By David Brooks in the New York Times When you go to an academic conference you expect to see some geeks, gravitas and graying professors giving lectures. But the people who showed up at the Social and Affective Neuroscience Society’s conference in Lower Manhattan last weekend were so young, hip and attractive. The leading figures... Continue Reading

When I first heard it, I didn’t believe it. Alas, it’s true. A few weeks ago, New York City’s EmpireStateBuilding was aglow in red and yellow. Why? To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the victorious revolution of the People’s Republic of China—i.e., the establishment of Mao’s Red China. (Click here for photo.) I’m not kidding.... Continue Reading

As this is being written, Manuel Zelaya, the ousted and exiled ex-president of Honduras, is holed up in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital, having been smuggled there on Sept. 21. His followers acted like the anti-capitalist protesters who haunt G-20 meetings, smashing windows, spraying graffiti, attacking police cars, and suchlike. Here is... Continue Reading

Phil Johnson at Pyromaniacs makes the following observation: If any popular figure “in the evangelical movement” (or on its copious fringe) deserves the label “heretic,” it is Rob Bell. The guardians of evangelical politeness don’t like that kind of candor, but when a secular newspaper like The Boston Globe is publishing pieces implying that the... Continue Reading

Having a mother who was a university professor specializing in professional presentation, I learned early in life about the “communication loop.” The sender seeks to communicate a particular message to an intended receiver. The message is sent. The message may then be intercepted, misinterpreted, received by an unintended party or actually received (“let those who... Continue Reading

As someone who teaches and writes about international politics, I can confidently say that last week was one of the strangest in memory, from the G-20 circus in my backyard (Pittsburgh) to the political zoo at the United Nations. President Obama, of course, was front and center, including with a major speech at the United... Continue Reading

IMHO: A Weekly Commentary from our Publisher Much of my current ministry involves training, coaching, advising (dare I say ‘consulting with’?) Pulpit Committees. Although I did not set out to do as much of this as I do (it’s more than half my ministry now), it has certainly been rewarding. Among my list of things... Continue Reading

Count me among the cynics when it comes to G-7, G-8, and now G-20 meetings. They seem to involve little more than photo ops and platforms for politicians to bore us with platitudinous pronouncements—at great expense to the taxpayers in the host country and city, I might add. As usual, nothing earth-shaking happened at the... Continue Reading

Bountiful, British Columbia, is a town just across the Canada/U.S. border, close to the Washington/Idaho line – which makes it about a 3 hour drive from Spokane. Think fly fishing! Unlike Miss Daisy’s special ride, a trip to Bountiful today puts one in the midst of a settlement of one of the off-shoots of the... Continue Reading

“Nones” now largely mirror Mainstream America HARTFORD, Conn. – The 34 million American adults who don’t identify with any particular religious group reflect the general population in terms of marital status, educational attainment, racial and ethnic makeup, and income, according to a new study by Trinity College researchers, American Nones: The Profile of the No... Continue Reading