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April 4, 2024
The Problem With Saying ‘Sex Assigned at Birth’
As you may have noticed, “sex” is out, and “sex assigned at birth” is in. Instead of asking for a person’s sex, some medical and camp forms these days ask for “sex assigned at birth” or “assigned sex” (often in addition to gender identity). The American Medical Association and the American Psychological Association endorse this terminology; its use has also exploded in academic…
April 3, 2024
Biden’s EPA Can Justify His New EV Rules Only By Cooking the Books
Before federal regulations are implemented, they must be justified with an extensive analysis of costs and effects. The new Environmental Protection Agency rule forcing a massive shift toward electric vehicles is no exception. Weighing in at 1,181 pages, it is accompanied by an additional 884 pages of “regulatory impact analysis.” The EPA analysis justifying this rule is…
April 3, 2024
The House TikTok Ban Is an Empty Threat
Last month, the House of Representatives proudly voted to ban TikTok unless its corporate parent sells the app within six months. But proponents eager to strike a blow against the Chinese government might not celebrate just yet. There are three main problems with the proposed TikTok ban: it’s probably unconstitutional, it’s practically unenforceable, and, even if it…
March 22, 2024
Why Do Men Dominate Chess?
For years now, sports experts and culture warriors alike have been fiercely contesting the issue of whether transwomen (males who live and identify as women) should be eligible to compete in the female categories of numerous sports—including rugby, swimming, weightlifting, and disc golf. But last August, this debate entered an unexpected domain: the game of…
March 19, 2024
Climate Policy Is a Federal Issue
The City and County of Honolulu about four years ago filed a “public nuisance” lawsuit against the energy producers, attempting to hold them liable for the purported effects of anthropogenic climate change in Hawaii, and accusing them of “deceiv[ing]” the public about the consequences of the emissions of greenhouse gases attendant upon the use of fossil fuels….
February 13, 2024
A Lose-Lose Liquefied Natural Gas Pause
The Biden administration’s move to stop approving liquefied natural gas exports is a breathtaking decision to exacerbate climate change and air pollution, betray our allies, and kill clean energy investment. It is a rare, lose-lose policy with potentially catastrophic consequences for America’s geopolitical strength and for billions of people around the world. America’s growing liquefied natural gas exports are a…
January 17, 2024
Why I Left Harvard
Since early December, the end of my 20-year career teaching at Harvard has been the subject of articles, op-eds, tweets from a billionaire, and even a congressional hearing. I have become a poster child for how the growing campus DEI—Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion—bureaucracies strangle free speech. My ordeal has been used to illustrate the hypocrisy of the assertions by Harvard’s leaders…
November 6, 2023
Why the CDC Failed Its Covid-19 Test
The Covid-19 pandemic was a disaster. Over a million Americans died—many in isolation in hospitals and nursing homes, far from their friends and family—and millions more became seriously sick, lost their jobs, or felt the effects of widespread economic and social disruption. Students suffered irreversible learning losses, with many exiting the public-school system altogether. Patients delayed or…
October 23, 2023
A Carbon Tax to Finance Child Tax Credit Expansion
A carbon tax is considered by most economists to be the most efficient and effective way to reduce carbon emissions. However, a long-standing political challenge to a carbon tax is the perception that it would disproportionately burden low- and middle-income households relative to high-income households. Many analysts and lawmakers have proposed using carbon tax revenues…
October 4, 2023
Why So Many Americans Are Losing Trust in Science
Dr. Mandy Cohen has been on a national tour. The new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, she aims to rebuild trust in that troubled agency at a moment when Covid-19 cases are rising again and the Biden administration has begun a new vaccine campaign. She has her work cut out for her. According…