Attention Policing

This is a line of logic that will be familiar from most any Meme Event—the logic that says, basically, "don’t look at that; that is unimportant." It’s attention-policing, and it’s reminiscent of so many other strains of rhetorical legislation that play out in online conversations: You can’t say that. You can’t talk about that. GUYS, the attention-policer usually begins. How can you be talking about a dress/a leg/a pair of llamas/a dancing neoprene shark when climate change/net neutrality/marriage equality/ISIS/China/North Korea is going on?

[http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/02/thedress-and-the-rise-of-attention-policing/386357/]

Christianity as Tribalism

This is a must read article by Thabiti Anyabwile.

Our battle for sanctification reminds us that the war is won, the city captured, but there are still pockets of resistance in streets and small neighborhoods aligned with the old man. Our fight for less tribalism and more unity–a unity premised on like precious faith, defined biblical truth–continues apace the Molotov cocktails, rocks, and ambushes of a tribal instinct as old as Genesis 10.

But we can start with being honest about which stream we are in ourselves. Let’s stop characterizing others and cast a critical eye at ourselves. We do have logs to remove, don’t we? I suspect that a little truth telling to ourselves about our stream and motivation could go some ways in opening us up to seeing some issues and some people differently.

[http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/thabitianyabwile/2012/08/31/christian-tribalism-in-the-era-of-democratized-publishing/]

Why Doesn't India Win Gold Metals

In his article, "Neither the Will Nor the Cash," Max Fisher discusses what makes Olympic champions.

India is a big deal. It has the world's second-largest population and its ninth largest economy; it's the biggest democracy in existence and one of the oldest nations in history. But India is not very good at winning Olympic medals. There's no single or certain answer to why, but India's astonishingly poor performance offers some insights into just what does make an Olympic winner, and doesn't.

[http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/08/neither-the-will-nor-the-cash-why-india-wins-so-few-olympic-medals]

Feminism From My Google Reader

Over the last month or two a number of blog posts have popped up pertaining to issues of feminism. Here's a sampling:

"I Am Not a Girl..." by Elizabeth Esther

"Why Women Need Each Other" by Elizabeth Esther

"Feminist Homemaker" on A Practical Wedding

"What Feminism Isn't" on Rachel Held Evan's blog

"Thirteen Things That Make Me A Lousy Feminist" by Rachel Held Evans

"What Makes Women Good?" by Lauren Nicole Dubinsky

"Slaves to Sex" on Good Woman Project

Scottish Independence?

2014 referendum! Crazy. I don't know if I'm pro/against. I'm definitely used to a United Kingdom.

Mormonism (and Politics)

I've been reading about the LDS Church lately, both because of the Republican candidates who are Mormons and because of the "...And I'm a Mormon" ads on TV, YouTube, etc.

David Murray predicts that the media won't say anything about Mitt Romney's Mormonism until he gets the Republican ticket (then pull it up and effectively sabotage him): http://headhearthand.org/blog/2011/10/10/a-rare-foray-into-american-politics/.

Al Mohler talks a bit about Mormonism, and whether it's a cult, in regards to whether or not a Christian can and/or should vote for one (yes): http://www.albertmohler.com/2011/10/10/mormonism-democracy-and-the-urgent-need-for-evangelical-thinking/.

And Kevin DeYoung gives an excellent overview of the cult: http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2011/10/13/mormonism-101/.