Have we reached the limits of liberal tolerance?

Have we reached the limits of liberal tolerance?Liberal tolerance fails without a shared sense of its limits Liberal elites delight in showing tolerance for things their neighbours cannot stand. Liberalism demands embrace where many people, by nature, might recoil. However, even committed classical liberals and libertarians find some things beyond the pale, but they have lost the language to say why. Consider…

Are we witnessing the end of liberalism?

The liberal consensus is dead, and liberalism faces attack from all sides

Are we witnessing the end of liberalism?For some reason, physicians love this line: “I am socially liberal but fiscally conservative.” It sounds moderate, prudential, even sophisticated. “Socially liberal” suggests individual choice about sex, marriage, and life in general. “Fiscally conservative” suggests spending restraint and market freedom. Both statements come from the same philosophy. The first is social liberalism, the second economic…

How to maximize the meaning in our lives

There’s nothing more significant than living with meaning

How to maximize the meaning in our livesThere’s nothing more significant than living with meaning. This is the concept pondered by the Jewish psychiatrist Viktor Frankl as he struggled to remain alive for three years in Nazi concentration camps. Frankl established the groundwork for his psychological theory on the importance of finding meaning in life before he was sent to Auschwitz. He…

Change will come if we stay true to our values

Set goals, follow principles, choose our attitudes and actions, and things have a way of turning out

Change will come if we stay true to our valuesThe mantra of American meditation expert Bill Harris is: “Let whatever happens be okay.” Harris was talking about the process of meditation, which can lead to tremendous inner peace. It can also put a person to sleep or even result in temporary discomfort. When meditating, any outcome is fine, though we may need some guidance…

Five steps to living a more authentic life

Start by being honest about yourself and being open to change

Five steps to living a more authentic lifeLiving a happy life is everyone’s goal. Who doesn’t want to feel good about themselves? Yet many of us live a life of self-doubt, feeling undeserving or incapable, or wishing we were walking another path. But wishing you were living a different life won’t make it happen. And others (even if they love you) can’t…

Pragmatism is the rot at the heart of our institutions

And leads to government overreach and tyranny

Pragmatism is the rot at the heart of our institutionsThe overreach of government is a common refrain among conservatives this pandemic, and not without cause. As those such as Father Raymond de Souza, Ed Bosveld, and others have argued, the State has not merely expanded to the occasion of the crisis, nor only taken powers upon itself it finds necessary to meet the threat.…

There are only two “races” of people: the decent and the indecent

Good people and bad people can be found in every group

There are only two “races” of people: the decent and the indecentWe’re all influenced by the environment we grow up in and our life experiences. We thus adopt paradigms in our effort to make sense of the world around us. Sometimes these perspectives serve us well but other times our core beliefs prevent us from seeing the truth. Yet there’s perhaps nothing more life-giving than experiencing…

Lockdowns are unlawful, and are not justified

No one has a moral obligation to obey COVID-19 lockdown orders. Therefore civilly disobeying them is justified

Lockdowns are unlawful, and are not justifiedLockdown orders are not justified. There is, consequently, no moral obligation to obey them. Let me explain. In the wake of SARS and H1N1, Public Health Canada drafted the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness guideline (CPIP). Although we failed to meaningfully operationalize this guideline it nevertheless maintains that, “when considering restrictive measures, it is important to balance…

Be brave enough to fulfil your potential

If we have an awareness of our inherent greatness, we really don’t mind looking foolish. From there, all it takes is time and hard work

Be brave enough to fulfil your potentialThis phrase has become popular in the last several months: “Be brave enough to be bad at something new.” As a teacher, it would be easy for me to impose this philosophy on my students. We’re always telling our young people to try new things, be it a sport, school subject or art form. By…

Is happiness the point of human life?

Rather than asking if you are a happy, ask whether you are good

Is happiness the point of human life?It was 2,400 years ago that Aristotle identified happiness as the goal all people seek – the end of all “why” questions. But is happiness really the point of human life? I ask this question because when we look at history (or even the news today), it is apparent that there are a lot of…
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