Alarmism can have many parents. Sometimes, it is conceived by perceptive insight wed to a legitimate concern. Other times, it is a child bred by the marriage of ignorance and bias. Recently, the media has sounded an alarm that a…
Democrats don’t like the Senate. Sure, they currently hold more seats in the chamber than their GOP rivals. But there is deep dissatisfaction with the Senate’s structure. With senate seats apportioned equally by state, significant disparities can open up among…
Relationships don’t always last forever. As with friendships, neighbors, employment, and even marriages, sadly, longstanding political bonds can be severed. Today, the supposed “marriage” between big business and the Republican Party seems on the rocks. It might even be in…
One pervasive problem with our political discourse is the constant attribution of sinister motives to opponents. We see this done by both the Left and the Right, and it is a move that effectively ends any discussion of differing opinions….
“The basic tool for the manipulation of reality is the manipulation of words,” wrote author Philip K. Dick. “If you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use the words.” While Dick probably wasn’t…
Many see New Year’s Day as a starting point. It is a moment focused on the future. Beginning January 1, you can turn over a new leaf, making resolutions to improve yourself and your life. We often joke about how…
Criticisms of originalism are nothing new. The frequency and intensity of originalism’s critics, however, have multiplied since the latest blockbuster Supreme Court decisions on gun rights and abortion. Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky has added another salvo in his new…
Ryan D. Doerfler and Samuel Moyn, professors at Harvard Law School and Yale Law School, have had it with our Constitution. In fact, they have had it with constitutionalism in general. On Friday, they wrote in the New York Times, “The real need…
Definitions matter. They matter for gaining true knowledge rather than error. They matter for our capacity to communicate with each other. In law, definitions matter for guarding our rights. If we do not know about whom or what natural justice…
Year after year, Americans commemorate our independence on the Fourth of July. We take time off work to gather with family and friends. We roast hot dogs and set off fireworks. These activities, at the least, imply that our commemoration…