Long ago Aristotle taught us that there is a sharp difference between the kind of behavior that democracies tend to like and the kind of behavior that will keep democracies from turning into smoking craters. He didn’t put it exactly like that, but you get the gist. In The Suicide of the West, James Burnham …
Trump as Corduroy Pillow
Trump is a regular corduroy pillow — always making headlines. Yesterday he did it by manufacturing part of his pro-life position on the spot under questioning from Chris Matthews. Under pressure, he said that there would have to be “some form” of punishment for a woman who procured an abortion. Confident of his ability to …
A Biblical Case Against the Minimum Wage
As if we needed more evidence, we now have additional evidence that the progressive uplifters of our society are impervious to the claims of evidence. In support of this claim, I would simply point to the fact that California is now poised to join other economic illiterates in adopting a $15 an hour minimum wage. …
A Few Svens
Suppose we set up a thought experiment. Suppose that in the aftermath of the Brussels attack (and all the attacks before that), someone conducted a survey of Christians in North America and discovered that seventy percent of them thought that their Muslim neighbors were “much more likely” to have terrorist sympathies. This would be reported …
Trump and the Fecklessness of Europe
Terrorist attacks in Brussels have left over thirty dead. Coordinated explosions hit the Brussels airport and the Metro station right next to EU headquarters. When we figure out what to put after the je suis this time, the West is planning a devastating hashtag riposte. Now I trust that by this time my lack of …
Recklessness on the Trumpoline
One of the great ironies in the Trump phenom has been the behavior of ostensible conservative leadership in their recklessness on the Trumpoline. From Falwell to Coulter, from Hannity to Rush, they have been bouncing around like crazy on that thing — and mom has been standing in the back door stoop saying, “Someone’s going …
What “Never Trump” Means
So here is your morning after breakdown: The current delegate count runs as follows: Trump (621), Cruz (396), Rubio (168), and Kasich (138). Or, to put it another way, Trump (621) and NotTrump (702). The line that somebody needs to get across is 1,237. Trump is a mere five delegates across the halfway line — …
Trump Change
Eight years after America was first suckered by the promise of hope and change, we are now being offered the downgraded expectations of cope and change. I refer, of course, to the apparent ascendancy of Donald Trump, he would offer us Trump Change, a state of affairs that rhymes with Chump Change. For one like …
The Case for Cruz #2
So first a round-up from last night. On the Democratic side, Sanders beat Hillary in Michigan, which was festive. On the Republican side, there were four states in play. Trump won three of them, while Cruz took Idaho. More relevant to the immediate discussion was the fact that Cruz took second place in Michigan, which …
The Case for Cruz
Idaho’s primary is tomorrow, and for a first time in a long time, the Idaho primary actually matters. I have previously endorsed Cruz, and wanted to take this opportunity to exhort my fellow Idahoans to help do their part in deflating the Trump balloon. But first, for my foreign readers, a few words of encouragement. …