Category Archives: Politics

Failure of “Liberalism” in Texarkana?

Posted on August 12, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

I see our town has made the OPED page of the NY Times. I see many scholars quoted (& I’ve read many of their books and value their perspectives), but I don’t see that they talked to anyone in Texarkana, … Continue reading →

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Thinking about BLS Statistical Reports

Posted on August 6, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

BLS reporting has been in the news lately. I only took one statistics class in college, so I recognize my limitations. Nonetheless, I have some “meta” questions: Are “good” statistical reports ones that clearly “show my team’s policy to be … Continue reading →

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The Treachery of Memes

Posted on July 8, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

I first noticed this meme circulating several years ago: The first assumption is that the people on the left are, well, leftists, and that being “of the left” means desiring “more government.” Given this assumption, the meme, produced by an … Continue reading →

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Should Christians Be Leftists?

Posted on May 16, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

I’m sucker for free books. In this case Eerdmans, the publisher, offered me a free copy of Phil Christman’s Why Christians Should Be Leftists to read on condition that I’d share my opinions. My initial thoughts were that this book … Continue reading →

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International Students

Posted on April 15, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

It’s been depressing to see the level of animosity directed at international students by the current administration. Having friends who were international students was one of the highlights of my college experience. The college I attended only had about a … Continue reading →

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The Power of Character

Posted on March 17, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

In his The Scandal of the Kingdom, Dallas Willard writes: People can do good things and appear to be very good, but when opportunity arises, they may do whatever it takes to get what they want, even if they have … Continue reading →

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Citizen or Subject?

Posted on March 10, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

Kevin Williamson considers the difference between a “citizen” and a “subject.” In this context I’d prefer being a “citizen.” Do you have a preference? A citizen has many different loyalties and obligations, sometimes complementary and sometimes rivalrous: to the state, … Continue reading →

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Patrimonialism

Posted on March 5, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

Several political scientists are noting that our new regime here in the US is an example of what Max Weber called “Patrimonialism.” I first saw this in Jonathan Rauch’s piece in The Atlantic the other day. In a key section … Continue reading →

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Derangement Syndrome?

Posted on February 14, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

Over the years I’ve seen (though the exact terminology is more recent):Reagan Derangement SyndromeClinton Derangement SyndromeBush Derangement SyndromeObama Derangement SyndromeTrump Derangement SyndromeBiden Derangement Syndrome Now we have a reprisal/continuation of Trump Derangement Syndrome. Each of these have provoked strong negative … Continue reading →

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A Less Bad Culture War?

Posted on February 13, 2025 by Richard Heyduck

If we have to have a culture war, I wish we could conceptualize it in ways that were better for the country. Looking at Kyle Chan’s analysis of Chinese economic progress & challenges, Noah Smith claims that we’re getting ourselves … Continue reading →

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