I have continued to read the comments on Jeff Haymond’s blog about progressive taxation, and my own complementary blog, and have decided I should make another foray into this subject to address in more depth the ethical theory of policies such as taxes (but, indirectly, others as well). The question to begin is: Is progressive […]
Archives
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Taxation and Ethics: Further Reflection
16 Feb 2016
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I have been reading with great interest not only my colleague Jeff Haymond’s posts over the past couple of weeks on progressive income taxation (1/29), income inequality (2/3), and a potential proportional income tax (2/9), but also the spirited discussion over the content of the posts. I have been thinking about biblical integration in economics […]
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At the Democratic candidate debate last week, Bernie Sanders was asked how big government should be. His response was illuminating, as was Hillary Clinton’s response to Sanders’ answer. Here is part of what he said: WOODRUFF: “And, welcome back to this PBS Newshour debate, Democratic debate, here in Milwaukee. Let’s get right to the questions. Senator […]
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To Scrutinize or Not to Scrutinize
12 Feb 2016
OK, today I am going to get into a “wonky” mode and address an issue that always has bothered me when my mind is jogged. Today the issue is strict scrutiny. What, you may ask, is that? Strict Scrutiny (SS) is a principle applied by Federal courts that first distinguishes between the importance attached to […]
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It’s time for another book review. I am reading several books but just finished one by Larry Siedentop, entitled Inventing the Individual: The Origins of Western Liberalism (Penguin, 2014, 434 pages). The author has a fascinating and somewhat counterintuitive thesis that what we call “Liberalism” ( I will capitalize the word) was really “created” by […]
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A Biblical case for Proportional (flat) taxation
09 Feb 2016
In my previous post, I suggested progressive taxation was not Biblical, and challenged readers to convince me I was wrong. In the voluminous follow up comments, I didn’t see any Biblical arguments for progressive taxation. However several posters suggested that there was not Biblical support for any method of taxation (regressive, proportional or progressive). In […]
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Wheaton College and Theological Integrity
07 Jan 2016
An interesting situation is developing at Wheaton College in Illinois. A professor there, Larycia Alaine Hawkins, an associate professor of political science, has been placed on administrative leave and may face dismissal over comments she has made and actions she has taken in relation to Islam and Christianity. The full facts are not out yet, […]
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What Does the Lord Require, but to Do Justice….?
30 Dec 2015
Few things make me more angry than injustice to others. So I confess I was angry when I read an article today in the December 7, 2015 issue of National Review Online by Stuart Taylor and K. C. Johnson (neither one a conservative by the way), which discussed and criticized the recent abuses by the […]
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One of the more contentious topics that can be raised among Christian university faculty is that of the integration of faith with one’s particular discipline or area of knowledge. The reasons are not too difficult to discern. Mainly, most faculty at such institutions today (as opposed to a generation ago) have obtained their terminal degrees […]
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An Exemplar of Christian Worldview
07 Oct 2015
Our Bereans readers know how passionate I am about the issue of Christian worldview—taking every thought captive to Christ—in every aspect of thought and life. I haven’t lost any of that passion, but I am not the only one who cares about it. My colleague, Richard Tison, here at Cedarville University, also possesses an intense […]
Bert Wheeler
Jeff Haymond
Marc Clauson
Mark Caleb Smith
Tom Mach