Religion is not the problem here. Both religions involved, at their cores, teach love and unity. Extremism is not the problem. Extremists for love, extremists for fairness, extremists against prejudice, are fine. The problem is hate and division. Both Jones and some Islamic militants believe it's us vs. them; they see their opponents are evil and less than human. That is the issue... Read more

In America the winning presidential candidate is usually the one whose party has a more optimistic tone. While this may be a well-tested axiom, I think it's especially relevant today. The messages of exclusion and pessimism coming out of the Catholic Church, some mainline Protestant organizations and other conservative religious leaderships, like those from the Republican convention, are more than a turn-off to Millenials, in fact; they are a deal breaker. What is striking after watching both conventions is how the locations of hope and crankiness have flipped in recent years. The Democrats are now the party of optimism. I say this not as a partisan move, but as a frustrated observation. I believe this country would be far better served by two optimistic parties, with differing views but shared goals. Read more

Coming out of the morass of the 70s, with its failed socialistic projects and broken economy, Jack Kemp, mentor to Paul Ryan, touted programs that encouraged excellence. Kemp was a hero in my home growing up -- supply side economics made the plausible promise of lifting up all boats, rich and poor, by growing the economy, and Jack Kemp's heart was totally in the right place. By 1984 in New York, while most of the nation was celebrating the economic boom, grateful for a chance to be optimistic, I saw that it was not really working -- I saw the out-of-control homelessness and the rising anxiety of the lower working class and poor. This, for me, began a lengthy period outside the two-party system. But, there was a Democratic leader who warned the rising tide was not lifting all boats. He saw the growing income disparity and those left behind. I wasn't paying much attention because I'd already given up on the Democrats, but while his party presented the lackluster Walter Mondale as a hopeless counter to Reagan's second term bid, then-New York governor and presumptive future Presidential candidate Mario Cuomo's convention keynote address offered a more inspiring alternative. The other day, a friend reminded me of this speech, and pointed out how much of it applies once again. Read more

Paul Ryan has inserted the obscure term "subsidiarity" into the public conversation as justification for, among other things, cutting food stamps. Catholics can disagree about how the concept applies to individual circumstances, of course, and he's got good points, but I want to dip into the conversation that has been going on for over a century within the Catholic Church to show what is generally understood about it, and how, I believe, Paul Ryan is abusing it. Read more