Provocations
Short-take commentaries and conversation starters
A Tale of Temptation for Our Times
Mon 28 Apr 2008 • Responses: 0 • by Joseph Loconte
Thoughts on ‘The Screwtape Letters’
Senior Fellow Joseph Loconte looks at the themes behind C. S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters—both the original book and the current stage play, suggesting that the bond between faith and reason points to the deepest mystery of human existence.
Firm Foundations?
Sun 27 Apr 2008 • Responses: 0 • by Pete Peterson
Is there a difference between earthquake-proofing and terrorist-proofing our buildings?
The next steps in the eventual building of One World Trade Center were taken last month in a desolate patch of the New Mexico desert about ninety miles south of Albuquerque with little media fanfare, but a large bang. There, the building’s architects from Skidmore, Owings & Merrill witnessed the explosion of a three-story replica of the structure’s aluminum and glass casing. The test was a success as only few of the glass panels were smashed in the blast.
In a post–9/11 world, that’s how we must design and build the skyscrapers of the future: capable of withstanding acts of God and man. Here in California, earthquake-testing our tall buildings has been a mandated practice for decades, and in other regions of the country, formalized tests for withstanding high wind and rain are not only well-known, but are a required part of architectural education.
The Bigger Picture
Mon 31 Mar 2008 • Responses: 1 • by Gary Moore
In the current financial climate, perspective is a critical attribute of leadership.
During the early nineties, the media, both secular and religious, convinced a large percentage of Americans that our $5 trillion federal debt was of earth-shaking proportions. (They did much the same in the late nineties during Y2K.) As Americans were living on about $25,000 on average in 1990, it is easy to see how that $5 trillion number could look like a giant in the promised land. And most people were quite surprised when I told them the White House had actually estimated that America’s net worth, after subtracting all debts owed to foreigners, was $66.4 trillion in 1990.
Perhaps, a Flicker of Light
Wed 13 Feb 2008 • Responses: 2 • by Al Sikes
Reflections on the 2008 U.S. Primaries
Al Sikes, chairman of The Trinity Forum, reflects on the light glimmering through the elections fog.
Justice and Civility in the Immigration Debates
Fri 18 Jan 2008 • Responses: 3 • by Luder Whitlock
Meanness adds no value to the decision-making process. It often wounds those targeted by it and such wounds can quickly metastasize into lasting hostility and alienation.
America is a nation of immigrants. Our schools, offices, and neighborhoods now host many ethnic groups with some school districts having more than fifty language groups. My own ancestry, rooted in multiple Northern European countries, bears testimony as well.
Given that, why has immigration become such a hot political issue recently? In some senses it is not new; the previous century saw several immigration flare-ups. Today terrorism, triggering a concern for national security, is undoubtedly a factor, as are the millions of Hispanics who have entered the country illegally and continue to flood across our southwestern border.
Losing Touch with a Friend
Thu 03 Jan 2008 • Responses: 1 • by Peter Sanlon
Do we need God to experience true friendship?
In a tedious meeting I noticed the blinking light on my BlackBerry. Disinterestedly I glanced at the e-mail that had landed in my inbox—the sender’s name evoked memories. Years had passed; we had vacationed together, shared meals, talked of hopes and fears. The e-mail was from a friend I lost touch with. Last I had heard from him he was heading to college, excited but slightly fearful of what the future might hold. It was a joy to discover that he has since graduated and established his own art business, selling his work via the internet.
Cicero asked himself what the most important thing in life is, concluding that, “Virtue (without which friendship is impossible) is first; but next to it, and to it alone, the greatest of all things is friendship.”
Attention Deficit Disorder
Wed 21 Nov 2007 • Responses: 10 • by Fred Harburg
The blinding pace of our world makes it tempting to split the signal rather than to give our full attention to the people with whom we are engaged at any given moment.
Increasingly common stories of traffic accidents involving people “texting” while driving add poignancy to the epidemic of fractured attention in our world. There is a presumption that multitasking is a necessary, even admirable skill in our hyper-speed age, but nothing could be farther from the truth.
As an Air Force instructor pilot one of the first myths I had to dispel for aspiring young pilot candidates was the idea that good pilots are multitaskers. Research supports a different conclusion. The best pilots are excellent at rapid sequencing. They give full and complete attention to a visual indication, an aural signal, or a kinesthetic sensation, interpret it accurately, act on it effectively, and then move to the next appropriate point of focus. Scientists from the NASA Ames Research Center conclude that attempting to split attention is deadly for a pilot.
Judgment
Thu 15 Nov 2007 • Responses: 1 • by Al Sikes
By many of today’s single-issue, polemic political tests, some of the most revered figures in biblical—and even American—history would be summarily rejected.
In the summer of 1989 I was nominated by President George H. W. Bush to be Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Several weeks later, as I was making the rounds of U.S. Senators on the Commerce Committee, I learned that my confirmation would be opposed by the Rev. Don Wildmon, of the American Family Association. His testimony was sponsored by then–Senator Al Gore, who was a senior Democrat on the Committee.
In the Interest of Character
Fri 28 Sep 2007 by Gary Moore
I was as surprised as others by the recent larger-than-expected reduction in short-term interest rates by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board. Frankly, about the only good I can see in it is that it was an admirable attempt on the part of the new chairman, Ben Bernanke, to bail-out Alan Greenspan’s sinking reputation among even those speculators he’s encouraged during recent years.
Stupidocracy at Work
Fri 24 Aug 2007 • Responses: 1 • by David Aikman
The case of the seven-year-old “terrorist” shows how bureaucracy plus technology plus fear are killing common sense.
Ever since 9/11, one of the main agencies working at the task of defending ordinary Americans against acts of terrorism has been the Transportation Security Administration. The good folks at this agency are the ones who ensure that, when you proceed through airport security checks, you clutch your toothpaste (no more than three ounces), shampoo, and shaving cream in a clear plastic bag as though you were a colostomy patient.
In the rush to protect America’s air travel after 9/11, a lot of folks were hired who—we might say—were “common-sense-challenged.” There were stories of elderly ladies being taken aside and body-searched, of Members of Congress misidentified as possible terrorists, and even of people who looked “Middle Eastern” (whatever that means) being taken off planes. A high proportion of those hired by the TSA seemed to be immigrants with minimal command of English, which of course does wonders for the average American traveler’s sense of security.
