One really curious aspect of the Iowa Republicans' attack on the institution of tenure.  They act as if it is a windfall to professors. But, have they ever considered that it is a windfall to the state? It is often couched in terms of free speech, and it certainly has...

One pet peeve I have with keto critics.  Keto is not for everyone.  It is not perfect diet.  It is also carries some risks, especially for some people.  I also have no dog in the keto fights.  Don't endorse any products.  I am not selling any classes.  Could care less...

I was disappointed to see that the City of Iowa City staff has recommended modifying past Council’s decision to convert Jefferson and Market Streets from one way to two ways. At first glance, this seems to be a superficial, unimportant decision, but it is actually a...

As many of you know, I have been diving deep into the intermittent fasting/keto worlds.  I have gotten a kick out of all of the dieting debates.  On one level it is a nice respite from all of the intensity arising in more traditional debates between Republicans and...

This morning I was watching morning sports show Colin Cowherd and he was discussing the Green Bay Packers.  it reminded me that the Packers were the only community owned non-profit football team.  The NFL has now banned community owned football programs, but it did...

One thing that I think is interesting.  It’s when heretical views take on conventional wisdom and turn out to be right.  There is a well established conventional view, something that everyone knows is true.  You have a seeming crank crying in the wilderness making...

One mistake people make when they dive into any new eating pattern.  They don’t read a learned source in its entirety prior to getting started.  This can lead to some very bad and potentially dangerous outcomes. So before you change your diet, stick with whatever...

Have to admit.  I have a mancrush on Gary Taubes.  Nearly 20 years ago, he walked right up to dieting conventional wisdom and punched it right in the mouth with his New York Times article What It’s All Been a Big Fat Lie?  In that article, he questioned whether the...

A friend of mine recently pointed out that Keto ranked near bottom for expert diet recommendations by US News. I didn’t have time to respond in depth, but it got me thinking.   Critics of Keto, what’s your alternative to get people out of obesity in the real world?  I...

I was going to call Nassim Taleb my favorite philosopher, but it occurred to me that would have been kind of dumb because he is skeptical of any universal claims to truth or any overarching philosophical system describing reality.  He is more concerned with what we...