Recent Viewpoints

Today is the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. When the Supreme Court removed most state restrictions on abortion more than forty years ago, who could have predicted the world we live in today. When the ruling came down, few understood the long-term implications. I remember speaking on the issue in college classrooms a few years later and wondering when the Supreme Court would reverse its decision. By the 1980s, it seemed like only a matter of time that abortion would…

When the Affordable Care Act was debated years ago, one of the most compelling arguments for its passage was a claim that it would make health insurance affordable for people with lower incomes. Now that the employer mandate begins to kick in for 2015, we are finding that it is people with these modest incomes who are being hurt the most. Dr. John Goodman has (for decades) provided expert testimony before Congress on health care issues and health insurance. His…

No doubt you’ve heard the phrase: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Although many assume it was Voltaire who said it, actually it was the Voltaire biographer Evelyn Beatrice Hall who wrote it. Her phrase comes to mind as we look back over the last few weeks in which comedy and satire have come under attack. First we had the incident over the movie, The Interview. Sony originally…

After 42 years of legal abortion, how does one even comprehend 57 million unborn children aborted? Oregon Right to Life came up with a YouTube video that helps us get our heads around: “How many is 57 million?” The 4 ½ minute long video begins by declaring: “The United States Legalized Abortion in 1973.” Then, as the screen shows the date change to 1974, 1975, ‘76 and so on, the number of babies aborted ticks up — really fast. In…

When social commentators talk about out-of-wedlock births or divorce, they talk about the social and even emotional costs. But are there also economic costs? A study at Georgia State University suggests that the economic costs are significant. The study is titled “The Taxpayer Cost of Divorce and Unwed Childbearing.” Four pro-marriage groups commissioned the study (e.g., the Institute for American Values and the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy). The study concluded that the cost was a minimum of $112…

For decades, Christians have been warning about the dangers of pornography. It can ruin marriages and destroy families. Many researchers have provided evidence of the harmful effects of pornography. Much of this was catalogued in the 1986 Attorney General’s Commission on Pornography. Various groups ranging from Pure Hope to Enough is Enough have also been warning about dangers of pornography. And the problem has grown worse simply because porn is easily available on the Internet. The case has been made…

The massacre in Paris last week brought out all sorts of comments and commentary. Some of the comments reminded me of this oft-repeated phrase. “Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts.” Let me focus on the statement by former Governor Howard Dean. He said: “I stopped calling these people Muslim terrorists. They’re about as Muslim as I am. I mean, they have no respect for anybody else’s life, that’s not what…

MIT professor Jonathan Gruber has become well-known because of his candid remarks about Obamacare. He suggested that the Affordable Care Act was drafted to be so complex that the average citizen would not understand it. In his comments he showed the arrogance of the intellectual elite and demonstrated their distain for most Americans. We get an even better picture of his mindset if we read a paper he wrote about abortion. This paper came under scrutiny in a congressional hearing…

It is time to say “Happy Birthday” to the Magna Carta. It has been 800 years since King John’s barons forced him to sign this document. It was meant to merely provide a short-term solution but became the foundation upon which English and American freedoms were built. At the time it was merely a peace treaty that lasted a few months and only applied to a few people in the realm. But it established the key principle that everyone, including…

God uses His Church to build His Kingdom and restore what sin has broken. The rebuilding and restoration starts with prayer. So, as we begin 2015, won’t you join me in this prayer for America. Oh Lord, thank you for this nation and its people. Thank you that, by your grace, after the Fall and with the coming of Christ, you restored the dignity of human nature. Thank you for the good gifts that you, our creator, have given: life,…

In a recent column, Kevin Williamson explains that McDonald’s has become Microsoft. If that doesn’t make any sense to you, let me explain. It provides an object lesson from the free enterprise system. First, let’s start with Microsoft. Back in 1998 Microsoft was at the height of its power. On the Charlie Rose Show, Bill Gates said he wasn’t worried about competition from IBM or Apple or Netscape. He explained, “I worry about someone in a garage inventing something I…