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Natural Born Lawyers

Books reviewed The Natural Law:A Study in Legal and Social History and Philosophy by Heinrich Albert Rommen, Liberty Fund, 306 pp., $27. In Defense of Natural Law by Robert P. George, Oxford University Press, 354 pp., $65. AquinasÂ’s Theory of Natural Law: An Analytic Reconstruction by Anthony J. Lisska Oxford University Press, 336 pp., $24.95. Natural Law in Judaism by Read More ›

What’s in a Name

Anti-WTO demonstrators continue to get the benefit of the doubt from many in the media and even from some public officials. That benefit consists of a supposed distinction commonly made between the ‘bad’ WTO protesters who broke windows, assaulted policemen and set fire to dumpsters, and the ‘good’ protesters — supposedly everybody else in the anti-WTO ranks. The ‘bad’ protesters, Read More ›

Review God After Darwin: A Theology of Evolution by John Haught

I suppose it's the residual effect of original sin, but I enjoy reviewing books I disagree with more than ones I agree with. After all, who wants to spend 1500 words inventing new ways of saying "me, too" and "yes, that's right"? Much better to bring a contrasting view to the author's work, focus on areas of difference, and enjoy the simple pleasures of controversy. So, since I had heard he was skeptical of a theory of intelligent design in biology — of which I am an advocate — I looked forward to reviewing Georgetown theologian John Haught's God After Darwin: A Theology of Evolution. What a disappointment! Looking back over my margin notes for this elegantly written book, I find I have scribbled on various pages: "Great!"; "I agree"; "!"; "interesting"; "Hmm"; and four "Good"s in a row. Read More ›
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Young activists march against climate change
Image Credit: Saray Leal - Adobe Stock

WTO Consequences

The gas is gone. The glass and graffiti are going. The media harvest of shocking images will remain available. The lawsuits will drag on for years, and it’s at the very least likely the 500 people arrested at the Battle of Seattle (ahead of, urban legends) will be compensated nicely for their moment of righteous incarceration. A new paradigm in Read More ›

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Old male doctor visiting young male patient
Licensed from Adobe Stock

When Death Is Our Physician

It is hard to tell the truth about assisted suicide. Or rather, it’s hard to get people to listen. Folks generally are about as eager to delve into the issue of assisted suicide as they are to work out the details of their own funeral. It’s a delicate and unnerving subject, involving the ultimate issues of life: the reality of Read More ›

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creative
Image Credit: mark - Adobe Stock

Demonstrators Give Birth to Brand New Left

The satirist Tom Wolfe coined the term “radical chic” to characterize the way certain stylish New Yorkers in the 1960s fawned over, and financed, law-breaking groups like the Black Panthers. Just as the New Left attempted a “baby-boomer” imitation of real revolutionaries from still earlier eras, something like a Brand New Left is attempting to be born during the World Read More ›

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Lower Fox Creek School in the Flint Hills of Kansas
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Darwin’s Hostages

In 1995 the National Academy of Sciences, through its National Research Council arm, issued a set of national science education standards calling for “dramatic changes” in the way science is taught in grade schools and high schools. Several years later the Kansas State Board of Education appointed a panel of scientists and academics to advise it on bringing state guidelines Read More ›

Railroads should speak with one voice

[From July, 2001 RailwayAge “Point of View: The industry should speak with one voice.”] Why should passenger railroads support H.R. 1020, the Railroad Track Modernization Act of 2001, a bill designed to assist short line and regional freight carriers? It has nothing to do with practical politics making strange bedfellows, and everything to do with defining the public interest in Read More ›

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Conference photo audience and speakers giving speech. Seminar presenters on a panel during forum. Corporate managers in sales executive training discussion on stage. Investor pitch presentation.
Licensed from Adobe Stock

The Evolution Wars

The conference “Science and Evidence for Design in the Universe,” sponsored by the Wethersfield Institute, was held at the great hall of Cooper Union, in Manhattan. On the walls were photographs of presidents from Lincoln to Clinton in mid oration. The featured speakers on this occasion were less well known; Mike Behe, William Dembski, Stephen Meyer. All have been traveling Read More ›

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Microphone in focus against blurred people at roundtable event
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All Forms of Science Designed for Discussion

Since Darwin's theory has as many religious implications as the theory of intelligent design, it is not possible to demarcate the two on the grounds that one is science and the other is religion. Read More ›