A review of Becoming Europe: Economic Decline, Culture, and How America Can Avoid a European Future by Samuel Gregg (New York: Encounter Books, 2013) * * * It is not often that one finds refreshing nuance in books dealing with economy. Economics is not supposed to be about nuance. It usually presents itself in the … Read more
Among the questions and commentaries that have come in the mail about the book, Return to Order, there were some very excellent questions by a very kind lady. It occurred to me that others might have the same questions and so I would like to reply. Her questions could be summarized in the following manner: … Read more
Has fast food, as some claim, “industrialized” eating?
The day after the 40th annual March for Life, the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP) held a special event at its Washington Bureau to introduce its new book on the economic crisis and Christian organic solutions. With standing room only, guests crowded the small auditorium for the event. The … Read more
Many people point to social media as an expansion of human relationships. Indeed, it is true that the number of personal contacts is often greater but the quality of relationships is also very important. Richard Stivers notes: “The more time individuals spent online, the more they experienced loneliness and depression. Increased Internet use obviously results … Read more
When economy becomes frenzied and intemperate, the warm human bonds that are so essential for trust and security are replaced by cold mechanical links. There is, for example, a difference between a family doctor and a provider of health services. Mutual fund owner John Bogle notes the change in these relationships in his field. He … Read more
One of the justifications for overuse of communication technology is that it saves time and increases contacts with others. Ever faster and efficient machines supposedly produce more possibilities to connect in less time, thus leaving more time for leisure. However, this rationale does not always ring true. New phones and gadgets only encourage greater speed … Read more
Bogle claims such practices may help Wall Street brokers but clearly hurt investors who would be better off to hold stocks for the long term and avoid transfer fees. Now, the tendency is to flit from one stock to another in the hope of hitting the jackpot. This “rent-a-stock” mentality can be seen in the … Read more
Everyone can agree that the horrific massacre of innocent grade-school children in Newtown, Conn. was truly monstrous. It was an event that defies the imagination to conceive how someone might do something so cruel and inhuman. Worse yet, this is not an isolated incident. Similar cases are occurring with greater frequency, prompting many to ask … Read more
Perhaps the best way to describe an organic Christian society is to take an example of a society from the past, which existed in the Christendom of old. In that society the most vibrant of all the elements was the family. Indeed, although the State and other lower social groups are born from the very … Read more
