Why Americans Should Care About the Current Rules-Based International System

Today, Veteran’s Day, I came across the twitter thread below, which I thought was apropos. The thread does an overview of WWI, and how it lead to WWII. What’s important in my view is that an international system based on the rule of law versus the rule of the jungle has been the key to peace. An international system characterized by the rule of the jungle–where might makes right–likely leads to war and military conflict–one that we should assume would involve the U.S. (Ludes lists the number of people that died in both wars, breaking them down by country.)

I hope you take the time to read the thread. It’s fitting for our current politics and also fitting for a day when we should reflect on those who gave their lives to serve their country.

Is LeBron Better Than Jordan Because LeBron Faced Tougher Competition?

(Note: This is an older post that I never completed until recently.)

The clip below features Colin Cowherd rebutting the claim that Michael Jordan faced tougher competition than LeBron. Before I say anything else, I’m wondering if you guys agree or disagree with this. I disagree with Cowherd, and I want to address, or more like attempt to rebut, Cowherd’s argument. I’ll do that after the clip.

Let’s begin with a short version of my rebuttal–namely Continue reading “Is LeBron Better Than Jordan Because LeBron Faced Tougher Competition?”

Why Is College In America So Expensive?”

Article written by Amanda Ripley

The easiest way for universities to make up for the cuts was to shift some of the cost to students—and to find richer students. “Once that sustainable public funding was taken out from under these schools, they started acting more like businesses,” says Maggie Thompson, the executive director of Generation Progress, a nonprofit education-advocacy group. State cutbacks did not necessarily make colleges more efficient, which was the hope; they made colleges more entrepreneurial.

Some universities began to enroll more full-paying foreign and out-of-state students to make up the difference. Over the past decade, for example, Purdue University has reduced its in-state student population by 4,300 while adding 5,300 out-of-state and foreign students, who pay triple the tuition. “They moved away from working to educate people in their region to competing for the most elite and wealthy students—in a way that was unprecedented,” Thompson says.

(emphasis added) Continue reading “Why Is College In America So Expensive?””

Notes on Reply All Episodes #127 and #128: “The Crime Machine, Part 1 and 2”

The Reply All podcast had a recent two part show that I really liked. (You can listen to them here (part 1) and here (part 2). My background in government and public administration is a big reason for my interest in these two episodes, but I’m pretty sure both of you will find this interesting and entertaining.

This thread will be place to jot down my thoughts on the podcasts.

If you really want to know a summary, I’ll give you one, but I think you should just listen to the first ten minutes, and if that doesn’t grab you, you can take a pass. Before I give a summary, I will say that part of what I think you’ll find interesting is the profile of one of the people in this. For me, he’s the type of fictional detective I’d really like (or used to) in a Hollywood movie or detective fiction. I think you would guys will find him interesting. Here’s a summary of the episodes. Continue reading “Notes on Reply All Episodes #127 and #128: “The Crime Machine, Part 1 and 2””