Commentary

Trying to start a business as a student can lead to lawsuits by your university -- or even, perhaps, to the chain gang, warns soon-to-be law professor Brian Love: Over the last three decades, patent acquisition and technology licensing have become big business for US universities, which collectively obtain thousands of patents and billions in licensing revenue each year. In a never-ending quest for more royalties, university officials are increasingly likely to take and market not just the inventions of fulltime faculty members, but also those of their students.

May 17, 2012

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Next week, Rajat Gupta, former CEO of McKinsey & Co. and board member at Goldman Sachs, goes on trial, charged with leaking information about Goldman to stock trader Raj Rajaratnam .

May 17, 2012

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An Indiana hotel employee committed murder and the jury said the hotel was 2 percent responsible. (It also said the victim was 1 percent responsible.) Ninety-seven percent of the responsibility, of course, belonged to the murderer. So the hotel was to be liable for 2 percent of the damages.

May 16, 2012

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In the wake of a $2 billion loss by JPMorganChase—which the company’s CEO says won’t stop it from having a profitable quarter —a presidential spokesman found an opportunity to praise new financial regulations:

May 15, 2012

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The U.S. Department of Justice says it has had a grand jury exploring the Deepwater Horizon oil spill—but apparently it is unable to come up with anyone who had actually done something criminal that brought about the spill. The only person arrested in connection with the incident so far is an engineer who, while that grand jury was operating, allegedly deleted text messages from his phone.

May 15, 2012

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If you think business freedom is compatible with prohibiting certain products, such as recreational drugs, merely because (you think) they harm their users, this video from Reason TV may make you think again. It’s the story of a business that made a benign product called Polar Pure, which outdoor adventurers could use to make water safe for drinking.

May 14, 2012

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People’s genuine interests don’t conflict , but sometimes their wishes do—and when the law says you can’t produce without permission, sometimes production is stymied. But that doesn’t mean producers are helpless, and the man who put swordfighters on spaceships may have found a response that will give his neighbors a taste of regret.

May 14, 2012

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Ed Hudgins of The Atlas Society will be a panelist this Thursday night for a roundtable presented by America's Future Foundation. Topic: Church and State: The Dynamic of Religion and Liberty Who: Dr. Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, Minaret of Freedom Institute Ed Hudgins, The Atlas Society Hugh Whelchel, Institute for Faith, Work and Economics Jacque Otto, Moderator When: Thursday, May 17, 2012 6:30 pm Drinks & Appetizers, 7:00 pm Program Where: The Fund for American Studies 1706 New Hampshire Ave NW Washington, DC 20009 Metro: DuPont Circle

May 10, 2012

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Paul Ryan Challenged By Town Hall Constituents Over Previous Praise of Ayn Rand --ThinkProgress.org The model of an Ayn Rand acolyte -- MSNBC, The Maddow blog When Americans Grow Tired of Lies -- New York Daily News Paul Ryan Sends 'Dear John' Letter to Ayn Rand -- St. Louis Post-Dispatch The Big Picture with Thom Hartmannn The Atlas Society's Ed Hudgins was interviewed by Hartmann on the Paul Ryan - Ayn Rand controversy. Republicans and Ayn Rand, a love-hate affair -- Fortune magazine Audio Surfaces of Paul Ryan's Effusive Love of Ayn Rand - The Atlantic Wire Paul Ryan rewrites himself over Ayn Rand - MSNBC (Atlas Society is mentioned and our audio played near the 3:50 mark in the video) Atlas Society: Ryan budget 'very much in line' with Ayn Rand - The Raw Story Atlas Society sees Ryan as cut from Rand's cloth - The Washington Times, 24/7 blog Does Paul Ryan have an Ayn Rand problem? - Thom Hartman program

May 7, 2012

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"Crony capitalism." Wasn't that what caused the Asian financial melt-down of 1997? Wasn't that what we were all told?

May 7, 2012

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On December 29, 2011, Business Rights Watch noted that after eight months, Judge Nina Gershon still hadn’t decided a motion that could have gotten imprisoned businessman Brad Stinn released. On Wednesday—nearly a year after the motion was filed—Judge Gershon rejected it .

Apr 24, 2012

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April 23, 2012 -- In the epilogue to Ayn Rand Nation , Gary Weiss (pictured below) shifts gears to tell the reader what he really thinks about Objectivism : that it is evil and nuts. He decries the “horrors” that would be visited on an America based in Objectivist moral and political ideas. The result is a tour through a leftist's confused view of capitalism, government, and self-interest.

Apr 23, 2012

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Spring 2009 issue -- The KPMG case demonstrates that persecuted businessmen need a permanent organization that can be counted on to defend the civil liberties of all worthy victims, in all venues, and over the long haul.

Apr 13, 2012

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Yesterday, April 11, t he U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust suit against Apple and several major publishers charging that the companies conspired to artificially inflate the price of e-books. In a comment worthy of the satirical Onion news site, Attorney General Eric Holder said thatthe Department of Justice is "committed to ensuring that eBooks are as affordable as possible."

