Christian Academe vs. Christians in Academe Bill Hager of UGA’s Christian Faculty Forum apparently distributes this essay periodically, because I remember reading it a couple years ago, and it showed up in my inbox Monday morning.? I enjoy its invocation of T.S. Eliot’s somewhat-famous reflections on Christian education, but I also like its shift of [...]
I didn’t have the energy or the patience to watch the debate, but I am planning on reading the transcript at some point.? (That’s how I got the Rick Warren forum as well–and it makes one notice more than ever how obsessed TV news companies are with the performance elements–in a text, one’s posture and [...]
Three Types of Student Roam Campus What’s the worst thing you can say to the student body of a research university? That they could stand to study a bit more. The funny thing, of course, is that Wednesday’s Red and Black opinion column never goes anywhere near where I’ve gone in recent days, condoning as [...]
I know not everyone who reads my blog is into the whole Sunday school scene, but I am a regular and dedicated teacher on the first day of the week, so I try to share my materials with folks (especially Google searchers, as it turns out) looking for ideas.? So for those of you who [...]
Look Who’s Irrational Now I’ll have to look into this, of course, being somewhat of a skeptic when it comes to sociological studies and a hair skeptical, I’ll admit, of the Wall Street Journal.? All the same, some of the correlations just beg to be contemplated: The Gallup Organization, under contract to Baylor’s Institute for [...]
I might go back to my former, more colorful layout some time, but I got tired of looking at it, so I’ve gone back to a minimalist look.? If I get tired of this one, perhaps something new. But the way I figure it, the weather widget was ugly, I hadn’t updated my “currently reading” [...]
I’ve never understood some of the assumptions that surround standardized testing.? First of all, the very practice of separating the test-making from the teaching strikes me as stupid somehow.? Commissioning one person to write the test and a second to teach the material might prevent some self-protecting laziness, but it also completely evacuates the educational [...]
Cornel West Interview Normally I don’t post video links, but this was just too wonderful not to share.? Yes, it was last night’s show–give me a break.? I don’t stay up near late enough for the new episodes. I love the Cornel West that I’ve read, and he’s amazing on television.? I’m still jealous that, [...]
I first observed this phenomenon while I was in seminary, an aspiring college theology professor who hadn’t ever been instructor of record.? (I now am an aspiring college English professor teaching his twelfth semester.)? In an academic theology class, a fellow student who had already become a legend among the student body (in the way [...]
Robert, one of my faithful readers and a good fellow overall, sent this to me via email, and it stands as my favorite commentary on the current banking system mess. Millions of Americans–including many members of Congress, journalists, and major financial leaders–have already fallen for this new email scam.? Read it carefully to so that [...]
Conservatives Try New Tack on Campus I love the military metaphors with which this article leads: Acknowledging that 20 years and millions of dollars spent loudly and bitterly attacking the liberal leanings of American campuses have failed to make much of a dent in the way undergraduates are educated, some conservatives have decided to try [...]
Having finished what they’ve released to DVD of Battlestar Galactica, Mary and I have started viewing the series 30 Days, the ongoing project of Supersize Me documentarian Morgn Spurlock.? I think I like Spurlock better than I like Michael Moore for many of the same reasons I like detective “Bunk” Moreland from The Wire more [...]
Griese, Pennington Embrace the Present Am I still a bit sore at the Pats and Bears?? Yes. Do I think that the refs handed yesterday’s game to the Jags on a bogus interference call?? Yes. Did I enjoy reading this story about two discarded quarterbacks thumping Pats and Bears? Yes. That will be all for [...]
“If Obama were running against Adolf Hitler, I’d vote for Hitler.? That’s right.? Adolf Hitler.” Now I’m not saying that this sixty-ish woman is typical of the average McCain supporter.? After all, the conversation to the booth next to me (I couldn’t help but overhear–Mary was in line for an extra bagel, and Micah was [...]
Well, it’s almost here.? The week when I’m going to start at least one day before four AM.? The week when my students have it easy and I bury myself in work.? Yes, conferrence week is upon me. I stumbled upon this technique when I was finishing my MA in English: instead of having students [...]
I’ve been cranking away at my chapter on Milton’s Satan the last couple days, and I’ve found that the older books on the topic are much more helpful for my project.? Peter A. Fiore’s 1981 book Milton and Augustine in particular does a proeject that runs alongside mine, and time after time I find insights [...]
I just realized that, if I’m going to hit my goal of at least one post per day in September, I’m not going to be able to lean on Plato readings any more–revision meetings start Monday, which means no new Republic readings.? Bummer…
We reached the end of this unit’s Plato reading today with one of the clearest articulations of dikaiosyne in the book.? I could tell that I was tired today, both from the late night at the circus Tuesday and the late night at church last night.? I was taking longer than usual to process questions, [...]
We had a good evening yesterday–the Cole Brothers Circus was in town, so armed with discount tickets but forgetting my camera, we set out for the farmland south of Watkinsville, and we had a late (for us) but enjoyable evening.? The show started with three motorcyclists riding about in a twelve-foot-diameter sphere all at once [...]
Soldier for the Right It’s nice to read something from an actual conservative at University of Colorado, especially when he more or less debunks the “liberal stronghold” narrative that one hears about the place.? The conservative professor in question has this to say about Ward Churchill, being a conservative, and other such things: Today, while [...]
