Nice Business To Be In

You’re in a business where the government requires Americans to buy your product. You’re only allowed to sell the blue-ribbon version of the product; you can’t legally sell an economy version. Many people can’t afford your product at the price you offer it; but that’s not a problem because the go More...

Arlo Captures Critter

At least on video.

I bought the basic wires-free version of Arlo as an experiment in DIY home security and am trying it in parallel with our traditional system. The first task we gave Arlo was to identify the critter who ransacks Mary& More...

What if The Senate Really Debated Healthcare?

They do have an opportunity.

Thanks to John McCain’s typical bravery, the Senate has taken up the bill passed by the House and IS technically debating healthcare. This debate is a good thing. Who pays for healthcare (which is what this More...

Even Hateful Speech is Free

The story below appeared on VTDigger:

BURLINGTON — City officials say they discovered racist and anti-semitic graffiti, involving a swastika and epithet More...

Debating Net Neutrality Live

Tomorrow, July 20, at noon ET I'll be debating "Net Neutrality" on "Vermont Edition", a Vermont Public Radio Program. Bradley Holt, a developer advocate and senior software engineer with IBM Watson Data Platform, will be defending the 2014 regulations. I'll be explaini More...

Drug-Addicted Babies

A Repugnant and Maybe Necessary Step

“From 2003 to 2012, the last year for which statistics are available, the number of babies born dependent on drugs grew nearly fivefold in the United States. Opioids are the main culpr More...

“Net Neutrality” Protects New Monopolies from Old

Over the next decade which companies do you think will be better able to exercise monopoly power?

1. Amazon
2. AT&T
3. Comcast
4. Facebook
5. Google
6. Regional phone companies
7. Verizon

If you’d asked me this question in More...

Freedom, Responsibility, and Preexisting Conditions

We want the freedom to decide whether or not to buy health insurance but we don’t want to take responsibility for the cost of healthcare when we get sick and don’t have insurance. Evidence: Americans hated the individual mandate in Obamacare enough to give Republicans control of Congress in 2010 More...

Alexa: The End of a Great Relationship

“Alexa, you’re disappointing me,” I said.

“I’m not sure about that,” replied Alexa, my Amazon Echo.

I once described the device gushingly as a “wonderful listener”. I had great plans to make her the hub of More...

Freedom and Responsibility

Once the American Revolution was won, the colonies had the freedom they’d fought for. They also had the responsibility that came with freedom. When things went bad, there were no bossy Brits around to blame. And things did go bad. The Articles of Confederation adopted by the Continental Congress More...