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Monthly Archives: July 2007

On rewards and punishment:

“[N]o government last where duly pain and grace be not inflicted where best they be deserved. . . .”

On needing the help of the wealthy:

As much as politicians seem to bash the wealthy in order to appear to be supportive of lower-income people, people in positions of political power have always relied heavily on the rich for a variety of reasons: for donations, for campaign funds, and, especially, for tax revenue. Elizabeth I was well aware of how much [...]

On contentious diplomats:

Today, the North Korean military took the surprising step of proposing direct diplomatic talks with the United States, saying it was ready to meet “any place and at any time.” Although North Korea and the United States have held frequent talks since the Korean War ended with a ceasefire in 1953, U.S. officials believe that [...]

On punishment:

Today, China executed Zheng Xiaoyu, the former director of the nation’s food and drug administration. He had been convicted of receiving cash bribes for approving fake medications. The death sentence, which seems quite severe to most of us in the West, is actually rather extreme even for China. The decision to use the death penalty [...]

On being a moral as well as political leader:

“If, indeed, I have always taken care for your bodies, shall I abandon the care of your souls?”

On liberty:

Today, Americans celebrate the Fourth of July, the birthday of our nation and the day on which our Founding Fathers adopted the document that declared our independence from England. Although the England of Elizabeth I’s day was an absolute monarchy, as queen, she recognized the importance of liberty, just as we Americans do today. She [...]