Recent Viewpoints

Kerby Anderson Yesterday I talked about the moral philosophy known as “effective altruism” that has been promoted by the ultra-rich and by CEOs of certain corporations. Noah Gould explains that this latest fad of progressives has been used by some to commit fraud and abuse. The people we will discuss here are the exception, but they illustrate how repeating the right woke phrases have been used to cover some significant misdeeds. Sam Bankman Fried is the current example. The so-called…

Kerby Anderson The ultra-rich in America have been pursuing a philosophy known as “effective altruism.” This phrase has been in the news lately because Sam Bankman Fried often used it to justify his various donations. He has been charged with eight counts of fraud and conspiracy. That indictment isn’t providing a positive image for this philosophy of giving. In the January issue of The Spectator, Leighton Woodhouse refers to these people as “Bad Samaritans.” The online version has this title:…

Penna Dexter If the expected red wave had taken place in November, the US House of Representatives would have remained the dysfunctional body it has been for 20 years. But, since Republicans won the House by only a narrow margin, the man expected to become Speaker, Kevin McCarthy, had a battle on his hands. During the four-day, 15-round Speaker election, 20 conservatives, mostly members of the House Freedom Caucus, negotiated needed structural fixes. A key concession is the Speaker’s agreement…

Kerby Anderson We should be encouraged that the pendulum is swinging back to an embrace of free speech. Changes at Twitter along with a Supreme Court case that will likely uphold free speech are encouraging signs. But the problem will continue because of what is taught and implemented at many universities. For example, nearly half of the younger generation polled in a University of Chicago survey say that colleges should limit freedom of speech “in extreme cases.” This would include…

Kerby Anderson A new report from the Family Research Council documents that there have been more than 400 “acts of hostility” against churches in the US since 2018. If I had written the report, I think I would have used other words than “acts of hostility,” but this rather tame description is probably best. These attacks have taken place in 45 different states and in Washington, DC. Most of those attacks have been what they refer to as “pro-abortion acts…

Kerby Anderson Because of the continuing advances in medicine, you would assume that each generation would be healthier than the previous generation. My grandfather was a doctor who encountered diseases that doctors in the 21st century have never seen and only read about in textbooks. One demographer at the University of New Hampshire noted that 24 states had more deaths than births in the year covered by the report. In the past, it was unusual for even five states to…

Kerby Anderson The release of the Twitter Files over the last few weeks has provided enough evidence of a relationship between Twitter and the FBI. That is why Republicans in the House of Representatives want to investigate the matter. As more information was released, the agency issued this statement: “The men and women of the FBI work every day to protect the American public. It is unfortunate that conspiracy theorists and others are feeding the American public misinformation with the…

Kerby Anderson Most Americans do not know how bad the border crisis is, and that may also explain why the recent omnibus spending bill provides funding for the wrong cities. A Harvard-Harris poll asked Americans a simple question: “How many border crossings by illegal immigrants do you think are occurring each year?” The correct answer would be 3 million. Unfortunately, 16 percent guessed fewer than 100,000 illegal border crossers entered the US in a year. Another 21 percent estimated that…

Penna Dexter The sad stories of female athletes being forced to compete against biological males and losing positions, titles, and opportunities are getting more numerous. Reporter Laurel Duggan writes: “There is a common misconception that born-male athletes participating in women’s sports is a non-issue because it’s not happening often, but that’s a false narrative.” In an article in The Daily Caller, Ms. Duggan identifies some high-profile transgender athletes who are, she writes, “changing the landscape for ordinary female athletes” across…

Kerby Anderson During a radio interview with Professor Winfield Bevins, he told the story of how the president of Asbury Theological Seminary welcomed incoming seminary students. He began, “Welcome to life on the fastest-growing mission field in the world: North America.” Consider the estimates just from the United States. Approximately, 180 million have no connection to a local church. That makes it one of the fastest-growing mission fields in the Western Hemisphere. One survey estimated that as many as 700,000…

Kerby Anderson Our culture seems obsessed with children and sexuality. That is the conclusion of columnist Laura Hollis, who reminds us of the public reaction two years ago to the Netflix film “Cuties.” The young girls in a dance competition included sexually provocative moves in skin-tight costumes. She recounts an opinion piece for NBC News in which the author dismissed the outrage as merely a “cynical ploy” by “the pedophile-obsessed American right, driven by QAnon.” A few weeks ago, Project…