Recent Viewpoints

Penna Dexter A colleague sent me an essay by writer and podcaster Bridget Phetasy. Its title is “I regret my promiscuity”. Her story moved me to tears, beginning with her statement “…if I’m honest with myself, of the dozens of men I’ve been with (at least the ones I remember), I can only think of a handful I don’t regret.” Bridget Phetasy wrote this piece after reading and reviewing a new book: The Case Against the Sexual Revolution by British journalist Louise Perry. In…

Kerby Anderson Yesterday I talked about the book, The Sovereign Individual which decades ago predicted the death of the nation state. To paraphrase Mark Twain, the rumors of the demise of the nation state are greatly exaggerated. Governments may still exist and exercise their power, but we can see how the power and influence of some governments are in decline. There are many reasons for this trend. First, is geography. The information revolution has made it possible for many people…

Kerby Anderson The authors of their book, The Sovereign Individual, explain that we are entering into the fourth stage of human society. First, there were the hunting and gathering societies. Then came the agricultural societies. More recently we had the industrial societies. Now, we live within informational societies. Although the book was written in the 1990s, there are sections of the book that are quoted even now in the second decade of the 21st century. The authors predicted we would…

Kerby Anderson In a culture dominated by political correctness from the left, some views are not allowed to be expressed. The next logical step would be to prevent the news media from even interviewing people holding discredited views. A group called “Physicians for Reproductive Health” have published an open letter to reporters and news editors. They demand that those in the media never interview pro-life people. They say it is time to “stop giving air-time to anti-abortion activists.” They reject…

Kerby Anderson Since the leak of the Dobbs opinion on abortion, pregnancy centers across the country have faced attacks of vandalism and destruction. Heartbeat International surveyed its network of pregnancy centers and found that their chances of being attacked have risen significantly. Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America has compiled a long list of attacks on these centers since May. CareNet estimates that the damages done to its 18 centers so far cost at least $400,000. Jim Harden, CEO of CompassCare,…

Kerby Anderson A recent survey conducted by YouGov confirms what another famous poll documented decades ago. There has always been a concern among pollsters of whether they are getting accurate responses from Americans when discussing controversial issues. More than three decades ago, researchers wrote, The Day America Told the Truth: What People Really Believe About Everything That Really Matters. After speaking to the groups about being brutally honest on their responses, they assured the respondents their answers could not be…

Penna Dexter As Congress considers the deceptively-named Respect for Marriage Act, we must ask ourselves whether our laws and policies should be based upon declared identity or on biological sex. Why not enshrine demands for transgender affirmation and homosexual marriage into law? We can argue the biology: The words man and woman do, in fact, mean something. In his article entitled “Marital Clash,” National Review’s John McCormack explains that “Just as the definition of ‘woman’ is necessarily exclusive (‘adult human…

Kerby Anderson We have idols today, but rarely are they in the form of carved statues and found in religious shrines. A study by Lifeway Research asked Protestant pastors in this county what they felt were modern-day idols. Two-thirds (67%) of the pastors believe comfort is a desire that Christians have made into an idol. A majority also reported that control or security (56%), money (55%), and approval (51%) are idols that have significant influence on their congregations. They were…

Kerby Anderson Whenever I travel, my favorite slogan is: “I hope the plane flight is on time, and I hope I’m on it.” If you have flown on a commercial airline lately you know what I mean. In fact, I am writing this commentary while flying on an airplane. The other day, my wife and I arrived at the airport and were told that, though we had a reservation, we didn’t have a ticket. I didn’t know you could have…

Kerby Anderson Will all the new federal funding for the IRS make it a more efficient governmental agency? The editorial board of the Wall Street Journal doesn’t think so. They remind us that many progressives wanted the president to unleash what they call “beast mode” and use all executive power to advance their agenda. The recent bill included $80 billion in new funding for the IRS. The assumption is that greater scrutiny of tax filings will yield more than $200…

Kerby Anderson “It’s hard to learn on an empty stomach, but that is exactly what the Biden administration is demanding of the nation’s most vulnerable children.” That’s how the commentary by Lathan Watts begins. He is highlighting the administration’s decision to withdraw school-lunch funding from schools that do not accept their decision to redefine the word “sex” in Title IX to include sexual orientation and gender identity. Two months ago, I wrote about the administration announcement that the Department of…