$75– Average amount U.S. consumers spent on real Christmas trees in 2017. $107– Average amount U.S. consumers spent on fake Christmas trees in 2017. 27,400,000– Number of real Christmas trees sold in the U.S. in 2017. 21,100,000– Number of fake Christmas trees sold in the U.S. in 2017. 7– Average growing time in years for a Christmas tree. 350 million–Number of Christmas trees currently growing on Christmas tree farms. 329.2 million– Current population of the United States. $27.21— The energy...

In December, the PowerBlog is marking the centenary of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s birth (Dec. 11, 1918) At the NewYork Times, Solzhenitsyn biographer Michael Scammell says the Russian novelist and historian “did more than anyone else to bring the Soviet Union to its knees.” For his critical approach to Soviet life, Solzhenitsyn was evicted from the state-sponsored Writers’ Union and became a virtual outlaw in his own country. But he was far from alone. Many talented and independent writers — Varlam Shalamov...

“Our Lord was not predestined by his Father to birth where we might have expected him…He was born, by divine design, into a laboring man’s dwelling…Our Lord precedes understanding with doing. He sets the way before the truth.” –Lester DeKoster and Gerard Berghoef With each passing holiday season, we see the sudden manifestation of an underlying cultural dualism, with gift-givers either over-indulging in the material stuff or feverishly guarding their spirits and souls from the cold grip of consumerism. Yet...

On November 15, Acton President and co-founder Rev. Robert Sirico participated in a panel conversation to not only honor the centenary of Russell Kirk’s birth but as well discuss the rise of populism in the United States and abroad. The event was held at the Jack H. Miller Auditorium at Hope College, Holland, Mich. The panel also included John O’Sullivan, editor-at-large of National Review; Jeff Polet, professor of political science at Hope College; and Kathryn Jean Lopez, senior fellow at...

On thisepisode of Radio Free Acton, we revisit a previous RFAinterview with David LaRocca: a philosopher, author, and filmmaker who has released a documentary on Italian fashion designer and entrepreneur Brunello Cuccinelli. Cucinelli has built a pany by creating high-quality apparel, but more interesting than that is the philosophy that undergirds his business and all of his life. Check out these additional resources on this week’s podcast topics: Learn more about Brunello Cucinelli Learn more about David LaRocca Watch the...

French highways found themselves clogged with indignation during the fifth week of the gilets jaunes (“yellow vest”) protests. How should Christians think about these demonstrations? Are their means and ends moral or immoral? Background The leaderless grassroots uprising originally targeted the massive carbon taxes levied on gasoline and diesel in order to reduce carbon emissions and “nudge” the public to purchase electric vehicles. French environmentalist policy caused gasoline costs to rise as high as $7 a gallon in Paris....

Note: This is post #104 in a weekly video series on basic economics. Imagine having to pay $417.00 per sheet of toilet paper. That actuallyhappened in Zimbabwe. AsAlex Tabarrok notes, around 2000, Robert Mugabe, the President of Zimbabwe, was in need of cash to bribe his enemies and reward his allies. He had to be clever in his approach, given that Zimbabwe’s economy was doing lousy and his people were starving. Sow what did he do? He tapped the country’s...

On December 13, National Security Advisor John Bolton delivered an address at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C. unveiling the Trump Administration’s new approach to relations with Africa. Part of the revised approach includes re-focusing US Aid efforts away from traditional government-to-government aid, and placing an increased focus on fostering private economic growth and governmental transparency. Acton has been speaking about the problems with foreign aid programs for many years; here we feature a portion of an interview conducted in...

Although the word nostalgia can be used to express a bittersweet longing for some pleasant remembrance of one’s past, it is safe to say that this is the time of the year when it is virtually unavoidable to drift into a sustained sense of nostalgia and where its experience is most intense. This is a time when our minds go back to a younger version of ourselves: to the sights and the sounds and the smells of our mothers’ kitchens,...

What just happened? Yesterday the U.S. Senate passed an overhaul of the criminal justice system known as the FIRST STEP Act. The vote of 87 to 12 included all Senate Democrats and dozens of Republicans. The Act was approved earlier this year by the House by a vote of 360-59 vote, including 134 Democrats. President Trump has signaled that he will sign the bill into law. The legislation was also supported by a number of faith-based groups, such as Prison...