This is not a question of liberal vs. conservative politics, but of the same conviction that Orwell expressed, that we Christians are at our best when we adhere to a "quasi-instinctive siding with the oppressed against the oppressors … on the side of the underdog, always and everywhere." But for both Brown and Orwell this praise comes with a warning: "Whenever he departs from this … he goes astray." Read more
Guns. Guns, guns, guns, guns, guns. Guns accidentally fired with frightening results. Guns accidentally fired with tragic results. Guns waved to threaten wives and Walmart workers. Guns everywhere, just too damn many guns. Read more
What would happen if one of these tough-talking statutory rapist prosecutors decided it was time to "get tough" on underage drinking. It's no use threatening these teenage tipplers with juvenile detention, he would say, that's too "soft." We need to "get serious" and try them as adults. But of course trying them as adults, in that case, would mean they were no longer guilty of underage drinking. Read more
Suzannah Paul on being one of Those People earning an unrespectable less-than-liveable wage; a rabbi and a reverend speak up for clergy who support family planning; Christa Brown looks at a Southern Baptist megachurch and shows that covering up sex-abuse ain't just a Catholic thing; Marianne Møllmann marvels that opposing violence against women is now "controversial;" and Gordon Atkinson shares a personal testimony in spite of himself. Read more
Marriage equality does not affect Southern Baptists at all. It does not require them to start doing something they have not been doing or to stop doing anything they have been doing. It does not compel or prohibit them in any way. It does not require their obedience and thus it is not subject to their disobedience -- civil or otherwise. Read more
Civil disobedience can be a powerful tool for challenging unjust laws. It can be, and sometimes has been, the moral obligation of citizens committed to justice for all. But not every injustice lends itself to being addressed by civil disobedience. And even more importantly, civil disobedience cannot be made to work in defense of injustice. Read more
This video seems to be everywhere. It needs to be everywhere. "We need to worry about wealth inequality," Ezra Klein writes. But while worry is appropriate, it is inadequate. Let's consider this video the "whereas" clause of our resolution. And then let's get to work writing the "therefore, be it resolved" section. Read more
Azhar Abbas, in her leopard-print tops and oversized jewelry, drove a van full of schoolchildren every day while living under Saddam’s dictatorship and then kept driving through the chaos of invasion, of a bungled occupation and civil war. Azhar Abbas is awesome. Read more
It's an hour later than it feels like, so here are some weekend links to help you sing your didn't and dance your did, including: the Christians who will never be happy and their opposite; dark comedy on dark ops; immigration reform and the failure of for-profit prisons; a scarier hockey stick; Congress forbids funding groups that don't exist; Pixar and Bonhoeffer; bees buzz; and Eric Idle on John Cleese. Read more
Leviticus 25:23-24: "The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine; with me you are but aliens and tenants. Throughout the land that you hold, you shall provide for the redemption of the land." Read more
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