Well, it’s happened again–we’ve reached the start of another US presidential election cycle. Ted Cruz is the first candidate to declare his intent to run. Now, when I started this blog in August 2012, we were most of the way through the presidential election cycle, so I need to make some decisions about how I’m going to write about it this year. So far, here’s the plan–every time a major candidate declares intent to run, regardless of party affiliation, I will write an initial post analyzing the candidate as a statesman in an attempt to determine whether or not the candidate is fit to govern a society. Beyond that, I will write about controversies that interest me as they arise.
Tag: Law
Police Don’t Kill People. Guns Do.
I’ve been doing some more thinking about the recent cases in which American police officers shoot and kill people (e.g. Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, etc.). It has occurred to me that there are two important angles to the national debate we’re having, but I’ve only really talked about one of those angles on this blog. They are:
- The Race Angle–why do American police officers disproportionately shoot more black people than white people, even when you adjust for poverty and crime rates?
- The Civil Liberty Angle–why do American police officers shoot more people per capita than police officers in other developed countries?
In late November, I offered a view on the race angle, but what about the civil liberty angle? What is it about America that causes American police officers to behave differently from police officers from other similarly developed societies? Let’s investigate.
Why Congress Will Not Declare War on ISIS
In recent days, a lot of commentators have been deeply upset by the fact that Barack Obama has been ordering military strikes against ISIS (the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) without congressional authorization, and that congress has not held a vote on the issue. Indeed, even house speaker John Boehner does not think the administration legally requires further authorization. The US constitution says that:
The Congress shall have Power To… declare War
So what’s going on here?
Continue reading “Why Congress Will Not Declare War on ISIS”
The Rick Perry Indictment Conundrum
Earlier today, I was asked for my opinion on the Rick Perry indictment. Texas Governor Rick Perry was indicted for abusing official capacity and coercing a public servant. Is there anything to the charges?
Demilitarization of the Police Requires Demilitarization of Civilians
The recent clashes between demonstrators and police forces in Ferguson, Missouri over the death of Michael Brown at the hands of police forces has many calling into question the slow, steady rate at which police forces in the United States have become militarized. If we want to stop and potentially reverse this trend, we need to understand its underlying cause–the simultaneous militarization of the civilian population.
Continue reading “Demilitarization of the Police Requires Demilitarization of Civilians”
Benjamin Studebaker 