Now, Democratic lawmakers in Olympia, Wash. last week introduced legislation that would allow county sheriffs to inspect the homes of semi-automatic rifle owners once a year. Seattle Times columnist Danny Westneat describes the move as “Orwellian.”

I work with a "conservative" reserve deputy sheriff, he says that he would inspect home if the sheriff instructed him to, because it is, after all, the law. I asked him if he remembered much about the stamp act. He just looked at me with utter confusion.

Prof. Douglas J. Amy of Mount Holyoke College has created a personal web project called “Government is Good: An Unapologetic Defense of a Vital Institution.” Here Daniel Brackins refutes Prof. Amy’s piece, “The Forgotten Achievements of Government.”