Opinion
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Liability Study Criticized
Opinion -The American Medical Association (AMA) and other physician groups are criticizing a recent study by four law professors who concluded there never was a liability crisis in Texas--that rising insurance premiums over the past several years had not been -
Massachusetts Governor Battles Harvard and Legislature on Stem Cell Research
Opinion -On March 30, the Massachusetts Senate passed a bill sponsored by Senate President Robert Travaglini (D-East Boston) that would allow embryonic stem cell research and so-called "therapeutic" cloning. The bill passed by a vote of 35-2. -
Minnesota, Montana Consider Ethanol Mandates
Opinion -Consumers in Montana will have to purchase gasoline containing 10 percent ethanol if a bill supported by Gov. -
National School Choice Organization Celebrates Its First Anniversary
Opinion -Despite being only a year old, the Arizona-based Alliance for School Choice has emerged as one of the nation's leading school choice organizations, providing proven grassroots strategies and model legislation. -
UN Sounds Eco-Alarm, Supports Technology, Property Rights
Opinion -Most ecosystem services that support life and human society are being degraded and used unsustainably, according to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) released on March 30 by the United Nations. -
Utah Enacts Voucher Program for Special-Needs Students
Opinion -Children with autism and other special needs in Utah received help on March 10 when freshman Gov. Jon Huntsman (R) signed a law providing 600 special-education students with private school vouchers. -
What Hunger Insurance Could Teach Us about Health Insurance
Opinion -To understand what lies at the heart of the failure of our current health care financing system, imagine, if you can, what the world would be like if we tried to buy food the same way we buy health care services. -
Wind Farms Costly for Kansans, New Study Finds
Opinion -Wind farms proposed for the state of Kansas would take money out of citizens' pockets, harm the Kansas economy, and provide few if any environmental benefits, a new study finds. -
Statement on American Lung Association Air Quality Report
Opinion -(Chicago, IL -- April 28, 2005) As it has since 1999, the American Lung Association released today its State of the Air 2005 report.And as has been true since the first report was issued, the new edition briefly acknowledges improvements in air quality .. -
Lehr Statement on American Lung Association State of the Air 2005
Opinion -(April 28, 2005 -- Chicago, IL) The American Lung Association released its State of the Air 2005 report today.The following statement in response to that report can be attributed to Jay Lehr, Ph.D. -
Heartland Statement on Municipal Broadband Studies
Opinion -(Chicago, IL) On April 11, three liberal advocacy groups released two new reports claiming to make a case for allowing local governments to build broadband networks in competition with private companies and nonprofit organizations. -
Interest Rate Double Standard
Opinion -The first was about taxpayers who file their returns late but owe taxes. They are supposed to send the IRS “as much as they can” to avoid interest and late-payment penalties. -
Statement on NEA Lawsuit against No Child Left Behind
Opinion -(April 21, 2005 -- Chicago, IL) Yesterday, the National Education Association, the nation’s largest teacher union, filed a lawsuit against the federal government claiming it had not provided sufficient funding to support the reforms required by No Child -
NEA Not Working for Children
Opinion -On April 20, the National Education Association, the nation's largest teacher union, filed a lawsuit against the federal government claiming it had not provided sufficient funding to support the reforms required by No Child Left Behind (NCLB), the school -
Statement on SBC/AT&T and Verizon/MCI Mergers
Opinion -(April 20, 2005 -- Chicago, IL) Recent announcements of plans by SBC to merge with AT&T and Verizon to merge with MCI have generated objections from consumer activists and competitors, including Carl Grivner, CEO of XO Communications, who testified -
Certification Not Worth Bonus Pay
Opinion -As an April 14 Tribune editorial pointed out ("Top teachers for tough jobs"), when K-12 public school teachers attain certification through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, they are rewarded with annual bonuses. -
Saving the Earth
Opinion -"Earth Day" (April 22) is a good time to reassess the assumptions that lay beneath our support for environmental protection. -
Tax Filing Burden Continues to Grow
Opinion -It used to be said that "ignorance of the law is no excuse for breaking it." That might have been a reasonable rule of thumb when Moses brought back the Ten Commandments from his mountain meeting with God. -
Cul de Sacs, Grid Street Patterns Both Have a Role to Play
Opinion -Modern urban planning literature is filled with references to grid street patterns and their alleged superiority to the cul de sac--a loop or "dead-end street" pattern typical of modern suburban developments. -
Harm Reduction as Public Health Strategy
Opinion -Prepared remarks delivered on April 7, 2005, at the Heartland Capital Forum in Springfield, Illinois I would like to talk to you briefly today about an important concept in public policy and regulation, the idea of "harm reduction. -
How to Fix the Endangered Species Act
Opinion -Who among us does not love warm fuzzy mammals? Some of us even like slimy reptiles and insects, and we all love critters who take to the air or swim in the sea. -
It’s Time To Empower Teachers with Choice
Opinion -Compared to professionals in other fields, public school teachers are surprisingly unfree. In order to teach in most states they must take courses at teacher colleges that are widely condemned as being useless or even counterproductive in the classroom. -
Telecom Reform: Here Come the States
Opinion -In February, Alabama became the latest state to place telecom reform on its legislative agenda. Senate Bill 114 and its House counterpart, House Bill 112, call for deregulation of wireline dial-tone services. -
Michigan Needs Dereg to Stop Regulatory Abuse
Opinion -The Michigan statute governing telecommunications expires this year--and none too soon. As recent events demonstrate, state regulators have interpreted the law to maximize their power with remarkable impunity.
