news. The rise of Newt Gingrich, Ph.D.— along with the apparent anti-intellectualism of many of the other Republican candidates — has once again raised the question of the role of intellectuals in American politics. In writing about intellectuals, my temptation is to begin by echoing Marianne Moore on poetry: I, too, dislike them.
But that would be a lie: all else equal, I really like intellectuals. Besides, I’m an intellectual myself, and their self-deprecation is one thing I really do dislike about many intellectuals. What is an intellectual? It’s often said that what our leaders need is common sense, not fancy theories. The Libertarian and the Lobbyists - Simon Johnson. Exit from comment view mode.
Click to hide this space WASHINGTON, DC – In the three years since the global financial crisis erupted, two dominant views of what went wrong have emerged. It is crucial that we understand each, because their implications for policymakers – and thus for the future health and stability of the global economy – could not be greater. The first view is that governments simply lost control of the situation, either through incompetence or because politicians were pursuing their own agendas. The Koch brothers are trying to seize control of the libertarian think tank Cato. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images On Friday afternoon, as the Washington offices of the Cato Institute were emptying out for the weekend, the libertarian think tank’s president sent an e-mail to all staff.
The subject was the Koch brothers crisis. “Catoites,” wrote Ed Crane, “You are all probably aware by now of the unfortunate development with Charles and David Koch. They are in the process of trying to take over the Cato Institute and, in my opinion, reduce it to a partisan adjunct to Americans for Prosperity, the activist GOP group they control.” His fellow Catoites were waiting for this. Mohammed el Gorani and Jérôme Tubiana · Diary: Guantánamo · LRB 15 December 2011. We met every afternoon for two weeks in N’Djamena.
After the midday prayer, I would pick him up in a taxi at the shop he hoped to turn into a laundry. We ate fish and rice in my hotel room – he would have been recognised outside – and he just talked, beginning at the beginning. The First Amendment Upside Down. Why We Must...) Ceding Liberty to Terror: Senate Votes Against Due-Process Rights - Conor Friedersdorf - Politics. Asked to deny presidential authority to indefinitely detain Americans without charges or a trial, they declined, citing the threat of al-Qaeda.
Is it lawful for the president to order any American held indefinitely as a terrorist, without formal charges, evidence presented in open court, a trial by jury, or a standard of "guilty beyond a reasonable doubt"? The U.S. Senate had a chance Wednesday to assert that no, a president does not possess that power -- that the United States Constitution guarantees due process. Sen. Barbara Ehrenreich and John Ehrenreich, The Fall of the "Liberal Elite" Judge Janice Rogers Brown wants to return to the libertarian legal notions of the 1930s. Photograph by Douglas Graham/Roll Call/Getty Images.
A few days ago, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit handed down a decision in a little-noticed case involving milk regulations, with a remarkable concurring opinion written by Judge Janice Rogers Brown. Her worldview will surprise nobody who followed Brown’s contentious confirmation to the court widely seen as a feeder to the highest court in the land. (Brown was appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush and confirmed in 2005.) A Referendum on Obama - Michael Boskin. Exit from comment view mode.
Click to hide this space STANFORD – Successful political candidates try to implement the proposals on which they ran. In the United States, President Barack Obama and the Democrats, controlling the House of Representatives and (a filibuster-proof) Senate, had the power to do virtually anything they wanted in 2009 – and so they did. The last election that was followed by such a sweeping change in policy direction occurred in 1980, when President Ronald Reagan overhauled taxes, spending, and regulation, and supported the Federal Reserve’s course of disinflation. While the 1988, 1992, and 2000 elections were also quite consequential, the policy shifts were not nearly as large as in 1980 and 2008.
The country rebelled against Obama and the Democrats’ lurch to the left with historic Congressional election victories for Republicans in 2010. Peter Van Buren, In Washington, Fear the Silence, Not the Noise. [Note for TomDispatch Readers: A last reminder for those of you in New York City: Jeremy Scahill and I will be onstage Friday, 6-8 pm, at New York University’s Arthur L.
Carter Journalism Institute discussing our American world (such as it is), his work, and my new book, The United States of Fear. Hope you’ll drop by. For further information and directions on getting there, click here. Tom] One thing is obvious. Iowa Has Hogged First Place in Our Political Line Too Long - Steve Buttry - Politics. The Hawkeye State is unrepresentative of the nation, caucuses are bizarre, and the system doesn't work.
It's time to let someone else start the nominating process. Let's bid farewell to the Iowa caucuses. They've had a long run, but it's time for someone else to launch the presidential campaign process. The Darkest Day in the History of American Super PACs - Nancy Scola - Politics. When it comes to campaign spending, we know only a fraction of the information we have the ability to know.
