n the case of America and most Western countries, the 2008 financial crisis’ long-term significance may be its illustration of how unwilling to learn we seem to be.
If racists and “rich white people” really control America, why do some black leaders assume that those same people will look out for the health of blacks?
Does the market inspire people to greater practical virtue, or does it eviscerate what little virtue any of us have? Far from draining moral goodness out of us—as many think—the free market serves as a “school of the practical virtues.” Rather than elevating greed and self-sufficiency, the market fosters interdependence and cooperation. Its rewards do not go to those who are the most isolated, self-absorbed, or cut off from society, but to those who sustain mutually prosperous relationships with others.
Do at-risk black males need to be emancipated en masse from America’s public school complex? A new study released about high school dropout and incarceration rates among blacks raises the question.
One thing is certain, continuing the status quo on spending and debt will spell defeat for liberty in America and massive tax increases for everyone. We must demand more from our government. It will certainly be demanding more from all of us in the years to come.
The days when American Catholic bishops could be relied upon to accept or advocate extension of the state’s participation in more-or-less any area of social and economic life are long gone.
If more and more men are abandoning the religious communities that have provided solid moral formation for thousands of years, we should not be surprised by an increase in the explosion of demand for morally reprehensible products and the family breakdown that follows closely behind.
West Europeans might like to ask themselves why so many of them are so blasé about the influence of a philosophy that lead to the imprisonment, torture, enslavement and death of millions.