“The case of 11-month-old Charlie Gard continues to garner international attention and pleas for his life from Donald Trump and Pope Francis,” says Anne Rathbone Bradley in this week’s Acton Commentary. “Cases like Charlie’s, while exceptional and rare, are important because they establish precedents regarding the relationship between the individual and the state.” When we think about it in this way, Great Ormond Street Hospital – which has been the target of much criticism – is actually almost an incidental...

This is the second part in a series on how to read Alexis de Tocqueville’s “Democracy in America.” Read Part 1 and follow the entire series here. As we begin our study of Democracy in America, we bear in mind that the work’s distinguished author, Alexis de Tocqueville, blessed us with a clear, concise introduction to the two-volume work. The introduction is the most important chapter of the work in terms ing to grips with Tocqueville’s overall argument and purpose...

While the rest of nation continues to fret about various threats to labor demand — whether from technology, trade, or immigration — an influential labor union is worrying about goats. Yes, goats. In a surreal set of circumstances that seems closer to Bastiatian satire than actual reality, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) has filed a grievance against Western Michigan University for hiring a herd of goats to clear undergrowth on campus land. From the Battle...

Note: This is the post #24 in a weekly series of explanatory posts on the officials and agencies included in the President’s Cabinet. See the series introductionhere. Cabinet position:EPA Administrator Department:U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Current Administrator:Scott Pruitt Department Mission:The mission of EPA is to protect human health and the environment. EPA’s purpose is to ensure that: all Americans are protected from significant risks to human health and the environment where they live, learn and work;national efforts to reduce environmental...

The Spectator Australia published an article Monday claiming that the “culture war” between conservative and liberal values is, in reality, a “cultural massacre.” The carnage is evident in the numbers, specifically in education: in the United Kingdom, conservatives make up only seven percent of primary school teachers and only eight percent of secondary school teachers. In the United States, conservatives often focus on the lack of intellectual diversity on university campuses. They are not wrong to worry. In September, the...

A French media outlet has captured an otherwise ment from French President Emmanuel Macron that Africa is overpopulated. When asked about a possible “Marshall Plan for Africa,” Macron listed among the continent’s current problems the need for “demographic transition,” lamenting the fact that some African “countries still haveseven to eight children per woman.” His concerns seem particularly worth examining today on World Population Day. During a July 8 press conference about the G20 summit, Macron began by naming truly concerning...

Note: This is post #40 in a weekly video series on basic microeconomics. In an effort to reduce pollution, the government tried two policy prescriptions under the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, notes Alex Tabarrok of Marginal Revolution University. The mand and control—mandated that each power plant lower its pollution by a determined amount. However, different firms face different cost curves and, because information is dispersed, policymakers don’t always know those costs. The second policy prescription—tradable pollution permits—empowered firms...

In an age where chaos and cronyism seem to be the defining characteristics of our politics, and where the political system is increasingly decried as being “rigged” by populists from both the left and right, the time seems ripe for a renewed focus on political constraints. When such concerns arise, we are quick to point back to the U.S. Constitution, and rightly so. Yet economist Peter Boettke sees another guide that can also offer some value. For Boetkke, our politics...

One hundred years ago, the man Winston Churchill dubbed a “plague bacillus” journeyed back from his exile in Europe to eventually seize the reins of power in his native Russia. Vladimir Lenin’s itinerary could not have been more fraught with peril and subterfuge, which makes it an ideal framing story for a recap of the rise of 20th century totalitarianism. The result was millions suffering and millions more murdered, tortured or starved to death by Lenin’s – and, later, Stalin’s...

For many of us, what is heroic about Spider-Man is not his ability to do “whatever a spider can,” but rather his effortless inclination to do what is good. But what makes Spider-Man good? In his book Leisure: The Basis of Culture, Josef Pieper argues against the notion that “Hard work is what is good.” He says that this phrase, although seemingly harmless, has dangerous implications. It implies that the amount of effort something takes directly corresponds to how good...