Can California Be Fixed?

by Victor Davis Hanson

NRO’s The Corner

Recently, I was driving down pot-holed, two-lane, non-freeway 101 near Monterey (unchanged since the 1960s) when the radio blared that on a recent science test administered to public schools, California scored 47th in the nation. Continue reading “Can California Be Fixed?”

The New Reactionaries

by Victor Davis Hanson

PJ Media

Our New Regressivism

About fifteen years ago, many liberals began to self-identify as progressives — partly because of the implosion of the Great Society and the Reagan reaction that had tarnished the liberal brand and left it as something akin to “permissive” or “naïve,” partly because “progressive” was supposedly an ideological rather than a political identification, and had included some early twentieth-century Republicans like Teddy Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover [1]. Continue reading “The New Reactionaries”

Cabinets Gone Wild

by Victor Davis Hanson

Tribune Media Services

We’ve had some unusual Cabinet secretaries in past administrations — Earl Butz, John Mitchell and James Watt come to mind — but never anything quite like the present bunch. Continue reading “Cabinets Gone Wild”

Decline or Decadence?

by Victor Davis Hanson

Tribune Media Services

Almost daily we read of America’s “waning power” and “inevitable decline,” as observers argue over the consequences of defense cuts and budget crises. Continue reading “Decline or Decadence?”

Sitting Out Obama

by Victor Davis Hanson

National Review Online

We recently saw lots of sit-down strikes and demonstrations — the various efforts in Wisconsin, the Occupy movements, and student efforts to oppose tuition hikes. None of them mattered much or changed anything. Continue reading “Sitting Out Obama”

When Administrations Implode

by Victor Davis Hanson

Tribune Media Services

Administration meltdowns are hardly novel. In almost every presidency there comes a moment when sheer chaos, whether self-induced or the result of an outside crisis, takes hold. Continue reading “When Administrations Implode”

Campaigning on Grievances

by Victor Davis Hanson

Tribune Media Services

In 2008, a mostly unknown Barack Obama ran for president on an inclusive agenda of “hope and change.” That upbeat message was supposed to translate into millions of green jobs, fiscal sobriety, universal healthcare, a resetting of Bush foreign policy, and racial unity. Continue reading “Campaigning on Grievances”

Strangers in a Stranger Land

by Victor Davis Hanson

PJ Media

Trostky-ization

In ancient Rome, when the emperor or an especially distasteful elite died, his image on stone and in bronze was removed. And by decree there arose adamnatio memoriae, a holistic effort to erase away his entire prior existence. Continue reading “Strangers in a Stranger Land”

Freedom or Fairness in 2012?

by Victor Davis Hanson

Tribune Media Services

This should prove to be an ideological election about the economy. Not all campaigns are so clear-cut. Sometimes moderate Republicans raise taxes (as George H. W. Bush did); at other times, pragmatic Democrats cut spending (as Bill Clinton did). Continue reading “Freedom or Fairness in 2012?”

The Second Oil Revolution

by Victor Davis Hanson

Tribune Media Services

The world was reinvented in the 1970s by soaring oil prices and massive transfers of national wealth. It could be again if the price of petroleum crashes — a real possibility given the amazing estimates about the new gas and oil reserves on the North American continent. Continue reading “The Second Oil Revolution”