Check out Will Wilkinson’s post on Peter Orszag’s disappointing decision to cash in at Citigroup. First Wilkinson suggests that this sort of co-optation of government officials by market forces is a fatal flaw in progressivism. “[M]arket institutions find ways to use the government’s regulatory and insurer-of-last-resort functions as countervailing forces against their competitors and, in … Read more
In an interview with Stephen Colbert about her upcoming book, The History of White People, Princeton University History Professor Nell Irvin Painter was asked, “So, I don’t see race; are you white?” To which Painter replied, sarcastically, “Well, I have a PhD. Does that make me white?” This quote suggests a different way of thinking about the … Read more
In their exchanges, both Pete and Sam seem to accept the rather odd idea that affirmative action exists primarily to benefit the poor. For example, Sam writes that: Peter’s most compelling argument is that affirmative action “typically benefits only middle- and upper-class minority students”—that is, students who probably aren’t nearly as vulnerable to segregation, foreclosure, unemployment, … Read more
Sam Barr has responded to my column in last Wednesday’s Crimson with an analysis that ultimately comes out in favor of race-based affirmative action. While I thank Sam for his thoughtful comments on the article, I would like to reply to some of his criticisms and clarify certain aspects of my argument, which suggested that … Read more
Jonathan Allen has a long piece on Politico that is one long excoriation of immature liberals who won’t grow up and let the Obama-orchestrated tax deal go through. This piece represents everything that is wrong with Politico: It is filled with simple-minded analysis of the personalities and psychologies of politicians, based on nothing but the … Read more
One point that stands out to me about the failure to repeal “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” is the irrelevance of public opinion on this issue. Polls have consistently shown that DADT is extremely unpopular—clear majorities of the American people support repeal. Since DADT was introduced in 1993, it has become consistently more unpopular. Now, 57 … Read more
Peter Bozzo writes in today’s Crimson in favor of switching from race-based to class-based affirmative action. He makes a very strong case, but I think he ultimately goes wrong. First, his interpretation of Brown v. Board as a decision rooted in the principle of color-blindness is implausible to me. The heart of the ruling was … Read more
Work: “The Big Red Son” by David Foster Wallace Intro: Wallace goes slumming it with porn stars at the 1998 Adult Video Awards ceremony. Here he describes the pornography of Las Vegas. As you know if you’ve seen Casino, Showgirls, Bugsy, etc., there are really three Las Vegases. Binion’s, where the World Series of Poker is … Read more
The inevitably entertaining Lewis Black came to Kirkland House yesterday to discuss his love of theater, his flirting with the poverty line, and his opinion on anything else. With a message that has to be Black’s definition of inspiring, he had this piece of advice for current students: “If there was ever a better time … Read more
George Will apparently wants the Supreme Court to overturn the individual mandate—the requirement that Americans purchase health insurance. As Jonathan Chait points out, Will is faced with the unenviable task of reconciling belief in judicial minimalism, which he and other conservatives have spent decades extolling, with the impulse to take advantage of their narrow Supreme … Read more