Codex Markianus

Out Of Retirement

2009-01-10T15:40:00.003-05:00

Mark is now blogging at All Things Expounded. I know, it was a really short retirement.

Thank You and Good Night

2008-11-15T22:28:00.003-05:00

At the end of this month, it will be 3 years since I founded this blog and 5 years of blogging in general. I think I can say that Codex Markianus has been a good, rewarding experience. However, after nearly 3 years and nearly 400 posts, I am now ready to move on. This post officially turns this blog into a historical thing (although I do plan to keep in on-line indefinitely).

In this fast-paced age, 3 years is actually quite a long time. To put this into perspective, Codex Markianus is older than Youtube.com, the .eu top-level domain, the Kyoto Treaty, and Suffrage in Kuwait!

I thank you for reading this blog, your helpful comments, and also your encouragement. I'm glad I've had this opportunity.

I do not plan to seize writing completely, nor am I fading away from the net. I'm just stepping out of the blogosphere so to speak. If you want to update your links or keep in touch, the site to use now is http://www.marknenadov.com/. All the best and God bless you all!

The Klein Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Polemics

2008-11-14T19:51:00.004-05:00

Some time ago I read Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism. I found it an interesting read, but I disagreed with it on a number of counts and wrote a review. I found Naomi's attacks on Miltron Friedman particularly vicious.

Now I am pleased to see that Johan Norberg of the Cato Institute has written a briefing paper responding to Naomi's work. I look forward to reading it, and I'm quite sure it's worth a gander if you've read or heard about The Shock Doctrine.

The State of the GOP (The Jelly-Publicans)?

2008-11-13T14:43:00.003-05:00

Ron Paul has really hit the nail on the head with this commentary.

In short, the Republicans have recently had control of the Presidency, House, and Senate, and they have managed to blow it. Paul correctly calls the Republican congress to task for their activities.

In essence, they have been the veritable jellyfish. They've stood back and watched while Bush/Rove demanded support for unconstitutional wars, attacked civil liberties at home, and put forward an economic policy based on more spending, debt, deficits, and inflation.

He further comments that "After eight years of perpetual (and unnecessary and unconstitutional) war, persistent and expanded attacks on our privacy, runaway deficits, and now nationalization of the financial system, Republicans are going to have a tough time regaining the confidence of the American people".

Due to the actions of BOTH the Republicans and the Democrats, America is, as Ron Paul states marching towards a powerful dictorial state.

I think many Americans can relate to the words of John Perry Barlow: "So I'm just waiting until one party or the other actually gets a moral compass and a backbone".

Puritans Like A Good Drink Now And Then

2008-11-12T23:27:00.007-05:00

"One of the more enduring misconceptions concerning the Puritans in America is that they adjured alcohol. In fact, they liked a good drink, or even a not so good one." - Bill Bryson, Made in America

God and Grammar

2008-11-12T09:03:00.005-05:00

"I am afraid we are not rid of God because we still have faith in grammar" - Nietzsche in 'Twilight of the Idols'

Sartre-ific

2008-11-06T12:51:00.002-05:00

Jean-Paul Sartre is sitting at a French cafe, revising his draft of
Being and Nothingness.

He says to the waitress, "I'd like a cup of coffee, please, with no cream."

The waitress replies, "I'm sorry, monsieur, but we're out of cream. How about with no milk?"

Who Would Have Thought?

2008-11-05T23:53:00.008-05:00

Apparently, George Wallace's daughter voted for Obama.

(For those who don't know, George Wallace was the pro-segregationist governor and presidential candidate of the 60s and 70s, who once said: "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever")

Jack London: Socialist and Friend of Prohibition

2008-10-31T08:53:00.011-04:00

"John Barleycorn" is a character from an English folk song. In essence, it is alcohol personified. When Jack London wrote a memoir about his struggles with alcohol, he picked that as its name. It is a vivid portrayal of the struggle and denial associated with alcoholism, although Jack firmly denies that he had any inherent inclination to abuse alcohol, whether through the biology of addiction or genetic disposition. He saw addiction more as a function of social pressure.

In his memoir, Jack shows himself to be a strong supporter of prohibition. He even goes so far to reveal that he supported suffrage (the women's right to vote), because he believed that women voters would be the key to enacting prohibition.

Jack showed a degree of naivety in assuming that it would be easy to stop abusing alcohol once prohibition was enacted, since he assumed the period of prohibition would be an era when no one else drinks and no drink would be obtainable. Of course, we have the advantage of hindsight and we can reject that notion as foolish. After seeing years of prohibition (both of alcohol and other substances), we now know that prohibition removes neither supply nor demand.

Jack London envisioned a time when the use of alcohol would be relegated to the status of other defunct activities such as witch burning. Thankfully he was wrong.

Douglas Wilson on Christopher Hitchens

2008-10-29T12:20:00.008-04:00

In "Is Christianity Good For The World?", Christian Douglas Wilson made a memorable quip when he said the following to Atheist Christopher Hitchens: "You write like a witty but acerbic tenth-century archbishop with a bad case of the gout". I'll have to put that into my "great put-downs" file.

The Source of Campaign Funds Says A Lot!

2008-10-25T13:22:00.002-04:00

Data based on the records of the reputable OpenSecrets.org site:

The Portion of Candidates Funding Coming From Federal "Coffers":

John McCain (Republican) - 24%
Ralph Nader (Independent) - 22%
Cynthia McKinney (Green) - 3%
Chuck Baldwin (Constitution) - 0%
Barack Obama (Democratic) - 0%
Bob Barr (Libertarian) - 0%

The Portion of Candidates Funding Coming From Individual Contributions:

Chuck Baldwin (Constitution) - 100%
Bob Barr (Libertarian) - 98%
Barack Obama (Democratic) - 90%
Cynthia McKinney (Green) - 88%
John McCain (Republican) - 54%

Obligatory Political Videos

2008-10-25T10:48:00.002-04:00

Recent Quotes

2008-10-20T12:01:00.005-04:00

1. My cousin Petar has posted some astute political thoughts such as "Everything that true conservatives dislike about George W. Bush is magnified in John McCain" and "Every Democrat that is overly excited about Barack Obama will eventually be as disappointed as most conservatives are with the current president (apparently most Americans are still hoping for a man who will become God, rather than committing themselves to the God who became man)"

2. Douglas Wilson on the irony of the 2008 U.S. Presidential election: "take the fact that the 'conservative' candidate is running on public funds, and the thug and commie candidate is privately funded by capitalists".

3. Stephen Harper showed quite clearly his view of economics when he said: "This government is running the economy so it can't go to hell in a handbasket." (HT: Liberty in Canada

4. The Blue Blogging Soapbox said "it certainly looks like Stephane Dion made use of the napkins to come up with his 30 Day Economic Plan"

5. Thomas Dilorenzo at LewRockwell.com on the bailout: "Naturally, the Fed’s response has been to grant itself even more powers, while the executive branch and Congress are busy nationalizing the capital markets, a move that will kill American capitalism"

6. Dilbert Cartoonist Scott Adams has some tactical advice for Israel: "I realized that Israel can destroy all of its local enemies by inventing solar technology that makes oil uneconomical. Such an invention would do more harm than any military attack. And it’s all legal and moral. The politicians and business people in Israel have all the right incentives times a thousand. Their very survival is at risk. Israel is one patent away from crushing every oil producing country in the world."

7. Paul Huxley says that Douglas Wilson's "A Primer on Worship and Reformation" is "two thumbs fresh".

Some Great Political Quotes

2008-10-09T07:08:00.004-04:00

Here are some nice quotes from a recent Douglas Wilson blog post:

"having Congress oversee the economic markets of a nation like ours is like having a chimp disassemble your laptop computer for a little troubleshooting"

"Suit yourself. And when things go really badly, computer-wise, Nancy Pelosi will insist that the 'next time this happens, we will take steps to ensure that the chimp repairmen are only allowed to use their thumbs.'"

"We really do get the government we deserve. In less than a month, virtually every elected lunatic that I have seen on the tube during this silly season will be returned to Congress, with loud shouts of triumph. If people were to ask me what we can do to survive the nine miles of bad road that appears to be just ahead of us, my advice would be this: cultivate, really cultivate, a deep and robust sense of humor. And that is not possible unless God is in His heaven. "

Neither Here Nor There

2008-10-03T12:15:00.003-04:00

Factcheck.org has an interesting analysis of factual errors from both sides in the Palin/Biden debate
Nate Wilson now has a blog
A couple was recently detained for carrying exotic organic chocolate over the U.S. border. Apparently their chocolate was flagged as hasish. The couple was interrogated (and the wife was told that her husband had already confessed to smuggling the 'drugs').

Neither Here Nor There

2008-09-23T23:50:00.004-04:00

Tim Challies has an interesting review of He Is Not Silent by Al Mohler
Voddie Baucham has some thought-provoking things to say about the election in How Evangelicals Could Win an Election and Lose the Culture. Towards the end he has a very astute comment: "The Gramscian Marxists know that their success is guaranteed regardless of who wins this one"
Lew Rockwell has some interesting thoughts provoked by the upcoming election in Learning About the State. Americans, no matter who you elect, please meet your long-term ruler, The State.
It has normally been assumed that PDF is a safe format. But watch out! PDF exploits seem to be on the rise! (HT: SlashdoT)

Now If Only Politicians Would Think Like This..

2008-09-23T22:19:00.004-04:00

A few quotes from Thomas Jefferson:

"I am for a government rigorously frugal and simple, applying all the possible savings of the public revenue to the discharge of the national debt; and not for a multiplication of officers and salaries merely to make partisans" --Thomas Jefferson to Elbridge Gerry, 1799. ME 10:77

"Having seen the people of all other nations bowed down to the earth under the wars and prodigalities of their rulers, I have cherished their opposites: peace, economy, and riddance of public debt, believing that these were the high road to public as well as private prosperity and happiness." --Thomas Jefferson to Henry Middleton, 1813. ME 13:202

"I deem no government safe which is under the vassalage of any self-constituted authorities, or any other authority than that of the nation, or its regular functionaries." --Thomas Jefferson to Albert Gallatin, 1803. ME 10:438

"Freedom of the person under the protection of the habeas corpus I deem [one of the] essential principles of our government." --Thomas Jefferson: 1st Inaugural Address, 1801. ME 3:322

"Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations--entangling alliances with none, I deem [one of] the essential principles of our government, and consequently [one of] those which ought to shape its administration." --Thomas Jefferson: 1st Inaugural Address, 1801. ME 3:321

"I do not believe war the most certain means of enforcing principles. Those peaceable coercions which are in the power of every nation, if undertaken in concert and in time of peace, are more likely to produce the desired effect." --Thomas Jefferson to Robert Livingston, 1801.

"The exercise of a free trade with all parts of the world [is] possessed by [a people] as of natural right, and [only through a] law of their own [can it be] taken away or abridged." --Thomas Jefferson: Rights of British America, 1774. (*) ME 1:189, Papers 1:123

"We had better have no treaty than a bad one." --Thomas Jefferson: The Anas, 1807. ME 1:467

Baptist Catechism: Items 21 - 25

2008-09-22T19:20:00.001-04:00

Q. Wherein consists the sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell?
A. The sinfulness of that estate whereinto man fell, consists in the guilt of Adam's first sin, the want of original righteousness, and the corruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called original sin; together with all actual transgressions which proceed from it (Rom. 5:12, to the end; Eph. 2:1, 2, 3; James 1:14, 15; Mt. 15:19).

Q. What is the misery of that estate whereinto man fell?
A. All mankind by their fall lost communion with God (Gen. 3:8, 10, 24), are under his wrath and curse (Eph. 2:2, 3; Gal. 3:10), and so made liable to all miseries in this life, to death itself, and to the pains of hell for ever (Lam. 3:39; Rom. 6:23; Mt. 25:41, 46).

Q. Did God leave all mankind to perish in the estate of sin and misery?
A. God having out of his mere good pleasure, from all eternity, elected some to everlasting life (Eph. 1:4, 5), did enter into a covenant of grace, to deliver them out of the estate of sin and misery, and to bring them into an estate of salvation by a Redeemer (Rom. 3:20-22; Gal. 3:21, 22).

