Google: don’t be holier-than-thou

Google has been applauded for its anti-censorship stand against China. But it’s not the role of companies to take moral or political stands, and we shouldn’t praise them when they do
In January Google ...
After health law, Washington is still disconnected from the people
There is something incongruous about the celebrations among President Obama, his cabinet members, and other Democratic leaders the past few days, to mark the passing of the healthcare bill.
Yesterday’s ceremony at the White House in which President Obama signed the bill into law was described as “raucous”, with the ...
Rapid decline of the US empire?
In this ...
New law doesn’t make health coverage a right
Today at the White House, President Obama signed into law the healthcare reform bill. Towards the end of his speech to mark the occasion, Obama said: “We have now just enshrined, as soon as I sign this bill, the core principle that everybody should have some basic security when ...
Battle over humanism at the science museum

The New York Times published an excellent article by Edward Rothstein last week on the science museum. He visited science museums in the US and internationally, and discovered a variety of conflicting approaches, which he speculates may be “a sign of the science museum’s struggle to define itself.”
One of ...
Healthcare bill: this is not History with a capital H

The health reforms in the US are neither historic nor disastrous. They simply show what ‘Change’ means under Obama: tinkering on the edges.
Read my spiked article in full here.
Health reform victory for Obama: the pundits over-react again
A healthcare reform bill has finally passed, just barely. After a last-minute deal to secure the anti-abortion Democrats, the House passed the health bill by just three votes more than necessary.
Just a day or so ago, many pundits presented Obama’s presidency as on the rocks. He is not only redeemed by the ...
March Madness!

Pictured above: Syracuse’s Wesley Johnson
March Madness is here!
The NCAA college basketball tournament has to be one of the most exciting sports times of the year. It’s also a time when employers generally look the other way as employees fill in their brackets in office betting pools. Apparently, the US economy ...
This week’s articles of note
“The real danger of debt,” Foreign Policy, by Richard A. Posner
“Midwest success stories,” New Geography, by Aaron M. Renn
“Saviors & sovereigns: the rise and fall of humanitarianism,” World Affairs, by Mark Mazower
“Who’s still biased?” The Boston Globe, by Drake Bennett
“How not to prosecute a sexting ...
To US critics of China’s currency: get your own house in order

The noise coming from the US about China’s supposed “manipulation” of its currency, the yuan (also referred to as the renminbi), has become noticeably louder this past week.
Since July 2008, ...