Month: July 2009
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Economic Recovery
I was listening this morning to a story on NPR about rising unemployment when an interesting thought struck me. The story was talking about the negative feedback loop of rising unemployment leading to lower housing prices and more economic uncertainty. These factors then dampen consumer spending and keep unemployment high and even encourage more unemployment.…
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Lincoln’s House Divided Speech
I had never before read Lincoln’s House Divided Speech. Considering that it came in the very early days of the Republican party it could have been applied to or derived from the split between the Republicans and the Whigs and not simply the nation as a whole. Here is the heart of what most people…
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The Monroe Doctrine
I remember learning about The Monroe Doctrine in history classes – mostly about the interpretation of it called Manifest Destiny. I found it enlightening to review some background surrounding this speech to Congress. In Wikipedia the doctrine is summed up like so: President Monroe claimed the United States of America, although only a fledgling nation…