| Nov 12, 2014 | Rights / DemocracyDick Tuck, the legendary political prankster and wit, once ran for local office in San Francisco and lost. His concession speech, in its entirety: “The people have spoken — the bastards.” Now, you know me — I wouldn’t say anything like that about the...
| | Economy / BusinessOver a decade ago, I got a call from Bill Gates. Not the Bill Gates you’re probably thinking of. It was Bill Gates Sr., the Microsoft founder’s dad. He was eager to speak out in support of the federal estate tax, our nation’s only levy on inherited wealth....
| | Economy / BusinessThe demigods of Silicon Valley like to present themselves as miracle workers, able to create electronic wonders (and wondrous profits) from nothing but their vaunted imaginations and entrepreneurial prowess. Well, yes. But there’s another part to that program: their...
| | Environment / HealthWhile the Republicans were busy wiping the floor with Democrats on Election Day, the citizens of Berkeley, California were making history. An overwhelming majority of Berkeley’s voters — 75 percent — passed the nation’s first soda tax. The penny-per-ounce tax on...
| Nov 11, 2014 | Rights / DemocracyA big surprise from this year’s elections is that American politics has become dominated by the least likely of participants: shy people. That’s strange, since running for office is an ego game, attracting those comfortable with self-promotion. But the hot...
