politics 61
Why Anti-Liberalism Fails
The Failures of Liberalism The intellectual critique of liberalism is coextensive with liberalism itself, going back at least as far as Giambattista Vico’s dispute with Descartes. The term “liberalism” itself…
As North Korea Goes Nuclear Far East Ambassadors Must Speak Up
I lived much of my adult life under Terry Branstad’s multiple tenures as governor of Iowa, and I think he did a “pretty fair job,” as farm families are wont…
Politics as Religion: A Brief Assay Essayed after Midnight
For sweetest things turn sourest by their deeds; / Lilies that fester smell far worse than weeds.
Trump: America’s First Black Friday President
Like many Americans I’ve struggled to put the election of 2016 in proper perspective the last few weeks, only to arrive at an unexpected conclusion: Trump may be America’s first…
What Will $100 Million Buy You?
When $100 million is being spent on the governor and senate campaigns in their state, Michiganders might want to sit up and take notice.
Nomocracy In Politics
FPR readers can now enjoy another web magazine that complements the already excellent work of the Front Porch Republic. Nomocracy In Politics is a new website that explores Liberty, Prudence, Imperfection, and…
A Burke for Our Times
Edmund Burke was the greatest master of the English language, not even excepting Shakespeare. It is no doubt a startling claim, but one that I think is highly defensible. The…
The Closing of the Republican Mind (A Séance)
Lucky me, to be invited to try the beta version of Google’s newest and coolest app — Séance! After a quick download and install, I wasted no time in launching…
The Blind Senator from Minnesota
It was difficult to say whether they were on the far left or the far right or both simultaneously, but you were safe to identify them as radical, whichever political…
Sewers and Leashes: A Local Story
Hillsdale, MI. This is a true story. It happened once upon a time in a place I do not now live. After an arduous campaign I was elected to the…
No Angel: Second Thoughts on Sarah Palin
East Lansing, MI. Mark Mitchell's brief essay on Sarah Palin reminded me of a Treasonous Clerk installment I wrote back in November, contemplating the significance of Palin's persona for American…
What Is to be Done?
On Amtrak Regional Train 130 Daniel Larison has written a number of related postings here (and here) and elsewhere that have insistently raised and sought to answer the question: what…
What the Fork; Or, Why You Should Not Eat the Person Sitting Next to You
Alexandria, VA . The causes of the current economic collapse have been widely discussed and minutely explored. However, to date I do not believe that I have yet seen…