Why Does the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict Get So Much Attention?

Last updated on: March 25, 2008 at 2:54 pm By Edward Blackadder

Why does the Israeli/Palestinian conflict garner so much attention and generate so much passion, as compared to other similar sorts of conflicts (e.g. Chechnya or Kashmir). Today at Real Clear Politics, Dennis Prager offers some possible reasons (his choice of comparisons is the situation in Tibet). Of the seven reasons he gives, two seem especially plausible: China. If Tibet had been crushed by a white European nation, the Tibetans would have elicited far more sympathy. But, alas, their near-genocidal oppressor... Read more

Supreme Court Oks Texas Execution of Mexican National

Last updated on: March 25, 2008 at 12:59 pm By Radical Catholic Mom

via CNN Read story. Read more

Regulation is Evil

Last updated on: March 25, 2008 at 11:34 am By Morning's Minion

It is one of the great myths of the last quarter century that the so-called “Reagan revolution” heralded a dramatic increase in economic growth and living standards, and that this revolution was brought on by lowering taxes and scaling back regulation. But, as I said, this is a myth. It is a myth that appeals to those who believe in social contractarian laissez-faire liberalism, the notion that a good society is one that upholds individual self-interest and defines freedom along these... Read more

Supreme Court allows abortions for inmates

Last updated on: March 25, 2008 at 10:59 am By voxnovablog

From CNN Read more

How Orthodox Are You?! Let Some Non-Authority Decide!

Last updated on: March 25, 2008 at 9:21 am By Henry Karlson

One of the strangest, and possibly most dangerous, tendencies that many Catholics have on the internet, priest and lay alike, is that they view themselves as authoritative judges of the orthodoxy of others. They think it is their job to engage such practices. Sadly such judgments are not based upon authentic teachings of the Church and the recognition of the theological diversity allowed within Catholicism. Rather, they seem to be based upon subjective means, such as whether or not one follows a favored political... Read more

And Now For Something Not Completely Different…

Last updated on: March 25, 2008 at 3:30 am By Henry Karlson

For the fans of Hugh Laurie (or Stephen Fry). Sadly, this is too true to life. But — things can improve. Let’s find ways to work together to improve the world. Let us reason together, and move beyond the exceptionism, racism, nationalism, calls for violence, and the like so often associated with the blogosphere! Of course, reasoning together does not mean things will always be pleasant; criticism of injustices rarely ends up being pleasant. But we must find a way of dealing with them, and that means,... Read more

Ortega on Masses and Minority

Last updated on: March 24, 2008 at 1:54 pm By Policraticus

I put up the final installment of my brief survey of José Ortega y Gasset’s philosophy of life over at The Crowd is Untruth. If you are interested in modern societal/political structures or in the foundations of Sartre’s and Heidegger’s existentialism, you really ought to pick up a book or two by Ortega. He is not widely appreciated in the U.S., most likely because his works were written in Spanish and many were published in local newspapers in Spain and... Read more

My Reflections on Romero

Last updated on: March 24, 2008 at 12:07 pm By Radical Catholic Mom

I had never heard of Archbishop Oscar Romero until that day in March 1999. I was with the University of Dallas’ Alternative Spring Break program in Duran, Ecuador. We were hunkered down in the mission house because the whole country was exploding with protests. The poor were tired of being hungry. Tired of drinking sewage water from the river. Tired of being poor. It was my first time out of the USA and I hadn’t even realized where Ecuador... Read more

March 24 – Servant of God Oscar Romero of the Americas

Last updated on: March 24, 2008 at 11:06 am By Iafrate Michael

Today is the anniversary of the martyrdom of Servant of God Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador, his future feast day. Here is an excerpt from a homily he gave on August 14, 1977: You heard today in the first reading the accusations: “Death to that Jeremiah! He’s demoralizing the soldiers and all of the people with those speeches. That man doesn’t promote the people’s good, but their harm.” See how the accusations against the prophets of all times are... Read more

Libertarians, Business, and “Victimless Crimes”: A Contradiction?

Last updated on: March 24, 2008 at 9:47 am By Edward Blackadder

While a few libertarians base their views strictly on moral grounds, the vast majority are at least willing to supplement any moral arguments with practical arguments about the ineffective or counter-productive nature of government action. When it comes to government regulation of the economy, such practical arguments often involve appeals to the deterant effect taxes or regulations can have on productive activity. If you raise the cost of doing business, Libertarians will say, and you discourage economic growth, as these... Read more