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Mathematics can sometimes make smart people dumb. Let me explain what I mean by this. I don’t mean that it is dumb not to be good at mathematics. After all, mathematics is a highly abstract and challenging discipline requiring many years (decades even) of study, and there are plenty of very smart people who have little understanding of it, and

“None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe The idea of a society where people are free to “do their own thing” is an appealing one. It is implicit in the slogan “live and let live,” which has been adopted by many libertarian groups, and it is also an idea that was central to the

“Democrats never regard existing democracy as their preferred political system.” Several months ago, I was visiting some friends in Sydney and was invited to the house of a friend-of-a-friend for some late night drinks and a chat. My host and his friends were left-wing bohemian types and had been informed by my friend that I am a “free-market

[This article was originally published in New Perspectives in Political Economy , the academic journal of CEVRO Institute (School of Legal and Social Studies), vol. 7(1), pp. 141–154.] 1. Authoritarian Capitalism (Fascism) and Liberal Capitalism (the Free Market) What is sometimes referred to as “authoritarian capitalism,” or fascism, is in fact a

What is the “means of production” and what significance does it have to society? How is it created, expanded, or merely sustained? What is the relationship between the prevailing moral order of a society and its accumulation of capital? These are questions that economists and political philosophers have considered throughout the history of

[This is Part I of a two-part analysis of ethical and legal questions pertaining to whistleblowers who expose government wrongdoing. The second part of the analysis is here . In this first part of our analysis we look at the principles of contract and confidentiality as applied to whistleblowers who expose government wrongdoing.]   Recent

[This is the second of a two-part analysis of ethical and legal questions pertaining to whistleblowers who expose government wrongdoing. The first part, “The Ethics of Whistleblowing” is available here . This second part goes beyond contractual considerations to look at government ownership of information and government oversight mechanisms.]  

What is the purpose of telecommunication and internet surveillance? The NSA presents its surveillance operations as being directed toward security issues, claiming that the programs are needed to counter terrorist attacks. Bald assertions of plots foiled are intended to bolster this claim. However, secret NSA documents reveal that their

Since the details of the NSA programs became publicly known a short time ago, already there are signs of market pressures being brought to bear to curtail the actions of the agency and its partner companies. There are early signs of emerging boycotts of US-based internet and telecommunications companies, and customer migration to firms operating

One of the core principles of good governance in society is the idea that the authority of law ought to prevail over the brute power of people — i.e., that society should operate under the rule of law , not the rule of men . Aristotle wrote that “[t]he law ought to be supreme over all ...” and argued that ... where the laws are not supreme, there