One of the interesting aspects of this election season is intense focus on the scope of Article Six’s prohibition of a “religious test” for candidates. The full text reads: The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the members of the several state legislatures, and all executive and judicial officers, both of the United States and [...]
Archive for December, 2007
December 30, 2007
1
Mitt Romney’s Social Conservative Credibility(?)
By Matthew Lee Anderson in PoliticsMitt Romney’s credentials as a social conservative took another blow on his recent “Meet the Press” appearance. And social conservatives are noticing. According to this news report, Romney supports something like the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) at the state level (precisely, he said the bill “makes sense” at that level). ENDA, which is currently making [...]
December 29, 2007
1
George Bush’s Ethical Modesty
By Matthew Lee Anderson in Pro-LifeA few months ago, I claimed that modesty is an essential virtue for bioethicists, but was unsure what shape such modesty might take: What does modesty look like in bioethics? I’m not sure, but the weight of such decisions demands a restraint greater than the medical and scientific communities seem to be demonstrating. Jay Lefkowitz, [...]
December 28, 2007
0
Under Review: The Great Debaters
By Matthew Lee Anderson in Reviews (Films)The Great Debaters, Denzel Washington’s second foray into directing, recounts the historic run by Wiley College’s–an all black school in East Texas–Debate Team, which eventually defeated the University of Southern California (not Harvard, as the movie depicts it). The unlikely and remarkable story is so improbable that any sympathetic portrayal would be in danger of [...]
December 27, 2007
3
A Year in Blogging: Highlights from 2007
By Matthew Lee Anderson in NewsWe at Mere Orthodoxy have much to be thankful for as we look back at 2007. It has been a year of highlights for us, and it will be difficult to replicate. We are extremely thankful for the opportunities that blogging has afforded us, especially for the helpful and stimulating exchanges we have had with [...]
December 21, 2007
2
Doing Something with Nothing: “I Am Legend” Under Review
By Matthew Lee Anderson in Reviews (Films)Occasionally, movies manage to be entertaining in spite of themselves. In these instances, solid acting, excellent special effects, and competent directing work to overcome what would otherwise be a fatal flaw: no plot. I Am Legend, Will Smith’s newest film, is just such a movie. The central problem with the film is it’s premise, which [...]
December 21, 2007
2
“Look!”: A Meditation on Advent
By Tex in Theology (Christian Life)This Sunday marks the fourth Sunday of the Advent season. Though historically neglected by many evangelicals, Advent has made a resurgence in recent years. To that end, we are going to be offering Advent meditations throughout the season here at Mere-O. They will appear the Friday before each Sunday. “Look!” The voices across the ages [...]
December 20, 2007
3
Huckabee Versus the Establishment, Part Two
By Matthew Lee Anderson in PoliticsToday, Paul Mirengoff at Powerline raises the concern that Huckabee seems to want a free pass on the issues because of his status as an evangelical. Paul writes: Huckabee seems to believe he deserves a “pass” by virtue of his status as an evangelical and the fact that evangelicals have supported Republicans. That’s a dangerous [...]
December 19, 2007
2
On “The Beauty of the World”
By Keith E. D. Buhler in All Things Lovely, Philosophy, Youth CultureThis is a short essay on Jonathan Edwards essay The Beauty of the World, written this month by one of my high school students. I found it to be compelling in its simplicity and insight. Reprinted with the permission of the author, for your pleasure and consideration… — What is beauty? Jonathan Edwards defines beauty [...]
December 19, 2007
0
Twenty-Seven Missouri Politicians for Huckabee
By Matthew Lee Anderson in PoliticsIt’s pretty rare that I get wind of breaking news before other people do. However, twenty-seven Missouri politicians are about to announce their support of Mike Huckabee. While there has been a lot of questions about whether he would be able to translate his momentum into victories in the caucuses, this sort of endorsement will [...]
December 18, 2007
9
Huckabee Versus the Establishment (Updated)
By Matthew Lee Anderson in PoliticsOne of the more interesting developments in the political race this week was the increasing discussion about the tone of the attacks on Mike Huckabee. While the candidates have managed to put out some substantial criticisms of Huckabee, the tone of many of the conservative intellectuals has been, well, over the top. It culminated in [...]
December 17, 2007
0
Confessions of a Screenwriter, Month Three: The Treatment
By Keith E. D. Buhler in Life in generalPart I: Creation ex nihilo Part II: Scheduling & Research Part III: Writing a treatment is like writing a short story. It must be complete, interesting, detailed-but-not-too-much, engaging, and must establish the “flow” of the entire screenplay. The inciting idea for starting a screenplay is either a) a cool premise or setting, b) an interesting [...]
December 12, 2007
1
A Quick Debate Wrap-Up
By Matthew Lee Anderson in PoliticsThe Republicans debated this afternoon. Whether anyone who isn’t a political wonk watched is an open question (I’ll cease being one any day now………any day!). Romney looked great, but then, he doesn’t have much to lose in Iowa these days. Whether he did enough, though, to start his come back in Iowa remains to be [...]