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Hugging Himself

anxious and ambitious outsider, Boswellrnnevertheless had a genius for friendship.rnHe successfully courted two notoriousrnintellectual celebrities, Voltaire andrnRousseau, whose lives and thought werernantithetical to those of his moral hero,rnSamuel Johnson. Forced by his father intorna law career, he lost several clients to therngallows and witnessed their executions.rnHis adventurous trip to the wilds of banditriddenrnCorsica, then ruled...

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The Way Forward is With a Broken Head

watching a corpse,” when they conversedrnon serions subjects, Johnson stretchedrnBoswell’s mind to the utmost. When hisrngreat friend died, Boswell wrote: “He hasrnmade a chasm, which not only nothingrncan fill up, but which nothing has a tendencyrnto fill up . . . No man can be said tornput you in mind of Johnson.” hie thenrndedicated himself...

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Letter From Rockford

Letter From Rockfordrnby Scott P. RichertrnI’ve Got a SecretrnBack in November and December,rnwhile Republicans across the countryrnwere writing letters, calling in to talk radio,rnand even taking to the streets tornprotest Al Gore’s attempt to steal the electionrnin Florida, their fellow party membersrnin Rockford remained strangelyrnsilent. They must have found it disquietingrnwhen the Bush campaign kept...

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Saw

Jackson, and Americans don’t mind.rnThe’ may say they do; they may evenrnthink they do; bnt their actions speakrnlouder than their words. Bih Chntonrncould have awarded the PresidentialrnMedal of Freedom to the Prince of Lies,rnand he would still have left office with arn70-percent approval rating. (Come tornthink of it, he did award the medal to thernReverend...

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Letter From Venice

CORRESPONDENCErnLetter From Venicernby Andrei NavrozovrnThe Women’s MovementrnAfter an uninterrupted spell of a winterrnmonth or two here in Venice —all footstepsrnin the evening mist, and quiet conversationrnabout the best way to cookrnpheasant, and a Neapolitan card gamerncalled “seven and a half—what one noticesrnon arriving in London is the wayrnwomen move. First of all, it’s the speed.rnWithin...

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Letter From Indonesia

while watching her cross Campo S. Stefanornin the company of a golden retriever.rnAnd Stella C —, a young mother, tragicallyrnwidowed, vestal, with the face of arnCimabue Madonna, is somebody tornwhom I imagine an absolute stranger willrnone day propose, on bended knee, with arnsmall bouquet of mainland daisies and arndiamond riviere from Chatila of OldrnBond Street...

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Letter From Indonesia

Sukarnoputri, who has seemed more interestedrnin improving her standing withrnthe MusHm poHtical parties than in preventingrnMushm fundamentahsts fromrnkilHng Christians.rnA retired general, who wished to remainrnanonymous, beHeves that there arernonly a few “fanatic Muslims” in thernarmy’s leadership, so Wahid simplyrn”needs to replace them.” But Lobulisa isrnmore pessimistic: “We have changed therntop management of the military and...

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Letter From the Dominican Republic

Simple humanitarian help, they believe,rnis nnrealistic because the Muslims “arernkilling now. Action needs to be directedrnlike Kosovo. It needs to be discussed inrnthe U.N. Security Council.” hiternationalrnpressure might cause the Indonesianrnmilitary to stop the conflict; if not,rn”the West should act.” A retired generalrnargued that the goal should be to “makernthe military neutral. If not, then...

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Letter From the Dominican Republic

The previous stop had given us a leadrnon a possible guide and boat for me, sornwe returned to Monte Cristi. As we askedrnabout in the neighborhood, I saw a fatherrnand son carefully grooming one of theirrncocks for a coming fight. Thev told usrnwhere Rojillo—the man with the b o a t -rnlives. We struck a...

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The American Interest

The American Interestrnby Srdja TrifkovicrnWill President Bush Resist thernGlobal Interventionists?rnIn the second presidential debate last October,rnGeorge W. Bush warned VicernPresident Gore that it is not America’srnrole to patrol the planet and to arrangernother peoples’ lives in its own image.rnThe United States must be proud andrnconfident of our values, he said, “butrnhumble in how we treat...

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Politics: Everything Old Is New Again

VITAL SIGNSrnPOLITICSrnEverything OldrnIs New Againrnby Janet Scott BarlowrnMaureen Dowd, premier columnistrnfor the New York Times, is possessedrnof a rare professional gift: She canrnbe mean (often really mean) and funnyrn(often very funny) at the same time.rnWhat’s more, her potent powers of observationrnand sheer talent as a writer usuallyrncombine to mitigate her predictablernWashington cynicism.rnBut with the election...

