Free Republic

First-time novelist Rebecca Makkai gives us a character in "The Borrower" who faces a moral dilemma: a Missouri librarian who must decide whether she can help a child running away from home after his parents enroll him in an evangelical program to "discourage" homosexuality. The librarian struggles to choose. The book begins with 26-year-old Lucy Hull's confession: "I might be the villain of this story. Even now, it's hard to tell."

With the results of this Tuesday’s election, some are crying foul. Several “Tea Party” candidates lost and one or more individuals (specifically from within the Tea Party) are blaming third party candidates for their Tea Party backed candidate’s loss. Certainly, their grievance has some sound reasoning, but much of it, in my opinion, is angry spin rooted in wounded pride. In this posting, I will look at several key races, such as Florida, Delaware, Nevada, Colorado, Alaska and most importantly, the Missouri Congressional race for its 3rd district. I will attempt to separate legitimate complaints from irrelevant ones and hopefully...

In this post, we’ll begin with a review of the turn out numbers for Missouri from yesterday’s election and compare that to several prior election cycles. We’ll focus on the Governor, State Secretary, and US MO1 & MO3 as well as make some postulations on the next US Senate race.Nearly 1,937,000 votes were cast in the Senatorial race with Mr. Blunt winning over Mrs. Antolinez 54.3% to 40.6%. However, a review of the last ten years shows a severe drop in voter turnout statewide. Clearly the state as a whole was not motivated to go to the polls, and I...

This article seeks to look into Missouri’s Prop B, which will be on the ballot in November. Prop B is the Puppy Mill Bill and it has become a heated debate. I mention Amendment 2 which was the stem cell/cloning bill which barely passed in 2006 here in Missouri. One of the major arguments against the bill – and which I share – was that the bill’s summary conflicted with its complete language and therefore lied to the public; in other words it is not a pro-life law. One of the arguments against Prop B is that it is vague...

I recently read a posting on another blog by a woman who had some trepidation with the thought of marriage. It’s a meaty topic to be sure, and one I’d not be able to easily or quickly delve into, but I think it’s worth mentioning here at least a little. Certainly not everyone who gets married is a Christian, and statistics and studies have shown that divorce rates are astronomically high – specifically in the U.S. – irrespective of religious belief or non-belief. That said, while I try to be even-handed in most of my approaches, this, like many of...

This posting is applicable primarily to people living in/near my district, but certainly Missouri as a whole. I will note measures and offices as well as particular candidates of interest. Links will be available to allow you to do your own research – an educated voter is a smart voter – and though you’re free to ignore or disagree with some of my assessments and opinions, I’ll mention some of my own thoughts. Republicans, conservatives and libertarians vote on November 2nd, all others vote on November 3rd. :) Just kidding, seriously. That said, I have a funny feeling quite a...

One Nation recently held their "Unity" rally in D.C. Complete fail of course, however, on their main page they have a black and white photo they're using which says "Thank You" and "Share your photos and stories". To me, the implication is that the photo is supposed to emote or imply what the turn out was or could have been. Clearly the photo is old, most probably from MLKjr's "I have a dream" speech. http://action.onenationworkingtogether.org/content/main

RAMALLAH, West Bank — It has been 10 years since Palestinians began an uprising that swept away peace talks, triggered a ferocious reaction by the Jewish state and left thousands dead on both sides. Exactly why it happened just as Palestinian statehood seemed attainable is a mystery, fed by conspiracy theories and competing narratives from across the political spectrum. This week comes an intriguing twist: One of the leading figures in Hamas seems to confirm that Yasser Arafat was playing a double game — encouraging Islamic militants to attack inside Israel while publicly insisting he was trying to stop the...

...Well, today I’ve come across an article from the Wall Street Journal noting that a Muslim with connections to Al Qaeda was arrested in Spain. He’s a U.S. citizen of Algerian origin. What makes the article noteworthy to me is that at the very end, the author comments that at one time Mr. Debhi lived in Katy, TX. I had previously commented on the issue of Muslims and a mosque in Katy, urging caution, pause and more importantly, Christian love, seeing a mission opportunity. As I noted however, if something insidious is going on in the Muslim community in Katy,...

Let me point out that I do believe and profess both statements; however, the latter does not fully nor accurately define the former. The sad reality is that many, if not most people in the United States (and probably globally – more so in the West) believe that a belief in God simply and wholly defines what and who a Christian is. I believe it is not only a condemnation of those who state this – of their ignorance or laziness – but of the Church as a whole, in our ignorance and laziness. A partial explanation of it is...

Recently Mr. Obama attended an event in New Mexico where a supporter asked him a question about his faith. Mr. Obama answered; he wants to be clear after all. ... Sorry, but the more he opens his mouth and speaks about his faith, the more I am convinced that he is either a deluded fool, or an outright liar. If he truly does believe he’s a Christian, the beliefs he’s been taught run contrary to what I know of orthodox Christian beliefs – more so, what someone who professes to be a Christian would say when asked/pressed about their faith....

Today is September 12th, 9-12, and after the infamous day nine years ago, many looked to the following day, this day, symbolically as a call to action – 9-11 being the wake-up call. Initially of course it wasn’t seen as that, people dwelling on the carnage and the anger as well as seeking some answers. In looking for answers, people began to see the larger perspectives and realized that we’d been living fairly insulated lives with an adolescent kind of belief that we’re invincible, blithely apathetic and ignorant to what has been occurring in our nation, let alone in the...

Everyone has mile-marker moments in their lives; events that directly or indirectly shape people, at the very least they are moments frozen in time, either ultimately joyous or utterly jarring, indelibly seared in our brains. My mother can recall the day JFK was assassinated, hearing the news as she sat in school; just as well as she can recall the day I was born. My grandfather remembers his part in the Battle of the Bulge just as well as he can remember the first time he met my grandmother. I can remember exactly where I was when the Space Shuttle...