For those who follow the Drudge Report, you’ve presumably seen several stories about “Big Sis” and her plans to require either body imaging or a full pat down. I’ve always viewed this as a cost-benefit issue. There are crazies out there who want to blow up planes, so…
Daily Analysis
The $27 Light Bulb and other Examples of “Stimulus” Waste and Fraud
When politicians and bureaucrats spend our money, they rarely demonstrate any concern about waste and fraud. Why be conscientious, after all, if you’re spending other people’s money – especially if your real goal is to buy votes and get campaign contributions by…
First They Came for the Happy Meals, then They Came for the Foreskins…
There is a famous statement attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller, who was imprisoned by Hitler’s National Socialist regime and barely survived the concentration camps. They came first for the Communists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist. Then they…
Who Has the Best License Plate?
A friend sent me a photo of a license plate she saw yesterday. I heartily agree with the sentiment. But I still think my license plate is better because it covers everything. Does anybody have a better choice?
Co-Chairmen of Obama’s Fiscal Commission Unveil Real Tax Increases and Fake Spending Cuts
I have many pet peeves, but one that causes me endless frustration is the Washington “spending cut” scam. This happens when politicians increase spending, but claim that they’re cutting spending because they previously had planned to make government even bigger. The…
Will the Federal Reserve’s Easy-Money Policy Turn the United States into a Global Laughingstock?
One of my first blog posts (and the first one to get any attention) highlighted the amusing/embarrassing irony of having Chinese students laugh at Treasury Secretary Geithner when he claimed the United States had a strong-dollar policy.
I suspect that even Tim “Tur…
Our Tax Dollars Are Funding Bureaucrats Who Advise Congress that Higher Taxes Increase Prosperity
I’ve already written about the terrible work of the Congressional Budget Office. The CBO did an awful job on the stimulus, for instance, repeatedly asserting that diverting money from the private sector to government somehow would create jobs. CBO also was a disaster…
Congressional Staffers Should Cry on Their Own Dime
I saw a story linked on Instapundit, but it really belonged on The Onion. Apparently, our tax dollars are being used to fund grief counseling for congressional staffers who will lose their jobs in January because of the elections. Can you think of a better example…
With Ethanol Handouts Up for Renewal, Will the GOP Side with Corrupt Lobbyists or Free Markets?
Tim Carney of the Washington Examiner has a great piece looking at the utterly indefensible panoply of ethanol subsidies and handouts that screw consumers and taxpayers in order to line the pockets of the politically powerful. Unfortunately, several senior GOP…
Banning Happy Meal Toys in San Francisco
Reason TV has a new video in their great Nanny-of-the-Month series. The winner is a San Francisco politician who pushed through legislation to ban restaurants like McDonald’s from including toys in happy meals. Here’s a great idea: How about banning politicians from…