Politics

Good Intentions are Not Enough

by Sheldon Richman June 1, 1996

In his new book The Choice , Bob Woodward reports on a meeting among President Clinton, First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, and several self-help gurus. During the meeting, Clinton was asked to list his best qualities. "I have a good heart," replied the president. "I really do." We don't know whether Hillary Rodham ...

Fending Off Government

by Sheldon Richman June 1, 1996

President Clinton's State of the Union address had two basic messages: 1) the era of big government is over, and 2) we can't go back to the time when "people fended for themselves." He doesn't really mean the era of big government is over. He's up for reelection. His wife (I assume this is not merely guilt by conjugal association) ...

If Liberty Mattered — Once More, a Presidential Candidate’s Press Conference, Part 4

by Richard M. Ebeling May 1, 1996

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 Mother Jones: Mr. Candidate, in your opening statement, you made what surely must be one of the most irresponsible proposals ever heard from a candidate in this or any other ...

If Liberty Mattered — Once More, a Presidential Candidate’s Press Conference, Part 3

by Richard M. Ebeling April 1, 1996

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 Business Week: Mr. Candidate, with such outlandish ideas as abolishing the Federal Reserve System, can you really expect any support from members of the business community? Every country in the ...

If Liberty Mattered — Once More, a Presidential Candidate’s Press Conference, Part 2

by Richard M. Ebeling March 1, 1996

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 The Nation: Mr. Candidate, if you intend, if elected, to abolish all of the progressive social legislation of the last seven decades, surely you are condemning millions of Americans to ...

If Liberty Mattered — Once More, a Presidential Candidate’s Press Conference, Part 1

by Richard M. Ebeling February 1, 1996

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 Once again, the race for the White House has begun, and once more, the candidates are offering themselves to the American public. Once again, the public and the press are ...

Washington Gibberish

by Sheldon Richman January 1, 1996

If English is ever declared the official language of the United States, the biggest upheaval will be in Washington, D.C. That's because they don't speak English in Washington. They speak gibberish. You may not realize that, because gibberish has the same-sounding words and grammatical structure as English. When you hear gibberish, you think you're hearing English. But you're not. ...

Loving Your Country and Hating Your Government

by Jacob G. Hornberger October 1, 1995

Several months ago, President Clinton condemned Americans who exposed and criticized wrongdoing by the U.S. government. The president said: "There's nothing patriotic about hating your government or pretending you can hate your government but love your country." Let us examine the implications of the president's claim. In the 1930s and throughout World War II, ...

Tiger in the Land

by Robert LeFevre October 1, 1995

There is an apparent wide and shocking misconception in our land. It is this. That patriotism consists in loving our government and in willingly and joyously doing what the president and his administration want us to do. It is this misconception, so cunningly advanced by unscrupulous men in power, which has paved the way for despotic advances in all ...

Patriotism Has Changed

by John L. Egolf Jr. October 1, 1995

Observing the festivities and media coverage of the July 4 celebrations, I wondered if Americans know what is being celebrated. The ideas and ideals that are expressed in the Declaration of Independence are far from most Americans' minds. Further, the idea of patriotism in 1776 was much different than present-day conceptions. The national government and various state governments are horrible ...

Individualism and the Free Society, Part 1

by Nathaniel Branden November 1, 1994

Part 1 | Part 2 A political system is the expression of a code of ethics. Just as some form of statism or collectivism is the expression of the ethics of altruism, so individualism — as represented by laissez-faire capitalism — is the expression of the ethics of rational self-interest. In this chapter I propose to show why this is ...

Social Conflict, Self-Determination, and the Boundaries of the State

by Richard M. Ebeling September 1, 1994

For the advocate of classical or market liberalism, the depoliticization of economic life is considered the primary avenue for the diminishment of social and cultural tensions in society. The removal of the state from all involvement in market activities, other than as protector of life and property and legal ...