R&L: What was it that caused you to have second thoughts about the role of the state in economic life and about the left-wing agenda of the 60’s of which you were so much a part?
R&L: Capital Research Center recently published a study of patterns of corporate philanthropy in the United States. Could you give us a brief summary of that study?
R&L: Let’s begin with a discussion of the distinction between totalitarian and authoritarian regimes, especially in light of the former becoming enfeebled. What should our stance be regarding the remaining authoritarian regimes?
R&L: You played a role in the international political scene at what may be known as history’s most critical hour. Are you aware of a spiritual dimension to what you participated in?
R&L: With the world-wide decline of socialism, many individuals think that the environmental movement may be the next great threat to freedom. Do you agree?
R&L: You are a pastor and also speak weekly to hundreds of thousands of people on national television. In your opinion, why is it important for Christians to be grounded in sound economic thinking? Kennedy: Unsound economic thinking can lead to disastrous results and suffering for hundreds of millions of people. Consider the catastrophic impact on the vast number of people who had to live under the false economic thinking that produced communism.
R&L: Please explore with us the way in which certain human virtues were compromised by the years of Communist rule in your country. Klaus: Basic human virtues such as thrift, honesty, and fidelity can grow and flourish only in an environment of individual freedom and self-responsibility. Communist totalitarianism deprived people of both of them, made them more passive, more cowardly, and more resigned than in countries with political pluralism, property rights, and market structures.
R&L: In the United States, monarchs are usually seen as either mere figureheads or as malevolent dictators. What is the role of a monarch in a free society?