The American TFP

“Bodies Revealed” – A Cruel Mockery

by John Horvat II December 31, 2020March 13, 2008

There was a time when skinning a person alive was considered the ultimate barbarity. Today, skinning a person dead is considered “educational.” It is not without dismay that we have, for some time now, seen the news of exhibits of actual human bodies in varying degrees of decomposition put on display in … Read more

Keeping the Covenant: Moral America Throngs to Washington

by John Horvat II November 19, 2020January 24, 2008

The first thing that hits you at the March for Life in Washington, D.C. is a veritable sea of people that just keeps arriving on the scene. You see busload after busload offloading and streaming into the massive crowds that fill the Mall, the streets and the sidewalks. Americans of every age … Read more

Looking Upon a Nation Divided

by John Horvat II February 1, 2021January 7, 2008

No one questions the fact that America is now a nation divided. The 2004 elections served only to highlight a polarization that has been long in the making. What surprised many was the primary cause of this division. It was not wars, Medicare benefits or matters of self-interest that galvanized the country. … Read more

On the Merits of Meritocracy

by John Horvat II February 9, 2021January 7, 2008

When some 120 wealthy Americans start urging Congress not to repeal estate and gift taxes, something strange is going on somewhere. After all, in the midst of tax-cut euphoria, it is hard not to question a tax-me-please attitude. But these Americans are doing just that – and in a grand style that … Read more

Churchill and Truman: Telling the Aftermath

by John Horvat II November 25, 2020December 17, 2007

As World War II slowly fades into history, old veterans are now giving their tales a final telling. Memoirs, books and final recollections fill the bookstores looking back on that great event that so marked and divided the world. In the midst of such a plethora of material on World War II, … Read more

Beyond the Call of Duty

by John Horvat II February 9, 2021December 17, 2007

Americans love heroes. Something about them grips the American soul. Perhaps the attraction lies precisely in going against the zeitgeist of this hedonistic age. Heroes are outside the box. They do not fare well in a culture where real living has been reduced to pre-packaged experiences and media-generated events. They get lost … Read more

Back to Merry Christmas

by John Horvat II December 3, 2020November 8, 2007

It’s official. After six years of what has been called a “war on Christmas,” Merry Christmas is coming back. Much of corporate America has conceded defeat on the issue. What most people do not realize is that a conservative cultural victory slipped quietly under the radar and the rumblings of that battle … Read more

The Educational Importance of Manners

by John Horvat II December 31, 2020November 8, 2007

At first glance it might seem rather forced to make a connection between education and manners. In our secular society, manners like morals seem to be optional in the formation of youth. It is something relegated to parents to teach children at the dinner table if and when they eat together. Manners … Read more

The Santa Fe Chill

by John Horvat II February 9, 2021November 8, 2007

Contrary to what many artists claim, protesting against offensive art is never free publicity. Few things hurt the arts community more than when it produces works that lose touch with its supporting community. This is especially evident in the wave of artworks which many consider blasphemous. Nothing attacks the sensibilities of a … Read more

We Came, We Saw, She Conquered!

by John Horvat II February 9, 2021October 12, 2007

The Public Square Rosary campaign began with a discussion about commemorating the 90th anniversary of the last apparition at Fatima when Our Lady performed the Miracle of the Sun. Its organizers tried to think of a special way to make this anniversary something special and relevant. The idea of holding a rosary … Read more