In the Washington Post last week, Linda Hirschman alleges that John McCain’s pro-life position could lead to a kind of “police state” if he were elected president. She writes: “In the 1980s, when abortion was severely limited in then-West Germany, border guards sometimes required German women returning from foreign trips to undergo vaginal examinations to make sure that they hadn’t illegally terminated a pregnancy while they were abroad. According to news stories and other accounts, the guards would stop young women and ask them about drugs, then look for evidence of abortion, such as sanitary pads or nightgowns, in their cars, and eventually force them to undergo a medical examination…
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NY Times on the Economic Crisis
This is unbelievable. From the New York Times on September 30, 1999: In a move that could help increase home ownership rates among minorities and low-income consumers, the Fannie Mae Corporation is easing the credit requirements on loans that it will purchase from banks and other lenders. The action, which will begin as a pilot program involving 24 banks in 15 markets — including the New York metropolitan region — will encourage those banks to extend home mortgages to individuals whose credit is generally not good enough to qualify for conventional loans. Fannie Mae officials say they hope to make it a nationwide program by next spring. The borrowers of…
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She Did No Harm
I don’t know anyone who had high expectations of Sarah Palin going into tonight’s vice-presidential debate. Her speech at the Republican convention was a real barn-burner, but it’s been downhill since then. Her interview with Charlie Gibson was terrible. Her interview with Katie Couric was even worse. But tonight, Governor Palin exceeded expectations. She held her own (in complete, intelligible sentences), and she did no harm to the McCain campaign. In fact, if I had to pick a winner, I would say that Palin came out on top. In the final analysis, however, I think this debate will be seen as fairly inconsequential. Senator Obama is leading this race, and…
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ABC News Lands at Southern Seminary
Last week, “ABC World News Tonight” showed up on the campus of Southern Seminary to talk to students about gender roles vis a vis the candidacy of Governor Sarah Palin. They interviewed three of our students: Phillip Bethancourt, Courtney Tarter, and Toby Jennings. I could not be prouder of how they represented the school and the truth of the Bible in their brief appearance. Our president, Dr. Albert Mohler, is interviewed as well. One particular part of the report is worthy of note. The interviewer was fascinated by the idea that our students could support a woman as president but not as pastor. He was especially interested in Ms. Tarter’s…
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The First Presidential Debate
The Washington Post has posted video of the entire debate. The verdict is out on who won this round. At this point, the candidates are not competing for the votes of their respective bases. They are competing for the votes of the undecided—that amorphous group that at this late date continues to be either uninformed or without core convictions. In many ways, the substance of the issues is not always decisive for these people, but the style and finesse of presentation often is. Stay tuned.
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The President Addresses Financial Crisis
Last night, President Bush addressed the nation concerning the financial crisis that is gripping the country. In case you missed it, you can watch the entire address above. In addition, here are two recent articles written by reliable Christians that attempt to explain what is happening from a Christian perspective. “A Christian View of the Economic Crisis” – by Albert Mohler (AlbertMohler.com) “Thinking Biblically about the Banking Crisis” – by David Kotter (Between Two Worlds)
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Presidential Debates
The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) has announced the dates and times of the upcoming debates (see schedule below). The first one is on Friday of this week. The CPD’s website has this to say about the “breakthrough” format for discussion: “Both campaigns, without public controversy, with quiet cooperation and with minor revisions, have agreed to CPD’s proposal that each debate will be divided into issue segments allowing time for each candidate to comment on that issue followed by a free-flow conversation/ discussion between the candidates including the possibility of direct exchange between the candidates. “These formats are an historic breakthrough in the history of televised debates. Televised debates have…
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Anti-Americanism and Human Evil
Joe Loconte of The Weekly Standard reports on a poll showing the anti-Americanism of America’s European allies. Loconte gives an explanation for this antipathy that is in part theological: ‘The poll, conducted between July 15 and August 31 and involving over 16,000 respondents, suggests that America’s European and NATO “allies” are in fact infested with legions of anti-American conspiracy theorists.
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Responding to David Gushee
I mentioned on Monday that David Gushee penned an opinion piece for USA Today in which he criticizes conservative evangelicals who support Sarah Palin’s candidacy. He writes: “It is an uncomfortable fact that many of the theologically conservative Christians who have endorsed Palin’s nomination would not be willing to endorse her or any other woman for service as pastor of their church. Women cannot serve as pastors in groups such as the Churches of Christ, the Southern Baptist Convention, the Presbyterian Church in America, most non-denominational Bible churches, and an influential advocacy group called the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW).” I belong to two of the groups that…
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David Gushee Highlights ‘Inconsistency’
This is a no-frills post. I am writing this from my phone because Hurricane Ike has left me without electricity. So I apologize in advance for the raw links and the pictureless post. David Gushe writes about the so-called “Palin Inconsistency” in today’s USA TODAY: http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2008/09/the-palin-predi.html We have already discussed on this blog the issues that Gushee raises. Nevertheless, I will try to respond more fully when I have electricity. For now, I will just say that it would really help if Egalitarians like Gushee would take Complementarians on their own terms. For years, Complementarians have been addressing the very questions that he raises. There is a biblical and theological…