This essay originally appeared in Law & Liberty on July 15, 2020 (here), in response to a lead essay by Richard Epstein (here). Thanks to Real Clear Markets! Richard Epstein has been challenging conventional wisdom in the academy since he burst onto the scene as an enfant terrible in the 1970…
Year: 2020
Revisiting William O. Douglas
Attempting to portray the quintessential judicial activist as a victim of political skullduggery is like putting lipstick on a pig. It’s still a pig. This essay originally appeared in Law & Liberty on June 22, 2020 (here). Thank you, Instapundit (here)! Properly done, studying history is a …
Is a Nanny State the “New Normal”?
Fear reflects a lack of resolve, and leads inexorably to submission A shorter version of this essay first appeared in Law & Liberty on June 17, 2020 as part of a feature entitled Reading Ideas for Your SummerVacation (or Staycation) (here). Ordinarily, summer reading means “books for th…
Trouble in Paradise? (Part 3)
Our idyllic community in Blount County faces challenges from proponents of radical change. They include liberal Democrats (are there any other kind?), race-baiting sowers of anti-police sentiment, environmental wackos, social justice warriors, LGBTQ activists, socialists, and demagogues using the…
Trouble in Paradise? (Part 2)
Part 1 of my introductory post explained how the liberals in Blount County are out-organizing and out-working the Silent Majority of conservatives. They are certainly trying to gain a toehold in eastern Tennessee, but are they making any progress? The answer is, Yes. Here are three examples…
Trouble in Paradise? (Part 1)
Blount County is a wonderful place to live, nestled against the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (on the “peaceful side” of the Park), and laced with creeks and rivers. The people are friendly, the scenery is gorgeous, and the county seat—Maryville—is quaint and charming. Maryville Cit…
Local Newspapers Are Dying, for a Good Reason
Local papers, especially in small towns, claim to serve a special niche, but do they? When I moved from Austin, TX to eastern Tennessee last year, I looked forward to being able to read a local paper that–unlike the Austin American-Statesman–wasn’t a liberal propaganda organ. I …
Justice at Last for Michael Flynn
If the most powerful and well-connected among us can be victimized by lawfare, what hope would ordinary citizens have against a vindictive prosecution? This essay originally appeared in Law & Liberty on May 12, 2020 (here). When the U.S. Department of Justice—at the direction of Attorney Ge…
How Political Ideology is Pushing Religion Out of Religious Studies
The new revivalists preach a secular gospel of identity politics and social justice, with college classrooms as their pulpit This essay was originally published by the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal on April 29, 2020 (here). Thanks to the John Locke Foundation’s Locker Room Blo…
Should Newspapers Be on the Federal Dole?
Failing local newspapers unconvincingly use the Wuhan virus crisis as an excuse to feed at the public trough Thanks to the Southeast Texas Record (here)! Newspapers have been in a decline since the advent of television in the 1950s. Once the primary source of information for most Americans, daily…