Muddling Toward Maturity Blog

THE ANTI-DEPRESSIVE APARTMENT

That's the title the Wall Street Journal gives to a fascinating article.   The article is subtitled, "In designer Jonathan Adler's kaleidoscopic New York digs, it's pretty hard not to feel happy."  See what you think.

Take a look at other rooms and accents here.  Adler maintains colors can't clash.  Is he right?

I found comments on the WSJ article amusing:   "love the ap!"    "hideous..."    "I would say it's more ADD with a tinge of mania than anti-depressive."     "I have achieved this same look by shopping entirely at non-profit resale shops and yardsales in Silicon Valley."     "I thought LSD was a thing of the past." 

Me: It's so far beyond my normal thinking that I am intrigued. 

DID THE EARLY CHURCH DECIDE RIGHTLY ON ONLY FOUR GOSPELS?

Some think a conspiracy arose to exclude a number of books that present a different perspective than that found in the four gospels.  Between Two Worlds offers the following post:

  D.A. Carson writes about Charles Hill’s new book Who Chose the Gospels? Probing the Great Gospel Conspiracy, just published by Oxford University Press:

For those willing to examine the documentary evidence, there is no better guide than this book by Charles E. Hill. Hill is meticulous, even-handed, careful to distinguish between historical datum and speculation—and a good writer to boot. Not many books that are so informed are such a pleasure to read.”

Dr. Hill recently had an article on The Huffington Post on this issue: “The Conspiracy Theory of the Gospels.”

Here’s an excerpt where he examines one conspiracy theory and the problem with it:

Proof is said to reside in the ancient papyrus documents which archaeologists have dug from the sands of Egypt over the past century and a quarter. The Christian books yielded up by the unbiased, ancient trash heaps are, we are told, mostly books which were excluded from the New Testament. This would seem to show that the four Gospels were once minority reports and that some popular alternatives have been suppressed by the “winners.” All I will say here is that the papyri have both less and more to tell us than this argument lets on.

The problem for the conspiracy theory is a man named Irenaeus. Irenaeus was crystal clear in his claim that the church, from the time of the apostles, had received just four authoritative Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—and that all the others were bogus. This is just what we would expect from a fourth-century re-writer of history. The problem is that Irenaeus wrote in the second century, long before the conspiratorial rewriting of history is supposed to have taken place.

Does, then, the conspiracy approach to early Christian history, in either its popular or its academic forms, have it right? Should it bother anyone that those who stress so loudly that the winners wrote the histories are the ones now writing the histories? Let the reader judge . . . but also be aware of conspiracies.

Me: A commenter wrote:

In a related matter, there’s a detailed review/critique of Elaine Pagels’s book Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas over at ThirdMill.

These look like valuable resources to me.  It's always good to be aware of careful, factual, reliable argumentation.

Update 11/15/10 - Between Two Worlds posts:

From Craig Blomberg’s review of Chuck Hill’s Who Chose the Gospels?

People have frequently asked me what I recommend they read for a sane introduction to the formation of the New Testament canon, and I have regularly referred them to F. F. Bruce’s The Canon of Scripture, published by IVP in 1988. It continues to be an outstanding resource, but what about all of the revisionist theories of the last twenty years? Finally, we have an accessible work, delightful to read, yet painstakingly accurate, that debunks so much of the nonsense passing as scholarship in canon studies these days. 

WHO IS THE REAL BARACK OBAMA? STANLEY KURTZ'S PAINSTAKING SCHOLARSHIP TELLS US

Stanley Kurtz spent two years digging into the archives to tell us what journalists (so-called) didn't have the time, inclination, or courage to do.  He has written a bombshell of a book,  Radical-in-Chief: Barack Obama and the Untold Story of American Socialism.  This is not a quickie, superficial, hatchet job.    Hugh Hewitt, himself a lawyer and talk-show host, repeats over and over again in his interview with Kurtz how solid, exhaustive, and meticulus is Kurtz's research.   Is Obama a socialist?  Unquestionably "yes."  Has he always been one?  "Yes."  Has he sought to cover that up?  "Yes"  Is division part of the socialist strategy?  "Yes."  It's all in the book and in the evidence.  Hugh Hewitt's interview with Stanley Kurtz provides an excellent overview, as does Kathryn Jean Lopez's own extensive interview.

PIPER AND TAYLOR: "SEX AND THE SUPREMACY OF CHRIST"

"Desiring God" has made available online as a free PDF book John Piper's and Justin Taylor's edited volume, "Sex and the Supremacy of Christ."  (HT: Between Two Worlds)  Amazing.  It came out in 2005.  Is this a trend?  Publish online a book that is five years old?  I'm all for it!!  I haven't read the book yet, but I respect the contributors and find it incredible that the entire book is now available FREE online.   

