Political philosophy
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The Detestable Attestation
Thoughts on the federal government’s attempt to make religious groups capitulate to its views on abortion Continue reading
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Profession of Power
A critique of Bob Tarantino’s celebration of the legal profession Continue reading
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Dark Vision
A critique of a “vision” of the courts as moral authorities. Continue reading
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How Power Corrupts V
What science has to say about the corrupting effects of power Continue reading
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Accountability Ersatz
The Court Challenges Program shows accountable government is no substitute for a small government Continue reading
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Yes Or No?
Post-Brexit thoughts on referenda, especially in the context of electoral reform In the aftermath of the Brexit referendum, there is renewed debate about the lessons, if any, that it might hold for other democratic polities on the use of the referendum generally, and in particular for Canada about an eventual referendum on electoral reform. Many Continue reading
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Ideologies in the Marketplace of Ideas
The “marketplace of ideologies” is neither new nor quite disastrous In a post over at Concurring Opinions, Ronald K.L. Collins laments what he regards as the rise, in the place of the good old marketplace of ideas, of a “marketplace of ideologies.” Prof. Collins writes that in this new marketplace, ideas, facts, “the constitutional process of governing,” and Continue reading
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Ideas of the Marketplace II
What we can learn from thinking about the marketplace of ideas as a market In a very interesting post over at EconLog, Bryan Caplan considers what he describes as the “dogmatic libertarian” claim that all markets work well, as it is applies ― or, rather, doesn’t apply ― to the marketplace of ideas. The marketplace seems Continue reading
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Mémoire fragmentée/Fragmented Remembrance
A meditation on the conflict between identity politics and remembrance Today is International Holocaust Remembrance Day. In Germany, it is the Day of remembrance for the victims of National Socialism. And, as it happens, I’ve been reminded of something I wrote almost ten years ago, I think, after visiting the site of the Dachau concentration camp. It Continue reading
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The Core of the Case against Electoral Reform
Why the concerns of those who want electoral reform do not move me When I wrote about the constitutionality of electoral reform, I did not want to discuss its merits, beyond saying that I did not believe it had many, or the process by which it should be determined upon, beyond saying I favoured a Continue reading
Double Aspect 