tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109412282009-10-15T21:37:37.038-04:00Liberty doesn’t start with limited government and individual rights – these are the product of a specific cultural evolution having its genesis in Ancient Greece and reaching the summit of philosophical maturity in the Anglo-American Enlightenment. Today civilization is weakened by a cultural disintegration and threatened by theocratic barbarians. Only a rational reality-based philosophy can secure liberty on a proper foundation.Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.comBlogger346125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-86775264591191610712009-01-26T21:06:00.013-05:002009-03-05T08:49:53.601-05:00

Geert Wilders, an outspoken critic of Islam, is facing criminal charges by the Dutch government for expressing his opinion. We must come to the aid of this great patriot. We owe it to Geert, to Holland, and to ourselves.Holland was once the home to liberty's founders and defenders. In the 17th century Hugo Grotius advocated religious tolerance and natural law. Holland gave haven to Spinoza’s

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-1146875935162453632008-10-06T15:40:00.002-04:002008-10-06T17:00:57.441-04:00

Prior to the United States constitution each state was essentially a nation unto itself. Most state governments were overwhelmingly dominated by the legislature. Democracy was unrestrained or if the state constitution had a bill of rights is was what Madison called a “parchment barrier” that was easily ignored when inconvenient. The will of the people was unfettered and impassioned.In New England

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-44878849602321303542008-09-29T21:54:00.013-04:002008-10-02T10:49:49.374-04:00

Sometimes others just say it better:Dick Armey on voting no to the bailout.Thomas Sowell on bailout politicians.Alex Epstein on bailouts without reform.Robert Bidinotto on the bailout and the crisis.Martin Masse on the bailout as socialism.Yaron Brook: stop the bailouts.Edward Cline on the history of bailouts, etc.Jeff Perren comments on several aspects of the problem.John Allison against helping

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-40384734741723764492008-09-11T01:39:00.000-04:002008-09-11T09:17:40.637-04:00

One the seventh anniversary of 9/11 I have to sadly report that this day will not live in infamy—not if today’s historians are any indication. Historians will one day argue that we brought death and destruction to Afghanistan and Pakistan for dishonorable reasons. There will be no reference to the WTC attack or the 3000 deaths.Hard to imagine?This past weekend, PBS presented a biography of the

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-84877992115416430962008-08-13T09:41:00.006-04:002008-08-20T10:24:45.079-04:00

I have finished my review of the conflict with aboriginal Americans during the first 50 years of our nation’s history. This history is lost and buried; it has been obscured by contemporary multi-cultural sensibilities. Nevertheless, I have endeavored to extract this history from a combination of contemporary and classic secondary histories of the period because I’ve found no one source that does

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-66883936275035731212008-06-30T20:31:00.001-04:002008-08-20T10:14:50.833-04:00

At our country’s founding, the most pressing military problem facing the first administration of our “more prefect union” was not the imperialistic Europeans across the ocean but the aboriginal tribes forming the Indian nations west of the Appalachians. Henry Knox, our first Secretary of War, was the major architect of our Indian policy. In which was to be considered a controversial policy, he

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-948855507402961672008-06-29T06:35:00.002-04:002008-08-20T10:16:37.620-04:00

Two hundred years ago we responded to savage attacks on civilization in a very different way. It is worth looking at the war on terrorism during the early days of our republic and the nation's response to the 9/11 of its day. Below I describe the Fort Mims Massacre and our immediate response. I'll continue to describe the changes in policy that followed in future articles.

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-13731821685764925942008-06-28T15:39:00.000-04:002008-08-20T10:14:02.899-04:00

When Andrew Jackson arrived in Nashville in October of 1788 it was a frontier town with a few stores, several taverns, two churches and a distillery. Warring among Creeks, Shawnee, and Choctaws, had left this fertile land uninhabited until arrival of settlers a decade before. Now a small town of a few hundred inhabitants it was continually terrorized by Indians. The settlements “lost a man, woman

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-51697957619852313062008-06-27T23:01:00.001-04:002009-04-06T11:54:40.219-04:00

To understand Andrew Jackson’s Indian policy it is necessary to understand his view of the proper role of the federal government, the constitution, and the rights of the states. Jackson’s self-proclaimed political philosophy was anti-federalist in the tradition of Thomas Jefferson. He was a strict constitutionalist, as the term is currently used. He was an ardent defender of the Union as the only

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-2319813849941324282008-06-25T22:59:00.000-04:002008-08-20T10:09:18.427-04:00

Jackson’s life spanned the early years of our nation's history from a loose association of rebellious colonies that hugged the Atlantic coast, to the emergence of a major continental power about to extend its reach to the Pacific. He lived to see the election of James Polk (“Young Hickory”) but not Polk's incorporation of Oregon, California, and the vast South West. Physically the nation matured

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-84055790530583969692008-06-24T07:50:00.000-04:002008-08-20T10:10:19.590-04:00

Washington and Jackson viewed westward expansion as necessary to the growth of the country. Both knew the frontier firsthand where the expansion of civilization was challenged by the savagery of the aboriginal inhabitants. When Washington was President and Jackson a young man the frontier lay beyond the Allegany and included the western parts of the great states of Pennsylvania, Virginia, North

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-20599897192412379462008-06-23T23:13:00.007-04:002008-08-20T10:10:58.547-04:00

Jackson’s racked-up victory after victory: Talladega, Horseshoe Bend, Pensacola, Mobile, and finally New Orleans in 1815, where the spectacular defeat of the British is a legendary triumph in American military history. Even though it technically occurred after the Treaty of Ghent, it was a morale boost for the nation and career boost for Jackson.With hindsight, one can argue that the War of 1812,

