February 22 will mark the 35th anniversary of the upset victory by the U.S. hockey team over their heavily favored Soviet rivals in the 1980 Winter Olympics. Ever since known as the “Miracle on Ice,” Sports Illustrated named this game “the greatest … Continue reading
American History & Presidents
Reflections on American History: The Somber Anniversary of Roe v. Wade
On January 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court legalized abortion in the historic case of Roe v. Wade. Last weekend, Dr. Paul Kengor was the keynote speaker at the 37th annual People for Life Breakfast in Erie (click here and here for news coverage). During his … Continue reading
V&V Flashback – Thankful for a Fourth Grade Play
Editor’s note: This article was first published by the Center for Vision & Values on November 24, 2004. Did you ever learn anything profound from a fourth grade play? I did yesterday. I took an hour off of work to … Continue reading
STREAMING VIDEO – 2014 – James Madison and Our First Duty
Martin Luther King and the Berlin Wall
Editor’s note: This article first appeared at The Washington Post When we think of Martin Luther King Jr.’s great speeches, we don’t think of Berlin. And when we think of great American speeches in Berlin, we think of John F. … Continue reading
The Mid-Term Election: Is Obama Still Relevant?
Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at Fox News. “Today I had a chance to speak with John Boehner and congratulated Mitch McConnell on becoming the next Senate majority leader,” said Barack Obama in the opening of … Continue reading
“The Great and Holy War:” How World War I Became a Religious Crusade and Reshaped the Religious Landscape
Historian Fritz Stern once remarked that the Great War was the “first calamity of the 20th century, the calamity from which all other calamities sprang.” On the centenary of World War I there is an overwhelming sensation of futility in … Continue reading
A President Who Doesn’t Seek Advice?
The Government Accountability Institute reports that President Obama continues to skip the majority of his Presidential Daily Briefings. This is a stunning fact, first reported two years ago and now updated and reconfirmed. Worse, it was also just reported that … Continue reading
A Free-Market Economist’s Take on Ken Burns’ “The Roosevelts”
By now, you’ve probably seen or heard about Ken Burns’ 14-hour documentary on the three most famous Roosevelts: Theodore, Franklin, and Eleanor. I have to confess that I almost didn’t watch it. There were two reasons for my reluctance. First, I am … Continue reading
The Scandal Continues: President Obama’s Skipped Intelligence Briefings
Two years ago, I wrote about a scandalous presidential reality. I’d say I’m shocked to report that the scandal continues, but I’m not. And that’s even more scandalous. In October 2012, I commented on the revelation that President Obama had been absent … Continue reading
James Madison and Our First Duty – by Dr. Colleen Sheehan
Editor’s note: Colleen Sheehan, professor of politics and director of the Ryan Center for the Study of Free Institutions and the Public Good at Villanova University, spoke at our September 23, 2014, American Founders Luncheon in Pittsburgh. Many people requested … Continue reading
Designing history: The identity of the 21st century
Our primary focus in December of 1999 was Y2K. Would the computer systems handle the millennial change? Might we suffer from serious computer snafus? In the midst of the Y2K hype, we knew, though sometimes forgot, that the year 2000 … Continue reading
A high school curriculum that teaches the truth about communism…. A Q&A with Dr. Paul Kengor
Vision & Values: Dr. Paul Kengor, you recently completed a curriculum that teaches high school students about communism—that is, an accurate portrayal of communism. Tell us about it. Kengor: The curriculum is titled, “Communism: Its Ideology, Its History, Its Legacy,” … Continue reading
Dealing with barbarism: V-J Day and beyond
On September 2, 1945, V-J Day, the funeral-like solemnity of the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri was shattered by the thunder of 400 B-29 bombers flying overhead, accompanied by an additional 1,500 carrier aircraft. In a bay packed with … Continue reading
The Obama economic record: the worst five years since World War II
Editor’s note: This article first appeared The Daily Caller. In spite of the claims by President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisors regarding his administration’s economic accomplishments, the U.S. economy has grown very slowly in the years since the Great Recession … Continue reading
The Great War at 100: Revisiting The Guns Of August
On August 3, 1914, British Foreign Secretary Edward Grey gave a speech before Parliament that “proved to be one of those junctures by which people afterward date events,” according to Barbara Tuchman in her magisterial “The Guns of August.” The … Continue reading
KAL 007 and MH17 … A Presidential Response
Editor’s note: A longer version of this article first appeared at The American Spectator. This generation has its KAL 007. The stunning downing of Malaysian flight 17 is strikingly similar to the shock of September 1, 1983, when the Russians … Continue reading
STREAMING VIDEO – 2014 – Economic Freedom in the Early American Tradition: The Economic Thought of the Founders
President Obama’s Environmental Purity Agency
The rollout of the Environmental Protection Agency’s new draft regulation to limit greenhouse gases was accompanied by a brilliant political cartoon that showed a pair of hapless fellows with automobile mufflers protruding from their mouths, apparently to prevent any renegade … Continue reading
A Decent Respect: Renewing the Spirit of ‘76
July 4, 1776 gave birth to perhaps the most revolutionary political document in the history of civilization, submitted by men who proclaimed, “with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, … Continue reading