On this week's Words & Numbers, we discuss Justice Clarence Thomas' recent speculation that the pluribus has lost its unum. Words & Numbers: Is American unity an illusion?

Separate US states and countries according to those in which decision-making is more centralized and those in which decision-making is more individualized. What do you find when you compare things we care

We recently "celebrated" Deficit Day - the day that the government runs out of money for the year. From this point forward until the end of the year, every dollar the federal government spends - at the

Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan Candidate Donald Trump said last March that he would eliminate the federal debt in eight years. This would be possible, he said, by renegotiating trade deals. He never

Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan "Democrats ask government to impose their beliefs about what agreements workers and employers may voluntarily make with each other. Republicans ask government to impose

Do universities have the right to control speech on campus?

Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan  A lot of people think the world is a terrifying place. They are convinced, for example, that unsupervised children everywhere are in danger of being abducted.

Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan Ted Cruz, the self-styled “fighter for liberty” recently argued that we should send the military to break up Mexican drug cartels. While we might legitimately

Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan  The price of a bitcoin recently crossed $3,000 again. A $100 investment in bitcoins just two years ago would be worth around $1,000 today. By contrast, a $100

Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan  Imagine if the government, in the name of saving jobs, had stepped in to manage the innovation brought about by Henry Ford’s assembly line. In just a couple of

Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan Three things have become strikingly evident with the rise of smartphone cameras: bigfoot doesn’t exist, aliens are not visiting us with any regularity, and we have a

"...the government buys off today’s voters with tomorrow’s voters’ money...This means that a majority of Americans—almost a supermajority—have a personal interest in expanded government. The more

"Today, nearly one in three (jobs requires a government license). This regulatory morass hits minority entrepreneurs disproportionately hard. Today, minorities are at the forefront of the American