The responsibility to interview a candidate should – and reasonably does – require that one interviews with one’s independent judgment. If the interviewer, himself or herself, is under someone’s else’s watch, then the interviewers aren’t truly independent (and candidates see that, too). There’s a Police and Fire Commission meeting tonight, at 6 PM. The principal…
Law
America, City, Law, Local Government
The No-Prior-Discussions, Wheelchair-Access Lawsuit Against Whitewater
by JOHN ADAMS • • 2 Comments
Weighty claims require that claimants present their grievances deliberately. A serious presentation ordinarily includes (1) signaling that one has a grievance, (2) offering a chance for a negotiated resolution, and only later (3) letting others know that one might seek recourse to the courts if negotiations should prove unproductive. (This last point only applies if…
America, Law, Liberty, Local Government, School District, Wisconsin
How Many Rights for Whitewater?
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
How many rights do Whitewater’s residents possess? It’s a simple question, and there’s a simple answer: They possess all the rights of residency or citizenship, respectively, of Americans and Wisconsinites elsewhere. One may express this plainly: All of America, and all of Wisconsin, for all of Whitewater. There is no local practice, no old custom,…
City, Law, Liberty, Local Government, Open Government
Closed Sessions in an Open Society
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
Consider a review of three grocery lists, labeled A, B, and C, respectively: List A: Purchases (1) One gallon, skim milk (2) One dozen navel oranges (3) One loaf of whole wheat bread List B: Purchases (1) fruit and/or (2) something made of flour List C: Purchases (1) something to eat They’re all lists; they’re…
Law, Liberty
Succinctly Stated: ‘Imprison the Royal Family and Abolish the Monarchy’
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
CDA, City, Law, Local Government
The CDA’s Possible Purchase of Hundreds of Acres of Whitewater’s Public Land for a Dollar
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
Council’s scheduled to address the possibility of selling hundreds of acres of public land to the Community Development Authority for a dollar ($1.00). (It’s Item C-9 on tonight’s agenda.) The proposal’s been kicked around for months, but I’m curious if there’s been any positive headway since an April memo from the CDA’s Patrick Cannon, and…
America, Law, Liberty, Press Release
Sunday, June 30th: Mock Funeral for the 4th Amendment
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
I’ve received the following message about a political rally at Madison’s Capitol Square in support of Fourth Amendment rights. Those rights are succinctly and clearly expressed in the Constitution: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against un- reasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and…
Law, Libertarians, Liberty
Friday Poll: Libertarian v. Libertarian on the NSA Surveillance Scandal
by JOHN ADAMS • • 4 Comments
One might think that all libertarians would be equally outraged over revelations (for some, long-suspected) of the National Security Agency’s domestic surveillance, but it’s not true. In the video below, libertarian John Stossel contends that the surveillance isn’t as troubling as other government actions, including the Drug War. In reply, libertarian Andrew Napolitano contends that…
Business, Law, Local Government, Official Misconduct, Open Government
How Local Government Has It Easier Than Yelp
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
Yelp may be a popular website for positing restaurant (and other) reviews, but it has a controversy on its hands. Some businesses are complaining about Yelp’s practice of hiding some reviews behind a link (that is, where one has to click the link to see all posted reviews). Some restaurateurs contend that Yelp hides favorable…
Federal Government, Law, Liberty
She’s Right
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
CDA, City, Corporate Welfare, Government Spending, Innovation Center/Tech Park, Law, Official Misconduct, Open Government, State Government, Taxes/Taxation, Wisconsin
The Truth about the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
A person should be able to make simple distinctions, as between the sensible and foolish, or practical and impractical. Sometimes those distinctions should be clear, and as stark as the difference between the contents of a sample cup and a glass of Chardonnay. You’ll hear a lot locally over the next few days about a…
Free Markets, Immigration, Labor, Law, New Whitewater
Who Should Live in Whitewater?
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
Crime, Freedom of Speech, Law, Liberty
The Beatles on Revolution and the Constitutional Order
by JOHN ADAMS • • 2 Comments
Not every election ends as one hopes. That’s true for major-party members, and at least as much for members of third parties. There are millions of people disappointed that Pres. Obama was re-elected, as there were many who were disappointed that Pres. Bush was re-elected. Neither outcome is what many Americans wanted, although in both…
Crime, Law
How to Tell a Tide’s Turning
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
After National Review repeatedly questions a grand policy, and the Wall Street Journal prints an essay against that same policy, the tide’s turned in a meaningful way. Bonus indicators: (1) defenders of the current policy have to justify it in ways they wouldn’t imagine necessary a decade earlier, and (2) David Frum – self-professed conservative…