Religion & Liberty Online Archives

Public Policy

June 17, 2011

The Complex Tax Code

Today at Capital Commentary I discuss the size and scope of the tax code in the US relative to its basic purposes. In “Back Door Social Engineering,” I argue, “When governments run huge deficits in part because of the complexity of its tax system and the ability of people and institutions to engage in large-scale (and legal) tax avoidance, there is something deeply wrong with the system.” Continue Reading...
June 14, 2011

Global Problems, Global Solutions

There’s a saying that when goods cross borders, armies don’t (it’s the correlative to the observation attributed to Bastiat: “If goods cannot cross borders, armies will.”). The point is that trade tends to bring people together who might otherwise have cause to be hostile. Continue Reading...
May 25, 2011

Acton Commentary: Little Plots of Liberty

In this week’s Acton Commentary I briefly survey the prospects for urban gardens and farming in the city of Detroit. As Aaron M. Renn wrote in New Geography a few years ago, Detroit represents one of the places where significant urban innovation is possible. Continue Reading...
May 23, 2011

Bahnsen and Wilson on Ron Paul

David Bahnsen and Douglas Wilson have engaged in a fascinating conversation about Ron Paul. To follow the threads of critique and concern on either side, first read Bahnsen’s “The Undiscerning and Dangerous Appreciation of Ron Paul.” Continue Reading...
May 20, 2011

The West and the Rest

Over at the Comment site, I review Dambisa Moyo’s How the West was Lost: Fifty Years of Economic Folly—and the Stark Choices Ahead. In “War of the Worldviews,” I note that the strongest elements of Moyo’s work are related to her analysis of the causes and the trends of global economic power. Continue Reading...
May 19, 2011

Economic Recession and Charitable Giving

I’ve written a fair bit over recent months about trends in charitable giving and Christian tithing. One the latter point, I touched on the importance of tithing in my latest “On the Square” feature at the First Things site. Continue Reading...
May 16, 2011

A Fresh Look (and New Features) for the Acton PowerBlog

We’ve launched a redesigned Acton PowerBlog but there’s more to it than just a visual update.  You’ll find the following enhancements: A simpler look that seeks to better emphasize important features of the blog Convenient tab navigation on the right for frequently used items Increased real estate for blog posts like the one you’re reading Increased emphasis on social media including: New links near the top right and bottom of the page to Acton’s key social pages A live Facebook page stream on the right so you can see what’s happening without leaving the blog More “Like” and send buttons on front page blog posts (not just the first one) A new comment system that preserves all old comments while adding increased functionality A better subscribe page with more feed links and information The new comment system is probably the largest change after the redesign itself.  Continue Reading...
May 13, 2011

Subsidiarity, Funding, and the Arts

In today’s edition of Capital Commentary, HBU assistant professor of literature Micah Mattix explores the question, “How Might the Arts Be Funded?” He ably and briefly surveys the recent history of politics surrounding the NEA. Continue Reading...