Writer
Dylan R. Matthews
Latest Content
The Good, Yours and Mine
What worries me is that I think Harvard students have convinced ourselves that we have such a theory, one that exculpates us from sacrifice while leaving us convinced that we are doing the right thing. We call it “meritocracy.”
Nothing Succeeds Like Success
Not a lot about politics is fair, but one thing that is, is that in well-functioning democracies like France (or really any country with a less rigid system than the United States’), policies that succeed in producing widely shared prosperity are rewarded at the ballot box.
How You Say “Broke” in T-Bills
In a situation like the current one, running a balanced budget would be positively irresponsible, a huge wasted opportunity.
Trayvon and the Minimal State
Is the libertarian movement rallying against Stand Your Ground laws? Well, no.
The Cards and How You Play Them
So we’re left with a Democratic president whose domestic agenda is less ambitious than that of a Republican president from three decades ago and a Republican opposition that decries that same agenda as rank socialism.
We’re All Statists Now
If Romney loses what’s essentially his home state, he can’t be taken seriously as a nominee.
It's the Ideas, Stupid
The idea that the absolute rights of artists mandate the enforcement of the particular copyright system the United States has adopted as of 2012 is an interesting one, but not particularly persuasive.
Occupy Recruiting
Taking a job at Goldman Sachs is immoral. To take a job in finance is to become complicit in a socially useless enterprise that ruins lives. You should feel bad about yourself if you do it. You will be a worse person if you do it.
Why We Need Occupy Harvard
Occupy Harvard’s detractors should also stop cloaking their opposition in Harvard’s progressive financial aid provisions. Yes, Harvard’s financial aid policies are commendable, but the Harvard student body is hardly representative of all economic classes. About 70 percent of Harvard students receive financial aid—but 30 percent do not.
Blame Congress
If you’re going to be disappointed with someone, then, be disappointed with the Republicans and moderate Democrats in Congress who derailed Obama’s agenda.
The Lesser Evil
Occupy Wall Street could have become relevant through backing Obama’s jobs bill.
Jobs and Capitalism
Jobs was a model of wealth acquired not due to highly leveraged, socially prestigious gambling, but due to actual inventiveness.
Preventing the Next Jobs Crisis
The deck is currently stacked against decisive action to aid recovery. It’s time to stack it in favor.
Cap and Unleash
The public financing system will lose its bite if, due to Obama’s success or Republicans’ ideological stance, it becomes the norm for candidates to reject it.
