Acton Institute Powerblog Archives

Post Tagged 'united states'

July 17, 2013

‘Freedom … doesn’t just settle in your lap’

Dr. Ben Carson, the neurosurgeon who made a splash at the last Prayer Breakfast at the White House, will now be writing a weekly column at The Washington Post. Carson has retired from his position as head of pediatric surgery at John Hopkins Hospital, and is now interested in speaking out on issues affecting American life. Continue Reading...
July 03, 2013

Associations and Asceticism

Today at Ethika Politika, I offer an Independence Day reflection on the relation between political liberty, the associations of civil society, and the ascetic spirit necessary to maintain them: Yet if these associations and their societal benefit are in decline, how can we prevent that “soft despotism” Tocqueville so vividly and presciently described? Continue Reading...
June 13, 2013

Virginia Power Company Prudently Rejects Renewable Mandate Resolution

One of the greatest benefits of living in the United States is our access to plentiful, affordable domestic energy. These benefits extend to the nation’s poor who enjoy an unprecedented wealth of heat in the winter and air conditioning in the summer, plentiful light in the evening hours and electronic devices that power up at the press of a button. Continue Reading...
May 24, 2013

Corruption, Repentance, and Restoration in a Time of Scandal

Ray Pennings recently wrote a thoughtful reflection at The Cardus Daily on the recent surge in (exposed) political scandals, Canadian and American. He bemoans that “the current version of democracy isn’t looking all that attractive right now,” writing, It is discouraging to read stories regarding blatant ethical questions involving the President of the United States, Prime Minister of Canada, the Canadian Leader of the Opposition and the Mayor of Canada’s largest city on the same day. Continue Reading...
May 23, 2013

America: Current Threats To Your Religious Liberty

As part of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) “Fortnight For Freedom” campaign, the USCCB has enumerated a number of threats to Americans’ religious liberty. Besides the on-going battle with the Obama Administration regarding the HHS mandate and the gutting of funding to Catholic programs that fight human trafficking, the bishops want us to be aware of these perils to religious liberty: Catholic foster care and adoption services. Continue Reading...
May 15, 2013

Free primary education is a fundamental good. Isn’t it?

Private schools are for the privileged and those willing to pay high costs for education; everyone else attends public school or seeks alternate options: this is the accepted wisdom. In the United States, the vast majority of students at the primary and secondary level attend public school, funded by the government. Continue Reading...
April 22, 2013

Christian Scholarship and the Crisis of the University

This past weekend, I had the privilege to attend and present a paper at the 2013 Kuyper Center for Public Theology conference at Princeton Seminary. The conference was on the subject of “Church and Academy” and focused not only on the relationship between the institutions of the Church and the university, but also on questions such as whether theology still has a place in the academy and what place that might be. Continue Reading...
March 20, 2013

Women of Liberty: Clare Booth Luce

(March is Women’s History Month. Acton will be highlighting a number of women who have contributed significantly to the issue of liberty during this month.) Clare Booth Luce was a woman of the 20th century: a suffragette, well-educated, a career woman, intensely loyal to her country. Continue Reading...