Read Part 1 Here Most people in the modern world tend to see human history as a long progress from tribal societies to the Agrarian Revolutions that brought communities and cities and civilization, to the Industrial Revolution’s advanced technology, and now further progress into the Information Age. From this view, education and careers have … [Read more...]
Careers & Freedom, Part 1 – Oliver DeMille
Certain people are more suited for freedom than others. As Jefferson taught, all of us are created equal and endowed by our Creator with inalienable rights. Still, all through history, eras of freedom are very rare. The reason for this is historically clear: The people never stay free when they leave their freedom to any group of elites; … [Read more...]
The Real Fall of Rome – Oliver DeMille
Why it Isn’t What Most People Think, and Why it is Essential Knowledge For All of Us When I finished reading Livy’s history of early Rome this summer, I was still excited about Roman history and went looking for other books on the topic. I found a lot of mediocre books and a few good ones. And also one great one! At the same time, I received a … [Read more...]
Freedom Versus Finances: The Dilemma of Common Citizens
A friend of mine sent me an email a few months back noting that he doesn’t feel like he’s lost his freedoms. "I feel free," he said. "I can do what I want, go where I choose, live as I decide." He said he trusted my passion about the loss of freedom, but wondered why he didn't feel the loss. This is a very smart friend, well-read in the … [Read more...]
“The Book of the Decade”: Resolved by Orrin Woodward
by Oliver DeMille What if there were an award for “The Book of the Decade”? It would celebrate the most important book of the past ten years, the one that could have made, and still could make, the most positive difference in the world. If there were such an award, I know what my pick would be. Some books deeply matter. They change their … [Read more...]
Where Have All the Leaders Gone?
He wasn’t the headliner. His remarks at the Lincoln Memorial were not even part of his prepared text. At the time, few in the press even commented on his speaking role. But Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech has become one of the most iconic orations in American history. Few understood at the time that King was poised to become one of … [Read more...]
Charisma: The Key to Opportunity
Everyone has experienced walking into a room of strangers and not exactly knowing what to do. Where do you sit? Who do you talk to? What do you do with your hands? Is everyone looking at you? What are they thinking? These feelings of insecurity are natural, but they don’t have to be permanent. In fact, one of the worst things that can … [Read more...]
“The One Big Thing”: The Big Battle Behind All Political Skirmishes – Oliver DeMille
At the beginning of Thomas Jefferson’s presidency, he announced his intention to make the federal government’s finances so clear and easy that any farmer could understand them. Today this seems impossible, but Jefferson had two things going for him. First, these were the same farmers who read the Federalist Papers and understood them clearly. … [Read more...]
Do We Even Deserve Freedom? – Oliver DeMille
Treaties are rewriting the U.S. Constitution. The framers gave the executive branch, balanced by the Senate, the authority to make treaties for the good of the nation, and they described "the supreme law of the land" as the Constitution itself along with any duly passed amendments, laws and treaties. In other words, to read the Constitution, … [Read more...]