Boston Globe on “No Place for Hate”
Here’s the Boston Glob on the “No Place for Hate” to-do I mentioned a couple days ago: Debate of hate. Nice title!
James Kalb
John Leo on recruiting Jews
John Leo discusses Vanderbilt’s decision to boost their academic standing by recruiting Jews: A big mess on campus.
The mess he’s talking about is worse than he is aware. He starts off complaining how offensive it is to say Jews are “lively, interesting, and hardworking,” because it’s “close to conventional stereotypes”—not to mention “the … More ...
Aliens in Texas universities
Quandaries of multiethnicity in a post-9/11 world: in Texas they’re worried about maintaining privileges for illegal aliens at state universities when the feds are after them to crack down on foreign students here legally with visas.
Rioting in channel camp
And in France there was rioting in a camp for illegal immigrants near the channel tunnel after authorities tightened security. The French say they’ll close the place—eventually.
More expert follies
For more examples of bias and irrationality of among scientific experts and the like, see healthfactsandfears.com, a project of the American Council on Science and Health. A bigger problem, of course, is the treatment of things like sex as questions for scientific experts which fundamentally are nothing of the kind.
Tolerance Nazis in Canada
And in Canada, another traditionally Anglican country, the other side of the process becomes clear. The church may want to disentangle itself from the state, but the state won’t leave the church alone: Canada becoming anti-religious. Forcing a Catholic school to let a homosexual couple attend the prom was only the beginning. How … More ...
Anglican bishop wants church weddings abolished
The strength and weakness of the Anglican Church has always been its connection to English society and government. It’s hard to know how it can be maintained at present though: here’s a bishop asking that civil marriage be separated from the religious ceremony because the two just don’t mean the same.
Oddly, he he refers … More ...
Slight movement on immigration
September 11 does seem to have put immigration reform somewhat back in play—a report by the Center for Immigration Studies on weaknesses in the system and their effect on terrorist activities has been covered straight by wire services. The Center is even described as a “think-tank that favors reducing immigration” rather than an “anti-immigrant group.” … More ...
Teen sex and abstinence education
A summary from US News and World Report about debates over abstinence-only curricula. It’s slanted against them, of course, but does include a fair amount of material from more than one side. A basic problem is the scientific-social-policy approach that makes it possible for the Pennsylvania congressman to call the abstinence approach “a case … More ...
Dialogue on ‘gay marriage’
Another possible dialogue:
… More ...Alter: You’re invited to my daughter’s wedding—she’s marrying her partner Louise!
Ego: Don’t think I can make it.
Alter [suspicious]: Why not?
Ego: It’s not something I can celebrate.
Alter: Why not?
Ego: I don’t think the sexual union of two women is a good thing.