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CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT (5 MIN)
More than 5 years have passed since Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and others attempted to pass the Green New Deal legislation in Congress, causing fierce and reasoned opposition from many conservatives. Since then, environmental issues have taken a bit of a national backseat as COVID, Ukraine, Gaza, and other headlines dominated. But many U.S. states have not forgotten.
Writing in The American Mind, Andrew Fowler describes the movement to pass “green amendments” to state constitutions and potentially to the federal Constitution. Such measures would create an “individual right to a safe and stable climate.” Fowler believes that although certain protective efforts for the environment are good, passing amendments like these would lead to massive problems.
To highlight this point, Fowler cites examples from three states that do include a “green amendment” already in their constitutions: Pennsylvania, Montana, and New York. Those provisions opened the door to a host of lawsuits that Fowler says come from activists seeking to crush energy companies. The problem for courts in this scenario, according to Fowler, is that it’s quite hard to define what “environmental rights” are and how they interact with other rights.
Fowler then lists several environmental policies that threaten the economic health of many Americans—and even, ironically, their physical health. He concludes by arguing that taking care of our planet and our children’s future is important, but so too is protecting prosperity.
Read Fowler’s article here.
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Weekly Poll
I believe the government should take measures to protect the American environment.
[A] Strongly agree
[B] Somewhat agree
[C] Unsure
[D] Somewhat disagree
[E] Strongly disagree
RESULTS: 3/6/2025
Should the US continue supporting Ukraine with financial aid?
[A] Yes - 37.9%
[B] Yes, but it should be lessened - 18.4%
[C] No - 37.9%
[D] Unsure - 5.8%
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CATEGORY: CULTURE (9 MIN)
In the Roman Empire, decadence and pleasure famously weakened what had previously been the strongest power in the West from within. “Bread and circuses” kept people entertained and placid while tyrants took power and failed to remain watchful. Some have worried that the same danger faces the American citizenry today. We do not want for entertainment and leisure, and so it’s much easier to drop our guard.
Daniel Klein, for Law & Liberty, discusses Alexis de Tocqueville’s idea of “soft despotism” and his further thoughts on what horrors might come after such a government has taken over. Although Tocqueville warned against a “soft despotism,” Klein writes, the America that exists today might even be worse in some ways than that dim picture.
When people become “morally degenerate,” Klein says, Tocqueville feared that the powers of government could fully enter the control of “an irresponsible man or body.” Klein calls this the “Very Bad:” a situation where people have lost their wills and the rule of law collapses into the chaos of corrupt administration. Klein notes Tocqueville’s connection between this situation and the rise of factions; the increase of special interests headed by a few power-hungry people.
Klein worries that in modern America, where the conception of the good has seemed lost and platitudes reign supreme, the average citizen may not have the moral power necessary to avoid this fate.
Read Klein’s essay here to learn more.
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CATEGORY: VIDEO
The state of higher education in America is at a crossroads. In this compelling panel discussion from ISI’s 2024 American Politics and Government Summit, Jennifer Frey (University of Tulsa), Mark Bauerlein (First Things, Emory University), and Pete Peterson (Pepperdine University) explore the challenges and opportunities facing academia today.
From the decline of the liberal arts to the rise of ideological conformity, the panelists examine how universities have shifted in recent years—and what can be done to restore intellectual diversity and true education. Are students still learning how to think critically? Can higher education be saved from bureaucratic overreach and activist agendas?
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Because our student editors and writers are bravely bringing conservative ideas to their campuses, we’re highlighting their efforts here.
Federal Government Cracks Down on Racial Discrimination via The Cornell Review
“Following the inauguration of President Trump, the federal government has been taking actions to end race-based discrimination, including steps taken under the label of 'diversity, equity, and inclusion' (DEI). As a result, many long-standing Cornell practices are being challenged under a threat of losing all federal funding. On January 21, the President signed 'Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,' which ended both diversity programs within the federal government as well as those of federal contractors, including Cornell.”
Former HHS Secretary Alex Azar Talks Medical Financing via The Dartmouth Review
“Alex Azar, who served as secretary of Health and Human Services in Donald Trump’s first administration, spoke at Dartmouth on February 6 in an event sponsored by the Rockefeller Center, the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy, and the Political Economy Project. Azar, a member of the class of 1988, has made a habit of coming back to Hanover; most recently, he delivered the Brooks Family Lecture on Operation Warp Speed in 2022. He joined HHS in 2001 as general counsel, served as deputy secretary, was president of Eli Lilly and Company in between Republican presidencies, and has since returned to the private sector. As Trump’s health secretary, Azar was at the center of very public and sometimes controversial health debates, including, most notably, the administration’s rapid response to the COVID crisis. Azar was the first chairman of the White House coronavirus task
force.”
Stanford’s Hiring Freeze Exposes the Big Lie of Research Funding via The Stanford Review
"Two weeks ago, something extraordinary happened at Stanford. In response to federal research funding cuts, particularly from the NIH, the university announced a hiring freeze for the first time since 2003. The reaction on campus was immediate: panic, confusion, and a growing sense of crisis. The academic community has braced for the apocalypse, fearing that new research will grind to a halt and critical academic programs will be slashed. Many of my friends working in Stanford labs have confided to me that the hiring freeze is keeping them awake at night, telling me that 'I’m worried my research position will get cut and I won’t have a job for the summer.'"
How DOGE Could Impact Virginia Elections This Fall via The W&L Spectator
"As Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) layoffs strike various government agencies, Virginia Republicans and Democrats both believe the fallout from the firings could aid them in the upcoming gubernatorial and House of Delegates elections. On the Republican side, political operatives are optimistic that the firings will create a mass exodus of federal bureaucrats from the DMV (D.C., Maryland, and Virginia) area that could tilt the needle in the direction of the presumed Republican candidate, current Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears. Over 90,000 federal workers live in Northern Virginia, with over 140,000 total federal workers in the state. Seeming to support this theory, some accounts on X and other social media sites have alleged that housing data shows an unusually high number of housing listings in Northern Virginia." |
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CATEGORY: INTERNATIONAL (9 MIN)
Our immediate neighbors have entered the headlines far more in the past two months than in other recent periods. Canada and Mexico have been the targets of President Donald Trump’s tariff efforts, causing some tension in the North American continent. While Prime Minister Justin Trudeau currently heads the nation of Canada, some fear that his nation is barely a nation any longer.
For this week’s article from the Modern Age website, Geoff Russ reviews the work of Canadian conservative George Grant, whose 1965 Lament for a Nation mourns the loss of a country’s identity. Russ starts by discussing what Canada was like in older times, with a stronger sense of national culture and heritage. He also talks about Grant’s background and childhood, which set Grant up for a storied career in academia.
Russ also notes the complicated relationship between Canada and the United States, pointing out Grant’s belief that “American liberal modernity” would take over the continent. Russ thinks Grant saw Canada as tied to the fate of the U.S., a thought which would certainly take away much of the country’s national pride.
Despite all Grant’s fears, Russ writes, there may be some hope. “A genuine Canadian nationalism remains elusive, but there has always been a cadre of Canadians who cherish the country’s history and culture. Perhaps their time has finally come. If so, their efforts are sorely needed,” Russ says.
Read Russ’s article here on the Modern Age website.
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Thought of the Day:
“All mankind... being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possessions.”
- John Locke
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