Latest Posts

August 20, 2019

Bishop Robert Barron explains Marxism in 21 minutes

Despite Marxism’s growing popularity among young people, church authorities spend little time discussing the topic – and when they do, they often speak in a misleading way. Thankfully, Bishop Robert Barron, the auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, addressed the topic at length last week. Continue Reading...
August 20, 2019

Understanding the words we use

Today, we face a prevalent problem when making arguments about trending topics. Words such as capitalism, socialism, conservative, liberal and other broad categorical terms all have a wide range of meanings and emotions attached to them. Continue Reading...
August 20, 2019

Free marketers should take social conservatives’ concerns more seriously

It’s no secret that major rifts have opened up between advocates of free markets and social conservatives in recent years. As someone who (1) ascribes to what would be conventionally called socially conservative views (though I think they’re more accurately called the insights of natural law and right reason) and (2) regards a free market economy as the most prudent set of economic arrangements for individuals, communities, and nations, I find myself constantly exposed to these debates. Continue Reading...
August 19, 2019

Will the Vatican’s economics drive Matteo Salvini to victory?

Italy’s coalition government seems ready to break apart, with Matteo Salvini of the League (who is seen as the country’s real leader) calling for new elections to force the Five Star Movement out of his alliance and Five Star trying to form a new coalition with the Democratic Party in order to oust Salvini. Continue Reading...
August 19, 2019

Has the purpose of corporations changed?

In his influential 1962 book Capitalism and Freedom economist Milton Friedman promoted the position of shareholder primacy by declaring that a corporation has no real “social responsibility” to the public, since its only concern is to increase profits for the shareholders. Continue Reading...
August 16, 2019

Before economics, human freedom: Learning from Venezuela’s collapse

The Venezuelan people continue to struggle and suffer under the weight of severe socialist policies, facing economic collapse, widespread poverty, and mass starvation. In response, socialism’s critics are quick to focus on the external features, noting how all of this could have been easily avoided with a basic respect for property rights, free exchange, free prices, and so on. Continue Reading...
August 16, 2019

Common grace and natural law

It has been a topic of much dispute in the last century or so of Protestant theology, but the status of natural law, and particularly its connection with the doctrine of common grace, continues to be of significance. Continue Reading...