About Howard Schweber
A Game Changer in Pakistan?
Last week, Taliban-affiliated forces launched an attack on the national headquarters of the Pakistani Army. The result was a firefight followed by a standoff with hostages that ended earlier today. This attack represents a game-changing moment for Pakistan, and by … Read More
Universal Single Payer Shamanistic Death Panels
Back in the mid-1990s, American seniors were mobilized into action to resist a plan to reform the Medicare system – in fairly modest ways – by scare tactics and misrepresentations. That time, of course, the losers of the exchange were … Read More
Sarah Palin, the First Amendment, and a Letter to Santa
Dear Santa, I know I haven’t written in a while, but something has come up. Sarah Palin, through her attorney, is threatening to sue blogger and radio personality Shannon Moore for reporting the existence of rumors about a pending investigation … Read More
Iran’s Hard and Uncertain Road
The courage and determination of the protestors in Iran are inspiring, and the brutality of the regime’s response is revolting. The reminder that, as Fareed Zakaria recently put it, “What you know about Iran is wrong” could not be more … Read More
Representation, Empathy, and the Supreme Court
As President Obama considers his nominee for the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, a lot of the talk is about the desirability of appointing a woman or an Hispanic to the Court. There are two very different … Read More
Torture and the Problem of Constitutional Evil
A year ago, in a blog post at Balkinization.com, Mark Graber discussed John Yoo’s role as an example of what he has called "the problem of Constitutional Evil." Graber’s point is that the assumption that anything that is "evil" is … Read More
Put Down the Damned Pitchforks!
I am starting to be genuinely worried by the potential destructiveness of a growing torch-and-pitchfork mentality that is partly the result of cynical manipulation, partly a result of failures of understanding, and partly the result of perfectly justified but presently … Read More
AIG, Populist Outrage, and the Future of the Banking System
When AIG top management approached their staff about foregoing bonuses, the response – as described at The Hill – was "take a hike." Management, in turn, felt they had not choice but to pay the bonuses. Partly they were afraid … Read More
The Case for Hamentaschen
Last week, I had the honor of appearing in the annual Latke-Hammentaschen Debate at UW-Madison. This event was first held at the University of Chicago in 1946, and has taken place at many locations ever since. My opponent for the … Read More