Q. Who is the Redeemer of God's elect?
A. The only Redeemer of God's elect is the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Tim. 2:5, 6); who, being the eternal Son of God, became man (John 1:14; Gal. 4:4), and so was and continueth to be God and man in two distinct natures, and one person for ever (Rom. 9:5; Lk. 1:35; Col. 2:9; Heb. 7:24, 25).

Q. How did Christ, being the Son of God become man?
A. Christ the Son of God became man by taking to himself a true body (Heb. 2:14, 16; 10:5), and a reasonable soul (Mt. 26:38); being conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary, and born of her (Luke 1:27, 31, 34, 35, 42; Gal. 4:4), yet without sin (Heb. 4:15; 7:26).

Baptist Catechism: Items 16 - 20

2008-09-18T07:37:00.000-04:00

Q. Did our first parents continue in the state wherein they were created?
A. Our first parents being justify to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning a against God (Gen. 3:6, 7, 8, 13; Ecc. 7:29).

Q. What is sin?
A. Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God (1 John 3:4).

Q. What was the sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created?
A. The sin whereby our parents fell from the estate wherein they were created, was their eating the forbidden fruit (Gen. 3:12, 16, 17).

Q. Did all mankind fall in Adam's first transgression?
A. The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself but for his posterity, all mankind descending from him by ordinary generation sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression (Gen. 2:16, 17; Rom. 5:12; 1 Cor. 15:21, 22).

Q. Into what estate did the fall bring mankind?
A. The fall brought mankind into an estate of sin and misery (Rom. 5:12).

Palin: Fresh Air, But Don't Get Too Excited!

2008-08-31T21:42:00.014-04:00

I think LP.org is RIGHT on when it says the following about Sarah Palin:

"Palin is certainly a breath of fresh air from the typical establishment candidates. However, Palin is also more of a political chess piece than a real sign of reform within the GOP...While the base of the GOP may be more prone to rallying behind Palin than McCain, it's still McCain that is heading the ticket, and it will be McCain that would be making the policy decisions in a McCain administration. Though Palin herself may not know it, and though newly excited conservatives may not be willing to believe it, Palin's role (and her views) will most likely be marginal at best.

Voting for McCain because of Palin is like buying a jalopy with a fresh paint job, and hoping it will perform like a car right out of the factory doors. The GOP is still heading down a bumpy path, and even a reformer like Palin isn't enough to get it back on the pavement. "

Of course, Palin is better than the other prospective VP: Biden. But that isn't saying anything at all! (I find it ironic that Obama talks so much about change, and then appoints, of all people, a man whose middle name ought to be ESTABLISHMENT)

Oh my! Here we go.. A period of either an ObamaNation or a fresh scoop of McStatism. What a lovely choice! Would you like to be stomped with the Left Boot or the Right Boot? Thankfully my hope is not placed in U.S. politics (or Canadian politics for that matter), because it would be lost long ago! I advise seeking something less wishy-washy to hang your hopes on than a McCain or an Obama. Otherwise, you'll be really disappointed. Call me a pessimist..but time has already told and there is no reason to think McCain or Obama have changed their tunes.

Amillennialism Described

2008-08-26T21:31:00.002-04:00

Chris Hand, of Crich Baptist Church in England, has an excellent talk named Amillennialism Described & Defended. Its a very good plain/practical explanation of what Amillennialism is, and on a more trivial note he's got a real cool British accent as well! I'm not really a end-times connoisseur, but due to the dominance of premillennialism in North American Christianity, I think its important that the Amillennial and Postmillenial positions are explained clearly and succinctly. And this particular talk, while far from comprehensive, really does a fine job at setting out amillennialism.

Os Guinness Lectures

2008-08-24T07:42:00.002-04:00

Check out these Os Guinness Lectures (HT: Douglas Groothuis)

Neither Here Nor There

2008-08-12T22:40:00.008-04:00

"Web geeks" should note that PHP 4 is no longer being supported!
Republican senator and long-time friend of John McCain, Chuck Hagel refuses to endorse McCain or Obama. In my opinion, it is about time more people start refusing to pick between two bad options. It is about time we realize that statism, whether in the name of "liberal" or "conservative" values, still is statism.
Check out these two Douglas Wilson books coming out soon
LewRockwell.com has an intriguing column named Solzhenitsyn and the Russian Question
Parents will appreciate this guide to praying and doing devotions with their children (HT: 'Tim Challies)
The CATO institute has some thoughts on the Russia-Georgia conflict

What is Eschatology?

2008-08-12T22:37:00.001-04:00

"Eschatology is 'the doctrine of the last things.' It deals with the teaching or belief, that the world-movement, religiously considered, tends towards a definite final goal, beyond which a new order of affairs will be established, frequently with the further implication, that this new order of affairs will not be subject to any further change, but will partake of the static character of the eternal." - Geerhardus Vos in The Pauline Eschatology

Baptist Catechism: Items 11 - 15

2008-08-09T21:51:00.000-04:00

Q. How doth God execute his decrees?
A. God executeth his decrees in the works of creation and providence.

Q. What is the work of creation?
A. The work of creation is God's making all things of nothing, by the word of his power, in the space of six days, and all very good (Gen. 1 throughout; Heb. 11:3).

Q. How did God create man?
A. God created man, male and female, after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures (Gen. 1:26, 27, 28; Col. 3:10, Eph. 4:24).

Q. What are God's works of providence?
A. Gods works of providence are his most holy, (Ps. 145:17; 104:24) wise (Is. 28:29), and powerful preserving (Heb. 1:3) and governing all his creatures, and all their actions (Ps. 103:19; Mt. 10:29, 30, 31).

Q. What special act of providence did God exercise towards man in the estate wherein he was created?
A. When God had created man, he entered into a covenant of life with him upon condition of perfect obedience: forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon pain of death (Gal. 3:12; Gen. 2:17).

A Great Russian Author Passes Away..

2008-08-04T20:21:00.004-04:00

Just yesterday the great Russian author Alexander Solzhenitsyn died. Alexander was the son of a well known composer/pianist. His writing was significant enough to earn him a Nobel Prize in Literature (1970) and deportation from Russia (1974). He was accused of anti-Soviet propaganda and was a prisoner in the the Gulag and also spent time in the Lubyanka prison and various labor camps. His life is a warning about the perils of statism. Later in life, he lived in the U.S.A. for a number of years, and gave a number of well-known lectures. He spoke of the dangers of communism, but was also a very outspoken critic of Western popular culture. In his view "the human soul longs for things higher, warmer, and purer than those offered by today's mass living habits ... by TV stupor and by intolerable music".

Solzhenitsyn's key works include One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, Cancer Ward, and The Gulag Archipelago.

Baptist Catechism: Items 6 - 10

2008-08-04T17:38:00.001-04:00

Q. What things are chiefly contained in the holy scriptures?
A. The holy scriptures chiefly contain what man ought to believe concerning God, and what duty God requireth of man (2 Tim. 1:13; 3:15,16).

Q. What is God?
A. God is a Spirit (John 4:24), infinite (Job 11:7, 8, 9), eternal (Ps. 110:2), and unchangeable (Jas. 1:17) in his being (Ex. 33:14), wisdom (Ps. 147:5), power (Rev. 4:8), holiness (Rev. 15:4), justice, goodness, and truth (Ex. 34:6).

Q. Are there more gods than one?
A. There is but one only, the living and true God (Deut. 6:4, 7; Jer 10:10).

Q. How many persons are there in the Godhead?
A. There are three persons in the godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in essence, equal in power and glory (1 John 5:7; Mt. 28:19).

Q. What are the decrees of God?
A. The decrees of God are his eternal purpose according to the counsel of his will, whereby, for his own glory, he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass (Eph. 1:4, 11; Rom. 9:22-23; Is. 46:10; Lam. 3:37).

Baptist Catechism: Items 1 - 5

2008-08-02T20:37:00.000-04:00

Q. Who is the first and chiefest being?
A. God is the first and chiefest being (Is. 44:6; 47:12; Ps. 97:9).

Q. Ought every one to believe there is a God?
A. Everyone ought to believe there is a God (Heb. 6:6); and it is their great sin and folly who do not (Ps. 14:1).

Q. How may we know there is a God?
A. The light of nature in man and the works of God plainly declare there is a God (Rom. 1:19,20; Ps. 19:1, 2, 3; Acts 17:24); but his word and Spirit only do it fully and effectually for the salvation of sinners (1 Cor. 2:10; 2 Tim. 3:15,16).

Q. What is the word of God?
A. The holy scriptures of the Old and New Testament are the word of God, and the only certain rule of faith and obedience (2 Tim. 3:16; Eph. 2:20).

Q. May all men make use of the holy scriptures?
A. All men are not only permitted, but commanded and exhorted to read, hear, and understand the holy scriptures (John 5:38; Rev. 17:18, 19; 1:3; Acts 8:30).

On The Frivilous Side: Spam News Stories

2008-07-28T21:59:00.007-04:00

On occasion, I like to post something random and light-hearted. To sort of change the pace once in a while. Here's such a post.

You gotta love spam. What follows are a collection of real live spam e-mail titles I've received in my mailbox, excepting a bunch of obscene ones. Which one of them do you think would be the most unlikely news story?

"Barack Obama Wins Ku Klux Klan Endorsement"
"Bush And Putin Agree To Restart Cold War During G8 Summit"
"Attack Of The Zombie Negro: Dick Cheney"
"MLB players boycott All-Star game"
"Mccain Vows TO Replace Secret Service With His Own Bare Fists"
"Britney Spears And Michael Jackson To Write Parenting Book"
"Obama Comes Clean: "Im An Elitist, Ultra-Liberal.."
"Mccaine vows to remain celibate"

If I really had a lot of spare time, I'd probably write fake news reports for each one of these. The stories probably wouldn't be all that more wacky than some of what gets published in tabloids nowadays.

Neither Here Nor There

2008-07-19T11:16:00.003-04:00

Ever wonder what it would be like if the U.S. had facebook during the civil war? here it is
The Fraser Institute has an interesting article titled The State of Economic Freedom in the World. The top countries were Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, and Switzerland. The U.S., Canada, and the U.K were tied for fifth. The least economically free country was said to be Zimbabwe.
Douglas Wilson's satirical novel Evangellyfish now has a website
John Piper has something to say on Why God Doesn't Fully Explain Pain
Some Canadians, such as I, think Henry Morgantaler should not get the Order of Canada. However, that said, this article over at Liberty in Canada might even have a better idea. Why not abolish the Order of Canada award all together?

Calvin on The Use of God's Beautiful Gifts

2008-07-12T19:42:00.002-04:00

Just recently I posted an excerpt from The Golden Booklet of the True Christian Life" (which is a translation of a part of John Calvin's Institutes of Christian Religion. Here is a second excerpt. It is from the chapter titled "The Right Use of the Present Life" from a subsection called "Earthly things are a gift of God".

"1. The first principle we should consider is that the use of the gifts of God cannot be wrong, if they are directed to the same purpose for which the Creator himself has created and destined for them. For he has made the earthly blessings for our benefit, and not for our harm. No one, therefore will observe a more proper rule than he who will faithfully observe this purpose.

2. If we study for instance, why he has created the various kinds of food, we shall find that it was his intention not only to provide for our needs, but likewise for our pleasure and for our delight. In clothing he did not only keep in mind our needs, but also propriety and decency. In herbs, trees, and fruit, besides being useful in various ways, he planned to please us by their gracious lines and pleasant odors. For if this were not true, the psalmist would not enumerate among the divine blessings "the wine that makes glad the heart of man, and the oil that makes his face to shine." (Ps. 104:15) And the Scriptures would not declare everywhere that he has given all these things to mankind that they might praise his goodness

3. Even the natural properties of things sufficiently point out to what purpose and to what extent we are allowed to use them. Should the Lord have attracted our eyes to the beauty of the flowers and our sense of smell to pleasant odors, and should it then be sin to drink them in? Has he not even made the colors so that the one is more wonderful than the other? Has he not granted to gold and silver, to ivory and marble a beauty which makes them more precious than other metals or stones? In one word, has he not made many things worthy of our attention that go far beyond our needs (Ps. 104:15)?"

