Accreditation dangers

Hopefully it won’t go as far as it might, but accreditation bodies enforcing political (and moral) views is a real potential danger. But perhaps if it does happen, it will help end the accreditation system, at least in its current form.

Against Merit

Not entirely surprising, but some want to water down admission standards at NYC elite high schools.

The Bible’s Story

A link to a pretty good summary of the biblical story.

Grace

A reminder of the importance of grace, with an allusion to Les Mis. Inspector Javert is not the hero. We’ll see what the future holds for those who keep that in mind.

Funeral talk

A reminder that there are lots of silly things to say at funerals. Or perhaps less silly in this case than unhelpful. This post covers a few of them.

Changing Marriage

Francis Beckwith describes changes in marriage that shape contemporary culture. Marriage previously included conjugality, permanence, and exclusivity. As those have dissipated, divorce and now other redefinitions of marriage shape our culture. With surprising results. He notes an odd result of the recent court ruling requiring a baker to provide services for a gay marriage which was contrary to his faith:

It is more difficult in Colorado for a baker to leave some customers than it is for the partners of a “married” couple in Massachusetts to leave each other.

It does seem odd.

Literal Interpretation

Here might be a good tool to demonstrate how literal interpretation doesn’t work in all situations.

Jeff Bezos and Amazon

What to make of Amazon and Jeff Bezos? Here’s a review of a recent book. I remain a bit suspicious of the instinct of those like the reviewer who seem unwilling to think about a fairly disruptive future (it’s at least possible, if not likely) and how that might be good (as well as bad) in at least some important ways. I don’t think the status quo is sustainable, and I don’t think electornic book pricing is where it really ought to be (on this, I think Amazon is more likely right). Well, I guess that’s why we have to wait for the future.

Jesus’ Language

An interesting study of the language spoken by Jesus. It’s a complicated issue.

The Publishing Industry

Here’s a libertarian/right take on the current status of the publishing industry. It’s sure a mess.