Why do so-called progressives seem eager to ignore the real needs of the poor? A recent example was the New York Times editorial calling on President-Elect Obama to institute a random gasoline tax to keep gas prices from dropping below $4 per gallon (in 2008 dollars) to "curb the nation's demand for energy." The proposal is fraught with problems, not least of which would be its impact on those who can least afford it.
In all cultures stamped by Christian influence (and in some that are not), most people will celebrate Christmas tomorrow. Among other forms of marking the holiday, probably the most common is the custom of exchanging gifts. This extraordinary way of conferring goods on others might serve as a reminder of the importance of the other, ordinary way of doing so: commercial exchange.
Prospective college students will take into consideration cost, academics, social life, and location. Virtually none will be thinking about the school’s speech codes or free speech zones. But they should.
Banning advertising will have no effect on the fact that childhood obesity is most often a function of the nature of the relationships of those closest to them, the people we call parents.
I am hopeful as a Christian, and I am unshaken in the conviction that the idea Acton represents is precisely the "way out" of our economic and political malaise.