Our Sacred Honor

Disclaimer: I apologize in advance for the length of this post. It has been a long time since I have had ample time to organize my thoughts on any political issues and as such, I may tend to ramble a bit more in this post than I had intended. However, I feel that the issue discussed here is something that is certainly worth at least a cursory glance and consideration. I hope my attempts to express my thoughts are at least mildly stimulating, albeit exhaustive. – Evan PC: CNN             Every election year has its share of challenges and disappointments. I want to make sure I am clear on that point before I go any further, because I feel it is something that many individuals tend to forget in the midst of the bloodbath that arises as we enter Q3 of a general election year. Elections are messy. They’re brutal. They’re full of misdirection, lies, and attack ads. Good ideas are discussed. Bad ideas are discussed. Democrats blame Republicans for our ...

Have you ever heard the analogy that the United States of America is a "melting pot" - where different cultures, religions, ethnicity, and personalities come together to create something unique and special? I've always appreciated this analogy for its simple depiction of what makes America great - our pragmatic assimilation and appreciation of the good ideas in the world. This "melting pot" approach to American society and government can be traced all the way back to the original colonies in this nation. While many were British, there was also a great deal of influence Dutch, Spanish, and French society, as well. Settlers came to have opportunity, land, and freedom from the "old country." As time went on, the predominantly Protestant Europeans also began to be diversified among different denominations, and even Catholicism and some non-Christian sects, as well. By the time America declared independence, there was already a great deal of diversity of ...

Many conservatives are quick to spout criticism of “feminists” and how the push modern drive for women’s rights has damaged the nation. However, in my experience, true feminists and conservative republicans really share many core beliefs, and the movement itself was rooted in a fundamental understanding of the principles upon which our nation was founded. It has certainly been corrupted in recent years, but I would argue that true feminism is a strong ally to the Republican Party, and a vital component to winning the cultural war before us today. The Merriam Webster dictionary offers a few interesting definitions for "Feminism" that will help illustrate my primary thesis: 1: The theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. 2: organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests. Both of these definitions offer some insight into the basis of the "feminist movement" - I would blend these definitions to something akin to...

In case the above title is a stumper for you, let me briefly explain what I mean by "federalism." The term refers to a organization of government into two separate categories - the central government or "federal" government that has sovereignty over the nation as a whole, and the "subordinate" or state institutions that govern the individual states within the nation. In the United States, federalism was designed to provide a strong check to the powers of both the state and federal government - by allowing for dual sovereignty, with conflicting interests between the overlapping government forcing the governments to compromise. Now, for some of you, it was not the first term that was the stumper - but the phrase taken as a whole. This is where I would like to focus my time today. What does federalism look like in contemporary America? Or more to the point, does it even exist, today? This question was brought to my mind recently as my school debate club p...