Ayn Rand in Ukrainian Crimea
What the Russian-born author would have thought of Russia's war in Ukraine
History
When Yoga Sparked a Sex Panic
"Hindu mystics" with "swarthy faces and dreamy-looking eyes" once had Uncle Sam in a tizzy.
Jim O'Shaughnessy: Don't Squander This Age of Innovation
Wall Street legend Jim O’Shaughnessy discusses how to live well and innovate boldly during the age of Trump, Musk, and AI.
Sean McMeekin: Don't Whitewash the History of Communism
Historian Sean McMeekin dissects how communism has enduring and resurgent appeal in the West despite its history of violence and economic disaster.
Trump's Empty and Expensive Plan To Build 250 Statues of 'American Heroes'
The president's planned National Garden of American Heroes might be a nice idea, but it would be extremely costly—and unnecessary.
The Lost Treasures of California's Devastating Wildfires
Some of California's architectural wonders were consumed by the flames.
Review: Gladiator II Is a Historical Epic About the Dangers of Political Power
Director Ridley Scott explores what happens when people from the fringes of society rise to power.
Guns and Grammar
Though awkward and antiquated, the Second Amendment’s syntax and grammar unambiguously protect gun rights.
TikTok or Not, Americans Still Have a Right To Receive Communist Propaganda
A unanimous Supreme Court decision established as much in 1965.
Comic: It's America's Founding Grandfather, John Locke
Decades after his death, the English philosopher's ideas helped shape the American republic.
Tyler Cowen: Why Do We Refuse To Learn From History?
Economist Tyler Cowen on historical lessons, populism today, and the philosophical debates within libertarianism.
Review: The Radicals Who Tried To Kill Gerald Ford
The Rip Current podcast is a good reminder that political division and even violence are not new in America.
The Socialists and Suffragettes of Oz
Long before Wicked came along, America's homegrown fairyland was filled with politics.
Review: UFO 50 Pays Homage to '80s Video Games
Playing this digital collection of new retro-style games is like rediscovering a box of old cartridges.
RIP Jimmy Carter, the 'Passionless' President
The libertarian case for the late Jimmy Carter.
Everybody Hates Prices
How much should a Wendy's Baconator cost? Elizabeth Warren thinks the government should help decide.
Liverpool Lost Its U.N. World Heritage Status. Now It's Thriving.
The English city protects its historical sites while embracing growth and redevelopment.
Asylum Isn't As Crazy as Trump Claims
The president-elect can't tell political asylum from an insane asylum. But a little linguistic history reveals a more compelling American tradition.
Review: Why Did MTV Stop Playing Music?
Former VJ Dave Holmes explores the channel's history on his podcast, Who Killed the Video Star.
Libertarianism From the Ground Up
In Common Law Liberalism, legal scholar John Hasnas offers a new vision for a free society.
The Great American City Upon a Hill Is Always Under Construction
American history is often a story of people leaving to try to build their voluntary utopias.
Blaming Bill Buckley for Racism, January 6, and More
Historian David Austin Walsh tries and fails to rebut Jonah Goldberg's Liberal Fascism thesis.
Gladiator II Is a Lavish, Empty Spectacle
Ridley Scott heard you liked Gladiator, so he thought he'd give you some more gladiators with your gladiator.
Abolish the Army
"Standing armies are dangerous to liberty," Alexander Hamilton wrote in Federalist No. 29.
In Praise of Ignoring Facts: A Review of Jack Balkin's "Memory and Authority"
Why constitutional theory needs more theory.
Modern Crafters Rediscover an Old Sweater
Knitting's evolution from necessity to leisure activity is a testament to economic progress.
Review: Evil on Trial Seeks To Reach A Younger Audience
WWII correspondent William L. Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich comes to life in this Netflix docuseries.
What Is the 'Working Class'?
When even most upper-income Republicans say they're working class, the term has become meaningless.
Us-Versus-Them: The Pronouns of Populism
Populism’s pronoun usage taps into the darker elements of the human condition.
That Time Al Franken Kept Telling Me Jokes About Mullets
There was music in the cafés at night, and talk of liberal-libertarian cooperation was in the air.
After 100 Years, End the Open Fields Doctrine
Federal agents are allowed to search private property without a warrant under this Prohibition-era Supreme Court precedent.
How the Political Spectrum Turned Inside Out
From 9/11 to the COVID-19 pandemic, crisis moments keep reshaping the political landscape.
Neal Stephenson's Polostan Is a Compact Epic About Communism, Science, and the Dawn of the Atomic Age
A short-yet-sprawling historical tour of the atomic age.
The Presidential We
How U.S. presidents habitually use—and abuse—pronouns to deceive.
A D.C. Cocktail Bar Takes on Taboos
"The more you tell people they can't have something, the more they want it."
How Did Immigration Politics Get So Toxic?
Changing migration patterns, outdated policy tools, and growing presidential power made it inevitable.
Review: A Medieval Black Comedy With No Monarch
The state is almost completely absent in 'The Decameron. The characters don't exactly handle this responsibility well.
Looking at Reagan Through the Lens of Trump
Max Boot's biography of Ronald Reagan is deeply researched and informative, but it sometimes stumbles when it tries to use the past to make sense of the present.
Mike Rowe on Patriotism, Paul Harvey, and American Progress
"We're never going to be finished. Our country is a work in progress," says the producer of the new Something to Stand For documentary.
Empires Thrive on Pluralism, Not Brutality
Empires with more room for cultural difference were more successful, anthropologist Thomas Barfield argues.
A Czech Clock's Forgotten Pasts
The Olomouc clock's changing design reflects history's victors and their legacies.
The Libertarian Pioneer Who Wrote for America's Biggest Black Newspaper
To Rose Wilder Lane, African Americans' achievements were all the more amazing given their disadvantaged starting point.
No, Trump-Style Tariffs Do Not Grow the Economy
The America of the past grew in spite of tariffs, not because of them.
We Still Live in the Physical World
The digital world has not effaced our humanity, no matter what social critics like Christine Rosen say.
The Fantastical Scenarios of Yuval Noah Harari: From the Roman Past to the AI Future
In his haste to cram complex events into crisp little episodes, the historian passes over inconvenient details.