On the Lighter Side...An NHL Delinquent

2008-07-12T19:39:00.003-04:00

One of the favorite Canadian pastimes is hockey. The National Hockey League has had its share of heroes, but also some "interesting" characters. Known as "The Missing Link", Link Gaetz was one of them. The blonde defensemen was born in 1968 (that might explain something?) in Vancouver, BC.

I guess you could sort of see Link as a cross between Jim Morrison and Mike Tyson.

The General Manager of the Minnesota North Stars had this to say about drafting Mr. Gaetz: "In the first round we drafted Mike Modano to protect the franchise. In the second round we drafted Link to protect Mike and in the third round we drafted a lawyer to protect Link." He was was a "defenseman", but it seems he spent a little bit more time on the offense so to speak. In only 65 games in the NHL he collected 412 penalty minutes. That is quite remarkable because it would normally take the average player over 20 games just to PLAY 400 minutes!!! He spent the equivalent of a game in the penalty box for every goal he scored. But his NHL penalty minutes were nothing compared to what he "accomplished" in the CHL. In the 1994-1995 season with the San Antonio Iguanas, he earned 156 penalty minutes in just 13 games, averaging well over 10 penalty minutes a game (keep in mind the typical game is only 60 minutes!). And in an obscure Canadian league, he earned 68 penalty minutes in one shift!!!

Link may also have been the only hockey player ever suspended for leaving the game during an intermission to get a vendor hamburger. But more seriously, he terrorized the teams he played for in various ways: apparently smashing cars, beating up his teammates, taking over the food preparation activities of local restaurants, etc. He even sucker punched one of his coaches after that coach had refused to bail him out of jail for an evening.

Eventually his major baggage (and injuries) led NHL teams to avoid Link and he spent his time playing in a variety of different leagues such as the CHL, AHL, IHL, etc. It seems the coach never needed to bench Link, he was quite efficient at doing it himself. If there ever was a "shameless goon" in hockey, it was Link. There are honorable hockey players, and it seems even some goons have had somewhat of a sense of honor, but unfortunately Link wasn't close to being one of them.

The Gospel Is Not A Doctrine of the Tongue

2008-07-06T21:33:00.000-04:00

The Swiss theologian John Calvin is much maligned by his critics. Though his name has become a reproachful byword in some circles, the simple fact is that very few of Calvin's most vocal critics have bothered to read his writings in any depth. As with any human interpreter, of course, he is a fallible interpreter and should be read with discernment and compared with the scriptures. Whatever you may think about his various ideas, one thing is clear: The eager student of the Bible can gain much by perusing his works. His insights are very often compact, piercing, thorough, and sometimes quite witty!

There's a short booklet called "Golden Booklet of the True Christian Life", which is an English translation of a portion of Calvin's Institutes. The excerpt I'm sharing has to do with the insufficiency of external Christianity.

"Let us ask those who possess nothing but church membership, and yet want to be called Christians, how they can glory in the sacred name of Christ? For no one has any communion with Christ but he who has received the true knowledge of him from the word of the gospel. The apostle denies that anyone actually knows Christ who has not learned to put off the old man, corrupt with deceitful lusts, and to put on Christ. External knowledge of Christ is found to be only a false and dangerous make-believe, however eloquently and freely lip servants may talk about the gospel. The gospel is not a doctrine of the tongue, but of life."

Eric Raymond on The Demonization of Masculinity

2008-06-30T21:00:00.007-04:00

Eric S. Raymond has an interesting post about the demonization of masculinity that is occurring in Western culture. Conservative Christians have been pointing at this trend for many years, but I find it especially interesting coming from Eric, who I believe is an agnostic.

The context of his thoughts are specifically related to a news article about how a bricklayer saw a toddler walking alone, but didn't stop to help the kid because of the way an adult males is generally suspected in everything he does with a young child. And that unassisted child ended up falling into a pond and died!

Just take a look at the latest movies and how men in general and husbands in specific are portrayed and you will see the way which feminism and other societal forces have distorted the perception of what it means to be a man. One of the most hurtful legacies of feminism is found in the essential defining propositions of radical feminism: "Men are bad...and women should be just like them."

Here are some quotes from Eric's post that I found to be very accurate in their assessment of what is generally going on:

"Men are designed to protect women and children, specialized for it; in a very basic biological sense it’s what we’re for. But the modern West bombards men with the message that their specialty isn’t needed, isn’t wanted, and that they’re assumed to want to prey on women and children."

"Is it any wonder, then, that young men are increasingly opting out of college, that the percentage of adult males never married is also rising, and that in the 21st century many men seem to want to opt out of responsibility altogether? When our instititions equate feminization with virtue and masculinity with evil, this is exactly the outcome we should expect."

Could it be that our culture's fear of the worst sort of men sometimes causes good, honest, and moral men to feel like they are useless, unneeded, inept, suspect, dangerous, etc.? And furthermore, to feel like we are unable to be of assistance to this world in ways that we were created to be helpful in? Does fear sometimes take our society to extremes (ie. the implicit distrust of masculinity in general) that are perhaps harmful?

Neither Here Nor There

2008-06-21T12:56:00.011-04:00

The majority of conservatives don't understand the nuances of their own heritage of liberty enough to understand why it is desirable to extend habeas corpus to suspected terrorists. Instead they support using tactics of the sort that are more in character with Islamic extremist governments than a free Western democracy/constitutional republic. This is to their own peril. Freedom means NOTHING if it only applies to unsuspected individuals. The test of whether we have freedom or not boils down to how we are treated when we are suspected (but not yet proven) to be in the wrong. The importance of treating these suspected terrorists carefully becomes important since these alleged combatants are not clearly marked out like they were in previous wars (ie. with enemy uniform). It is very hard to distinguish who's who in guerilla and other non-conventional wars. Giving the president, a general, or soliders, the power to arbitrarily arrest and detain someone in an undefined never-ending war and never having to present evidence is the essence of totalitarianism and dictorial powers. There is much misinformation being passed round that is painting sending suspected terrorists to courts as a concession to the terrorists. This couldn't be further from the truth. Here some links from a libertarian perspective on the Habeas Corpus issue: Habeas Corpus: The Lynchpin of Freedom, Libertarian Party asks McCain 'What's so wrong with habeas corpus?',
Douglas Wilson speaks of the U.S. election and the choice between Disaster A and Disaster B
Tim Challies has an interesting aspect of the Proverbs 31 women which we probably don't usually think about: her entrepreneurial skills.

School Stuff

2008-06-20T14:10:00.001-04:00

I'm about halfway through my Reasoning Skills course, and I'm about to write the final for Economics I. I'm carrying a B- in Economics I and an A+ in Reasoning Skills.

Also, I've recently registered for Fall semester classes. The classes I chose are:

Introduction to Western Philosophy - An introduction to philosophy through the study of major figures and movements in the Western philosophical tradition.

Introduction to Psychology as a Behavioural Science - Introduction to selected areas in psychology including learning, perception, physiological psychology, emotion, and motivation.

Once I complete the Fall semester, I plan to be 1/5th of the way towards my B.A.! Timing will slow down once I get into the higher-level courses, mainly because it looks like most of those classes are never offered at night school or distance education.

The Right of Property

2008-06-13T23:04:00.006-04:00

What follows is a summarization of Francis Wayland's views on property rights. It is based on Book 2 of his "Elements of Moral Science". He was an American Baptist educator.

1. The right of property is the right to use something in the manner that one chooses, providing it does not deprive ones neighbor's rights. Hence, property rights are exclusive rights.

2. God owns all things and he has the right to confer property on others. The basis for the existence of property rights is the will of God, which is made known through natural conscience, general consequences, and revelation.

3. Made known through natural conscience: From youth, manifested in appropriation, control, guilt, etc. From possessive pronouns found in all languages. The sense of wrong doing with stealing, etc.

4. Made known through general consequences: It is necessary for productivity. It is necessary for provision. It is necessary for advance of civilization and survival of humans.

5. Made known through revelation: The Bible acknowledges property, directs its precepts against violation of property rights, etc.

6. Direct ways of acquiring property: A. Immediate gift of God or B. By working.

7. Indirect ways of acquiring property: A. By exchange, B. By gift, C. By will arrangements, D. By inheritance without a will arrangement, E. By possession, which is to say acquiring something without any direct moral right to it, yet being the only one able to posses it for practical reasons.

Maybe We Should Read Like This

2008-06-12T11:52:00.002-04:00

"If we consider men and women apart from their professions or occupations, there is only one situation I can think of in which they almost pull themselves up by their bootstraps, making an effort to read better than they usually do. When they are in love and are reading a love letter, they read for all they are worth. They read every word three ways; they read between the lines and in the margins; they read the whole in terms of the parts, and each part in terms of the whole; they grow sensitive to context and ambiguity, to insinuation and implication; they perceive the color of words, the odor of phrases, and the weight of sentences. They may even take the punctuation into account. Then, if never before or after, they read." - Mortimer J. Adler

Neither Here Nor There

2008-06-10T08:59:00.000-04:00

Tim Challies has posted about 9 things he's learned from the DVD set "Planet Earth". I've watched it myself and would agree that both the films themselves and the lessons Tim has extracted from them are wonderful!
Linda Schrock Taylor's recent article, Dear Parents, About Reading Skills… has some helpful and specific advice for parents of young children regarding writing, spelling, and writing. One particular emphasis is the benefit of reading books aloud to children.
Apparently X-ray vision to see through clothes is no longer just the domain of comic book advertisements appealing to young teenage boys!
Huckabee, former presidential candidate, is starting to show his colors. In a recent interview, he's indicated that libertarianism is a great threat to his vision of Republicanism, even more of a threat than liberalism! He called libertarianism a "heartless, callous, soulless" form of economic conservatism. Thanks to Code Monkey Ramblings for pointing out the interview and also providing a helpful critique. My thoughts? Sorry Mr. Huckabee, I've seen enough of "compassionate conservatism" to know that I'd rather have "heartless, callous, soulless" libertarianism.
Kim Riddlebarger provides us with a fascinating glance at how deeply many Christians are enamored with Israel. He provides some questions that the "Jerusalem Prayer Team" poses to judge whether your church is sufficiently supportive enough of Israel and then provides some thoughtful (and I'd say humorous) responses. The list is absolutely insane. According to the Jerusalem Prayer Team, if your church doesn't have an Israeli flag, it just might mean that your church "refuses to believe the Bible, and rejects God’s Eternal promises to the House of Israel"!!!! We Reformed Christians laugh at these things, but some of these people are dead serious about this stuff! Kim's answers are great! I love his answer to the Israeli flag question: "Sorry, there are no flags in our sanctuary--no Israeli flag, no American flag, no Christian flag"

They Didn't Get The Memo About The Helicopters

2008-05-30T12:51:00.003-04:00

A completely uncontacted Indian tribe has been spotted in the Amazon. In full body paint! They fired arrows at a helicopter! I find this fascinating. If only I could know what would go through their minds when they see a helicopter. Apparently they didn't get the memo about the helicopters.

The 6:7 Project: An Introduction

2008-05-26T17:11:00.003-04:00

I'm planning a series of Bible studies in an interesting format. The idea is that I will do blog posts on verse seven of chapter six of every book in the Bible. This is not any sort of weird numerology, but rather "stratified sampling". One way of understanding large amounts of information is by taking small, regular bits of the information and studying them very carefully.

This approach to Bible study was elucidated by famed computer scientist and mathematician Donald Knuth in some Bible studies he directed, and the book he eventually published, "3:16". He also discusses it in-depth in the lectures, "Things A Computer Scientist Rarely Thinks About". Knuth developed studies looking into verse 16 of every chapter 3 in the Bible.

The method has its flaws, but by thoroughly studying around 60 verses spaced throughout the Bible, you get a pretty good idea of what is going on. And you are forced to study context, related verses, and background information! I certainly wouldn't suggest studying this way exclusively, but it is a pretty neat practice and can be actually quite helpful! It forces one to look at some verses that would normally be overlooked.

