4-9-16 Hodgepodge

The Deadbeat Generation

From an article that catalogs many of the ill effects of our federal student loan program comes the following disturbing fact:

Over 40 percent of those in student loan programs have stopped making payments. Many borrowers have never made any payments.

I probably shouldn't be surprised at this, but I am. I had an inkling that was common, but this number is incredible. The article notes the government's role in encouraging this irresponsible behavior.

Weekend Reading

"How grateful am I to the man who first took a streak of rust from a rock and turned it into iron ore, instead of being a 'conservationist' and letting it sit there for me and my generation." -- Alex Epstein, in "The Truth About Future Generations" at Forbes

"When you bluntly tell somebody what to do, you're implying that they don't have a mind of their own." -- Michael Hurd, in "Why Lecturing Does Not Work" at The Delaware Wave

"It's hard to imagine anything more optimistic or realistic than what lifted America to the greatness it once enjoyed." -- Michael Hurd, in "Optimism Is Missing From the Race" at NewsMax

"Berman argues that the fundamental problem with Iran is not its nuclear quest, but the regime itself: Tehran is animated by 'an uncompromising religious worldview that sees itself at war with the West.'" -- Elan Journo, in The Misunderstood Mullahs, a review of Iran's Deadly Ambition: The Islamic Republic's Quest for Global Power, by Ilan Berman, at The Claremont Review of Books

"Manners must stem, at least initially, from a sense of self-interest and self-preservation." -- Michael Hurd, in "Do Manners Matter?" at The Delaware Coast Press

"[T]he deeper issue is this: even if it is true that heirs haven't earned the wealth they [inherit], 'society as a whole' certainly hasn't earned it either." -- Don Watkins and Yaron Brook, in "Inherit The Wind ... And Not Much Else" at Investor's Business Daily

"If we reframe the debate, making our ideals explicit, we can both win supporters and champions of the right policies, and expose the evil and anti-humanism of the wrong policies." -- Alex Epstein, in "How to Make Energy a Winning Issue for Republicans in 2016" at Forbes

In More Detail

Alex Epstein's piece on making energy a winning electoral issue is long, but I strongly recommend reading it in full. It is a clinic in how to think about and debate any issue. Epstein concludes:

If you believe that the principles of energy freedom are right, and if you believe that we need a positive, inspiring platform for energy freedom, please share this with your favorite politicians and candidates -- and, if they take the right positions, volunteer to help them spread the message. I will do the same; if any pro-energy campaigns need help with their platform and messaging, whether on fossil fuels or nuclear or fracking or climate change, I volunteer.

This piece is the best example of hard-hitting, practical, pro-human thinking I've seen in a long time. It correctly diagnoses the cause of Republican paralysis in the face of a multitude of horrible anti-energy policies and proposals, and indeed the cause of the multitude. And the piece describes exactly what to do about the problem. Note again that the approach Epstein outlines can and should be applied to other political issues.

Political Humor

At the blog of The Objective Standard, Craig Biddle asks, "Which Ayn Rand Villain is Donald Trump?"

I'll venture to add that the idea of a race between "Your Drunk Neighbor" and "Your Stoner College Roommate" would be funny were it not a real possibility. (Don't know who they are? Hint: They both like Denmark.)

-- CAV