Natural Right on Horseback
Young Washington, if nothing else, holds up an exemplary leader of perseverance, courage, wisdom, and humility.
Directed by Jon Erwin and released to commemorate this special Fourth of July, the film Young Washington hits the viewer almost startlingly. George Washington (William Franklyn-Miller) is portrayed as having what members of our clerisy would call “toxic masculinity.” Prepare yourself to witness the strength, courage, and decency of a young man driven by ambition and daring. The facts of the period are presented without apology or endorsement. They simply exist. The British Army wants the entire frontier for the Empire and is prepared to take it by any means necessary. The French mean the same and aren’t budging for the British. Slaves pass through the film, but no attempt is made to whitewash or ignore their presence as slaves.
After his father’s early death, the boy Washington is told by his mother, Mary (Mary-Louise Parker), that one reason he can’t go to school is that they must farm over 200 acres, feed themselves, and ensure the slaves are fed as well. No one will save them. Intense labor, misfortune, war, and suffering are part of the marrow of life. Get on with it. Washington does. In an age such as ours, saturated with therapists, depression meds, and constant whining and complaining about capitalism, the economy, racism, and America’s legacy of abuse of basically everyone, Young Washington is a splash of ice water in the face. In many of its scenes, the message echoes through Washington’s trials: if you want opportunity, wealth, and peace, then go achieve them.
Pursuit of Happiness
The Rise of Latino America
In The Rise of Latino America, Hernandez & Kotkin argue that Latinos, who are projected to become America’s largest ethnic group, are a dynamic force shaping the nation’s demographic, economic, and cultural future. Far from being a marginalized group defined by oppression, Latinos are integral to America’s story. They drive economic growth, cultural evolution, and workforce vitality. Challenges, however, including poverty, educational disparities, and restrictive policies, threaten their upward mobility. Policymakers who wish to harness Latino potential to ensure national prosperity and resilience should adopt policies that prioritize affordability, safety, and economic opportunity over ideological constraints.
Spielberg’s Empty Hope
'Disclosure Day' should have been called 'Hope and Change,' or rather 'Change and Hope.'
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Deliberative Republicanism and the Triumph of the American Founding
Instead of rejecting the moral urgency of the postliberal right and left, it is fitting and proper that we redirect it through the right kind of education—both formal and informal—that can inspire affection for our Constitution.
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