Gene Edward Veith Jr.'s Blog, page 305

Obama delays amnesty until after the elections

President Obama had said that since Congress won’t pass immigration reform, he will push it through using executive action.  Though he had said he would do so by the end of the summer, he has decided to wait until after the midterm elections in November.   He and other Democrats are worried that if he grants [Read More...]

1,500 year-old confession of faith

Scholars have discovered a 1,500-year-old papyrus from ancient Egypt that contains a remarkable Christian confession, including an early description of Holy Communion.  Reportedly, the writing was rolled up in an amulet, a Christian version of the amulets-with-protection-spells worn by pagan Egyptians. The article on the find says that this is an example of Christian “magic,” [Read More...]

Rand Paul’s foreign policy

The one “dove” among the current presidential contenders has been the libertarian, tea-party favorite Republican Senator Rand Paul.  A few weeks ago, he published  an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal that criticized both the Democrats and his fellow Republicans for their “interventionist” foreign policies.  He said that those who wanted to intervene  against the [Read More...]

Taking Lassie straight to merchandising

The Hollywood studio DreamWorks has the rights to Lassie, the TV show about a heroic collie that is the third longest running TV drama of all time (behind Gunsmoke and Law & Order).  But the studio thinks the character is too old-fashioned for a new TV show or movie.  So the plan is to take [Read More...]

Hans Fiene takes down the Osteens

You may know of Pastor Hans Fiene from his uproariously funny and theologically profound Lutheran Satire videos.  He now has another forum, The Federalist, in which he has published the definitive critique of mega-pastor Joel Osteen.  His wife has created an uproar for saying that worship should be about our happiness rather than God’s glory.  [Read More...]

Is democracy for everybody?

American political theory tends to believe that democracy is based on universal human values and is the right form of government for everyone.  But, as columnist Richard Cohen says, after rehearsing the fiascos of “the Arab Spring” and other seemingly democratic movements that ended in even more despotism, “For the United States, trying to spread [Read More...]

Laura Ingalls Wilder’s annotated autobiography

I remember well our teacher reading to us fifth graders the novels of Laura Ingalls Wilders, which were based on the author’s childhood on the American frontier.  Her descriptions in The Long Winter of the blizzards, the isolation, and Pa surviving in a snow bank by eating oyster crackers still come to my mind whenever [Read More...]

How scholars proved that the “wife of Jesus” text is a forgery

I’m a little late on this, but I just learned the details.  You will remember a few years ago when a Harvard professor announced the discovery of an ancient manuscript fragment in which Jesus refers to “my wife” and says “she will be able to be my disciple.”  Many questioned the text’s authenticity, but everyone [Read More...]

NATO gets relevant again

We might agree that Russia’s incursion into the Ukraine, while regrettable,  doesn’t concern us.  But if Vladimir Putin did the same thing to Estonia, another bordering country with a large and complaining Russian minority, we would be at war.  That’s because Estonia and the other Baltic Republics are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization [Read More...]

ISIS beheads another American

The Islamic State/ISIS has beheaded another American and posted the video for the world to see. From Steven Sotloff beheading video released by ISIS | Mail Online: ISIS has released a video that shows the beheading of U.S. journalist Steven Sotloff and says the murder is retaliation for the Obama administration’s continued airstrikes in Iraq. [Read More...]