One of the classic texts written in defense of political and economic freedom is Frederic Bastiat’s The Law. I remember having the book pressed on me as a high school senior by a smart, nerdy-looking libertarian who worked at the Laissez-Faire Bookstore in New York, and I wish that I’d read it then. It would … Read more
We could definitely use another Abraham Lincoln to emancipate us all from being slaves to words. In the midst of a historic financial crisis of unprecedented government spending, and a national debt that outstrips even the debt accumulated by the reckless government spending of previous administration, we are still enthralled by words and ignoring realities. … Read more
Debt and deficits seem to be on everyone’s minds these days. Whether it be worries about the American government’s fiscal woes, Europe’s fragile banking system, or the debt-as-a-way-of-life culture that disfigures so many lives, many people are seeking guidance about how to extradite ourselves from this mess with our souls intact. In this regard, Catholics … Read more
The liberal vision of government is easily understood and makes perfect sense if one acknowledges their misunderstanding and implied assumptions about the sources of income. Their vision helps explain the language they use and policies they support, such as income redistribution and calls for the rich to give something back. Suppose the true source of … Read more
A few years ago, I had an interesting conversation with one of our country’s most well-known and respected business leaders. It started as I was chatting with the man’s wife, and she asked me what I did for fun. I could have told her I enjoyed golf, or gardening, or skiing, or any number of … Read more
As Americans increasingly feel the pinch of higher prices for food and fuel, the Federal Reserve’s QE2 policy of creating more money has been called into question. Asked if the Fed bore some responsibility for these vexing price increases, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke essentially replied, “It’s not our fault.” Instead, Bernanke blamed the price … Read more
That is the question asked by the left-leaning Christian organization, Sojourners, in its campaign of the same name. It is a most appropriate question given the battle over the budget and given this time of year, not long after the most holy holiday of the year for Christians. Sojourners claims that, despite record budget … Read more
Over at his blog on Forbes, Doug Bandow says that, when it comes to balancing the budget, the religious left’s question of “What would Jesus cut?” — and its implied answer: nothing — does no good in actually helping the poor. First, he points out that forced giving isn’t the same as charity: There’s nothing … Read more
There is an old saying that we judge others by what they do, but we want them to judge us by our intentions. That more or less sums up one of the central confusions engendered by our embrace of modernity’s Absolute No. 1 Favorite Moral Heresy: consequentialism. Consequentialism, for anyone not fully up to speed … Read more
Driving rain and wind pummeled the house all night, rattling the cistern boxes, bellowing down the chimneys, and pouring sheets of water against the windows. Although the wind died down the next morning, rain peppered steadily for three more days. With this sudden dumping of water on already saturated ground and into already full streams, … Read more
I have a fascination with America’s train system — maybe because it stinks, and I can’t figure out exactly why this country still has such an antiquated and ineffective passenger railway. Whether it’s the regional trains or Amtrak, they’re all bad. Amtrak’s Acela trains, which carry people up and down the northeast corridor — our … Read more
As you’ve probably noticed from the Home page, we’re conducting an InsideCatholic fundraising drive this week. I hope you’ll participate. While we offer our articles, columns, and blog posts free of charge — unlike a print magazine — that doesn’t mean that they’re free to us. Running an online publication is an expensive business — … Read more
After years of going nowhere, economic theory in the Catholic world just got a big upgrade from none other than the head of the Vatican’s bank. Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, a one-time private banker and professor of financial ethics at the Catholic University in Milan, has headed the Institute for Religious Works since 2009. Writing in … Read more
Gerry Garibaldi, a teacher at an inner-city school in Connecticut, talks frankly in an article for the City Journal about why his kids are failing in school — and why the problem won’t be solved by more money: Thanks to the feds, urban schools like mine—already entitled to substantial federal largesse under Title I, which … Read more
This Wall Street Journal article points to another casualty in the economic slump: churches. Many are having to close their doors because they can’t make their mortgage payments: Since 2008, nearly 200 religious facilities have been foreclosed on by banks, up from eight during the previous two years and virtually none in the decade before … Read more
Is neoconservative icon Bill Kristol coming around on the idea of returning to the gold standard? In response to Chinese President Hu Jintao’s recent comment that “the current international currency system is the product of the past,” Kristol writes: Isn’t Hu in this one respect right? And does the current international currency system of fiat … Read more
I knew that leprosy still existed in parts of Africa and India, but had no idea there were so many people living with it in China. According to Brian Palmer of Slate, the government no longer forces people with leprosy into isolation, but many small colonies remain: China has pledged to improve living conditions for … Read more
If you’ve seen the recent hit documentary Waiting for Superman, or have been following the debates over school reform, you’ve heard of Michelle Rhee. The former firecracker chancellor of the D.C. school system is an absolute superstar in the field. In just three years, she — along with D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty — had begun … Read more
Time for a few Friday morning links: The TSA’s new regulations for air travel — including the introduction of full-body scans — have been getting plenty of negative press lately. In protest, one group has proposed a National Opt-Out Day where passengers would refuse the scans the day before Thanksgiving — potentially creating huge delays … Read more
An hour after arrival in Minneapolis Philip Knight called on his client, but the man who answered the door was clearly a policeman. “Is Genevieve Magee at home?” “Who are you?” Though he was on a step below the man, Philip could see the top of his head. “I was going to ask you the … Read more