Follies of the Wise

June 14, 2006 • by Jordan J. Ballor

Follies of the Wise

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History and empire

John Wilson, editor of Books & Culture, writes up a summary of the proceedings of The Historical Society’s conference, “Globalization, Empire, and Imperialism in Historical Perspective.” “We urgently need an antidote to the journalistic clichés and the even more deplorable pseudo-scholarly discourse surrounding the interlocked themes of globalization, empire, and imperialism. Continue Reading...

Evangelicals and cable TV

A story over the weekend in Washington Post gives a good overview of the mixed motives behind evangelical campaigning for and against a la carte pricing of cable channels, despite the poorly chosen title, “Evangelicals vs. Continue Reading...

The new urban Christians

“Should I not be concerned about that great city?” asks God of the prophet Jonah about Nineveh, which “has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well.” Continue Reading...

A different view of immigration

I haven’t been uncritical of American bishops’ statements concerning immigration. But I wouldn’t go *quite* as far as Pastor Ralph Ovadal of Pilgrims Covenant Church, for whom the terms ‘antichrist,’ ‘Romanist,’ and ‘Reconquista’ fairly roll off the tongue. Continue Reading...

Good news on immigration

Yes, I realize that no one likes the current version of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill. But it is possible to make constructive changes without being comprehensive. Here are a couple of recent examples: 1. Continue Reading...

Why I am a classical liberal

Social and political theory is widely and, quite often, grossly misunderstood. What we call conservatism today, at least in several very important ways, was once called federalism, or classical liberalism. Continue Reading...

Religion & Liberty: exploring poverty and hunger

The Spring 2006 issue of Religion & Liberty is now available. The new issue focuses on the topics of hunger and poverty, especially in the developing world. As R&L explores the various aspects of poverty, it touches on issues ranging from the effectiveness of government programs to the benefits of bio-technology and from the implications of globalization to the need for a moral foundation behind the development of economics. Continue Reading...

School choice tax credits

Rep. Vito Fossella (R-NY13) endorses federal tuition tax credits for K-12 education at NRO, “An A+ Choice.” Says Fossella: “Here’s how it would work: Families would be permitted to take a dollar-for-dollar reduction in their tax liability for non-public-school-tuition expenses. Continue Reading...