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Big Ideas

These stories are conceptual--food for thought.
Ignorance, the Ultimate Asset Bret Swanson 01/24/2013
To understand the success of modern knowledge economies and why government planning is folly, we must first understand that ignorance truly is bliss.
Competing for Elites Danjell Elgebrandt and Tino Sanandaji 01/23/2013
The Swedish political Right has increasingly managed to recapture the support of a large segment of the chattering classes. There may be lessons for the United States.
Voyager I at the Heliopause John Steele Gordon 01/18/2013
An extension of human ingenuity will soon reach the farthest limit of the sun’s empire. Beyond is true interstellar space.
The Trouble with Conspiracy Theories Lee Harris 01/12/2013
Perhaps the problem with conspiracy theorists is not that they have gone too far, but that they haven’t quite gone far enough yet. But, if James Tracy is any indication, they are getting very close.
The Constitution, in Text and Spirit Michael M. Rosen 01/11/2013
Akhil Reed Amar seeks to establish a new approach to jurisprudence.
The Politically Correct Calendar John Steele Gordon 12/24/2012
Among the more irritating manifestations of political correctness, at least to this historian, is the attempt to replace the terms AD and BC with CE and BCE.
Is Christmas Possible? Michael R. Strain 12/22/2012
This question has no easy answer. It is so difficult that more than reason is required in its service.
What Would Churchill Do? Arnold Kling 12/21/2012
November 6 was an electoral setback dealt to those of us who believe in capitalism and limited government. What can we learn from Churchill, who was no stranger to setbacks?
Teachers and the License Raj Andrew G. Biggs 12/12/2012
Requiring prospective teachers to take a rigorous ‘bar exam,’ as union chief Randi Weingarten proposes, is the wrong way to recruit and assess teachers.
The Impossibility of Rapid Energy Transitions Kenneth P. Green 12/06/2012
Understanding energy system inertia and momentum is key to judging whether a rapid transition toward any type of energy is feasible.
 
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