USA TODAY, December 17, 2015 BUDGET BILL LEAVES NO BOONDOGGLE BEHIND by James Bovard Republican congressional leaders are like a football coach who believes the secret to winning is to punt early and often. House Speaker Paul Ryan and others are claiming victory over the 2,000-plus page appropriations bill, but this is a “no boondoggle left […]
Tag Archives | Epigrams
Wash. Times: TSA Bombs the Holidays
Washington Times, December 3, 2015 TSA screens holiday travelers once again, with feeling by James Bovard Flyers must surrender their privacy with their boarding passes If you use hand sanitizer when traveling, the Transportation Security Administration can badger you as if you were a terrorist suspect. TSA is one of the biggest hassles many Americans […]
USA TODAY: Trump Card for Another Census Roundup
USA TODAY, November 24, 2015 The Trump card for another Census roundup by James Bovard The Census Bureau is sending its hefty American Community Survey to more than 3 million households a year. That’s good news for a would-be president Donald Trump, who will find just the information he needs for some of his kookier ideas. I […]
USA TODAY: End Federal Agents’ License to Kill
USA TODAY End Federal Agents License to Kill by James Bovard Do federal agents need a license to kill in order to protect us? Unfortunately, federal judges are giving law enforcement agents blanket immunity when they shoot Americans while the agents are on the job. It would be difficult to imagine a greater violation of […]
Democracy, Liberty, Leviathan Epigrams /Tweets
Whittling today on some epigrams from my books – here are some new, improved, tighter versions [earlier versions of these lines are here] ** These epigrams are works-in-progress. I welcome critical feedback – if you like or loathe any of these lines, let me know! Without a realistic concept of government, political philosophy is only […]
Assassin Nation Redux
Congratulations to Jeremy Scahill and The Intercept for “The Assassination Complex” – their great expose on Obama’s drone killing program. They provide smoking guns from official sources to prove that the program has been slaughtering innocents for years. I have taken a few swings at this program over the years. After I bashed drone killings in […]
FFF: The Mandatory Voting Panacea
from the July 2015 issue of The Future of Freedom The Mandatory Voting Panacea by James Bovard Barack Obama suggested on March 18, 2015, that mandatory voting could cure some of the ills of American democracy. He said that compelling everyone to vote would “encourage more participation” — perhaps the same way that the specter […]