Posted on 11/17/2006 3:07:01 PM PST by bluetone006
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Syracuse University professor Arthur C. Brooks is about to become the darling of the religious right in America -- and it's making him nervous.
The child of academics, raised in a liberal household and educated in the liberal arts, Brooks has written a book that concludes religious conservatives donate far more money than secular liberals to all sorts of charitable activities, irrespective of income.
In the book, he cites extensive data analysis to demonstrate that values advocated by conservatives -- from church attendance and two-parent families to the Protestant work ethic and a distaste for government-funded social services -- make conservatives more generous than liberals.
The book, titled "Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism" (Basic Books, $26), is due for release Nov. 24.
When it comes to helping the needy, Brooks writes: "For too long, liberals have been claiming they are the most virtuous members of American society. Although they usually give less to charity, they have nevertheless lambasted conservatives for their callousness in the face of social injustice."
For the record, Brooks, 42, has been registered in the past as a Democrat, then a Republican, but now lists himself as independent, explaining, "I have no comfortable political home."
Since 2003 he has been director of nonprofit studies for Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.
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Another of my kids goes to a public university in the good-ol' intermountain West. Part of the orientation was to matter-of-factly explain where students could securely store their firearms in the dorms, but that they were sorry, but they couldn't keep them in their vehicles on campus or in their rooms.
One can imagine how a left-wing coastal-liberal metrosexual would respond to that!
It's not that there isn't liberal propaganda, gay activism, and general leftiness there and other colleges everywhere. The question is to what extent it dominates, and whether one's kid has it in him/her to survive the onslaught...
Well Agrarian- Many modern day protestants and other denominations claiming to be Christians have abandoned God and His word in favor of political correctness- but fret not, they'll be judged for it in the end when they take the highway to hell. There are still many fine institutions that don't care one iota for P.C and instead follow God's word
You are very correct on all counts. I have come to the conclusion in my unscientific survey that in general, the "main-line denomination" campuses are actually worse than public universities.
You are also right that there are some fine non-P.C. institutions. I attended one myself. There are certain problems, though, for some parents and students.
One is that if a student wants to live in a certain part of the country in order to be closer to home, that limits how many of those colleges are actually a realistic option.
Another is that most of those colleges are (naturally) overtly religious -- which is a fine and outstanding characteristic, especially if one shares the particular flavor of Christianity of the institution.
An evangelical may live close to one of the 2 or 3 strong, conservative, Catholic colleges -- but probably wouldn't be comfortable there. Likewise, a conservative Catholic might not feel comfortable at a strongly evangelical college.
I'm an Eastern Orthodox Christian, which means that my kids probably wouldn't be particularly comfortable at either one (and many of them require specific statements of faith that they might not be able to agree with 100%) -- even though they undoubtedly would share pretty much exactly the same moral, political, and lifestyle standards. There are no colleges or universities of an Eastern Orthodox background in the U.S., so we all get by in various ways.
And for now, it seems that the best option I have seen is to attend a public university in a very conservative part of the country, and have them be very involved in their local Orthodox parish. Being careful to avoid the universities who are making a point of being different from the surrounding heartland by being extremely lefty...
In ALL areas of life, liberals have a DO AS I SAY, not as I DO, mentality.
Conservatives are more liberal.
Hypocrisy is a part of human nature, unless you simply have no beliefs. I find some of the extreme social conservatives to be a bit over the top.
The funny thing however, is that when liberals abandon their principles something good happens (i.e. they generate wealth, live better, etc). When conservatives abandon their principles, something bad happens (i.e. divorce, drug addiction, etc).
Have you read that book, by the way? Excellent read.
No, haven't read the book.
But you are right on about the extremes on either side.
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