Monthly Archives: June 2010

Risks and Liberty Tibor R. Machan The New York Times editorialized in panic, predictably, in the wake of the U. S. Supreme Court ruling striking down Chicago’s ban on handgun ownership. Lamenting the Court’s highly abstract debate about the constitutional … Continue reading →

Why Military Hubris? Tibor R. Machan General McChristal spoke out of line, though perhaps truth to power. Yet hasn’t the American military been mislead into thinking that it is the answer to most of our problems? In which case his … Continue reading →

My Perennial Puzzles Tibor R. Machan I no longer recall whether I chose philosophy as the discipline I wanted to explore because of some puzzles I encountered or whether I found the puzzles in the field once a got to … Continue reading →

Friends & Politics Tibor R. Machan Yes, most of my friends have similar political convictions to mine. Actually, not just political but also more general philosophical ones, bearing on the theory of being, knowledge, the human good and even the … Continue reading →

There’s no Level Playing Field or Equal Opportunity Tibor R. Machan Yet another excuse for some people to gain power over others is this idea of the level playing field. It’s a metaphor, of course, but used often to mean … Continue reading →

No Excuse for Coercion Tibor R. Machan I am always baffled and now and then really angered when people defend using coercion against other people. (Some will say I must be biased since I come from several early years of … Continue reading →

Why Welfare States Hemorrhage Tibor R. Machan One central reason welfare states–or call them social democracies or whatever runaway mob rule most developed and developing countries are subject to these days (for the last thing they are is capitalist)–go broke … Continue reading →

Justice and BP Tibor R. Machan It is very probable that BP and its associated firms will be found guilty of malpractice and assessed major fines and punishment. However, this hasn’t yet happened so it’s premature to punish BP at … Continue reading →

Revisiting Free Will Tibor R. Machan In an essay for The New Republic, “Oh, the humanity,” Bradford Plumer writes as follows: "Take your pick on what’s most infuriating about the oil crisis in the Gulf. There’s the growing evidence that … Continue reading →

Liberty and Hard Cases* Tibor R. Machan What if a tornado hits? What if a lot of tornadoes hit? The issue isn’t very complicated, but it is challenging. The free society is supposed to be governed with an eye to … Continue reading →