Neglect of the Right
Norman on Norman (As Usual)
Welcoming Myself Back
It's been a while. A long while. Even longer than Andrew Sullivan's vacation. Hell, the last time I wrote a blogpost the website looked completely different. I feel a little like I overslept on the first day of school or something. READ MORE >>
Men And Abortion
Subbing for Andrew Sullivan over at The Atlantic, Conor Friedersdorf poses an important and rarely raised question about abortion. READ MORE >>
Carter's "kick Me" Sign
Thirty years ago today, Jimmy Carter delivered the worst major speech of a modern president. The "Crisis of Confidence" speech (often described as the "Malaise" speech) was by turns mawkish, hectoring, self-pitying, maudlin, self-righteous, undisciplined (the address opened with a string of nineteen quotations from critics of his presidency). READ MORE >>
Calvin And American Exceptionalism
Once an idea is unleashed upon the world, there's no telling where it will lead. That is one lesson to be drawn from studying the astonishing influence of John Calvin's theology on the subsequent history of the world. Born five hundred years ago today, Calvin deepened the Protestant Reformation by building on Martin Luther's break from Rome, formulating a sternly ascetic version of Christian piety that, as Max Weber powerfully argued more than a century ago, inadvertently laid the psychological groundwork for the development of capitalism. READ MORE >>
Who's Right? What's Left?
This week's shooting at the Holocaust Museum has sparked some discussion about whether it's accurate to describe the raving anti-Semite who opened fire at the museum (James Von Brunn) as a "right-wing extremist." That discussion has now taken an READ MORE >>
A Dissent From The Dissent
I've had some nice things to say about conservative David Frum in some recent posts. Those comments had to do with his efforts to reform and moderate certain aspects of contemporary conservatism, primarily in domestic policy. On foreign policy, well, I think he overdid things more than a bit in this book and has never (to my knowledge) backtracked from its arguments. Let's just say I look elsewhere for wisdom on international affairs. READ MORE >>
A Question For Pro-lifers
Theocon Robert P. George has put out a reasonable, responsible statement about the cold-blooded murder of abortion-provider George Tiller. READ MORE >>
Where The Right Is
Roughly four months into Barack Obama's presidency, it's possible to make a few observations about the factions forming on the intellectual right as it adjusts to life in the political wilderness. READ MORE >>