Endorsements:

"This is the rare book that delivers more than it promises. Pick it up to learn about the true joy of sex: you will, and you'll also learn about the joy of God."
—Marvin Olasky, Editor-in-chief, World; Provost, The King's College, New York City

"This book is a glorious start to forming a Christian mind that expresses delight in God's gift of marital intimacy-a Christian mind that so desires to delight in that which God delights in that it revels in rejecting the cheap substitutes pawned off on this passing age as true pleasure. Instead, it only finds satisfaction in what is purest and highest and noblest and best."
—J. Ligon Duncan, Senior Minister, First Presbyterian Church, Jackson, Mississippi; President, Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals

"Sex is a wonderful gift from God, but it makes a terrible idol, brutal and unyielding in the misery it inflicts. These authors are a breath of fresh air, because unlike our culture's self-proclaimed 'sexperts,' they respect biblical authority and warmly embrace the Lordship of Christ. Hence, they can lift up the torch of divine truth and expose the enemy's lies about sex that have penetrated not only the darkest corners of our culture, but of our churches."

—Randy Alcorn, author, If God is Good and Heaven

 

REPORTS FROM THE THIRD LAUSANNE CONGRESS ON WORLD EVANGELIZATION - CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA

See my earlier posts on the Lausanne Congress here and here.  The Lausanne Movement is a worldwide movement that mobilizes evangelical leaders to collaborate for world evangelization. www.lausanne.org

Headlines from Assist News:

-- 10-24 Lausanne Congress calls for a ‘Second Reformation’ leading to a Church that resembles Christ   [This article reports on the Lausanne's rejection of "prosperity gospel" teaching.]

-- 10-24 African-American Churches Called on to ‘Confront Low Participation in World Missions’

-- 10-23 Third Lausanne Congress Challenged to Focus on Unengaged, Unreached People Groups

-- 10-22 Faith Meets Global Action, Cape Town 2010

For more information on Cape Town 2010, The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization, go to www.capetown2010.com.  See especially the YouTube Lausanne channel

 

 

Chris Wright, International Director of Langham Partnership International, challenged Christians to confront the idols of power and pride, popularity and success, and wealth and greed. He called the Church to repentance and simplicity.  Wright, author of The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible's Grand Narrative, is a scholar whose work I respect highly.

 

IMPORTANT NEWS FROM ISRAEL: FOSSIL FUELS APPARENTLY FOUND!

Here's a fascinating post from "The Corner" at National Review Online -

A preliminary geological survey has indicated that there might be about 26 million barrels of recoverable oil a mile under the sand near two kibbutzim in the northern Negev. That would amount to about $2 billion at current prices. There might be 12 million additional barrels further down.

This news comes a day after drilling began on the Leviathan, a record-setting exploratory well in a massive natural-gas field off the coast of Haifa. The area is thought to contain 16 trillion cubic feet of gas, and it might also contain oil. The Leviathan is twice as big as the Tamar natural-gas field struck last year, and the Tamar is already expected to produce enough gas to supply Israel for 20 years. (That’s a big deal: Israel has long depended on natural-gas imports from Egypt; what little she had produced domestically pre-Tamar was expected to dry up in 2012.) If the Leviathan produces what is hoped, it might — typing this makes me feel a little giddy — turn Israel into a natural-gas-exporting country.  [more . .]

Item 2: The Wall Street Journal posted a useful article, Douglas Feith: Can Israel be Jewish and democratic?  Answer:  Most definitely.  

CHUCK COLSON RECOMMENDS THE MOVIE "EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES"

Read his review here.  He subtitles his post, "The Worth of a (handicapped) Child."

Colson says,"I love a good movie. And a movie that underscores the value of every human life, well, I really love that one."  Apparently "Extraordinary Measures" is such a movie.

LAUSANNE CONGRESS IN SOUTH AFRICA BRINGS TOGETHER THE MOST ETHNICALLY DIVERSE GROUP OF CHRISTIANS IN HISTORY

I posted below a short video-talk by Joseph D'Souza given at the Lausanne Congress taking place in Cape Town, South Africa.  But I need to introduce the congress to those for whom it is new.  David Virtue, of VirtueOnline, is onsite and posting articles on this historic congress.  He writes:

In Cape Town more than 5,000 men, women and youth have come from 198 nations - literally from every tribe and language and people group. They have one single objective - to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to every person on earth. We are now living in the age of the global church.

There are more languages being spoken here than at Pentecost. This is a gathering of people who are not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ or to tell the truth about Jesus, preaching Good News to Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, unreached people's and unengaged (no known missionaries) groups, both old and young. There are 469 out of 639 people groups representing 550 million people who have only recently been reached by mobilizing Christian agencies.. .

The congress is being linked through 700 global link sites in 97 countries reaching 100,000 people in eight languages. The Book of Ephesians is the guiding Biblical document uniting this congress. . . Fully a third of all the participants here at the Lausanne Congress on Evangelism are young people in their late 20s and early 30s. . .

