As one who tries to keep up with events, but still seeks perspective, I feel tugged between extremes. An overdose of current affairs leads to despair because the fog of news hides the sunshine of hope. Living in the clouds, however, detached from what is actually happening, is a path to obsolescence. So, I too […]

I was sitting in my office yesterday struggling to stay awake while I prepared a class on international balance of payments. I glanced over at my bookcase and saw this “Sider” sandwich. Ron Sider’s 1977 classic title: Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger (this particular copy is the 1984 second edition) was wedged in […]

Fifty years ago today, Ronald Reagan delivered one of his most memorable speeches, “A Time for Choosing.” In the speech, Reagan is stumping for beleaguered Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater, who was about to undergo a thorough beating at the hands of Democrat Lyndon Johnson and his Great Society. Steve Hayward, currently the Reagan Professor […]

Now this is obvious pandering to the hard left of the Democratic Party–surely Mrs. Clinton knows better, doesn’t she?  Hillary says that businesses don’t create jobs, and worse yet, this is somehow a version of “trickle down” economics that’s been tried again and again and failed. Oh, where to begin–as one of my colleagues at […]

In a recent New York Times article, Stephen Rattner made the rather remarkable argument, when boiled down,  that two pending Federal cases brought by corporations and shareholders affected by the 2008 bailout, intended ostensibly to address the 2008 recession, ought to be decided on the basis of the litigants wealth, not by the normal rule […]

On October 16 my esteemed colleague at Bereans at the Gate, Mark Caleb Smith (a.k.a. Doc Bow-tie) posted on his battle against culture wars. He doesn’t want to engage in culture wars as much as “fight against those who wish to fight them”. I am in substantial agreement with Dr. Smith’s comments on this issue. I […]

As if our mere presence on-line were not ridiculous enough, we are taking our act on the road. Last week, a contingent of Bereans invaded the friendly spaces of Brantwood Baptist Church in Dayton, Ohio. We were warmly welcomed by Pastor James Risner and his flock. We enjoyed a good time of discussion. Topics ranged […]

Ebola, CDC and bureaucracy By now we all know about the Ebola virus and about the Americans who have contracted it.  What has until recently not been well-known is the behind-the-scenes role of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).  And the bigger story of the CDC is its representative role of large bureaucratic agencies in […]

Gird your loins, fellow believers. Sharpen your spears. Lace your sandals. There are vineyards to trample and breastplates to don. Zion awaits, but only if we march apace. There are culture wars, and rumors of culture wars. The world is full of shadows, some of them treacherous and fearful. We have a mayor in Houston […]

I listened yesterday to an EconTalk episode on my computer in which the host Russ Roberts interviewed Martha Nussbaum on the program.  But if you haven’t listened to EconTalk interviews, you are missing a treat.  And if you haven’t heard of Martha Nussbaum, you are forgiven.  Her name is not a household word, thought her […]