Harvard Talks Politics is your guide to the most important online political content Harvard has to offer. Don’t have time to pick up a copy of The Independent? Don’t know which opinion pieces to read in The Crimson? Want to know what The Perspective and The Salient have to say on the big issues? The Harvard Political Review has you covered. Here’s your weekly guide on what to read prepared by our writers so you don’t have to waste any more of your precious time. You can find it at harvardtalkspolitics.com
Daniel Handlin and Nicholas Tatsis on Prioritizing America’s Defense
Defense spending is a crucial element of the American economy and “some common misconceptions” often mislead the public into supporting cuts to defense programs, argue Nicholas Tatsis and Daniel Handlin in a recent op-ed for The Crimson. Contending that we must approach military spending with a focus on our long-term defense capability needs rather than yearly attempts to pare down the budget, Tatsis and Handlin conclude by saying that as the 21st century begins, the “U.S. defense industry… (should and must continue) to help America sustain its safety and primacy and assist our brave men and women on the front lines.”
Read the full article at The Crimson.
Dylan Matthews on Moving the Bounds of the Possible
Many people have raised objections to President Obama’s decision to become military involved in Libya and, in a piece for his personal blog, Dylan Matthews argues a less common point concerning our military involvement. Taking Obama at face value that our mission in Libya is one strictly for humanitarian purposes, Matthews argues that if our money was instead spent on anti-malaria bednets, we would both save money and more lives than we are in Libya. Matthews synthesizes the viewpoints of a variety of bloggers in his piece, describing his agreements or disagreements with various syndicates.
Read the full article at Dylan Matthews’ personal blog.
Alexander Heffner, Andrew Seo, and The Crimson on the Value of a Harvard Education
The debate began with Alexander Heffner’s editorial for U.S. News & World Report in which he argued that the university has significant prestige, “but as any undergraduate who actually attends the school knows, the Harvard education is overrated.” Heffner’s pointed and harsh criticism of the university garnered a flurry of backlash from fellow students. The Crimson argues that Heffner’s piece and its ilk are simply self-serving and fail to address audiences that could actually change for the better. The Crimson also highlights the hypocrisy of such pieces as the authors of this anti-Harvard rhetoric “make use of the same brand-name benefits that they often find to be the greatest fault within the institution.” The Harvard Political Review’s Andrew Seo articulates a similar view with a more personal twist. As he dissects Heffner’s article point by point, Seo ultimately concludes that a “Harvard education isn’t as advertised because there are 6,650 different ones.”
Read Alexander Heffner’s article at U.S. News & World Report.
Read The Crimson’s response at The Crimson.
Read Andrew Seo’s Response at The Harvard Political Review.
Josh Lipson on The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict on Facebook
In light of a new Facebook poll that asks viewers which side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict they are on, The Harvard Political Review‘s Josh Lipson writes that the differences reflected in such polls are merely an off-shoot of simple tribalism. Lipson explains that this feeling, “at its best explains why I derive pride from the Israeli flag on my wall and stir when I hear HaTikva, but at its worst accounts for Baruch Goldstein and the bombed-out buses of the Intifada.”
Read the full article at The Harvard Political Review.
Maya Jonas-Silver on Religious Speakers Draw Ire, Protests
In a recent article for The Crimson, Maya Jonas-Silver describes the controversy surrounding the recent Social Transformation Conference held at Harvard. The event, which especially garnered criticism from LGBT student organizations, featured multiple individuals who had made “inflammatory” statements in their pasts. Some attendees, however, disagreed with this criticism and praised the power of the speakers’ messages.
Read the full article at The Crimson.
Louis R. Evans on Tempest in the Tea
In his recent op-ed for The Crimson, Louis R. Evans describes the convoluted interpretation of the Constitution by congressional Republicans. Despite their alleged “strict constructionism” and insistence on textually applying the Constitution to laws they pass, their reasoning is flawed in that they attempt to statically interpret a text that was meant to evolve with our nation.
Read the full article at The Crimson.
Mike Cotter on The Practical Constitution
The question of the Health Care Reform Bill’s constitutionality has left significant uncertainty within the health system and widespread speculation as to what the Supreme Court will rule when they inevitably hear the case. Mike Cotter of The Perspective writes that there is little question what the ruling should be in this case as, the only coherent opposition to the statute is one that ignores the entire body of legal precedent that stands between us and the Constitution.” In his in-depth discussion of the Health Care Reform Bill and constitutional law, Cotter takes on the issue of Constitutional Originalism and the idea of a more practical constitution.
Read the full article at The Perspective.
Paul Schied on Libya and American Leadership
Paul Schied of The Harvard Political Review takes the recent US bombings Libya as an opportunity to reveal important aspects of American leadership abroad. Combining his perspectives on Obama’s recent speech on Libya, Congressman Barney Frank’s lecture at Pforzheimer House, and a discussion with HKS Professor Emeritus Marvin Kalb, Schied delves into the intricacies of America’s world leadership position. And while Schied admits that “in the past we have sometimes taken our responsibility to prevent humanitarian disasters too far,” he ultimately puts America’s leadership responsibility in a positive light.
Read the full article at The Harvard Political Review.