Political Theory

October 14 is a date celebrated in Pennsylvania, but unfortunately not in other states.

Income equality and prosperity are not the same things. It is theoretically possible for the state to make all incomes equal; Lenin and his cohorts tried to do that in Russia from 1917-1921, and we know the horrific results of that experiment.

1798 was an important year. The Principles of ’98 influenced all of American history. The Alien and Sedition Acts and the Kentucky Resolutions revealed these principles.

What these self-styled "anticommunist liberals" are fighting against is not communism as such, but a communist system in which they themselves are not at the helm. What they are aiming at is a socialist, i.e., communist, system in which they themselves or their most intimate friends hold the reins of government.

As of 1790, all original thirteen colonies had ratified the Constitution. Four clauses have caused great trouble ever since: The War Powers Clause; The Commerce Clause; The Necessary and Proper Clause; and, The General Welfare Clause.

Some American History is not covered at all in history books. Four of these ignored stories are: 1) in 1798 a law passed making it a crime to say unkind words about anyone in the US government, other than the vice president, who at the time was Jefferson.

This remarkable book is a sustained attempt to solve what its authors term "liberalism's problem." In a liberal society, people are free to live as they wish, so long as they do not violate the rights of others.

Ronald Hamowy combines extraordinary critical powers with painstaking historical research. His skills are much in evidence in this collection of his essays, but I have an additional reason to call this book to my readers' attention.

Jeff McMahan's subtle article is an outstanding account of the morality of preventive war, and not incidentally a sharp condemnation of the Iraq war.

In many ways, the group has been misnamed. Federalism refers to the system of decentralized government. This group defended states rights — the very essence of federalism — against the Federalists, who would have been more accurately described as Nationalists. Nonetheless, what the so-called Antifederalists predicted would be the results of the Constitution turned out to be true in most every respect.