When Donald Knuth did the 3:16 studies, he admitted that it was sort of rigged. He knew that there is at least one 3:16 passage that is very well known. Well, for my attempt, I've decided to do verse 7 of chapter 6, which is quite random. I can't think of any famous 6:7 verses.

I'm going to try to do one blog post per week which covers a new book of the Bible's 6:7, starting with Genesis 6:7.

New U.S. Libertarian Party Candidate Announced

2008-05-25T20:52:00.003-04:00

This just in, Bob Barr, the former Republican congressmen of Georgia will be the Libertarian Party candidate in the U.S. elections.

Don't Drive a SUV, Fly a Private Jet

2008-05-23T14:10:00.004-04:00

Or so the irony goes. On a somewhat related note, this Mr. Fish cartoon vividly portrays the irony in some of the methods used by some environmental activists. I don't want to discount all activism, but this just shows that there ARE blind spots. And sometimes the people that most furiously fight a problem are also part of that problem.

Wildlife Identification Help

2008-05-22T21:46:00.004-04:00

Over the years, there's been quite a few animals/plants that I've seen, but have subsequently remained unidentified. I have pictures of them, but am puzzled as to their ID. I'm wondering if someone may be able to assist me. I would greatly appreciate it. Some of these are really bugging me.

A flamingo-ish heron-ish bird from Cayo Coco, Cuba
A sort of ordinary-looking grey bird from Shenandoah Valley, Virginia
Some sort of moth
And a few mushrooms: this one, these ones, these ones and these ones.
Some sort of shrew or vole, DOA
The skin of some sort of Cuban snake from Cayo Largo. Perhaps some sort of grass snake? I'm not sure it will ever be able to be identified. But I'm hoping some Cuban snake expert who knows about Cayo Largo's snakes will happen to read this!

I'm sure there are some more. And there are a number of un-IDed creatures that I haven't listed here, because I simply haven't even looked into them yet and am thinking they may be easy to identify.

Lots of Wildlife This Weekend

2008-05-19T22:37:00.005-04:00

This long weekend was a pretty good one for checking out wildlife!!

Here's a few animals I saw (at Ojibway & Brunet Park):

Agelaius phoeniceus - Red-winged blackbird (many)
Archilochus colubris - Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Branta canadensis - Canada Geese
Carduelis tristis - American Goldfinch
Cardinalis cardinalis - Northern Cardinal
Cyanocitta cristata - Blue Jay
Icterus galbula - Baltimore Oriole (3)
Melanerpes carolinus - Red-bellied Woodpecker
Parus bicolor - Tufted Titmouse
Passerina cyanea - Indigo Bunting
Poecile atricapilla - Black-capped chickadee
Picoides pubescens - Downy Woodpecker
Sitta carolinensis - White-breasted nuthatch
Turdus migratorius - American Robin (many)
Sialia sialis - Eastern Bluebird
Zenaida macroura - Mourning Dove (many)
Quiscalus quiscula - Common Grackle
Elaphe gloydi - Eastern foxsnake (large adult)
Cicindela sexguttata - Six-spotted Tiger Beetle (many)
Nymphalis antiopa antiopa - Mourning Cloak Butterfly

Well-Known People From This Area

2008-05-19T19:01:00.009-04:00

Windsor

Paul Martin - Former Prime Minister of Canada
Alexander 'Skip' Spence - Rock musician with Jefferson Airplane and Moby Grape (born in Windsor)
Shania Twain - 5-time Grammy winning singer/songwriter (born in Windsor)
Garth Hudson - Keyboardist/Organist for The Band, played at Woodstock (born in Windsor)
John Swainson - Former governor of Michigan (born in Windsor)
Jeff Burrows and Jeff Martin - Members of The Tea Party (born in Windsor)
Mike Lazaridis - Founder of Research In Motion (born in Windsor)
Joel Quenneville - Former NHL player and coach (born in Windsor)
Bob Probert - Former NHL player (born in Windsor)
Ed Jovanovski - Former NHL player (born in Windsor)
Hiram Walker - Famous distiller of whiskey (born in Windsor)
Thomas LaSorda - Chrysler CEO (born in Windsor)
Ron Wilson - Former NHL hockey player & coach (born in Windsor)
Marty Gervais - Poet and publisher (born in Windsor)
Eddie Mio - Former NHL player (born in Windsor)
Sean Burke - Former NHL player (born in Windsor)
Steve Bacic - Actor (raised in Windsor)
Richard Peddie - CEO of Toronto Maple Leafs and Pilsbury Canada (went to school in Windsor)
Alistair MacLeod - Writer (resident of Windsor)
Barbara Gowdy - Novelist (born in Windsor)

LaSalle

Andy Delmore - Hockey player (born in LaSalle)
Marc Reaume - Former NHL hockey player (born in LaSalle)

Kingsville

Meghan Agosta - Canadian Women's ice hockey player (born in Ruthven)

Belle River

Tie Domi - Former NHL hockey player (born in Windsor, grew up in Belle River)

Tecumseh

Tim Kerr - Former NHL hockey player who had four 50-goal seasons (born in Windsor, grew up in Tecumseh)

Leamington

Darren McCarty - NHL hockey player (born in Leamington)
David Suzuki - Environmental activist (spent some of his childhood in Leamington)

Chatham-Kent

Robertson Davies - 20th century novelist & playright, wrote 11 novels (born in Thamesville
Ferguson Jenkins - Hall of fame Baseball pitcher (born in Chatham)
James Couzens -U.S. senator, V.P. of Ford Motor Company, Mayor of Detroit (born in Chatham)
Dave Gagner - Former NHL hockey player
Michelle Wright - Country singer (born in Chatham)

I'm sure I probably missed quite a few.. There's probably more people on here than one might expect. However, if you removed athletes and musicians, this wouldn't be that large of a list.

A Quote About Homeland Security

2008-05-16T23:50:00.006-04:00

"Liberty is our best homeland security" (A quote from the governer of South Carolina, Mark Sanford)

It was stated in the context of pressure from the federal government for states to enforce the REAL ID act.

So far Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Washington, Maine, and Utah have registered some sort of official opposition to this act.

The Revolution: A Best Seller

2008-05-16T23:33:00.003-04:00

A Ron Paul book has made it to #1 on the New York Times bestseller list for hardcover non-fiction. I'm impressed!

The Wit of Milton Friedman on the Draft

2008-05-16T17:46:00.003-04:00

The General William Westmoreland, commander of all U.S. troops in Vietnam was testifying before a commission. In arguing against replacing the compulsory draft with voluntary service, the General argued that he didn't want to command an army of mercenaries.

Milton Friedman then interrupted and said, "General, would you rather command an army of slaves?",

The General replied, "I don't like to hear our patriotic draftees referred to as slaves."

Milton Friedman then retorted, "I don't like to hear our patriotic volunteers referred to as mercenaries. If they are mercenaries, then I, sir, am a mercenary professor, and you, sir, are a mercenary general; we are served by mercenary physicians, we use a mercenary lawyer, and we get our meat from a mercenary butcher."

McStatism: The Legacy of John McCain

2008-05-15T11:41:00.033-04:00

A few thoughts on John McCain as president.. (with the understanding that the two other resident statists aren't viable options)

Can anyone say Machiavelli Junior?
He's voted to reauthorize the PATRIOT act and extend its wiretapping provisions. As if it didn't have enough spying provisions already!
He voted against having the CIA report to a congressional committee every 3 months regarding its activity (S 3930). And his views on the accountability of his presidency are probably quite similar.
In May 2005, he jointly introduced a immigration bill allowing nearly all of the estimated 12 to 20 million illegal immigrants to become permanent U.S. citizens (nothing against immigration on my side here, but it's a curious move for someone who wants to build walls at keep illegals out). Ostensibly, these immigrants will re-elect Mr. McCain.
He's said of Hillary Clinton: "I am sure that Senator Clinton would make a good President." By saying that he either demonstrates a lack of sense (for believing such an outrageous thing) or dignity (for saying such a thing even though he doesn't believe it)
He's voted against tax cuts in 2001 and 2003, and he's known for touting a spooky "wage insurance" plan (the basic idea being that if you lose your job and get paid less, the government tops up the difference)
Does this sound familiar?: “We are fast becoming a nation of alienating individualists, unwilling to put the unifying values of patriotism ahead of our narrow self-interests”. No confusing this man with Ayn Rand, that's for sure!
John McCain said of Osama Bin Laden: "I will follow him to the gates of hell". Some of us, however, would rather not follow him there. This quote is characteristic of McCain's tendency toward one-dimensional enthusiasm. Tenacious, but perhaps a bit over-tenacious?
In the words of Douglas Wilson: irascibility is not the same thing as conservatism
He's supported energy tax bills and "mandatory curbs on greenhouse gas emissions". This is something somewhat new for McCain. Perhaps he needs the "green vote"?
He's been touting junk science.
His campaign finance bill was found to be an unconstitutional infringement of the First Amendment. The response was akin to "The 1st ammendment ain't that good anyway". He said “I would rather have a clean government than one where quote ‘First Amendment rights’ are being respected that has become corrupt.” Or maybe Mr. McCain has just misidentified the cause of corruption. It certainly isn't political contributions in and of themselves, but perhaps is what comes after the contributions, like what Mr. McCain is quite experienced in! The good ol' boy wink and nod.
He advocates a Nanny-State.
McCain spoke out against the Sudanese government, but while he did that his wife had $2 worth of mutal funds that had some holdings in Sudan. And of course they promptly sold it once the media got the info. Is this what McCain means when he says he wants to use "stiff diplomatic and economic pressure" on Sudan? Perhaps he should advocate a Sudan embargo? Oh wait.. that's reserved for Cuba.
He was involved in the Keating Five Scandal of the 1980's, an association which lined his pockets. Most of McCain's speeches about corrupt corporate money could refer to what he has been involved in
He is known to use federal agencies (FCC, etc.) to threaten people who refuse to support his initiatives.
He supports Bush's doctrine of pre-emptive war, has no problem with staying in Iraq for 100 years if casualties are low, etc.
In the word's of Lew Rockwell, he is "more statist on both domestic and foreign policy than even the typical Republican"

Whether a few of these points are negative or positive is genuinely debatable. But they do add up to a big deal. McCain, Obama, Clinton. Any way you roll the dice, guess who get's to pay the price? Baring a miracle in Ron Paul's favor, I tip my hat to my American friends as they face some more years of statism.

I hate to be so hard on an individual. But when one puts themselves in the public limelight and claims to have special competency towards leading a country (as John McCain so emphatically pronounces), there ought to be a bit of scrutiny.

If I had the choice of the three musketeers (McCain, Obama, or Clinton), I'd chose an emphatic NONE OF THE ABOVE. If it involved a gun to my head, I'd deliberate a bit and probably vote McCain with my fingers crossed behind my back. But really, for all the big noise that is made about this political race, we know at least three things that will happen regardless of whether Obama, Hillary, or McCain get the job: 1. The size of government will grow. 2. The USA (and the Western world with it) will continue to dig themselves into a financial hole and practice bad stewardship. 3. The USA will continue to have an aggressive, interventionist foreign policy. They differ on other issues, but on those 3 issues they are all generally agreed.

My advice to my fellow evangelical brothers and sisters is this: Don't be afraid to abstain from picking any of the musketeers. It is not letting the other side win or shirking your responsibility. Nowhere in the Bible are you instructed to select "the lesser evil" when performing your civic duties. Is "He Ain't Hillary" or "He Ain't Obama" enough of a basis to cast an affirmative vote for an individual? If so, things don't look too bright for the future. It would mean that any buffoon who writes "Republican" beside his name will be elected (or close to elected) just because he isn't a Democrat.

If you can vote for McCain with a clear conscience because he takes the right stand on some of the other issues, more power to you! I hope my fears about him prove to be wrong!!!! Just watch out though, because there is a great incentive for politicians to pose as social conservatives. And many of them do! Possibly even two or more that ran for the Republican nomination this year. The Right has been betrayed by many posers, and so has the Religious Right. The real "payload" comes in a few years when these posers NEITHER give you social conservatism NOR sound policy in other areas. If a politician is very pragmatic and tosses his positions to the wind, he will abandon social conservatism the minute it isn't to his advantage. But at that point it becomes too late, he is voted in and additionally he receives the "moral authority" of your vote!

