A new report presents some staggering results about the place where I live. It turns out that the Washington DC area produces more carbon dioxide emissions than Hungary, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, and Switzerland combined — and all of these countries have more people than the DC area. As an example, while Sweden has almost twice as many people as DC (9 million versus 5 million), carbon emissions from DC are 25 percent higher. And emissions are 42 percent higher than in... Read more
There are two bits of interesting news from the UK which I would like to bring to everyone’s attention. The first is that after much speculation, it is being reported once again that Tony Blair will become Catholic, with The Tablet saying his reception into the Church is only weeks away. If this is true (which I think by now it seems likely to be), I hope he will now become a positive and vocal spokesman for the Catholic Church in the UK. Secondly, Bishop... Read more
An abortionist has just written her book “This Common Secret: My Journey as an Abortion Doctor.” In the book she speaks about why women choose abortions, including a pro-life woman who had protested outside of her clinic, who needed her services when she became pregnant. Reading the review brought to mind many, many stories. When I was a teenager I organized my state’s Teens for Life program. As the president of the organization, I traveled and spoke in public... Read more
Michael Denton of For the Greater Glory wrote a wonderful piece on just war doctrine and America that appeared today in LSU’s The Daily Reveille. It is a good example of how a Catholic applies the principle of the dignity of the human person across a number of issues. Here’s my favorite section, but do read the whole thing: (more…) Read more
In my blog Civilization of Love, I have included “awareness” as one of the many ways in which we can build this “civilization of love” that the Church talks about. What do I mean by “awareness”? (more…) Read more
What makes a movie which is clearly outdated like 2001: A Space Odyssey a classic film which cannot be forgotten? Living in 2007, we will reach 2010 long before many of the technological advances shown in 2001 are realized. Yet, if we ignore the erroneous dating of the film, there is something special about 2001 which makes it a must see even for those who do not enjoy the science fiction genre. Is it the special effects? Certainly they are spectacular even for today’s standards.... Read more
I’ve remarked many times that the organized pro-life movement in the United States is strangely silent on the shape of a post-Roe world. Even abstracting from the crucial economic and social conditions that affect abortion, it is clear that unrestricted abortion will remain legal across large areas of the country, especially in major population centers. So, should the pro-life movement be content to let states decide? Should it fight the fight, state by state, legislature by legislature, bill by bill?... Read more
The Fix, the Washington Post’s politics blog, is reporting that Pat Robertson will endorse Rudy Giuliani this morning. While Mr. Robertson’s influence is greatly exaggerated, I regret to say that this appears to be the start of the break up of social conservatism. Mr. Robertson himself is not so significant in this, but the fact that a leader in social conservatism has read the tea leaves among the base and decided not to persuade the base is quite indicative. Read more
This Commonweal editorial (“Torture’s Enablers”), link, raises a number of important questions. I hope that what follows will not be misunderstood as reflecting a failure, or a refusal, to take these questions very seriously. That said, I believe the editorial proceeds from at least one mistaken premise. The editorial states, “[i]n his testimony [Judge] Mukasey suggested that the president’s duty to defend the country overrides his duty to obey the law. That is a perverse, almost monarchical interpretation of the executive branch’s... Read more
I like the New Republic. It offers first class political analysis and cultural criticism, with a team of excellent writers. And yet, as a long time reader, I’ve always had qualms over a latent anti-Catholicism that seems to pervades this publication. The recent issue bought this home to me, with two articles. (more…) Read more
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