Geez, you write a piece on pointed musical assertions of cultural identity, and folks seem to take notice. Another friend wrote and directed me to a song by the Afrikaner folk and rock singer, Bok van Blerk. This one (not surprisingly) has generated controversy in South Africa, where liberal whites . . . . Continue Reading »
When this story was thrown through the proverbial transom, I thought it must be from The Onion. Alas, no. A student organization at Carleton University has dropped supporting cystic fibrosis charities because the disease is not diverse enough. I kid you not. From the story:The Carleton University . . . . Continue Reading »
I am a man with deep connections to the political left, for example, writing four books with Ralph Nader. But those Movement (not Nader) ties frayed and then snapped, first due to the Left’s embrace (before the disability rights movement engaged the issue) of assisted suicide, reinforced . . . . Continue Reading »
The NHS is collapsing from top to bottom. Now, we learn that its medical personnel have insufficient training in end of life care. From the story: Many terminally ill patients who want to die at home are being needlessly admitted to hospital, a public spending watchdog said on Wednesday. It said the . . . . Continue Reading »
Dreading the Thanksgiving-dinner arguments on religion and politics? Resistance is futile. Just accept the inevitable and start them yourself. Slate provides some ideas here for dinner-table disagreements on politics. As for religion, First Things has dished up some ideas sure to spark lively . . . . Continue Reading »
A study has predicted that HIV could be wiped out within a decade. From the story:The virus that causes AIDS could theoretically be eliminated in a decade if all people living in countries with high infection rates are regularly tested and treated, according to a new mathematical model. It is an . . . . Continue Reading »
The assistant editors of First Things have back-to-back book reviews in Touchstone . Last month I wrote on three books describing the hook-up culture on college campuses. The article’s now available online , and here’s a sample: One student she interviewed talks about a girl who calls . . . . Continue Reading »
After reading my post on Show of Hands, Paul Allen, who teaches theology at Concordia University in Montreal, wrote and passed along a link to a Quebec group that sings an edgy protest song a protest against cultural suicide, that is. Check it out. . . . . Continue Reading »
I have been asked to comment on the Freedom of Choice Act, that would seek to impose a single federal standard on abortion regulations. I have not done so until now because I did not know enough about the details and wanted to wait until and unless it became a likely law.I still don’t know . . . . Continue Reading »