Reviews
Arts & Culture, Education & Parenting, Reviews
Hercules, Directed by Ron Clements and John Musker
Andreea Mincu January 15, 2021
If you have a youthful soul or are a parent looking for the rare story that shows that heroism is not inborn or altruistic but the result of one’s choices and rational values, Hercules belongs on your watchlist.
History, Philosophy, Politics & Rights, Reviews
Freedom: An Unruly History by Annelien de Dijn
Timothy Sandefur January 14, 2021
Far from a history of liberty, de Dijn’s book is a conscious effort to undermine that concept and to substitute in its place what she calls a “democratic conception of freedom,” which, in principle, amounts to collective control over every aspect of individual behavior.
Arts & Culture, Reviews
The Revenant by Michael Punke
William Nauenburg January 5, 2021
For those wanting to see the epitome of determination and willpower in action, few stories provide such a visceral experience as The Revenant.
Politics & Rights, Reviews
The Meritocracy Trap by Daniel Markovits
Timothy Sandefur December 18, 2020
Markovits’s reliance on loaded language is a good sign that his argument cannot stand—pardon the pun—on its own merits.
Arts & Culture, History, Politics & Rights, Reviews, Science & Technology
Chernobyl, by Craig Mazin
Jennifer K. Crosby December 11, 2020
Chernobyl explores the reasons for a monumental catastrophe and illustrates how it was magnified by the evasion and denial of those in charge.
Politics & Rights, Reviews
The Property Species: Mine, Yours, and the Human Mind by Bart J. Wilson
Timothy Sandefur November 4, 2020
The Property Species suggests fruitful speculations to demonstrate that property is a truly universal manifestation of human rationality and of man’s needs, not only to survive, but also thrive.
Arts & Culture, Reviews
Spotlight by Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer
Tim White October 29, 2020
Spotlight highlights the tremendous power of objective journalism and the inspiring heroism of the few journalists who remain committed to it.
Arts & Culture, History, Philosophy, Politics & Rights, Reviews
Cynical Theories: How Activist Scholarship Made Everything about Race, Gender, and Identity—and Why This Harms Everybody by Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay
Timothy Sandefur October 2, 2020
In Cynical Theories, Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay explore the connections between such phenomena as “shoutdowns,” “canceling,” and identity politics on the one hand and the philosophical doctrines taught in America’s universities on the other.
Arts & Culture, Reviews
Mulan (2020) Sullies the Legacy of a Heroine
Frank Olechnowicz October 2, 2020
If you’re looking for a Disney movie that conveys life-serving virtues and values, I passionately recommend watching (or re-watching) the 1998 animated Mulan—and abstaining from the 2020 live-action remake.
Ayn Rand & Objectivism, Reviews
Facets of Ayn Rand: Memoirs by Mary Ann Sures and Charles Sures
Jon Hersey September 24, 2020
Pick up Facets of Ayn Rand and revel in stories about one of history’s greatest storytellers.