The Mafia Matrix in Italy, China, and Beyond

https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/fast-fashion-exploitation-how-the-clothes-hanger-wars-escalated-in-italy-a-a9a0d238-03ab-484d-b7a7-b90567646ac7

There are Chinatowns in most large cities. Growing up I visited the famous district in San Francisco which is certainly impressive. But I was really struck by the Chinatown in Lower Manhattan - so proximate to the old Five Points, the various courthouses, and even Ground Zero, and how it all but overlaps with Little Italy. It caused me to reflect on the nature of these ethnic enclaves and the immigrant experience.

Ken Ham, Swindler

https://www.cincinnati.com/story/opinion/2020/02/24/opinion-ham-fleeced-town-gave-him-his-ark-encounter/4831987002/

The article didn't reveal anything particularly new. For those who have been paying even a little bit of attention there have been stories trickling out over the past several years regarding the nature of Ham's business dealings. He's manipulated a lot of the bookkeeping surrounding his 'ministries' to his own benefit and has grown quite wealthy. An examination of his 'ministry' tax forms indicates he's playing all the same nepotistic games that many of these guys engage in and given the fact that he's apparently worth tens of millions of dollars, he's found other means to funnel money into his coffers. And let's just say the tickets to his venues are not cheap – not that I would ever give him a dime.

Sunday and the Triumph of Mammon

https://evangelicalfocus.com/life-tech/11589/us-one-in-four-protestant-churchgoers-works-at-least-one-sunday-a-month

If these people want to impact culture, this isn't the way. This isn't being salt and light. This is capitulation. I'm not a Sabbatarian though I will say the Church has always met on Sundays are there are doctrinal reasons for doing so. It's not essential as the Church can certainly meet on other days as well – and should. But Sunday worship, the first day of the week in connection to the Resurrection, is ancient and found in the New Testament itself.

Evangelical Celebrity Revealed Once Again as Devoid of Substance

https://www.christianpost.com/news/chip-and-joanna-gaines-tell-oprah-how-god-communicates-with-them.html

I must say that I have a special loathing of all the 'Home and Garden'-type television programmes. I don't have regular television but I've seen them on occasion and I've seen clips via YouTube and the like. As one who has connections to the world of home remodeling I can say the effect of these shows has been disastrous. It has been very beneficial for the Big Box outlets and the industry which sponsor the shows but in terms of society and ethics – they have been destructive.

How Should We Then Live Part 9: The Age of Personal Peace and Affluence (I)

As with previous episodes not every observation Schaeffer makes is incorrect and at certain points his insight is appreciated – all the more when considers the narratives at work some forty years later in our own day. By comparison at times he can seem (relatively speaking) refreshing.

Reflections on the Hallmark Channel Controversy

https://www.kpbs.org/news/2019/dec/15/hallmark-channel-embroiled-in-controversy-after/

In the end, it's all about the money. If Hallmark refuses to air the 'gay' television ads, then the advertisers who run their commercials on Hallmark will catch flak and so to avoid it, they'll start pulling their adverts from the channel.

Carlson on Capitalism

http://issuesetc.org/2017/02/13/0443-capitalism-and-the-family-dr-allan-carlson-21317/

LPR's Issues Etc. usually frustrates me but this segment was a pleasant surprise, although I'm not sure if the host or most of the audience was equally enthused.

Parenting, Values and Culture

http://www.rosemond.com/September-2016.html

I don't really know much about the author but his columns often appear in the local newspaper. Sometimes the advice is good and I admit this despite my general hostility to the theological and philosophical underpinnings of psychology and much of the counseling movement.

Lethal Injection and the Pharmaceutical Industry

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-36292193

There's something rather offensive about a company like Pfizer or any pharmaceutical company trying to take the moral high ground.

An Erstwhile Democrat Transformed into a Trumpite

Recently I had the displeasure of encountering an old acquaintance who at one time I would have described as a working class Democrat. He's a former union guy, a baby-boomer that generally speaking was socially liberal, patriotic and somewhat racist.

I have to say growing up in the West I had not really encountered the old working-class type Democrat before. When I moved to Rust-Belt Appalachia I started finding them all over the place. They love America, the military and believe in hard work and yet don't quite fit into the Progressive or Conservative categories. They are a true mix.

Bloodsport, Profits and Social Ethics

Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao, a professing Christian made disparaging comments about homosexuals. While correct, I find these public declarations are sometimes less than helpful.

A Tool for Twits

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-twitter-results-idUSKCN0VJ2K1

It will be a wonderful thing to see Twitter collapse. It has been a disaster for society, for communication and for people's attention spans. Communication is no longer effective when reduced to little blurbs. While I'm not a prig when it comes to spelling, there's no doubt Twitter has in general contributed to its decline.

Imagine No Hypocrisy in Times Square

It's always striking to me when watching the Times Square revelry on New Year's Eve... we usually tune in with the kids about 10 minutes before the ball drops... as the chosen singer of the year croons 'Imagine' that the whole display is little more than an exercise in schizophrenia.

'Imagine', the hymn of a lost world trying to extract meaning from despair, represents some kind of Materialist ideal that no one in the crowd really believes, let alone the person singing it.

US Nativism and China

I've mentioned this before but I keep hearing variations of this argument, and I find it striking how misled so many people are.

In just the past couple of weeks I have either participated in or overheard conversations where the Chinese are invoked as a source of anti-American scheming. People seem to believe the Chinese have conspired to destroy American manufacturing and enslave us to their cheap goods.

Energy Independence: Realpolitik, Neo-Conservatism and Nativism

While perusing a financial magazine in a waiting room I stumbled upon an article about billionaire T Boone Pickens, a name that's been floating around for some time. I've heard him interviewed on NPR from time to time and was already pretty familiar with his controversial energy plan. In fact not long ago while reading Steve Coll's book on Exxon, I recalled Pickens argument for energy independence. It was pertinent and represented a mindset in Conservative circles less than appreciated by representatives of Big Oil.

The Cult of Self: It Rules the Day in Both the Left and the Right, Within the Church and Without

Since I'm a fanatic and a ranter, it's time for another episode...

Our society which is on a road to collapse and probably a violent one at that is following the course of many that preceded it.

For years I remember reading in history books that Rome fell due to its decadence and I never really understood what that meant until just a few years ago.

The European Perspective on the Western Narrative

The European Dream: How Europe's Vision of the Future is Quietly Eclipsing the American Dream

by Jeremy Rifkin

copyright 2004 Tarcher/Penguin

While I do not doubt that some due to the present European situation would dismiss this book outright as already outdated and obsolete, I think that would be a mistake.

The Corrupting Influence of Money: An example in the American Church

I had an interesting exchange recently with an old acquaintance who also happens to be a conservative Lutheran pastor. I harped for a moment about middle class values... my normal line about security and respectability being values cherished by the middle class and yet absent from the New Testament. He had asked, and I was attempting to explain to him my financial situation which usually leads most people I know to wonder what's wrong with me? Am I stupid? They know I'm not. Why are we always so poor and struggling? Am I insane? Why don't I do something about it? Something different? Usually they pull out the Einstein quote on me which I quickly repudiate as worldly wisdom and unbiblical rubbish.

My letter to Wal-Mart

Since I mentioned Wal-mart in the last post, I dug out the letter I sent them a couple of years ago. Of course if I'm going to 'cross-off' Wal-mart, where do I draw the line? K-mart? Amazon? Home Depot?

It's not easy and probably an impossible prospect. But we all draw the line somewhere. For me, Wal-mart seemed a good place to start. I had been uneasy and increasingly dubious about them for a long time but like most people I just went along with it.