Gene Edward Veith Jr.'s Blog, page 193
January 5, 2016
When journalists try to be theologians
G. Shane Morris has a great piece in the Federalist about how journalists have been lecturing us on theological questions while knowing nothing about what they are talking about. (The article includes a definitive discussion of why Christians do not, in fact, worship the same deity as Muslims, contrary to what the media has been [Read More...]
Before Downton Abbey, there was Upstairs, Downstairs
I’m a Downton Abbey fan, and I’m glad the series started up again, last season though it be. I am rather astonished, though, at the hype and frenzy around this excellent portrayal of the British class system in the first half of the 20th century. But I haven’t heard any credit being given to the [Read More...]
The top 10 risks to the world in 2016
An international think tank has released its list of the top risks to global stability in 2016. The world remains a dangerous place. The first problem listed: America’s new weakness and irrelevance in the world. From The top 10 risks to the world in 2016 — the ailing trans-Atlantic partnership is number one – Telegraph: [Read More...]
January 4, 2016
The new colonialism
The left continues to condemn colonialism. Western nations taking over “third world” countries was indeed morally problematic and the source of many problems today in our “post-colonial” world. But today the left is championing a “new colonialism,” one that insists on imposing the modern West’s views of sexual permissiveness, contraception, and abortion on cultures that [Read More...]
Franklin Graham quits Republicans, but not politics
Evangelist Franklin Graham, son of Billy, has quit the Republican party, due to the way the GOP-led Congress abandoned the goal of defunding Planned Parenthood so as to pass the budget. But he hasn’t abandoned politics. He is planning to hold rallies in all 50 states to encourage Christians to vote for “godly leaders” of [Read More...]
Sunni vs. Shiite conflict intensifies
In another reminder that the turmoil in the Middle East is not all about us, the Saudis executed, along with 46 criminals, a prominent Shiite leader. Protests have broken out throughout the Muslim world. Iranians have occupied the Saudi embassy, and the two countries have severed diplomatic relations. Those two types of Islam are hostile [Read More...]
January 1, 2016
Happy 2016!
Happy New Year! This is the day we look forward and contemplate the year ahead, making resolutions about the changes we’d like to make and planning for the future. Along with the custom of making New Year’s resolutions is the custom of saying that they are futile, what with the bondage of the will and [Read More...]
Make your predictions for 2016
Yesterday we looked at our predictions for 2015. Today we give our predictions for 2016. What do you think will happen in the year ahead? To win our annual blog contest for best prediction, make your prediction as specific as possible. For example, our recent winner, Joe, didn’t just say that we’d have an oversupply [Read More...]
December 31, 2015
Checking your predictions for 2015
Merry New Year’s Eve! It has long been the custom at this blog to make predictions for the coming year (we’ll do that tomorrow, on New Year’s Day) and then to check them on the last day of that year. The one who makes the best prediction–that is, the most precise and unexpected prognostication–will be [Read More...]
My New Year’s Eve ritual
Every New Year’s Eve, I look back on the events of the past year. I do so by reading Dave Barry’s Year in Review. The month by month retrospective has the virtue of being very funny, which makes the survey of the year’s madness much easier to take. Start it and follow the link after [Read More...]
