In the Iowa caucuses, Mr. Sanders lost to Mrs. Clinton on all the major issues except income inequality, as reported in the WSJ (gated): The pollsters asked caucus-goers to choose one of four issues that mattered most to them in voting for a candidate. Mrs. Clinton easily won on health care, terrorism, and even the economy […]

What an interesting post and discussion in the comment section on progressive taxation.  I hope Jeff Haymond doesn’t mind.  Let me just add a little on the philosophical and ethical side, since the theological/Biblical has been pretty well covered and the economic problems have also been addressed.  One word raised several times in the “Comment” […]

Yesterday the Heritage Foundation released the 2016 Index of Economic Freedom. This annual publication is produced by the Heritage Foundation in conjunction with the Wall Street Journal. In addition to the 2016 Index the foundation also published Economic Freedom in America, a supplement outlining trends in economic freedom in the United States. Figure 1 illustrates the overall composite […]

Iowa, a slice of the heartland, has spoken, but not in a single, predictable voice. Iowa’s exalted place as America’s first presidential nomination contest is more an accident of history than a badge of merit. But, every four years we gather, at the bottom of the mountain and await our tablets, carved upon by our […]

The Des Moines Register released its final poll on Saturday. For Republicans, Donald Trump still leads (28%) the horserace, with Ted Cruz close behind (23%). Marco Rubio has moved up to third (15%). The pollster, J. Ann Selzer has some caveats. She argues that while Trump leads, Cruz seems more consistently aligned with the electorate. […]

I have one question which I need answered, especially since I’m teaching my macro class about taxation this week and next.  Where is there Biblical justification for progressive taxation?  Specifically, I’d like to know why two people should be treated differently by the tax code if one makes $100k and the other makes $300k, from […]

#GOPDebate And away we go. Good for Fox not to buckle into Trump's silly demands. Sad a presidential candidate ducks a journalist. — Mark Caleb Smith (@markcalebsmith) January 29, 2016 Yes. The ding ding is back and intent. Ding Ding for Republican nomination. #GOPDebate — Mark Caleb Smith (@markcalebsmith) January 29, 2016 Clever use of […]

I must first apologize for the length of this post.  It is a bit involved, but because the subject is not so simple as we sometimes would like to believe.  As I consider the current state of government and of colleges and universities, and their dysfunction, I can’t help but do so in terms of […]

In 1932 Franklin D. Roosevelt defeated Herbert Hoover for the presidency of the United States.  In his campaign, he had promised American voters a “New Deal.”  Little known to most Americans today, Hoover had prepared the way for Roosevelt’s New Deal with several initiatives like the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and public works like the Boulder […]

Have we reached a critical mass of voters?  On what issue you might ask.  On whether big government is bad on the whole.  I have read a couple of articles recently, addressing that question.  I don’t honestly know whether or to what extent people may believe big government is basically good.  But here is a […]