The presence of a street vendor should be a welcome sign for a community, as evidence of a flourishing, diverse economy. More to the point — should government be used to discriminate against popular, efficient street vendors and in favor of less popular, less efficient brick-and-mortar retailers? Shouldn’t picking one over the other be a…
Laws/Regulations
Charity, Laws/Regulations, Poverty
Terrorists in the Soup Kitchen
by JOHN ADAMS •
Reason magazine posts on a request from the United Way of Central Maryland that a local soup kitchen certify that they were in compliance with anti-terrorism laws: Baltimore’s Viva House soup kitchen and food pantry has been feeding the poor since 1968, and for many years, it has gotten funds from the local United Way.…
Freedom of Speech, Laws/Regulations
Update: U.S. Supreme Court Considers Whether to Hear Institute for Justice’s Challenge to Arizona’s “Clean Elections”
by JOHN ADAMS •
Great news — The U.S. Supreme Court had decided to hear a challenge to Arizona’s supposedly “clean,” but actually speech-inhibiting, elections law. See, Supreme Court to Review Arizona Campaign Finance Law. Here’s a FW post from November on the challenge — Think that “clean” elections laws keep elections, well, fair and clean? You might be…
Laws/Regulations, Libertarians
EPA’s Rulemaking Matters! Contest: The Winner
by JOHN ADAMS •
In May, June, and July, I posted about an EPA video contest called “Rulemaking Matters!” in which contestants could send in videos explaining why federal regulations are important. Here’s the winning video — The winner in the Rulemaking Matters contest was a good entry. There are two things worth nothing, however. First, one of the…
City, Laws/Regulations, Planning
How Whitewater’s Municipal Administration Made a Mess of Housing in the City
by JOHN ADAMS •
Live by a regulatory environment, perish by a regulatory environment. What might have been solved through free forces of supply and demand is now a political and economic mess. There are two stories at Walworth County Today that nicely describe, respectively, the defeat of a builder’s request for a zoning change to build student housing,…
Laws/Regulations
Washington Post — As Frustration Grows, Airports Consider Ditching TSA
by JOHN ADAMS •
A wise decision — Some of the nation’s biggest airports are responding to recent public outrage over security screening by weighing whether they should hire private firms such as Covenant to replace the Transportation Security Administration. Sixteen airports, including San Francisco and Kansas City International Airport, have made the switch since 2002. One Orlando airport…
Laws/Regulations, Libertarians
Presenting Reason.tv‘s 2010 Nanny of the Year — Busybodies, Babes, and Bacon!
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here’s the description accompanying the video: They touch our lives in so many ways, and Reason.tv acknowledges those who tell us that if it looks good, tastes good, or feels good, it should be illegal. Live (to tape) from the fourth floor of the Sepulveda Center in Los Angeles, California–it’s the 2010 Nanny of the…
Education, Laws/Regulations
Pierce County Herald: Rep. Nass seeks to repeal Indian nickname law
by JOHN ADAMS •
State Representative Steve Nass, part of the Wisconsin Assembly’s Republican majority, wants to repeal the law that allows the state superintendent to decide whether local public districts may use a tribal name, or other ‘race-based’ name. (Wis. Stat. 118.134, et seq). Although I’m not a proponent of tribal names, I’m surely an opponent of Wisconsin’s…
Free Markets, Laws/Regulations
WSJ Editorial Board Member Advocates For Free-Market Immigration | Worcester Business Journal
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here’s a wholly libertarian position: The free market should govern how many legal immigrants are allowed into the country, a member of the Wall Street editorial board said during a discussion hosted by the Worcester Regional Research Bureau. Jason Riley, author of the book “Let Them In: The Case For Open Borders,” spoke about the…
Laws/Regulations
Reason.tv’s Nanny of the Month for November 2010: Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here is the caption accompanying the video: This month nannies banned beverages that mix booze with caffeine and one top official even hinted that the feds may disable cell phones in cars. But this time top dishonors go to the heartland mayor who sacked the Lingerie Football League. Presenting Reason.tv’s Nanny of the Month for…
Crime, Law, Laws/Regulations, Libertarians, Press Release, Taxes/Taxation
Wes [Benedict of the LP] for Wesley Snipes | Libertarian Party
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Libertarian Party issued the following press release about tax protester Wesley Snipes. Note that Snipes was acquitted(!) of tax fraud and conspiracy, but he’s been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment on a misdemeanor conviction merely for being a non-filer. Wes for Wesley Snipes Why men can’t jump on Wesley Snipes WASHINGTON – Wes Benedict,…
Laws/Regulations, School District
Wisconsin’s Law on ‘Raced-Based’ School Mascots
by JOHN ADAMS •
Several public schools in Wisconsin have mascots named after Indian tribes, or famous tribal leaders. I’m am neither a supporter nor an opponent of those mascots’ nicknames. Communities in Wisconsin should be free to decide for themselves what they’d like to call their teams. They may choose wisely, they may chose foolishly, but it should…
Law, Laws/Regulations, Liberty
The Volokh Conspiracy » Greenwald v. The Nation
by JOHN ADAMS •
Laws/Regulations, Liberty
Raw Foods Raids: The Fight for the Right to Eat the Food that You Want
by JOHN ADAMS •
Guns drawn, property destroyed — all over milk. Here’s the description accompanying the video: This summer armed government agents raided Rawesome Foods, a Venice, California health food co-op. What were the agents after? Unpasteurized milk, it turns out. Raw milk raids are happening all over the United States. The Food and Drug Administration warns that…