Entropy is a term physicists use to describe decay, and it’s starting to look as if entropy could be catching up with Viktor Orbán’s Hungary. I write about the possibility that Orbánism is heading toward regime collapse in this piece… Read More ›
One troubling feature of our current politics is the extent to which certain religious intellectuals have become enamored of early 20th century “clerical fascism.” Clerical fascism shouldn’t be confused with Nazism. It wasn’t committed to Hitler’s Aryan and social Darwinist… Read More ›
National conservatism is a new “movement” of public intellectuals who purport to be conservative. But if conservative is related to conserving, I don’t think they are. They’re actually disgruntled revolutionaries intent on tearing things down. As their name suggests, national… Read More ›
My grandfather was a minister who studied theology at Liebenzell Mission between 1925 and 1929. He was ordained in 1931 and immediately sent to China, where he served as a missionary until 1949.
The following is a short article I wrote on Viktor Orbán’s foreign policy strategy. The first paragraph of the article is included below; the rest of the article can be read via the link. Viktor Orbán has dedicated enormous financial… Read More ›
I was recently invited to speak on podcast called Why Postliberalism Failed, hosted by James Patterson and Thomas Howes. The topic was Austrofascism and its influence on a small segment of American Catholic intellectuals. The conversation was wide ranging, although… Read More ›
Since exploding onto the political scene last February, Péter Magyar had completely upended Hungarian politics and has Orbán and his cronies in a state of panic. My latest piece for The Bulwark. “IF IT KEEPS ON RAINING, [the] levee’s going… Read More ›
“Drámai fordulat borzolta fel a kedélyeket az amerikai elnökválasztást megelőző kampányban: Donald Trump ellen merényletet követtek el. Fordít-e ez a korábbi esélyeken? Mit jelent a kereszténység a politikában Amerikában és mit itthon? Remélhetünk-e bármi jót egy esetleges Trump győzelem esetén?… Read More ›
“FORTUNE IS A LIBERAL MISTRESS,” Napoleon is reported to have said before his defeat at Borodino. “I have often said so, and now begin to experience it.” Words of wisdom, perhaps, for Viktor Orbán, who some have said suffers from bouts of Bonapartism. Since winning… Read More ›
ALTHOUGH ONE MIGHT NOT KNOW IT given Hungary’s current reputation, the country has noble liberal traditions. In 1848 Hungary gave birth to one of the most successful democratic revolutions in Europe, sadly suppressed after a year by Austrian and Russian… Read More ›
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attend a photo opportunity ahead of bilateral talks at the 2022 Munich Security Conference on February 19, 2022 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Alexandra Beier – Pool/Getty Images)
People interested in Christianity, American politics, and the culture wars may have run across the name of Rod Dreher. He’s a rather prolific writer and journalist who maintains a regular blog with the magazine The American Conservative. Some years ago… Read More ›
Viktor Orbán has a habit of giving controversial speeches in Romania. His notorious 2014 illiberalism speech was delivered there. Just a few weeks ago, he delivered another whopper, which included unmistakably racist language. In an essay I wrote for The… Read More ›
In this episode of BaerTalk, Jason Stanley, Jacob Urowsky Professor of Philosophy at Yale University, discusses his controversial book, How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them. Prof. Stanley is a prominent public intellectual who generates a fair bit… Read More ›
H. David Baer 