Commentary Archives - Backwoods Home Magazine

The current ‘Gun control’ push — A cop’s eye view

By Massad Ayoob Issue #142 • July/August, 2013 First, a word of explanation. The reason "gun control" is in quotes in the title and in this sentence is because, for a very long time, the prohibitionists...

Which is better, a small town or city?

By Dave Duffy Issue #78 • November/December, 2002 Traveling has a way of giving you perspective. For the past several summers my family and I have traveled around the country, covering as much as 9,000 miles by...

Libertarian and Conservative

By John Silveira Issue #133 • January/February, 2012 I cringe when I hear libertarians lumped with conservatives or at least today's conservatives. Liberals want you to view us as conservatives so you won't look any...

Magnesium and the International Criminal Court

By John Silveira Issue #125 • September/October, 2010 There was an interesting ad that ran in BHM for two issues, but it was pulled for lack of response. It was about magnesium, the lack of it...

The Government gorilla in our home

By Dave Duffy Issue #101 • September/October, 2006 The other week, Vince, a contractor who does occasional work for me, was arrested for slapping his 14-year-old daughter on the behind when she talked back to her...

“Gun control” for dummies

By Massad Ayoob Issue #141 • May/June, 2013 Barack Obama, outspokenly anti-gun for his entire political career, fooled an amazing number of gun owners by keeping a "hands off" attitude toward Second Amendment issues until his...

Homemade bread: a metaphor for life

By Claire Wolfe Issue #113 • September/October, 2008 My parents never actually bought Wonder Bread; I got my fix only at friends' houses. The breads that entered our little three-bedroom,...

Confronting the enemy

By Dave Duffy Issue #81 • May/June, 2003 I got a lot of criticism a couple of issues ago from liberals when I pointed my finger at black Americans and asked why they had their heads...

Gulf War II opened the eyes of Americans to the UN and the media

By Dave Duffy Issue #82 • July/August, 2003 How many of you were tightly tuned to the TV like I was during Gulf War II. I hope a lot because it was a great education. Not...

The unheralded roots of America’s freedoms

By John Silveira Issue #108 • November/December, 2007 I've just finished reading a fascinating book by Charles C. Mann. It's titled, 1491, and subtitled New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus. The book has turned what...

My View: Call Me Miracle Man!

By Dave Duffy Issue #177 • July/August/September, 2019 Superheroes are the rage these days at movie theaters. Even I am fascinated by them. Old style heroes like Superman and Batman seem tame by comparison to characters...

Turn the poor into capitalists

By John Silveira Issue #137 • September/October, 2012 I'm not a fan of the welfare system and I think it's been more of a failure than a success. It may serve as a 'safety net' for...

The parasitic nature of bureaucracy

By Dave Duffy Issue #106 • July/August, 2007 As we go to print with this issue, my local newspaper's main page one headline reads: County tax levy soundly defeated. I applauded at my desk to the...

Self-reliance equals freedom

By Dave Duffy Issue #107 • September/October, 2007 There seems always to be an underlying debate among self-reliant types who make up a majority of the readership of this magazine as to whether or not the...

A history lesson from Ayn Rand

By Dave Duffy Issue #44 • March/April, 1997 For the past several weeks I've been reading the Letters of Ayn Rand, which is a collection covering her letters from 1926, when she arrived in America from...

The land of the unfree

By John Silveira Issue #101 • September/October, 2006 It's official! The numbers are in once again! For I-don't-know-how-many-years-running, the United States, this so-called "land of the free," is imprisoning more people, in both absolute numbers and...