Month: January 2014

January 16, 2014

Acton University 2014 Speaker Spotlight: Judge Andrew P. Napolitano

The focus of Acton University is scholarship: the participants spend their days learning from a faculty that is wide-ranging, accomplished, and masters in their chosen fields. The Acton Institute is pleased that Judge Andrew Napolitano, currently a Fox News Senior Analyst, will be joining us to teach “Freedom of Conscience and the Constitution.” Continue Reading...
January 16, 2014

He Has a Pen, We Have a Constitution

On Tuesday, in his first cabinet meeting of the year, President Obama indicated he is prepared to use executive actions more frequently to advance administration goals. “We are not just going to be waiting for legislation in order to make sure that we are providing Americans the kind of help that they need. Continue Reading...
January 16, 2014

The Acton University Experience: ‘Touched My Very Soul’

Over the next few weeks, the PowerBlog will be featuring people who have attended Acton University and their experiences, via podcasts. By hearing how Acton University has affected a variety of people in so many ways, we hope to encourage those who’ve never been to Acton University to consider registering for AU 2014. Continue Reading...
January 15, 2014

Hoisting the Black Flag

H.L. Mencken once said, “Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin to slit throats.” Over at Political Theology Today, I take a look at what a confrontation between a pirate and Alexander the Great has to teach us about politics and proximate justice, taking some cues from Augustine and Cicero, and in conversation with John Mueller and Peter Leeson. Continue Reading...
January 15, 2014

What the Oregon Medicaid Study Tells Us About Big Government

If a large Oregon study is any indication, says Jonathan Witt in this week’s Acton Commentary, the Affordable Care Act may drive up frivolous emergency room visits and do little to improve people’s physical or economic health: In essence, the healthcare industry becomes the enabler in a lucrative game in which patients put off needed lifestyle reform, opting instead for prescription pills, surgeries and conversations about “genetic predispositions.” Continue Reading...
January 15, 2014

The Seen and Unseen Effects of the Minimum Wage

Given the recent and wide-ranging discussion here on the PowerBlog surrounding the the minimum wage (Hunter Baker, Joe Carter, Jordan Ballor, Elise Hilton, yours truly), this short little video offers a nice overview of the seen and unseen effects of such an instrument. Continue Reading...
January 15, 2014

Senator Rubio’s Poverty Speech Muddled

A recent speech by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio laid out what his press office terms “Conservative Reforms for Combating Poverty.” It began well and had a nice line or two emphasizing the role family breakdown plays in perpetuating generational poverty, but then it went all technocratic and wobbly. Continue Reading...
January 14, 2014

Explainer: What is Net Neutrality?

In a ruling that has significant implications for the future of the Internet, an appeals court has ruled that the FCC cannot impose so-called “net neutrality rules.” What exactly is net neutrality? Continue Reading...
January 14, 2014

Four Christian Traditions on Faith, Work, and Economics

Through Christian’s Library Press, the Acton Institute has published four tradition-specific primers on faith, work, and economics, including Wesleyan, Pentecostal, Baptist, and Reformed perspectives. In a new video filmed by the Oikonomia Network, three contributors to the series discuss their respective approaches, examining a variety of commonalities and distinctions along the way. Continue Reading...