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ndryshimet_klimatike_kercenojn
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Jan 4, 2013

Who Should Pay the Costs of Climate Disasters?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/pay-costs-climate-disasters/

Who should pay the costs of climate disasters?  In light of the current debate in the United States about federal assistance to Hurricane Sandy victims and the recent debate at the recent Doha Climate Conference about international assistance for climate change victims, that has become an increasingly pressing question for humankind. The frequency and cost… Continue reading

Donating box
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Dec 19, 2012

Should We Subsidize Giving?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/subsidize-giving/

Robert J. Shiller, Professor of Economics and Finance at Yale recently weighed in with his perspective on subsidizing charity with a New York Times column whose title clearly conveys his message: “Please Don’t Mess With the Charitable Deduction.” There is a case to be made for charitable deductions.  Regrettably, this isn’t it. Shiller offers three… Continue reading

Devastation by Sandy
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Oct 30, 2012

Sandy and the Importance of Government

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/sandy-importance-government/

If this election is a referendum on the benefit of government then superstorm Sandy should be Exhibit A for the affirmative. The government weather service, using data from government weather satellites delivered a remarkably accurate and sobering long range forecast that both catalyzed action and gave communities sufficient time to prepare. Those visually stunning maps… Continue reading

we the people
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Oct 16, 2012

What a Difference a Court Makes

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/difference-court/

In a democracy the majority wins. Which makes minority groups vulnerable.  At the dawn of the Republic John Adams warned about “the tyranny of the majority.” Almost a century later, the 14th Amendment finally declared that no State shall “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”  Despite its being… Continue reading

male female images
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | 3 Comments | Updated on Oct 9, 2012

Is It All About Hormones?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/hormones/

Sometimes everywhere I turn, the story line seems to pivot on hormones. Recently the Boys Scouts denied Ryan Anderson, a gay 17 year-old the rank of Eagle Scout because “he does not meet scouting’s membership standard on sexual orientation.”  Last April, Jennifer Tyrrell, a lesbian parent in Ohio, was forced out as a den mother… Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Sep 26, 2012

We’re the NFL. We don’t have to care.

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/were-nfl-dont-care/

Watching professional football these days reminds me of Lily Tomlin’s Ernestine the telephone operator on Saturday Night Live and her famous punch line, “We don’t care.  We don’t have to.  We’re the phone company.” Or in this case the National Football League.  For those who don’t follow football, let me bring you up to date. … Continue reading

Wedding rings (c) Jeff Belmonte. Published under a creative commons licence
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Sep 13, 2012

The Times They Are A’Changing. Or Are They?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/times-achanging-they/

The recent colorful tirade by Minnesota Vikings punter Chris Kluwe against a legislator who demanded the Baltimore Ravens owner fire linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo for supporting gay marriage and the overwhelmingly positive response to it by football fans and players alike are heartwarming developments.  It shows how far we’ve come.  But the fact that voters in… Continue reading

sold 2
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | 2 Comments | Updated on Aug 16, 2012

Encouraging Corporate Crime

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/encouraging-corporate-crime/

Almost daily we read about another apparently stiff financial penalty meted out for corporate malfeasance. This year corporations are on track to pay as much as $8 billion to resolve charges of defrauding the government, a record sum, according to the Department of Justice.  Last year big business paid the SEC $2.8 billion to settle… Continue reading

Customer-Service-sign
Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Aug 14, 2012

For Quality Customer Service Go to Government, Not Business

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/quality-customer-service-government-business/

In 2012 we accept as received wisdom that government is unresponsive while a competitive marketplace forces private business to offer quality customer service.  So when Representative Henry Cuellar (D-TX) introduced his warmly received bill, The Government Customer Service Improvement Act, we considered his announcement a truism, “When taxpayers interact with a government agency, they deserve… Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Jul 27, 2012

The Health Care Debate: From the Sublime to the Ridiculous

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/debating-health-care-american-bubble/

Nowhere is the phrase American Exceptionalism more appropriately used than when describing our debate over health care.  Outside the bubble that is the United States health care is viewed as a right, recognition that sickness and injury can strike anyone despite their best efforts and an acknowledgement of a basic obligation civilized societies have to… Continue reading