Opinion: Latest Reports from The Washington Posts ‘In Theory’

How powerful should our juries be?
In 1986, Leroy Reed faced criminal charges he didn’t understand. A mentally disabled ex-convict from Milwaukee, Reed was charged with illegally possessing a firearm after his parole office discovered that he had purchased a .22-caliber pistol to go with a mail-order private detective course. While it was obvious to everyone on the jury that he […]
The key details missing from Bernie Sanders’s free college proposal
It’s a tight race between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in the Wisconsin Democratic primary, but Sanders has managed to gain a slight edge due to his support among young people — with more than 83 percent of college-age voters planning to vote for him. His lead among young people has been buoyed by his […]
Despite massive bureaucracy, the president still matters — a lot
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about presidential policymaking. Need a primer? Catch up here. Elliott Abrams is senior fellow for Middle Eastern studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. He served as an assistant secretary of state […]
Policy czars already have too much power. Trump would make that worse.
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about presidential policymaking. Need a primer? Catch up here. Mark J. Rozell is acting dean of the School of Policy, Government, and International Affairs at George Mason University. Mitchel A. Sollenberger is […]
Don’t trust presidential candidates who can’t trust themselves
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about presidential policymaking. Need a primer? Catch up here. H.W. Brands is the author of Reagan: The Life and Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano […]
How policy czars could restrain a President Trump
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about presidential policymaking. Need a primer? Catch up here. Justin S. Vaughn is an associate professor of political science in the School of Public Service at Boise State University. He co-wrote “Czars […]
Does the president actually need to know anything about policy?
This month, more than 50 top foreign policy experts signed an open letter expressing opposition to Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy, calling his outlook for the world “wildly inconsistent and unmoored in principle.” Throughout the debate season, the businessman’s opponents picked on his lack of knowledge on the nuclear triad and moments when he fumbled over […]
How an obscure socialist text from the ’80s predicted Bernie Sanders’s rise
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about the rise of socialism. Ronald Radosh is adjunct fellow at the Hudson Institute, a columnist for PJ Media and author of “Commies: A Journey Through the Old Left, the New Left and […]
The ‘Sanders Democrat’ is paving the way for the radical left
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about the rise of socialism. Bhaskar Sunkara is founding editor and publisher of Jacobin magazine and co-editor of the recently released book “The Future We Want: Radical Ideas for the New Century.” In […]
Millennials like socialism — until they get jobs
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about the rise of socialism. Emily Ekins is a research fellow and director of polling at the Cato Institute. Millennials are the only age group in America in which a majority views socialism […]
Millennials are significantly more progressive than their parents
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about the rise of socialism. Sean McElwee is a research associate at Demos. Find him on Twitter: @SeanMcElwee. The kids these days are doing fine . . . if you think socialism is […]
Is democratic socialism the American Dream?
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about the rise of socialism. John Bellamy Foster is editor of Monthly Review, an independent socialist magazine, and co-author with Robert W. McChesney of “The Endless Crisis: How Monopoly-Finance Capital Produces Stagnation and […]
How socialists from the ’60s primed millennials to Feel the Bern
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about the rise of socialism. Stanley Kurtz is a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and author of “Radical-in-Chief: Barack Obama and the Untold Story of American Socialism.” Bernie Sanders […]
Our socialist youth: Why millennials are embracing a bad, old term
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about the rise of socialism. The latest and greatest aphrodisiac on college campuses across the nation is . . . socialism. According to Fox News pollster Frank Luntz, who was asked to opine […]
My alma mater looked to March Madness for validation. We didn’t get it.
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about sports fandom. Need a primer? Catch up here. Tim Bontemps is The Post’s national NBA writer and a graduate of St. Bonaventure University. For most sports fans, Selection Sunday is one […]
A solution to the hypocrisy of the NCAA: Just watch the pros
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about sports fandom. Need a primer? Catch up here. Godfrey Chan writes a blog on NBA basketball and indie rock. Follow him on Twitter: @SirWrangleLot “Are you excited for March Madness?” Everyone […]
The science behind our love for March Madness
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about sports fandom. Need a primer? Catch up here. Marco Iacoboni is a professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los […]
The religion of March Madness
Communal fanaticism and hero worshipping: It’s an annual ritual full of magic.
Are amateurism rules corrupting college athletes?
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about sports fandom. Need a primer? Catch up here. Phillip Miller is a professor and chair of the department of economics at Minnesota State University, Mankato. We are nearing the end of […]
Sports fans, unite: It’s time to go on strike
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about sports fandom. Need a primer? Catch up here. Nate Drexler is a sports enthusiast. He has covered high school, college and professional sports, most recently as a blogger in the TrueHoop […]
How to keep sports interesting
Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about sports fandom. Need a primer? Catch up here. Nicholas Christenfeld is a professor of psychology at the University of California at San Diego. There he studies an array of topics broadly […]