Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman

“Our legal system has two different sets of rules to do the same thing, deter people from injuring others by making it costly to do so. O. J. Simpson was first acquitted of the crime of killing his wife and then convicted of the tort of killing his wife. The essential difference between tort and crime is that a tort is treated as an offense against the victim, a crime as an offense against the state. The victim of a tort prosecutes or settles the case, agents of the state prosecute or settle a crime. Legally speaking, I can never be the victim of a crime; if I am robbed, assaulted or murdered the victim is not me but the state of California. If my attacker is Mr. Smith the case will be not ‘Friedman vs Smith’ but ‘People of the state of California vs Smith.'” (04/10/26)

https://daviddfriedman.substack.com/p/why-is-criminal-law

Source: Reason
by Steven Greenhut

“Tech companies that create social media apps should not be blamed for the complex mental issues of everyone who might use them.” (04/10/26)

https://reason.com/2026/04/10/lawsuits-targeting-social-media-are-an-attack-on-free-speech/

Source: Foreign Policy
by Antonio De Loera-Brust

“U.S. relations with NATO ally Spain appear to have hit a modern low. On the very first day of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez condemned the countries’ actions as violations of international law and denied Washington the use of airfields in Spain for the purposes of conducting attacks. Spain eventually closed its entire airspace to U.S. aircraft involved in the conflict. … Spain’s bold and consistent stance is much more in line with international law. Not only that — by opposing the war with Iran, Madrid is also doing a better job looking out for U.S. interests than the U.S. government.” (04/10/26)

https://archive.is/GoU3n

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Joseph Varon

“War is the most unrestrained expression of humanity’s destructive capacity, a setting where order disintegrates, moral boundaries are tested, and life is reduced to its most vulnerable state. Medicine, by contrast, stands as a deliberate act of resistance against that collapse, a disciplined and unwavering commitment to preserve life even when surrounded by death. Despite these opposing identities, war and medicine have remained deeply intertwined across history, not by design, but by inevitability.” (04/10/26)

https://brownstone.org/articles/when-war-teaches-medicine/

Source: The Bulwark
by Rachel Janfaza

“A Gallup study from February shows that American optimism is at an all-time low. When things in general seem so bad, it can feel inauthentic or out of touch to be hopeful. So, Gen Z adopted a jaded and ironic sense of humor to cope. The hope-and-change optimism that galvanized Millennials before them was hard to comprehend, so cynicism ruled the day. Not anymore. Lately, after years of hearing how anxious and lonely Gen Z-ers feel, I’m starting to detect a shift in my listening sessions with young adults. There’s a growing sense that the doom and gloom have gone on too long. There’s a desire for things to get better. And there’s a hope that politicians might just be able to help us get there.” (04/10/26)

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/gen-z-is-ready-for-hope-and-change