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	<title>leftfielder.org</title>
	<link>http://leftfielder.org</link>
	<description>Because great ideas come out of left field.</description>
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		<title>Symbolic Fairness</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Congress is rapidly moving forward on legislation that would end the insider-trading exemption enjoyed by members of Congress. This is exactly the kind of law that Congress needs to pass&#8211;although for reasons that have more to do with the long-term consequences than the short-term effects of the law in question. Now, current law actually isn&#8217;t <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2012/01/31/symbolic-fairness/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2012/01/31/symbolic-fairness/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Democracy Despite Itself Available on Kindle Now!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Download your copy today. Also, Danny will be giving the first of many author events on this Saturday, Jan 21, at Book Soup in Los Angeles. Check him out if you&#8217;re in the area. For a full list of events, please keep an eye on the book&#8217;s website.]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2012/01/19/democracy-despite-itself-available-on-kindle-now/</link>
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		<title>Iowa Caucus: What Is It Good For?</title>
		<description><![CDATA[One primary down, fifty-some to go. (Territories get delegates too, although not many on the GOP side of things.) Michelle Bachmann (sixth place) has quit the race, Rick Perry (fifth place) did some soul searching before deciding to carry on, skepticism about New Gingrich (fourth place) is growing, while Ron Paul (third), Rick Santorum (second) <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2012/01/04/iowa-caucus-what-is-it-good-for/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2012/01/04/iowa-caucus-what-is-it-good-for/</link>
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		<title>A Season of Hope</title>
		<description><![CDATA[It is pretty easy to be pessimistic about politics these days. Between the bad economy, a government that seems permanently gridlocked, cable news shows that seem to delight in fear-mongering, and political ads that constantly remind us about the worst elements of human nature, optimism is not horribly in vogue. And yet Christmas, Hanukkah, and <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/28/a-season-of-hope/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/28/a-season-of-hope/</link>
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		<title>The Creation of the Palestinian People</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The thing I love about Newt Gingrich is that whenever he finds himself with one foot in his mouth, he decides that the best way to maintain his balance is to put the other one there as well. In this particular case, I&#8217;m talking about comments he made over the weekend regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/13/the-creation-of-the-palestinian-people/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/13/the-creation-of-the-palestinian-people/</link>
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		<title>What We Don&#8217;t Know Can Hurt Us</title>
		<description><![CDATA[My coauthor sent me article yesterday which does a very good job of giving a real-world example of a couple of the principals we discuss in our book. In the article Daniel Klein, an economics professor at George Mason and a self-proclaimed libertarian, describes how he boldly penned an extremely controversial Wall St Journal op-ed <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/12/what-we-dont-know-can-hurt-us/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/12/what-we-dont-know-can-hurt-us/</link>
			</item>
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		<title>Meet the New School, Same as the Old School</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Maybe someone can explain to me the following bit, part of a statement released by the Chancellor of the New York City Education Department announcing over a dozen school closings: &#8220;These are never easy decisions, but when a school has failed to serve its students well year after year — even after receiving additional supports <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/08/meet-the-new-school-same-as-the-old-school/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/08/meet-the-new-school-same-as-the-old-school/</link>
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		<title>Fairness and Education</title>
		<description><![CDATA[According to a New York Times article, Florida education officials recently released a set of rules requiring that all incoming students must demonstrate that their parents are legal Florida residents before they can receive in-state tuition to any public college or university. The rule, which does not affect admission, is supposedly aimed at illegal immigrants, <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/01/fairness-and-education/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2011/12/01/fairness-and-education/</link>
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		<title>Foreign Policy Baby Steps</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Herman Cain recently released a foreign policy platform. First of all, I applaud him for doing so. While the platform has many, many faults (which I will get to in a moment) the fact that he&#8217;s stepped beyond warning Americans that China is on the verge of developing nuclear weapons is a dramatic improvement. (In <a href='http://leftfielder.org/2011/11/30/foreign-policy-baby-steps/'>[...]</a>]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2011/11/30/foreign-policy-baby-steps/</link>
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		<title>Shameless Plug</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The authors of leftfielder.org have a book! Democracy Despite Itself: Why A System That Shouldn&#8217;t Work At All Works So Well is available for pre-order at Amazon.com or BN.com. Reserve your copy today!]]></description>
		<link>http://leftfielder.org/2011/11/19/shameless-plug/</link>
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