We live in an increasingly secularized world of massive and pervasive nation states in which traditional religion, especially Christianity, is ruled unwelcome and even a real danger on the basis of a purported history of intolerance and “religious violence.” This is found in most all “public” domains, including the institutions of education, business, government,...
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In his commencement address to the University of Michigan in 2010, President Obama said, “We, the people, hold in our hands the power to choose our leaders and change our laws, and shape our own destiny.” The phrases were chosen to resonate with Americans across the political spectrum, but their precise meaning and implications...
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From the Republican presidential primary debate, April 23, 1980, excerpted in today’s Wall Street Journal: Ronald Reagan: Can I add to that? I think the time has come that the United States and our neighbors, particularly our neighbor to the south, should have a better understanding and a better relationship than we’ve ever had.......
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Professor Brad Birzer, a man of unbounded energy, asked several of us to contribute a “top ten” list of books that make us human. Quite a challenge: limited to ten books, what would you (dear reader) choose and why? See my list at The Imaginative Conservative web site. It starts with a book by...
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Are we on the cusp of success for fiscal responsibility? As usual, conservatives describe the battle de jour as the ultimate clash between good and evil. And today, it is the attempt to force Congress to approve a constitutional balanced budget amendment before the debt ceiling is again raised. This is a bunch of...
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If there is any American principle I have taken for granted since I was a little boy, it is freedom of religion. And indeed, this is one area where the United States comes close to living up to its professed values. Most of the world has state-sanctioned religions and churches. In the United States,...
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Rick Scott, who was elected as Florida’s governor last November, campaigned on a platform of fiscal conservatism. He wanted to cut taxes, cut government spending, and cut regulation to make Florida more business-friendly. He said his platform would create 700,000 jobs in seven years, and his campaign slogan was, “Let’s Get To Work!” Scott...
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My article on Talk Radio as an example of spontaneous order in tornado relief just appeared in The Wall Street Journal. Here is an excerpt: The tornado that tore through here late last month left 41 dead and 12 still missing. Whole neighborhoods now resemble bombed-out postwar Tokyo or Berlin. But this devastation is...
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In a very good, new article in the Times of London, “Philosophers are finding fresh meanings in truth, beauty and goodness,” philosopher John Cottingham (University of Reading) discusses the fact that the absurdities of what has dominated philosophy and the bulk of intellectual and political culture for at least two hundred years are increasingly...
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Over at the leading libertarian magazine, Reason, writer Shikha Dalmia attacks conservatives for using FOIA laws to invade the privacy of historian William Cronon. At the same time, Dalmia defends Open Records laws while noting that groups may abuse their rights by going after individuals. On that score, the Left comes in for a...
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