In my opinion (and I grant it is a fairly controversial one), I'd rather let "the lesser evil" get in without my vote (hence, if done in large numbers, calling into question the validity and moral authority of the candidates election). Perhaps McCain could prove me wrong and turn out to be a good president. From what I've seen so far, I wouldn't put my chips on that one. U.S. politics is so nasty that even a GOOD start is hardly enough (let alone going into office with a long rap sheet to begin with!)

Alas! That's my perspective as a Canadian, libertarian, evangelical Christian, disenfranchised-right-winger-but-not-left-winger-either. If you've made it this far, I take it you must be fairly open minded. Or you're just planning a refutation! I grant other people may have different thoughts and have some good reasons for them! All I ask from you is that you understand that it is INDEED possible to reject McCain without by definition condoning the other musketeers. None of the above is a valid option! Especially when the roster contains the likes of Hillary-Obama-McCain.

Luther on Devaluating Currency

2008-05-13T12:02:00.005-04:00

"Today we may apply the Apostle's words [Romans 2:2-3] first to those who without cogent cause inflict exorbitant taxes upon the people, or by changing and devaluating the currency, rob them, while at the same time they accuse their subjects of being greedy and avaricious." - Martin Luther in the Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans

Neither Here Nor There

2008-05-11T15:56:00.005-04:00

Happy Mother's day to all you mom's out there!
Douglas Wilson's book, Five Cities That Ruled the World looks intriguing. It should be out in April 2009.
Cubans are now allowed to own personal computers. Internet access is still limited to certain locations, though.
There's an intriguing story about how a Mac user used remote access to catch the person that stole their laptop
Have you heard of the controversy surrounding Mark Steyn?

Human Biology Meets Electoral Politics

2008-05-10T22:21:00.005-04:00

Mr. Fish once again has crafted a witty cartoon that strikes to the core of what electoral politics is all about.

These are a few of my favorite things..

2008-05-10T12:54:00.002-04:00

Douglas Groothuis listed 20 of his favorite things, so I thought I'd make up a list too, but with 31 items. They are in no particular order

1. My nephews/nieces, my mom, and my siblings!
2. Linux (Ubuntu) and the success of Open Source / Free Software
3. Biking or walking on a nice day
4. Book of the Bible: Psalms
5. Liberty
6. 5 Solas (Reformed Theology)
7. 5 Albums (Music from the Big Pink, American Beauty, Workingman's Dead, Deja Vu, Ballad of Easy Rider)
8. Games: Chess, Scrabble, and Sudoku
9. Wildlife
10. Answered prayer
11. Website: LibraryThing.com
12. Sports: hockey, soccer, basketball, volleyball, baseball
13. Mom's cooking & baking
14. Serbian Patriarch: Mateja Nenadovic
15. Beaches
16. Kind women with smiles
17. Books, Bookstores & Libraries
18. The Lord's Day services, particularly at Grace Baptist
19. The London Baptist Confession of Faith
20. Vacation Place: Cuba
21. Restaurant: Bubi's
22. Weekends
23. The Python programming language
24. Author: Francis Schaeffer
25. American politician: Ron Paul
26. Actor: Peter Sellers
27. Wine, Beer, Rum, and Whiskey
28. Spicy food
29. Hot Sauce: Trinidad Style Hot Sauce
30. God's grace
31. Laughter

The Nenadovic Perspective on Russian Wine

2008-05-07T17:45:00.003-04:00

"They brought us a mug of wine each and we all drank to the health of our leader and commander of all the Serbs, each from his own mug! (But what wretched wine! It was red, it is true, but fell to the bottom like tartar; and at the bottom of each mug were to or three little hard balls; when he brought it to us our host shook it up to make it red, but of the warmth of real wine, not a trace!)"

Quote from "The Memoirs of Prota Matija Nenadovic", edited and translated from the Serbian by Lovett F. Edwards. Oxford At The Clarendon press, 1969.

Neither Here Nor There

2008-05-04T19:29:00.004-04:00

John Frame's new book should be out in June. It looks intriguing!
Among Librivox's new audiobook offerings are Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey (a Western set in Mormon-country) and Aphorisms by Oscar Wilde
LibraryThing just keeps on improving

The Nenadovic Style of Wine Drinking

2008-05-01T21:10:00.004-04:00

The Nenadovic Style of Wine Drinking, Or, How To Impress Your Parish With Your Temperance.

"Then my father took a large glass filled with wine and, after drinking two fingers' depth from it, said to me: 'In your first year, when you go about the parish, drink only so much from every glass that is offered to you, and in your second year so much', and he again sipped a little wine. 'In your third year you can drink half the glass. Only in your fourth and fifth years can you drink the glass to the bottom and by that time all your parishioners will remember your first years and will all say: Our priest hardly drinks anything!'"

Quote from "The Memoirs of Prota Matija Nenadovic", edited and translated from the Serbian by Lovett F. Edwards. Oxford At The Clarendon press, 1969.

Rebelling Against The Rebellion

2008-04-29T22:53:00.014-04:00

"It was certainly Robbie [Robertson] whose vision determined the nature of Big Pink's cover. Keen to make a visual statement that would set [The Band] apart from the incendiary, post-Flower Power mood of 1968, he hit on the idea of Landy's photographing the band together with their families up in Ontario. 'We were rebelling against the rebellion,' he says. 'If everybody was going east, then we were going west. It wasn't like we even discussed it, there was this kind of ingrained thing from us all along. It was an instinct to separate ourselves from the pack.' For Robbie, the spectacle of Jim Morrison...was not shocking but merely faddish. Nor was he prepared to jump on any anti-American bandwagon. 'I never ran around with flags on my car or anything, but I think that America has given me the opportunity to do something I was very appreciative of.' Like so many immigrants, this outsider was far more reactionary than the angry sons and daughters of the establishment of the time. In a year when the time was right for violent revolution, The Band was about to release the oddly plaintive, explicitly conservative 'Tears of Rage'."

From Across the Great Divide: The Band And America by Barney Hoskyns, p165

(By the way, here's the photo that appeared on the album and proved to be a revolutionary statement of non-revolution, consciously associating themselves with what the masses were distancing themselves from)

Saturday's Words

2008-04-26T10:31:00.000-04:00

Serbian:

mlade - young
pisati - write
misliti - think

German:

bahnhof - train station
danken - to thank
lieben - to love

Spanish:

alto - tall
pobre - poor
oeste - west

English

rotund - plump and rounded
augar - to predict from signs

10 Quotes Worth Considering

2008-04-22T22:00:00.003-04:00

"Focus is a matter of deciding what things you're not going to do." -- John Carmack

"It's hard enough to find an error in your code when you're looking for it; it's even harder when you've assumed your code is error-free." -- Steve McConnell

"Perhaps the fact that we have seen millions voting themselves into complete dependence on a tyrant has made our generation understand that to choose one's government is not necessarily to secure freedom." -- Friedrich Hayek

"Facts per se can neither prove nor refute anything. Everything is decided by the interpretation and explanation of the facts, by the ideas and the theories." -- Ludwig Von Mises

"For all the saber-rattling conservatives can do when it comes to fighting backward nations with high-tech weaponry, when it comes to an issue that might require actual courage from them, they are to use a military term, AWOL." -- Douglas Wilson

"It is becoming more and more obvious, that it is not starvation, not microbes, not cancer but man himself who is mankind's greatest danger" -- Carl Jung

"Those who do not have swords may still die upon them." -- J.R. Tolkien

"Any reviewer who expresses rage and loathing for a novel is preposterous. He or she is like a person who has put on full armor and attacked a hot sundae." -- Kurt Vonnegut

"Being right too soon is socially unacceptable. " -- Robert A. Heinlein

"Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself; but talent instantly recognizes genius" -- Sherlock Holmes

Prota Matija Nenadovic On Death

2008-04-20T22:14:00.001-04:00

"As an oak-tree of many years, which lightnings and tempests have not brought to the ground, begins of itself to wither and to lose branch after branch, and declines even nearer to its end, so, my dear children, I also, whom the guns and the sabres of the enemy have happily passed by, and whom mortal illnesses have spared, now feel that my body, according to the eternal laws of nature, grows daily weaker and approaches even closer to the grave."

Quote from "The Memoirs of Prota Matija Nenadovic", edited and translated from the Serbian by Lovett F. Edwards. Oxford At The Clarendon press, 1969.

100 Authors (You Ought to Read)

2008-04-20T16:47:00.005-04:00

In no particular order. Also, the appearance of an author on this list doesn't mean I necessarily condone all their ideas. Some of these authors should be read with caution, and all of them read with a critical eye and a good dose of discernment.

1. Francis Schaeffer
2. O.S. Guinness
3. Mark Twain
4. John Bunyan
5. William Shakespeare
6. Leo Tolstoy
7. Ayn Rand
8. Kurt Vonnegut
9. Douglas Wilson
10. P.G. Wodhouse
11. G.K. Chesterton
12. Robert A. Heinlein
13. Fyodor Dostoevsky
14. Bill Bryson
15. Greg Bahnsen
16. Cornelius Van Til
17. Jane Austen
18. Henry David Thoreau
19. Richard Baxter
20. Augustine
21. John Calvin
22. Daniel Defoe
23. James White
24. Arthur Conan Doyle
25. Elisabeth Elliot
26. Joshua Harris
27. Milton Friedman
28. Murray Rothbard
29. Douglas Groothuis
30. Aldous Huxley
31. Donald Knuth
32. Jack Kerouac
33. John Macarthur
34. Alister McGrath
35. Ludwig Von Mises
36. Leon Morris
37. John Stott
38. William Mounce
39. Ian Murray
40. John Piper
41. William Mitchell Ramsey
42. Bertrant Russell
43. Edith Schaeffer
44. Rafael Sabatini
45, Dr. Seuss
46. I.F. Stone
47. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
48. R.C. Sproul
49. Geerhardus Vos
50. C.H. Spurgeon
51. Samuel Waldron
52. H.G. Wells
53. R.J. Rushdoony
54. Sigmund Freud
55. Harold Bloom
56. Albert Martin
57. Frederic Bastiat
58. Ayaan Hirsi Ali
59. Francis Bacon
60. Mikhail Bulgakov
61. Nathan Wilson
62. Jim Rogers
63. Bram Stoker
64. Rudyard Kipling
65. Alan Jacobs
66. Peter Leithart
67. Eric S. Raymond
68. Plato
69. Gordon Korman
70. Robert Lord
71. Jack Hodgins
72. Johnathan Edwards
73. Jerome Tuccille
74. John Murray
75. Stewart Tendler
76. Robert Stone
77. J Gresham Machen
78. Ishmael Beah
79. John Owen
80. Gordon H. Clark
81. Albert Camus
82. R. B. Kuiper
83. Herbert Zim
84. George Grossmith
85. J. I. Packer
86. Fritz Molden
87. Rene Descartes
88. Sun Tzu
89. John Blanchard
90. Jon Steinbeck
91. Ray Bradbury
92. Immanuel Kant
93. Ian Wilson
94. George Orwell
95. Jim West
96. Alan Watts
97. Adrian Conan Doyle
98. Gracia Burnham
99. Ravi Zacharias
100. Jerry Bridges

Now I will sit back and wait for people to point out the glaring ommisions!

Weekend Tidbits

2008-04-19T16:33:00.003-04:00

This cartoon by Mr. Fish at Harper's Magazine sums up the climate of recent U.S. Politics well.
A new book is out soon. It is from a debate between Douglas Wilson and Christopher Hitchens on the question "Is Christianity Good for the World?".
I've used craigslist before, and there are bizare things listed on there, but I've never imaged it would be used in murder-for-hire

Review of "Letters of Francis Schaeffer"

2008-04-13T08:59:00.006-04:00

Letters of Francis Schaeffer by Lane T. Dennis

Normally I don't enjoy books of letters. For instance, I've read a book with letters from D. Martyn Lloyd Jones. Though I greatly respect that man and his ministry, and the letters certainly didn't diminish my respect for him, the letters made for banal reading. But this book is quite different. The letters are compelling and rich with content, not just run-of-the-mill correspondence. Schaeffer answers people in thoughtful, penetrating, and sometimes quite controversial ways. The overall theme is "Spiritual Reality".