LAUSANNE CONFERENCE FOCUSES ON INDIA'S DALITS AND THE CASTE SYSTEM

Take this opportunity to listen to Joseph D'Souza's powerful message about caste in India, "the world's longest-lasting slave system," and the challenge facing the Christian church.  This is a most worthwhile 8 1/2 minutes of your time!  It is altogether informative, instructive and inspirational at the same time.  I was powerfully moved.  (HT: P. Dance)

D'Souza said there is more slavery in our world today than there was at the time of Wilberforce when he fought the transatlantic slave trade.   250 million people are considered the outcastes of Indian society.  I found it fascinating, and horrifying, that a "creation myth" is the root of the stratification of Indian society.  The myth says that God created human beings in a hierarchy of purity and impurity.  25% of India’s population has no rights, is dehumanized, segregated, and silently endures an apartheid system.   But there are great signs of hope.  If you haven't yet listened to the video posted above, take the time now to do so.

IT'S NOT ALWAYS EASY TO LEAVE OLD HABITS

NEW HAMPSHIRE NEWSPAPER REFUSES TO PUBLISH HOMOSEXUAL WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENTS

From Family Research Council:

This weekend, New Hampshire's largest newspaper didn't just report the headlines--it became one. When two homosexual men submitted a wedding announcement to the Manchester mainstay, editors turned it down. Joseph McQuaid, the paper's publisher, said the decision isn't anti-gay. It's pro-marriage. "This newspaper has never published wedding or engagement announcements from homosexual couples," he said in a statement. "It would be hypocritical of us to do so, given our belief that marriage is--and needs to remain--a social and civil structure between men and women and our opposition to the recent state law legalizing gay marriage."

Not surprisingly, McQuaid's bold stand is creating plenty of waves in one of the few states where counterfeit marriage is actually legal. In the brief time since Saturday, the paper's position even became a topic of local campaigns. Paul Hodes, a Democratic candidate for the Senate, insisted that the Union Leader change its policy and "respect the law." Hardly, said Kelly Ayotte, his GOP opponent. "Government has no right to interfere with the freedom of the press." And he's right. The First Amendment guarantees both the freedom of speech and the freedom of the press for everyone--including newspaper editors. Our hats go off to McQuaid for cutting through the political correctness and refusing to yield on a matter of principle. "While the law sanctions gay marriage," he explained, "it neither demands that churches perform them or that our First Amendment right to choose what we print be suspended." While the Left screams about intolerance, it's encouraging to see that the Union Leader is living up to its name.

Me:  Freedom of the press.  Yes.  Plus, the Union Leader is standing by principles it's hard to fault.

I'll add to the above post this notice, also from FRC, regarding Facebook's excruciatingly politically correct posture towards homosexuality.  FRC can foresee future Facebook censorship.  Hope not.  Here's FRC's post:

GOOGLE TO BRING DEAD SEA SCROLLS ONLINE

Fascinating!  What a  revolutionizing development in the world of scholarship.  Tia Goldenberg's Washington Post article has the details.   (HT: Justin Taylor via Gene Veith).

The scrolls will be available to ANYONE, and for free.  An English translation accompanies the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.  Some sections have been made more legible thanks to high-tech infrared technology.  Read on . . .  

EXTREMELY GRAPHIC ABORTION AD AIRS IN D.C.

Drudge supplied the link:

ABC News’ Devin Dwyer reports:   An anti-abortion candidate running for D.C. delegate to the U.S. House is airing what is arguably one of this election cycle’s most provocative TV campaign ads, featuring extremely graphic images of aborted fetuses.

The 30-second ad for Missy Smith will air 24 times on local broadcast network affiliates across the greater Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. It is so explicit that it's preceded by a 15-second warning that was added by the stations’ administrators.

Over gruesome images of bloody and lifeless premature bodies, Smith says she had two abortions but has turned against the practice.

“I was told it’s not a baby. They lied to me. They exploited me. Then I learned the truth and I’ve suffered for years,” she says. “And believe me I am angry. My heart has been ripped out. Obama, Pelosi, Reid, Norton – they all support the murder of babies and the abuse of women by abortion. It’s time to make child killing illegal again.”

YouTube has pulled the video from its site, posting a notice that it amounted to “a violation of YouTube's policy on shocking and disgusting content.”

WJLA, the local ABC affiliate to first air the ad, noted in its disclaimer that the station was required to air the ad under federal law.

The Communications Act requires broadcasters to provide legally qualified candidates fair access to ad time and forbids them from censoring ads “in any way, or for any reason.” 

Smith, who is running against incumbent Democrat Eleanor Holmes Norton, claims to have backing of Tea Party.  Her website reads “Tea Party’s Number One Mission: End Legalized Child-Killing.”

She is shown in photos posing with Republican Reps. Mike Pence (IN), Steve King (IA), Trent Franks (AZ) and Jeff Fortenberry (NE), who all have support of the Tea Party movement.

Smith could not be reached for comment.

For those inclined, you can view the ad on Smith's website HERE.

WHEATON COLLEGE THE TOP SCHOOL IN AMERICA?

That sounds pretty amazing.  Yet First Things magazine offers that assessment in its commentary on top schools in the nation.  Kevin DeYoung summarizes the magazine's list of schools according to various categories.

NEW TRAILER FOR "VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER"

This looks really good to me.  It may be the best screen adaptation of a C.S. Lewis Narnia book so far.  It's coming to theaters this December. 

