& Protecting It Under alternative forms of government such as autocracy, oligarchy, theocracy, etc., and various variants thereof, a small minority runs the country, the nation. In a democracy, the government belongs to the people. Democracies are inclusive. The people choose and depose the leaders. It is thus that everyone has a voice in decision-making. […]
The quote “Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society” (is attributed to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. As we enter the 2026 IRS filing season, you may be treated to the libertarian* propaganda that taxes are just government stealing. In a representative democracy such as ours, the majority has […]
I haven’t written about Trump, tariffs, and trade wars because there is plenty of smart commentary out there, and because I really had (and have) no idea how the whole thing will play out. It seemed plausible to me that Trump might be dissuaded from launching a destructive full scale trade war, that he might […]
The least trustworthy name in news, buried in the 13th graf: Democratic lawmakers have argued it would be illegal for Trump to unilaterally eliminate a federal agency without consulting Congress. This is not a question of whether something is blue-green, aqua, or cyan. This is a matter of fact. You might think a news organization […]
January 16, 2025 In his final address to the nation last night, President Joe Biden issued a warning that “an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power, and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead.” It is not […]
I’m reading an article about Kamala Harris in the October 21st New Yorker. This paragraph caught my eye: “When Harris talks of the origins of her interest in government, she lingers on a moment from her time in Montreal: a friend from Westmount High, Wanda Kagan, was being physically and sexually abused at home, and […]
Pushing Back For Democracy Around The World Given the massive impetus the presidency of Donald Trump gave to authoritarian and anti-democratic forces around the world, it is worth seeing that his defeat in a democratic election, despite his efforts to illegally overturn it, seems to have been followed by some outbursts of pro-democratic demonstrations in […]
Update: Application, clarification of “New world Order”. I have put this update at the beginning of the post for I believe it is an aspect of my post on the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) that should not be dismissed by myself nor by a reader of the post. Now that I have had the day […]
AB, late Thursday: If you want to stop a dictator from killing his people, freeze any of his personal assets that are held out of the country. In cases where the dictator is likely to fall, it sends a clear signal to other countries. (In cases where the dictator is likely to succeed, the worst […]
Both Gary and Rebecca cited Marc Lynch recommending “intervening” in Libya: The appropriate comparison is Bosnia or Kosovo, or even Rwanda where a massacre is unfolding on live television and the world is challenged to act. It is time for the United States, NATO, the United Nations and the Arab League to act forcefully to […]