On the Square Today

R. R. Reno on the future of conservatism :

American conservatives need to return to first principles. Tax rates are not irrelevant. Restraining government spending may be good policy (and a fiscal necessity). But our goal is limited government, not limited taxation. The sign of success is a free people capable of self-government, not government spending as a certain percentage of GDP.

Also today, Seth Chalmer describes  what Jews should expect from the next pope :

Instead of lecturing the new pope on how best to be Catholic, Jews should identify the maximum we can reasonably ask from the Catholic Church, without asking it to stop  being  the Catholic Church. Here is my proposal for a realistic agenda for Catholic-Jewish relations.