An ancient error, that of pendulum swinging, finds that when the cognitive functions of man have been emphasized too much, the time has come to careen toward the passions. And when life under the tyranny of the passions becomes unbearable, which it always does, the error is to swing back to the life of pure …
Make Sure Its Liturgy, Not Liturgay
In a recent discussion with some men I made mention of the problem that I call “clogged filters.” Like a car going down the highway, the air available is the air the car is driving in, and so the air filter needs to be replaced from time to time. The environment we live in is …
Truth in Labeling
We should all know what it is to fall victim to a metaphor. This is like that, and it is in some ways, but then when you press it, you discover that it is not like that in lots of other ways.Consider the summary evaluation of left wing/right wing. This is saying that the hurly …
His Last Ham Sandwich
A correspondent has asked me to comment on the “sin of homophobia.” What is my take on that? In order to address this, we have to ask some questions first. If someone asked us about the sin of eating pork, our follow-up question would be to ask what religion they were concerned with. Judaism? Isalm? …
Nobody Names Their Kid Jeshurun Anymore
I have been a subscriber to National Review since I was a junior in high school or thereabouts, and so that means I have been reading those guys for around 40 years. I think this should give me the right to say something. Well, first, I should say thanks. I owe them all a great …
Like a Bear With a Sore Head
So then, Ron Paul was the surprise winner of the CPAC presidential straw poll, and herein lies a lesson . . . for somebody. He came in first by a long shot, Romney second, and Palin third. It may soon start to sink in on establishment republicants, who want to “harness” all that tea party …
Sarah Palin and Personal Loyalties
This will be a hard one to explain, but let me just put it out there anyway. Those who have followed the political threads on this blog will know that I like and respect Sarah Palin. This is not to say that I believe she is necessarily equipped to be president, but my reservation at …
The Earl of Greenback Trillions
Time will tell if the Tea Party movement — and other forms of less directed anger — will rise to an actual peasants-with-pitchforks moment. I can only say what Tolkien once said in another context entirely — one hopes. In order for the peasants to actually make it over the castle walls, in pursuit of …
A Floor Covered with Busted Wineskins
Somehow I made it all this distance without ever reading Abraham Kuyper’s original lecture on sphere sovereignty. That deficiency I have now corrected and, having just completed it, there is nothing I want to do so much as stand here on my office chair and sing a hymn. Here is one gem is that is …
10 Reasons Why Sarah Palin is Formidable
I haven’t posted on politics for a bit, and I thought I needed to jot down just a few things about Sarah Palin. She is a genuinely interesting figure, and so I thought I should mention ten reasons why I believe she is formidable. 1. She makes all the right people on the left go …