Hunter Baker

Hunter Baker, J.D., Ph.D. is a professor of political science and the dean of arts and sciences at Union University and an Affiliate Scholar in religion & politics at the Acton Institute. He is the author of The End of Secularism and Political Thought: A Student's Guide.

Posts by Hunter Baker

September 13, 2009

The Political Double Standard for Religion

The point has been made by outstanding thinkers like Stephen Carter and Richard John Neuhaus that the New York-Washington, D.C. establishment eats up left wing religion and declares it delicious. Give a radical a cross and we have activists bravely “speaking truth to power” and “speaking prophetically.” Continue Reading...
August 04, 2009

Cash for Clunkers and the Poor

I just read today that the cars traded in for the Cash for Clunkers program are rendered unusable by running liquid glass through the engines. Has anyone considered the impact of this on the poor? Continue Reading...
July 29, 2009

Five Simple Arguments Against Government Healthcare

The argument from federalism: One of the great benefits of federalism is that the states can act as the laboratories of democracy. If a new public policy is tried in the states and works (as happened with welfare reform in Michigan and Wisconsin), then a similar program has a good chance of succeeding at the national level. Continue Reading...
July 29, 2009

Wilhelm Ropke for Today

Spurred on by listening to and reading Samuel Gregg, I’ve been making my way through Wilhelm Ropke’s A Humane Economy which is really a special book. The following passage (on p. Continue Reading...
June 03, 2009

Habermas on Christianity, Europe, and Human Rights

From Philip Jenkins at Foreign Policy: Ironically, after centuries of rebelling against religious authority, the coming of Islam is also reviving political issues most thought extinct in Europe, including debates about the limits of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the right to proselytize. Continue Reading...
May 29, 2009

Neuhaus and Rockford Institute: One More Round

A few weeks back, I posted a version of the famed Richard John Neuhaus/Rockford Institute break-up incident. The story there was that the break-up happened because Neuhaus overspent the Institute’s budget on conferences after having been ordered to cancel them. Continue Reading...
April 03, 2009

Richard John Neuhaus the Friend

I was late in receiving my Richard John Neuhaus tribute issue from First Things, so forgive my mentioning it after many have long read it. Going through, one thing that stands out is that Richard John Neuhaus was so influential not only because of his tremendous proficiency and prolificity with words, but also because of his gift of friendship. Continue Reading...