Eric Schuler

Portland Mayor’s Attack on Speech Is Illegal and Counterproductive

by Eric Schuler | Jun 9, 2017 | Blog

UPDATE: Since the time of writing, the first of these events went ahead as scheduled. The event stayed relatively peaceful, and happily, didn't devolve into a full-on melee like those seen recently in some demonstrations in northern California. The second rally, initially planned for June 10, was canceled by the organizers voluntarily. In the aftermath of the racially-motivated stabbings that occurred a few weeks ago, Portland's mayor has publicly called for limiting free speech in the Rose City. Specifically, he has asked the federal government to revoke and deny permits for two upcoming...

New Assertions, But No New Evidence, on Russian Hacking in NSA Leak

by Eric Schuler | Jun 9, 2017 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy

This week, there was a new, aggressively reported story on alleged Russian hacking, based on anonymous leaks from the US intelligence community. The latest story is different in some respects, but it still follows the normal script of this genre. New assertions are made by the intelligence community. No evidence is presented to support the assertions, nor any discussion of what the classified evidence might be. Russia is conclusively blamed anyway. And then speculation is entertained on how the crafty (yet seriously indiscreet) Russians might have used their hacking success and whether it...

UK PM Theresa May Offers More Bad Solutions to Terrorism

by Eric Schuler | Jun 8, 2017 | Blog

UK Prime Minister Theresa May Continues to show how not to respond to terrorism in the wake of recent attacks in Manchester and London. First, she advocated for cracking down on the Internet, and now she has suggested that human rights laws could get in the way of security measures she'd like to pursue. May's particular problem with human rights laws appears to be that they prevent the government from detaining people before they have actually done anything wrong--or at least before the government has sufficient evidence to prosecute them. So if the government suspects a person is up to...

California Is One Step Closer to Single-Payer Healthcare

by Eric Schuler | Jun 7, 2017 | Blog

Last Friday, the California's state senate passed a bill called the Healthy California Act that would institute a single-payer healthcare system in California. It still has to get through the Assembly and get signed by the governor in order to become law, but it has passed a major milestone on the path to implementation. In my view, this is actually good news. But I have a major bias--because I don't live in California. The Proposal Writing in opposition to the new bill, the editorial board of The Sacramento Bee offers a fair critique on the proposed law. The title is harsh and so is the...

4 US Actions More Embarrassing than Leaving the Paris Agreement

by Eric Schuler | Jun 5, 2017 | Blog

Last Thursday, President Trump declared that the United States would be withdrawing from the Paris Agreement on climate change. The move sparked widespread condemnation and outrage. Many Americans said they were embarrassed by Trump's decision. It's worth debating whether Americans should feel responsible for the decisions of the US government. But, assuming embarrassment is ever an appropriate response, here are four presidential policies that are far more cringe-worthy than leaving the Paris Agreement. And to be nonpartisan about it, we've included some of the greatest (worst?) hits from...

NPR Summarizes Illegal US Invasion of Panama with Charming Anecdote

by Eric Schuler | May 31, 2017 | Blog

On Tuesday's edition (5/30) of NPR's morning news podcast Up First, NPR reported on the death of former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega. Here's how hosts Steve Inskeep and David Greene covered the story: Inskeep: And one final note, Manuel Noriega, the former leader of Panama, has died. Greene: Isn't that a name that has just remained on our consciousness for so many years? He was the, a strongman in the 1980s--first an ally of the United States--but then really an obstacle. He was accused of interfering with an election that, uh, didn't go his way. Inskeep: And the United States military...

Trump Mulls Tariffs to Prop Up US Solar Companies

by Eric Schuler | May 30, 2017 | Blog

It's not official yet, but Yahoo! Finance is reporting that the Trump administration is considering putting emergency "safeguard" tariffs on solar panel imports from China. Naturally, the move will be framed as a necessary action to protect US manufacturers from unfair competition from overseas. But it will also harm US consumers by making solar power more expensive than it needs to be. It's a terrible idea, but it's an excellent example for illustrating the harms caused by protectionism. Let's go through it. Winners and Losers Competition in the US solar industry has led to an intense price...

Trump Abandons Detente with Russia

by Eric Schuler | May 29, 2017 | Blog

According to one of Trump's senior advisers, improving relations with Russia is no longer a priority for the Trump administration. Sanctions will not be lifted and might even be increased. Antiwar.com has the story: Aide: Trump Won't Roll Back US Sanctions Against Russia This is bad news for several reasons. First and foremost, Trump's relatively friendly stance towards Russia was the most useful position he offered on the campaign trail. And he often presented it in a common sense way that had a chance to actually resonate with the American people. In his words, "Wouldn't it be nice if we...