As I have been watching the controversy about Chick-fil-a over the past week, I have been struck by the persistence of two lies about Chick-fil-a that have been perpetuated through a variety of media outlets. Most of the time, the lies are reported as quotations from another source, but they are rarely challenged or fact-checked by the one reporting the story.
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Christian Bale’s Trip to Aurora, Colorado
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Chicago Mayor Supports Effort To Keep Chick-fil-a Out
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel has said that he supports efforts to prevent Chick-fil-a from opening a store in Chicago’s 1st district. In the mayor’s own words: Chick-fil-A values are not Chicago values. They disrespect our fellow neighbors and residents. This would be a bad investment, since it would be empty. As I mentioned in my previous post about the mayor of Boston, this is chilling coming from a mayor of one of our nation’s leading cities. Does this mean that a business owner is not allowed to support a Christian sexual ethic? Must all Christian business owners now keep their views to themselves on one of the most contested social…
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SMU, Penn State, and the Death Penalty
When the sanctions against Penn State came down on Monday, readers asked me whether or not I thought they were enough. In particular, folks wanted to know if I thought Penn State should have gotten the so-called “death penalty.” I’m a little ambivalent about that question, as I wrote about here. One thing I can say for sure. I think that the sanctions that Penn State received may turn out to be worse than the death penalty. The death penalty has only been issued one time in the history of college football, and it was the SMU Mustangs that had to endure it. It’s been 25 years since the NCAA…
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A Smiling Providence in Aurora, Colorado
The images and the stories that have been coming out of Aurora, Colorado since last week have been difficult to bear. I can only imagine what it must be like for those who are living it and not merely watching it on television like I have been. Like everyone else, my heart has been heavy for the victims and their families. Of those who died, the one that really gripped me was the six-year old girl who was killed. She died on the scene in the arms of a police officer. Her mother was shot in the throat, paralyzed, and in a coma for days before awaking to the news…
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Not the death penalty, but might as well be at Penn State
The NCAA’s sanctions against Penn State have just been announced, and they are devastating. Penn State has been fined $60 million dollars, the equivalent of one year’s profits from the football program. They’ve been banned from the postseason for four years, which in practical terms means they won’t compete in the postseason for at least eight years. Penn State’s wins from 1998-2011 have been vacated—meaning that Joe Paterno is no longer the winningest coach in college football history. That distinction now goes back to Bobby Bowden.
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ESPN Video of the Removal of Paterno’s Statue
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Chick-fil-a and the Irony of the Tolerance Police
The irony of the tolerance police never ceases to amaze me. Perhaps you’ve heard about their latest sting operation aimed at Chick-fil-a. It all began earlier this week when Dan Cathy, the President of Chick-fil-a, told a reporter that the company was pro-family. He did not mention gay marriage. Nor did he say anything specifically about homosexuality. Cathy simply said this:
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Praise God for Jared Wilson’s Humility
If you haven’t taken time to read Jared Wilson’s latest blog post, go read it now. He has removed his “50 Shades of Gray” commentary that caused such a stink this week. He also explains why and offers an apology. There is much wisdom and humility in what he has written, and we all have something to learn from it. I know I do, at least. Jared stood accused of some pretty horrendous things these last few days (as did Doug Wilson)—things that were demonstrably false. I can only imagine how difficult it must have been to watch the false accusations accumulate across the internet. How much more difficult finally…
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Les Miles on Losing the National Championsip
It’s getting close to that time of year again, which means I’ll be blogging about college football on Saturdays. LSU head coach Les Miles recently sat for an interview with ESPN in which he talks about the best option for deciding the national champion, dealing with losing the BCS Championship to Alabama, and expectations facing new quarterback Zach Mettenberger. Among the biggest changes we’ll see this year: LSU will be throwing the ball more and opening up the field. I hate to beat a dead horse (not really, actually, I do enjoy beating it), but I wish he would have tried that in the National Championship game last January!