Part One is "The Reawakening of Spiritual Reality'. These letters deal mainly with the controversies of Presbyterianism in the 1950's and Schaeffer's growing disenchantment with much of the "separated movement". Schaeffer's own personal crises is also brought up in some of these letters.

Part Two is "Spiritual Reality in Daily Living". Here we find letters to people, mainly former L'Abri students, who are struggling with sin, psychological problems, spiritual growth, health issues, the meaning of life, etc.

Part Three is "Spiritual Reality in Marriage, Family, and Sexual Relations". Here, as the title implies, the letters focus on marriage, relationships, family, and sex.

I'm impressed with these letters and throughout them you will find great "take home" tidbits (although some of them may seem quite familiar to you if you've read more than a couple of Schaeffer's books). Some of the letters are dated to the times they were written in, but that is to be fully expected in a book of letters. I've also learned a lot from his method of corresponding, and I feel I'm better equipped to respond to different situations myself. For these and many other reasons, I highly suggest that you check out this book! I don't necessarily agree with every single thing Schaeffer said, but then again, if I did that would be scary! I found the letters helpful, challenging, and found I could agree with the vast majority of what he says.

I do have one complaint. The book is filled with Schaeffer's apologies for not writing in a timely manner. It gets tedious after a while. I realize they are a genuine part of his correspondence and removing them would make the letters choppy and incomplete. But, still, they slow down the reader. Understandably, Schaeffer was a very busy man. Sometimes I wonder how he was able to manage this extensive correspondence! He lived from 1912 to 1984. He wrote over 20 books. He directed films. He ran L'Abri, a very busy ministry in Switzerland. He toured Europe and America. He had cancer. He had children with health concerns. But thank God he wrote these letters (both for the sake of those to whom they were addressed and for the sake of the people who read them now). And thank you, Lane T. Dennis, for editing such a great book!

(And thank you Ian for lending me this book!)

Is Throwing Away A CD Legal?

2008-04-10T21:45:00.003-04:00

In a binge of craziness, the Universal Music Group is arguing that music reviewers, radio stations, and DJs who throw away promo CDs are breaking the law! They actually believe that this qualifies as "an unauthorized distribution" that violates copyright law.

The actual quote is as follows:

"Alternatively, Augusto testified that 'a common way to dispose of them' is to give unsold promotional CD away, or he may throw them away. SUF 34. Both are unauthorized distributions."

Great Minds Buy The Same Books?

2008-04-05T08:40:00.004-04:00

LibraryThing has an excellent feature called "Legacy Libraries". It is a project in which people index the libraries of dead historical figures, where the contents of such libraries are known. You can then compare your library with theirs.

Here are some examples of overlap:

I share 6 books with John Adams.
I share 32 books with Walker Percy.
I share 9 books with Thomas Jefferson.
I share 37 books with Ernest Hemingway.

Friday Links Fest!

2008-04-04T12:09:00.001-04:00

Watch out for what is installed on your computer!! Key logging root kits are generating 18 million a quarter!
It looks like Peter Hitchens is taking on his brother Christopher
Abraham Piper posted 6 reasons why a pastor should blog (HT: Challies)
Bob Margolis has an article on John McCain's belligerent foreign policy
C.J. Maheny has interviewed Sinclair Ferguson
The cold war seems to be continuing. George Bush is pushing for the expansion of NATO to face the threat of Russia. Sounds familiar?

Why Minimum Wage Increases Don't Help..

2008-03-31T21:00:00.005-04:00

"There is only one way that leads to an improvement of the standard of living for the wage-earning masses, viz., the increase in the amount of capital invested. All other methods, however popular they may be, are not only futile, but are actually detrimental to the well-being of those they allegedly want to benefit." - Ludwig Von Mises (Austrian economist) in "Planning for Freedom"

No matter how much the government or unions attempt to raise wages, their efforts will be futile until the market supports such raises. Artificial wage raises (ie. wage raises not supported by actual market value) will always be evened off by layoffs and other factors.

Bertrand Russell: A Presuppositionalist?

2008-03-29T23:00:00.008-04:00

"All knowledge, we find, must be built up upon our instinctive beliefs. And if these are rejected, nothing is left." - Bertrand Russell in "The Problems of Philosophy"

Here, along with presuppositional Christian apologists, Russell sees that all thinking ultimately leads back to some more basic unproven assumptions. While obviously there is great disagreement about the details (particularly between Russell, and say, a theist), the basic consensus is that all reasoning is circular (for example: you can't successfully rationalize rationality). And hence, everyone can be taken to some unproven leaps of faith. Even rational people. But sometimes we act or pretend otherwise.

Christianity Without The Resurrection Is Useless

2008-03-29T19:58:00.004-04:00

You're probably quite familiar with how in I Corinthians 15:17, Apostle Paul shows that the Christian faith would be useless if Christ really didn't rise from the grave.

The Apostles did not mince their words. They brought a strong antithesis to the non-Christian thinking of their day. They didn't take the "safe" route. They staked their claims on a particular event, and laid everything on that one event. And most of them lost their lives because of their uncompromising dedication to the gospel. And in presenting that gospel, they did so even though they were keenly aware that the natural state of the people listening was such that the message would be rejected (even if they had witnessed the resurrection with their own eyes). But they counted on that way that God graciously works in the hearts of the hearers to open their hearts to the truths being proclaimed.

Some modern thinkers who reject the resurrection try to maintain that there still is some usefulness to Christianity even though they are rejecting a central tenant of it. They think it still has some social benefit or is useful for teaching morals. But they are wrong! If the resurrection never happened, then Christianity is useless and all Christians might as well become atheists. There is no benefit to a "resurrection-less" Christianity; it would be worse than worthless. It would be miserable. Apostle Paul essentially said that if we have Christianity without the resurrection, we are of all people most miserable. Without the core of its gospel, Christianity really has nothing to offer.

J. Gresham Machen spoke of this in "What Is Christianity?:

"...if the Christian religion is founded upon historical facts, then there is something in the Christian message which can never possibly change. There is one good thing about facts — they stay put. If a thing really happened, the passage of years can never possibly make it into a thing that did not happen. If the body of Jesus really emerged from the tomb on the first Easter morning, then no possible advance of science can change the fact one whit. The advance of science may conceivably show that the alleged fact was never a fact at all; it may conceivably show that the earliest Christians were wrong when they said that Christ rose from the dead the third day. But to say that that statement of fact was true in the first century, but that because of the advance of science it is no longer true — that is to say what is plainly absurd. The Christian religion is founded squarely upon a message that sets forth facts; if that message is false, then the religion that is founded on it must of course be abandoned; but if it is true, then the Christian Church must still deliver the message faithfully as it did on the morning of the first Easter Day."

Solzhenitsyn on How Totalitarianism Negotiates

2008-03-28T22:02:00.003-04:00

"The Soviet Union and the Communist countries know how to conduct negotiations. For a long time they made no concessions and then they give in just a little bit. Right away there is rejoicing: 'Look, they've made a concession; it's time to sign." For two years the European negotiators of thirty-five countries have painfully been negotiating and their nerves have been stretched to the breaking point; finally the gave in. A few women from the Communist countries may now marry foreigners. A few newspapermen will now be permitted to travel a little more than before. They give one-thousandth of what natural law should provide--things which people should be able to do even before such negotiations are undertaken--and already there is joy. And here in the West we hear many voices that say: 'Look, they're making concessions; it's time to sign.'" - Alexander Solzhenitsyn in Warning to the West (1976)

The Mantra of Jabez

2008-03-27T14:56:00.000-04:00

Canon Press has some full view books available via Google Books.

Finally, I can check out the intriguing
The Mantra of Jabez: Break on Through to the Other Side. After having read Right Behind, I still have an itch for good satire/parody.

Gravel: Really Libertarian or Not?

2008-03-26T18:17:00.006-04:00

In an interesting turn of events, former Alaskan Senator Mike Gravel has left the Democrats to join the Libertarian Party. It appears he will attempt to be the Libertarian Party's nominee for president.

He said:

"Today, I am announcing my plan to join the Libertarian Party, because the Democratic Party no longer represents my vision for our great country. I wanted my supporters to get this news first, because you have been the ones who have kept my campaign alive since I first declared my candidacy on April 17, 2006.

The fact is, the Democratic Party today is no longer the party of FDR. It is a party that continues to sustain war, the military-industrial complex and imperialism -- all of which I find anathema to my views.

By and large, I have been repeatedly marginalized in both national debates and in media exposure by the Democratic leadership, which works in tandem with the corporate interests that control what we read and hear in the media.

I look forward to advancing my presidential candidacy within the Libertarian Party, which is considerably closer to my values, my foreign policy views and my domestic views. "

What kind of makes me wonder is the part where he says that the Democrats are no longer the party of FDR. I say that because the Libertarian Party doesn't really like the legacy of FDR. I wonder if rather than a Libertarian, he's just a frustrated Democrat. But, alas, time will tell.

How To "Trip" A Neo-Liberal In Two Steps

2008-03-25T23:03:00.008-04:00

STEP ONE: Ask them whether they feel the government should forbid/regulate voluntary relations between consenting adults. Probable answer: NO.

STEP TWO: Ask them whether the government should impose minimum wage laws. Probable answer: YES.

The only problem is getting them to notice the irony.

(The irony lies in the fact that question #2 is really just an example of the regulation mentioned in question #1. Most neo-liberals are afraid of economic liberty.)

Back to School

2008-03-25T18:28:00.001-04:00

Recently, I've applied to the University of Windsor for part-time studies. My goal is to get a B.A. (Liberal and Professional Studies) which will supplement my previous college training in Information Technology. I'm looking to diversify my knowledge and have a University degree to show for it. At this point in my life, I think I'm up to the challenge.

Thankfully, the University has accepted a transfer of courses from my college diploma, so I already have 3rd semester standing. For the first semester, I'm going to try to get into the following courses:

Economics I - An introduction to microeconomics intended to provide students with the tools necessary to begin to understand and evaluate how resources are allocated in a market economy. Specific topics include how markets function, theories of the business firm, of consumer behaviour and of income distribution. The economic roles of labour unions and government are also covered. The theories are applied to contemporary Canadian economic problems.

Reasoning Skills - An explanation of, and practice in, the basic knowledge, skills and attitudes which are essential components of reasoning well.

Once I'm done with those, I'd like to proceed with various courses in Philosophy, Accounting, Economics, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, etc. We shall see how it goes! Post-secondary schooling is certainly good at disposing of money and spare time!!

A Libertarian Syllabus

2008-03-20T07:20:00.000-04:00

If you're looking to read up on libertarianism, check out A Libertarian Syllabus by Daniel McCarthy. According to the description, it is a "four-year course of study that will take students from the basics of free-market economics and the Constitution into the deeper waters where theory, history, and policy meet".

Nick Vujicic on 20/20

2008-03-18T22:13:00.001-04:00

For those interested, my cousin Nick Vujicic from Australia is scheduled to appear for interview on 20/20 on Friday, March 28th. 20/20 is on the ABC network and I think it airs at 10PM. More info about Nick can be found at www.lifewithoutlimbs.org

Income Tax and Entrepreneurship in Britian

2008-03-18T18:17:00.003-04:00

"Especially in the British context, mention should be made on the subtle but pervasive and harmful effect which high marginal income taxes cannot fail to have on entrepreneurial incentives. There can be little incentive to be alert to opportunities the gain from which will accrue to unknown others decided by the government. Something of a vicious cycle may indeed be noticed. That over one-quarter of British GNP is channelled directly through government is responsible for the high income-tax rates which sap the incentive to notice new opportunities--providing in turn fuel for the critics who point to the failure of the market to achieve prosperity, etc." - S.C. Littlechild in "The Fallacy of the Mixed Economy" (1978)

Windsor Liberty Seminar Report

2008-03-15T21:18:00.011-04:00

Today I attended the Windsor Liberty Seminar for the first time. It was great! Here is a pretty long "summary".

