Medicare is going under. The status quo is not an option. Rep. Paul Ryan has proposed a major Medicare reform to have future beneficiaries (beginning for those that become eligible in 2022) to receive federal vouchers to purchase private plans. (This sounds sort of like Plan D . . . . Continue Reading »
Two areas of uncontroversial medical research may have combined to create a cure for AIDS. The first is genomic medicine. The second, adult stem cells. From the story:Brown was living in Berlin, Germany back in 2007, dealing with HIV and leukemia, when scientists there gave him a . . . . Continue Reading »
Back in 2006, at the height of Richard Dawkins’ God Delusion much ado, Terry Eagleton wrote a singeing review of Dawkins’ work in the London Review of Books , the first line of which gives some indication of his general impression of it: Imagine someone holding forth on biology whose . . . . Continue Reading »
On April 7 at Notre Dame University, William Lane Craig and Sam Harris debated whether morality requires God. Dr. Glenn Peoples posted a detailed play-by-play of the debate on his blog, including links to the audio. There are several other reviews listed here.I have a reflection rather than a review . . . . Continue Reading »
Can someone more versed in economic issues explain why we are having a faux-debate over the debt ceiling? Here is my understanding of how the debt ceiling works: Congress votes to spend money that the government doesn’t have and then tells the Treasury department to borrow the money (in the . . . . Continue Reading »
Because there are some pragmatists who are still open to arguments about whether torture (or, to use the current euphemism, “enhanced interrogation techniques”) can be effective, I thought it was worth highlighting this article by Barry Ritholtz . As Ritholtz notes, “Virtually all . . . . Continue Reading »
In the latest addition to my Jane Austen Theorem*, William Deresiewicz explains how Jane Austen taught him to be a man: I was 26 when I read my first Jane Austen novel, “Emma,” the story of a spoiled young lady in Regency England who fancies herself a matchmaker. A graduate student at . . . . Continue Reading »
Generally I don’t write from the perspective of my personal experiences, at least to this degree, but based on events last Friday in suburban Chicago, I wanted to share a couple of spiritual insights. In doing so, I hope you can get a glimpse into this life-altering experience that three days . . . . Continue Reading »
It was late at night in a dodgy neighborhood of Athens, Greece. I argued with a cab driver who clearly wanted to be rid of his irksome passenger and call it a night. I’d arrived at the Athens train station after midnight after a long ferry and train trip from Brindisi, Italy. I clutched a . . . . Continue Reading »
Do you care what Newt and Mitch have hiding in their closets at home? Should conservatives expect their candidates to be squeaky clean before running for office? Take Newt Gingrich. Treating Newt as a serious 2012 Presidential Candidate for the GOP is a bit difficult . I don’t doubt the . . . . Continue Reading »
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