Gene Edward Veith Jr.'s Blog, page 209
October 28, 2015
Songs that you cannot get out of your head
The Wall Street Journal has an article on recent research into “earworms,” those songs that you cannot get out of your head. Usually, as we all know, those songs tend to be ones that we just hate! I propose a diabolical discussion, one that is so fiendish that it will be the closest thing this [Read More...]
The Republican debate tonight
One of the biggest hits of the television season has been the presidential debates. They certainly have the elements of popular TV: colorful characters, soap opera drama, reality TV. The debates have the Darwinian struggle of Survivor, the popularity contest of American Idol, and the yell-at-each-other trainwrecks of daytime talk shows. So the Republican debate [Read More...]
October 27, 2015
The three types of secularism
I stumbled upon this article from seven years ago–another one by the great sociologist of religion Peter Berger. He distinguishes between three kinds of secularism: one that separates church and state but is not anti-religous; one that has an animus against public religion but is fine with privatized faith; and one that actively tries to [Read More...]
She felt she was supposed to have been born blind
I’ve blogged about the “transabled,” people who feel that they should have been born into a body that is disabled. After the jump is a story about a woman who felt that the way she “was supposed to be born” was to be blind. So the psychologist working with her blinded her. He “gave her [Read More...]
Republicans trade spending hike for entitlement reform? | Washington Examiner
The Washington Examiner reports that Republicans and Democrats in the House of Representatives have arrived at a budget deal. Basically, Republicans agreed to lift spending caps, keep the government funded, and increase spending in return for some entitlement reforms and some tweaks of Obamacare. Read the story after the jump. A good deal? Bad deal? [Read More...]
October 26, 2015
Catholic synod on family makes few changes
A synod of bishops has been meeting at the Vatican discussing “the family” and possible changes to Roman Catholic practice, including being more welcoming to gays and allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to receive Holy Communion. The meeting closed on Sunday, proposing very few changes to church teaching. It affirmed that there is no basis [Read More...]
Only three left standing in the Democratic race
Lincoln Chafee dropped out of the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. With Jim Webb also quitting and Joe Biden deciding not to run, that leaves only three candidates: Hillary Clinton; Bernie Sanders; and Martin O’Malley. Actually, Sanders is not a Democrat but an Independent. So that leaves only two Democrats, and pretty smooth sailing [Read More...]
The World Serious
I was pulling for the Cubs, in honor of my late Father, a die-hard Cubs fan, but now that they were swept by the Mets, my way is clear to support the Kansas City Royals, the team that got me first seriously interested in baseball, back when I was a grad student at the University [Read More...]
Homecoming parade killings
In Stillwater, Oklahoma, not far from where we live now, a woman drove her car into the crowd at a packed homecoming parade for Oklahoma State University. Four people were killed and nearly 50 were injured. At first, it was said that the 25-year-0ld woman was intoxicated, but now doubts have been raised about that [Read More...]
October 23, 2015
God always begins with NOTHING
“It is God’s nature to make something out of nothing; hence one who is not yet nothing, out of him God cannot make anything. . . .Therefore God accepts only the forsaken, cures only the sick, gives sight only to the blind, restores life only to the dead, sanctifies only the sinners, gives wisdom only [Read More...]