Today, Jan. 30, 2012, is a uniquely strange day in the history of American democracy. The SportsCenter-ization of Political Journalism - Patrick Hruby - Politics. Coverage that focuses purely on emotional conflicts and who's winning impoverishes our democracy and obscures the real, important issues at play. Up went the shirtsleeves. Reporters Without Borders: Press Freedom Index slams US for Occupy Wall Street arrests. Unexceptionalism - A Primer. Congressmen Seek To Lift Propaganda Ban. The Decline of the Public Good) Meryl Streep’s eery reincarnation of Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady” brings to mind Thatcher’s most famous quip, “there is no such thing as ‘society.’” None of the dwindling herd of Republican candidates has quoted her yet but they might as well considering their unremitting bashing of everything public. What defines a society is a set of mutual benefits and duties embodied most visibly in public institutions — public schools, public libraries, public transportation, public hospitals, public parks, public museums, public recreation, public universities, and so on.
Public institutions are supported by all taxpayers, and are available to all. If the tax system is progressive, those who better off (and who, presumably, have benefitted from many of these same public institutions) help pay for everyone else. "Privatiize" means pay-for-it-yourself. Why it matters that our politicians are rich. Politics Q&A: Lawrence Lessig on the 2012 Primaries - Conor Friedersdorf - Politics. The Harvard professor and campaign-finance-reform advocate reflects on the corrupting influence of money in American politics. Larry Lessig, the renowned Harvard Law School professor and political activist, was known until recently as a champion of the open Internet. Although he hasn't stopped caring about causes like reforming intellectual-property law, he has recently turned his attention to the political system itself, and what he sees as the legalized corruption of campaign contributions and lobbying.
He's out to persuade all Americans what so many already believe: that money is distorting our politics, and that major reforms are needed. He chatted with me about his cause and whether or not the presidential race has made him rethink any of his ideas about how our politics works.You've recently written at book, Republic Lost, and an e-book, One Way Forward, about the corrupting influence of money in American politics.
How so? But those are the two I'd point to. Now it's outrageous. Our Corrupt Politics: It’s Not All Money by Ezra Klein. Capitol Punishment: The Hard Truth About Washington Corruption from America’s Most Notorious Lobbyist by Jack Abramoff Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress—and a Plan to Stop It by Lawrence Lessig Twelve, 317 pp., $26.99. Sugar Daddies. The Demise of Moderation. Harry Hudson was about to launch a music career when he found a tumor the size of a grapefruit in his chest. Then the 20-year-old documented his fight on Twitter and Instagram. Harry Hudson can pinpoint the exact minute he was booted out of the Garden of Eden. An up-and-coming musician, Hudson was on the brink of stardom when life came crashing down.
He had just managed to score a meeting with the legendary Martin Kierszenbaum, head of Cherrytree Records, the same guy who launched Lady Gaga's career. It was a good meeting. Why Congress May Be Done for the Year - Linda Killian - Politics. It's not even spring yet, but with the elections looming, the House and Senate may already have done everything they will do in 2012. The American people think Congress is broken and judging by its track record that assessment is accurate.
The average House and Senate member now sides with their party about 90 percent of the time, according to a recent Congressional Quarterly study, a level of lockstep agreement that reflects the most profound partisan polarization in Congress in 100 years. Now, with Democrats trying to hold onto their majority in the Senate and Republicans trying to win it as the election draws closer, the chance that legislative comity might improve is close to vanishing.
America’s dream unravels. Robert Draper’s history of the current House of Representatives is a study of dysfunction. Photograph by Mario Tama/Getty Images. How the Right Has Turned Everything Into a Culture War. February 28, 2012 | It's Time to Clean House - Philip K. Howard - Politics. America is basically run by dead people: We elect new representatives, but continue on with policy from decades ago. To go forward, Congress needs to confront the past. "“Terrorists” at Home" by Naomi Wolf. Exit from comment view mode. Click to hide this space NEW YORK – Last week, I submitted an affidavit to support an important lawsuit brought by reporter Chris Hedges and others, including Daniel Ellsberg and Noam Chomsky, against US President Barack Obama and his defense secretary, Leon Panetta. The Tyranny of Freedom. Article Print. Facts, 360 B.C.-A.D. 2012. Timothy Noah, Charles Murray, and America’s Inequality.
The most striking change in American society in the past generation—roughly since Ronald Reagan was elected President—has been the increase in the inequality of income and wealth. 4 May Day Stories the Corporate Media Missed While Fixating On Obama's College Girlfriend. Signs on May Day represent a missed media story.Photo Credit: Sarah Seltzer. Amy Gutmann and Dennis Thompson urge compromise in U.S. politics. Business - Derek Thompson - Government of the Elderly, by the Elderly, and for the Elderly Shall Not Perish.
Charles Homans: The Operator. The Facts Behind Obama’s Executive Privilege Claim. Politics - David A. Graham - Eric Holder, Contempt of Congress, and Fast and Furious: What You Need to Know. How Right-Wingers on the Supreme Court Sold Our Democracy Down the River. National - Andrew Cohen - If You Think Monday Was Bad at the Supreme Court... "Tea Party Victory, Global Defeat" by Gareth Evans. How Bryan Fischer is Making Mitt Romney More Conservative. The Truth About American Politics and the Extremism of the G.O.P. Why Republicans Oppose the Individual Health-Care Mandate.