I am grateful to Fr. Ben Johnson for his thoughtful response to my recent post, “The social responsibility of Chick-fil-A is to make delicious sandwiches.” He adds some extra nuance, but I still stand my ground. Continue Reading...
Latest Posts
November 25, 2019
Stephanie Slade on markets, planning, and Catholic social teaching
Stephanie Slade writes in next month’s edition of Reason Magazine about, ‘Regulation and ‘the Right Ordering of Economic Life” according to Catholic social teaching:
The Church’s surprising lesson for partisans of big government is that the best tools for correctly ordering economic life are found in the choices of individual market actors. Continue Reading...
November 25, 2019
Hong Kong demands freedom in landslide election
The citizens of Hong Kong expanded their democratic revolution to the ballot box on Sunday, as pro-democracy parties won control of virtually every local government from pro-Beijing functionaries. Yesterday’s district council elections – the largest in history, with an estimated 71 percent of all registered voters (or 2.94 million of 4.13 million) participating – proved voters’ overwhelming support for the traditional rights enjoyed by the former British protectorate. Continue Reading...
November 22, 2019
Nibbling at Dylan Pahman’s Chick-fil-A argument
As though guided by an invisible hand Dylan Pahman and I – independently and without coordination – each posted an essay about Chick-fil-A’s philanthropic giving within minutes of one another, each with slightly different emphases. Continue Reading...
November 22, 2019
The rise of ‘woke’ culture: Lessons on the power of institutions
We continue to see the ill effects of “cancel culture” and safetyism, whether through student-led riots and intimidation efforts at colleges and universities, the garden-variety intolerances of “woke capitalism,” or the self-destructive interventionism of “bulldozer parenting.”
As far as how it’s all come to be, we have explanations aplenty, from declines in religious life to the fraying of the social fabric to rises in political fragmentation and polarization. Continue Reading...
November 22, 2019
2019 Calihan Lecture Video: Religion, Society, and the Market
Last month, Prof. Giuseppe Franco received the 2019 Novak Award at the University of San Diego where he delivered the 19th Annual Calihan Lecture on “Religion, Society, and the Market: The Legacy of Wilhelm Röpke.”
Watch the video now:
The Novak Award recognizes scholars early in their academic career who demonstrate outstanding intellectual merit in advancing the understanding of theology’s connection to human dignity, the importance of the rule of law, limited government, religious liberty, and freedom in economic life. Continue Reading...
November 22, 2019
Fact check: 5 facts about the fifth Democratic debate of 2019
The Democratic Party narrowed the number of presidential hopefuls to 10 at the fifth debate, held Wednesday in Atlanta. Several of their statements deserve greater scrutiny.
1. Elizabeth Warren: Freeloading billionaires? Continue Reading...
November 20, 2019
The unfortunate lesson from Chick-fil-A’s surrender
Why do I care about Chick-fil-A’s decision to drop Salvation Army and Fellowship of Christian Athletes as they seek to properly “align their values” and make sure people understand “who they are”? Continue Reading...
November 20, 2019
Acton Line podcast: How property rights save the planet
Panic surrounding climate change and the environment is on the rise and doomsday predictions abound. Most headlines about the environment only tell one story: that the environment is on the decline and that this decline is a result of economic development. Continue Reading...
November 20, 2019
The perfect lap
In this week’s Acton Commentary, I take a look at Ford v Ferrari, the new feature film that captures the story (it’s a true thrill ride) animating the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. Continue Reading...
