Essay
Paul Rahe’s written an excellent essay explaining why libertarians ought to be social conservatives (via Instapundit), which is a point on which I’m writing for future publication. For the moment, though, this paragraph is more immediately relevant: In America, [Tocqueville] found institutions, mores, and manners antithetical to what he took to be democracy’s natural drift.…
To kick off a two-year planning process, the RI Economic Development Corporation under Governor Lincoln Chafee is seeking a contractor to, among other things, “analyze existing business climate reviews from the past three years, such as the Tax Foundation’s State Business Tax Climate Index, Beacon Hill Institute’s State Competitiveness Rankings, and Forbes Best States for…
Philip Marcelo of the Projo reported last week that…Governor Chafee said on Friday that he is not considering major changes to the state Economic Development Corporation, despite a state-commissioned report calling for a major overhaul of the embattled agency, which came under fire for its handling of the 38 Studios debacle.I know every other state…
While Ross Douthat‘s New York Times column from this week isn’t exactly an election postmortem, it certainly suggests that a politics focused solely on economic efficiency is incomplete…Beneath these policy debates, though, lie cultural forces that no legislator can really hope to change. The retreat from child rearing is, at some level, a symptom of…
I don’t believe it’s fair to blame WPRO (630AM) talk show host John DePetro for “manufacturing” the controversy about the Rhode Island Christmas tree/holiday tree. The blame rests squarely with Governor Lincoln Chafee, who is claiming the authority to rename a religious symbol because he is the head of the state. (Bill O’Reilly is wrong…
Ok, so there’s this green tree kerfluffle thing at the Statehouse. People are making a big deal over it and what name the Governor chose to refer to it. He even went on the Bill O’Reilly show last night to talk about it, and I think he did better than I expected. I wish he…
Changing unions’ privatization strategy; the government spending ratchet; the government spending racket; and the trap of dependency. Continue reading on the Ocean State Current…
Yes, you read that correctly: thirty minutes. Governor Chafee deliberately excluded the people of Rhode Island from the lighting of THEIR tree (whether “Christmas” or “holiday”) at THEIR State House. Chafee’s office announced at 11:31 a.m. on Thursday that the governor would host a lighting of the tree at noon. Typically, several days’ notice is…
Threats to the economy (cliffs and debts); RI lagging again (yawn); dependors and dependees; Social Security a problem; and a civil right to the war zone frat party. Continue reading on the Ocean State Current…
When a family comes to a decision about purchasing any product or service, it doesn’t merely accept the seller’s sense of what’s reasonable. In addition to the market rate, consumers must take into account the quality of the thing they’re buying as well as their own ability to afford it. With deteriorating infrastructure, doubts about…