Paul has had this effect on people for a very long time.  Right after his conversion, he started preaching & the Christians there had to sneak him out of town.  Same thing, 2000 years later.

The bottom line is that we Christians need to be very humble and cautious when we try to bring the whole free will/God's sovereignty/fallen state of creation equation into the public square.  I have an entire file of "To be answered later" questions that I would love to have answered; but I have to be humble enough to leave that file in the drawer and move on with God regardless of whether I get specific answers this side of eternity. 

In the immediate aftermath of a horrific tragedy, we would do well to simply be Jesus' hands & feet to those impacted.  We can deal with the heavy theology/philosophy another day.

Dave, you honor the sacrifices of the men & women who have poured out their last, full measure of devotion to protect us.  Thanks, and keep it up.  I'm disappointed I will miss you here in Puget Sound on the 23rd, but I pray safe travels out here to the West Coast.  If you come up I-5 on your way, give a honk as you pass through Federal Way.

I particularly like the cover of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" that Santana did with India Arie doing the vocals and Yo Yo Ma on the cello.

Also, sit & listen to "Mary Had a Little Lamb" by Stevie Ray Vaughan a few times and see if you can avoid either smiling or playing air guitar furiously during a certain part (you have to listen to find out which); a man playing lead with joy, passion and verve.

I think Washington would have proudest in how we survived the Depression and banded together to beat the Japanese militarists and the Nazis.  There were many dark days during that time, something Washington was all too familiar with; tenaciously hanging on while everything and everyone around you screams the situation is hopeless.

His least favorite?  Having a state and a capital city named after him (and the political leanings therein).

The only way I could describe it would be Trans-Siberian Orchestra meets Celtic Woman meets Broadway (at least from the Phantom medley). 

The recording industry is really a cartel (a la OPEC), and much like fracking is going to bring OPEC to its' knees, the wider market is going to humble the big labels. 

I would argue vociferously with anyone suggesting that if you aren't famous, you aren't any good.  I hang with a lot of musicians (being one myself), and a lot of them have chosen to have their music alongside their "normal" lives.  One guy in particular could be a session player anywhere in the country, but he believes that isn't where God has called him, so he has a regular job, is in a band on the side, and plays whenever he gets the chance. 

Next time you hear music from someone you've never heard of, don't be surprised if it's a lot better than the stuff that sells at the platinum level.  The producers and sound engineers are better than ever, and their equipment is unbelievably good; that doesn't mean the musicianship is worth anything.

Having a Christmas tree (used, of course, in Germanic ritual) doesn't stack up to the entirety of the worldview that has informed our economics, charity, morals (at least until recently), arts, culture.  While paganism in many forms is certainly on the rise, I don't want to claim it as normative. 

Identifying the Judeo-Christian tradition is a matter of 2 simple facts:

1)  Christianity is incomprehensible without its' Jewish roots;

2)  The very idea of the rule of law was made relevant to our thinking by the 10 Commandments and the other laws governing ancient Israel's behavior.

Yes, of course much of the intellectual tradition we inherit came from Athens & Rome.  It also came from France (Montesquieu, Rosseau, Tocqueville) and England (Burke, et al).  But saying the Greek-Roman-Jewish-Christian-French-English-German tradition doesn't flow very well.  Tocqueville himself said that religion was the first of our American institutions; traditionally those religions have been Judaism & Christianity.

Example number 12,847,980 of the "tolerant" left exposing their own intolerance.  Can't win a debate?  Shut it down. 

How utterly typical.

Tim Geithner, anyone?  If there is a partisan or ideological slant, it's those that feel they are entitled to "special" consideration, whether due to their own perceived moral superiority or victim status.  I don't think there is a large divide (moral turpitude knows no party label), but if you think the government "owes" you that money, you're more likely to try to appropriate it, legally or otherwise.

I can't tell if PP's statement is willful blindness, chutzpah or ideology uber alles....

We have to make the argument that free markets are moral because we have been making the technical argument that they "work" until we are blue in the face, and it gets us nowhere.  Why?  The "fairness" doctrine has been raised to the level of a religion in much of our public discourse. 

Another way to engage the discussion would be; what has lifted more people out of economic deprivation than anything else?  Free-market economics, of course.  You could ignore the rest of the world & point to China to support your argument.  Or, is it "fair" for you to demand from me the fruit of my labor (in the form of government taxation) to provide you with social welfare that traps you in dependency on government (yes, I got that from Arthur Brooks)?

We have to argue on a moral level because we are more than Marx's view of humanity; we are not just economic animals, we are human beings that care about things like justice and fairness.  Read Kevin Williamson's article in NR "iPencil" to get another take on the morality of an amoral market.

While I like the nod to federalism that this implies (the federal government isn't going to tell a city who can vote in municipal elections), I still think it's a bad idea.  Citizenship implies a certain civic ethos necessary for self-government; when that isn't present, it's just about who will give me the goodies I want.  Anyone think we don't already have enough of that?

Come on guys, he just thinks that the NHL's Stars still play in Minnesota as the Minnesota North Stars and he's their stud left winger.

Doesn't he have Comcast's phone number?  1-800-NOTPLA1

It is too soon to tell, but it would seem that Russia would be the biggest loser in this, at least from a geopolitical leverage sense.  No more blackmailing Western Europe, Georgia, Ukraine, etc.  Following close behind, OPEC, solar, wind and coal. 

I don't think Canada & the US have that much to worry about, short & medium term.  It takes time to build the infrastructure to exploit those resources; North America has a big head start (especially if we would get off our duffs & build the full Keystone, Mr. President).  We just have to be smart about leveraging the revenue we get from our resource windfall (no guarantee, I know).

If only he had just concentrated on Habitat for Humanity and stayed away from everything else...