Blog 3 Columns

Why Rome’s Republic Fell With Cicero 0
- Culture
- November 16, 2017
“With Cicero fell the republic.”—Russell Kirk As one of my grand Hillsdale colleagues, Dr. Stephen Smith, once said to me, there has never been a serious reform or renaissance in Western Civilization since the fall of the Roman Republic without the inspiration of Cicero (even if in mythic form) guiding it. If my colleague was
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Why Republicans Are Virtually Identical to Democrats on Spending 0
- Economics
- November 16, 2017
Republicans during the Reagan and Bush administrations had a pretty straightforward fiscal policy: increase federal spending dramatically and cut marginal income tax rates modestly, predicting the resulting economic growth would eventually balance the budget. Both administrations increased spending roughly 80-100 percent, depending upon where you draw the start and end lines, given the government’s fiscal
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Two Reasons Not to Hire More Border Patrol Agents 0
- Politics
- November 16, 2017
The main argument against President Trump’s plan to hire more Border Patrol agents is that the Southern border does not need them. Even border hawks can’t argue with the evidence that Border Patrol agents are a lot less busy than they used to be. In 1986, Border Patrol agents along the Southern border apprehended an
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Most Parents Don’t Talk to Their Kids, Survey Shows 0
- Culture
- November 16, 2017
There’s an increasing awareness in America that many individuals can no longer discuss various issues with each other in a calm, reasonable, and civil manner. This is particularly true when it comes to issues, beliefs, and political ideas. Many have scratched their heads over such a phenomenon, suggesting that the greater emphasis society now places
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Going Topless is ‘Empowering’?0
- Culture
- November 16, 2017
A federal court this week ruled that women’s boobs are not free speech. The ruling is important because breasts have become a form of expression and revealing them a bit of a trend. Scout Willis strolled topless around New York City and Kendall Jenner posed topless in Interview magazine. In France, a topless woman made
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Franken, Weinstein, and ‘Men Without Chests’0
- Culture
- November 16, 2017
Since the news of Harvey Weinstein broke, there has been a constant drip of revelations about famous men doing terrible things. This time, Sen. Al Franken and, perhaps, Sylvester Stallone have fallen. In the case of Sen. Franken, there is damning photographic evidence and a history of questionable jokes and activities. The current wave of
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Feminists Are Furious with How ‘Justice League’ Changed the Amazonian Costumes. There’s Just One Problem.0
- Culture
- November 16, 2017
DC’s Justice League opens Friday—less than six months after the release of Wonder Woman, a summer smash directed by Patty Jenkins. We recently had a hotly-contested interoffice conversation on the artistic merits of Wonder Woman. (Apparently not everyone thought of highly of it as I did. They clearly are wrong.) But the hot topic this
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The Chicken and the Egg of Educational Choice 0
- Education
- November 15, 2017
Tell me if you’ve heard this chestnut before: “We can’t let parents choose their child’s school because they don’t have enough information to make a good choice.” Lord knows I have. Like many old adages that have a kernel of truth suffocating under a pile of manure, this statement does have some merit. Insofar as
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How Americans Are Becoming ‘Idiots’… Literally 0
- Culture
- November 15, 2017
Get this: “In April 2015, Amazon’s best-selling book in the United States was not the recipient of a Booker Prize, a Nobel Prize, or a Pulitzer Prize. It was not even a work of literature; it was an adult coloring book by Johanna Basford. In August 2015, the American Art Therapy Association publicly endorsed “the
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Why Rome’s Republic Fell With Cicero 0