We ought to observe that practice which is the hardest of all — especially for young physicians — we ought to throw in no medicine at all — to abstain — to observe a wise and masterly inactivity.
Rep. John Randolph, Register of Debates in Congress (January 25, 1828), vol. 4, col. 1170.
φημὶ τοίνυν τὸν ἄριστα ἱστορίαν συγγράφοντα δύο μὲν ταῦτα κορυφαιότατα οἴκοθεν ἔχοντα ἥκειν, σύνεσίν τε πολιτικὴν καὶ
δύναμιν ἑρμηνευτικήν, τὴν μὲν ἀδίδακτόν τι τῆς φύσεως δῶρον,
ἡ δύναμις δὲ πολλῇ τῇ ἀσκήσει καὶ συνεχεῖ τῷ πόνῳ
καὶ ζήλῳ τῶν ἀρχαίων προσγεγενημένη ἔστω.
I say, therefore, that he who would write history well must be possessed of these two principal qualifications, a fine understanding and a good style: one is the gift of nature, and cannot be taught; the other may be acquired by frequent exercise, perpetual labour and an emulation of the ancients.
Lucian, “How to Write History,” 59.34 (tr. T. Francklin, 1780).
The only ‘natural enemies’ are those who take one’s very nature as an offence.
Simon May, The Little Book of Big Thoughts (2005).
In past episodes of Common Sense with Paul Jacob, you can find
“In Memory of the Fallen” — May 25, 2025 — “Don’t we owe them our freedom? I certainly believe we owe it to the fallen to keep that freedom alive.”
“Memorial Day Questions” — May 25, 2015 — War in the time of President Obama. “Vets deserve, and we all need, more (not fewer) questions of presidential candidates, such as the hypothetical inquiry of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Iraq, and the hypothetical Libya question Sen. Rand Paul suggests should be posed to Mrs. Clinton.”
“Disneyland vs. Politicians” — May 30, 2016 — “Do congressmen wait months to get a medical appointment? No. Then why not close the VA and give veterans the same healthcare coverage as our (pardon the term) representatives?”
“Of Horror and Honor” — May 25, 2020 — “Last year, when the public relations wing of the U.S. Army asked, on Twitter, “How has serving impacted you?” the bulk of the responses were not what was hoped for. What came like tear drops and bursts of rage were thousands of horrific tales, expressions of sorrow, bitterness and despair.”
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On February 23, 1820, a plot to murder all the British cabinet ministers was exposed and the conspirators arrested. The name for the secret organization, “The Cato Street Conspiracy,” came from the meeting place near Edgware Road in London where the conspirators conspired. An informer had tipped the police off, and the plotters fell into a trap. Thirteen were arrested, while one policeman, Richard Smithers, was killed. Five conspirators were executed; five others were transported to Australia.
The fallacy of Socialism in relation to labour appears to lie in the assumption that labour has a value of its own, in and for itself. It has no such value. No material thing is valuable because of the labour expended in producing it. No service is valuable because of the labour expended in rendering it. Material things are valuable because they satisfy wants, and therefore people will give material things which they possess in exchange for things they do not possess. If material things came into existence without labour, nobody would talk of the value of productive labour. If a thing is not wanted, there is no value attached to the labour of producing it.
Edward Stanley Robertson, “The Impracticability of Socialism,” A Plea for Liberty: An Argument Against Socialism and Socialistic Legislation (1891), Thomas Mackay, ed.
“Rugged individualism may seem frigid (it’s anything but), but the people in the countries that used to be bathed in the warmth of collectivism now live a lot longer.”
—Michael Shermer (an American science writer, historian of science, executive director of The Skeptics Society, and founding publisher of Skeptic magazine, a publication focused on investigating pseudoscientific and supernatural claims)
“Rugged individualism may seem frigid (it’s anything but), but the people in the countries that used to be bathed in the warmth of collectivism now live a lot longer.”
—Michael Shermer (an American science writer, historian of science, executive director of The Skeptics Society, and founding publisher of Skeptic magazine, a publication focused on investigating pseudoscientific and supernatural claims)
We made it.
Endured.
What must we bear in 2026?
Most of us, I think, would prefer “more of the same” to something entirely new. Especially if the “something new” can be interpreted as reaping all the consequences of bad choices all at once.
So what was 2025? Going by stats on this website, here’s what I’ve covered:
Grok did the analysis, and added another category, “Historical Reflections,” at 10% of content — but this likely reflects the “Today” feature on the website, highlighting the most important event(s) concerning human liberty occurring on each date.
I do like to think that I have a sense of history, which informs what I do here. In 2023, a meme spread around the Internet, where women asked the men they knew how often they thought about the Roman Empire. “The results will surprise you,” for men tend to think about the past generally, and the classical Romans in particular, a great deal indeed. The meme played out as a “gender” issue, with women finding men’s apparent fixation inexplicable.
Truth is, for me, I think a lot more about the Revolutionary War. I suppose it’s possible to identify people’s ideologies by which historical war they think about most. This last year and earlier — really since the 2019 protests in Hong Kong — I’ve developed this strong suspicion that we are already in a war and just don’t quite know it.
Wishing you the best in 2026. And girding for what comes.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
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2009: “Paul Jacob says ‘Thank You.’”
2011: “Plymouth’s Great Reform”
2012: “A Rafter of Turkeys”
2013: “Give Thanks for First World Problems”
2016: “Thanksgivings, 1623 A.D.”
2017: “Ingrates of the Fourth Estate”
2018: “My thanksgiving is perpetual.”
2020: “The Saddest Thanksgiving”
2023: “One by One”
2024: “With appreciation, over the years.”