Recent Viewpoints

Kerby Anderson How do crazy and destructive ideas become mainstream in America? Victor Davis Hanson explains the process in a recent commentary. The first step begins with left-leaning researchers in elite universities. It may be a warning about the scorching planet or the need for radical sex-reassignment surgeries. The next step is the media springing into action to persuade a skeptical public. It castigates any doubters as “conspiracy theorists” who spread “disinformation” or “misinformation.” Third, liberal foundations begin funding more…

Kerby Anderson Every few months I do a commentary on marijuana because of new research that has been published about its potential dangers. The occasion this time is an editorial by The New York Times admitting they were wrong. You don’t see such an admission very often. The editors said, “It’s Time for America to Admit That It Has a Marijuana Problem.” They had accepted the view that marijuana “was a harmless drug that might even bring net health benefits”…

Kerby Anderson Bible passages are being used to criticize our immigration policies. It began last month when the Pope cited Matthew 25:35 to decry the U.S. deportation policy. House Speaker Mike Johnson was asked to respond to the Pope and reminded reporters that “borders and walls are biblical.” He also promised to write more about the subject on X. There he talked about the role of civil government to “faithfully uphold and enforce the law so that order can be…

Kerby Anderson Affordability may be a key issue in the midterm elections. President Trump’s State of the Union address and the Democratic rebuttal from Governor Abigail Spanberger illustrate the possible campaign themes. The president reminded Americans that core inflation has been at its lowest level in more than five years. While that is true, the metric excludes food and energy because the prices of those goods tend to be more volatile. The Governor proclaimed, “Small businesses have suffered.” She concluded,…

Kerby Anderson Debate about U.S. military action against Iran is often influenced by someone’s age and understanding of recent history. Whenever I talk about events in the 1990s, I realize that many of my listeners have not experienced that history. And if we are talking about something that happened in the later 1970s and early 1980s, even fewer have experienced it. In 1979, the Shah of Iran was driven from power by the Ayatollah Khomeini. At the same time, the…

Penna Dexter It’s been more than ten years since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling extending same sex marriage to every state. Gallup polling shows that, in the five years following the Obergefell v. Hodges decision, public support for gay marriage rose from 60 to 70 percent. Then it plateaued. Gallup found that, among Republicans, approval of same sex marriage stands at 41 percent — down from 55 percent ten years ago. Perhaps more Americans now understand that when…

Kerby Anderson Perhaps you have heard of the Dunning-Kruger effect. I have talked about it in previous commentaries. David Dunning and Justin Kruger identified it as a phenomenon that occurs when people who don’t know much, think they know much more. They tend to overestimate their own competence. As one person asked: Why do dumb people think they are smart? Columnist Jim Geraghty thought about this the other day when reading the coverage by the New York Times of how…

Kerby Anderson Ray Dalio is a hedge-fund manager, turned economic historian. He announced, “It’s Official: The World Order Has Broken Down.” As I write this, I am looking at his books on my shelf: Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order and How Countries Go Broke: The Big Cycle. He begins by providing quotes from the recent Munich Security Conference that I mentioned yesterday. The German Chancellor warned, “The world order as it has stood for decades no longer…

Kerby Anderson Western civilization rests upon Christian values, and Western civilization is worth saving. That was the theme of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s message at the Munich Security Conference. He reminded the Europeans of our shared heritage. “The men who settled and built the nation of my birth arrived on our shores carrying the memories and the traditions and the Christian faith of their ancestors as a sacred inheritance, an unbreakable link between the old world and the new.”…

Kerby Anderson “The problem with socialism,” Margaret Thatcher once said, “is that you eventually run out of other people’s money.” New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is already facing that as he released his first budget The editors of National Review observe that “Mamdani’s Utopian Vision Faces Reality.” The Wall Street Journal editors warn “Mamdani Takes New York Hostage.” The mayor is threatening to raise property taxes unless Democrats in Albany raise taxes on top earners and business. Here are…

Kerby Anderson The perennial debate about voter ID illustrates the difference between how ordinary Americans view the issue and how political elites view the issue. Brian Lonergan writes about this because of the opposition to the SAVE Act. He reminds us, “Elections are the cornerstone of self-governance, and without verifiable safeguards, that foundation crumbles. Requiring a photo ID or proof of citizenship to vote is no more burdensome than showing ID to board a plane, buy alcohol, or open a…