American Greatness logo

First Principles

What Is Really Fueling Wuhan Virus Hysteria?

—
The Wuhan virus has taught people that spiritual maladies can translate into physical maladies. A society comprised of so many individuals lacking community, faith, and reason will succumb all too easily to hysteria and nihilism.

The Soullessness of a Technocrat

—
Experts and technocrats lack the experience, the wisdom, and the real political authority to make the kind of broad decisions that should be guiding us in a crisis.

The Expectations Abyss

—
On our side of the abyss, the 16-year-old boy is dying slowly of intellectual asphyxiation in school and online. On that side of the abyss, the biggest manufacturer of women’s clothing in Cleveland is advertising for a likely lad to come and do office work, with high hopes set forth for a well-remunerated career.

Is Nothing Sacred?

—
We have a duty to preserve our earthly lives, but not at all costs. This is true both for individuals and for nations. We cannot help but notice the eagerness with which some leftists have embraced the shutdown of churches.

Tocqueville’s Lessons in a Time of Pandemic

—
As the crisis continues, and in the aftermath, the activity of the citizens that Alexis de Tocqueville described so well in his book must always include assessing how well their local and state governments have prepared for ordinary and extraordinary events.

The Real Goals of ‘The 1619 Project’

—
Teaching young people they have no country, that there is neither God nor justice, but only their own anger to right wrongs leads not to civilized self-rule but to fanaticism and self-destruction.

Tolerance Is Not Enough

—
While it is important for us to come together and work to address shared concerns and strive to reach shared goals, it is important to remember that cultures and religions have fundamental and occasionally contradictory principles.

A Resource for Religious Liberty

—
Religious Liberty is the latest in the Ashbrook Center’s series of document collections covering major periods, themes, and institutions in American history and government. 

The 1619 Project and Its Critics

—
Nikole Hannah-Jones ought to step up, be courageous, and debate the historians with whom she disagrees. They’re waiting. All historical claims, particularly those with as wide-reaching and radical ramifications as these, must be discussed and scrutinized by trained scholars.

The Enduring Counsel of George Washington

—
Charity is warranted respecting political divisions when the objects of the parties are in accord. Washington’s advice for healing our divisions then and now involves remembering what ought to be our common object. But do we?