One of the best ways of reducing crime is to make anti-social behavior more expensive. Simply stated, the goal is to alter the cost-benefit analysis of criminals. This doesn’t mean, by the way, that I’m assuming that bad guys are geniuses who put together spreadsheets…
Daily Analysis
Great Moments in Prohibition and the Drug War
Even though I’m personally a prude on the issue of drugs, that doesn’t stop me from opposing the Drug War, both for moral and practical reasons. After all, how can any sensible and decent person want laws that produce these outrageous results? The DEA trying…
Grim Times for Gun Grabbers
I’ve already explained why leftists must be depressed about their failure to restrict private gun ownership. They’ve suffered brutal electoral setbacks in Colorado, and more and more states have strengthened the right to keep and bear arms. Moreover, it’s…
Simple Messages about the Folly of Gun Control
Let’s start this post with some cheerful news. The statists face a huge uphill battle if their campaign to undermine our rights to keep and bear arms. If you want evidence, just look at last year’s special election defeats of two anti-Second Amendment politicians in…
More Bad News for Gun Grabbers
Citing polling data with poorly (or dishonestly) worded questions, anti-Second Amendment ideologues often argue that gun control is popular. The real test, though, is what happens on election day. That’s why it was such big news when two incumbent Democrats from…
Law Enforcement Resources Should Be Used to Protect against Real Crimes
I’m a very straight-laced guy. Some would even say boring. I’ve never done drugs, for instance. But not because they’re illegal. I’ve never done drugs for the reason that I’ve never smoked cigarettes. Just doesn’t seem like a smart thing to do. And I encourage friends…
Are Government Schools a Form of Child Abuse?
I’m a big fan of school choice. If we bust up the government education monopoly and create a competitive education market, we’ll get a much better education system at much lower cost. This isn’t just idle theorizing. The evidence shows that competition produces better…
Even John McCain Is Having Second Thoughts about the Wisdom of Drug Prohibition
What do John Stossel, Mona Charen, Gary Johnson, Pat Robertson, Cory Booker, and Richard Branson all have in common? And let’s add voters from the states of Colorado and Washington to this list. So what unites this unusual collection of people? They’ve all expressed…
Another Failed Gun Control Experiment
It sounds strange, but my two favorite columns on gun control were authored by self-identified leftists. But they didn’t let ideology trump common sense. Justin Cronin, for instance, explained that restrictions on gun ownership undermined his ability to protect his…
Americans Are Far More Compassionate than “Socially Conscious” Europeans
When I’m in Europe giving speeches and participating in conferences, it’s quite common that folks on the left will attempt to discredit my views by asserting that Americans are selfish and greedy. Since I’m generally sympathetic to Ayn Rand’s writings, I don’t see…