online archive

Imperial America, the culture wars, religion and more

From Think Tank, America Quo Vadis: Max Boot and Dennis Ross debate the limits of diplomacy (and part 2). A review of Cullen Murphy's Are We Rome?

From Claremont Review of Books, a review of America Alone: The End of the World as We Know It, by Mark Steyn; a review of The Enemy At Home: The Cultural Left and Its Responsibility for 9/11, by Dinesh D'Souza; a review of The Theocons: Secular America Under Siege, by Damon Linker; and a review of Enough: The Phony Leaders, Dead-End Movements, and Culture of Failure That Are Undermining Black America—and What We Can Do About It, by Juan Williams; Winning the Race: Beyond the Crisis in Black America, by John McWhorter; and White Guilt: How Blacks and Whites Together Destroyed the Promise of the Civil Rights Era, by Shelby Steele.

From Salon, Alan Wolfe on how Jerry Falwell spent a career demonizing others. Upon his death, what else could he expect in return? (and more). Farewell to Falwell: A look at Jerry Falwell's nasty contributions to American political life. Don’t Believe the Hype: Jerry Falwell built a megachurch, and created a university, both laudable feats. But his influence on American politics has been vastly overstated (and here is Jerry Falwell's Hit Parade and a few Jerry Falwell quotes). The Devil and Jerry Falwell Jeffrey Goldberg chats with the late reverend about Judaism and the Antichrist. A review of Why Politics Needs Religion: The Place of Religious Arguments in the Public Square by Brendan Sweetman.

From Secular Web, a review of Sam Harris' The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason; a review of Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion; and a review of Science and Religion: Are They Compatible?, ed. Paul Kurtz. From Commonweal, can’t we all just get along? A history of religious coexistence.

From Christianity Today, a review of The New Faces of Christianity: Believing the Bible in the Global South by Philip Jenkins; a review of Serve God, Save the Planet: A Christian Call to Action and Saving God's Green Earth: Rediscovering the Church's Responsibility to Environmental Stewardship; and evangelicals are tempted by moralism because they've forgotten what God wants at the center. Church Militant: A review of God’s War: A New History of the Crusades, by Christopher Tyerman. More on Pope Benedict's Jesus of Nazareth: From the Baptism in the Jordan to the Transfiguration. Among the most popular religions to have flowered since the 1960s, Wicca — a form of paganism — still faces a struggle for acceptance.

And from American Sexuality, sermon with a feminist touch: An article on the kidnapping of Aimee Semple McPherson; Got a Groovey Thing Goin': An interview with Richard Croker, author of The Boomer Century 1946-2046; that ain't White: A look at the long and ugly history of "trash" talk; and a view from inside: An interview with transgender activist Jackson Bowman on the Stanton case