There have been some interesting developments this week . . . although we were hoping for “positive” and “hopeful” rather than merely “interesting.” Be that as it may, these are worth bringing to your attention, although possibly not as worthwhile as adopting the Economic Democracy Act:
• The Enemy Within. It’s a bit of a paradox, but if President Trump is some Republicans’ worst nightmare and the destruction of the party of Abraham Lincoln, the Democratic Party is still its own worst enemy, at least according to this report from the Associated Press. As the article declares, “Democratic candidates have notched a series of wins in recent special elections — but a new AP-NORC poll finds views of the Democratic Party among rank-and-file Democrats have not bounced back since President Donald Trump’s victory in 2024. Only about 7 in 10 Democrats have a positive view of the Democratic Party, according to new polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. While the overwhelming majority of Democrats still feel good about their party, they’re much less positive than they’ve been in the past.” What this tells us is that neither party has a vision worth considering or that is even coherent. It might be time for a truly bipartisan effort to restore the true American spirit — and that might mean putting aside divisive issues and doing something for actual people rather than The People or The Party . . . whichever one it happens to be. And that means adopting the Economic Democracy Act.
• I, Robot. You . . . What? Chinese robots have come a long way in a relatively short time according to an article in the Daily Dot . . . and it’s generating a bit of skepticism as to whether it’s real or a trick of some kind — not unheard of in any country, time, or situation. As it states in the article, it seems just a little bit too good to be true: “The fully autonomous machines, developed by Unitree Robotics, executed complex martial arts routines alongside human performers during a nationally broadcast spectacle of the Chinese Spring Festival Gala on Feb. 17, 2026. While many praised the robots’ rapid evolution and fluid movements, the performance also sparked debate about the purpose—and implications—of increasingly humanlike machines. Unitree Robotics maintains that the recordings are genuine and the robots truly ‘fully autonomous,’ though skeptics remain doubtful. . . . Impressed by the robots’ fluid movements and quick reflexes, @TansuYegen wrote, ‘In just one year, they have evolved from robots to “humans.”’” Uh, yeah (not). A human is a being that has the analogously complete capacity to acquire and develop virtues and vices. These may be beings in the sense of existing and having sentience, that is, having the capacity of a living being to have subjective, conscious experiences, sensations, and feelings, such as pleasure, pain, joy, and fear (we are not prepared to debate that), but they are not and can never be human beings. Assuming it is not a trick or fraud of some kind, and the robots are somehow capable of sentience, they would be robotic beings, not human beings. They may be superior or inferior to human beings, but they are not human — and are thus not persons and can be owned . . . which tells us what to do with them: own them in the full sense of title and control, and that can be done by adopting the Economic Democracy Act.
• U.S. Trade Deficit Surging. Despite the promises that President Trump’s trade policies and tariffs would bring the millennium and provide everyone with more money than they could spend, the U.S. trade deficit surged in December, adding an amount in the red equal to that of the prior year, according to an article in Yahoo! Finance. As explained in the article, “The US trade deficit jumped by almost 33% in December, rising for the second month in a row to $70.3 billion. Trade deficits were volatile throughout 2025 as importers responded to President Trump's shifting tariff announcements, which have upended the global landscape but haven't significantly dented the US trade deficit, at least so far.” Given that the performance of both Biden and Trump is about the same, we strongly suspect there might be problems with the U.S. economy that can’t be solved by presidential or even Congressional fiat. What would solve the problems? Adoption of the Economic Democracy Act.
Cute, but still not human
• Save the Baby Animals! We would probably be far more supportive of a new Justice Department initiative to protect our furry, feathered, and scaly friends, “but.” As announced on CBS News, “Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday ordered the Justice Department to prioritize animal welfare enforcement, in a move she said will entail stepping up prosecutions and even doling out grants to animal welfare groups, according to a new memo sent to all staff. As part of the plan, Bondi said the government would create a law enforcement ‘tiger team’ to assist with the execution of search warrants and seizures. She also called for the creation of a strategy committee, which will oversee the creation of an animal welfare prosecution manual and implement a national strategy to combat ‘animal welfare crimes.’” Yes, animal welfare is an important issue. In a sense, you can judge a society’s level of civilization by how it treats animals, plants, and Nature itself. Even if you raise plants and animals for food, there is no need to do so in an unnecessarily cruel or wasteful manner. That being said, it is even more important that a society treat its human members in a humane manner . . . and there are serious doubts that is being done under the current administration. Given a choice between a cute puppy and a suspected human criminal, the suspected criminal takes precedence, if only because the suspected criminal is a human and thus a natural person with inherent rights, and is considered innocent until proven guilty — and even after a conviction by duly constituted authority following due process, is still entitled to humane treatment. Yes, personally this writer prefers even cockroaches to many human beings, but human beings have rights, and that one fact changes everything — and is the basis of the United States government. What is the best way to secure natural rights to everyone? Since as Daniel Webster pointed out, “Power naturally and necessarily follows property,” it is becoming essential to adopt the Economic Democracy Act for mere survival of the human race.
