ILYA SOMIN ON the debate over tenure. As the higher education bubble unfolds, we’ll see more of this kind of discussion, I think.

SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO EMBARRASS YOURSELF WITH A YACHT TO BE A DEMOCRATIC SENATOR, but apparently it helps: Jeff Greene denies his anchor damaged Belize reef.

On a Tuesday morning five years ago, Summerwind, a three-story, 145-foot luxury yacht, maneuvered above the celebrated barrier reef that lines the coast of Belize.

There it dropped anchor — and plunged into controversy over severe damage to a coral reef system officially recognized by the United Nations as one of the world’s most magnificent and irreplaceable treasures.

“The guys from the area told me they were beside the boat before it dropped anchor, and they were yelling and waving their hands, shouting, `No! No, don’t drop here,’ ” recounted Melanie McField, a marine scientist with the Smithsonian Institution who surveyed the reef soon after the incident. “It was bad. There was a lot of damage.”

The owner of that yacht? Billionaire Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jeff Greene.

The real-estate mogul from Palm Beach was not aboard the boat at the time. And, oddly, Greene today says the incident never happened, despite extensive publicity about it at the time (including statements from his representatives), eyewitness accounts, scientific surveys of the damage and an extensive case file at the country’s Department of Environment.

At least he pays his taxes. As far as we know, anyway. Oh, wait: “Greene bought Summerwind in 2003, registering it in the Marshall Islands, a well-known tax haven.”

It’s a two-fer! Reef damage and a Kerry-like tax-avoidance scheme.

POLITICAL RACISM IN MEMPHIS: Ex-mayor makes Memphis primary about race: Once-unbeatable former mayor accuses white incumbent of ‘trying to act black’.

BOB OWENS: No, Texas hasn’t been invaded. There are some sections of Texas I would not advise you to invade. Like, you know, all of it. . .

ARNOLD KLING: “The Internet serves as a constant reminder of the wisdom of Hayek.”

PROFESSOR BAINBRIDGE: Will Liz Warren be nominated/confirmed to head consumer financial agency? Does it Matter?

BURGLAR? Or civic hero?

MICHAEL S. MALONE: An American Life.

VIDEO: Cast of Mad Men Sings “Bye Bye, Birdie.”

LAW 1, MULTICULTURALISM 0: Cultural Defense Accepted as to Nonconsensual Sex in New Jersey Trial Court, Rejected on Appeal.

ANDREW BREITBART: Where are the firings at Politico or Bloomberg News?

UPDATE: Related: Prof. Jacobson is Still Waiting For Apologies. Now that “context” suddenly matters . . . .

BAD NEWS FOR LEGAL EDUCATION: Class of 2009 Employment Data: Jobs Down, Salaries Flat.

Is this evidence of a higher education bubble, or just of a crappy economy?

MARK WALKER: Why Transhumanism is the Best Bet to Prevent the Extinction of Civilization. “In a nutshell, the argument is that even though creating posthumans may be a very dangerous social experiment, it is even more dangerous not to attempt it: technological advances mean that there is a high probability that a human-only future will end in extinction.”

A YOUNG BRIDE SAYS marriage matters. I suspect these articles are just as relevant whether it’s gay or straight.

“THE STATE PLAYING GOD LIKE THIS GIVES ME THE CHILLS.”

Before you follow the link to see what they’re talking about, take a guess below.

IN THE MAIL: From Jerry Pournelle, Fires of Freedom.

POWER LINE: The Great Divide.

The current state of American politics can be summed up in this poll data, published today by Rasmussen Reports:

75% of Likely Voters prefer free markets over a government managed economy. Just 14% think a government managed economy is better while 11% are not sure.

Well, one would hope so. But here is the kicker:

America’s Political Class is far less enamored with the virtues of a free market. In fact, Political Class voters narrowly prefer a government managed economy over free markets by a 44% to 37% margin.

That strikes me as a rather stunning finding.

Yes, and one that perhaps explains why so many voters think the current setup lacks the consent of the governed.

JOURNOLIST: A Vast White-Wing Conspiracy?

MORE ON YACHTGATE: Dan Mitchell: Taxes Are for the Little People, not John Kerry. “Senator Kerry says that tax planning is a horrible sin when conducted by ‘Benedict Arnold’ companies and facilitated by those wicked tax havens. But I guess that it’s not such a bad thing when Senator Kerry is protecting his wealth. For the rest of us peasants, it’s our job to meekly get in line and submit to whatever taxes Senator Kerry graciously decides to impose.”

Plus, a roundup: Sen. John Kerry Skips Town on Sails Tax.

And reader Pat Courtney suggests this poll:

REVEALED: The Obama Donor List.

YOU CAN’T BE A JOURNALIST AND CARRY WATER FOR POLITICIANS. But you can be a Journolist!

“A COMMANDEERING OF THE PEOPLE:” The Wall Street Journal interviews Randy Barnett on ObamaCare and the Constitution. (Bumped).

TUNKU VARADARAJAN: Charlie Rangel Is Toast. “There will be resistance to Rangel’s departure, primarily from members of the Congressional Black Caucus, for whom Rangel is, for all his flaws, a revered elder statesman. But Rangel is now indefensible, and not merely because Pelosi wants to show him the door: His is a style, a method, a politics from an age when it was simply not done to ask uncomfortable questions of a black politician, lest that politician (and his supporters) retort that the questioning was racist. That protective smokescreen of ‘racism’ was good to men like Rangel, allowing them to go about their merry ways blithely, and untroubled. It is harder to strike pouting, Manichaean postures now, when a black man holds the highest office in the land. There can be no cheap and easy shaming of critics, no slick refuge in a narrative of racial oppression.”

TIM CAVANAUGH: California Roundup: $8 Billion Rail Project Results In Fewer People Riding Public Transportation.

WHY REPUBLICANS SHOULDN’T GET COCKY: GOP candidates trail House Dems in fund raising for key races by nearly 2-1. And these are toss-up races.