Restricting cell phone use in American schools is a growing phenomenon, as concerns about student focus, mental health, and classroom behavior continue to rise. More states across the country are…
On September 9, France lost its second government in a year. The story behind the fall of François Bayrou’s government is largely the same as that behind the fall of…
At 4:00 a.m. on Dec. 7, 1941, the USS Ward, crewed by men of the 47th Naval Reserve Division of the 11th Battalion, 9th Naval District from St. Paul, was…
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores for 2024 have just been released, spawning a flurry of thinkpieces, op-eds, and research reviews. Why all the fuss? NAEP assessments measure…
In summer 1945, Japan’s war in China — which had consumed an estimated 20 million Chinese lives since 1937, the true beginning of World War Two — raged on. So…
Social capital Late last year we released my report “The X-Factor? Social capital and economic well-being: A quantitative analysis.” The key finding was that levels of what we call “social…
Reflections on the revolution in Britain.
A couple of years ago, for the centenary of the March on Rome that brought Mussolini to power in Italy, I had a stab at answering that tricky old question,…
You may have seen the videos on social media this weekend. The occasion was the annual Somali Independence Day festival on Lake Street in Minneapolis on Saturday. The event was…
Minnesota and its neighbors operate a range of different economic policies. Our state imposes some of the highest income taxes in the United States, ranking 43rd on the Tax Foundation’s…
For years, Minnesotans were lectured by liberal energy advocates that we should be more like Germany, the nation that dogmatically built wind turbines and solar panels while shuttering its fleet…
I’ve previously written how Minnesota performance on national tests is the worst in 30 years, but what does that mean for the impacted students’ futures? Lower skills, and therefore future…
Bloomberg reports that European nations have sleepwalked into an energy crisis that was years in the making. Unfortunately, Europe’s increasing reliance on Russian natural gas emboldens Russian aggression along the…
The following article was written by Matt Ridley for the Daily Mail. Had it not been so exceptionally calm in the run up to this autumn equinox, one could call…
It is generally agreed, even by the greenest among us, that efforts to fight ‘climate change’ by ending the use of fossil fuels in the West will be a fair…
For decades, European countries have thumbed their noses at the United States for not doing enough to embrace unreliable energy sources like wind and solar power. This scorn was especially…
Last week, my colleague, John Phelan, did a very good job of presenting the case that Europe was experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases despite the broad perception that they…
As the Italian and German examples show, Gov. Walz was probably correct in March when he said that the spread of Covid-19 couldn't be stopped.
Last night, a substantial portion of the debate revolved around energy and environmental policy, particularly fracking and the Green New Deal. You can watch the segment by clicking the picture…
Apple, Google, and Amazon are big companies, whose services are constantly in high demand. For as long as this holds true, economic theory dictates that these corporations will likely respond…
Covid-19 and the policy responses to it tanked economies all over the world. Sen. Kamala Harris doesn't think her 'liberal' constituents know that.
American 'liberals', who claim to be so much more worldly than their 'conservative' countrymen and women, can be thoroughly parochial themselves. Blaming the Trump administration for the record economic collapse…
Schools are important for kids: they give kids structure to their lives and also help them stay active. School closures have done the opposite; they have helped foster a more…
Research strongly suggests that kids face a low risk of contracting the virus and are therefore less likely to spread it. Additionally, children also learn better in the classroom setting…