The ideas that formed the Constitution, Part 9: Virgil and other poets
If the American Founding had a poet laureate, Virgil would be it.
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The Ideas That Formed the Constitution, Part 8: Cicero (Cont.)
Directly or indirectly, Cicero probably influenced the Constitution as much as any other thinker.
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The real Commerce Clause—as the Founders knew it
During the Founding era, the phrase “regulate Commerce” had a very specific meaning
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Ideas that Formed the Constitution, Part 7: Cicero
Cicero’s views are reflected in some of the Constitution’s specific provisions.
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The ideas that formed the Constitution, part 6: Polybius
In the debate over the Constitution, both sides looked to Polybius for ammunition.
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The “Twitter Files” Scandal
Read about the constitutional and legal issues in Twitter censorship.
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The ideas that formed the Constitution: part 5: Aristotle
James Madison admired Aristotle’s work “The Politeia.”
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Destroying Falsehoods Behind ‘You Didn’t Build That!’
This particular piece of sophistry is particularly beguiling, because it relies on several hidden fallacies….
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The ideas that formed the Constitution, Part 4: the pioneers: Socrates, Xenophon, Plato
Some Federalists expressed pride in the Constitution precisely because they considered it more reality-based than Plato’s “Republic.”
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The ideas that formed the Constitution, Part 3: the pioneers: Socrates, Xenophon, Plato
Plato refined Socrates’s classification of political systems and suggested that the better political forms tend to degenerate into corrupt forms. Aristocracy, for example, becomes oligarchy, and democracy becomes tyranny.
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The ideas that formed the Constitution, Part 2: The Founders’ education
Eighteenth-century education encompassed religion, music, and English. . . . But the heart of the curriculum was made up of the Greco-Roman classics.
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First in a series: The ideas that formed the Constitution
These essays will focus on the writers who taught the Founders their political lessons—their lessons in republicanism, in political organization, and in political virtue.
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