Last week we published a post on Missouri Senator Josh Hawley’s op-ed in The New York Post condemning critical race theory and promoting his personal view of what young Americans should learn in history class. His views are encapsulated in […]
Archives for August 2021
Sunday night odds and ends
A few things online that caught my attention this week: The limits of audiobooks Can culture degenerate? The state of essay writing The widow of Medgar Evers and the grandson of Vice President Henry Wallace on Jim Crow Tucker Carlson […]
“His membership is not in a party or a public movement, but in Port William”
Wendell Berry’s Jayber Crow is one of my favorite novels. I first read it twenty years ago and revisit it often. (I think it might be time for another reading!) I love the way Berry once responded to writer Grace […]
Andrew Cuomo vs. the Albany Times Union
As a journalism buff (I had a subscription to the Columbia Journalism Review in high school), I really enjoyed Azi Paybarah’s piece at The New York Times. Here is a taste of “‘Ugh’: Life at Andrew Cuomo’s Hometown Newspaper”: Casey […]
Leon Litwack, RIP
I never met him, but I have heard he was a master in the classroom. I wish I could have taken his U.S. Survey course. Here is his student Paul Harvey: This interview with another former student is a fitting […]
Foo Fighters to Westboro Baptists: “You should be dancing!”
The Westboro Baptist Church has a website. The URL is godhatesfags.com. The church is known for its pickets and protests against atheists, Jews, Muslims, homosexuals, and anyone who hangs around with atheists, Jews, Muslims, and homosexuals. Today some members of […]
Rand Paul: Biden administration is “plucking kids” with COVID-19 from the border and “seeding” the country with the delta variant
Yesterday we wrote this about Paul’s Fox News op-ed: What does “resisting” or “standing-up for freedom” look like in this case? An armed rebellion? More riots? Another tea party? Whatever Rand thinks his words mean, his followers will interpret this […]
How long can Eric Metaxas continue to defend Mike Lindell?
I am guessing until the money dries up. But that’s just a guess. Did you see Lindell’s recent interview with CNN? This would be hilarious if so many Americans, especially evangelical Christians, didn’t believe it. Watch: “It’s proof of nothing.” […]
What is popular this week at Current?
Here are the most popular Current features of the last week: Daniel Williams, Abortion and the Class Divide Philip Gorski, Three Cheers Mark Schwehn, Plague Theology Christopher Shannon, BIden and the Bishops John Ragosta, Government and the Private Side of the Wall […]
For the first time in American history, advocates of patriotic education are claiming their curriculum is based on fact
This is a fascinating essay by Timothy Messer-Kruse of Bowling Green State University. It covers Josh Hawley’s “Love America Act” and Hillsdale College’s 1776 Curriculum. For most of the last two centuries, patriotic schooling was not a partisan issue. Both […]
History Is Always Changing. Just Ask Kerri Strug and Simone Biles.
It all came down to the vault. The Cold War was over, but the U.S. women’s gymnastics team—they would soon become known as the Magnificent Seven—still had some work to do. The Soviet Union had dominated the all-around team event, […]
Wendell Berry turns 87
Orion Magazine has put together a nice collection of Berry essays, poems, short stories, and media clips published by the magazine over the last forty years. Here’s a talk from Orion’s 1999 “Fire & Grit” conference:
The history of the Adirondack chair
This piece reminds me that I need to buy a couple of these for the back deck! 🙂 Here is Debra Judge Silber at Smithsonian Magazine: Meanwhile, about 40 miles west of Saranac Lake, Boston native Thomas Lee set about […]
It looks like Mike Richards will replace Alex Trebek as Jeopardy! host
Who is Mike Richards? (No, this is a different Mike Richards). Here is a taste of Cynthia Littleton’s piece at Variety: “Jeopardy!” executive producer Mike Richards is in advanced negotiations with Sony Pictures Television to become permanent host of the venerable quiz […]
Kayyem: Nobody has a constitutional right to take a domestic flight, attend the Lion King, or work at Disney or Walmart
Juliette Kayyem is faculty of chair of the homeland security program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. In her recent piece at The Atlantic she argues that unvaccinated people should not be allowed on domestic flights. A taste: Polls suggest […]
Evangelical roundup for August 5, 2021
What is going on Evangelicalland? Evangelicals cited for passing out bologna sandwiches without a permit! How dare they! I pray this is true: Some evangelicals are supporting Joe Biden’s infrastructure plan. Are nones less vaccinated than evangelicals?: “Non-woke truth church”: […]
Plague Theology
In this pandemic, apocalyptic revelation abounds
Regrets, I’ve had a few…
Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson now regrets signing the state’s mask mandate into law. Here is Richard Fausset at The New York Times: In March, with the number of new coronavirus cases plummeting in Arkansas, Gov. Asa Hutchinson let expire the statewide […]
Lindsey Graham, who has COVID-19, needs to do more than just tweet
The GOP senator from South Carolina has COVID-19. He is thankful for the vaccination: Now he needs to book himself on Carlson, Hannity, and Ingraham and say the same thing.
Why are some conservatives going to Hungary?
Tucker Carlson is broadcasting this week from Budapest. Why? Damon Linker explains at The Week. Here is a taste: Fans of Carlson’s top-rated prime time show on Fox News learned Monday that he would be broadcasting all week from Budapest, where he would […]