• A Constitutional Crisis? It is an interesting point: can the president of the United States circumvent the powers of Congress and defy an order of the United States Supreme Court? The president is head of the executive branch of the government and is there to carry out all legal acts of Congress. (The question of whether anyone has the right or the duty to carry out illegal acts, whether on one’s own authority or at the behest of another is a different issue.) Reacting against the U.S. Supreme Court striking down Trump’s tariffs, the president announced he will simply ignore the Supreme Court’s order and take revenge on the Court by imposing a unilateral global 10% tariff . . . thereby levying a tax on (in the president’s fixed belief) people and countries not under the jurisdiction of the United States Supreme Court — in reality, on American citizens and other taxpayers who did not consent to the tax either through their representatives in Congress (which has the sole power to levy taxes) or by direct referendum. This should get interesting. Of course, the entire situation could be avoided by adopting the monetary and tax reforms of the Economic Democracy Act, but nobody seems to be considering that.
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| A false choice |
• Not So Hot-Hot-Hot? Despite the soaring stock market (or perhaps because of it — mega-tons of money are being poured into the stock market, leaving less for consumption and new investment of the traditional past savings type), “The U.S. economy slowed more than expected over the final months of 2025, federal government data on Friday showed,” according to an article in GMA. It makes sense: if everyone is gambling, there is going to be very little producing or consuming, which is what the real economy is all about. As the article continued, “The slowdown at the end of last year stemmed in part from a decline in the pace of consumer spending, the U.S. Commerce Department said. The GDP report marks the latest distress signal for U.S. shoppers, who account for about two-thirds of the nation's economic activity.” Ummmm . . . no. Given that the demand for new capital is derived always and everywhere from consumer demand, consumers account for ALL a nation’s “economic activity.” As Adam Smith stated as the first principle of economics in his The Wealth of Nations (1776), “Consumption is the sole end and purpose of all production.” No, not generating savings, not social restructuring, not increasing “the Leader’s” power, but consumption. That’s it. And how do you orient an economy, so it functions for the ordinary consumer, meaning the ordinary person? You guessed it: adopt the Economic Democracy Act.
• Greater Reset “Book Trailers”. We have produced two ninety-second “Book Trailers” for distribution (by whoever wants to distribute them), essentially minute-and-a-half commercials for The Greater Reset. There are two versions of the videos, one for “general audiences” and the other for “Catholic audiences”. Take your pick.
• The Greater Reset. CESJ’s book by members of CESJ’s core group, The Greater Reset: Reclaiming Personal Sovereignty Under Natural Law is, of course, available from the publisher, TAN Books, an imprint of Saint Benedict Press, and has already gotten a top review on that website. It can also be obtained from Barnes and Noble, as well as Amazon, or by special order from your local “bricks and mortar” bookstore. The Greater Reset is the only book of which we’re aware on “the Great Reset” that presents an alternative instead of simply warning of the dangers inherent in a proposal that is contrary to natural law. It describes reality, rather than a Keynesian fantasy world. Please note that The Greater Reset is NOT a CESJ publication as such, and enquiries about quantity discounts and wholesale orders for resale must be sent to the publisher, Saint Benedict Press, NOT to CESJ.
• Economic Personalism Landing Page. A landing page for CESJ’s latest publication (now with an imprimatur), Economic Personalism: Property, Power and Justice for Every Person, has been created and can be accessed by clicking on this link. Everyone is encouraged to visit the page and send the link out to their networks.
• Economic Personalism. When you purchase a copy of Economic Personalism: Property, Power and Justice for Every Person, be sure you post a review after you’ve read it. It is available on both Amazon and Barnes and Noble at the cover price of $10 per copy. You can also download the free copy in .pdf available from the CESJ website. If you’d like to order in bulk (i.e., 52 or more copies) at the wholesale price, send an email to info@cesj.org for details. CESJ members get a $2 rebate per copy on submission of proof of purchase. Wholesale case lots of 52 copies are available at $350, plus shipping (whole case lots ONLY). Prices are in U.S. dollars.
• Sensus Fidelium Videos, Update. CESJ’s series of videos for Sensus Fidelium are doing very well, with over 155,000 total views. The latest Sensus Fidelium video is “The Five Levers of Change.” The video is part of the series on the book, Economic Personalism. The latest completed series on “the Great Reset” can be found on the “Playlist” for the series. The previous series of sixteen videos on socialism is available by clicking on the link: “Socialism, Modernism, and the New Age,” along with some book reviews and other selected topics. For “interfaith” presentations to a Catholic audience they’ve proved to be popular, edging up to 150,000 views to date. They aren’t really “Just Third Way videos,” but they do incorporate a Just Third Way perspective. You can access the playlist for the entire series. The point of the videos is to explain how socialism and socialist assumptions got such a stranglehold on the understanding of the role of the State and thus the interpretation of Catholic social teaching, and even the way non-Catholics and even non-Christians understand the roles of Church, State, and Family, and the human persons place in society.
Those are the happenings for this week, at least those that we know about. If you have an accomplishment that you think should be listed, send us a note about it at mgreaney [at] cesj [dot] org, and well see that it gets into the next “issue.” Due to imprudent and intemperate language on the part of some commentators, we removed temptation and disabled comments.
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