Over the past week, a new wave of anti-regime protests has broken out in Iran, and it could not have happened at a more opportune time. Following the defeat of ISIS in Syria, this gives America the clearest shot we have had in a long time at helping the Iranian people take down a dangerous […]
Tag Archives | Barack Obama
The “Murder on the Orient Express” Theory of American Politics
Top Stories of the Year, #1 I have spent this week counting down the top stories of 2017. At #5 is the moral reform movement, quickly devolving into a moral panic, about sexual harassment. At #4 is the ominous new conflict between white nationalism and Communism, which worked out so well in Germany in the […]
The Era of the Civics Lesson
It looks like this is going to have to be the era of the civics lesson, because nobody can be bothered any more to gain a basic knowledge of how our government is supposed to work and why it was designed that way. Not even the president of the United States. I know this isn’t […]
Why Are We So Uneasy About 9/11?
I didn’t plan to write anything for the anniversary of 9/11 this year, because I figure we’re at the point where we save the extended analysis for round-number anniversaries. It’s something I care about deeply, as longtime readers know, but they will also know that I have written a great deal about that attack and […]
The Constitution Is Foolproof, But It Isn’t Damned Fool Proof
Let’s start at the beginning: our president is a fool. President Trump has been in office long enough to demonstrate a chronic lack of elementary prudence or any shred of self-discipline. He has a knack for constantly creating crises by his own recklessness. He does things like set off totally unnecessary tensions with South Korea […]
Our Multiple-Choice Strategy in Syria
The United States has launched air strikes against the Syrian regime, but do we have a strategy for Syria yet? Judging from the past few days, we have too many. Launching a couple dozen missiles to blow up a runway at an airbase controlled by the regime may or may not sound impressive, but in […]
In Syria, the First Step Is Recognizing That We Have a Problem
It’s really nice that everybody is all worried about Syria now, at least for the next five minutes, because Bashar Assad decided to take a break from killing his people in other ghastly ways and decided to gas them. It’s all very shocking—if you haven’t been paying any attention to Syria for the past six […]
The Democrats’ Sad Search for an “Appalachian” Savior
A little gaffe caught my eye recently that sums up the desperate state of the Democratic Party right now. It was alert from the New York Times teasing the first lines of a David Leonhardt op-ed describing Tom Perriello, who is running for the Democratic nomination for governor of Virginia, as a “populist former Congressman […]
The Trump Threat Level Is: Elevated
Three weeks into the Trump administration, is the new president living down to our worst fears, or is he doing better than expected? Let me put this in terms borrowed from the old color-coded Homeland Security Advisory System. The current Trump Threat Level is: Elevated. That’s the middle level, the yellow one between High and […]
Free 30-Day Trial
Subscribe or Renew
A Reader’s Guide to Atlas Shrugged
- The Call Is Coming from Inside the House December 4, 2019
- Ayn Rand Is for Adolescents November 30, 2019
- The Triumph of the Will November 26, 2019
- Holiday Sale November 26, 2019
- Impeachment Is Over November 24, 2019
- The Parasite That Kills Its Hostess November 18, 2012
- Radical New York City Democrats December 31, 2013
- Confessions of a Reluctant Culture Warrior December 20, 2014
- Pathological Altruism July 3, 2013
- The 25 Craziest Things Said at the Democratic Debate October 14, 2015
Five Things You Need to Read Today
Here’s your weekly update, for subscribers only, drawing your attention to five stories that are worth catching. Today, the main theme is our struggle to assert facts over narratives or symbolism. 1. How Bad Ideas Happen I have lamented before about how many bad ideas for the expansion of government–the basic income, the individual mandate, […]