I have several thoughts about Warren Buffett’s decision to double the size of the Gates Foundation by contributing $30 billion of his fortune to it. First, it’s his money, and he can do with it as he pleases, although I wish he would support the repeal of the estate tax so that others with much […]
Archives for August 2006
The Yates Verdict II
In the wake of the second trial of Andrea Yates, in which she was acquitted by reason of insanity for the murder of her five children, The Houston Chronicle wants us to throw out what it calls the “restrictive, outdated” Texas law that requires juries to find a defendant guilty if she knew the difference […]
What Will It Take?
“It is not clear to me what exactly the U. S. is trying to accomplish by not taking a stance in favor of an early cease fire.”—Zbigniew Brzezinski, ex-national security advisor to President Jimmy Carter. What will it take to convince world opinion leadership and the denial crowd in this country that Newt Gingrich is […]
At Long Last, a Veto
“I think modern science is a religion for many of its practitioners, by which I mean they have utter faith in the sufficiency of their concepts to give full account of life. But science cannot be a source of wisdom. By design it is morally neutral and indifferent to the pursuit of wisdom about human […]