November 19, 2022

Voting: The appearance of impropriety

It appears that our election rules might be a threat to democracy. In Suetonius's Life of Caesar, Caesar's wife was accused of having an affair.  Caesar claimed to know nothing of the affair but divorced her anyway, famously...

May 14, 2020

Does science prove conservative values right over liberal ones?

The political divide in America is usually articulated in the language of political philosophy, but some important answers to the problems of political philosophy have been answered by science.  We owe a debt of gratitude to Jonathan Haidt ...

May 6, 2020

Can the coronavirus panic spur a reset in conservative values?

People often comment that if JFK were alive today, he would be a Republican, or at least scorned by the Democrats.  There is probably some truth to this.  The political goalposts have shifted over the decades, with ideology now ta...

April 21, 2020

COVID numbers getting redefined again?

In a world of "lies, damned lies, and statistics," we should consult the SARS-Cov-2 (COVID-19) source data to understand the current numbers and the methodology for classifying new cases and deaths. According to the CDC website, as of Ap...

April 16, 2020

Trump and the burden of choice

If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice. These memorable Rush lyrics capture an important idea missing in the debate today about COVID-19, experts, and plans to reopen the economy. To whit, medical experts are not economic experts, ...

September 6, 2019

The rise of left-wing entropy

The most troubling development in American politics today is the rise of the radical Left.  Ideas that were once grounds for FBI scrutiny or social ostracism are now celebrated by misguided politicians and voters.  Despite their l...

August 23, 2019

The National Popular Vote Bandwagon

The national popular vote bandwagon continues to attract anxious passengers before the 2020 election.  Fifteen states plus D.C. with 196 electoral votes have joined the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), which would obligate ...

August 15, 2019

Nationalism keeps us all in equilibrium. It could be worse.

Globalists and nationalists around the world continue to lock horns over the best way forward.  The rise of President Trump, Brexit, and other nationalist or anti-globalist movements (depending on your perspective) should not surprise anyon...

August 7, 2019

Underdogs, Not Victims

Nations are founded on and sustained by symbols, narratives, and values.  This is why Americans proudly stand for our National Anthem, revere our Constitution and the Founding Fathers, and honor the Judeo-Christian values of Western Civilization...

July 30, 2019

Our country is doomed if we don't prioritize these two basic principles

Rene Descartes is widely considered the father of modern philosophy because he attempted to replace the old foundation of Scholasticism with a new foundation of subjective experience.  His cogito, ergo sum (I think, therefore I am) is still...

July 26, 2019

The fallacy of good intentions

Good intentions have a long history of disappointing results.  Politicians and pundits often invoke the "good intentions" caveat to justify or soften the blow of failed social policies.  The time has come to discard this...