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Author Archive

Classical Liberalism Is All in Our Heads? Responding to Paul Harvey on Race »

In the current issue of Books & Culture, Professor Paul Harvey (not to be confused with the late radio icon) takes aim at my “imagined” (read: invented) tradition of classical liberalism on race. You can read his full review here.
Harvey concedes that Race and Liberty in America rediscovers “understudied authors.” Then he quickly moves on [...]

Student Blogs: Speaking Truth to Pooh-bahs »

In a previous post, I noted how military bloggers are writing the “first pages of history.” Likewise, student bloggers are offering a place to speak out against the abuses on their campuses: from official racial segregation (in the name of Diversity) to expulsion for being pro-life and much more.
During the 1990s, many upscale universities had [...]

Sisyphus and Higher Education »

Those of us laboring for academic reform often feel like Sisyphus, rolling a rock up the hill only to have it come crashing down again. The gods of academe seem to have condemned higher education to inevitable decay.
That thought came to me as I read about the demise of an institute (at Hamilton College) that [...]

Rush Limbaugh and the Race Hustle »

In a recent op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, Rush Limbaugh defends his record (“I am not a racist”) and further points out the double standard allowing left-liberals off the hook for statements that are clearly racist.
Limbaugh’s defense highlights several problems for libertarians and conservatives:
First, playing defense 24/7 is no way to move forward. It [...]

Will Layoffs be based on Diversity? »

In recent weeks, the USA Today and National Public Radio have crowed that this recession is different: most of  those losing jobs were men (and predominantly white). This is “encouraging” according to these news outlets.
Why is it good? Because a majority of the workforce is now made up of women; and blacks have not been [...]

“I am Woman”: Sharia is OK with Me »

Surprise, surprise: multicultural dogma and concern for “the Other” have seeped from college campuses to the highest corridors of power (again).
To wit: The first veiled female appointee in the White House, Dalia Mogahed, member of the Presidential Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Mogahed recently appeared on an Islamic television show in the UK [...]

What Jimmy Carter Doesn’t Know »

[Crosspost from commentary section: http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=2623 ]
When Barack Obama dumped Rev. Jeremiah Wright during the presidential campaign, he explained that the Reverend was a man lost in another time, when hard-core white racism required hypersensitivity to issues of race.
Likewise, former President Jimmy Carter seems lost in the hypersensitive radicalism of the late 1960s. In controversial remarks, the [...]

Freedom from Fear: Crime and the Diversity Hustle »

By now, most Americans have watched the newscast on the brutal killing of Chicago honors student Derrion Albert.
FDR made “freedom from fear” one of his Four Freedoms. Many Chicago students flee to my rural university to secure “freedom from fear.” They escape gang violence and the prospect of ending up in jail. They are the [...]

Sexual Harassment Procedures: The Orwellian Nightmare »

Everyone knows the famous Miranda decision requiring the accused to be informed of their rights. This decision became one of the keystones of modern liberal due process. If the accused is not informed of their rights, a police state may run rough shod over those alleged to have committed crimes.

Forget Miranda and all that “innocent before guilty” nonsense. Welcome to the wonderful new world of “Sexual Harassment Procedures” . . . .

The irony is rich: our campus, like so many others, has witnessed criticism of George W. Bush, the Patriot Act, Guantanamo Bay procedures on the grounds that due process is lacking and the government shields itself from scrutiny. Yet here we are with procedures that bear an eerie resemblance to the Bush-era action.

Military Blogs: The First Pages of History »

As an instructor of online history courses, I have many students overseas (Afghanistan, Kosovo, Iraq, Saudi Arabia). The Internet connects them to me (and to the rest of us). The stories I could relate are fascinating and make teaching online courses all the more rewarding. Moreover, as an instructor I know that I’m helping those who [...]