Post-Mortem

Wednesday, November 5th, 2008

So, America has elected its next President, its next Vice President, 35 Senators, 435 members of the House of Representatives, and thousands of state and local officers. We did it, again, without violence or bloodshed, with a minimum of intimidation, with a minimum of fraud, and, in general, with great dignity. There can be no [...]

Quote of the Election

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

“To avoid therefore the evils of inconstancy and versatility, ten thousand times worse than those of obstinacy and the blindest prejudice, we have consecrated the state, that no man should approach to look into its defects or corruptions but with due caution; that he should never dream of beginning its reformation by its subversion; that [...]

A Simple Request

Monday, November 3rd, 2008

I have one request of Americans this week: Please, don’t immanentize the Eschaton.

Where It All Gets… Interesting…

Friday, October 31st, 2008

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking – far too much, actually – about this election. I am not going to blog here about the relative merits of each candidate – anyone undecided between these two extremely different candidates at this point hasn’t been paying attention. In fact, this will probably be my last election-related [...]

We Voted

Thursday, October 30th, 2008

We voted. Have you? Fair warning: if you go wearing a propaganda T-shirt and try to start a riot in line about whether or not this is the kind of country where people want to live, yes, you will get to meet a nice member of the HPD. (Apparently, not everyone got that memo…)

Quote of the Day

Thursday, October 30th, 2008

“It was during the first period of this constitution that the Athenians appear to have enjoyed the best government that they ever did, at least in my time. For the fusion of the high and low was effected with judgment, and this was what first enabled the state to raise up her head after her [...]

Greg Mankiw’s Work Incentives

Sunday, October 26th, 2008

Greg Mankiw’s new post on his personal work incentives is required reading for anyone who wants to discuss taxes in this election cycle. The idea is simple: our tax system uses marginal rates, meaning one rate applies to the first dollar earned and different rates kick in at different thresholds. (That is, unless you’re so [...]

Skipping Down the Garden Path

Sunday, October 26th, 2008

I offer a final thought for the evening. Last night, a dear friend and I were discussing the state of the world and the nation, particularly with reference to some of the more extreme economic proposals made by politicians and pundits of varying degrees of skill. My friend is one of the most intelligent, well-educated, [...]

Two Americas? Or Two Visions of America?

Tuesday, October 7th, 2008

Mona Charen has a fantastic and fascinating take on Michelle Obama’s Fearful Vision on National Review Online. Read all the way to the end; it’s a great demonstration of one of the ways this country so often rises above those who would destroy it.

Palin, Politics, Blogging, and Me

Thursday, September 4th, 2008

I thought Sarah Palin’s speech last night was fantastic. I think most of the complaints about it are ridiculous, especially that she didn’t write the entire thing herself, that she talked too much about her experience and Senator Obama’s, or that she’s not really representing women because she’s not pro-abortion rights. Those things said, I [...]