If you see this thing plummeting down on you Friday afternoon, we’ll help you account for it: Here is the forecast as of Thursday evening: While North America appears to be off the hook, scientists are scrambling to pinpoint exactly where and when a dead NASA climate satellite will plummet back to Earth on Friday. The 6-ton, bus-sized satellite is expected to break into more than a hundred pieces as it plunges through the atmosphere, most of it… Read more
Why our foreign relations are in such bad shape
September 23, 2011 By Gene Veith
58 Comments
President Obama at a meeting of world leaders at the UN: Read more
Preaching assurance vs. preaching doubt
September 22, 2011 By Gene Veith
128 Comments
I have noticed that there are two kinds of preachers, especially when addressing young people: One kind tries to assure the listeners of their salvation in Christ, underscoring His grace and mercy and His atoning work on the Cross. The other kind tries to make the listeners question whether they are “really” Christians. (“Did you REALLY give your life to the Lord? Do you show the fruit of true faith? Does your life show evidence of true conversion? Maybe you… Read more
Should Obama run for re-election?
September 22, 2011 By Gene Veith
54 Comments
Steven Chapman, editorial writer for the Chicago Tribune, calls upon President Obama not to run for re-election, to make way instead for a candidate associated with toughness and prosperity, namely, iHillary Clinton: The vultures are starting to circle. Former White House spokesman Bill Burton said that unless Obama can rally the Democratic base, which is disillusioned with him, “it’s going to be impossible for the president to win.” Democratic consultant James Carville had one word of advice for Obama: “Panic.”… Read more
Europe’s problem and our problem
September 22, 2011 By Gene Veith
16 Comments
Economics columnist Robert J. Samuelson gives a good explanation of what’s going on in the European economy: Europe’s banking crisis — and “crisis” is used advisedly — tells us how much and how little has changed since the onset of global financial turmoil in September 2008. Then, people worried about the viability of major American banks, loaded with “toxic” mortgage-backed securities whose value was difficult to determine. Now, people worry about major European banks, loaded with government (a.k.a. “sovereign”) bonds… Read more
Drones that kill on their own
September 21, 2011 By Gene Veith
50 Comments
On the horizon of military technology: Drones that “decide” on their own whom to kill: One afternoon last fall at Fort Benning, Ga., two model-size planes took off, climbed to 800 and 1,000 feet, and began criss-crossing the military base in search of an orange, green and blue tarp. The automated, unpiloted planes worked on their own, with no human guidance, no hand on any control. After 20 minutes, one of the aircraft, carrying a computer that processed images from… Read more
The most popular politician in America. . .
September 21, 2011 By Gene Veith
26 Comments
. . .is Hillary Clinton: The most popular national political figure in America today is one who was rejected by her own party three years ago: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Nearly two-thirds of Americans hold a favorable view of her and one-third are suffering a form of buyer’s remorse, saying the U.S. would be better off now if she had become president in 2008 instead of Barack Obama. . . . While 34 percent say things would be better… Read more
More on the great Ponzi scheme
September 21, 2011 By Gene Veith
38 Comments
Charles Krauthammer explains in detail why Social Security is indeed a Ponzi scheme, as we discussed here in an earlier post: “In a Ponzi scheme, the people who invest early get their money out with dividends. But these dividends don’t come from any profitable or productive activity — they consist entirely of money paid in by later participants. This cannot go on forever because at some point there just aren’t enough new investors to support the earlier entrants.” This is… Read more
Evil eyes
September 20, 2011 By Gene Veith
28 Comments
As you will have noticed, I am interested in language, idioms, figures of speech, and imagery. Our pastor’s sermon, which is worth reading in its entirety, looked at a Biblical expression that is usually translated away. Rev. Douthwaite was preaching on Matthew 20:1-16, the parable about how the laborers were all getting paid the same, even though some worked longer than others, and told the Master that he was being unfair: Am I not allowed to do what I choose… Read more
Taxes & government manipulation
September 20, 2011 By Gene Veith
126 Comments
The Washington Post has a big story about tax breaks. As President Obama and congressional Republicans argue over how to rewrite the U.S. tax code, the debate has revolved around “loopholes” for corporate jets and ending “carve-outs” for well-heeled special interests. But if the goal is debt reduction, that’s not where the money is. Broad tax breaks granted to millions of families at all income levels dwarf the corporate giveaways. Over the past two years, largely because of these popular… Read more
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