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The good and bad of common good

For the second time in the Trump presidency, the Right is debating the concept of the common good and how that concept fits within the American political tradition. During Donald Trump’s first term, the “common good” debate raged because the president’s nationalist instincts and policy prescriptions on issues such as trade and immigration clashed with the more globalist preferences of the Republican Party establishment. The debate is now raging once again, it seems, because JD Vance, the odds-on favorite to become the 2028 GOP presidential nominee, is seen as sympathetic to ...

Making my bed isn’t about productivity

While visiting my mom, my son asked, “Why do I have to make my bed at Grandma’s house?” I smoothed the quilt over the mattress and answered without thinking, “Because Grandma likes it neat and she deserves a nice space.” My response surprised me. What did being tidy have to do with worth? I somehow managed to frame household chores as a matter of being deserving. Self-worth is a lifelong lesson for me. Like many of us, it’s something I’ve worked on through therapy and journaling. I confront my demons, and I like to think I’m slaying them one by one. I thought my ...

Four-letter words no substitute for thought

Swearing was once rare, reserved to convey the utmost shock, pain or rage, or the deepest disappointment, disgust or disbelief. The audiences at “Gone with the Wind” in 1939 were scandalized and titillated when Scarlett O’Hara asked Rhett Butler what would become of her if he left, and Rhett, played by Clark Gable, replied, “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.” At the signing of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, Vice President Joe Biden told President Barack Obama, “This is a big f---ing deal.” The then-veep at least had the discretion to whisper the obscenity, but ...

Skill games keep small businesses open

Trust me when I say I know what many lawmakers are thinking: “Let’s just get the skill games issue over with.” I felt the same way when I served in the Pennsylvania House. But today, as a former legislator and the owner of a family bar and restaurant, I see this issue very differently. During my time in office, I never wanted skill games in my Shamokin tavern. I wasn’t sure what I thought about them, whether they really were true games of skill, so I just decided I wouldn’t add them to my bar. Then COVID hit and everything changed. Anyone who doesn’t own a ...

Term limits encourage fresh thinking

How much faith do Americans have in Congress? The answer should concern every Pennsylvanian, regardless of political party. According to a recent Gallup survey, only 9% of Americans say they have “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in Congress—the lowest level ever recorded. When the institution closest to the people commands the trust of fewer than one in ten Americans, it is a clear sign that something is fundamentally broken. Washington has become a place where too many politicians spend decades building careers instead of solving problems. The result is ...

Growth begins where comfort zone ends

My son was furious when I picked him up from day camp, slamming the door when he got in the car. He had been downgraded from a “yellow” swimmer to a “red” swimmer. He hadn’t forgotten how to swim. The YMCA had simply changed its policy. My son loves to swim. He likes donning goggles and swimming underwater, not to mention perfecting his handstand. But the YMCA had changed its safety rules, and rightfully so. The shallow end reaches 5 feet deep, and campers now have to be at least 5 feet tall to swim there without a life jacket unless they pass the swim test. My son is 4 feet, ...