October 17, 2011
“I would rather be governed by a competent Turk than an incompetent Christian.” — Martin Luther Last week, I discussed one aspect of the controversy over Rick Perry-supporter Pastor Robert Jeffress’s comments at the Values Voter Summit — namely, whether or not his characterization of Mitt Romney’s Mormonism as a “cult” was accurate and appropriate. […]
Tags: 2012 race for U.S. President, Article VI, candidate positions on issues, criteria for a nominee, GOP candidate, How should Christians vote?, How should evangelicals vote?, LDS Church, Mitt Romney, Mormon in the White House, Mormon President, Mormonism, Pastor Robert Jeffress, religious discrimination, religious litmus test, Republican presidential candidates, voting for a Mormon
Posted in Politics, Politics & Religion, Religion |
October 8, 2011
In case you somehow missed it, there is a new controversy hovering around the Rick Perry camp. At the recent Value Voters Summit in D.C., Pastor Robert Jeffress (First Baptist Church of Dallas) made some politically incorrect and tactically questionable statements about Mitt Romney’s religious affiliation. When introducing Perry on stage, Jeffress gave his endorsement […]
Tags: Christian cults, Christian orthodoxy, cult, definition of cult, Is Mormonism a cult?, Is Mormonism Christian?, LDS Church, Mitt Romney, Mormon for President, Mormonism, Pastor Robert Jeffress, religious bigotry, Rick Perry, Value Voters Summit 2011
Posted in Politics, Politics & Religion, Religion |
September 30, 2011
As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I’ve been enjoying a section of P.J. O’Rourke’s recent book Don’t Vote: It Just Encourages the Bastards in which he discusses his journey from default Republican to college Communist and back to responsible Republican/Libertarian. O’Rourke has a way of relating socio-political lessons, wrapped in the humor of real-world experience. […]
Tags: changing political parties, conservative pundit, left-wing causes, left-wing radicals, libertarian O'Rourke, P.J. O'Rourke, political humor, satirist O'Rourke
Posted in Politics, Uncategorized |
September 29, 2011
I’m due to write a politically-oriented post, and I’d like to squeeze it in before the end of the month. Believe it or not, nothing in the current headlines inspires me to write — certainly nothing I could bang out in an evening or two –, which has been a problem for weeks, now. While […]
Tags: changing political parties, conservative pundit, libertarian O'Rourke, P.J. O'Rourke, political humor, satirist O'Rourke
Posted in Politics, Uncategorized |
September 25, 2011
I read an interesting article the other day. The author, Cameron Wybrow, discusses the world of the mutant heroes known as the X-Men — from the comic books (which I read for many years) and, more recently, several movies — and their enemies. The X-Men are led by Charles Xavier, a well-to-do geneticist who founds […]
Tags: Charles Xavier, Darwin and Hitler, Darwinian ethics, Erik Lehnsherr, ethics lesson from movies, evolutionary ethics, First Class, Larry Arnhart, lessons in morality from comics, Magneto, might makes right, moral grounding, morality, mutants, Richard Dawkins, superhero ethics, supervillain ethics, survival of the fittest, thwarting evolution, X-Men
Posted in Religion, Science, Science & Religion |
September 4, 2011
How much do you pay for gasoline? Do you pay extra for the high-octane, “premium” grade? If you get the premium stuff because it’s supposed to run hotter & cleaner, which is better for your engine, chances are, you’re getting taken for a ride. People with an opinion on the subject can be quite passionate, […]
Tags: fuel additives, fuel efficiency, high performance, high-octane gas, low-octane gas, Premium fuel, premium gas, premium grade, regular gas
Posted in Science |
August 31, 2011
How much do you pay for drinking water? Do you buy “pure” mountain spring water? Natural mineral water? Imported from the underground aquifers of ________? If you drink Perrier, Evian, Aquafina, Dasani, etc., because it’s supposed to be healthier or better tasting than tap water, chances are, you’re getting “soaked”. Bottled water is BIIIIIG business, […]
Tags: American Fare, Aquafina, bottled water, Dasani, designer water, Evian, Iceland Spring, John Stossel, mineral water, myths about tap water vs bottled water, name-brand water, Poland Spring, spring water, tap water, water purity
Posted in Science |
August 29, 2011
Early last year, I wrote a brief post about a suit brought against the California Science Center for unlawful discrimination against a pro-Intelligent Design group and the subsequent cover-up of the details behind the censorship. (If you don’t want to read the articles I link to in the original post, you can get the important […]
Tags: 1st Amendment, academic freedom, AFA, American Freedom Alliance, California Science Center, censorship, CSC, Darwinian dogmatism, First Amendment rights, free speech discrimination, ID, Intelligent Design, William Becker
Posted in Politics, Politics / Science / Religion, Religion, Science |
August 24, 2011
“[T]he truth is that promoting science isn’t just about providing resources — it’s about protecting free and open inquiry. It’s about ensuring that facts and evidence are never twisted or obscured by politics or ideology.” — President Barack Obama, when announcing the appointment of John P. Holdren as ‘science czar’ No, the above quote was […]
Tags: assistant to the president for Science and Technology, compulsory abortion, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Ecoscience, John Holdren, Obama science policy, Pamela Geller, Paul and Anne Ehrlich, PCAST, Planetary Regime, President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, Pugwah Conference, science czar, The Post-American Presidency, UN police force
Posted in Politics, Politics / Science / Religion, Religion, Science |
August 20, 2011
“The truth is incontrovertible; malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.” — Sir Winston Churchill Since Governor Rick Perry officially threw his hat into the ring of Republican primary candidates for President the other day, the Perry/Texas bashing has begun in earnest from the political Left, Right, […]
Tags: CDA, Cintra, Comprehensive Development Agreement, critical thinking, Gardasil, Governor Rick Perry, HPV vaccine, NAFTA Superhighway, Paul Burka in Texas Monthly, Perry and Gardasil, Perry and Merck, Perry was a Democrat, Perry's mandatory vaccinations, Pesky Truth blog, realistic judgement, Rick Perry, Rick Perry conspiracies, RINO Rick Perry, Texas Republican, toll road controversy, Trans-Texas Corridor, TTC, TxDOT, Zachry Construction
Posted in Politics |