It’s not just libertarians who believe that police have become militarized. It’s police themselves. Last week, Indianapolis Police Chief Rick Hite told his city council that he sees himself as a “soldier in an army” and his police force as “paramilitary organization” that is preparing for “battle.” With the issue of police militarization still hot after … Continued
It’s flu season again, which means that soon a crop of viral myths and memes about the flu vaccine will spread over the internet. Besides the usual BS about vaccines and autism, one specific claim that I’ve heard probably a couple dozen times in the last five years is that the H1N1 swine flu vaccines actually “killed more … Continued
Over the past few months, Uber, Lyft, and Sidecar have rolled out another innovative a ridesharing service, this time to allow carpooling between people who commute along similar routes and want to split the cost. Great, right? The problem is that California regulators have just declared this new service to be illegal. …The state’s Public Utilities Commission has … Continued
The U.S. is about to enter a war against an enemy that has no capability or apparently even the desire to attack the United States. In fact, as the BBC reported, ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi “acknowledged that his organisation was not equipped to attack the Americans at home.” Furthermore, the U.S. government itself isn’t even … Continued
Last year, war-weary Americans forced President Obama and congressional leaders to abandon an ill-advised attack on the Assad regime in Syria. Now, nearly one year to the day later, the president has decided that it is again time to drop bombs in Syria. But this time, the targets will be a subsection of the rebels, known … Continued
In oral arguments for the gay marriage case Wolf v. Walker (mp3) on Tuesday, Judge Richard Posner took aim at Wisconsin’s Attorney General Timothy Samuelson right of the gate. Posner: “Why doesn’t Wisconsin permit joint adoption by same-sex couples?” Samuelson: “Uh, respectfully your honor, uh, that’s a question for the legislature, uh I don’t have a … Continued
How dangerous is it to be a cop? That depends on how many cops there are.
How dangerous is policing today? Is it getting worse, and does it justify the kinds of armaments local police forces are using? The Pentagon is giving cops half a billion dollars a year of military equipment, under the auspices of keeping them and us safe, so the answer really does matter. I’ve been criticized by defenders of police … Continued
