“In an influential essay published in the euphoric year of 1989, the political scientist Francis Fukuyama proclaimed ‘the end of history.’ But it felt more like the resumption of history. Throughout four decades of nuclear brinkmanship, humanity had been living in fearful expectation, like Brutus in Julius Caesar: ‘Between the acting of a dreadful thing / And the first motion, all the interim is / Like a phantasma or a hideous dream.’ Now the doomsday weapons had been, if not abolished, at least holstered, and the passage of time could mean progress, rather than a countdown to annihilation. Somehow, things haven’t turned out that way. Young people today are no less obsessed with climate disasters than Gen X was with nuclear war. Where we had nightmares about missiles, theirs feature mass extinctions and climate refugees, wildfires and water wars. And that’s just the beginning.” (12/31/24)
“Early on in my introductory economics course I warn my students always to beware of various logical fallacies, none of which is more prone to sow confusion than the fallacy of composition. This fallacy is committed whenever someone concludes that that which is true for a part of the group is necessarily true for all of the group. The classic example is standing up in a stadium to get a better view of the game. If one or a small number of people stand up, these folks do indeed enjoy a better view. But obviously it’s mistaken to conclude that ‘therefore, if everyone stands up, everyone will get a better view.’ Protectionists commit the fallacy of composition whenever they point – as they incessantly do – to particular firms that get more sales, and to workers who keep particular jobs, as a result of tariffs and other trade restrictions.” (12/30/24)
“Fans of classical music often lament the modern implosion of the genre. We had the Baroque Period, usually dated from 1600-1750. We had the Classical Period, usually dated from 1750-1825. We had the Romantic Period, usually dated from 1825-1900. Ever since, we’ve been stuck in the Modern Period: 1901-present. When the characteristically atonal music of the Modern Period first appeared, many predicted that fans would eventually come to love it, but almost no one sincerely has. The only widely beloved post-1900 composers in the classical repertoire are Late Romantics like Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich. Since their heyday, classical fans periodically curse the stars: ‘How come no one continues to compose in the greatest of all musical genres?’ It’s true, I’ll grant, that over the last century, little notable music has been written in the genres of 1600-1825. The Romantic Era, however, is still going strong.” (12/30/24)
“An Auburn University study says every single regulator destroys fully 138 private sector jobs every year you keep him on the job. With nearly 300,000 federal regulators, the shock is that we still have any jobs at all.” (12/30/24)
Source: Law & Liberty
by Lee Levin & Matthew Schafer
“Last month, Carson Holloway argued in Law & Liberty’s forum on New York Times v. Sullivan that the Supreme Court ‘owes it to the nation’ to reconsider and ultimately overrule this defining First Amendment case. He has made this argument in Law & Liberty before. He is mistaken.” (12/30/24)
“A new foreign policy era has begun even before Donald Trump takes office. It will be quickly defined by how the president-elect deals with Moscow’s war on Ukraine. The post-Cold War era of America as sole superpower has evolved into a multipolar world where the U.S. confronts an alliance of autocracies that believe liberal democracy is a dying political system — even as many Americans have lost faith in their institutions. Joe Biden will be the last U.S. president who came of age under the idealistic aegis of John F. Kennedy’s, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.’ Trump, meanwhile, has given every signal that he finds the strongman system of governance far more appealing. That is why his pledge to end the war in Ukraine ‘within 24 hours’ will define the new era.” (12/30/24)
Source: Foundation of Economic Education
by Kerry McDonald
“It’s a tough time to be a boy in America. According to the American Institute for Boys and Men, boys on average start school academically behind girls and remain that way throughout their schooling. They graduate high school at lower rates than girls and, if they do graduate, are more likely to have grades in the bottom of the class than the top. If they go to college, which fewer of them now do, boys are less likely than girls to attain a degree. For many boys of color, these negative trends are even more pronounced. Additionally, the CDC reports that boys are nearly twice as likely as girls to be diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and are more often medicated for it. These unsettling outcomes for boys are prompting parents and educators to create innovative schooling solutions that enable all children, and especially boys, to thrive.” (12/30/24)
“Say what you will about incoming President Trump, but some bothersome facts are self-evident. He is an old man stuck in old thinking at a time when the world is changing with unprecedented speed. Many changes won’t wait another four years until voters have another chance to elect a modern president. The liabilities of old age were evident in President Biden as the 2024 election approached. Many voters considered it a reason to choose Trump. However, Trump has his own problems with age, including 20th-century views incompatible with 21st-century realities. … Trump’s appointments seem to equate wealth in business with competence in government. He is assembling the wealthiest Cabinet in presidential history, so far appointing 13 billionaires and an undetermined number of multi-millionaires to top jobs in his administration. Trump might argue that wealth is proof of talent, but success in capitalism is different than success in governance.” (12/30/24)
