Friedrich Nietzsche observed, “it requires more genius to spend than to acquire"—making money being a question of diligence and cunning, wasting it a matter of taste. When the great philosopher wrote these words, he was actually concerned with the pervasiveness of the ascetic ideal among the capitalist elite: “The most industriousness of all ages—ours—does not know how
 to make anything of … [Read More]

The latest validation of James Burnham’s insight that “liberalism is the ideology of Western suicide” comes from the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams.  As the Daily Mail reported recently, Dr. Williams wrote an irenic letter to Moslem leaders in which he wrote that the doctrine of the Trinity “is difficult, sometimes offensive” to Moslems and in which he also apologized for … [Read More]

To watch the contortions over that New Yorker cover cartoon of the Obamas is to understand whom it is impermissible to offend in the America of 2008. The cartoon is a caricature of Michelle as an urban terrorist in an Angela Davis afro with an AK-47 slung over her back and a bandoleer of ammo in the Oval Office doing a … [Read More]

I’ve never been one for ruthless consistency. I learned young the fine art of emotional doublethink, from the experience of being at one and the same time: An orthodox Catholic who mentally assented to official Church teaching on sexuality, according to its 1917 formulation in the old Catholic Encyclopedia. A teenage boy. You needn’t read James Joyce to understand the game … [Read More]

Apparently some of my friends who identify themselves with the Right, that is to say, Scott McConnell and Justin Raimondo, have come to the aid of Time contributor and liberal media superstar Joe Klein. Recently Klein scolded the neoconservatives for having incited the war in Iraq and for their excessive Zionist zeal. Because of his stepping out of line, Klein has … [Read More]

Last week, the front pages of the world press blossomed with photos of four Iranian rockets, fired in salvo, heading skyward. The image was powerful, and the message reinforced by the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. Should Israel attack Iran, said Ali Shira, Tel Aviv will be “set on fire.” U.S. reaction was swift and bristling. “Rice Says U.S. Will … [Read More]

Kudos to Richard for nailing the hack agenda proposed by Ross Douthat and Reihan Salam in Grand New Party, and saving me $23.95 on something I would have hurled across the room. The authors’ ideas for reviving a “pro-family” social policy and buying the votes of the middle and working class with their own tax money sound at once unprincipled and … [Read More]

If we evaluate Sunday’s Ron Paul r3VOLution March according Kevin’s “Rules for Radicals,” then it comes out pretty well. “Rowdiness in moderation” must be some kind of conservative ideal, and the crowd didn’t disappoint, even if attendance (somewhere between 5000-10,000) might have been a bit less than some hoped. There was even a lollapoluzza element to the whole thing, which brought … [Read More]

Deterrence was profferred as a legitimate, noninterventionist solution to the problem of Iranian and other Third World nations’ nuclear weapons in the earlier discussion. Nuclear proliferation to the Third World in general is a problem because such countries are less likely to keep a tight hold on their nukes, rocked as they are by periodic coups, a culture of endemic bribery, … [Read More]