Upset

Melanie Phillips is another example of a member of the elites who is getting worried about the health of our society, yet is unable to put her finger on the real issue, i.e. nihilism.

Real fun

A lady who got herself in trouble.

Buried

In case you want to know nore about the life of Zarqawi, this piece in The Atlantic is excellent. What is striking is that it is possible for a human life to take place in a context where the "I" never emerges.

Running for the cliff

A collision? This has civil war potential. Barring a rebirth of collective common sense, the only other possible outcome is the de facto abolition of marriage as a civil institution, which of course makes no sense but at least would not tear our society apart as deeply as state enforced acceptance/endorsement of homosexuality.

Slave religion

The encounter between slaves and Christianity in the old South is very interesting.

A penthouse and a tutor.

Reality always takes revenge on ideology. The end-result of "democratizing" education by massively lowering its standards is that now education is becoming a luxury.

All or nothing

A new book on Islam and imperialism.

The specific (and baleful) contribution of Islam is that, by attributing sovereignty solely to God, and by pretending in a philosophically primitive way that God’s will is knowable independently of human interpretation, and therefore of human interest and desire—in short by allowing nothing to human as against divine nature—it tries to abolish politics.

The taproot

If you missed it, you should read the Pope's speech at Auschwitz.

Hell

One should be aware of tragedies like the situation in Congo. It shows the basic human helpless in front of evil. It also shows that the elites in the West have no clue about what builds a human civilization. It certainly requires something more fundamental that writing UN resolutions and holding elections.

Hatred at school

A first-grade student in Saudi Arabia is taught that "Every religion other than Islam is false" and the teacher is instructed to "Give examples of false religions, like Judaism, Christianity etc.". In fifth grade, the Saudi students learn that "It is forbidden for a Muslim to be a loyal friend to someone who does not believe in God or his prophet". Just two examples from the official history and religion textbooks in the Saudi schools.
A new report from the nonprofit group Freedom House offer a sad look at how Saudi Arabia is poisoning the minds of a new generation of kids. (The complete report is here).

Eugenics is coming

Notice the humane concern about significant anxiety.

A gnostic Christian?

There is some truth to the observation that the Da Vinci Code's grotesque success reflects a gnostic wave which has been growing for a long time. Anyway, this is an occasion to understand better what it means that Christianity is an event.

Deficit of faith

A review of demographic trends.

Abstraction

A brilliant essay by Roger Scruton on John Stuart Mill, the father of English-speaking liberalism (as in "everything is OK between consenting adults").

He never understood that the intellect, which flies so easily to its conclusions, relies on something else for its premises. Those conservatives who upheld what Mill called "the despotism of custom" against the "experiments in living" advocated in "On Liberty" were not stupid simply because they recognized the limits of the human intellect. They were, on the contrary, aware that freedom and custom are mutually dependent, and that to free oneself from moral norms is to surrender to the state. For only the state can manage the ensuing disaster.

Nihilism galore

Ultra-nihilist French writer Michel Houellebecq is an involuntary witness to the truth of Dostoevski's remark: "if you take away from man the possibility of bowing in front of the Infinite, he dies." In Houellebecq's case, he rots.