In a dynamic, decentralized system of individual choice and responsibility, people do not have to trust any authority but their own.

Glamour is all about transcending this world and getting to an idealized, perfect place.

Kidney disease is a low-profile, unglamorous problem, a disease that disproportionately strikes minorities and the poor. Its celebrity spokesman is blue-collar comedian George Lopez, who received a kidney from his wife.

The glamour of air travel - its aspirational meaning in the public imagination - disappeared before its luxury did, dissipating as flying gradually became commonplace.

Abundant choice doesn't force us to look for the absolute best of everything. It allows us to find the extremes in those things we really care about, whether that means great coffee, jeans cut wide across the hips, or a spouse who shares your zeal for mountaineering, Zen meditation, and science fiction.

The mobile middle class gravitates to the cities where housing is affordable.

Medicare is immune from the competitive pressures that force private insurers to pay attention to what patients and doctors want.