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Religion

current culture. The fact is, we live inrntimes that are so relentlessly and obsessivelyrn”modern” that the most modernrnthing a president could possibly do is tornput together a government that feels “notrnthe least bit modern.” In a society thatrnhas proudly assaulted as “judgmental”rneverytliing from federal law to everyday etiquette,rnit is positively futuristic—it’s downrightrnradical, for God’s sake—to...

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Music: Hillbilly Deluxe

The purpose of this queshon —anotherrnpopular homosexuahst argument—isrnto make any appeal to principle lookrncold, abstract, inhuman, and heartless.rnhi the average American mind, “love”rnjustifies almost anything because it is uncontrollablernand requires us to do thingsrnno one else can judge.rnFinally, there is the straightforwardrninsult. In another Issues, Katie Sherrod,rna longtime writer for the EpiscopalrnWomen’s Caucus (a group...

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Music: Hillbilly Deluxe

also a member of Johnny Cash’s band.rnRespect for tradition is not synonymousrnwith stagnation, and Stuart hasrndone more than simply ape the sounds ofrnhis heroes. He has carried the influencernof Flatt and other bluegrass legends andrnJohnny Cash into his solo career. Hisrnfirst album, Busybee Cafe, has a substantialrnbluegrass and old-time country flavorrnthat is aided by the...

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In the Dark

In The Darkrnby George McCartneyrnOdysseysrnHomer’s Odyssey is the perfect narrativernform for film. What other medium is asrnwell equipped to render fantastic journeysrnfilled with willful gods, unreasonablernmonsters, and enchanting women?rnThis explains why three recent films haverndrawn upon the epic for their inspiration.rnhi O Brother, Where Art Thou?, filmmakingrnbrothers Joel and Ethan Coenrnhave decided to go James...

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In the Dark

tinue working on his grandfather’s cattlernranch. When the old man dies, however,rnCole’s mother c|uickly sells the land to oilrndevelopers and leaves for California tornbecome an actress. She represents modernrnAmerica: Rather than nurtnre whatrnlittle tradition she’s been born into, sherncashes it in for qnick money and vulgarrnfame. Cole, on the other hand, is arnhorseman, even instinctively...

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In the Dark

CHRONICLES’ BACK ISSUES, TAPES, AND BOOKSrnThe Rockford Institute’s Northern Italian ConviviumrnITALY FROM ROME TO NAPOLEON—Audiotape—Thomas Fleming traces thernhistor’ of Italy from the days of ancient Rome tfirough the 18th century. Addressing thernthree regions of modem haly, he discusses the formation of the system of patronage, thernevolution of the Roman Republic, and the surprising level of...

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In the Dark

At Last!rnA book that exposes the true cultural significance of the Clinton presidencyrnThe Nonpatriotic President: A Survey of the Clinton Yearsrnby Janet Scott BarlowrnWhitewater . . . Filegate . . . Monica LewinskyrnThe scandals are only the beginningrnIf you think that Bill Clinton’s influence will end when hernleaves office, you need to read this book....

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Polemics & Exchanges

j:niT()Rrnihomus FlemingrnI’xvr.viwEKDnoRrnScutt P. RichertrnSEMOR KDI’IOR. BOOKSrnQh’ihon W’iUiamson. ]r.rnAssiS’iANri’:i)ri’ORrnAaron D. WolfrnART DIRECTORrnH. Ward SterettrnDESICNERrnlelanie AndersonrnCONTRIBUTING EDITORSrnKatherine Dalton, Samuel Francis,rnGeorge Garrett, Paul Gottfried,rnPhilip Jenkins, ].0. late, MichaelrnWashburn, Clyde WilsonrnCORRESPONDING EDI’IORSrn]anet Scott Barlow, Bill Kauffman,rnDonald Livingston. William Mills,rnWilliam Murchison, AndreirnNarrozov, Jacob hleusnerrnEII.M EDITORrnGeorge McCartneyrnFORKIGN-AEEAIRS EDITORrnSrdja ‘IrifkovicrnLEGAL-AFFAIRS H’.DITORrnStephen B. PresserrnRELIGION EDITORrnHarold O.J. BrownrnEDITORIAL SECRIvTARYrnLeann DobbsrnCIRCIiLVIION MANAGERrnCindy LinkrnPUBLISHERrnThe Rockford InstituternA...

