top story in Rational Argument

Hyperbolic attack ads from advocacy groups have diminished the popular esteem of the U.S. Supreme Court in the past, so as the campaign to place Sonia Sotomayor fires up, a little restraint is in order.

It’s not sexy enough to make a Grey’s Anatomy episode, but better primary health care would save a lot of money — and lives.

Why a low-cost program to educate employees about company ownership could produce huge financial benefits for the country.

The route to a law that will help keep kids out of adult prisons.

How likely is it that you will receive treatment the medical literature says is best? Flip a coin. Evidence-based health care can improve those odds, save lives and cut health care costs dramatically.

How do we protect the markets from their own overexuberance? By signaling that future failures won’t get government bailouts.

Only a fool would support expanded domestic exploration — offshore or elsewhere — under the Bush administration’s dysfunctional energy policies. Here’s how those policies need to change for America to responsibly find the energy it needs.

Why letting judges speak out during political campaigns enhances democracy and serves justice.

Authoritative research shows exactly how to fix public schools. What we need are leaders with the guts to put it into practice.

If we taxed corporations on the profit they report to shareholders, they’d lose the incentive to buy billion-dollar tax breaks from Congress.