Ross gets it right? The Revealer has made no secret of its feelings on much of Times columnist Ross Douthat’s work in the past, but his article about the recent controversy over the anti-Islam video produced here in America and the ensuing unrest in the Middle East is worth giving a look. Now if only he’d stop reiterating the American History that exists only in his own head in the name of conservative apologetics. For a more nuanced take on Romney’s relationship to the New Deal, check out Talk to Action’s “Is Redistribution Marxism?”
Well, aren’t we looking effervescent today? Maybe Occupy Wall Street isn’t a “religious movement” per se, but, you know, Durkheim. And stuff. Mark Engler takes a look at OWS a year on.
Speaking of the election, “some recent remarks” made by “a certain candidate” (see Mitt, that’s how you prevaricate!) have stirred up a hot topic: Is Mitt Romney a champion of the 1%? Ezra Klein at Bloomberg View looks at Romney’s recent remarks about the 47% and what they say about his vision for the country.
In EVEN MORE election news, Molly Worthen claims controlling the rhetoric around what it means to be Catholic in America may just determine this year’s election. Read her take on what she calls the “tale of two Catholicisms.”
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism – Korean Edition. The University of Malta’s Jean-Paul Baldachino looks at the rise of Protestantism and the process of modernization in South Korea – and notes its “elective affinities” with a capitalist ethic.
Learned a lot about their “Innocence” recently? Now take a look at Muslims’ mental health. Over at Religion Dispatches, Haroon Moghul asks, “Are Muslims Nuts?” And maybe stop going to “the Youtubes” for your information about Islam. If it piques your interest, check out this event hosted by Princeton’s Office of Religious Life.
You Can’t Go Home Again: Judy Brown, the author of the controversial novel “Hush,” opens up on the The Jewish Daily Forward about coping with the personal consequences of leaving her ultra-Orthodox community.
Maybe it’s time to take a “legitimate” look at what’s going on around the country following Senator Akin’s now infamous remarks. While many Republicans wasted breath calling for him to abandon his re-election bid, what conservative politicians have actually done (you know, as opposed to saying things into microphones) belies a different agenda. Take this recent news from New Mexico, where rape victims’ ability to receive social services may hinge on whether or not the rape was “forcible.”
Thomas Jefferson is probably writhing in his grave. Rick Perry’s comments about the “iron curtain” that emerged in the 1960’s to separate church and state made him roll over (as the good people at Talking Points Memo appropriately pointed out). But, TPM’s assertion as to, “constitutionally mandated separation of church and state,” almost certainly broke his undead will.
All this talk of the American political and religious landscape got you down? You’re not alone. Let’s take a vacation together to Spain! On an unrelated note, this one time I drew on a movie poster at a Subway station. All the people who were with me laughed when they saw the poster. Consequently, I would like 1/3rd of the Domestic Box-Office of “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” to be donated to a charity of my choice.