 

DO JOB AND ECCLESIASTES CONTRADICT PROVERBS?

From Justin Taylor's post:

Here is a helpful answer to that question from Tremper Longman’s essay, “Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People? A Biblical-Theological Approach,” in the new book, Eyes to See and Ears to Hear: Essays in Memory of J. Alan Groves, ed. Peter Enns, Douglas J. Green, and Michael B. Kelly (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2010), pp. 13-14:

---

Our presentation of the material above may lead to a misconception if not read carefully. Proverbs emphasizes the rewards that come to those who follow the way of wisdom, while Job and Ecclesiastes question the connection between behavior and consequences. Does that mean that Job and Ecclesiastes contradict Proverbs, not to speak of the other strands of the OT that imply that good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people?

Close study of these books suggests a negative answer. In the first place, Proverbs does not guarantee reward to the righteous or punishment for the wicked. A proverb is simply not in the business of issuing promises or guarantees. Rather, a proverb states the best route to a desired end, all other things being equal. Most of the time it is true that lazy behavior will lead to poverty and hard work will result in a better living standard, but not always. An indolent person could inherit a fortune, or a hard worker might be wiped out by a natural calamity or a crooked administrator. Proverbs 13:23 acknowledges the latter when it says:

A poor person’s farm may produce much food,
but injustice sweeps it all away.

Another indication that Proverbs itself does not believe there is a mechanical and absolutely guaranteed connection between wise behavior and good benefits is in its acknowledgment that the fool can have wealth—even if only temporarily:

Wealth from get-rich-schemes quickly disappears;
wealth from hard work grows over time. (13:11)

But even when the wealth of fools might last, it does not really help the person:

Riches won’t help on the day of judgment. (11:4a)

Thus, a number of better-than proverbs imply that a person may have to decide between wisdom and success in life:

Better to be poor and godly
than rich and dishonest. (16:8; see also 15:17; 16:16; 17:1; 22:1; 28:6)

In conclusion, Ecclesiastes and Job do not correct Proverbs, but rather they correct an overreading of Proverbs.

NPR FIRES JUAN WILLIAMS

It's all over the internet.  Here's a collection of articles from WorldNetDaily:

TROUBLESPEAK WorldNetDaily Exclusive Williams fired after complaint by 'terror co-conspirator' D.C.-based CAIR demanded action on 'anti-Muslim' remarks by NPR correspondent --WND

 

Fox talker to CAIR exec: 'Happy now?' Megyn Kelly's heated interview with Ibrahim Hooper regarding Williams firing --Fox News

 

Juan Williams: 'I said what I meant to say' 'It's not a bigoted statement ... you cannot ignore what happened on 9/11' --Real Clear Politics

 

In wake of controversy, Fox News gives Williams expanded role Analyst signed to new 3-year contract for nearly $2 million --Los Angeles Times

 

CEO Schiller: Sorry firing came during fall pledge drive 'Juan is not an employee of NPR. He's an independent contractor. He's not NPR staff' --Atlanta Journal Constitution

 

NPR CEO suggests Williams consult 'his psychiatrist' Regrets: 'I spoke hastily and I apologize to Juan and others for my thoughtless remark' --National Public Radio

 

Stations inundated with complaints about firing NPR.org 'Contact Us' page crashes, listeners demanding return of donations --WBUR-TV, Boston

 

A brief history of NPR's intolerance, imbalance From wishing AIDS on Jesse Helms to rapture of Christians leaving world a better place --Fox News

 

BLAST FROM THE PAST, JULY 21 NPR affiliate employee wishes death on Rush Limbaugh 'I never knew I had this much hate in me, but he deserves it' --National Public Radio

Huckabee calls on Congress to cut NPR funding
Slams radio network as 'purveyor of politically correct pabulum'
--CNN

THE SOCIAL CONSERVATIVE REVIEW

- Update: For the latest Social Conservative Review click here.

- I have two major "Social Conservative Review" postings from the Family Research Council to add to previous postings.  The articles and analysis found in each issue of the  "Social Conservative Review" constitute a major and invaluable resource.  Click through to the list of articles below.

CNN PROGRAM AIRS THURSDAY NIGHT - "ALMIGHTY DEBT: A BLACK IN AMERICA SPECIAL"

Bob Woodson, whom I respect greatly, says of the program:  (my underlining)

At 9 p.m. EST, Thursday evening, October 21, 2010, CNN will air a most important show in its series of specials hosted by Soledad O’Brien. The show, “Almighty Debt, A Black in America Special,” examines economic challenges facing black Americans. But the very fact of its airing could also help to end the virtual gag rule that has stifled exploration of the self-imposed barriers that hinder the progress of blacks in America.

The show’s principal guest is the Reverend DeForest “Buster” Soaries, Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens, in Somerset, New Jersey, and former New Jersey Secretary of State. His thesis: “Debt is more harmful to Black America today than racism.” With cameras following two members of his congregation, Pastor Soaries makes the case that they are about to lose to foreclosure the luxury 3,500 square-foot home they built, in part because of the downturn in the economy, but also because of their own excessive accumulation of debt.

