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Tobacco Settlement: Fraud on the Public?

USA Today hammers state governments for using money from the 1998 multistate tobacco settlement on everything but tobacco-related illnesses and smoking prevention: “With news…

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Notes from the (Virtual) Trail

I couldn’t resist posting this gem from a Radar magazine article speculating that Ron Paul has Asperger’s syndrome (a mild form of autism):…

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China Reds Go Green

The Chinese have allegedly decided to “clean up their act” environmentally speaking. Their solution: ban plastic bags at supermarkets and make shopping less convenient.

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The National Nannies Just Won’t Quit

Let’s see. The U.S. Constitution gives the Congress the power to raise armies, regulate interstate commerce, and … control snack machines in local schools. Apparently…

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Soothing the Employment Panic

Last week John did an excellent job of putting recent unemployment numbers in historical perspective. Some market observers seem to be freaking out because…

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Russia Makes an Energy Power Play

European governments are paying close attention to negotiations in Abuja, Nigeria, where Russian officials are trying to access the host country’s sizable natural gas…

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Change of Tune

There has been a subtle yet important shift in the rhetoric of some global warming alarmists, whose industry has thrived for years on a disciplined…

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Open Markets and Eric Cartman

I appeared on CNBC earlier today arguing in favor of sovereign wealth funds. (Which are foreign government-owned investment companies.) For whatever it’s worth, you can…

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The Quotable Kazman

CEI’s general counsel Sam Kazman was quoted in the new edition of Freedom Forum’s First Amendment Calendar. If you’ve picked one up from Freedom Forum,…

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Show Me the Pork

In his weekly DC Examiner column, Tim Carney highlights a specific example of the “the conflicts of interest, ulterior motives and opportunities for corruption…

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“Too Much Money for AIDS”

In poor African countries like Lesotho, “H.I.V.-infected children are offered exemplary treatment, while children suffering from much simpler-to-treat diseases are left untreated, sometimes to…

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Open Market en Español

Hans Bader, one of OpenMarket.org’s top bloggers, is now available in Spanish. The Atlantic-Pacific Alliance has translated Han’s recent post “Feds to Patients: Drop Dead…

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The $100 Question

It’s official, oil has broken the $100 a barrel threshold. Why are prices so high and what can we do about it? Our very…

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Healthier Than Fascism?

Our fine colleagues at Bureaucrash have long sold a t-shirt reading “Smoking is Healthier than Fascism.” Now, Illinois has apparently become the first state…

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Turning out the Lights?

Since we’ve been lamenting the incipient demise of the incandescent light (Bulb 1.0), I’d say it’s a good time to review The Simpleton’s Guide…

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The Biggest News of the Year

According to Bill McKibben in an op-ed in The Washington Post, the biggest news of the year is that Jim Hansen has spoken. According…