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Question of the Week

by Conor Friedersdorf

Let's start out the week with another question: What widely accepted practice, custom or societal norm do you regard as irrational, absurd, offensive, silly, nonsensical, counterproductive, or morally wrong? 

Here's your chance to challenge the conventional wisdom. Anything that is already a matter of intense controversy, like abortion or the death penalty, doesn't count -- that aside, however, take liberties with the question.

Answers should be sent to...

People As Pack Leaders, Ctd

by Chris Bodenner

A reader writes:

Pretty much everything that is wrong with Cesar Millan's training techniques - or at least how they are understood among his fans - is summed up in this selection from your reader:

Positive reinforcement (i.e., using clickers or treats) basically "tricks" the dog into doing something for a reward.  Using Cesar's techniques, however, your dogs will do what you ask, not for a treat, but out of respect for you, their leader.

First of all, as I'm sure you know...

Islam and The Culture Wars

by Conor Friedersdorf

Eli Lake and Adam Serwer both do great work, and it's a pleasure to see them paired against one another.

Multimedia - Development Frameworks - Flash - Shockwave Demos - Backup

Initial Thoughts on America and Its Elites

by Conor Friedersdorf

Over the weekend, I spoke with two people whose take on the Park51 mosque and community center, quite apart from the merits of their respective positions, can only be described as aggrieved. One argued that the mosque should be moved farther from Ground Zero, the other that a location two blocks removed presents no problem. But their upset sprang from a deeper place: a conviction, expressed more emotionally than anything, that their insights aren't shared or even...

Mormons On The Mosque

by Chris Bodenner

Stephen Prothero puts them on the spot:

I thought that Romney, as a Mormon, might speak out passionately
the First Amendment. I thought he might remember how the founder of
religion, Joseph Smith Jr., was murdered by an anti-Mormon mob
thought he might recall how the U.S. government brought down much of  its coercive power against the Church of Jesus Christ of
Saints in the last decades of the nineteenth century.

Apparently not.  According to a statement...

Why Statism Is the Wrong Frame

by Conor Friedersdorf

Matt Yglesias writes:

A colleague mentioned to me the other day that I'm "pretty
conservative" on some state and local government issues, with reference
to some recent posts on occupational licensing. Someone on twitter
if I'm trying to score a date with a Cato staffer. I'm not. And I'm
not. And I think that whole framing represents a bad way of
understanding the whole situation.

I think it's pretty clear that, as a historical matter of fact, the main thing "the...

Blogger Tax

by Conor Friedersdorf

Philadelphia is demanding that hobbyists with low traffic blogs pony up $300 per year, the cost of a business privilege license. This is a particularly egregious example of a generally absurd practice: putting a tax on starting a new business.

Business - Blog - Tax - United States - Accounting

Legal But Unethical

by Conor Friedersdorf

This line from a New York Times editorial is being justly mocked:

Mr. DeLay, the Texas Republican who had been the House majority leader, crowed that he had been "found innocent." But many of Mr. DeLay's actions remain legal only because lawmakers have chosen not to criminalize them.

This reminds me to recommend this exceptional series published some years ago in The Washington Post. It explains the whole rise of modern lobbying in the nation's capital through the lens of ...

Muslim Activity At Ground Zero!

by Chris Bodenner

Miral Sattar features footage from inside the site of the proposed Cordoba center:

So the question remains: if the "Ground Zero" mosque already exists, does it nullify the debate?

Ground zero - Mosque - Muslim - Córdoba Spain - Cordoba