Vital center. Radical middle. Amid the red state/blue state divide, is there now space for an iconoclastic militant moderate? In this unusual and remarkably readable collection of short essays on a wide variety of hot-button public issues-race, affirmative action, surrogate motherhood, diversity, immigration, compensation of 9/11 victims, exclusion of gays from the Boy Scouts and the military, the 2004 election, the rule of law in developing countries, the invasion of Iraq, and many more-Yale Law School professor Peter H. Schuck reveals the distinctive sensibility and policy orientation of a militant moderate: pragmatic, reformist, nonideological, empirically minded, and skeptical of many liberal and conservative pieties.

Chapter 1 Preface: What Is a Militant Moderate? Part 2 Part I: Civil Rights and Wrongs Chapter 3 Affirmative Action I: Don't Mend It or End It-Bend It Chapter 4 Affirmative Action II: The Supreme Court Botches the Job Chapter 5 Affirmative Action III: Racial Preferences in Supreme Court Nominations Chapter 6 Groups and Equal Protection: The Flawed Theory of Owen Fiss Chapter 7 Race Matters: The Incoherence of Cornel West Chapter 8 Slavery Reparations: A Misguided Movement Chapter 9 Housing Integration: Use Vouchers, Not Courts Part 10 Part II: The Culture Wars Chapter 11 The Pledge of Allegiance: A Noncoercive Endorsement of Religion Chapter 12 School Vouchers: A Compelling Case for Choice Chapter 13 Military Recruitment on Campus: The Solomon Amendment Chapter 14 Expressive Groups: Political Parties and Gays in the Boy Scouts Chapter 15 Professors and Profession: An Odd Couple Chapter 16 Tax Day: Deficit Reduction Made Easy Part 17 Part III: The Rule of Law Chapter 18 Class Actions: Analyzing the Issues Chapter 19 Punitive Damages: Lawless (In)justice Chapter 20 Lying: Law's Ambivalence Chapter 21 Civil Juries: Here to Stay Chapter 22 Impact Litigation: Courts and Institutional Reform Chapter 23 Gun Control: Keeping Tort Law in Its Place Chapter 24 Tort Reform: A Mixed Bag Chapter 25 Surrogate Motherhood: Reflections on Baby M Part 26 Part IV: Dealing with Terrorism and Victims Chapter 27 Preemptive Strikes: Revising the UN Charter Chapter 28 Profiling: The Uses of Stereotypes Chapter 29 Compensating Victims: Some Hard Questions Chapter 30 The 9/11 Compensation Fund: A Bad Precedent Chapter 31 Adjudicating Terrorism: A Hybrid Model Court Part 32 Part V: A Nation of Immigrants Chapter 33 Immigration, Diversity, and Nationhood: The Formula Still Works Chapter 34 Refugees: Protecting More by Sharing the Burden Chapter 35 Reforming the 1996 Immigration Reform: Advice to President Bush Chapter 36 Citizenship after 9/11: Continuity and Change Chapter 37 Immigrant Voting: Wrong Response to a Genuine Need Part 38 Part VI: Developing Giants Chapter 39 China: Forward and Backward Chapter 40 India: What the Raj Wrought Part 41 Part VII: The Future of Liberalism Chapter 42 Rethinking Liberalism: A Paradox Unresolved Chapter 43 Diversity: Society's Teacher Chapter 44 Punctilios for a Diverse Society: Candor and Thicker Skins Chapter 45 The 2004 Elections: A Militant Moderate's Interpretation