The West Without a Center “When the center fails to hold, mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” — W.B. Yeats The West was once bound by a shared center. It offered an understanding of what a human being is, what constitutes virtue, and where authority derives its legitimacy. This…
“Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” — Albert Einstein My oldest son graduated with honors in mechanical engineering in May 2025—and still doesn’t have a full-time job. He moved back home and spends his days sending out applications between rebuilding…
Parallels Between 1929 and Today’s Financial Fragility “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1933 In the final months of 1929, America looked unstoppable. Cities glowed with electric light. Streets swarmed with automobiles. Radios carried jazz, ball scores, and a steady stream of…
How a forgotten economist foresaw the crises we’re repeating today “Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?” — T. S. Eliot, Choruses from The Rock In 2025, global debt hovers at levels unseen since the Great Depression. Inequality has…
“The way up and the way down are one and the same.” —Heraclitus Last week I went to see an orthopedic surgeon. A nagging shoulder–elbow issue I’m trying to sort out. That same evening, an ad popped up on Facebook: a Free Shoulder Rehab Masterclass. Like magic! Except it wasn’t…
“Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value: zero.” — Voltaire Last week, I read Scott Bessent’s paper, “The Fed’s ‘Gain of Function’ Monetary Policy,” which presents a striking critique of the Federal Reserve’s unconventional monetary strategies. Bessent argues that over the past decades—particularly following the 2008 financial crisis—the Fed has engaged…
“Technological progress has merely provided us with more efficient means for going backwards.” —Aldous Huxley, Author of Brave New World If you are old enough to remember the rise of the digital age, you probably recall the split: when paper photographs became pixels, when handwritten letters turned into emails and…
“Gold is the only coin that never depreciates.” – Thomas Bailey Aldrich With U.S. public debt now approaching $37 trillion and the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet still near $7 trillion, policymakers face fiscal constraints unseen in decades. Interest payments now consume over one-fifth of federal revenues, narrowing the government’s fiscal…
“They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator.” — Romans 1:25 Last week, I watched footage of Billy Graham’s historic New York Crusade at Yankee Stadium. Over 100,000 people gathered to hear him preach, a turnout that surpassed capacity….
“The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it.” — Flannery O’Connor Flannery O’Connor’s words hit hard as I confront the Middle East—a region where truths are layered, uncomfortable, and easy to ignore. Over coffee last week, I realized I’d long treated its history like background noise:…
“Outstanding, sophisticated, and mesmerizing…a spiritual intrigue similar to Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code.” —ForeWord Reviews