| April Wed, 2024
Opinion: Is There a Market for Moderation in American Politics?
From Capitol Hill to the Supreme Court to university campuses, one issue pervades American culture this fall: Why is every debate dominated by each side’s most extreme and irreconcilable exponents? W.B. Yeats observed over a century ago that “the best lack all conviction while the worst are filled with passionate intensity… . Things fall apart. The center cannot hold.”
| February Wed, 2024
Opinion: A Civic Trust Could Monitor Social Media Content Better Than Congress or the Supreme Court
Those attempting, in light of last week’s decision to hear the case, to anticipate how the Supreme Court may decide the scope of social media platforms’ obligation to moderate content would do well to consider the following colloquy from last February’s oral argument in Gonzalez v. Google. What’s the difference, Justice Clarence Thomas wanted to know, between someone who is interested in rice pilaf, who is steered to sites favoring rice pilaf recipes, and someone interested in terrorism, who is steered to ISIS sites? When counsel answered that there is no difference, Justice Thomas responded, “Then doesn’t that mean that the algorithm is neutral?
| February Wed, 2024
Opinion: In Israel and Gaza, the ultimate failure of politics
As I watched, horrified, the New York Times footage “Everyone Died,” which depicts in graphic detail the massacre of civilians by Hamas in the village of Sderot, I could not help but recall my visit to that town 15 years ago.
| December Wed, 2023
Opinion: How Donald Trump-Or Anyone-Can Flim-Flam His Way to the Presidency
It may seem ludicrous to suggest that with all the outrageous conduct alleged against former President Donald Trump across four indictments and more than 90 felony counts, some of the most egregious conduct is left relatively untouched.