In a society where honor rules, the craftsman has a special place. He is not a person who makes things mechanically without skills or thought. Rather he is an expert who develops sophisticated skills that communicate an artistic element to that which is produced. What makes a craftsman? Richard Sennett writes that the standard measure … Read more
A return to order means a return to our roots. As a native Kansan, my recent book tour in the state represented something of this return. The late September weekend visit represented a homecoming of sorts since it served to help recall examples of many of the topics discussed in the book, Return to Order. … Read more
The Navy Yard shootings has reignited the controversy over guns in society. Once again, people are pondering over what went wrong. Many have asked why the behavior of this shooter and others has failed to raise red flags that might have alerted authorities and prevented the tragedies. The shooting incidents should indeed raise red flags … Read more
There is often the misconception that the medieval peasant had hardly any land upon which to make a living. Such a perception runs counter to the truth. The actual size of his holdings was rather large especially for the time. Author P. Boissonade notes that these holdings varied according to the fertility of the land. He … Read more
The book, Return to Order, describes how economy should not only satisfy physical needs, but also spiritual needs such as our appetite for beauty. In this way, both body and soul are satisfied. In addition, society as a whole benefits and culture develops. Thus, beauty and utility are complementary qualities in an economy. When goods … Read more
TFP Student Action volunteers began the morning of Monday September 16 with the usual preparations for departure, assuring all materials were in place for a day of promoting Return to Order by John Horvat II at George Washington University in the nation’s capital. However, several factors assured it would be no ordinary day of campaigning … Read more
Jerome Gilmartin interviews John Horvat on JMJ Catholic Radio 750AM in Scranton, Penn. about his book Return to Order. Divided into four parts for a total of two hours it was broadcast over the following weeks. Please Click the Links below for each segment. The audio file will open using Windows Media Player on your … Read more
In our socialistic society, the trend is to punish those who lead and provide for society by subjecting their efforts to excessive regulation or taxes. At the same time, our egalitarian culture tends to discourage natural leaders by presenting unrepresentative characters as role models. Finally communities are decreasingly able to identify and support natural local … Read more
Facebook is a poster child of our postmodern economy. It is one of those “fun” companies that breaks all the rules, smashes traditional hierarchies and lets its employees exercise their creativity without all the restrictions of times past. And it seems to work fabulously. With interns reportedly earning as much $74,000 a year and many … Read more
The debate over what’s really wrong with our economy seems irreconcilably divided into two camps. On one side you have those who claim everything will be all right if we could just get big government out of our economy. On the other side, the Paul Krugmans of the world are shouting all the louder: get … Read more
