As an historian, it’s hard to be hopeless

November 17, 2016November 17, 2016Leave a comment

Like many people, I'm still wrapping my head around the 2016 election results. And while I've done my fair share of asking, "What happened?" I've (fortunately) moved on to the more-useful question of "Now what are we going to do about it?" To that I'm still working on an answer, but here is something I … Continue reading As an historian, it’s hard to be hopeless

Bioethical Expertise and Government

August 21, 2014December 15, 2014Leave a comment

Here's my second article for Columbia's "Voices in Bioethics." In it I review a paper by Dr. Annabelle Littoz-Monnet and discuss the problems inherent at the intersection of bioethical "expertise" and government. In short, there's no such thing as the neutral state.

The Sharknado of Social Systems

June 30, 2014February 18, 2020Leave a comment

Today the Supreme Court ruled in Hobby Lobby that private corporations can exercise their religious freedom by denying women access to particular forms of birth control. First, I'd like to begin with a few words on religious freedom and the regulation of business. ...