American Founding Initiative

John Fiske, Book Review, 2009

This review of John Fiske’s Critical Period of American History concerns the best single history on the period between the American Revolution and the Constitutional Convention.  The essential argument is that the US Constitution was a salutary moment in which we established an absolutely essential national government.   Comments welcome:  Is Fiske right in his description?  Why does it matter?

On November 10th, Thomas Woods will be coming to Boise State to speak about states rights and federal encroachment. The event will be held in the Special Events Center in the Student Union Building and be from 7:30-9:00PM. The event is open to the public and we encourage all who are concerned about the future of the country to come and listen.

For non-students free parking will be provided in the Lincoln Garage, right across from the Student Union Building. Thomas Woods is being brought in by the Conservative Student Coalition and Idaho Freedom Foundation. For more information call 208-755-9246 or email CSCpresident.iacoboni@gmail.com

Below is a book review of Hayward’s Age of Reagan, an indispensable book for those interested in re-limiting government.  It aint as easy as it seems, but much can be done.

Hayward’s age of reagan II

Conservative commentator, author and scholar Victor Davis Hanson will speak at the American Founding Initiative’s Constitution Day at Boise State Oct. 7.

Hanson’s talk, titled “Liberty vs. Freedom,” begins at 7 p.m. in the Student Union Simplot Ballroom. The event is free and open to the public and co-sponsored by the Idaho Council for History Education.

“It is a rare privilege to have Victor David Hanson on campus,” said Scott Yenor, director of the American Founding Initiative (AFI). “Few commentators bring a deep understanding of the Western tradition to contemporary affairs. Mr. Hanson does and this is what sets him apart. His broad knowledge means that he understands how political communities rise and fall – and his worries about America’s current direction must be seen in light of his grasp of what eventually happened to Rome, Greece, and other great civilizations.”

Hanson is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. He has authored some 170 articles, book reviews, and newspaper editorials on Greek, agrarian and military history, and essays on contemporary culture.

Hanson has written or edited 15 books, including the best-selling “Carnage and Culture,” and “The Immigration Solution: A Better Plan Than Today’s.” Hanson has written essays, editorials and reviews for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, National Review, the Weekly Standard and many other national and international publications. He is interviewed often on National Public Radio, the PBS Newshour and C-Span BookTV. Currently, he is a weekly columnist for the National Review Online and serves on the editorial board of Arion, the Military History Quarterly and City Journal, as well as the board of the Claremont Institute.

AFI is an initiative of the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs to provide a forum for teaching, discussion and promotion of the ideals embodied by America’s original conception of natural rights. It is dedicated to the principles of limited government and economic freedom and aims to teach the principles of limited government, constitutionalism and classical liberalism to the university community. Its programming includes a guest speaker series for prominent scholars of America’s founding principles, early history, economic system and philosophical grounding.

Free parking for the AFI Constitution Day event can be found in the parking garage at University and Lincoln. Please RSVP for the reception and event to cblanch@boisestate.edu or 426-3776.

For more information about Hanson’s talk or the American Founding Initiative at Boise State, contact Scott Yenor at syenor@boisestate.edu or go to the AFI website at http://sspa.boisestate.edu/afi.