Actually I have two topics, one more important and the other just an illustration of how bureaucractic organizations can become pathological or dysfunctional. So let’s begin with Syria. My colleague Mark Smith enumerated well the various issues and positions on the question of whether we should use force against Assad’s ruling regime. It is indeed […]
Archives
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Random Thoughts
07 Sep 2013
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Syria: No Good Options
04 Sep 2013
Syria is a mess. I am not pretending to be expert on this, so let’s be clear about expectations. I am not speaking from authority, but just as an interested observer. The United States seems to have few options, and none are good. As of now, the debate surrounds our decision to use military force […]
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Impeachment Talk is Silly, Irresponsible
22 Aug 2013
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) stated publicly that President Obama is nearing the standard for impeachment, according to NBC News. Coburn made his comments at a town hall meeting, where he argued that Obama’s actions are “getting perilously close” to being impeachable offenses. Article 2, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution states: The President, Vice President […]
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The Gay Marriage Debate is Not Over
20 Aug 2013
Michael Emerson and Laura Essenberg (both at Rice University) recently publicized a white paper on American attitudes toward marriage. The paper is based on a two-wave panel study that examined respondents in both 2006 and in 2012. These sorts of panel data are a gold-standard approach to examining change over time. Most surveys are simple […]
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When Ideologues Rule
16 Aug 2013
It is all too easy in a blog-filled world for terms to used in ways that are meant to be used simply as an ad hominem attack–we too easily attack the person rather than the policy. And as Christians, we must always endeavor to speak the truth in love. Nevertheless, we cannot avoid the use […]
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When Race Collides with Political Satire
14 Aug 2013
You have probably seen and heard about the poor rodeo clown, now banned from the Missouri state fair. Our clown’s offense? Wearing a President Obama mask and asking the crowd if it wanted to see President Obama get run over by a bull. According to reports, the crowd cheered the question. I don’t have anything […]
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Voter ID Laws & The Limits of Democracy
13 Aug 2013
Well, that didn’t take long, did it? This evening, Gov. Pat McCrory (R-NC) signed one of the most extensive voter identification laws in the United States. North Carolinians must now show a government–issued photo i.d. to vote. The act also shortens the early voting period from 17 days to 10, and it eliminates voter registration on election […]
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Not All Jobs Are Created Equal
01 Aug 2013
I have written about the Keystone Pipeline on this blog before and I do not intend to go back through the reasons why I think it is something the President should support here. I was struck this week, however, by his recent comments that the pipeline would not produce meaningful jobs. He believes it would […]
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Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-VA) should resign. The Virginia governor, a self-proclaimed Christian and a graduate of Notre Dame and Regent University, is outspoken about his faith. Upon his inauguration, he called his post a ‘ministry‘, and McDonnell has encouraged the Republicans to be more ‘humble’ and Christ-like in their approach to public life. While seemingly willing to […]
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Politics vs. The Rule of Law
16 Jul 2013
Politics has many definitions. My personal favorite breaks the word down in its parts: poly–many tics–blood-sucking parasites Yes, it is an old joke, but I love it so much I just cannot part from it. Politics is ‘the art of the possible,’ according to Otto von Bismarck. David Easton calls it ‘the authoritative allocation of […]
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