California’s leftist legislature will now have the power to regulate the gasoline sales profits of the state’s oil refiners. Governor Gavin Newsom has just signed a law allowing the California Energy Commission (CEC) to establish a state gross gasoline refining profit margin and impose penalties for surpassing it. Chevron, the state’s biggest … Read more
As nationalism and populist political philosophies gain traction, many Americans are adopting isolationist and noninterventionist positions. An America-first approach calls for focusing on national problems. The isolationist argument is that the burden of international commitments has weighed heavily upon the nation for too long. Let others deal with these problems and intervene. … Read more
Among the religious orders dedicated to the contemplative life, the Carmelites have a special role. Carmelite convents are found all over the world. They have given the Church countless saints and models. Many Carmelite convents are now in crisis because they have no vocations. The nuns are dying off. Convent after convent … Read more
As the present liberal order crumbles, many are proposing alternatives that call for major changes to the flawed, globalized structures that now shape the world. Some sectors of the public are turning to nationalist and populistic movements that turn inward and call for walking away from world commitments and focusing solely on … Read more
California’s record rains eliminated the effects of years of severe drought. However, the water problem is far from solved. Farmers watched in horror as much of the surplus water flowed uselessly back into the ocean. What was the reason for sending desperately needed water back to the ocean? A 3-inch Delta smelt. … Read more
On July 26, 2024, a massive – and now infamous – public blasphemy took place in Paris at the opening of the 2024 Summer Olympics. The program featured an indecent parody of Our Lord’s Last Supper. Five days later, Raymond Cardinal Burke celebrated the sixteenth anniversary of the dedication of the Shrine … Read more
What are carbon credits? This simple question does not appear to have a simple answer. For anyone who believes that reality and objective truth exist, this fact alone should be a perilous sign. Think about a typical transaction—perhaps the purchase of a tank full of gasoline. I go to the gas station. … Read more
The opening ceremony for the 2024 Olympics took place along a 4.5-mile stretch of Paris’s Seine River as world sports delegations passed by on boats. Along the way, staged events took place on the riverbank shore, supposedly representing the spirit of France. Millions of Christians watched one scene of the televised event … Read more
Imagine getting electricity from the earth’s core with no pollution. Everyone, especially environmentalists, should be happy. Southern California Edison, one of America’s major power companies, recently struck a deal with a seven-year-old start-up called Fervo Energy. Unlike traditional methods of producing electricity, Fervo utilizes hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to tap into the earth’s … Read more
Question—What does the United States Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) have in common with the Australia-Cuba Friendship Society, Venezuela’s Resistance and Rebellion Collective, the Communist Party of Chile and the Zimbabwe Movement of Pan-African Socialists? Answer—All of them have taken public positions advocating that President Biden remove Cuba from the State Department’s … Read more