I was surprised to see James Buchanan characterized in the New York Times as “an austere man with a severe aspect that many students found intimidating.” I was never a student of his, but the James Buchanan I had the pleasure of getting to know as a guest at numerous meetings of the Mont...
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Sixteen year-old Olympian gold medalist Gabby Douglas—a model of sweet humility, giving “all the glory to God”—had her well-deserved turn in the spotlight with Jay Leno last night, and was treated to a dose of humiliation from our self-appointed nutrition czarina, Mrs. Obama. Asked what she did to celebrate her stunning performance in London,...
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Much has been written about Penn State and the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal, but I want to mention two aspects about it that have been on my mind. The first one is the idea of institutional culpability. Jerry Sandusky has already been convicted for his actions, and when they came to light,...
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Barack Obama, presumably with nothing better to do, has intoned that the Augusta National golf club should lift its ban on women, thus allowing female golfers to compete in the famous Masters tournament. I personally agree with the president that the ban should be lifted, and I would also oppose the ban on African-Americans...
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As legions of fans descend on theaters this March to watch the The Hunger Games, I wonder how many will have also recognized in Suzanne Collins‘s books another theme that may well give her trilogy a shelf life equal to that of that of another great social critic, George Orwell. While Collins’s story includes...
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This week’s Lighthouse (available online here) deals with a wide variety of topics, including economic recovery (Robert Higgs), double-taxation of income of gas and oil producers (William F. Shughart II), Afghanistan (Ivan Eland), and bullfighting in Spain (Alvaro Vargas Llosa). Links to the individual items appear below: 1. How to Revive a Stagnant Economy...
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Florida’s tax structure is a factor in LeBron James’ decision. They call it LeBronomics!