A former civil rights worker for Jesse Jackson, Soaries leads his large black church on a quest to help right the wrongs of the past, not by grieving about the evils inflicted on it by racism but through an array of self-help social and community development programs that have become innovative agents of transformation, not only for members of his congregation but as examples for the nation.

"CHRIST ON CAMPUS INITIATIVE" FROM TRINITY EVANGELICAL DIVINITY SCHOOL

TEDS recently announced the following essays can now be accessed on the internet.  Trinity is one of the foremost Christian seminaries in the world today.  The editorial team of CCI is led by Dr. D.A. Carson.  Here are the essays published to date.  More will follow.

• Human Flourishing - Danielle Sallade
  
• Sin: Not the Way It's Supposed to Be  -  Cornelius Platinga Jr.
  
• Five Arguments for God  -    William Lane Craig
  
• Christianity and Sexuality  -    Christopher Ash
  
• Naturalism and the Biblical Worldview   -  Kristen Birkett
  
• Jesus Christ and Religious Diversity   -  Harold A. Netland
  
• Do Christians Have a Worldview?  -   Graham Cole
  
• Jesus of Nazareth: How Historians Can Know Him and Why it Matters  -   Craig L. Blomberg
  
• A Christian Perspective on Islam   -   Chawkat Moucarry
  

 

TONY PERKINS - "CHRISTIAN COMPASSION REQUIRES THE TRUTH ABOUT HARMS OF HOMOSEXUALITY"

The following op-ed published in the Washington Post incited a lot of vitriol.  It's the sort of article homosexual activists try to keep from being published.  This one slipped through.  Better read it now, because I'm betting it will be a long time before the Washington Post publishes anything similar.

Perkins writes:

The media has recently been filled with reports of several recent suicides by teenagers who are reported to have been victims of "anti-gay" bullying. Some homosexual activist groups lay blame at the feet of conservative Christians who teach that homosexual conduct is wrong, as well as pro-family groups such as Family Research Council which oppose elements of the homosexual political agenda, such as same-sex "marriage."

The Christians and pro-family leaders I know are unanimous in believing that no person, especially a child, should be subjected to verbal or physical harassment or violence--whether because of their sexuality, their religious beliefs, or for any other reason. Such bullying violates the Christian's obligation to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, and receives no support from the pro-family political movement.

Where bullying has occurred, the blame should be placed on the bullies themselves--not on organizations within society who clearly oppose bullying. I suspect that few, if any, such bullies are people who regularly attend church, and I would not be surprised if most of the "bullies" did not have the positive benefit of both an active mom and dad in their lives. Religious faith and a return to traditional family values are more likely to be a solution to the problem of bullying than a cause.

However, homosexual activist groups like GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) are exploiting these tragedies to push their agenda of demanding not only tolerance of homosexual individuals, but active affirmation of homosexual conduct and their efforts to redefine the family.

There is an abundance of evidence that homosexuals experience higher rates of mental health problems in general, including depression. However, there is no empirical evidence to link this with society's general disapproval of homosexual conduct. In fact, evidence from the Netherlands would seem to suggest the opposite, because even in that most "gay-friendly" country on earth, research has shown homosexuals to have much higher mental health problems.

EUROPEAN REPORTING ON AMERICAN TEA PARTY FARCICALLY INACCURATE

The leftist European press does a terrible job reporting on the American political scene.  Tea Party reporting is so bad as to be scandalous.   British writer Daniel Hannan says Tea Partiers

are generally portrayed either as a gaggle of stump-toothed Appalachian mountain men or as a KKK lynchmob.  A typical column in Britain's Guardian newspaper last month described them as 'a movement most of whose emergent stars would appear to be better suited to prison or lunatic asylums.'

Who of us doesn't find that disgusting?  Hannan says further,

At the annual Conservative Party conference last week, I discovered that several delegates had no idea that the tea party was campaigning for smaller government. Such is the media coverage that even many Tories believe that it is essentially a fringe of irreconcilables who cannot bring themselves to acknowledge a mixed-race president.

Germany's Der Spiegel is no better.  (HT: Drudge)  Journalist Klaus Brinkbaumer writes of

America's hate-mongers, gun freaks and Tea Party demagogues who first compare Obama to Hitler and then minutes later to Stalin. They are people so filled with vitriol they can no longer think straight -- people like television presenter Glenn Beck, who says that putting the common good first is "exactly the kind of talk that led to the death camps in Germany." Beck has millions of followers, and appears in public with former Alaskan governor Sarah Palin, the darling of the Tea Party movement, who gleefully pronounces Obama's middle name Hussein as if it were a naughty, menacing word.

Me: Don't expect Europeans to understand America or the Tea Party movement.  With reporting like this, it's no wonder they remain deceived and clueless.   

