America’s foreign policy today is “engagement.” Our policy is to talk to all foreign enemies, including mortal ones, such as the dictatorship of Iran, who threaten our physical safety and that of our allies. “Engagement” is the language of couples … Continue reading
Q: I’m an atheist and my family are all true believers. How can I convince them not to believe in God. A: If someone else believes in God and you don’t, you can’t convince them there is no God. This … Continue reading
Hurrying is the alleged short-cut to competence. You don’t get an effective result by rushing. You get an effective result by being conscientious and accurate. More and more instances of doing something competently lead to greater and greater efficiency. But … Continue reading
Freedom of speech is the most important thing. It’s everything. Without free expression of ideas, there’s no competition among ideas. The irrational wins over the rational only where there is no free speech. So long as people can counter with … Continue reading
Just because you don’t like to think of yourself as exhibiting a certain characteristic doesn’t mean you aren’t. Being objective about yourself means being honest. It means being willing to consider that a particular action or attitude of yours conflicts … Continue reading
Nobody wants to be used. But what does this term really mean? Some people say they’re being used merely because someone else gets something out of their personal encounter. But there’s nothing wrong with self-interest. Every encounter, whether business or … Continue reading
A liberal staff member from a liberal newspaper recently replied to a column I wrote on why Obama should not have the Nobel Prize by telling me the following: “Get a life.” That’s interesting. If life is the standard of … Continue reading
We’re supposed to believe that people have a right to health insurance and medical care. Yet if there’s a right to health insurance and medical care — why is there no right to purchase medical insurance and medical care on … Continue reading
Q: I noticed that the Daily Dose of Reason seems to be a mix of psychology and political commentary, as opposed to your Life’s a Beach column. I was wondering if there was a particular reason you do this as … Continue reading
It’s Columbus Day. Christopher Columbus discovered America — for the free and civilized world. You can cry “Oh, the poor Indians!!” all you want, but America was not a habitable place until Western civilization got there. Christopher Columbus led the … Continue reading
A reader asks: What’s the difference, if any, between “passion” and “drive”? Passion is the emotional excitement one has over something. Drive is the motivation to get it done, along with a commitment to determining (and following through on) the … Continue reading
Leaving aside that the Nobel Prize is generally awarded to collectivists and socialists only, it’s still amazing that Obama has been awarded it so soon. This man practically walked into the White House, never holding any real political office in … Continue reading