Mises Institute, March 18, 2021 The Never-Ending Battle between Leviathan and Liberty by James Bovard The notion that Americans will always be free is part of the catechism that is force-fed to public school students. For hundreds of years, philosophers, politicians, and reformers have touted a law of history that assures the ultimate triumph of […]
American Institute for Economic Research, December 30, 2020 The Year in which Comforting American Myths Were Ravaged James Bovard Thanks in large part to Covid lockdowns, this year has left vast wreckage in its wake, with ten million jobs lost, more than 100,000 businesses and dozens of national chains bankrupted or closed. Up to 40 […]
Many Americans feel like they have a miserable choice of presidential candidates this year. But the same pattern goes back at least to the end of the Reagan era. For decades, presidents have had far more power than they can be trusted with. Here are election season pieces I wrote on this theme in 1988 […]
American Institute for Economic Research, October 27, 2020 Defining Despotism Down James Bovard The simultaneous defining down of both democracy and despotism is 2020’s darkest legacy. Voters are recognizing that their ballots merely choose elective dictators who can exempt themselves from the Constitution simply by pronouncing the word “emergency.” At the same time, despotism is […]
Big thanks to Rachel Watson-Kennerly for having me on her new Just Add Liberty podcast. We had fun smacking politicians and talking about journalism. I enjoyed the chance to kick hell out of Washington ways and the lame “Go Team Go!” standard for Washington writing. (My comments on writers refers specifically to Washington writers.) “After […]
Mises Institute, October 23, 2020 Will Democracy’s Myths Doom Liberty? by James Bovard The Supreme Court declared in 1943, “There is no mysticism in the American concept of the State or of the nature or origin of its authority.” In reality, the cardinal doctrines of contemporary democracy are layer upon layer of mystical claptrap. The […]
On Saturday, I gave a talk at the Pennsylvania Libertarian Party state convention. There were so many great folks there and it was a pleasure to speak to a savvy, friendly audience. Richard Schwarz did a pitch-perfect introduction that set the tone for the talk. It’s hard not to like a guy who is always […]
