This summer the Congress is expected, finally, to take up the subject of campaign finance reform. If you believe the interpretation put upon this issue by most of the media and the permanent, self-designated “reform” lobby, the only reason to oppose the proposals being made is the self-interest of politicians and their major backers. But this simplistic view increasingly is Read More ›
We probably all know that costs of entitlements are the main source of federal budget deficits, and the problem is destined to get dangerously worse as the Baby Boom generation ages. We all know, too, that ordinary families–especially the young–are having a hard time saving independently for their old age. And, we all know that elderly voters, as a group, Read More ›
The Census Bureau projected recently that by the middle of the 21st century “non-Hispanic whites” will constitute only 52.8 percent of the U.S. population, Hispanics will have doubled to 24.5 percent, blacks increased slightly to 13.6 percent and Asians almost trebled to 8.2 percent. Supposedly, the news is that high birth rates among Hispanics and immigration among Asians are changing Read More ›
Where was Nicholas Eberstadt when I needed him? In 1984, the Urban Institute produced a study that purported to show how poverty had grown during the Reagan years. The trouble was, the Urban Institute used an improper base for its analysis: 1980 to 1984. It sounded plausible enough; at least no one in the press challenged it. Ronald Reagan was Read More ›
Thanks to the wisdom of the pundits, one can know the outcome of the 1996 presidential election 10 months early. A preliminary hint: Voters are wasting their time. As the candidates kick off three solid months of primary campaigns—very-early primaries, earlier-than-thou primaries and who’s-on-first party caucuses preceded by highly consequential and rigged party straw votes — followed by five months Read More ›