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Cultural Revolutions

McCartnc’ would call “dire consequences.”rnAll of them indicate that sexualrnimnioralih—especially in women —isrna threat to the social order. All of diemrnindicate that sex diseonneeted fromrnmorals leads to horror. Taken together,rnthese fictions enibod’ the sexual moralrnpatrimon- of the West. A culture superiorrnto our own might ha’e learned thesernlessons the eas’ wa’, by reading theserntexts w ith...

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Cultural Revolutions

the Florida legislature had vindicated itsrnown rights by appointing the slate of electorsrnthat had been chosen according tornthe statutory’ scheme created b the legislature.rnIt is true that this route niav havernproduced two slates of electors fromrnP’lorida, but that is not a constitutionalrnproblem. If Florida’s legislature had certifiedrnone set of electors and Florida’srnSupreme Court had tried...

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Cultural Revolutions

a ]3()11 \a,s taken whicli rccaled that twornthink ot the American publie approeclrnot C’linton’s performance in office, ticxiialrngctmes and all. Oli, “es, some people saidrn(showing more sophistication than tlicrnpundits), the might not wan! (Jhiitonrngoing out with their danghters; but thatrnhad nothing to do witli die prcsidenewrnKecr before has there been snch arngap between poUtical wisdom...

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Cultural Revolutions

vote seems pernianently lost to the Democrats.rnAs an immigration centrist (aboutrnthe only issne on which I’m centrist), I’mrnwilling to sit back and see if Bush—who gotrn30 percent of tlie fiispanic vote versus fivernpercent of the black vote —can do somerncoalition-building. I tliink he v ill trv’.rnSo bring on the Ivnch part)’. I think vernhave, in...

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Cultural Revolutions

by the sword. We might also speculaternwhether it was wise to attack JusticesrnScalia and Thomas, as Al Gore did duringrnhis campaign. No matter. Those ofrnus who still believe in the rule of lawrncould rejoice that seven of the nine justicesrnof the U.S. Supreme Court had therncourage to say the right thing, and fivernhad the courage...

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Free Greeks, Servile Americans

PERSPECTIVErnFree Greeks, Servile Americansrnby Thomas FlemingrnConservatives are fond of saying that the United States is arnrepnblic, not a democracy, and in their appeals to the nationalrnconscience, they invoke the sacred language of republicanrntradition, citing scriptures from Aristode and Cicero, fromrnEdmund Burke and George Washington: the ride of law, a virtuousrncitizenry, and ordered liberty. Like most...

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Mata Hari’s Ghost

tliat money wasn’t eerything (“Wealth, wealth makes thernman,” as one eynical prover]> went), none of them vvonid pretendrnto rise above all such material qneshons.rnEven Aristotle, who regarded the life of eontemplahon as therneiilmination of human existence, was er” clear about the needrnfor a certain level of wealth and comfort. But we, whose entirernculture for two...

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Mata Hari’s Ghost

their time and resources to the serice of their commonwealth;rnand in times of national emergency, they will even submit to arntax to snpport the soldiers who are risking their lives for theirrnneighbors. Free people, however, reject categoricallv the assumptionrnthat they somehow owe the state a portion of their incomernor propertv’.rnClaude Nicolet, in his book on...

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The Western Way of War

VIEWSrnThe Western Way of WarrnFrom Plato to NATOrnby Roger D. McGrathrnWhen I first began reading of the aneient world as a child,rnI vas mystified by the collapse of the Greek cit}’-statesrnand the fall of Rome. How coidd such a thing come to pass? Itrnseemed perfectiv reasonable that Eg)pt, Sumer, and the Hittiternkingdom should have come...

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The Western Way of War

a great deal if they eould pick out tlie brave men from tlic cowards.rnWiriiout question, the indiscriminate manner of deathrnfrom distant warriors left tlie Spartans bitter; diis was not a fightrnof real men. Plutarch savs that a battlefield death was of no concernrnto a Spartan unless “it was caused by a cowardly bow.” hirnthe Iliad,...

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The Western Way of War

cow him into submission, then hum’ home to hanest your ownrncrops.rnVictor Davis Hanson, a farmer and tlie author of several finernworks on Greek warfare, has argued that tlie idea of agriculturalrndevastation during the Greek hoplite wars has been greatlyrnexaggerated. Wliile fires are easy enough to set, trees and vinesrnnsnalK’ recover quickly. Cutting vines is not...

