Our recent financial meltdown was caused in part by investments in derivatives. Therefore, the federal government is working on a way to regulate the things. But what is a derivative? Here is a helpful explanation: In its simplest form, a derivative is a financial agreement
An interesting article on how most of our presidents have been big readers, and how the books they read have influenced their policies: For Obama and past presidents, the books they read shape policies and perceptions. Truman’s reading about ancient history led to his support
What conservative populists are doing to the Republican party, liberal populists are starting to do to Democrats: A political rebellion is brewing inside an old funeral home near the state Capitol here. Frustrated liberals and labor organizers are taking aim at the Democratic Party, rushing
The government, through the Food and Drug Administration, is planning to issue regulations with the force of law limiting how much salt products can contain. The plan is to implement phased reductions of salt so as to gradually wean consumers off of sodium chloride. The
So presidents going all the way back to George Washington have been unconstitutional for all these years. Who knew? A federal judge in Wisconsin declared Thursday that the US law authorizing a National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional. US District Judge Barbara Crabb said the
Some Texas school districts are bringing back corporal punishment into the classroom: In an era when students talk back to teachers, skip class and wear ever-more-risque clothing to school, one central Texas city has hit upon a deceptively simple solution: Bring back the paddle. Most
The volcano in Iceland that has paralyzed air travel throughout Europe is still erupting and has sent yet another cloud of ash into the skies. See Volcanic Ash: Air Passengers Warned Of Further Delays As New Ash Cloud Spreads Towards UK | UK News |
Jonathan Turley offers some good analysis of a case that goes before the Supreme Court today on whether campus religious groups can require their members to follow that religion’s teachings: Can a nondiscrimination policy be discriminatory? That question, bordering on legal Zen, will be before
I’m fascinated by the various dialects of English and have studied them a little in graduate school. I’ve defended the regional use of “you all” or “y’all” as serving a valuable grammatical purpose. Most languages have a plural form of the second person pronoun. Actually
I love pens. Since pens are the primal tool of my vocation, I treasure a good pen, from a cheap-but-reliable Bic to the classical-and-hefty Cross. So I appreciated this feature on those government-issue black pens, which are found in post offices, bureaucratic agencies, and the
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