Topic #1: Registration was at 9:30, and by around 10:00 we were already into a discussion of "The Effects and Mysteries of Economic Freedom" by Fred McMahon. Fred is the Directory of Trade and Globalization studies at the Fraser Institute. He opened with a perplexing question which could be summarized as this: What motivates anti-market forces to still rail against free markets when they we see the great good produced? He shared how no one can provide one example of a modern stable democracy based on a non-market economy. He showed how we should aim to change the opinions out there by provide a wide audience with good information about the situation. He then spoke of the Economic Freedom of The World project and the Economic Freedom of the World Index. The index is based on the following factors: Size of government and taxation, Private Property & Rule of Law, Trade Regulations & Tarrifs, Regulation of Business, Labor, and Capital Markets

Fred then continued to question why economic liberty is important. His answer was three fold: It is fundamental to political and civil freedoms. It is needful for growth. It is needful to broader human development.

He also shared about their work in the Arabic world and also many helpful charts and figures (though I do regret that he went rather quickly through much of this). He showed the relation between economic freedom and GDP per capita. He also showed how the economic freedom is tied to improvements in democracy, political rights, the human development index, life expectancy, infant mortality, and water sources.

On the question of injustice in free markets, Fred provided some eye-opening evidence. There is no marked difference in equalities present in all societies (whether they be economically free or not). So the logic that free markets breed inequality is bunk. Its just that in economically free countries, people's own choices determine the inequalities, whereas in economically non-free countries, government compulsion determines inequalities. In addition to that, the poorest 10% in the economically free countries are far better off that the poorest 10% elsewhere!

To conclude his talk, Fred opened the podium to audience discussion on his opening question.

Topic #2: Then, at around 11:00, Jan Narveson (professor emeritus of Philosophy at University of Waterloo) had an excellent talk on "Revitalizing Liberalism". To say that Jan's academic credentials are impressive is an understatement. He's studied at Oxford and the University of Chicago, but has his PhD from Harvard, and he earned it in 1961! He discussed how "liberalism" has many meanings and is a very schiziophrenic word nowadays. He noted the sharp divide between what the term meant in the 18th/19th centuries and what it means now. He then discussed how both Conservatism and Liberalism are theories concerned with "good government", which would be government for the benefit of the governed, to promote their interests. This leads to the question of "Good for whom?" What is the "common good"? It is popular nowadays with relativism to deny that this "good" could exist. Jan then showed how Conservatism was rule for the peoples good in the sense that it was to find out what was supposedly good and force them to do it. This is characteristic of Greek thought, particularly Aristotle. But the hallmark of liberalism, classical liberalism and not modern deviations, is a denial of old Conservatism and the statement that the ruled should decide what is good for them. This does not mean, of course, that the people are actually RIGHT in what they think is good for them, but rather that they should just be able to decide for themselves to their advantage or harm.

Jan then discussed Paternalism and explained how there is an Old Paternalism and a New. The basic idea of Old Paternalism is that A takes care of B, as if B were a child. And the government tells the people what's good for them and makes them do it. The New Paternalism is what modern-day liberalism promotes. It determines that the good ends are set by the people, but the means/promotion of these god ends are carried out by the government as a paternal authority figure. And he shared his conclusion that the New Paternalism is no better than the Old. He also brought up some implications this might have in relation to religion, though that was more of a side point.

Jan then asked the question of: "Why liberalism?" He discussed the alternatives: Conservatism/Old Paternalism compel you to do what you don't like to do. On the other hand, neo-liberals/New Paternalists pretend to be "liberal", but aren't really. And the sum of it all is that the premises of both these group don't imply the conclusion. He then proceeded to a very key part of his talk. When we discuss "What is good for you?", there are two aspects to consider:

Passive Liberties: Pleasure, utility, health, well-being
Active Liberties: Freedom, power, skills, direction

Modern liberalism emphasizes Passive Liberties at the expense of Active Liberties. They project what will make you happy but don't consider that your being free to decide for yourself may be what makes you happy. We won't be happy with Passive Liberties if we can't obtain them via Active Liberties. And what is good for us lies both in our Passive and Active Liberties.

Jan then showed how Libertarianism is really the outcome of true classical liberalism is. He spoke of Hobbes and other thinkers and then defined libertarianism, politically speaking, as the view that the purpose of the state, if any, is to keep each other off of each others back. It sees that picking Passive Liberties over Active Liberties doesn't work, but also that picking Active Rights over Passive Liberties doesn't work either.

Another helpful distinction that Jan made was the between Negative Rights and Positive Rights. Negative Rights were defined as those which prevent you from doing what you or others judge to be best (ie. that you NOT do certain things). Positive Rights were defined as those which you or others are required to do to help others. He shared, as an example, the Right to Life. He showed how the Negative Right in the Right to Life is that you have a right not to be killed, and the Positive Right is the right to be saved if you are in danger. He showed how there is much confusion between these two type of rights, and how we can reasonably expect Negative Rights, but not positive Rights.

At this point in Jan's talk, my pen stop working, so I had to stop writing notes until I could get another, which was just in time for the next talk. The rest was equally good, and Jan did a fine job making some heavy-duty thoughts describable. I really connected with his thinking and I found this to be the most appealing talk at the seminar.

Topic #3: At around 1:30, Bruce Walker, Communications Manager for Mackinac Centre for Public Policy spoke on "Renting Your Land From The Government: The Property Rights Battle". Bruce showed how though we have some semblence of ownership, the government still ultimately gets to say what we can or can't do with our property. And it can take it from us. This, admittedly, was not my favorite topic. The subject matter was helpful and very practical (moreso than the other two topics), but I still found that the time Bruce took to get to the core of the matter distracting. And perhaps having just had lunch had something to do with it! :) But I must credit Bruce with a presentation that was still very helpful and showed a good deal of what the Mackinac Centre for Public Policy does.

Bruce showed how other rights disappear when you abolish the free market. This is what Karl Marx missed. He thought he was freeing people, but he was really just enslaving them by eliminating the pillars of their liberty. And, no matter how wrong Marx was, he did properly recognize the central importance of property rights.

Bruce then showed a couple of helpful videos. One was about a Michigan family business that was attempting to use land for a horse operation and composting, and how the government has been harassing them with all sorts of unbelievable things, while not even hiding its intent to take over the land for their own purposes (in other words, intimidating them with regulations in order to further their agenda to use the land for future projects). The other was about Hart Enterprises, a medical equipment company whose future parking lot was determined to be wetland and could not be utilized. The only problem is that it became a wetland after (and because of) its official demarcation as industrial property. Both videos were quite interesting and showed interviews with the involved parties and some good insights on the problems faced.

Bruce's talk was pretty good, even though I share a couple negative thoughts to start off my review of it. Property rights is a vital issue and his presentation was excellent in stimulating much needed discussion on this issue. And, without a question, Bruce's talk was an important part of this seminar.

In conclusion: The talks, along with the discussion groups that followed after them, were great. The discussions in small groups were great and allowed more detailed, less formal discussions. I found all participants to be intelligent individuals who contributed much to the discussion. I highly recommend you check out this seminar next year. It was certainly worth going and is a great place for liberty-minded people to meet a share ideas. There was a good mix of people. A free meal was provided. I didn't win the book draw, but I did get a signed copy of Jan Narveson's "The Libertarian Idea". Sweet!

Saturday Links Fest

2008-03-08T08:43:00.004-05:00

Here are a bunch of interesting recent tidbits:

Lew Rockwell has a Steve Greenhut editorial on The Criminalization of Homeschooling
Al Mohler has some comments on the recent homeschool ruling in California
Bush unsurprisingly rejects the easing of the Cuban embargo
The FBI admits to major privacy violations
Margaret Thatcher has been hospitalized
This gives me nightmares.

A Thought From Francis Schaeffer

2008-03-02T20:55:00.003-05:00

"As time goes on, the Lord has brought so many very unique people here and to the classes. Sitting quietly with them, it has been necessary to place the Word of God face to face with the questions that are hurled without restraint from both Western and Eastern mentalities. More and more it causes me to realize that in reality Christianity is the greatest intellectual system the mind of man has ever touched. It really has been a tremendous experience to sit in classes and in discussions with those who would be considered top flight by the best of the world's standards and to watch the Word of God literally have an answer for every question across the board...Yet if this is indeed all there is, eventually all it will prove is that Christianity is indeed the best system the mind of man has ever touched. In short, something more is needed in addition if the system is to be proven to be Truth--that which the universe truly is.

And I am convinced that this something in addition must be a demonstration of the existence of God--His character and His acting in history--is not merely theoretical, but a reality in history; not only from 1500BC till 100AD, but in every generation."

From "Letters of Francis Schaeffer", page 80

The Joy of Foreign Policy

2008-03-02T19:25:00.005-05:00

The Washington Post ran an article with a quote by George Bush criticizing the Democrat candidates for meeting with foreign tyrants.

I don't like the typical Democrat or Republican foreign policy, but I find Bush's statement to be curious in light of his history. I guess what he really meant was that politicians shouldn't meet with CUBAN tyrants, as it seems Saudi, Pakistani, and Russian tyrants suit him just fine.

I've merely added some explanatory links, for contextualization of course. Check them out..

“Sitting down at the table, having your picture taken with a tyrant…lends the status of the office and the status of our country to him,” Bush said yesterday. “He gains a lot from it by saying, ‘Look at me, I’m now recognized by the President of the United States.’”

The Role Of Beards In The Cuban Revolution

2008-02-28T22:24:00.003-05:00

"Most regular armies in fact, command their men to shave closely...In the Sierra, hair beat the smooth chins, and military art was made to look ridiculous.

'Batista's soldiers," a companion of Fidel told me, 'found us so incorrect, so improper, that it gave them the willies. The beard according to them meant ambush, the law of the jungle, and extermination...Toward the end, when they saw, in a narrow mountain pass, a beard behind a shining rifle barrel, they broke ranks."

- Jean Paul Sartre in "Sartre on Cuba" 1961

The Revolution: A Manifesto

2008-02-28T12:01:00.000-05:00

This book looks great: The Revolution: A Manifesto by Ron Paul. It is available for pre-order.

Losing Touch With Historical References

2008-02-26T08:59:00.002-05:00

There's no question that young people have recently been losing touch with the past. The decline in reading probably has quite a bit to do with this. We live in a sound-byte era that can't tolerate a train of thought longer than 5 seconds.

USA Today has an interesting article which speaks of how teens are losing touch with historical references.

Here's the opening section:

"Big Brother. McCarthyism. The patience of Job.

Don't count on your typical teenager to nod knowingly the next time you drop a reference to any of these. A study out today finds that about half of 17-year-olds can't identify the books or historical events associated with them."

The article goes on to show that just over half of 1,200 17 year olds could identify the theme of 1984 and less than half knew that the Civil War occurred between 1850 and 1900.

This is sad! Alas, the dumbing down of the masses..

Who Said Communism Was Dead?

2008-02-25T23:08:00.002-05:00

Communism seems to be experiencing a bit of a revival in Cyprus. Some bad ideas never seem to die.

Fidel in 1959 - Enigmatic Pragmatist

2008-02-25T22:42:00.006-05:00

"The weeks which followed the Liberation, at the beginning of 1959, were weeks of gaiety and of unanimity. Although in that period, for reasons which we shall see, Castro was not in the government, he appeared in the eyes of all as the man of unity. He wanted it so and did nothing to dissipate the mystery which surrounded his intentions. The right, the left, the parties, the unions, asked themselves about him. What was he going to do?

One thing is sure. He reacted forcefully against those who threatened the unity of Cuban society.

This was noticed from the first days, apropos of the Good Lord. They had put back into effect the Constitution of 1940. God was mentioned in the preamble. The ministers thought it wise to remove Him.

When Castro learned of this, he fell into a violent anger. No matter what the convictions of the members of the government were, they couldn't touch this venerable word which had had figured in the fundamental text for twenty years and which everyone could read without offending the priests and their faithful worshipers and consequently without breaking the unity of the country.

The word "God" makes a body with constitutional law. It doesn't get in the way. In taking it up, the revolution doesn't declare itself Christian. In suppressing it, it proclaims itself Athiest.

In brief, during this short respite, all measures were taken with the view of consolidating the union."

