Republic Rules - The U.S.A. is a great representative republic.

I believe property rights are key to the success of the American economic system. We can individually own property… a simple fact that doesn’t really exist in a communistic society, where “the people” collectively own everything (at least, in theory). We can buy and sell our “stuff” based on our own wants and […]

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As I take this pulpit, dear congregation, and look out on your smiling faces, I am reminded that the founders of our great country, wise and full of foresight, specifically addressed the topic of religion when creating the rules by which our republic should be governed. They gave us all:
Freedom of religion.
As individuals, we […]

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While life has certainly changed for everyone over the past few decades, the economics of health care has seen one of the most dramatic transformations. Though some aspects have been for the better, all the changes have not been good… especially the expense. To make matters worse, it has become a politically charged […]

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Most issues have many, many points and counterpoints.  Rarely is something so black and white that all can see the entire field clearly and take a position, one way or the other.  Even then, humans are involved, so there will always be some fringe element that will reject an idea despite the fact the vast […]

Read the rest of The Reality of Debate

In business, there is a well-established marketing methodology called market segmentation where sales and advertising is positioned toward identified segments of the market rather than the entire market. The concept is to speak more specifically to the target rather than generically to the whole. The message is somewhat different when addressing young, single […]

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We hear the word “equality” tossed about a lot, especially during elections when a lot of popular but empty promises are made.
I trust we can all agree that, as citizens, we should all enjoy equal rights… meaning we should all be treated the same.  Freedom of speech, voting privileges, and so on.
Often, though, “equality” is […]

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Not that it’s new at all, but I think the frequency is increasing: our legislators jump into action to pass laws or approve expenditures in response to “popular demand”, to address some problem that has currently caught the attention of the media, which has whipped the public into a frenzy. Sadly, there is […]

Read the rest of Popular Economics

As it has in most other areas, I expected the Internet would have a positive impact on the election process, allowing the masses to have access to facts that would reveal the truth about candidates and, on the whole, lead to more rational decisions.
I was wrong.
While the web is a wonderful resource for information, it […]

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I’m regularly puzzled when I hear of people protesting our country’s military.  I’m not just talking about an intellectual or moral stance against a war, there are always pros and cons with those situations, I’m referring more to folks who do not want our military to exist, or don’t want them to be able to […]

Read the rest of The Paradox of the Unthinking

I’ve always questioned the true effectiveness of government assistance programs, for a variety of reasons:

The inevitable administrative cost takes a large portion of the “helping” dollars away from those in need.
To limit abuse, there is a lot of red tape… usually delaying assistance when it’s most needed.
Temporary programs tend to become permanent programs.
Big picture: […]

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