Just a small town girl

Living in a lonely world

She watched the midnight blogs going anywhere

Just a city boy

Born and raised in South Detroit

He watched the midnight blogs going anywhere…

Yes, I am a shank. But today I really do have a lot of stuff to post. (Really!) But first, a blogwatch, because the Web has showered blogly goodness upon us this morning.

Mark Byron and Louder Fenn: Should Byron become Catholic? Should Fenn go Protestant? Good discussion, though I wonder if both aren’t focusing too much on what you need to do to get into Heaven. That seems like a minimum-required kind of yardstick. I would prefer to frame this question in terms of what God wants for us. Even if Catholics can go to Heaven, I don’t want to be Catholic if the Church isn’t true to Christ. I know they know that, so this is basically a quibble, but focusing on how to get to Heaven can turn Christianity into just another stick-and-carrot game; and it can lead to complacency, since as long as I’m not hellbound what do I need to worry about? I don’t think Byron or Fenn actually fall into this problem–I’m just pointing out that it’s a common pitfall.

Ben Domenech: Terrific Good Friday post.

Michael Dubruiel: Why is my Catholic retreat being held at Caesars Palace??? (More on this from wife Amy Welborn, who also sounds off about arrogant priests making stuff up, and posts an excellent scandal-related note: It’s not (just) about dissent.)

Matthew Edgar: Why he is not a Christian. Check out the comments section too.

Happy Fun Pundit: Moving post that weaves together the Queen Mother’s death (with many excellent quotes from the lady), the rest of the hideous daily news, and Good Friday.

Ken Layne: A moving post on the Israeli “weakness”: a love of l’chaim.

Brink Lindsey: Melville’s eerie prescience; Bangladesh’s equivalent of the Taliban; North Korea Dear Psycho Leader Watch; and why Russia is our friend.

James Lileks: Advice to J-school students. Step one: Quit. Plus much more on old media and blogging. (Note: That link will not work after April 2.)

Dave Tepper: Legal theories don’t justify searching through celebrities’ trash. I’m with him on this. The “hypocrisy defense” (the press has the right to expose hypocrisy by a public figure) is especially annoying, because there are several different kinds of hypocrisy. There’s the guy who really believes that (say) adultery is wrong, but, because he is a fallen man, screws around once or twice. There’s the serial adulterer (to keep with this example) who knows what he’s doing is wrong but “can’t seem to stop,” makes excuses for himself, and so on–this is a problem between him and his wife, not him and his “public.” There’s the guy who just says adultery is wrong because there’s no political percentage in revealing that he actually thinks weekends with the Swedish Bikini Team are perks of public office (or celebrity). If these last two guys keep their personal lives out of their public ones (i.e. not Bill Clinton), why is it our business? –Especially since it’s so hard to tell the sincere-but-insufficiently-moral guy from the lying Machiavellian womanizer. Counterarguments: You can’t trust a guy with the Bomb if he can’t keep his hands off the maid. This doesn’t apply to most “public figures.” And, of course, what if the adultery is only revealed after the guy has proved his trustworthiness and service to the public? And: Perhaps public scrutiny keeps more celebs on the straight-and-narrow. Maybe this worked in the era when a Colorado Senator denounced Ingrid Bergman’s affair with Roberto Rossellini; it won’t work now. And the public desire for scandal is itself sinful (judge not, etc.; schadenfreude is un-kosher). [EDITED to remove references to Winston Churchill. I thought the Lion had taken a few illicit lionesses, but it appears that I was wrong. Moral: Don’t say stuff you’re not sure of! My mistake caught by Paul Donnelly–thanks.]

Unqualified Offerings: A Postrel dissents on Israel; very good points, and Henley promises to respond.

Matt Welch: Two patriotic immigrants–one Guatemalan, one German.