- Jean Paul Sartre in "Sartre on Cuba", 1961

Bush Demands Immunity for Spying Companies

2008-02-22T18:01:00.009-05:00

George Bush is insisting that communications companies who partake in the invasion of American citizen's privacy on behalf of the government be immune from lawsuits.

His contention is that if communications firms were held liable for their activities, they would be less willing to help the war on U.S. citizen's privacy. That is probably true, but I can't see how that would be a bad thing. What does Bush have to hide? If his effort to spy on people's phone conversations is just, why is he worried about the people he's working with (the communications companies) being sued over it? (this "why do you care if you don't have anything to hide?" line is used so often to justify invasion of privacy, so I figured it might be nice to reverse it on the people perpetrating such things)

The reasoning goes like so: if citizens have their privacy, there surely will be terrorist attacks. So please check your privacy at the door. The idea is "just give up a little privacy and liberty and you'll be safe" and it is so contrary to what the founding father's of America advocated. But the real place to look for solutions to the terrorist problem is NOT in monitoring phone calls from within the U.S.A., but rather a re-evaluation of foreign policy.

Bush said "The American people understand we need to be listening to the enemy". One then is led to wonder who exactly is the enemy? If it is merely terrorists, then why are these broad changes, such as the "PATRIOT act" affecting average citizens also? And why are there no limitations on these surveillance powers?

Terrorism is a threat. But as it has been often pointed out, local tyranny is always harder to put up with than terrorists. It is easier to deal with foreign terrorists than a government dead set on violating its citizens liberties.

Notice how there is a pattern. Whether it is Bush or Clinton, or whoever else, every time they want to increase the power of the state to spy on and enslave their citizens, they plead good intentions.

I must refer to a couple of quotes that are quite applicable:

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." -- Benjamin Franklin, 1759

"'Emergencies' have always been the pretext on which the safeguards of individual liberty have been eroded." -- F.A. Hayek

"Government is not reason; it is not eloquence; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master" -- George Washington

More On Kosovo

2008-02-22T17:15:00.001-05:00

The U.S. embassy in Serbia ordered the departure of support staff and dependents of diplomats.

Serbians Not Happy About Kosovo Independence

2008-02-21T14:13:00.007-05:00

Not surprisingly, Serbians are not taking kindly to the declaration of Kosovo as an independent state. In Belgrade protestors broke into the U.S. embassy and 200,000 Serbians gathered to protest Kosovo's secession.

Russia and Spain have not recognized the secession, and as far as I am aware Canada is delaying an answer also. The Russians have called the move illegal and immoral and threatened to use force. These countries recognize the ramifications that this could have on their own populations. Sure, secession sounds good to the powers that be when the issue is across an ocean. But what if an ethnic majority decided to separate California from the Union? Or what if Quebec wants its independence? How would the federal governments respond to that? Nato has been imposing solutions in the Balkans that most of its member states would be no means tolerate for their populace. Nato has outlived its usefulness and should be eliminated. It has spent a lot of money at best doing nothing or at worst causing destruction.

This is a prime example of how interventionism causes tensions. Rather than let a country deal with a civil war on its own, stakes are raised and tensions escalate. Policing the world is a dirty job. Nuances of the issues involved get the "jack hammer" treatment and the result is a mish-mash of mayhem. Of course, once the "blowback" starts raising its ugly head, there will be innocent-sounding yelps of, "Why do they hate us? They must hate us for our freedom!". Well, in a way it is true. "They" do hate us for our freedom. Our freedom to intervene in their affairs.

Trade Not Aid

2008-02-21T06:50:00.001-05:00

The African nation of Liberia is sending George Bush a message: "more trade, less aid".

That statement contains a truth that would greatly improve American foreign policy. As a world superpower, America should ideally aim to be neither an aggressor (wars, invasions) nor an overt paternal figure (handing out lots of aid). Instead, it should focus on maintaining friendly relations with other nations, focusing on trade and commerce carried out in a spirit of honest friendship with no coercion.

The brief reference to "Africom" in the article has me wondering what "Africon" is up to.

Kosovo Back In The News

2008-02-18T19:57:00.003-05:00

The world is nervously watching the latest happenings in Kosovo.

The Libertarian Party's Sense of Humor

2008-02-14T18:10:00.000-05:00

In this press release, the U.S. Libertarian Party announces that they've sent Republican headquarters "a funeral wreath marking the death of limited-government values within the Republican Party". They did this in light of the dominance of John McCain in the primaries.

Interesting Endorsements for Ron Paul

2008-02-07T19:51:00.001-05:00

I was reviewing a list of people that have endorsed Ron Paul's presidential campaign and I found it interesting. Here are names which I found most interesting:

Co-founder and former CEO of PayPal, Peter Thiel
Blues Guitarist Jimmie Lee Vaughan
Singer/Songwriter Derrick Webb
Folksinger Arlo Guthrie
Actor Emma Caulfield (Anya on Buffy Vampire Slayer)
Blogger Andrew Sullivan

I found Arlo Guthrie's comments to be among the most interesting: "I love this guy. Dr. Paul is the only candidate I know of who would have signed the Constitution of The United States had he been there."

Critiquing Bill Gates' "Creative Capitalism"

2008-02-05T08:47:00.000-05:00

Here are some links critiquing the concept of "creative capitalism" promoted by Bill Gates:

Gates misses the point on 'creative capitalism' (CNET)
Creative Capitalism (The Bastiat Society Blog)
Creative Capitalism (Pommygranate)
Bill Gates's 'Kind' Capitalism is a Misnomer (RealClearMarkets)

Putin Hits A Reporter Below The Belt

2008-02-04T23:04:00.001-05:00

Way back in 2002, a reporter asked Russian dictator Vladimir Putin a critical question regarding his government's activities in Chechnya (whether their attempts to eradicate terrorism in Chechnya would eradicate the civilian population). Vladimir Putin responded as follows:

(there are at least two variant interpretations of what he said)

Either..

"If you want to become an Islamic radical and have yourself circumcised, I invite you to come to Moscow, I would recommend that he who does the surgery does it so you'll have nothing growing back afterward"

or

"If you want to become a complete Islamic radical and are ready to undergo circumcision, then I invite you to Moscow. We are a multidenominational country. We have specialists in this question as well. I will recommend that he carry out the operation in such a way that after it nothing else will grow."

Wow! This Putin dude makes John McCain look like a pacifist!

Andrey Illarionov

2008-02-04T22:01:00.000-05:00

Many people don't realize the extent to which Vladimir Putin's government is a dictatorship. When we think of dictatorships, we tend to think of states in Africa or Asia, or perhaps the old Soviet states. However, Russia is very much so a totalitarian state right now. This is evidenced by the large amount of recent exiles. Putin tolerates very little opposition, and has essentially taken over the press. There is very little freedom of speech.

An interesting individual you may want to look into is Andrey Illarionov (see his Wikipedia page).

He was formerly an economic policy adviser to Vladimir Putin in Russia. In 2005, he resigned from his post and said that "This year Russia has become a different country. It is no longer a democratic country. It is no longer a free country".

He continued to say that "It is one thing to work in a country that is partly free. It is another thing when the political system has changed, and the country has stopped being free and democratic".

In October of 2006, Illarionov was appointed senior researcher for the Cato Institute while remaining in Russia. He has been an outspoken critic of the Russian government and on April 14, 2007, and June 9, 2007, he took a part in Dissenters' Marches.

The Cato Institute calls him "one of Russia's most forceful and articulate advocates of an open society and democratic capitalism". You can find his Cato Institute Profile here.

Slim Tyranny

2008-02-01T19:51:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I'm actually writing this. I can't find words to describe a bill recently introduced into the Mississippi legislature. It was introduced by Republican Ted Mayhall Jr and it has got to be one of the most absurd things I've ever read. Its known as House Bill 282.

"AN ACT TO PROHIBIT CERTAIN FOOD ESTABLISHMENTS FROM SERVING FOOD TO ANY PERSON WHO IS OBESE, BASED ON CRITERIA PRESCRIBED BY THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH; TO DIRECT THE DEPARTMENT TO PREPARE WRITTEN MATERIALS THAT DESCRIBE AND EXPLAIN THE CRITERIA FOR DETERMINING WHETHER A PERSON IS OBESE AND TO PROVIDE THOSE MATERIALS TO THE FOOD ESTABLISHMENTS; TO DIRECT THE DEPARTMENT TO MONITOR THE FOOD ESTABLISHMENTS FOR COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES."

and

"A food establishment shall be entitled to rely on the criteria for obesity in those written materials when determining whether or not it is allowed to serve food to any person."

Am I just weird, or is this spooky? It is proposed to take effect in July 1, 2008 and establishments that would violate this could have their permit revoked. Probably it will be struck down, I hope!

This is a prime example of the INSANITY of having a government that thinks that it is our nanny.

Fox News Has The Blues

2008-02-01T19:42:00.000-05:00

Salon.com has an opinion piece which outlines a number of things which are currently currently causing Fox News to feel some considerable discomfort. Now, I'm not a big fan of Salon.com, but I think they are really making some interesting points, especially when they list these two things that are extremely frustrating to Fox News:

1. Their favorite Republican, Rudy Giuliani', has ended his campaign.

2. Their "nemesis" Ron Paul is still standing.

Besides these, the piece lists a number of other things that are not really going in Fox's favor. Quite frankly, after seeing how they treated Ron Paul, I feel no sympathy for them.

Codex Markianus

Out Of Retirement

Thank You and Good Night

The Klein Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Polemics

The State of the GOP (The Jelly-Publicans)?

Puritans Like A Good Drink Now And Then

God and Grammar

Sartre-ific

Who Would Have Thought?

Jack London: Socialist and Friend of Prohibition

Douglas Wilson on Christopher Hitchens

The Source of Campaign Funds Says A Lot!

Obligatory Political Videos

Recent Quotes

Some Great Political Quotes

Neither Here Nor There

Neither Here Nor There

Now If Only Politicians Would Think Like This..

Baptist Catechism: Items 21 - 25

Baptist Catechism: Items 16 - 20

Palin: Fresh Air, But Don't Get Too Excited!

Amillennialism Described

Os Guinness Lectures

Neither Here Nor There

What is Eschatology?

Baptist Catechism: Items 11 - 15

A Great Russian Author Passes Away..

Baptist Catechism: Items 6 - 10

Baptist Catechism: Items 1 - 5

On The Frivilous Side: Spam News Stories

Neither Here Nor There

Calvin on The Use of God's Beautiful Gifts

On the Lighter Side...An NHL Delinquent

The Gospel Is Not A Doctrine of the Tongue

Eric Raymond on The Demonization of Masculinity

Neither Here Nor There

School Stuff

The Right of Property

Maybe We Should Read Like This

Neither Here Nor There

They Didn't Get The Memo About The Helicopters

The 6:7 Project: An Introduction

New U.S. Libertarian Party Candidate Announced

Don't Drive a SUV, Fly a Private Jet

Wildlife Identification Help

Lots of Wildlife This Weekend

Well-Known People From This Area

A Quote About Homeland Security

The Revolution: A Best Seller

The Wit of Milton Friedman on the Draft

McStatism: The Legacy of John McCain

Luther on Devaluating Currency

Neither Here Nor There

Human Biology Meets Electoral Politics

These are a few of my favorite things..

The Nenadovic Perspective on Russian Wine

Neither Here Nor There

The Nenadovic Style of Wine Drinking

Rebelling Against The Rebellion

Saturday's Words

10 Quotes Worth Considering

Prota Matija Nenadovic On Death

100 Authors (You Ought to Read)

Weekend Tidbits

Review of "Letters of Francis Schaeffer"

Is Throwing Away A CD Legal?

Great Minds Buy The Same Books?

Friday Links Fest!

Why Minimum Wage Increases Don't Help..

Bertrand Russell: A Presuppositionalist?

Christianity Without The Resurrection Is Useless

Solzhenitsyn on How Totalitarianism Negotiates

The Mantra of Jabez

Gravel: Really Libertarian or Not?

How To "Trip" A Neo-Liberal In Two Steps

Back to School

Recent Links

A Libertarian Syllabus

Nick Vujicic on 20/20

Income Tax and Entrepreneurship in Britian