TEXTING TO THE NEGLECT OF PRESENT COMPANY

Apropos my earlier post on texting, the Fred Basset strip below adds significant commentary.  A mom I conversed with yesterday said she doesn't allow texting in gathered company at her home.  If a teen starts texting she says, "If the person you are texting is more important than those you are with now, you need to go and be physically present with that person."    Makes perfect sense to me. 

WHAT KEEPS THE LEFT FROM UNDERSTANDING THE TEA PARTY MOVEMENT?

Education.  Or the lack thereof.  Peter Berkowitz makes important points:

[...]  "Leading history departments have emphasized social history and issues of race, class and gender at the expense of constitutional history, diplomatic history and military history.

Neither professors of political science nor of history have made a priority of instructing students in the founding principles of American constitutional government. Nor have they taught about the contest between the progressive vision and the conservative vision that has characterized American politics since Woodrow Wilson (then a political scientist at Princeton) helped launch the progressive movement in the late 19th century by arguing that the Constitution had become obsolete and hindered democratic reform.

Then there are the proliferating classes in practical ethics and moral reasoning. These expose students to hypothetical conundrums involving individuals in surreal circumstances suddenly facing life and death decisions, or present contentious public policy questions and explore the range of respectable progressive opinions for resolving them. Such exercises may sharpen students' ability to argue. They do little to teach about self-government.

They certainly do not teach about the virtues, or qualities of mind and character, that enable citizens to shoulder their political responsibilities and prosper amidst the opportunities and uncertainties that freedom brings. Nor do they teach the beliefs, practices and associations that foster such virtues and those that endanger them.

Those who doubt that the failings of higher education in America have political consequences need only reflect on the quality of progressive commentary on the tea party movement. Our universities have produced two generations of highly educated people who seem unable to recognize the spirited defense of fundamental American principles, even when it takes place for more than a year and a half right in front of their noses.

Me:  The failure of higher education is mind-bending.  If anyone sought to strategize on how to destroy a nation, one could hardly produce a more negative effect than the teaching of the past two generations.  I'll have to return to this subject another time.

MALLARD FILLMORE MAKES A POINT

CHILEAN MINERS AND CHRISTIAN FAITH

Update 10/20/10 - Chuck Colson offers thoughts on what the Chilean Miners' experience offers the church.

 

- (Original post) - A friend e-mailed me a report from a worker with Campus Crusade for Christ:

Probably you were watching on TV the rescue of the miners in Chile, and  maybe you noticed a T Shirt many were wearing. All those T Shirts are a gift from Campus Crusade for Christ Chile. The front reads: “Gracias Señor, Thank You Lord” and on the back;  Psalm 95:4 "Porque en su mano están las profundidades de la tierra, y las alturas de los montes son suyas"  “In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also”.  The idea was to glorify our Lord with all this and also to express our love and concern for them by giving them the Jesus Film and the Bible in audio through the MP3s. They received many gifts from outside Organizations,  but they decided to wear our T Shirts for the rescue,  and we praise God for this. . .

CBN video:

 

CBN text: Chilean Miners Emerge Changed Men After Rescue

CAPITALISM SAVED THE MINERS

Really? someone asks.  Yes.  As Daniel Henninger points out, twenty-five years ago those miners would not have survived anywhere in the world.  What has made the difference?  Free market economies.  Henninger writes:

This profit = innovation dynamic was everywhere at that Chilean mine. The high-strength cable winding around the big wheel atop that simple rig is from Germany. Japan supplied the super-flexible, fiber-optic communications cable that linked the miners to the world above. . .

Samsung of South Korea supplied a cellphone that has its own projector. Jeffrey Gabbay, the founder of Cupron Inc. in Richmond, Va., supplied socks made with copper fiber that consumed foot bacteria, and minimized odor and infection.

What about the drill and the bit?  Made by Americans in Pennsylvania.  The Center Rock drill bit

is the miracle bit that drilled down to the trapped miners. Center Rock Inc. is a private company in Berlin, Pa. It has 74 employees. The drill's rig came from Schramm Inc. in West Chester, Pa. Seeing the disaster, Center Rock's president, Brandon Fisher, called the Chileans to offer his drill. Chile accepted. The miners are alive.

Conclusion:

In an open economy, you will never know what is out there on the leading developmental edge of this or that industry. But the reality behind the miracles is the same: Someone innovates something useful, makes money from it, and re-innovates, or someone else trumps their innovation. Most of the time, no one notices. All it does is create jobs, wealth and well-being. But without this system running in the background, without the year-over-year progress embedded in these capitalist innovations, those trapped miners would be dead.

Me: Point well taken.  I hope the Marxists and socialists among us are paying attention, plus any who take for granted the remarkable accomplishments of free market economies.  For more of my posts on free enterprise and capitalism, click here.

THE TEXTING REVOLUTION IS HERE

And you can count me out, at least for now.  Talk about frazzling the nerves!  Things I didn't know before: 

The average 13- to 17-year-old sends and receives 3,339 texts a month—more than 100 per day, according to the Nielsen Co., the media research firm. Adults are catching up. People from ages 45 to 54 sent and received 323 texts a month in the second quarter of 2010, up 75% from a year ago, Nielsen says.