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-90172473661451143172008-06-01T09:08:00.000-04:002008-08-20T10:05:53.566-04:00

The plight of the Indians in the first third of the 19th century is captured by an astute foreign observer during his study of American culture. Alexis de Tocqueville has an extensive description in chapter 18 of book 1 of his monumental study “Democracy in America.” It is worth considering his description as it differs completely from the highly politicized narratives of the last thirty years.De

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-2793848896506215122008-04-30T10:14:00.002-04:002008-05-13T11:34:44.393-04:00

Codevilla has written another thought provoking essay on our war policy that goes beyond the standard boilerplate posturing of mainstream politicians. He’s a critic of our policy of nations-building and the on-going occupation of Iraq. “Because the U.S. government's occupation of Iraq violated the principles of statecraft, America is on the verge of losing a crucial round in that long war.” To

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-4469227546047680372008-03-31T07:01:00.014-04:002008-04-01T22:27:45.047-04:00

Freedom of speech is under assault. First and foremost is the threat to Wafa Sultan (hat/tip AOW). Like Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Geert Wilders, she is a vocal critic of Islam. Very few step forward to speak the truth; few of us become public figures. The blessings of liberty that we, as listeners and readers require if the truth is to prevail, can only be as secured by protecting the few brave souls

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-80143350805139691952008-03-16T17:41:00.005-04:002008-03-16T19:25:44.847-04:00

In the aftermath of the dissolution of the First Bank of the United States the individual states continued to charter and regulate banks. Paul Johnson writes [P285]: “Each state bank was allowed by the state legislature to issue bills up to three times its capital … literally a license to print money. During the War of 1812 America was awash with suspect $2 and $5 bills … Such gold as there was

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-65027113432270322892008-03-07T23:32:00.005-05:002008-03-08T00:03:18.730-05:00

Muslim and ex-Muslim women are in the forefront of exposing the threat of Islam. Ayaan Hirsi Ali is one notable example. Wafa Sultan is another courageous woman speaking out against injustice.Defending those who criticize Islam in the West, she says:“Any belief that chops off the heads of its critics is doomed to turn into terrorism and tyranny. This has been the condition of Islam, from its

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-65437019052058011922008-03-04T22:30:00.006-05:002008-03-05T10:51:52.804-05:00

From the New York Times:"After almost five years of war, many young people in Iraq, exhausted by constant firsthand exposure to the violence of religious extremism, say they have grown disillusioned with religious leaders and skeptical of the faith that they preach.'I hate Islam and all the clerics because they limit our freedom every day and their instruction became heavy over us,' said Sara, a

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-5322666843436943022008-02-25T22:41:00.001-05:002008-02-25T23:25:06.626-05:00

Upset with the trailors for a film on Islam by the Dutch politician and filmaker, Geert Wilders, Pakistan disrupts YouTube worldwide. From AP:"On Friday, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority ordered 70 Internet service providers to block access to YouTube.com, because of anti-Islamic movies on the video-sharing site, which is owned by Google Inc.The authority did not specify what the

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-69227272000527653762008-02-23T11:38:00.004-05:002008-02-23T11:50:19.454-05:00

Diana West: (Hat Tip: Nicholas Provenzo )"Writing in the Winter 2007-08 issue of the Objective Standard, John David Lewis offers an illuminating analysis of another U.S. occupation, this one thoroughly successful, in Japan (1945-1952). President Bush, of course, frequently refers to the democratization of Japan as a model for the democratization of Iraq (and the wider Islamic Middle East). But,

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-4658018098557888622008-02-01T10:57:00.000-05:002008-02-01T11:02:26.817-05:00

Andrew Klavan reminds us of the days when Hollywood was patriotic and what it has become today. From Libertas: Our Founding redefined nationhood along social-contract lines that Europeans can still only theorize about. Our love of nation at its best was ethical, not ethnic. Our patriotism was loyalty not to race, or even to tradition, but to ideals of individual liberty and republican

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com73tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-46924145331251032352008-01-12T11:46:00.001-05:002008-03-04T22:18:13.498-05:00

Are we a slave to our culture? Is our culture fixed? Are our cultural virtues and values right for us and only us? Is there no objective right and wrong inherent in human nature?These questions were debated in Athens during the 4th century BC. The Greeks were aware that other cultures had different values. They asked what is true by nature and what is true by convention? The Sophists argued it is

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com52tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-65683963334136554682008-01-08T12:35:00.000-05:002008-01-09T11:10:01.590-05:00

Ayaan Hirsi Ali takes on Lee Harris and wins in the first round. In a new book Harris examines the West and declares that its main problem is its reliance on reason. Harris gives his reasons in a recent article on the conservative website, TCS Daily. Harris’ final paragraph sums it up: “In a world that absurdly overrates the advantage of sheer brain power, no one wants to be seen as a member

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-92158430181846697212008-01-04T13:54:00.000-05:002008-01-04T13:58:51.409-05:00

Socialism is often described as a religion that replaces God with society. Socialism is passé; in concentrated form it has led to the deaths of over 150 million. Besides, socialism, as the word suggests, is too people-focused for the adherents of the newest form of transcendental experience. John Baden explains it here: “All religions have a litany and the Greens have theirs. We are sinners

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10941228.post-80278850818875409882007-12-13T16:19:00.000-05:002007-12-13T16:36:53.556-05:00

Anthropologist Philip Carl Salzman analyzes Islam by examining its origin. He shows many of the cultural conditions that influenced the formation of this religious political ideology are still operative today. These include tribalism and its distinctive honor dynamics; conquests, domination, and the need to humiliate; warmongering and seeking validation in military victory. For example: “Only

Jason_Pappashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18233796281520274898noreply@blogger.com36