It’s one thing for an editor or columnist to call for censorship of bad or disfavored ideas by rounding up people who hold those ideas. It’s another thing for the attorney general to call it. I wonder if hate crime law is inacted, will it make attempted assault just as harshly punished as assault under some circumstances? Worse than that, the current bill apparently allows the federal prosecutors to try a person twice for a single act of qualifying hatred.

The US Commission on Civil Rights says the bill currently in the Senate “will do little good and a great deal of harm.” In a letter to several senators, the commissioners wrote:

“We regard the broad federalization of crime as a menace to civil liberties,” stated the commissioners. They pointed out that the loophole to “double jeopardy” exists because the authors of the Bill of Rights “never dreamed that federal criminal jurisdiction would be expanded to the point where an astonishing proportion of crimes are now both state and federal offenses.”

Why can’t all TV show themes be as fantastic as this one? I can’t stop tapping my foot.

With Father’s Day coming up, I’ll link to an old post from Albert Mohler on the marks of a fully mature man. I like these points on thinking and speaking:

A boy must learn how to translate Christian truth into genuine Christian thinking. He must learn how to defend biblical truth before his peers and in the public square, and he must acquire the ability to extend Christian thinking, based on biblical principles, to every arena of life. . . . A man must be able to speak, to be understood and to communicate in a way that will honor God and convey God’s truth to others

In other words, boys can become men in part by learning how to discuss serious issues with a level head–slow to speak, quick to listen, slow to become angry–taking their dialogue cues from wise men in their family or church instead of certain talk radio pundits. I’ll be addressing that subject in my next book, How to Talk about Important Issues Without Getting Upset.

Kevin Holtsberry has taken up the role of book examiner for Columbus, Ohio. Bravo, sir.

Some of Pixel Viking’s photos of Old Funen Village in Odense, Denmark

Anthony Sacramone’s Strange Herring blog is done.

The web just became a less fun place.

But I warned you it would happen (look for my blurb over on the left-hand side).

ChristianAudio.com is having a big sale through July 3. Most digital downloads are $7.49. I’m having trouble getting around the site right now. Maybe they are having high traffic with the first day of the sale.

A beautiful weekend, climatologically speaking. I did some stuff that a man’s gotta do in the yard, and a little housecleaning. And went to see “Star Trek,” at last. Not bad. The big thing is that it gave me the same kind of pleasure the old original series used to. Although a serious fan in my youth, my fervor abated with the years. I’m not the kind of obsessive whose whole experience is spoiled because somebody calculated the star date wrong, through failing to factor in Daylight Savings Time. All I ask is some cool visuals, a plausible (my standards are pretty low) story, some attractive women (bring back Jolene Blalock!), and good fights. And they had a sword! A sword on Star Trek! It doesn’t get much better than that, as far as I’m concerned.

Oh well, it could be better, of course. If this movie ever materializes, for instance, and if it’s worthy of its source, it’ll be worth any number of dilithium crystals. Continue reading Weakened report →

A Jewish website on culture, art, politics, and life areas was once called NextBook. Now, it’s Tablet Magazine.