The following was written by Dr. Hurd soon after the election of Obama in 2008. It’s interesting to look back and reflect on how little has changed. Forget the election results. Even if the outcome had been different, the … Continue reading
Category: Society & Culture
Reflections on the Disaster in Japan
An unusually astute and reflective reader of The Daily Dose of Reason writes in: ‘I’ve been thinking about the following. Is it acceptable to sacrifice one man to save 100,000 or any large arbitrary number? I know this question has … Continue reading
The Era of Entitlement
From Investor’s Business Daily: Using data mined from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, TrimTabs Investment Research has found that 35% of wages and salaries this year will be in the form of a government payment. That’s up sharply from 2000, … Continue reading
Signs of the Times
An email with photographs of pro-Islamic protesters in England displays the following signs and slogans of the protesters: “Freedom Go to Hell” Now that’s interesting. These pro-Iranian and pro-Islamic dictatorship protesters want freedom to do what they please. They want … Continue reading
Charlie Sheen: Madness Manifest
Dear Dr. Hurd, We are interested in getting your insights into the latest craze of seeing who can be the trashiest star. Just when we thought that Brittany Spears had gotten enough negative attention and things would settle, Charlie Sheen … Continue reading
Discourse For Some
From an A.P. report: “Two former presidents — one Republican, the other a Democrat — will chair a new national institute to promote civility in political discourse in the city where U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was severely wounded in a … Continue reading
Priorities — D.C. Style
Regarding the budget crisis, some liberal was said to ask, “What kind of priorities do Republicans have — using a weed whacker to the education budget, while allowing well-off people to still have tax deductions on their second homes?” The … Continue reading
Liberalism to Its Ultimate Conclusion
The welfare state is cracking apart. It has run out of money. Most people want the supposed benefits of a welfare state; nearly everybody welcomes something for nothing. But increasingly, it’s apparent to all involved that you can’t get something … Continue reading
Thanks, Oprah
Partisanship, we’re told, is always wrong. What is “partisanship”? Superficially, it’s the difference between Republicans and Democrats. The deeper issue implied is: Principle. The assumption (a false one) is that Republicans and Democrats have different principles. It’s wrong to be … Continue reading
So You Think It Can’t Happen Here?
The attitude that often kills or harms people is expressed by the statement, “It can’t happen to me.” This applies to societies as well. It has probably never applied to any society better than the United States of America. To … Continue reading
Words, Reality and the Moron-in-Chief
For most people, a tragedy is a time to reflect. For a politician, especially one who has been given uncritical positive regard for all of his short career — including his unearned rise to the Presidency of the United States … Continue reading
Why Liberals Love Tragedy
It’s widely held that the Arizona shootings, involving the murder of a judge and serious injury of a Congresswoman, are to the benefit of the Tea Party and other opponents of Obama’s Big Government policies. Case in point: Paul Krugman, … Continue reading