Knocking Human Beings Off the Pedestal of Exceptionalism

Church Report | by Wesley J. Smith | Oct. 30, 2009

Society’s belief in the unique moral value and importance of human life is under unprecedented assault. Most people still believe in human exceptionalism and are unaware that powerful social and cultural forces are working diligently to dismantle the sanctity of life ethic as the fundamental value of our social order. But the time has come to pay attention. If human life is knocked off the pedestal, universal human rights will be impossible to sustain. [Read more…]

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Capitalism: A Love Story

American Spectator | by James Bowman | Oct. 6, 2009

There is one scene in Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story where its writer, director, hero and sole credited actor is examining the copy of the Constitution that is on display in the National Archives. He asks a guard — this is the kind of thing Mr. Moore routinely does for effect, pretending he doesn’t know that the guards are not constitutional experts — where in the document before him there is any mention of free markets, free enterprise or capitalism. He can’t seem to find those words. Could it be that they’re not there? And, if they’re not, does that mean that they’re not constitutionally protected? Not, of course, that one could imagine its mattering to him if they were. But without a specific mention, presumably, we must suppose that these “evil” things — he has the testimony of two lefty priests and a bishop to that effect — must have been snuck into America’s constitutional arrangements at a later date by, well, capitalists — or other, equally unscrupulous sorts. [Read more…]

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But What About the Poor?

American Thinker | by Allen Weingarten | Nov. 2, 2009

The left avers that many Americans are poverty-stricken, that we need to do more to alleviate their plight, and that the primary role of government is to help them. Let us examine these claims.

‘Poverty’ may be viewed as harsh deprivation, such as in Biafra or the Congo. Yet nobody in America starves to death. It is true that the standard of living of illegals from Mexico is far below ours, yet even they are far better off than the inhabitants of third-world countries. Nor do the poor in America suffer as did those during the Great Depression. [Read more…]

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A Society that Venerates Lawyers More than Doctors

DennisPrager.com | by Dennis Prager | Nov. 3, 2009

Those of us who are not true believers in expanded government are certain of the following:

If the 1,990-page House Health Care Bill becomes law, the average American will receive worse health care, American physicians will decline in status and income, American medical innovation will dramatically slow down and pharmaceutical discoveries will decline in number and quality. And, of course, the economy of the United States will deteriorate, perhaps permanently. [Read more…]

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Bye-Bye, RINO

American Thinker | by Pamela Geller | Nov. 2, 2009

New York’s 23rd Congressional District has become the site of a showdown between RINOs (Republicans In Name Only) and conservatives. The conservatives are winning — but the RINOs are not being gracious in defeat. Now the RINOs are showing how much party unity means to them. They have no loyalty to conservatives, so why should conservatives have any loyalty to them?

The latest showdown came when ultra-liberal State Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava became the Republican candidate in NY-23. ACORN’s racketeering arm, also known as the Working Families Party, backed her. Yet the Republican old guard also backed this useful idiot. Newt Gingrich backed this tool. The name “Republican” was all that mattered to them. Not principle. [Read more…]

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Idol Worship, Counterfeit Gods

BreakPoint | by Marcia Segelstein | Oct. 27, 2009

What we worship defines us and controls us. And sometimes figuring out what we really worship isn’t easy. Timothy Keller is pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City and author of the just-released book, Counterfeit Gods. He writes that while some cultures still practice idol worship in the traditional sense, “internal idol worship, within the heart, is universal.”

Anything and everything we turn to in order to satisfy our deepest needs and longings can become idols. Even good things such as family, love, and morality become idols when they take the place of God. As Keller writes, “If anything becomes more fundamental than God to your happiness, meaning in life, and identity, then it is an idol.” [Read more…]

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Charity and Sacrifice in a Free Society

American Thinker | by Andrew Foy and Brenton Stransky | Oct. 31, 2009

The Founding Founders established a Republic under a written Constitution with the clear intent of protecting individual freedom; however, the role of our government has been grossly perverted over the last century to the point where politicians now violate individual rights routinely and without batting an eye. Most violations occur under the banner of providing for the public good, and to garner support, call upon the virtues of charity and sacrifice. Fortunately, charity and sacrifice in a free society are individual and personal undertakings and as a rule, cannot be subject to coercion if liberty is to be maintained. The current President and various members of both political parties do not abide by this rule and as such are positioning themselves as tyrants; servitude will be the price we pay unless we stand up today and defend our rights boldly and educate the broader public on the proper role of charity and sacrifice in a free society. [Read more…]

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Russian Research Forecasts Global Cooling

WorldNetDaily | by Jerome R. Corsi | Oct. 27, 2009

In a sharp rebuke to climate alarmists who believe human-generated carbon dioxide is responsible for causing catastrophic global warming, a Russian scientist has issued what amounts to a news flash announcing, “Sun Heats Earth!”

Habibullo Abdussamatov, the head of space research at St. Petersburg’s Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory in Russia, has published a paper in which he tracks sunspot activity going back to the 19th century to argue that total sun irradiance, or TSI, is the primary factor responsible for causing climate variations on Earth, not carbon dioxide. [Read more…]

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Four Characteristics of Good Orthodox Preaching

The Preachers Institute | by Fr. Jonathan Cholcher | May. 29, 2009

Orthodox preaching needs to be good preaching. To be good, Orthodox preaching must not only deliver good content, but it must strive to make the hearers good. Therefore, good Orthodox preaching is the Gospel (lit., good news) proclaimed and lived.

Four characteristics mark good Orthodox preaching:
1. Christ crucified and risen;
2. the language, or rationale, of Scripture;
3. plain discourse; and
4. attention to the experience of salvation through the Gospel. [Read more…]

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Democrats’ Policies Based on Dogma, Hopes, Dreams, not Reality

DennisPrager.com | by Dennis Prager | Oct. 27, 2009

How is one to rationally explain the Democrats’ belief that the government taking over another one-sixth of the American economy is a good thing? The answer is religion.

Given the huge economic failures that the left itself attributes to Medicare and Medicaid and given the economic collapse or near collapse of these systems in other countries, the left’s prescriptions can only be explained in one way: The left has made its views a form of religion. [Read more…]

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