The human costs for such tragic events as the recent quakes in Haiti and Chile are incalculable. There is so much suffering, it is difficult for many of us to comprehend. (I was taken aback a few days ago to recognize my relief at early stories placing the Chilean death toll in the 700’s. Tragically, that number will surely … Read more
Slate.com’s Timothy Noah offers a fascinating piece on why they think Pelosi will have a very hard time getting enough votes to pass the Senate version of the health care bill. However, in the process, Noah trots out a claim I can’t reconcile with reality: Why not resolve the dispute by putting the Stupak amendment … Read more
Children can now find their sperm donor fathers thanks to science and the Internet, and sperm banks are rethinking their policies as a result. Over at Slate, Rachel Lehmann-Haupt tells the story of a mother who went in search of her child’s biological father because she wanted to learn more about his health and genetic … Read more
Last year, Seth Grahame-Smith altered the face of classic lit forever by releasing Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Knock-offs multiplied faster than… well, zombies, and the reading public was quickly introduced to Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Mansfield Park and Mummies, and Queen Victoria: Demon Hunter. Now, Grahame-Smith is back with his latest, Abraham … Read more
It was bound to happen: A survey by the Pew Internet and American Life Project has revealed that more Americans now get their news online than they do from any other source. Not only that, but close to 75% say they learn of a news item first from either email or one of the social … Read more
Sufferers from Mariaphobic Response Syndrome have certain passages they love to bang away at in order to make sure that nobody thinks Mary is special or anything. Indeed, so zealous is the tendency of some Christians to diminish Mary that some even like to bang away at things Scripture does not say about Mary. … Read more
As the blog’s resident “harbinger of doom,” I couldn’t possibly let this story pass by unnoticed: Nothing lasts forever. So it will be said about the University of Michigan Library’s card catalogs when they are removed from their home in the bowels of the Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library on March 8. Twelve and a half million … Read more
In 1901, archaeologists outside of York, England, discovered a series of graves dating from 4th century Roman Britain. One skeleton of a wealthy young woman of 18 or 19 was particularly intriguing: She was buried with several expensive items of jewelry, including an unusual pair of intertwined bracelets — one made from white African ivory, … Read more
As is happily the norm, I am inundated with CD releases that demand your attention. The music spans the 18th to the 20th centuries, so I shall proceed chronologically, having no other principle of organization at hand. This way you can simply skip the centuries you deplore and get to the good stuff. (That is … Read more
Those in homeschooling circles are probably familiar with the education system in Germany, which requires all children to attend an officially recognized school or face fines and penalties. The story of one German family, the Romeikes, has also gained some notoreity here: After attempting to homeschool their children and being threatened with thousands in fines, … Read more
First: Way to go, Canada! Much to the shame of my Canadian family, I’m a hockey dunce. But I watched my first game in 20 years yesterday — and wow, I picked a good one! Team U.S.A. looked broken-hearted after their loss, but they should hold their heads up. It was a close game. Silver … Read more
According to the Centers for Disease Control, African American women have 40 percent of the nation’s abortions, but make up only 13 percent of the population. That black children are being aborted at such a high rate has not been a subject of discussion among the Democrats in the Congress and the White House, who … Read more
Gags abound in part eight of 1960’s ten part action-comedy serial “Uncle Harry’s Gold Mine” by Frank Borth. (There’s a little surprise on page 4, too.) As always, these pages come from Catholic University’s online archive of Treasure Chest of Fun and Fact. Â Â I can just see Uncle Harry being played by Dick … Read more
A few days before the New Year Chippy and I spent the day studying Shakespeare. In the morning we looked through “Shakespeare’s Complete Works” from my college days at the University of Texas, complete with my teenage marginalia. Then, I asked Chippy to read from the balcony scene in “Romeo and Juliet,” and later that … Read more
A few days before the New Year Chippy and I spent the day studying Shakespeare. In the morning we looked through “Shakespeare’s Complete Works” from my college days at the University of Texas, complete with my teenage marginalia. Then, I asked Chippy to read from the balcony scene in “Romeo and Juliet,” and later that … Read more
A couple of weeks ago, I posted a fascinating/disturbing video from Stargate Studios that revealed the increasingly unrecognizable use of CGI and digital backlots in TV and film production. (“Don’t worry. No reality was harmed in the making of this film. In fact, I’m not even sure any was used.”) Now, courtesy of /Film, here’s a … Read more
A new bill called The Dietary Supplement Safety Act (DSSA) of 2010 (S. 3002) has been introduced by Senator John McCain (R-AZ). The bill, cosponsored by Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND), will curtail free access to dietary supplements (like vitamins) and give the FDA full control over the supplement industry. The DSSA would undo the protections … Read more
All utopias are alike; but every utopian is unhappy in his own way. Â A new movie, Michael Hoffman’s The Last Station, attempts to portray the last days of Leo Tolstoy, when the great writer had turned from delving into the complexities of individuals’ loves and sorrows to the more streamlined task of issuing treatises … Read more
Good Friday morning! A few links to get the day started: The school-reform debate gets serious: When one low-ranked school in Rhode Island couldn’t agree on a plan for improvement, the school board sacked all 75 teachers at once. That’s one way to get their attention… Woman live-tweets her experience taking RU-486 to abort her … Read more
At a party back around Christmas, a man I hadn’t met before asked me what I do. I said I was a writer who, among other things, wrote fairly often about the situation of the Catholic laity in the Church. “Oh,” my new acquaintance responded innocently, “so are you a eucharistic minister in your parish?” … Read more
