Prior to the publication of John Maynard Keynes’ The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money, balanced budgets reflected the received wisdom for governments. By making the case for debt spending in times of recession (and the virtually ignored case for restricting spending in times of growth), Keynes gave political leaders a license to abandon the requirement of balance. Now, they could spend beyond their means and still claim to be responsible. Declining purchasing power over time attests to the...

In a new blockbuster film, director Christopher Nolan faithfully captures for the big screen the frantic chaos and desperation of the Allied forces at Dunkirk in 1940. It is another vivid reminder that, as so many throughout history have reminded us, “War is hell.” Those who know their history understand that on the French beaches of the Strait of Dover, the Allied forces are thrown once again into another world conflict, this time to protect Western freedom and its democratic...

This week on Radio Free Acton, we talk with Jim McGann (senior lecturer of International Studies at the Lauder Institute, director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program and senior fellow, Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania) about the world of think tanks – what they are, what they do well, and where they can improve their effectiveness. Then RFA Chief Cultural Correspondent Bruce Edward Walker joins the show to lead a discussion on the latest...

It has e passe to accuse defenders of the free market of selfishness and atomization. Even Pope Francis recently denounced “libertarian individualism.”But Mihail Neamtu, in a new essay for Religion & Liberty Transatlantic,argues that open markets rely on one specific virtue, best exemplified by fathers and entrepreneurs, which requires them to care for others: Over nearly half a century, secular academia, pop culture, and the managerial welfare State have undermined an important moral quality of the West: individual responsibility, rooted...

In April, the Trump administration provided a broad outline of proposed reforms, including simplifying tax brackets, eliminating the marriage penalty, and creating child care deductions. The National Catholic Register recently published an article on the reforms, focusing on its effect on the family. Rev. Robert Sirico, co-founder and president of the Acton Institute, provided his thoughts on Trump’s plan: “A refundable tax credit, instead of a direct subsidy from the government, is more in line with the principle of subsidiarity,”...

“Socialism,” said Richard John Neuhaus, “is the religion people get when they lose their religion.” While that might have been true in Neuhaus’s day, many young Christians are now attempting to have their faith and socialism too. I never got the opportunity to meet Fr. Neuhaus. He died in January 2009, two months before I started working as the web editor at the magazine he founded, First Things. I suspect, though, that the staunch advocate of democratic capitalism would be...

For the past decade, Catholic education has been on the decline. Data from the 2016-2017 National Catholic Education Association Report shows that since 2006, the number of Catholic schools has decreased by 14 percent and the number of students attending Catholic school has decreased by 17.6 percent. Perhaps Teach for Christ can help reverse this trend. The name may ring a bell, as it bears resemblance to the existing program Teach for America. However, Teach for Christ, which will be...

“If you were to read Dorothy Sayers’ The Lost Tools of Learning and thereafter read the curriculum of Veritas Classical Academy,” says Elizabeth Yeh in this week’s Acton Commentary, “you would find that the “lost tools” have been found in the small town of Marietta, Ohio.” The curriculum at Veritas is based on the Trivium. In her book, novelist and essayist Sayers explains that the genius of the Trivium is that it coincides with the natural stages of a child’s...

This is the third part in a series on how to read Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. Read theintroduction and follow the entire series here. Prior to delving into the text of Alexis Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, it behooves us to get some historical context so that we can understand his observations, analyses, and conclusions. Context also helps us grasp the significance of Tocqueville’s project, allowing us to see through his eyes. Think about historical context like you might...

An unusual debate – over chlorinated chickens, of all things – is showing how Brexit and free markets can lead the UK and the developing world to greater flourishing. The debate has been brewing for years. In the United States, chickens are decontaminated with chlorine. The EU banned spraying or washing poultry with chlorine in 1997, citing health concerns. Although these health concerns have since been put to rest, their lingering memory – and the quasi-immortality of government regulations –...