Orthodox Editors

Education, Failure in D.C. Public Schools

Townhall | Walter E. Williams | Sep. 16, 2009

Instead of President Obama addressing school students across the nation, he might have accomplished more by focusing his attention on the educational rot in schools in the nation’s capital. The American Legislative Exchange Council recently came out with their 15th edition of “Report Card on American Education: A State-by-State Analysis.” Academic achievement in no state is much to write home about but in Washington, D.C., by any measure, it approaches criminal fraud. Let’s look at the numbers. [Read more…]

Marxism’s Last (and First) Stronghold


Acton Institute | Samuel Gregg | Sep. 9, 2009

Marxism, we’re often told, is dead. While Communism as a system of authoritarian power still exists in countries like China, Marxism’s contemporary hold over people’s minds, many claim, is nothing compared to its glory days between the Bolshevik seizure of power in Russia in October 1917 and the Berlin Wall’s fall twenty years ago.

In many respects, such observations are true. But in other senses, they are not. We need only look at Western Europe—the place where Marxist thought first emerged and took root. One trivial, albeit disturbing sign is many young West Europeans’ willingness to wear t-shirts emblazoned with the Communist hammer and sickle or Che Guevara images. If you want confirmation of this, just take a stroll through downtown Amsterdam, Stockholm, or Rome. [Read more…]

Lessons Unlearned

Investor’s Business Daily | Sep. 14, 2009

A year after Lehman Bros. went bankrupt, Washington plans sweeping new reforms of the financial markets. Based on what’s been revealed so far, our leaders have learned nothing from that crisis.

Today, once again, we’re hearing that unbridled greed and reckless pursuit of profit lie behind all our ills, that Wall Street is “choosing to ignore” the lessons from the meltdown and that new rules are needed to bring the miscreants to heel. But this is exactly backward. [Read more…]

Feel Good Policy

Big Hollywood | Joseph C. Phillips | Sep. 15, 2009

The message began to pop-up all over my Facebook page: “No one should die because they cannot afford health care or insurance and no one should go broke or bankrupt because they get sick.” Let us set aside the fact that no one in need of emergency life-saving medical care is denied because they do not have insurance and that there are state and federal programs already in existence that provide medical coverage for those of lesser means. I agree with the sentiment. I dare say I know of no one that doesn’t agree. There is simply no questioning the potential calamity that awaits those without some form of medical coverage.

There is also no questioning that in life there are a great many things for which “no one should.” For instance it is equally tragic when people lose their homes due to unemployment, go hungry because they can’t pay for a meal or shiver at night because they lack adequate clothing. [Read more…]

Remembering 9/11 and Thomas Gardner Firefighter FDNY


by Adam Leiter | Sep. 11, 2009

The best way for me to remember 9/11 is to remind everyone of my friend FDNY Firefighter Tommy Gardner, lost in the South Tower on 9/11/01.

He and I were in first grade class together at PS 107 in 1968, in Flushing, Queens, NY. We were in every grade and school together until we graduated high school in 1980. He joined FDNY in 1982. He was in several FDNY units, the last being Hazmat 1. [Read more…]

When Bishops Disappoint


AFR | Fr. Thomas Hopko | Sep. 9, 2009

In this podcast Fr. Thomas Hopko addresses the key issue of “What do we do when those in leadership are not exercising their leadership properly?” Fr. Tom discusses corruption in the Orthodox Church and explains that these types of situations are nothing new. He references scriptures and explains that proper Christian leadership consists of servanthood (not overlordship) and exhorts the faithful to help the priests and bishops to “tend the flock of God that is in (their) charge.”

When Bishops Disappoint – 9/9/09 http://audio.ancientfaith.com/hopko/stt_2009-09-04.mp3|titles=When

[Read more…]

American Socialism & Chinese Capitalism

American Thinker | Raymond Richman & Howard Richman | Sep. 7, 2009

Why is GM, a capitalist firm, so successful in Communist China and a failure in Capitalist USA? Apparently, the Chinese learned from the economic failures of socialism while the US Congress learned nothing and actively intervenes in the decision-making of American capitalist firms, imposing environmental restrictions few of which would pass the economic test that benefits should be equal to or greater than cost. It subsidizes energy-saving activities like insulating buildings, buying energy-saving autos and even light bulbs, none of which would survive the light of day as producers of net benefits. It orders banks to make bad loans, e.g., the Community Reinvestment Act. Through the EPA, it regulates factory emissions. It proposes a socialist solution to health care. It has declared its policy to replace fossil fuels with renewable alternative fuels. It pays a large portion of the costs of wind turbines and solar panels. The list goes on an on. [Read more…]

ObamaCare and Catholic Social Teaching

American Thinker | Mark Wauk | Sep. 6, 2009

The 9/2/09 issue of the Wall Street Journal, in its Notable and Quotable feature, calls attention to an important article that Roman Catholic Bishop R. Walker Nickless of Sioux City, Iowa, published in his diocesan newspaper on the subject of health care and health care reform. The article is important for two reasons: first, because there has been and continues to be a certain amount of confusion regarding Catholic social teaching as it affects health care; second, because Bishop Nickless goes to great lengths to base his discussion on principles, and not merely on tactical considerations. [Read more…]