Always Right

The wit and wisdom of WFB

WFB's latest columns on NRO - "Dumb Bright Guys," "State of the Nation," and "Culture Clash" deal with liberal bias in academia, the importance of national security to the state of our nation, and the recent SCOTUS case on cannabis (specifically, how individual states deal with the issue of marijuana), respectively.

The man has been at it for a half century and still churns out erudite, thoughtful articles on a broad range of topics. Amazing...

Brooks on Falwell

David Brooks rightly criticizes Dr. Jerry Falwell's self-proclaimed position as spokesman for evangelicals in today's NYT.

Tim Russert is a great journalist, but he made a mistake last weekend. He included Jerry Falwell and Al Sharpton in a discussion on religion and public life.

Inviting these two bozos onto "Meet the Press" to discuss that issue is like inviting Britney Spears and Larry Flynt to discuss D. H. Lawrence. Naturally, they got into a demeaning food fight that would have lowered the intellectual discourse of your average nursery school.

Brooks writes that John Stott might be a better spokesman for those of us mortified every time Falwell or Robertson bloviates. Personally, I'd prefer the writings of C.S. Lewis, Francis Schaeffer, Os Guinness, and G.K. Chesterton to "speak" for evangelicals. The collective body of work produced by these great thinkers and apologists is nothing short of breathtaking. Few 20th century Christians were able to match the breadth or plunge to the depths of their discussions on Christianity.

Unfortunately, today's average evangelical would rather be besotted by the Bruce Wilkinson's, Rick Warren's, and Joel Osteen's of the world. Augustine who? Aquinas what? I recently read that Rick Warren's The Purpose Driven Life has sold 20 million copies. Unbelievable.

All is not lost however. There ARE shining stars in the apologist universe - Ravi Zacharias shining the brightest, in my 'umble opinion. Zacharias's Great Conversations series was brilliant. The "conversations" between Jesus and Mohammed, Jesus and Buddha, and Jesus and Oscar Wilde were not only a delight to read, but genuinely thought provoking as well.

If we're gonna elect an evangelical spokesperson I cast my ballot for Ravi Zacharias...

Racism in Europe

Europeans, especially on the continent, maintain an appearance of superiority and enlightenment, especially in comparison to their Western neighbors across the ocean.  Despite this progressive self-perception, recent happenings at soccer stadiums across Europe belie such notions.  The Associated Press reports the following horrible (and recent) incidents:

- In England, black striker Dwight Yorke said he was subjected to racist gestures and noises in Birmingham City's game at Blackburn.

- French club Paris St. Germain has an area where only white fans are welcome; another section is open to Paris' many Arab and black immigrants.

- Fans of the Czech team Sparta Prague still shout "Slavia Jude'' (Slavia Jew) against local rivals Slavia Prague. The chant dates from the pre-World War II era, when Slavia fans included many Jewish businessmen.

- Fans of Greek club Panathinaikos are under investigation for racial taunts last month against black players from English club Arsenal.

- Two black players for the French club Bastia were roughed up and insulted by 30 fans after a match earlier this month. 

Perhaps the most egregious example of this racist abuse is the Spain v. England game in Madrid.  Played at the Santiago Bernabeu, the home stadium of Real Madrid, black players for England were taunted by many fans with monkey noises each time they touched the ball.

The article covering more of these events may be found here...

Kofi on the hot seat...

It has been a forgettable few months for Kofi Annan. First, his precious U.N. tucks tail and runs from Iraq when the going got the slightest bit tough, then there was the Oil-for-Food scandal that continues to snowball, and we can't forget his damnable refusal to intervene in Darfur. Prof. Reynolds calls for Annan's resignation in today's WSJ. As does William Safire in the NYT (albeit in a roundabout way). I'd like to jump on the bandwagon as well - Kofi, you gotta go...

Foreign student visas

There is a great op/ed in today's NYT written by Prof. Nye of Harvard about the falling number of student visas issued by the U.S. post-9/11. The key paragraphs:

Recent reports show that total foreign student enrollment in our 2,700 colleges and universities dropped 2.4 percent, with a much sharper loss at large research institutions. Two-thirds of the 25 universities with the most foreign students reported major enrollment declines.

The costs to the American economy are significant. Educating foreign students is a $13 billion industry. Moreover, the United States does not produce enough home-grown doctoral students in science and engineering to meet our needs. The shortfall is partly made up by the many foreign students who stay here after earning their degrees.

Equally important, however, are the foreign students who return home and carry American ideas with them. They add to our soft power, the ability to win the hearts and minds of others. As Secretary of State Colin Powell put it, "I can think of no more valuable asset to our country than the friendship of future world leaders who have been educated here."

In my humble opinion, it is very important that we allow foreign students to study here in the comparable numbers to the pre-9/11 days. These students offer a distinct and important voice on campus as well as in their communities. A number of foreign students studying for post-graduate degrees at UAB live in my apartment complex and couldn't be nicer neighbors. Let's be honest - we need all the help we can get in projecting "soft power" around the world. These students can be pseudo-ambassadors for the U.S.

Chuck Colson on C.S. Lewis

Chuck Colson's latest column on Townhall celebrates the birthday of C.S. Lewis and the intellectual and religious legacy left by the medieval literature professor from Oxford who became the great Christian thinker and apologist of the 20th century.  It's well worth reading...

A Solution for Liberia

As many of you know, Liberia has been the center of an ongoing conflict for many years, with estimates indicating that some one million Liberians have been displaced and hundred of thousands of others having died as a result of the decades long strife.  Liberia, incidentally, is where many former American slaves were repatriated and tension between this faction and the indigenous African contingent has been a constant since that time.  Real elections will be held for the first time in October 2005, with one of declared candidates being George Weah, the 1995 FIFA World Player of the Year and long-time UN volunteer.  He seems to have embraced democracy and his past efforts to foster reform evidence a man committed to progress.  Given the U.S.'s history with the country, as well as the instability in all of West Africa, let's hope Weah can make a difference.  You may read further about Liberia and Weah here...

God Bless the USA

The political troubles in Ukraine give yet another reason to be thankful that we live in such a wonderful country. While this election cycle was fraught with tension  - its ending was peaceful and definite. Sen. Kerry showed great class in quickly deciding not to contest the results in Ohio.

Can you imagine what would have happened to this country if after the 2000 election Al Gore had declared himself president, or if Kerry had done the same thing earlier this month? It would have been sheer madness, utter chaos. Much like the scene in Ukraine probably.

Our democratic republic, while not perfect, it is the greatest form of government in the world.

U2's Latest

National Review Online has an article about U2's latest album, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, which comes out today.  NRO claims this record ranks up there with Achtung Baby! and The Joshua Tree and is even better than All That You Can't Leave Behind from several years ago.  The new album also is regarded as the band's most Christian one since October.  Sure, Bono leans liberal (at least he's admirably heartfelt and consistent), yet you can't help but admire his work.

Hallelujah!!

Could Kofi Annan be out of a job soon? Many pundits think so, including the Washington Times editorial board. The various scandals involving Annan's senior staff are bad enough, but add in the Oil-for-Food scandal, and UN foot-dragging in Sudan and Iraq and you have one pathetic loser...