The federal government owns over one quarter of America’s land, some 28%. West of the Mississippi the proportion increases to roughly one half. In Utah it’s 70%, Nevada 85%, and California over 45%. In marked contrast federal holdings in Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa average one percent. That’s 1.0%. Why the difference? Mainly because the land […]
Read MoreTo stop mass killers, we should let people like off-duty police and security guards carry concealed weapons. The recent senseless killings in Isla Vista, California of six college students at the hands of an obviously troubled 22-year-old Elliot Rodger, who then killed himself before he could be apprehended by the police, has provoked another […]
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Ramona and I greatly enjoy our home. It began as a log structure built from timbers I cut in the early 1970s. They were milled a mere mile west of our home site. I like that. We added to our home over the decades. Fortunately, Bob Utzinger, former dean of MSU’s School of Arts and […]
Read MoreI highly recommend The John William Pope Center for Higher Education Policy to those interested in the mix of culture, economics, and education (www.popecenter.org/). This site offers serious commentary, reviews, and analysis of opportunities and pathologies in higher education. The Pope Center also offers recognition and rewards for educational innovators. The director, Jane Shaw, formerly from Bozeman, […]
Read MoreThis is the first of two essays on the contributions of property rights to peace and prosperity. It’s hard to imagine a sane person who doesn’t value peace and prosperity. Yet, these are illusive, oft fleeting qualities; few people understand how well defined and defended property rights contribute to both peace and prosperity. When property […]
Read MoreFrom the fiscal to the familial, conservatives have the right answers. Several years ago, a business meeting took me to the home of an honest-to-God Wall Street billionaire, the first such member of that exotic caste I had ever personally encountered. The home was comfortable and well-appointed, but it was in most ways a domicile […]
Read MoreThe prospect of going south for a week in mid February seems a treat for those of us living in Montana. Hence, I was pleased to accept invitations to speak at NCCU and Duke Universities. It had been -30ºF with much snow, nothing unusual, before we left. We have seen much colder. We looked […]
Read MoreEconomists’ Favorite Bible Verse – An intro to today’s FREE Insight from the Chairman If political economists were to pick a favorite Bible verse I suggest it would be Proverbs 4:7. King James Version reads: “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” Alas too many people neglect […]
Read MoreBoth progressives and conservatives fundamentally misunderstand our most important founding document. This coming week, Harvard University Press will publish my new book, The Classical Liberal Constitution: The Uncertain Quest for Limited Government. This 700-page volume took me over seven years to complete, and it offers a distinctive third approach to constitutional law that helps explain […]
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At a time when Americans are becoming increasingly dependent, here is a reminder of what liberty and independence really are. ________________________________________ On October 10, 1923, Nobel Prize–winning author Rudyard Kipling delivered the Rectorial Address to the students of St. Andrews University in Scotland. The title of his address was, “Independence.” For most Americans […]
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