Monday miscellany, including: the scapegoat of the House; horrible grown-ups; waiting for the iSponge; MLK and his namesake; fundamentalist culture; a new home for Oklahoma's Nehushtan; and how imaginary Planned Parenthood is like the First Citiwide Change Bank. Read more
2 Timothy 3:16 tells us that scripture is that which is "useful" for "training in justice." Weirdly, though, the Christians who seem fondest of quoting this verse are the least likely to see "training in justice" as having anything to do with scripture. Read more
"But afterwards, David was stricken to the heart because he had numbered the people. David said to the Lord, 'I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, I pray you, take away the guilt of your servant; for I have done very foolishly.'" Read more
This week, for me, wound up being all about a hastily planned trip to Vermont, where my dad is recovering from a double-bypass heart surgery. All things considered, he's doing well. Read more
It seems like Chloe is taking a cab from the airport. You know, the airport that's shut down. The airport where one of our main characters is a pilot who is now idle at home because no planes are flying. The airport that our other main character fled in order to charter an expensive private flight to New York because no planes are flying. That airport. Chloe apparently flew there. On a plane. Read more
Hey look -- wifi. Get it while it's hot. Regular blogging hereabouts will resume this weekend, in the meantime, here's an open thread. Read more
Pope Francis broke one of the cardinal rules of American politics during his visit to the White House last week. The pope quoted from Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. That's fine, of course. It's almost mandatory to praise that speech -- provided you stick to the famous mountaintop kumbaya bits from near the end. But Francis quoted from the dangerous, forbidden parts at the beginning. And that just isn't allowed. Read more
Whether or not an album is a vanity project has less to do with its merits and more to do with marketing and motivation. If it seems like a cynical attempt to cash in on fame by repackaging a movie-star as a pop-star, that's a vanity project. Ego plays a part, too, of course, hence that word "vanity." Read more
He went up from there to Bethel; and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, "Go away, baldhead! Go away, baldhead!" When he turned round and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two she-bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys. Read more
Speaker of the House John Boehner is stepping down and resigning from Congress next month to take what surely has to be a better job. Any job would be a better job than trying to lead a governing party that hates the idea of governing. Plus: Theology in Chicago, style guides for the apocalypse, and NASA's live-stream above the clouds. Read more
Select your answer to see how you score.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In