Washington Times, December 10, 2015 Talking freedom but practicing fear by James Bovard The president employs scare tactics to diminish liberties The most memorable line in President Obama’s Oval Office Sunday speech was his declaration that “freedom is more powerful than fear.” That epigram might have made John F. Kennedy’s speechwriters beam. But it is […]
Tag Archives | Democracy

Liberty vs. Equality (1977)
Some of the college protestors around the nation are condemning American society because of the inequal academic and economic achievements between different races and ethnic groups. There are lots of things government does to tilt the playing field but many of the protestors will be unsatisfied until government forcibly imposes equal results across the board. That type […]
USA TODAY: The Freedom Foyer Fraud on Our Liberty
USA TODAY, October 28, 2015 Freedom gets a foyer; Liberty gets the shaft by James Bovard The budget agreement between President Obama and leaders of the House of Representatives is sparking a conservative firestorm across the land. Newt Gingrich predicts every Republican presidential candidate in tonight’s debate will oppose the deal — which a New York […]

Democracy, Liberty, Leviathan Epigrams /Tweets
Whittling today on some epigrams from my books – here are some new, improved, tighter versions [earlier versions of these lines are here] ** These epigrams are works-in-progress. I welcome critical feedback – if you like or loathe any of these lines, let me know! Without a realistic concept of government, political philosophy is only […]
Washington’s Skewed Scoring for Congressional Hearings
I was chasing other rabbits today and did not closely follow Hillary Clinton’s testimony on Benghazi. I followed some of the high points on Twitter and read a few news stories on the hubbub. But I am reminded of how the Washington media 20 years ago scored the testimony of Attorney General Janet Reno before a […]
FFF: The Mandatory Voting Panacea
from the July 2015 issue of The Future of Freedom The Mandatory Voting Panacea by James Bovard Barack Obama suggested on March 18, 2015, that mandatory voting could cure some of the ills of American democracy. He said that compelling everyone to vote would “encourage more participation” — perhaps the same way that the specter […]

Dem Prez Candidates Vegas Whoop
Let the carping begin! Instead of having Sheryl Crow sing the National Anthem, the candidates should have been required to prove they knew all the words to the song. *Hearing “the land of the free” invocation at the Dem. prez debate is as incongruous as hearing a mud wrestling ad at a Mormon tabernacle. *Wonder how […]