Focus on the Family, Ralph Reed, World Magazine, Jack Abramoff, and Me

Lord Acton nailed it when he said that power corrupts. James Madison knew that if men were angels they would not need to be governed the way they actually have to be governed. C.S. Lewis made a similar point when he said that he was a democrat, not because each man is a repository of …

Dat Old Debbel Nepotism

One of the features of conservatism in Christendom (to be distinguished from right wing sentiments) is a deep suspicion of the objectivity that modernity pretends to have. Postmodern thinkers have recently emphasized “the particular,” but they have done so as rootless reactionary modernists, as opposed to the earlier critiques of modernity mounted by rooted Christians …

Me and WalMart

Controversy is swirling around me again, and so I must break my silence. According to a thread on a local listserv, apparently my tentacles extend into the corporate offices of WalMart. It seems, according to this breathless analysis, that I am orchestrating a plot in which I am helping to bring a Super WalMart to …

Odd Bedfellows

After I posted DeeplyGrieved.com (a few posts down), my wife mentioned to me another important “indicator that something is screwy” that I had missed. Once someone has enlisted in what I call “the fellowship of the grievance” (FOG) all other differences with other members of that fellowship fade into the background. Adversaries become cobelligerents, and …

Yes, Citizen Ament?

In the interest of lending a helping hand in difficult times, I would like to offer a short list of suggested motions for Citizen Ament to make at the next Moscow City Council meeting. If anyone needs a little context, they can check out the recordings of portions of the last meeting at Dale Courtney’s …