RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE | Call of the Entrepreneur Showing on BIZ TV Tonight and Sunday

The Real Both/And Budget Solution

I had the pleasure of appearing on Relevant Radio last Friday to talk to Sheila Liaugminas on her show, “A Closer Look.” I discussed the idea of “intergenerational justice,” a term favored by evangelicals (Roman Catholics tend to talk about “intergenerational solidarity”), and how that concept relates to much of today’s discussion about the federal budget. One thing you hear from many is that we need a “both/and” solution: we need to both cut spending and raise revenue in order...

Circle of Protection Subordinates Religion to Politics

The question of “What Would Jesus Cut” raised in new ads for John Boehner’s, Harry Reid’s, and Mitch McConnell’s home states is fundamentally wrongheaded. It reverses the proper approach of religious leaders to politics and threatens to mislead their flocks. The PowerBlog has already addressed the Left’s inclination toward class warfare rhetoric during the debt ceiling debate. Much to our surprise, President Obama didn’t seem to have read that post in time to include its insights in Monday night’s speech....

A Bishop in the Public Square

Archbishop Charles J. Chaput was named the next archbishop of Philadelphia on Tuesday, and mainstream coverage of the story immediately turned to sex abuse scandals. Which makes a lot of sense because, you know, that has dominated his tenure in Denver. As John Allen pointed out, that’s not the case at all, but George Weigelreminds us not to expect anything else. What Archbishop Chaput is justly notable for is his Christian contribution to public debate. In his books, including the...

Call of the Entrepreneur Showing on BIZ TV Tonight and Sunday

Acton is delighted to announce that BIZ TV will be presenting The Call of the Entrepreneur, Today, July 22 at 5:00 pm EST and Sunday, July 24 at 7:00 pm EST in the following cities: Los Angeles (KAZA, digital channel 47.3) Dallas (KAZD, 55.3) Houston (KYAZ, 51.3) Atlanta (WANN, 32.1) Wichita (51.3) Salt Lake City (20.2) Denver (28.5) The Call of the Entrepreneur (2007) tells the story of three entrepreneurs: a failing dairy farmer in rural Evart, Michigan; a merchant...

The Advantage of the Virtuous

In Allan Bloom’s translation of The Republic of Plato, Socrates sets out to define the meaning of justice, and if the just life can be seen as being more profitable than the unjust life. Thrasymachus, an acquaintance of Socrates, in book I of the Republic of Plato, offers his reckless opinion on justice saying, “Justice is the advantage of the stronger” (338c), and that “injustice, when es into being on a sufficient scale, is mightier, freer, and more masterly than...

Why to Get Worked Up about Those Fake Apple Stores

News broke yesterday of an audacious violation of Apple Computer’s intellectual property rights (IPR) in China. This expat blogger posted photos of three sham Apple Stores she discovered in the city of Kunming—the stores have been set up by some entrepreneurial chap hoping to capitalize on pany’s Chinese popularity. The story was slightly amusing, especially in light of Apple’s recent earnings announcement. (“They totally did it again,” said one analyst. It was also revealed that Apple now sits on enough...

Information Overload: What Markets Can Teach Us About Faith

We live in the information age, or more accurately referred to as the age of “information overload.” Anyone who has a Twitter account knows what I’m talking about. You may feel like you’re drowning in a flood of Facebook statuses, emails and YouTube videos. With ing at us every which way, how can we process it all? How do we even know it’s true? Neoclassical economics assumes people act on the basis of perfect information. With all the information that’s...

Review: Lt. Dan Band for the Common Good

The film Lt. Dan Band for the Common Good kicks off with the Abraham Lincoln quote, “Honor to him, who braves for mon good.” The words are appropriate. In 2003, wanting to do even more for America’s service men and women, Gary Sinise formed the Lt. Dan Jam Band. The band name was easily decided because many soldiers, sailors, Marines, and airmen did not know Sinise by name and just called him “Lt. Dan.” The moniker is based on his...

Federal Receipts and Outlays in Historical Perspective

In the discussion of whether the problem with our national public debt is a question of receipts, outlays, or both, I linked to a helpful set of graphs from Anthony Davies, an economics professor at Duquesne University. This data shows that even though a variety of tax rates have changed a great deal over the years, the federal government has basically taken in receipts within the range of 16-20% of GDP over the post-WWII era. If you haven’t looked at...

Senator Reid Punts on Necessary Reforms

Yesterday Senator Harry Reid finally proposed a budget plan – one week before the United States is set to default. It is about time that Senate Democrats joined President Obama and House Republicans in offering a concrete budget proposal; however, their budget plan passes the buck onto future generations. The government cannot continue to leave budget woes to future generations, and this is exactly what Senator Reid is trying to do. In fact, after viewing a video found on his...