For more than a century now there has been a slow drift toward Presidential government in the United States, motivated by the desire to “get America moving,” to have “progress” through “efficient” government that is not saddled with the constitutional limits on which our entire way of life was based. It would appear that, at [...]
Past weeks have seen a great deal of attention paid to now-disgraced NBC Anchor Brian Williams and the lies that brought him down from the heights of status and popularity. Apparently it did not occur to Mr. Williams, or to his early supporters, that an anchorman’s “irrelevant” lies about his wartime exploits are something more [...]
It is undeniable that American constitutionalism and the ordered liberty it provides have historical roots in England. Nevertheless, one might be excused for finding it somewhat ironic that American Catholics join other Americans in seeing themselves as inheritors of a distinctly and specifically English liberty. England itself historically has not been particularly friendly toward religious [...]
Abraham Lincoln Philosopher Statesman, Joseph R. Fornieri (Southern Illinois University Press, 2014) The twin goals of this book are so closely intertwined that it would be easy to see them as a unity. To do so would be unfortunate, however, because it would blind the reader to the important lessons Prof. Fornieri has to offer, [...]
In making preparations to run for President, the latest Bush (Jeb, in case you missed it) told the press that he looked forward to having some “adult conversations” about what needs to happen in Washington, DC to break gridlock and “solve” the various problems America faces. He cast aspersions, of course, on Tea Party activists [...]
Something important and fundamental has been lost in conflicting responses to the terrorist attack on the offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. The official western response has been absolute identification with the magazine (“I am Charlie Hebdo”), while all too many Islamic groups have even openly refused to condemn this act of radical Islamic [...]
The murder of two New York City police officers continues to reverberate in that city and in many parts of the nation. Officers have publicly turned their backs on a mayor who sides with race-hustler Al Sharpton, even hiring Mr. Sharpton’s former aide (herself living with a boyfriend who is a convicted murderer) against them. [...]
My family and I spent much of the Christmas season this year in Middle Earth—or at any rate Peter Jackson’s version thereof. For a number of years now we have watched The Lord of the Rings trilogy over three days, starting on Christmas Eve. And, of course, the final installment of Mr. Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy [...]
President Obama has spent much of his time and effort “fighting economic inequality” since before his presidency began. Tax policies, spending programs, and rhetoric have combined over the past six years in particular to form a veritable War on Economic Inequality during his administration. This has led many in the Republican Party to snicker even [...]
Since its release back in 1990, I have alternated between thinking Steve Martin’s turn as a mobster-turned informant living in the witness protection program is one of the funniest movies ever made and that it is creepy and disturbing. Of course, it is both. Based on the life of the same mobster as the much [...]
American conservatives traditionally have been suspicious of the city. The crowding, the anonymity, the fast pace, the dirt, and above all the attitude that one must “get on” or “move up” lest he be trampled underfoot all rankle those who see a good life more in terms of character and relationships than activities, entertainments, and [...]
It is difficult to see recent events at The New Republic (TNR) as anything other than poetic justice. That magazine, for a century dedicated to the notion that the United States could be made into a social democratic paradise in which everyone would be equal, especially leftist intellectuals, has seen its bastard children come home, [...]
Why did Republicans do so well in the 2014 elections? Among the reasons emphasized by pundits and operatives on both sides of the political aisle has been the ability of Republican candidates to counter effectively the charge that they would escalate the so-called “war on women.” A key example cited by both left and right [...]
National Review Online, an outgrowth of the magazine founded by the venerable conservative publicist William F. Buckley Jr., recently ran an article with a title I will not repeat. The first word was “liberal,” a bad word I am used to, but the second had no business appearing in a headline anywhere, let alone in [...]