Dave's filter

Sweden really needs welfare reform. I have to wonder what fraction of Europe's troubles with assimilating immigrants is caused by overly generous welfare systems.

Here I found a particularly good point about our difficulties in mustering enough troops for their many missions (especially in Iraq): if it's so bad, then why do we still have so many troops in Europe!? Limiting our military presence in Europe to air force bases (if even that) seems like a no-brainer to me. Am I missing something?

Reading Thomas' dissent in Raich, I can only say "Amen." Alas, Thomas is the only Supreme Court justice willing to overturn bad precedent in favor of originalist interpretation (though he was not the only dissenter in Raich). Is there any feasible scenario in which federalism will mean something again in this country? I've been pondering this for a while, and I've so far failed to come up with more probable than the sadly improbable appointment federalist majority to the Supreme Court. I dream of a reratification the Tenth Amendment, with a postscript: "We really mean it this time." But I can't imagine a political coalition that could accomplish this.

An (anedcotal) comparison of the British and U.S. health care systems. (I've been out of town and mostly off-line for a week, so forgive this last link for being a bit old.)