Apr 12, 2012

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Today as the Supreme Court continues to hear arguments on the constitutionality of ObamaCare, the President made this remark: Ultimately, I'm confident that the Supreme Court will not take what would be an unprecedented, extraordinary step of overturning a law that was passed by a strong majority of a democratically elected Congress

Apr 2, 2012

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March 28, 2012 -- The Atlas Society's Ed Hudgins, who serves as director of advocacy, has made several recent public appearances speaking on Objectivist principles and how they apply to current affairs.

Mar 28, 2012

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On March 27 Ed Hudgins, director of advocacy for The Atlas Society, will speak at the Virginia 99th Tea Party. The topic: “Has Atlas Shrugged?” The talk will be at 7:00pm at the Upper Lancaster Fire Department, 5170 Mary Ball Rd. (Route 3), Lively, Virginia, located about 40 miles west of Richmond and 25 miles north of Hudgins, Virginia!

Mar 27, 2012

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An Objectivist Guide to Evaluating Candidates (February 27, 2012) Every election year Objectivists and friends of freedom must decide: “For whom should I vote, if anyone?” “To whom should I contribute?” “For whom should I campaign?” Progressives: Are They for Progress? (December 19, 2011)Today the term “Progressive” is represented by the Occupy Wall Street/occupy anywhere movement and by the left wing of the Democratic Party. In this interactive webinar, William R Thomas examines the history and values of the Progressive movement. Conservatism and Elections: Untangling the Philosophy (December 12, 2011)Conservatives for decades have dominated the Republican Party. Yet American political conservatism has consisted of an uneasy and often conflicting coalition concerned with economic, social, and foreign policy. Justice in War: Foreign Policy 2 (November 17, 2011)William R Thomas discusses justice in the context of war-fighting. Should there be restrictions on weapons or tactics? Is there a workable distinction between combatants and non-combatants? Free World Order: Objectivist Foreign Policy 1 (November 9, 2011) Explore the basic structure and goals of foreign policy on Objectivist premises in this webinar. With the Iraq war winding down and NATO victorious in Libya, how should we be looking at foreign policy in the 21st century?

Mar 22, 2012

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Editor's Desk: Just Do It by Sherrie Gossett Feed Your Family on $10 Billion a Day by David Burge Coming up with the cash to keep Uncle Sam flush is a piece of cake—if you don't mind a little blood on your hands. Leader of the Geeks by Kira Newman He launched a start-up that helps developers build web applications faster. Now he's helping to draw millions in venture capital to the D.C. region. sidebar: Start it Up! A sampling of D.C. start-ups. Queen of the Triple Win How Lynda Weinman Launched a Revolution in Technology Education by Sherrie Gossett sidebar: Reflecting on Steve Jobs by Lynda Weinman Weinman, who in the mid-1980s spoke publicly on behalf of Apple about her use of its computers in creating animation for Star Trek V, reflects on the impact Steve Jobs made. The Problem Solver by Kira Newman A frustrated accountant sets out to cure small-business headaches. Theme Section: Winning: Succeeding and Thriving in Life I Can and I Will by David Kelley "I can" recognizes what is possible for us. "I will" takes responsibility for living. Loving the Doing by Ed Hudgins Optimal experience comes when high skills are challenged to their limit. Losing While Winning by William R Thomas Are you winning little or winning big? Living an Extraordinary Life by Sarah Perry It starts with hope, dreams, and a kick in the seat of the pants. The Chief Burger Flipper of Island Famous by Sarah Perry How a new grad went from busboy to restaurant owner and real estate developer. Trysts a poem

Mar 8, 2012

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Editor's Desk: Choice and Freedom by Sherrie Gossett Smokin' Soul: The Story of Daptone Records by Sarah Perry Deep inside a ramshackle Brooklyn row house, two R&B sidemen are engineering vinyl records burning with fatback groove and bottomless soul. Radicalism vs. Normality by William R Thomas Did Jane Austen approve of slavery? And what does that have to do with how you perceive the world around you today? The Radical But Conservative Declaration of Independence by Alexander R. Cohen Can a movement be both radical and conservative? We can find a precedent in this historic document. Canada's Stephen Harper: Radical? by Brad Doucet A look at the promise and missteps of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's career. The War in Iraq: All Over But the Doubting by Walter Donway Why we're in no better position, today, to avoid unnecessary wars, and identify necessary ones, than we were in the Vietnam era. SPECIAL REPORT ObamaCare: Rx for Crisis by David Hogberg Provisions within ObamaCare will gut the growth of physician-owned specialty hospitals. Investigative reporter David Hogberg explains what you need to know about this dangerous threat to your health care options. sidebar: Achievement and Success: Behind the Scenes at a Physician-Owned Specialty Hospital by David Hogberg sidebar: Institutionalized Inefficiency: Behind the Scenes at a General Hospital by David Hogberg ENDNOTES The Barn a poem by Walter Donway

Mar 8, 2012

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