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Athenian Hegemony and Its Lessons for America

Athenian Hegemony and Its Lessons for Americarnby Srdja TrifkovicrnS^ ii ‘ ‘ ^ ^ ‘ ” i i ^ , , ^^ ^’V. ^^Pt^^.rni«mM«rnf i ^ * ; – – – – ^ ^ – * – If*- tfS? iterfj^-arn*/« -at*- ‘* W,*??rnfe’i’W’rno Lir common European civilization — of which the oldrnAmerican Republic is an...

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Athenian Hegemony and Its Lessons for America

It has been said that the Athenians created an empire beeansernthe’ dared not destroy a confedcrahon. This is givingrnthem too mncli credit; Faiipires arc not created b default,rnagainst the wishes of allegedly reluctant hegemonists. In orderrnto keep her budding empire together, Athens started meddlingrnin her clients’ internal affairs and ordering their lives in thernname of...

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Restoring the Electoral College: A Round table discussion

^Ji.rn- VIEWSrn0’a6/ern- RESTORINGrn^ THErnELECTORAL COLLEGErnDon’t Fix Itrnby Stephen B. PresserrnThe Electoral College, as we used to learn and as readers ofrnthis journal will still be aware, was supposed to be a devicernfor remo’ing the choice of the president from the people.rnRather than direct elections, uiiich could lead to the nation’srnchief executive being the best demagogue,...

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Signs of the Times

“All the NewsrnUnfit to Print” ignsi of tlje ^imt^rnVol. 3 No. 2 February 2001rnThe world is breathing a sigh of rehefrnnow that the American electorate hasrnfound the cure for the mad-cow diseasernthat has afflicted U.S. foreign pohcy for sornmany years. Still, her memory hngers inrnworld capitals, where they continue to tellrnMadeleine Albright stories—for example,rnof her...

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Signs of the Times

gotiations significantly, but thernreal achievement was in the internationalrnsponsorship of thernpeace process. The UnitedrnStates, which i s completely biasedrntoward Israel, is no longerrnthe only sponsor . . .rnSome Europeans agreed: The LondonrnGuardian noted in its lead editorialrn(November 30) that there was a mountingrnArab sense that George W. Bush would bernmore evenhanded and less attached to...

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Flannery Flummery

OPINIONSrnFlannery Flummeryrnby J.O. Tatern”[I]fl were not a Catholic, I would have no reason to write, no reason to see,rnno reason to feel horrified or even to enjoy anything . . . J feel myself that beingrna Catholic has saved me a couple of thousand years in learning to write.”rn—Flannery O’ConnorrnFlannery O’Connor:rnThe Obedient Imaginationrnby Sarah GordonrnAthens:...

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Flannery Flummery

again it was not so. Dismissing O’Connor’srn”popularih- in the college b’.nglishrnDepartment” and “a handfnl of local enthusiasts,”rnGordon is dismissing preeiscKrnthose people w ho knew Flanner 0″C>)nnorrnand her work when she herself arrirned helatedly on the scene. Histor beginsrnwith Sarah Gordon! These openingrnfallacies are the equi’alcnt of saing HiatrnGordon’s solipsism amoimts to whatrnthere is to be...

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Flannery Flummery

on two benighted but not unredeemedrnsouls. That bhiek totem is a warpedrnChrist, and as sueh elearlv imphes thatrnthe Afriean-Ameriean in the South hasrnIx-en a Christ-figure at least, erueified onrnthe eross of unreasoning hatred, and eenrnan agent of Cod’s grace. Not one writerrnin die histoPi’ of American literature hasrneer done as much so economiealH’ andrnso rnieannil}’...

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The Executioner’s Tale

REVIEWSrnThe Executioner’srnTalernby Paul GottfriedrnMy Love Affair With America:rnThe Cautionar)’ Tale of arnCheerful Conservativernhv Norman PodhoretzrnNew York: Free Press; 248 pp., $25.00rnThis “celebration” of his intense loernaffair with America will not likelyrnteach Norman Podhoretz’s devotees anythingrnnew. F’or the most part, it incorporatesrnmaterial that can be fonnd in earlierrnautobiographical writings and in Podhoretz’srnother published recollectionsrnabout life in...

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Marx, Albright, Blair & Gates

Marx, Albright,rnBlair & Gatesrnby Srdja TrifkovicrnKmpirernby Michael Hurdt and Antonio NegrirnCambridge, MA:rnHarvard Vniversih’ Press;rn512 pp., $35M)rnWhen the jacket blurb tells you thatrnthe book before you “basiealhcombinesrna kojesian notion of global marketrnas post-historv (in this sense akin tornFukuama’s eschatology) with a Foucauklianrnand Deleu/.ian notion of bio-pokrnitics (in this sense crossing the road of arnSloterdijk who also...

