Month: April 2009

Another Plug for Chambers

I have been saying for over twenty years that there is one movie that has not been made that needs to be. The life of Whittaker Chambers, as poignantly described in his autobiography Witness is a classic. It can make the transition from the printed page to film. Now I have found at least one person who agrees with me. Matt Lewis, a blogger at Townhall.com, is making the same argument as he talks about conservative movies that should see… Read more »

Where's the Arrogance?

In one of his European speeches last week, President Obama commented that the United States had sometimes been arrogant in its relations to other nations, and that we had not appreciated the Europeans. To be fair, he also noted that Europeans had spouted anti-Americanism as well, but the emphasis seemed to be on America’s arrogance. Every nation displays arrogance at times, but has that been the hallmark of American interactions with others? Think back to WWII for a moment: we… Read more »

Pull Out of Politics?

A recent article by commentator Kathleen Parker is entitled “Christians at the Gate.” The thesis is that the Christian Right has failed in its endeavor to influence politics. The culture war has been lost. She then quotes some Christian leaders who say that we instead need to model the character of Christ rather than press for political change. Please do read it and feel free to comment. The main problem I see with the article is that it seems to… Read more »

A Misplaced Faith

I continue to think about the similarities between the Great Depression and the economic situtation today. First, too much can be made of the comparison. Some people would have us believe that it has never been as bad as it is now. They have forgotten Jimmy Carter. We don’t have the “stagflation” that occurred during his years. Neither do we have the 20%-plus unemployment of the Depression. There are valid comparisons, though. One is the government’s role in each, particularly the… Read more »

The Tipping Point

I finished reading the book I recommended a few days ago—The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes. It was as good as I thought it would be. Even though I thought I knew a lot about the Great Depression, it opened my eyes to the extent of the reach of the government at that time. For a while, it seemed as if all private business was at a standstill due to the desire to have the government control everything. For instance,… Read more »

Principle: A Biblical Form of Government (Part III)

Representation, separation of powers, and a federal system: these are the components of a Biblical form of government. They also comprise the elements of what America set up in the Constitution. What we have been handed by the Founders is consistent with the Biblical pattern for how government should operate. But that’s merely the external structure. What makes this structure work properly is the internal: believing in the value of the individual made in God’s image; taking the responsibility of self-government; understanding… Read more »