The last time I did jury duty I was outside on the courthouse plaza smoking during a break when a young man, a millennial, approached me and asked for a cigarette. I was surprised. Sixty years ago, when I was … Continue reading
Author Archives: Gary Potter
The Myth and Reality of Charles de Gaulle, Part II
(Part one is found here.) In the first part of this article I made the point that myth surrounds the figures of all men recognized as leaders and that the leaders who loom largest in history textbooks are those most … Continue reading
The Myth and Reality of Charles de Gaulle
Myth often usurps reality with men clinging to the former and ignoring the latter. For instance, most persons seem to persist in thinking of Ireland as still a Catholic country even though Mass is now celebrated in largely empty churches, … Continue reading
The Heresy of Americanism and the Spanish-American War
The heresy of Americanism, condemned in 1899 by Pope Leo XIII in his apostolic letter Testem benevolentiae, arose in France but got its name on account of it finding in the U.S. soil in which to take root and bishops … Continue reading
The ‘Splendid Little War’
Exactly 120 years ago this month, the United States was gearing up to go to war. In April Congress would declare it, government in those days still adhering to the constitutional requirement that Congress declare the nation’s wars instead of … Continue reading
The Aftermath of Humanae Vitae
Humanae vitae, Blessed Pope Paul VI’s encyclical reaffirming the Church’s defense of the sanctity of human life, was promulgated fifty years ago this year. It was dated July 25, 1968. When July rolls around later this year I shall have … Continue reading
A.E.I.O.U.
History-minded readers will recognize the letters A.E.I.O.U. as the logo of the Habsburg dynasty and therefore Austria when it was the center of the Holy Roman Empire that they ruled for centuries, an empire which became the Austro-Hungarian one, the … Continue reading
Ayn Rand: Conservatism’s Favorite Philosopher—Part Two
Having seen in Part One of this article something of the influence of Ayn Rand’s books and self-contrived philosophy of Objectivism, we want to conclude here with a look at the books themselves, in particular the two novels that have … Continue reading
Who Knew?
I recently met a charming and intelligent young woman who, like myself, is a convert. Also like myself she learned the Faith in France. In her case she grew up in the country, loves its traditional culture as I came … Continue reading
Ayn Rand, Conservatism’s Favorite Philosopher
There is a line of Scripture politicians commonly recite when American warriors killed in action or law-enforcement officers killed in the line of duty are commemorated. They may refrain from identifying the New Testament as its source lest they risk … Continue reading
Deconquista
November before last I wrote an article for the SBC website marking the fortieth anniversary of the death of Francisco Franco and comparing Spain when he governed the country to Spain now that it is no longer Catholic, no more … Continue reading
The Power of Silence
A few years ago I wasted money on a book that purported to be about the history and importance of silence in Catholicism. It turned out to be an exercise in political correctness instead. This became apparent in the opening … Continue reading
Transhumanism
Having fouled Earth with the works of their modern substitute for religion, science and technology, liberals imagine they can build a perfect world in outer space by means of science and technology that are now more “advanced” than they were … Continue reading
Feminism’s Goal
It was obvious to all with eyes to see that when feminism arose as a social and political force in the 1960s it was only tangentially about equal pay for equal work or anything like that. Of course seeking equality … Continue reading
Getting Rid of Rotten Fruit
Question: What do Death Comes for the Archbishop, Ode to Joy and The Night Watch have in common? Answer: 1) They are all works of art. 2) They can all be identified by a person of culture who will also … Continue reading