October 2014 Archives

October 31, 2014

How to Be a Better Guesstimater

Is the murder rate in the U.S. increasing or decreasing? What percentage of teen girls will give birth this year? What percentage of Americans are Christian or Muslim? What percentage are immigrants? Continue Reading...

October 31, 2014

Video: An Evening With G.K. Chesterton

The 2014 Acton Lecture Series took a dramatic turn last week as we welcomed G.K. Chesterton – or at least a quite remarkable facsimile of Chesterton in the form of Chuck Chalberg, who travels the country performing in character as Chesterton, among other notable historic figures. Continue Reading...

October 30, 2014

Poverty, Inc. Documentary Premieres in Austin and Savannah

I worked alongside several Acton Institute colleagues and Coldwater Media for years on the Poverty, Inc. full-length documentary film, which tackles the question: Fighting poverty is big business, but who profits the most? Continue Reading...

October 30, 2014

She And Her Mother Escaped From North Korea: Then Things Got Really Bad

Yeomni Park is a 21-year-old defector from the nation of North Korea. She and her mother (who was considered a criminal for moving without permission) escaped the brutal North Korean regime. Continue Reading...

October 30, 2014

When Should We Be Worried About Economic Inequality?

The topic of economic inequality continues to be at the forefront of our current political discussions, thanks in no small part by a president who calls it “the defining challenge of our time.” Continue Reading...

October 30, 2014

Russell Kirk on Envy

Following up on the recent discussions of envy, here’s a bit from Russell Kirk’s book on economics: It would be easy enough to list other moral beliefs and customs that are part of the foundation of a prosperous economy, but we draw near to the end of this book. Continue Reading...

October 30, 2014

‘Work Is A Good Thing For Man’

I was transfixed by this video the other day. The simplicity of the video itself, the careful, skillful work, the lovely hands of a master at work – all brought to mind the goodness of work and creation that God granted to us. Continue Reading...

October 29, 2014

Houston Mayor to Pastors: On Second Thought, Let’s Forget About Those Subpoenas

Earlier this month the city of Houston sent out a subpoena to five area pastors demanding to see: All speeches, presentations, or sermons related to HERO, the Petition, Mayor Annise Parker, homosexuality, or gender identity prepared by, delivered by, revised by, or approved by you or in your possession. Continue Reading...

October 29, 2014

The Christian Life between Accommodation and Isolation

In this week’s Acton Commentary, “The Soul of the System,” I examine a number of images and distinctions related to Hunter Baker’s latest book, The System Has a Soul. In describing Herman Bavinck’s images of the kingdom of God as a pearl and a leaven, and a complementary distinction from Abraham Kuyper of the church as an institute and an organism, a question naturally follows about the relationship between each element of the pairings. Continue Reading...

October 29, 2014

Buy A Baby And We’ll Throw In Citizenship For Free!

The Obama administration has created a policy wherein foreigners who purchase a baby via an American surrogate will be able to claim U.S. citizenship for the child. According to the Daily Caller: The fertility clinics will be able to pocket the profits, after granting access to American education, health, welfare and retirement services to the foreign children and the foreign parents. Continue Reading...