Because then I have to pick my son up from German School. Here’s the reality: Let’s take it as a given that there exists such a thing as Moderate Islam. Not Pragmatic Islam, in which all the icky stuff (calls for conquest of nonbelievers, polygamy, death for apostates, etc.) is ignored because it’s just not practical to advocate for it, but whose adherents may indeed believe that these commands are still valid for some time in the future, whether or... Read more
So this weekend’s project is to write about a book I’ve been reading and to think about, generally, what it means, or should mean, “to retire.” And before I do so, I thought I’d ask of my retired readers (or those planning retirement): When did you (will you) retire? How did you decide upon that age, and not earlier or later? That’s all — happy Saturday, everyone! Read more
This comes from Thrillist, via HuffPo, via facebook, a list of the most iconic restaurants in each state. Just for fun — do you agree with your state’s selection? Read more
This, of course, is the headline for those of us looking for a diversion from the events in France: “Obama to propose two free years of community college for students.” The details: Obama proposes that the federal government cover 75% of the tuition costs, based on national averages, for the “first two years” of a student’s attendance at a community college, so long as the state agrees to pay the remainder of the cost (which presumably will vary based on... Read more
I’m writing this completely unsourced today, more to invite conversation than anything else. Ideally, later on, I’d look at some actual sources, so this may be a “part one” post, to be followed-up on later. “Moderate” Christianity means, to greater or lesser degrees, contextualizing the Bible. For instance, Paul’s injunction commanding women not to speak in church is understood as something Paul was saying to a particular congregation where there was dissention. And churches which have signed of on gay... Read more
Look, I’m just spitballing here, as they say, and have utterly failed to keep up with my Egyptian current events, but I was taken by surprise by reports that al-Sisi is positioning himself as The Elusive Moderate Muslim. At the same time, Germans are protesting non-assimilating Muslims, and complaining that refugees are living high on the hog while they’re left high-and-dry. So here’s my win-win proposal: Germany outsources its refugees (or the refugees that it would have taken, in the... Read more
Me, not so much. Now, thankfully, we don’t live in an area where they close schools at the first snowflake, as was the case for my brother’s family in Oklahoma, where they simply have no plowing or salting equipment. But, as I imagine is the case for the majority of kids in the Chicago area, the forecasted windchills of as low as -30 have cancelled schools, both for my older son, at a public high school, and my younger boys,... Read more
In which he reportedly said, The corpus of texts and ideas that we have made sacred over the years, to the point that departing from them has become almost impossible, is antagonizing the entire world. You cannot feel it if you remain trapped within this mindset. You must step outside yourselves and reflect on it from a more enlightened perspective and, according to the article, he “called on the religious establishment to lead the fight for moderation in the Muslim... Read more
In today’s news: During two public forums next week, the Chicago Park District will propose the transfer of several acres of South Side parkland to City Hall control to make way for the Obama presidential library, should the president and first lady choose the University of Chicago as the host of the complex, according to a source close to the city. Because nothing says honest government like taking land away from one of two historic parks — either Washington Park... Read more
(At work early finishing up a “due first thing in the morning” project = quick blogging break now.) So over the weekend I wrote about the stages of life (in a middle-class, developed-world context) and said we should start using the term “late adulthood” to refer to adults in their 60s and 70s, rather than words that presume life events like retirement, or euphemisms like “mature adults” or “senior citizens.” Partly I’ve been reading a book called “Unretirement,” the very... Read more
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