Jon Hersey's Articles
Economics
Jeff Bezos’s Beautiful Defense of American Entrepreneurialism
Jon Hersey August 5, 2020
I dare you to read—without shedding a tear of joy—Jeff Bezos's July 29 statement before a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee on Antitrust.
Arts & Culture
Raise a Glass of Trader José’s in Support of this ‘Fearless Flyer’
Jon Hersey July 31, 2020
Those who oppose the irrational trend of finding offense in everything should applaud Trader Joe’s—and celebrate with some ice-cold Trader José’s Mexican-style lager.
Politics & Rights
Thank You, Big Tech, for Unfriending China
Jon Hersey July 8, 2020
Tech companies get plenty of things wrong, but their response to China’s latest act of authoritarianism is not one of them. Thank you, big tech, for standing up for the rights of Hongkongers.
History, Politics & Rights
George Floyd, Revolutions, and the Path to Justice
Jon Hersey June 17, 2020
By burning and pillaging the property of their fellow citizens, rioters spit on the progress their forbears achieved under far worse circumstances.
History, Politics & Rights
Lessons from Wisconsin’s Stand for Freedom
Jon Hersey May 19, 2020
Although the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s ruling is a partial victory for freedom, it falls short of making a principled stand for individual rights.
Arts & Culture, Education & Parenting, Reviews
Anne with an E by Moira Walley-Beckett
Jon Hersey April 30, 2020
If you can stand a tearjerker—and if you enjoy art that glorifies imagination, individualism, free inquiry, and the passionate pursuit of values—you may just fall in love with Moira Walley-Beckett’s Anne with an E.
Philosophy, Politics & Rights
Lockdowns Versus Living
Jon Hersey April 27, 2020
Whereas many (if not most) who get COVID-19 may never even know it, the same cannot be said of the government’s “cure.” Barred from taking the actions necessary to support their lives, many are now worse off than they would be taking their chances without lockdowns.
Economics, Politics & Rights
Economists Petition Politicians to Repeal Laws against “Price Gouging”
Jon Hersey April 16, 2020
If you recognize and want to protect the rights of producers and traders to act on their judgment, which will, in turn, enable them to produce and sell the products we all need during this pandemic—please sign and share Raymond C. Niles’s petition.
Politics & Rights, Science & Technology
Statist Responses to COVID-19: An Interview with Michael Fumento
Jon Hersey April 3, 2020
“We need to look at the suffering caused by lockdowns. People suffer when they get COVID-19, and they suffer when they’re thrown out of work and can’t eat. They suffer both ways.” — Michael Fumento
History, Philosophy, Politics & Rights, Reviews
America’s Revolutionary Mind: A Moral History of the American Revolution and the Declaration That Defined It by C. Bradley Thompson
Jon Hersey March 28, 2020
The first in a two-part series on the country’s fundamental ideas, America’s Revolutionary Mind is not a narrative of events but a systematic re-creation of the philosophy that led colonists to, in the words of Thomas Paine, “begin the world over again.”
Arts & Culture, Biographies, History
Isabella Stewart Gardner: ‘One of the Seven Wonders of Boston’
Jon Hersey March 19, 2020
Isabella Stewart Gardner was a firecracker of a woman with a studied yet eclectic taste in art and the means to acquire lots of it. As one friend put it, she lived “at a rate and intensity, with a reality that makes other lives seem pale, thin and shadowy.”
Arts & Culture, Ayn Rand & Objectivism, History, Philosophy, Politics & Rights
How Heroes Improve Our Lives: An Interview with Andrew Bernstein
Jon Hersey March 12, 2020
In Heroes, Legends, Champions, Andrew Bernstein has created a fascinating hybrid of useful philosophy and inspirational vignettes about outstanding men and women. The result is a book that can help people rise to heroic heights in their own lives.
Politics & Rights, Science & Technology
Social Media and the Future of Civil Society
Jon Hersey February 20, 2020
Social media at times may carry messages we abhor. Shooting the messenger, though, is not a solution but a path toward statism. If we want to safeguard the future of civil society, then we must defend the rights of social media companies.
Arts & Culture
The ‘Purely Musical’ Madison Cunningham
Jon Hersey January 30, 2020
Madison Cunningham, just twenty-five, already has proven herself a consummate artist with the power to fuse melody, meaning, and an eclectic blend of musical styles to create grand works that can still fairly be described as pop songs.
Arts & Culture, Ayn Rand & Objectivism, Good Living
More Gift Ideas for Fans of Ayn Rand
Jon Hersey December 19, 2019
Here are some gift ideas that I think may enrich your holidays, your relationships, and your life. Merry Christmas!