I find the texting revolution truly amazing.  From the same informative Wall Street Journal article I also learned that "talking" on a cell phone is becoming more and more rare. 

Anne McAndrews, a 21-year-old marketing major at Emerson College in Boston, says she and her friends almost never talk on the phone. "If I were to call someone, it would have to be urgent," she says. "Otherwise, it's sort of rude and invasive."

 

Voice mail is also becoming less used.

Mr. Siminoff says his research indicates a five-hour lag between the time a voice mail is left and listened to. Retrieving and listening to a 30-second voice mail takes a minute, he says, but "scanning" the text of a 30-second message takes about five seconds. "Voice mail is an old way of thinking in a digital lifestyle," he says.

  Finally, as far as my comments are concerned, I would note:

Texting saves us time, but it steals from quiet reflection. "When people have a mobile device and have even the smallest increment of extra time, they will communicate with someone in their life

Sounds to me like a classic case of addiction. I read a travel essay recently lauding a vacation to the ocean as a way to "slow down."  If a person takes along a cell phone, slowing down would seem a hard thing to do.  And I doubt that those already addicted could live a day without their phones.  According to the article, two-thirds of adults sleep with their cellphones next to their bed.

There's no doubt about it, we are in the midst of a revolution.  At some point I expect the strain of constant communication and stimulation to frazzle the nerves and lead to new psychological pathologies.  As for damage to the English language (and an inability to write in full sentences), one can only imagine.

HOW TO SEAL A BAG AND MAKE IT AIR-TIGHT

From an e-mail:

How to seal a bag and make it air-tight!

Cut up a disposable water bottle and keep the neck and top,
as in photo.

Insert the plastic bag through the neck and screw the top – to seal.

The bottle is made to be air-tight, such that water will not leak,
the secret lies with the top and screw!

THE FOUR BOOKS THAT SHAPED TIM KELLER

Click here.  (HT:  Kirk)

HOMOSEXUALITY: THE POLITICAL HOT POTATO

From the Family Research Council:

New York gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino is under fire by homosexual activists for comments he made on Sunday in which he said, "I just think my children and your children would be much better off and much more successful getting married and raising a family, and I don't want them brainwashed into thinking that homosexuality is an equally valid and successful option -- it isn't." While I don't agree with everything that Mr. Paladino has said on the campaign trail, his statement this past weekend is validated by a mountain of social science research demonstrating that men and women who marry members of the opposite sex are healthier and happier. The evidence is also conclusive that children fare better with a married mom and dad. In contrast, the research confirms the instability of same-sex households and serious health risks associated with homosexual conduct. Consider these snapshot facts:

• Journal of Marriage and Family: In 2005, the dissolution rate of homosexual couples was more than three times that of heterosexual married couples, and the dissolution rate of lesbian couples was more than four-fold that of heterosexual married couples.
• Homosexualities: A Study of Diversity among Men and Women: Researchers found that 43% percent of white male homosexuals had sex with 500 or more partners, and 28% had 1,000 or more partners.
• The Social Organization of Sexuality: Only 4.5% of homosexual males said they were faithful to their current partner, compared to 85% of married women and 75.5% of married men.
• The Gay and Lesbian Medical Association: "Gay men use substances at a higher rate than the general population. Also, "gay men have higher rates of alcohol dependence and abuse than straight men."
• National Institute of Justice: "Same-sex cohabitants reported significantly more intimate partner violence than did opposite-sex cohabitants-39% of lesbian cohabitants reported being raped, physically assaulted, and/or stalked by a cohabitating partner at some time in their lifetimes, compared to 21% of heterosexual women. Among men, the comparable figures are 23.1% and 7.4%."

Rather than pushing children toward this harmful behavior, the most compassionate thing we can do for anyone struggling with this lifestyle is to continue speaking the truth in love with the message that change is possible for those who experience same-sex attractions. For even more research, download a free copy of FRC's latest pamphlet, The Top 10 Myths about Homosexuality.

Me: It's refreshing to hear a politician speak objectively and truthfully about homosexual conduct.  When was the last time a politician did so?  I can't remember a case off hand.  Incidentally, FRC's pamphlet mentioned above is well worth reading and disseminating.

PAMELA GELLER DEFENDS HERSELF AGAINST NEW YORK TIMES' BIASED ARTICLE

Geller responds:

As expected, the New York Times did an extraordinarily nasty and fallacious piece on me. It is full of distortions, inaccuracies and lies from beginning to end.

Referring to me using terms like "socialite," "dilettante," and other words invoking silly, superficial, purposeless women, is downright farcical. Show me a socialite who is fighting for American values 20 hours a day. I don't even have lunch, let alone gala charity events. The only thing worthwhile in this piece is the actual interview, which is, frankly, all that really matters. But let's have a cursory look at this piece, shall we? . . .

Geller proceeds to dissect the NY Times piece on her.  To the credit of the NY Times, they also published their interview, "Pamela Geller in her own words."   To anyone new to the world of Geller, reading the interview would be a good place to start.  Her blog is Atlas Shrugs.

