Politics & Rights

Provides a fascinating look at the nature and potential value of cognitive enhancement drugs, laying to rest some of the hype and fear-mongering surrounding their use.

Ari Armstrong replies to a letter regarding immigrants and welfare.

Leaders of the Catholic Church (and many other religions) see your life not as yours, but as God’s or society’s, and hold that you have a moral duty to stay alive for God or for others, even if you face unspeakable suffering and impending death due to terminal illness.

To all veterans who have defended Americans’ rights and liberties: Thank you. Thank you for applying your minds, developing your skills, and protecting Americans from those who have sought to harm us. Were it not for you, courageous veterans, America and the liberties we enjoy today simply would not exist.

If the victorious Republicans follow through on their campaign promises—for example, many promised to work toward repealing or defunding ObamaCare—election day will have been a net win for advocates of individual rights, despite the passage of some rights-violating ballot measures.

In an effort to pry open the iPhone and any future encrypted devices, FBI Director James Comey has appealed to Congress to amend the law to require all encrypted servers and devices to include a back door. And, as one report puts it, regardless of what Congress does, Comey “is unlikely to drop the pressure."

America's refusal to eliminate the Iranian regime shows that many Americans care more about not being called names than they do about defending themselves and their loved ones.

Paul Krugman calls on government to initiate force against Amazon. In essence, Krugman wants to treat Amazon as “public” property to be controlled by government rather than as a business whose owners have a moral right to operate it as they see fit and for their own benefit.

Historically, Apple has used its devices' “back door” to comply with government information requests. For the iPhone 6, Apple changed its tack: If agencies such as the NSA or FBI want to access information on an iPhone 6, they must either get the password from the owner or break the encryption themselves.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has already driven almost every U.S. seller of small, high-powered magnets out of businesses, including, most infamously, Buckyballs. Now a single company, Zen Magnets, continues to sell them—but, unless it wins its legal battle, the government will force him to stop selling magnets in April.