April 2004
-
“News” and “Opinion” at The New York Times
Ever since Bill Keller took over at the NY Times, the paper has been bending over backwards to dignify right-wing stupidity at every opportunity–predictable, I suppose, based on Mr. Keller’s op-ed columns before he became the editor. One sign of that was the creation of a regular column for David “smear ’em with a smile”…
-
Canadian Regulation of Hate Speech–the Actual Law
The scope of the errors in the original U.S. News item that sparked a discussion of Canadian hate speech law will be apparent upon consideration of the actual provisions. (My thanks to my colleague Leslie Green (who is also half-time at Osgoode Hall School of Law/York University, Toronto) and to philosopher Paul Raymont at Carleton…
-
Elite Education for Economic Elites
Story here: “At prestigious universities around the country, from flagship state colleges to the Ivy League, more and more students from upper-income families are edging out those from the middle class, according to university data…. “Experts say the change in the student population is a result of both steep tuition increases and the phenomenal efforts…
-
The pleasures of being a law-review editor…
…are memorably described here.
-
Meet the Italian Taliban
If this is accurate, Italy should be expelled from the European Union.
-
Republican and Democratic Convention Programs
The GOP Convention Program is the work of Amy and Leonard Peikoff; the Democratic Convention Program, which follows, has been circulating among Republicans, but I don’t know the author. Both are amusing (especially the first!), and I thank Professor Peikoff for calling them to my attention. OFFICIAL 2004 GOP CONVENTION PROGRAM 6:00pm – Opening Ecumenical…
-
Blog Persona, Human Persona
I found this in cyberspace, posted by a former student: “Leiter’s wry wit comes across as much more abrasive when he puts it into writing. In person he’s much friendlier, much more of a good-natured and self-deprecating mensch type than his blog would imply (although I don’t know him really well, only as a student).…
-
How Do Those Universities in the Northeast Survive?
Matthew Yglesias, recent philosophy graduate from Harvard and now professional pundit (based, I think, in DC), remarks on Professor Siegel’s dilemma (to stay at Harvard, or go to Arizona): “I dunno about you, but if I had to choose between life in sunny Cambridge, MA and the damp chilliness of Arizona, I’d definitely be packing…
-
Ignorance Predicts Political Preference
Details here: “Among those who believed WMD had been found in Iraq, 72 per cent said they would vote to re-elect Mr Bush in November and 23 per cent said they supported his Democratic challenger, John Kerry. Among those who knew that no WMD had been found,74 per cent supported Mr Kerry and 23 per…
-
Who’s Getting Rich on Iraq?
Find out here. Note that this is not a political site; this is a site recruiting profit-seekers to do the work: “The reconstruction of Iraq is one of the biggest projects to have been undertaken in over 50 years. May 2003 saw the UN Security Council provide the US and UK with a mandate to…
-
Destroying British Universities with Paperwork
Chris Bertram (Bristol Philosophy) points to just one example of the bureaucratic “accountability” requirements that are indeed driving faculty from the UK. His example pertains to the hoops one has to jump through to secure funding for graduate students. But far worse, according to my friends, is the absurd “Teaching Quality Assessment,” which has nothing…
-
Vote for Bush, Send Your Sons to War
Notwithstanding the dismissive attitude of innocents, a military draft continues to loom on the horizon: “A senior Republican lawmaker said Tuesday that deteriorating security in Iraq may force the United States to reintroduce the military draft.” Scary times.
-
Old Dogs Can’t Learn New Tricks
On April 6, I wrote: “Some folks don’t know how to cut their losses. Lawrence VanDyke’s complete scientific and scholarly incompetence has been so thoroughly reviewed by me (here and here), biologists, political commentators, and those concerned with science education, that you’d think he might just admit what is now obvious: that he was out…
-
A Good Case Study for Social Epistemology
Details here: “A new Harris Poll finds that public perceptions of the facts that led up to the invasion of Iraq remain almost unchanged in spite of a barrage of media reports that might have changed them.”
-
Leading Ad Law Scholar Shapiro from Kansas to Wake Forest
Sidney Shapiro, one of the nation’s leading authorities on administrative law at the University of Kansas, has accepted the University Distinguished Chair in Law at Wake Forest University; details here. That Chair was held previously by the distinguished constitutional theorist Michael Perry, who was recruited away by Emory last year, where he now holds that…
Very interesting interview with Professor Schwarcz on the latest episode of Ipse Dixit podcast: https://shows.acast.com/ipse-dixit/episodes/daniel-schwarcz-on-ai-and-human-legal-reasoning