NEWS SHORTS FROM NORWAY

Archaeologists find mini-Pompeii -  (HT: Drudge)

The most well-preserved pottery from the Stone Age ever found in Norway has turned up in an unspoiled dwelling site not far from Kristiansand. The find is considered an archaeological sensation.

The discovery of a “sealed” Stone Age house site from 3500 BC has stirred great excitement among archaeologists from Norway’s Museum of Cultural History at the University in Oslo. The settlement site at Hamresanden, close to Kristiansand’s airport at Kjevik in Southern Norway, looks like it was covered by a sandstorm, possibly in the course of a few hours.

The catastrophe for the Stone Age occupants has given archaeologists an untouched “mini-Pompeii,” containing both whole and reparable pots.  [more. . .]

New images may yield viking ships -

Archaeologists think they have found two more Viking ships buried in Vestfold County south of Oslo. The biggest may be 25 metres long, larger than any found so far.  [more. . .]

 

ADULT STEM CELLS - AMAZING EYE CURES

  The Family Research Council reports: 

Liberals seem blind to the success of adult stem cells. Maybe if they saw the evidence from a recent Italian study, their eyes would be opened to the potential of ethical research. After cataracts, corneal disease is the second leading cause of blindness in the world. In September, Dr. Jean Peduzzi Nelson testified to the U.S. Senate about the success that Italian doctors have achieved at restoring sight to patients with corneal blindness, using adult stem cells. The details of the successful adult stem cell treatment were given in a June 2010 paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The Italian doctors treated 112 patients who had corneal blindness from chemical burns. The clinical team isolated adult stem cells from a portion of the patient's eye, grew the cells in the lab to create many new corneal cells, and transplanted the new cells onto the damaged eyes. Over 77% of patients recovered normal vision, and 13% of patients had partial vision restored. One of the successful transplants was a man who had severe damage in both eyes as a result of a chemical burn in 1948. The doctors grafted stem cells from a small section of his left eye to both eyes. His vision is now close to normal. Seeing is believing! Adult stem cells are helping patients now!

THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL AND BLACK CHURCHES

DeForest B. Soaries, Jr. writes:

Recent days have brought multiple allegations of sexual abuse against Atlanta megachurch Bishop Eddie Long. It would be premature to judge the truth of these allegations, but it is not too soon to weigh in on his opulent lifestyle. His fancy cars, expensive clothing and vast estate, all funded on a multimillion-dollar salary, are part of his act—pushing the so-called prosperity gospel on mostly African-Americans. Whatever Mr. Long has done in his personal life, his brand of theology has contributed to a troubling trend among black churches in America.  . . .

In light of today's weak economy, perhaps the prosperity movement should consider focusing on financial literacy, personal discipline and saving for the long term, rather than emphasizing supernatural possibilities. Depending on miracles as a financial strategy is a dangerous way to live. Churches can be effective in teaching people how to convert from a culture of borrowing and spending to a culture of saving and investing.

The teachings of Jesus include many principles that can foster personal success and financial well-being. For instance in Luke 15:28, Jesus is quoted: "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it?" This serves as wise counsel for those who live above their means today. In other passages Jesus teaches that giving is superior to receiving, and that serving others was more important to being served ourselves. In Jesus's teachings Christians have sufficient content for financial guidance and prudent approaches to managing money.  [more . .]

THINGS I DIDN'T KNOW BEFORE

** 9/11 Truthers around the world:

The University of Maryland's World Public Opinion surveys have found that just 2% of Pakistanis believe al Qaeda perpetrated the attacks, whereas 27% believe it was the U.S. government. (Most respondents say they don't know.)

Among Egyptians, 43% say Israel is the culprit, while another 12% blame the U.S. Just 16% of Egyptians think al Qaeda did it. In Turkey, opinion is evenly split: 39% blame al Qaeda, another 39% blame the U.S. or Israel. Even in Europe, Ahmadinejad has his corner. Fifteen percent of Italians and 23% of Germans finger the U.S. for the attacks.

**  Tyrannosaurus rex undergoes revised thinking - This article surprised me to learn  how tentative and unstable were the "facts" I learned as a youngster.

** How Handwriting Trains the Brain  - I wasn't aware of the multiple benefits for children and adults to write out letters rather than punch keys.  (Though I remember reading some years ago that George Will wrote his columns longhand with a pen and legal pad.  Does he still do that?)    --  I also I didn't know about apps for smartphones and tablets that accept handwriting input with a finger or stylus, which then converts to text for email, documents or Twitter updates.   Sounds like an interesting compromise.

"JIHAD" AND THE "TRUE ISLAM" IS A MOOT POINT

The redoubtable Andrew C. McCarthy clears the air once again. He writes:

[...] Since I wrote my last book, The Grand Jihad, and participated in the recently released “Team B-II” study called “Sharia: The Threat to America,” I’ve heard a good deal of criticism along the lines of “Sharia doesn’t really say what he claims it says,” or “Some scholars offer a different, moderate interpretation,” etc. I humbly submit that this misses the point. I went out of my way in