Free Republic

REPOST WITH CORRECT ADDRESS FOR THE HOSPICE-please ping your Terri lists From www.Terrisfight.org Terri's Birthday: Terri's Birthday is December 3rd. So many people have contacted us, recently, to ask how they may participate. We are so delighted that so many people want to help Terri enjoy her special day and we appreciate the kindness that people have shown to Terri. Because Terri's husband does not permit her to have flowers in her room, we ask that you consider doing something else that would be as meaningful. Here are some things you can do: If you can come to Florida,...

America's cities and towns will soon fill with parades, fireworks, and barbecues. They will be celebrating the Fourth of July, the 227th birthday of America. But one hopes that—on this second post-September 11 Independence Day—the speeches will contain fewer bromides and more attention to exactly what is being celebrated. The Fourth of July is Independence Day, but America's leaders and intellectuals have been trying to move us further and further away from the meaning of Independence Day, away from the philosophy that created this country. What we hear from politicians, intellectuals, and the media is that independence is passé, that...

Did Plato's Republic find a spiritual home in Japan? By MICHAEL HOFFMANSpecial to The Japan Times Four hundred and two years ago this week, a battle was fought near the village of Sekigahara, 40 km northwest of Nagoya. Though short -- it was over soon after lunchtime -- the battle was decisive, ushering in . . . Plato's Republic? What would the ancient Greek philosopher have thought of a comparison between his ideal imaginary Republic under all-wise philosopher-kings, and the Tokugawa bakufu, the military government of Edo Japan (1603-1867) whose dour dictators ruled by decree and terror a society they...

Economics, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness Submitted to the Rocky Mountain News, March 20, 2001.Posted at Opinionet Eric Valdez' letter of March 19 contains so many outrageous statements, that it is hard to know where to begin commenting on it. I could write a letter about each paragraph, but I will confine my remarks to the following: "The people do have an inalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - none of which has anything to do with an economic system." However, Valdez rails against capitalism, which to his way of thinking denies these rights,...