Articles 355
Beyond Capitalism and Socialism: Rebuilding an American Economy Focused on Family and Community
In light of the the economic crisis - and the bright light it sheds on the failings of modern capitalism - there is a need to reconsider older arguments of…
And the Jays Have it (Republican Bunning Hazards the Impolitic)
As one of literary bent and so frequently guilty of casting the charge of a Pox On Both Houses at our besotted political parties, I was impressed that at long…
Place, Limits, Liberty (In That Order)
Harvey Mansfield and William Galston disagree about liberty; from the perspective that insists place empowers liberty, Galston has it right.
A Tale of Two Banks
He discovered that he could solve the dependence on loan sharks in one village with a mere $27 in capital. For a man who was used to working in millions…
Our Hookup Culture
Hooking up is almost bound to emerge as a norm among young adults in a large-scale society where mobility is highly prized and cultivated.
FPR: One Year Old
Today marks the first anniversary of the Front Porch Republic. Such a milestone provides an opportunity to cast a quick glance back on the year and indicate a bit…
Perils of the Stationary State
When economic growth finally levels off, what kind of world comes after? Shall we be unchained from the mad rush for money of the last century? Or will other but…
But I By Backward Steps Would Move
“The dwarf sees farther than the giant, when he has the giant's shoulder to mount on."
Think on These Things: Unexpected Sunshine in Washington
Three years ago, I could not imagine Ron Paul winning the CPAC straw poll. Now he has. The doom and gloom evoked by the rich and powerful are realities in…
Finger on the Scale
The American economy has been marked by a tremendous concentration of private power over the past 50 years. The only question is not whether this should be reversed, but how…
The Great Leveler: Darwin, Garrison Keillor, and Wing Bowl
Yes, a good dinner conversation is akin to chimps licking fleas off each other because it is a way of bonding and establishing relationships and hierarchies within the group.
Constitutional Kookiness
For years, two-faced Republican demagogues have served up phony-baloney about how much they love little country churches, Norman Rockwell paintings, and old-fashioned American life, even while they were simultaneously encouraging…
“Spiritual, Not Religious”
What we need today is not a generation that is “spiritual, not religious.” I would argue that what is needed is the studied capacity to be “religious, not spiritual."
More of the same old energy policy
Obama's energy initiatives offer little change, and less hope. Large nuclear plants with massive power grids are no solution.
When Friendship and Fellowship Collide
Less happy for mother is the reality that the single soul, resulting from this communion of two bodies, receives nourishment from single-malt.
Facebook and Friendship
Whatever else you make of Facebook friendship, it underscores the great and significant discrepancy between: 1) the scale of contemporary life, and 2) the scale of friendship.
Civic Friendship
Is there a place for friendship in politics? According to ancient theory - one that continued well into modern times - not only should friendship be a main aim of…
The Big Idea
With friends like this, you can have a world full of enemies at your back and it don't matter because your friend is your fortress.
Friendship with New England Reserve
As the half-savage neighbor in Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall” says, “Good fences make good neighbors.”
On Friendship
Most of us require an extended social network to keep us mentally and morally awake, and for a laugh, too, and if these friends are people we can weave in…
Newburgh and “President’s Day”
We have a Constitution and separation of powers and at least the idea of limited government because of the character of George Washington. Don’t think of Monday as “President’s Day.”