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Payroll tax cut conundrum

December 8, 2011 By Gene Veith

An issue is before Congress that has both Republicans and Democrats tied up in ideological knots. Republicans oppose deficit spending. They also are in favor of tax cuts. Democrats are usually fine with government spending, which they are willing to finance with higher taxes. So what do they do about extending the payroll tax cuts? Part of President Obama’s stimulus package was to cut the amount people have to pay into social security, thus adding some dollars to their paychecks…. Read more

Morning after pill update

December 8, 2011 By Gene Veith

68 Comments

The Food & Drug administration had decided to make the abortifacient “morning after” pill available over the counter without a prescription. But now the Health & Human Services Department has over-ruled that decision, keeping the drug by-prescription only: The federal government Wednesday rejected a request to let young teenage girls buy the controversial morning-after pill Plan B directly off drugstore and supermarket shelves without a prescription. In a rare public split among federal health officials, the Health and Human Services… Read more

Remember Pearl Harbor

December 7, 2011 By Gene Veith

24 Comments

Today is the 70th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, which took the lives of 2,300 Americans, destroyed 12 ships and 160 aircraft, and brought the nation into World War II. See Pearl Harbor attacked: A witness remembers, 70 years later – The Washington Post. Reflections, thoughts, and lessons learned? Read more

Liberal vs. Conservative television tastes

December 7, 2011 By Gene Veith

111 Comments

How do political beliefs relate to taste in TV shows? A study has found some patterns: In the findings, “sarcastic” media-savvy comedies and morally murky antiheroes tend to draw Dems. While serious work-centered shows (both reality shows and stylized scripted procedurals), along with reality competitions, tend to draw conservatives. Focusing on well-known cable and broadcast original entertainment series (rather than, say, sports, music, news, repeats), here’s who wins the 2011 prime-time primaries: LIBERAL-DEMOCRAT FAVORITES: – The Daily Show With Jon… Read more

Occupy foreclosed houses

December 7, 2011 By Gene Veith

34 Comments

The Occupy Wall Street folks, who in many cases are being evicted from their downtown campsites, have started a new strategy: Occupying foreclosed houses. This includes blocking efforts to evict people, disrupting auctions, fixing up abandoned homes and giving them to homeless people, and just moving into abandoned properties. See Occupy protesters take over homes, block evictions – Dec. 6, 2011. Read more

Did St. Nicholas slap Arius?

December 7, 2011 By Gene Veith

6 Comments

Happy belated St. Nicholas Day yesterday. A piece I wrote for WORLD a few years ago has been going around again, in which I take up the account of jolly old St. Nicholas slapping Arius at the Council of Nicaea for denying Christ’s divinity. Many historians dispute that this ever happened, and they may be right. Still, legends have a meaning of their own, even if they leave history behind. (Then again, it might have happened. The alleged incident is… Read more

Anti-Tebow bigotry?

December 6, 2011 By Gene Veith

470 Comments

A lot of people just HATE Denver quarterback Tim Tebow. And it’s because of his open Christianity. Even other Christians sometimes squirm over his overt piety, putting John 3:16 on the patches under his eyes and kneeling down to pray after each of his numerous touchdowns. And further confounding his critics is that, despite what would seem to be poor football technique and bad passing, he keeps leading his team to one miraculous come-from-behind last minute victory after another! Many… Read more

Good-bye to next-day delivery

December 6, 2011 By Gene Veith

48 Comments

If you put first class postage on a letter, it used to be delivered the next day. Lately, you can’t count on that, but sometimes it happens. But now the U. S. Post Office has announced that it won’t even try, that to save money first class mail will now be delivered in two days at the soonest: Unprecedented cuts by the cash-strapped U.S. Postal Service will slow first-class delivery next spring and, for the first time in 40 years,… Read more

Requiring acceptance of homosexuality

December 5, 2011 By Gene Veith

158 Comments

Here is a religious liberty case to watch: The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has heard arguments in a religious liberty case that could determine whether a college has the right to require students to profess certain beliefs about homosexuality in order to get a degree. Augusta State University, in east Georgia, put counseling student Jennifer Keeton on academic probation in 2010 after she acknowledged in private conversations and during class that she disagreed with homosexuality. School administrators claimed… Read more

Cain drops out

December 5, 2011 By Gene Veith

70 Comments

Herman Cain has dropped out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination: In a long awaited announcement Herman Cain stood with his wife Gloria before a crowd of supporters at his campaign office in north DeKalb County, Georgia to say that he will suspend his campaign due to the continued hurt suffered by his family from “false allegations.” “So as of today, with a lot of prayer and soul searching, I am suspending my presidential campaign,” he said. Following… Read more