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Lighting Out for the Territory

look seemed preth- grim from the Marxistrnperspective, but—as Hardt and Negrirnpoint out—the end of the Cold War hasrnclear«:d the way for the rise of global Empire,rnand with it the new hope that allrniiia turn out well in the end.rnThis is the key message of the book.rnHardt and Negri are true revoluhonariesrnwho want to move beyond...

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An American Original

as a function of sexual idcntitv’ and favorsrnliberal soeial and governmental policiesrnto coimteract what he sees as a malernflight from responsibility. It’s easvrnenough to argue vith his political agendas,rnbut these do not detract from arndiought-provoking book.rnBut is its thesis correct? There arc twornob ions objecHons, the first of which isrnthat Americans, in their restlessness as...

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An American Original

tender spot on her nose). About her withdrawalrnfrom Foxcroft, she says:rnAt some point, the school becamernso alarmed at my utter lack ofrnprogress that they took a step unheardrnof in those days. They suggestedrnthat I be analyzed by a doctor.rnMother took me to Dr. Draper.rnHe was a psychiatrist, but he alsornwas a relative, so that made...

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Principalities and Powers

Principalities & Powersrnby Samuel FrancisrnRout of the RepublicansrnThe first tiling to be said about the presidentialrnelection of 2000 is that GeorgernW. Bush and the Stupid Part’ lost miserabh.rnThis is true despite their actual victor-rnin the great post-election Floridarnchicken-scratch because, without RalphrnNader on the ballot, Al Ciorc would liavcrnwon the election easih’. Nader’s votes inrnFlorida alone...

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Principalities and Powers

in the first place; fortunately for the parh’,rnmost whites have nowhere else to go andrnhave not yet pereeived that the party’srnleadership no longer thinks they’re importantrnenough to court.rnOne reason white voters have nowherernelse to go but to the GOP is that the alternativernpart)’ of the right, which is whatrnthe Reform Partv’ promised to becomernwith Pat...

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Letter From Rockford

Letter From Rockfordrnhv Scott P. RichertrnChaos and Community’rnI tunc the radio to WLS, and the insistentrnoice of Tony Brown breaks me ont ofrnnn- tranee. It’s Saturday, December 9,rnthe dav after a l)itterl divided FhjridarnSupreme Court stretclied (and possiblyrnliroke) Florida law in order to allow arnstatewide recount of imdcrvotes in thernpresidential election. My family and Irnare...

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Letter From Ireland

CORRESPONDENCErnLetter From Irelandrnby Thomas FlemingrnBad Catholics, Good Europeansrn”Irish Americans are often disappointedrnwhen thev come here,” remarked thernScottish chatelaine of onr prett}’ B&B onrnthe Dingle Peninsula, as she served usrnour breakfast of scrambled eggs andrnsmoked salmon. “They expect to seernthatched cottages with leprechauns poppingrnout from shamrocks.”rn”Played by Barn- Fitzgerald or ArthurrnShields?”rn”Yes, and girls who look just...

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Letter From Northern Illinois

alism. Just in recent months, the E.U.rnhas tried to clamp clown on religions instructionrnin Ireland’s schools, and thernIrish are getting tcstv’ about losing controlrnover their own fishing grounds: Accordingrnto E.U. rides written by the majorrnfishing nafions, Irish fishermen are enfitledrnto just seven percent offish taken inrntheir own waters. Even the Irish potato isrnimdcr siege, as...

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Letter From Northern Illinois

America. Should Roe v. Wade ever bernoverturned, states and muuicipalities willrnonee again be free to pass legislation regulatingrnabortion. How will the weakestrnand most vulnerable fare in America’srnheartland? Kelli Move and the people ofrnBoone County, Illinois, have provided usrna chilling answer.rnPoplar Grove, Illinois, some 14 milesrnnortheast of Rockford on Highway 173,rnhas a population of only 750....

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Letter From Venice

inside the scliool.rnI wisli 1 could sav tliat overturning Roern’. Wcide is the answer to tlie abortion tragedv.rnBut no law can civilize the hearts ofrnpeople in tiny farming hamlets such asrnPoplar Orove, let alone the more degenerate,rnlarger urban centers. No law canrnmake up for parents who marinate theirrnchildren in our sex-drenched popularrnculture or refuse to...