Reflections on God … Man … Life
Thoughts on history and the historical profession. Clio is the muse of history–this category title is a play on that concept.
On the morning of September 11th, 2001, I was on my way to Patrick Henry College where I was a professor of history. Before arriving at the college, I stopped at a gas station. One of the other customers came up to me and informed me in a rather vague way that a plane had hit a building in New York City. I have to admit that didn’t sound all that bad to me—I assumed it was a small plane,… Read more »
Since it’s Labor Day, what better day to talk about one of the largest and most influential unions in the country—the National Education Association [NEA]. This also allows me to continue my intermittent history of American education. The NEA was founded in Philadelphia in 1857. The ostensible rationale for its creation was to provide a voice for all teachers in the nation to promote the interests of the profession. A statement from that initial meeting said it hoped to one… Read more »
I know a lot of American citizens were disturbed by President Obama’s absence on Memorial Day from the ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown in Arlington Cemetery. I’ve been there on a number of occasions, and it is meaningful to observe the changing of the guard. While I understand the dismay expressed by many, there are two reasons why I didn’t share it fully. First, Obama was going to another cemetery in Illinois, so he was marking the occasion;… Read more »
Yes, war is bad. Sometimes, though, not going to war is even worse. Would we really want a Hitler controlling all of Europe? If not for the Cold War, and Reagan putting the pressure on the Soviet Union, more of the world might have come into the Soviet orbit. The lesson is clear: It would be better if we could all agree on this. That agreement has been somewhat sporadic, however: We talk a lot about the national debt, but… Read more »
There was a time in the 20th century when it appeared that a president was setting up a virtual one-man/one-party rule. That time was the 1930s; the president was Franklin Roosevelt. He took office in the midst of the Great Depression and immediately began signing bill after bill to ostensibly take care of the disastrous economy. Many of the bills he signed had new agencies attached to them. They were called his Alphabet Agencies, and his New Deal marked a… Read more »
Let me clarify something today. I can almost hear some readers of this blog thinking, “He criticizes the president and Congress so much that he can’t really have any respect for the government.” The opposite is true. I have the highest regard for the federal government. This comes from a reading of the Constitution, the debates over its ratification, and the character of many of those who helped bring it to pass. I believe the form of government set up… Read more »
Let’s pause briefly for a recalibration of our thinking. We spend a lot of time contemplating what Congress is doing—new pieces of legislation, the strategies for passing them, etc. Stop and remember something: Congress was originally set up with very limited powers. The United States Constitution did not erect a tribunal that could legislate on any matter it deemed fit. In Article One, Section 4, we find the following wording: “The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year.”… Read more »