International Affairs

December 06, 2017

What St. Nicholas can teach us about economic freedom

One of the most beloved figures of Christian history – St. Nicholas, the basis for the legend of Santa Claus – is commemorated around the world on December 6. An historical happenstance shows that his life still holds lessons for the piety and economics of the transatlantic sphere. Continue Reading...

December 05, 2017

Brexit: Leaving EUtopia

History’s worst tyrannies began as attempts to create utopia. This longing to inaugurate the heavenly kingdom on earth – to “immanentize the eschaton,” in William F. Buckley Jr.’s memorable phrase – empowers politicians who promise peace and prosperity in exchange for power. Continue Reading...

December 04, 2017

What you need to know about the world’s youngest ruler

Sebastian Kurz made history when Austrian voters elected him the world’s youngest leader on October 15 at the age of 31. His ascent has been met with jubilation or trepidation across the transatlantic space. Continue Reading...

December 01, 2017

When it comes to work-life balance, women know better than government

A series of governments across the West have crafted policies designed to help women achieve their goals. However, they failed to ask women what those goals might be. Economic interventions designed to nudge women into careers they don’t want, or to enter the workforce full-time even if they prefer to work in the home, uniquely disempower the women they are intended to help. Continue Reading...

November 28, 2017

Appreciating the importance of vocational education

If there is one thing young people believe in collectively, it is their individuality. “No two people are alike,” the refrain goes. But in the age of Common Core, educational systems too often treat all students alike, glossing over their unique skills and abilities. Continue Reading...

November 27, 2017

Russia still denies the Holodomor was ‘genocide’

Saturday marked “Holodomor Remembrance Day,” honoring the millions of Ukrainians who died of forced starvation at the hands of the Soviets in the 1930s. Some 80 years later, and a quarter-century after the Soviet Union’s dissolution, the Russian government still denies that this atrocity constitutes a “genocide.” Continue Reading...

November 24, 2017

Transatlantic intelligence: Fast facts on the UK Budget 2017

As Americans made their final arrangements for Thanksgiving, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond unveiled the annual Budget on Wednesday. Here’s what you need to know. The Budget will spend a total of £809 billion ($1 trillion U.S.), Continue Reading...

November 21, 2017

The Communist who praised freedom, property, and morality

Today’s Religion & Liberty Transatlantic features a biography of the forgotten architect of perestroika, Alexander Yakovlev (1923-2005). Born to Communist parents, rising to become the head of propaganda in the Soviet Union, Yakovlev came to embrace freedom and expose the horrors of Marxist-Leninist rule – not least, the persecution of people of faith. Continue Reading...

November 20, 2017

‘Let them eat aid’: The error of a ‘Marshall Plan for Africa’

  European Parliament President Antonio Tajani has called for Europe to provide an ambitious “Marshall Plan for Africa,” something they have debated for more than a decade. The proposed $47 billion aid package would emulate the U.S. Continue Reading...

November 16, 2017

Poland’s young people love free markets, not fascism: A view from Poland

According to the international media, Poland’s March of Independence this weekend portends a growing threat of fascism in Eastern Europe. However, the media accounts may not be entirely accurate, and Polish young people fervently reject the underpinnings of fascism – because of their support for the free market. Continue Reading...