If Alexei Navalany is willing to fight against Putin, in a society where Putin’s authoritarianism is much advanced, then we in America who are the fortunate & blessed heirs of a democratic tradition (where authoritarianism is yet only nascent) have no justification for reluctance to join our own fight. We’ll find those we can support, from among…
America
America, Authoritarianism, Labor, Liberty, Politics, Right-wing Populism, Trump
In a Principled Opposition, the Basis for a Grand Coalition
by JOHN ADAMS •
Writing at The Week, Jeff Spross nicely summarizes Why Trump’s Cabinet poses a unique threat to the working class. Spross both explains Trump perceptively & succinctly, and in the same post implicitly holds out the prospect of a grand coalition (principled liberals, conservatives, and libertarians) to oppose him. (For an explicit call for broad opposition, from…
America, Liberty, Politics
Evan McMullin’s Ten Points for Principled Opposition to Authoritarianism
by JOHN ADAMS •
On Twitter, conservative @Evan_McMullin lists ten principles for political opposition under a Trump Administration. Libertarians would do well to embrace, and live each day, all ten. McMullin’s ten tweets began on December 4th at 12:08 PM and concluded at 12:12 PM. (Points Six and Seven are especially important: it’s a grand coalition that we’ll need,…
America, City, Federal Government, Local Government, Politics
The National-Local Mix
by JOHN ADAMS •
America, City, Development, Economy, Free Markets
Small Towns in America Can Thrive
by JOHN ADAMS •
I posted recently about James Fallows’s Eleven Signs That a City Will Succeed. (See, from FW, James Fallows on ‘Eleven Signs a City Will Succeed’ (Part 1) and an assessment of those signs for Whitewater, James Fallows on ‘Eleven Signs a City Will Succeed’ (Part 2).) In the video below, James & Deborah Fallows talk…
America, Free Markets, Immigration, Labor
Immigration in America Is Not Broken
by JOHN ADAMS •
Immigration has proven to be one of the most divisive issues in the 2016 presidential race. Both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have expressed that the system is broken, but a consensus on any solution seems untenable. In this video, Atlantic national correspondent James Fallows and contributing writer Deborah Fallows ventured across the country to…
America, Immigration, Liberty
Americans Support a Diverse Society
by JOHN ADAMS •
From a March survey of several countries, America stands out as expecially supportive of a diverse society: I’m not a bit surprised: much of our unmatched greatness lies in our embrace of universal principles and cosmopolitan values, offering as they do a free & equal place for newcomers from the world over. (We are now…
America, Animals, Nature
Footage of the Only Documented Wild Jaguar Living in the U.S.
by JOHN ADAMS •
America, Food
USA ♥ Pizza
by JOHN ADAMS •
America, Nature, Wisconsin
Ten Amazing Natural Wonders in America
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Apostle Islands make the list –
America, Holiday
Happy Independence Day
by JOHN ADAMS •
An annual reading of the Declaration of Independence, with transcript below, from NPR — DAVID GREENE, HOST: And now we will celebrate Independence Day, as we do every year at MORNING EDITION, with our reading of the Declaration of Independence. (SOUNDBITE OF BELL) STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: (Reading) When, in the course of human events, it…
America, Holiday
Memorial Day 2015
by JOHN ADAMS •
ARLINGTON, Va. — Darrell Stafford inspected a freshly dug grave at Arlington National Cemetery recently and nodded. The burial plot, 5 feet by 10 feet, was ready for the coming ceremony. It was just one of 28 funerals that he would help oversee that day. During his 32 years at the cemetery, Mr. Stafford has…
America, Foreign Affairs, War
McCain on the CIA Torture Report
by JOHN ADAMS •
Goodness knows libertarians have had countless differences with Sen. John McCain, on domestic and foreign policy. We could have no disagreement, however, with his condemnation of the CIA’s use of torture for interrogation of America’s enemies. Our politics – including the acknowledgment of our own ethical failures -should be of the highest standards. To use…
America, History, Law, Liberty
Understanding America Backwards
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a longstanding maxim of liberty that Americans inherited from England: ‘those things not prohibited by law are permitted.’ The burden is on the state: if there’s no express ban under law, then a person is free to act. Since government has to enumerate restrictions if it wants to enforce them, a free society places…