Articles

Recently, I was visited by a mother frustrated with her son's education and looking for something more. She informed me that mid-way through his kindergarten year, they were still learning their letters—most recently, they had been studying the letter "P." And in honor of the letter "P", they were having…

One of the great joys of the present school year has been the addition of an art appreciation class, taught by art enthusiast and VanDamme Academy teacher Luc Travers. Mr. Travers' unique approach to analyzing a work of art has transformed my esthetic life, enhancing my enjoyment of art, of…

The print edition of the Winter issue of TOS is at press and will be mailed shortly; the online version will be accessible to subscribers on December 18. For promotional purposes, we are making “From the Editor” and “No Substitute for Victory” available early and to all. Here are the…

Science education is a frequent topic in the news these days. This past Wednesday, Microsoft announced a campaign to improve math and science education in the Seattle area. According to Brad Smith, a senior vice president and general counsel for Microsoft: "We're very concerned about the possibility that our kids…

This year, I have the pleasure of teaching literature to our school's Elementary 1 students, children in second and third grades, a class that includes my own seven-year-old daughter Lana. Their uninhibited enthusiasm for learning, their eager quest to see connections, and their budding insights make them a delight to…

Examines the popular television series House, M.D., zeros in on its main flaw—acceptance of the reason-emotion dichotomy and all that it entails—and shows why this potentially excellent show is tragically mixed.

Examines the misconceptions of self-esteem that are widely accepted and propagated by educators and psychologists today, illustrates the philosophical causes of those misconceptions in modern philosophy, and presents the correct view of self-esteem along with its philosophical roots in rational philosophy.

Consults historical precedent to evaluate America’s response to the attacks of 9/11. Considering key historical attacks against America, along with her responses to those attacks, Lewis highlights the moral and practical issues involved, and draws vital lessons that Americans must grasp and apply in the current war—if we want to win it.

Critiques Rodney Stark’s best-selling book The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success. Bernstein’s analysis proves Stark’s thesis to be historically false and philosophically impossible. The fundamental factor that led to freedom, capitalism, and Western success, Bernstein shows, was not the Christian, scripture-based approach of applying “reason” to the goal of understanding “super-nature,” but rather the Aristotelian, observation-based method of applying reason to the goal of understanding actual nature.

Craig Biddle introduces the Winter 2006–2007 issue.

Analyzes Bernard H. Siegan’s Economic Liberties and the Constitution, showing the first edition of the book (not the second edition) to be a valuable source for those seeking to understand how legal protections for property rights in America were gradually lost. Salzman also shows that, although Economic Liberties has certain virtues and is one of the best scholarly books on the subject, it fails to provide a proper philosophical grounding of property rights, and thus cannot stand on its own in defense thereof.

One argument made for a Republican vote in this election—and the support it will bring to President Bush—is that Bush has the right foreign policy aims in mind; he errs only in their pursuit. If we would just give him the support he needs, he will correct his errors—thus speak…

John Kerry has once again proven himself despicable. He has insulted our fine soldiers, saying: "You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck…

[Since this post is coming in right on top of Dr. Lewis's excellent comments on the subject, I'm writing this note to bring continued attention to his post, which is a must read.] For whom should one vote in the coming election? What is the principal factor one should consider…

In the upcoming election, I will not vote for any Republican. My reasons are based on those offered by philosopher Leonard Peikoff, and I agree with him completely. A straight Democratic vote in this election is the only rational choice I can make. I would not, however, vote Republican today…