Spoiled

Peggy Noonan recognizes a lack of seriousness in our elites. Bringing some people back to the basic realities of life could be one positive effect of the current economic disaster.

Friendship

Some interesting young Catholics.

Means of un-Production

Interesting statistics about Britain. It is true that what is needed is more private enterpreneurship, not just complaining about the oversized role of the state. But the ability of a people to work and produce is affected very much by politics and culture, and clearly at some point something must have gone wrong.

Nice idea

As a matter of fact, Pres. Obama visiting a inner city Catholic school would give an interesting message.

Stimulating

A hilarious statement by Nancy Pelosi.

But, seriously, the most worrisome thing in the current crisis is that the politicians often seem not to be under pressure from a competent intellectual class. Politicians can be changed at the next election, but if the technocrats turn out to be incompetent what do you do? Wait until somebody reforms the graduate schools?

Uber-bubble

A peculiar idea of sacrifice indeed.

Our world-soul

What Spengler neglects to say is that Obama's themes (inclusion without identity, pragmatism as a value, hope without reason, emotion without experience and so on) are deeply reflective of contemporary culture. The way he embodies our softly-nihilistic age is so remarkable it makes you think of that famous letter by Hegel after he saw Napoleon on his horse.

Collective narcissism

One wishes he had something intelligent to say about Obama, but the truth is that so far Obama is all about...Obama. And the desire of millions of people to feel good about themselves by contemplating their own wonderful selves reflected in Obama, the mirror-man.

Now that we think of it

Why should pastors run elementary schools?

Reason and freedom

An excellent point by David Brooks:

Mechanistic thinkers on the right and left pose as rigorous empiricists. But empiricism built on an inaccurate view of human nature is just a prison.

More precisely, it is an ideology.

Please send some money to Saudi Arabia

Somebody said that the last Marxist in the world will be a Jesuit, like the editors of America who simply cannot believe, deep down, that somebody could have cultural, non-economic motives. The Catholic contribution, of course, consists in having an unshakeable faith in moralistic platitudes like

"sustainable development, renegotiation of lopsided trade agreements, a rethinking of the economics of globalization and an end to military and political unilateralism on the part of the United States."

That will certainly eliminate poverty! And thus terrorism! Why didn't we think of it before? It's easy!!

Might or truth?

A book review discusses the situation of the Russian Orthodox church.

A matter of faith

That's the conclusion drawn by this Pakistani physicist. Here, as is often the case, the word "faith" is used to describe an arbitrary belief without much basis in experience.

Global trends

Demographic data are always interesting.

The BBC's idea of progress

A comment by Yuval Levin.

Father to many

A newspaper story on Jean Vanier.

Ready

On the occasion of Fr. Neuhaus's death, First Things has re-posted a well-known essay of his.

Regeneration

A report from Quebec.

Battleground

The NYTimes on the struggles of the Church in Spain.

Egocentric

Dalrymple on modern art.

Imports

The NYTimes has a series of three articles on foreign priests in the US. You can start from here and go back.

Crypto-christians

A different angle on Kosovo.