Articles Archive
Horse Burgers and the Lives of Others
If you could boil our global problems down to seven words, they might be these: we don’t see where stuff comes from. Most of us grew up staring at glowing…
Localism in Britain
Daniel Hannan (Member of the European Parliament for South-East England) sees the beginning of a localist revolution. We've still got a very long way to go, of course. But give…
Telling the Truth about Immigration
Berwyn, PA. Nobody wants to. Most politicians would rather appeal to platitudes about America as a "nation of immigrants" than confront their responsibility to attend to the common good of…
The Problem of Undertheorized Agrarianism in Most Actually Argued Localism
[Cross-posted to In Medias Res] That's a terrible title for this post, I know. But hopefully it'll make sense, if you actually make it to the end. First of all,…
Localist Philanthropy
Philanthropy Daily has an interesting piece arguing that "philanthropy is at its best when it leverages local resources." See how this works in one California county.
Fresh Water (Now at a Special Discount Price)!
[Cross-posted to In Medias Res] Well, this is rather fascinating: here we have a video of the Austrian businessman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, who from 1997 until 2008 was CEO of Nestlé…
Unsolicited Advice for the Republican Party
Hidden Springs Lane. It is clear that the GOP is in disarray. The recent CPAC conference only served to highlight that the Republicans are bereft of ideas. Railing against “big…
My New Book is Out–Authentic Cosmopolitanism
I'm pleased to announce that my new book, Authentic Cosmopolitanism: Love, Sin, and Grace in the Christian University, co-authored with Steve Cone, is now out. From the back cover: Humans…
The Pythagorean Temptation
Berwyn, PA. In his Degrees of Knowledge, Jacques Maritain argues that one central fault of the modern mind has been its propensity to think of mathematics rather than metaphysics as first…
Tonight, in Boston
Just a few hours ago Boston FBI special agent Richard DesLauriers held a press conference in that city to present two security camera films of what the government is calling suspects…
Mark Mitchell’s Politics of Gratitude (Theoretical and Otherwise)
[Cross-posted to In Medias Res] To continue with the excellent discussion begun by R.J. Snell, Mark Mitchell's fine and thoughtful book is filled with important insights and challenges, which do…
Bigger is Better
Comes the report from the Grey Lady that the Fed's habit of pumping obscene amounts of money into the economy has the effect of increasing the profits of large companies…
A Prophet of Goodness: Review of Mark T. Mitchell’s The Politics of Gratitude: Scale, Place and Community in a Global Age
At my worst moments, I succumb to thinking that we have become utterly trite, absorbed by ephemera, thin of character, quick but scattered of intellect, weak of will, and just…
Tocqueville for Tax Day
It seems if despotism came to be established in the democratic nations of our day...it would be more extensive and milder, and it would degrade men without tormenting them....I see…
Capital Offense
Washington, DC I’ve been spending my semester in exile in our nation’s capital. My apartment is in Arlington, on a ridge overlooking the city. From that spot I have a…
From the Trinity Capital
Beyond the purple velvet drapes, the skeins of billowed gossamer, my hotel window looks down on the back gates of Trinity College. Up three floors and pierced by a late…
Mitchell Video: Human Scale and Humane Politics
Here's a link to the video of my talk at Villanova. Thanks to James Matthew Wilson and Douglas Minson for making it such an enjoyable time.
A Long Repentance: A Decade of Turning Away from (a Part of) the American Dream
Including “repentance” in this title might lead you to believe that it is a theological reflection of some kind. After all, repentance is a religious word, is it not? And…
Some Big Capitalists Do It Right
[Cross-posted to In Medias Res] From what I can tell, most businesses, once they get to a certain size, cannot avoid be lured into the American conviction that you must…
Ruthie Leming’s (and Rod Dreher’s) Little Way
[Cross-posted to In Medias Res] Rod Dreher's 2006 manifesto, Crunchy Cons, was an inspiration (and provocation) to many, on both the left and the right. It wasn't that the book…
The ‘War on Women’: A Symposium
Purcellville, VA. The Family in America will host a midday symposium on Capitol Hill this Friday, April 12. If you are interested to attend, please see the following invitation: In…
U.S. ‘Intervention’ in Syria Unlawful
Proponents of Syria “intervention” did not seem to notice any irony as Secretary of State John Kerry, on the one hand, chastened Iraq for letting Iran use its airspace to…
Our Slippery Slope into the Age of “Big Love”
Berwyn, PA. Many of us will recall the criticism Rick Santorum endured regarding this passage from a 2003 interview: And if the Supreme Court says that you have the right…
The Greenest Mountains
In the words of Frank Bryan, the University of Vermont professor whose Real Democracy is the best book ever published on the vital New England practice of town meeting, “Vermont’s…
