Recent Viewpoints

Kerby Anderson In this commentary, I want to explain an interesting business pattern that developed in China. It illustrates what many have called “the catfish effect.” What is the catfish effect? Live sardines are more expensive than frozen sardines and more valuable because they have better flavor and texture. One ship in Norway was always able to bring sardines home because the captain put a catfish in the tank. The sardines had to keep swimming to avoid this predator. The…

Kerby Anderson In his op-ed in The Hill, Dr. Merrill Matthews notes that there is a growing pushback against the practice of transgender surgery on minors. And the Supreme Court is even questioning state-level efforts to silence counselors who raise concerns about the practice. He reminds us of how public opinion changed about lobotomy surgeries. These were done by severing the connection between the frontal lobe and other parts of the brain. They were widely practiced in the 1930s and…

Kerby Anderson Jonathan Turley reminds us that roughly seventy years ago, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover famously declared, “There is no organized crime in America.” He said this even though there was abundant evidence of the mafia at the time. We have the same willful blindness today about Antifa. For example, Representative Dan Goldman (D-NY) has been seen in numerous interviews denying the existence of Antifa and even challenged anyone to “name one member of Antifa.” Former House Judiciary Chair…

Kerby Anderson Democrats and Republicans don’t agree on much these days, but there is one significant area of bipartisanship: the AI threat. There appears to be agreement and common ground on that issue. One illustration was a 99-1 U.S. Senate vote against a proposed moratorium on AI regulation. Both sides believe some aspect of artificial intelligence needs urgent regulation. One bipartisan bill would prevent AI from using the voice and likeness of any individual without authorization. Another concern came from…

Penna Dexter In an article published in the journal First Things, Jonathan Sanford, President of the University of Dallas, described a concept that rings true for me, having just returned from a three week-trip to Italy. Dr. Sanford writes; A pilgrim differs from a tourist in that the former seeks meaning, not diversion. Our students, prepared in advance, arrive at historical and religious sites ready to see them within a larger story: the unfolding of Western civilization and the Christian…

Kerby Anderson Emily Peck reports that “Americans Don’t Think College is Worth It.” She provides economic facts to show that it still is worth it. She may have trouble convincing many parents, and even students. The share of Americans who say college is “very important” dropped significantly over the past decade. The most significant drop was among Republicans. In 2013, 68 percent said a college education was very important. This year it dropped to 20 percent. Even among Democrats, the…

Kerby Anderson A new study of marijuana is in the news. And since we dislike people who tell you “I told you so,” I will merely remind radio listeners that we have had this conversation before. The editors of The Wall Street Journal write that “More Marijuana Users Are Crash Dummies.” They cite research from Wright State University that analyzed driver autopsy results of car crashes. More than 4 in 10 tested positive for THC (the active ingredient in marijuana)…

Kerby Anderson Columnist John Fund warns us that “Open Letters from Experts Are Often Fact-Free Propaganda.” We talked about his column in a recent roundtable discussion on radio to encourage listeners to use discernment and be skeptical of such devices. The occasion for his column was the question of whether the president could fire a sitting member of the Federal Reserve who was accused of committing mortgage fraud. He argues that this shouldn’t be that controversial. But he pointed to…

Kerby Anderson Luke Gromen has published a series of graphs that illustrate “the debasement trade” since COVID. First, let me try to define the concept of a debasement trade. It is the recognition that debt in the U.S. and many other developed countries is at “such historically high levels that some investors no longer see bonds as a safe haven.” That is why investors are putting their funds in gold and bitcoin. The graphs by Luke Gromen illustrate that while…

Kerby Anderson The U.S. government has had another shutdown. As I write this, the shutdown is still going on, but I trust that it is over by the time this commentary airs on radio. That would be a good time to prevent this insanity from unfolding again. First, there is no consistency in the shutdown. Non-essential workers stay home, while essential workers stay on the job. But defining essential workers from non-essential workers makes no sense. Nearly all (93%) of…

Penna Dexter The New York Times recently published an opinion piece about America’s boy crisis. It’s by social scientist Richard Reeves and Harvard political scientist and author of Bowling Alone, Robert Putnam. Here’s their summary of the problem: “Since 2010, suicide rates among young men have risen by a third — they are now higher than they are among middle aged men. The share of college degrees going to men has fallen to 41 percent, lower than the women’s share…