Uncategorized 893

Hillsdale, Michigan. Sports is not one of the topics that regularly comes up on the Front Porch. Human flourishing, whatever that possibly could be this side of the Garden of…

Here's a piece encouraging people and companies to resist encroachments by the NSA. Consider these examples: Already companies are taking their data and communications out of the US. The extreme…

Wendell Berry has written about the salutary effects of living and working in the same place, but I'm not sure this is what he had in mind.... The Wall Street…

Three principles. The first is Stein's Law: if something can't go on forever, it won't. The second is that governing is ruled by the law of unintended consequences. The third…

I recently heard of a guy who was getting nasty letters from his HOA because he was, shall we say, less than dutiful in keeping his large lawn mowed. Rather…

Apropos this year's FPR Conference comes this Times story from Robert Putnam, who laments the decline of his hometown of Port Clinton, OH. The weakening of unions, vacating of the manufacturing…

Now scientists are working to create meat in a laboratory. To produce the patty, researchers will mix lab-grown beef muscle cells with salt, egg powder and bread crumbs. Beet juice…

George Will argues that Detriot was killed by democracy. Detroit, which boomed during World War II when industrial America was “the arsenal of democracy,” died of democracy. Today, among the…

I've recently written about the travails of the UCC in Canada. From Rod Dreher's blog comes this video of a service down the street from Kilsyth in the city of…

The inimitable Onion once again shows how satire should be done. Title: "Unambitious Loser with Happy, Fulfilling Life Still Lives in Hometown." There is much to pity. Longtime acquaintances confirmed…

Here's a piece in the WSJ describing the evolution of police tactics and equipment that has resulted in a blurring of lines between policeman and soldier. Excerpt: On Jan. 4…

My oldest daughter recently graduated from college, where she has long considered a career in law. I have (at least) two persons I know well who have pursued legal careers:…

Jay Walljasper--citizen of Minneapolis, former editor of Utne Reader, and among America's most insightful and humane observers of urban places--is sharing via free e-book his latest, How to Design Our…

The WSJ has a piece by Lee Siegel arguing that studying literature in college is a harmful activity and the decline in students majoring in the humanities (especially English) should…

Register here. You will also find a list of speakers and a run-down of the events. It's going to be a great time. I hope to see you there.

Surprise! Factory farming creates huge piles of manure. And these piles are difficult to keep out of the water system. An editorial from the NYT is critical of the rather…

Click here for a free download of an audiobook version of Wendell Berry's Jayber Crow.

Here's a piece describing how some backyard chicken owners are sending their birds to the animal shelter. Despite visions of quaint coops, happy birds and cheap eggs, the growing trend…

Herewith links to three great tunes responding to America's wars: "Glad to Be Home" by Charles Smith and Jeff Cooper (a Deep Soul gem via Clark Stooksbury); "Gettysburg" by Janie…

Baseball, poetry, Frederick Exley, death.

From Orion, my profile of Vermont filmmaker Jay Craven.

Long time Georgetown University political theorist (and my mentor) George Carey passed away this week. The American Conservative has just published a symposium highlighting his work and influence. Traditional conservatives…

The great Ray Sawhill innerviews me for Uncouth Reflections.

The Atlantic has a piece describing how the standards of the machine have wrongly been applied to human performances. It's time to rethink productivity. More output, produced faster may be…