The Leading Princeton Publication of Conservative Thought

2014 March Issue

Letter from the Publisher: Conservatism As Philosophy

/April 2, 2014

Greetings, Esteemed Reader of The Princeton Tory — You may think you hold a political magazine in your hands. You are wrong. The Princeton Tory is hardly so limited. Ah, you say, but this is Princeton’s premier journal of conservative thought—clearly, it must be political. Nonsense. Conservatism transcends political credo. To be conservative is not […]

Continue Reading →

The Editors’ Guide to Bad Liberal Arguments

/April 2, 2014

Here at the Tory, we seek to offer you, our readers, education in conservative ideals, practices, and principles. As part of this education, we aim to provide thoughtful commentary on some of the major issues conservatives often find themselves debating over on campus, in order to help you make meaningful contributions the next time marriage […]

Continue Reading →

Who Are Our Enemies?

/April 2, 2014

The question, who are our enemies, throws us immediately into the heart of politics. At least that was the view of central figures in the tradition of political thought. “Doing good to friends and harm to enemies” is Polemarchus’s definition of justice in Book I of Plato’s Republic, and while Socrates trips him up on […]

Continue Reading →

Labor of Love: Revisions

/April 2, 2014

Deservedly or not, there are a number of prevailing attitudes about Christians in our culture: that they are incapable of rigorous intellectual discourse; that they are culturally backwards and thus detrimental to society; and that they are hateful bigots who shun those unlike them. I only mention these three in particular because Revisions so thoroughly […]

Continue Reading →

The Danger of Authoritarian Rhetoric

/April 2, 2014

When the Wall Street Journal published an article titled “The Shame of Princeton,” I knew something was wrong. But it was only upon hearing Professor Emeritus Richard Falk deliver the 11th Edward Said Memorial Lecture that I realized just how harmful the words of a “respected” academic can be. On February 18, Falk spoke about […]

Continue Reading →

Dismantling the Harm Principle

/April 2, 2014

In debates over controversial social issues, liberals often invoke a version of what philosophers call the harm principle. It goes like this: Adults should be legally permitted to do whatever they desire provided that they do not harm themselves or any other parties without the consent of all parties involved. The harm principle justified practices […]

Continue Reading →