Let’s say you want to research preschoolers, but your study requires children who are NOT able to recognize Sesame Street characters. So you, “interview,” one child. And another. And another. Nielson Media Research has shown that it will take a long time to finish your study, because as of 2004 they found that 99% of American preschoolers recognized the Sesame Street characters. Read more
Ridley Scott's newest film, American Gangster stars a cold-blooded killer who is also a hip, likable, Robin Hood, family man type played by everyone's favorite actor, Denzel Washington. He kills and beats numerous people in the movie, and most of the time it turns out pretty well for him. Read more
“Black Friday” & The Christian Pilgrim Read more
I like to talk. In general, I feel that I usually know what the right thing is to say to a person when they need advice or admonishment. But there's one situation where I don't know if I'll ever have the right words: when a person has lost a loved one. What is there to say that could ever come close to what they are going through? The sorrow, the questions, the guilt, the shock, what words exist that could be shaped to be commensurate to their experience? As difficult as these situations are, imagine if it was your job to summarize the entire life of a person within one or two sentences, not to offer eulogies or condolences, but to give readers or viewers a succinct statement that expressed what the person did with their life. Whenever I read of a murder, a suicide, or an accident, I try to note how the reporter sums up the life of a once living human in 12 words or less. Read more
He’s so nervous he could vomit. And of course who wouldn’t be when the world’s worst terrorists were shooting machine guns (and crossbows?) at them? But poor Chuck Bartowski is not cut out for this job. He’s not a “secret agent man,” he’s a computer repair man at the local Buy More (the fictional equivalent of our Best Buy Geek Squad). Ever since secret government information was imprinted onto his brain, however, he’s found himself tangled up in one caper after another. But the major theme of Chuck is not the average man world terrorism (though this in itself is a fitting topic for discussion and the show has something to say about it too). Rather, the recurring theme of this delightful new comedy is “truth.” Read more
I’m doubting that David and I will be doing a podcast on The Golden Compass, since neither of us have read the books, and it’s getting to be about that time. If someone writes about it, awesome, but I’m not counting on it. It’s still a huge deal that you should probably know about, so for now check out Jeffery Overstreet’s article: “The Golden Compass” – Questions I’ve been asked, answers I’ve given. Read more
Oprah vs. TBN: What’s the Difference? Read more
Daniel Boorstin is my favorite historian. He has written widely and well on some of the key players, events, and influences on both world and American history. Perhaps my favorite piece of his work, though, is an article he wrote discussing the role of the historian called, "The Historian: 'A Wrestler with the Angel.'" He points out that the greatest challenge for the historian is to discover the things that TRULY move history. Read more
A Craig Detweiler article from an old issue of Relevant Magazine Read more
Here’s John Frame’s views on Christ & Culture Read more
Christ and Pop Culture
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