First Principles Journal - All Content

Conservatism at the Crossroads

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by George H. Nash
Are we witnessing the “death of conservatism,” as the title of a recent book has it? Or is conservatism rising again “on the steppingstones of liberal excesses,” as George F. Will argues? The preeminent historian of American conservatism, George H. Nash, weighs in.

Historicism

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Claes G. Ryn

Historicism refers most generally to the view that human action, thought, and imagination are inescapably conditioned by the past and the historical situations in which they arise. Modern conservatism is ...

Kemp, Jack

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Bruce Bartlett
Lifespan: (1935– )

A prominent politician noted for his advocacy of tax cuts, the gold standard, and aggressive efforts to eliminate poverty, Jack French Kemp was born on July 13, ...

Family, The

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Bryce J. Christensen

For most contemporary American conservatives, the family forms the cornerstone for society and morality. Inspired by the teachings of scripture (cf. Genesis 2:24–25; 3:16–20; Exodus 20:12, 14; Mark 10:2–9; Ephesians ...

Cone, Carl

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Jeffrey O. Nelson
Lifespan: (1916–1995)

Carl B. Cone was one of the leading American figures associated with the revival of interest in Edmund Burke during the post–World War II era. A professor of ...

Canavan, Francis

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Kenneth L. Grasso
Lifespan: (1917– )

A prominent Catholic intellectual and political theorist, Francis Canavan was born in New York City in 1917, joined the Society of Jesus in 1939, and was ordained ...

In Memoriam: Ralph McInerny (1929–2010)

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Fr. Joseph W. Koterski, S. J.
Ralph McInerny, whom the ethicist Thomas Hibbs called “one of the great Catholic intellectuals of our time,” passed away on Friday at the age of eighty. First Principles remembers this philosopher, theologian, poet, novelist, and teacher. . . .

Root, Elihu

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Christopher H. Hoebeke
Lifespan: (1845–1937)

Lawyer, statesman, and diplomat of the Progressive Era, Elihu Root served as secretary of war under Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt (1899–1904), secretary of state under Theodore ...

Totalitarianism

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by Mark C. Henrie

“Totalitarianism,” in its adjectival form, “totalitarian,” originated in 1923 among opponents of Italian fascism, who used it as a term of abuse in describing the policies of the dictator Benito ...

Hutchinson, Thomas

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 05:00:00 GMT

by William Fahey
Lifespan: (1711–1780)

The great-great-grandson of the poet Anne Hutchinson (1591–1643), young Thomas began his career in his father’s counting-house at the age of nineteen, having already received both his B.A. ...