Thomas, Chesterton — McLuhan?

At The University Bookman , Joseph P. Duggan offers an interesting read of Marshall McLuhan as a ‘postmodern grammarian.’ There’s too much at issue for me to cut into it adequately at the moment, but all manner of intriguing and controversial questions are raised in a pretty short . . . . Continue Reading »

Elephantitis, Part I

A debate is shaping up between two visions of the way forward for the GOP. You could describe the battle as Nerds vs. Heroes. Unlike the world of comics, where heroes to nerds dominate, there is not much prospect for a synthesis between Republican Nerds and would-be Republican Heroes, although many . . . . Continue Reading »

Elephantitis, Part II

I remember not long ago walking out of one of those beltway morning movement pressers with a fellow ingrate. I was lamenting the hidebound, blinkered establishmentarian attitude that, it appeared, was intended to serve the Republican party indefinitely. But in 2006 it was already clear that . . . . Continue Reading »

Obama as Spock?

John Dickerson at Slate has an entire article comparing President Obama to Commander Spock. Spock is famously logical and not prone to emotional outbursts, but he could also enter the minds of others and was therefore more empathetic than his human colleagues. These traits reminds Dickerson and . . . . Continue Reading »

The River Jordan a ‘Sewage Pipe’

As I went down to the river to pray : If Pope Benedict hoped to immerse himself yesterday in the waters of the River Jordan, where Jesus was said to have been baptised by his cousin John, he will have been disappointed: the river is now such a polluted, denuded shadow of its former self that . . . . Continue Reading »