As a child I frequently visited relatives in southern Indiana. A great uncle tried to keep me from exploring his cellar (as they were called then) by telling me the boogeyman was down there and would “get you” if I descended the stairs. It worked. Boogeymen are nothing new. They have ...

Hi, my name is Jeffrey the Macaroni Penguin. I am the prime minister of the penguin contingent on Heard Island, which was recently informed by Donald Trump, the president of the United States, that we would be subject to a 10% tariff due to an alleged trade imbalance with his country. I’d ...

A Wall Street Journal editorial described President Donald Trump’s tariffs as the “dumbest trade war in history.” It’s important not to overrate intelligence, even in leaders. Judgment and maturity may be more crucial. But Trump is no ordinary dunce. He displays a stubborn stupidity ...

It’s finally spring. Better mow your lawn. If you don’t, your town government may fine you thousands of dollars a day. Worse, if you can’t pay the fine, they may confiscate your home. Six years ago, in Dunedin, Florida, Jim Ficken let his grass grow. His mom had died, and ...

Last week I wrote about Trump’s crackdown on the pillars of civil society— the universities, the scientific community, the media, the legal profession, and the arts — with the clear intent of intimidating them into silence. Today I want to take a deeper dive into what Trump’s ...

The arguments the Trump administration makes to justify dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development are, for the most part, just ill-informed wisecracks. To call the United States’ $10 million contribution to support male circumcision in Mozambique “ appalling waste,” as ...