Articles

Zeros in on the nature and importance of purpose in good living, discusses how to organize and prioritize your values and goals with respect to their relative importance to your life and happiness, and offers tips and standing orders for making your life the best it can be.

Addresses various claims of Lincoln-bashing libertarians and conservatives; presents crucial and oft-ignored facts about Lincoln, about the Founders he revered, about the state of the Union during his time, and about the Civil War; and provides the context necessary to judge Lincoln and his actions objectively.

Craig Biddle introduces the Summer 2014 issue of The Objective Standard.

Atrocities against women and girls, against homosexuals, against non-Muslims, are, in the Muslim world, a daily occurrence. The action against this Sudanese woman—whether or not Muslims ultimately carry out their threat to murder her—is just one atrocity in an endless stream of atrocities perpetrated by Muslims in the name of their “God.”

[caption id="attachment_26356" align="alignright" width="300"] Image: Tesla Motors[/caption] Relying on so-called franchise laws, representatives of car dealerships in several states have been fighting with some success to legally stop Tesla Motors from selling its cars to consumers directly, rather than through franchised dealerships. As Fox news reports, Arizona, Maryland, New Jersey,…

A consortium of space entrepreneurs plans next year to deliver to the moon’s surface a can of Pocari Sweat, an Asian sports drink. Yes, they’re doing it for the money—and that is a glorious thing. Part of the purpose of the mission is to inspire students to pursue careers in space exploration.

In his recent address to representatives from the United Nations, Pope Francis called for “the legitimate redistribution of economic benefits by the State” in order to alleviate poverty. The pope believes economic inequality is wrong and that government should forcibly remedy the problem. But the pope is wrong on both counts.

The print edition of the Summer issue of The Objective Standard is at press and will be mailed shortly. The electronic versions—including online (html), ebook, audio, and Kindle—will be posted on May 20. The issue features "Getting Lincoln Right," by Alexander V. Marriott, "Purpose, Value Hierarchies, and Happiness," by Craig Biddle; and more.

Every major conservative who has commented on Common Core, pro or con, agrees that government should operate schools and establish curricula for those schools. They disagree only about the proper mix of involvement by federal, state, and local governments, and about the proper content of those standards.

When the student has to guess what the test writer means, or accept the teacher’s arbitrary pronouncements about what the vague problem “means,” the student “learns” not to solve math problems using his mind, but to doubt the efficacy of his mind and to become dependent on the teacher’s say-so.

WHO wants governments to forcibly confiscate more of people’s wealth when they buy alcohol, to forcibly stop consenting adults from trading products voluntarily, and to forcibly stop alcohol producers from exercising their right to free speech by advertising their products in accordance with their judgment.

In its artistry, the film is hauntingly beautiful, with its lush landscapes, intricate costuming, heart wrenching performances, and ponderous direction. In its subject matter—it details the years that free-born Solomon Northup spent in slavery after he was kidnapped and sold into bondage—the film is horrific.

The notion of “peak oil” is scientifically fallacious because, with better methods of discovering and extracting fossil fuels, known reserves keep expanding, not contracting. Sure, there’s a theoretical limit to the amount of fossil fuels people can extract, but so far we’ve used the proverbial drop in the bucket.

Why did a gang of thugs kidnap 276 schoolgirls in Nigeria last month? As Ali points out, “Boko Haram sincerely believes that girls are better off enslaved than educated.” Ali also points out that the kidnappings are part and parcel of the broader jihadist campaign against women living as human beings.

Imagine being able to keep an extra 12.4 percent of every paycheck to spend or invest according to your own judgment. Imagine if, rather than seize that portion of your paycheck to finance Social Security, government recognized your moral right to that wealth.