Writers

You'll have a have a hard time squeezing all who call themselves writers into the L.A. Coliseum. Sometimes, however, it seems as if good writers could fit into a phone booth. With room to spare.

Rules for Living

No. 114: During a first job interview, it's probably best not to mention your desire for "work-life balance."

Rules for Living

No. 313: Never try to justify yourself to a fool.

Big Secret

News Item: According to amonymous sources, the administration has launched a top-secret campaign to destabilize the fanatical regime running Iran. The initiative, involving propaganda broadcasts and other measures, is said to be instead of military action.

Would someone please tell me when leaking and publishing information that undermines national security ceased to be treasonous?

Rules for Living

No. 19: When you've made your point, sit down and shut up.

Rules for Living

No. 811: By the time you get it all figured out, you'll probably be too old to enjoy it.

Doing Violence to the Facts

Last week on the local Chicago news, the anchors were clucking over an incident during which a high-school-aged young man boarded a bus and started shooting, killing one boy who shielded a classmate from the bullets. Then came the predictable cries for gun control. Apparently the broadcasters forgot that Chicago already has one of the strictest gun-control regimens in the country. And besides, minors aren't supposed to have firearms anyway, so what's one more law going to do?

Then the station cut to the commercials. One of them was for a new movie, Mr. Brooks, about a murderous stalker. Hello? Is anybody in there, McFly? If we want to start to make a real difference against violence, might I suggest we begin with cleaning up the media, which glorify violence for fun and profit?

Rules for Living

No. 122: Never take your spirituality from the mainstream media.

The Success of Others

Don't envy the success of others. Rejoice with them. Do what God has called you to do.

Half-Measure

Congress is considering an immigration reform plan that would allow illegals to pay a $5,000 fine, leave the country to get a stamp on their visa, and return to the States legally. That's all well and good for the 12 million to 30 million illegals already here, I suppose. But it does nothing to stop the flow. In fact, immigration without border control will make the problem worse, because it will encourage more illegals to come while lulling us into thinking the problem is solved. In this case, a half-measure is worse than no measure at all.

Gas Guzzling

When hearing complaints about high gas prices (the cheapest place in my city is now charging $3.40 a gallon), folks like Rush Limbaugh point out that chic bottled water still costs a lot more. That may be true. But you don't drink 15 or 20 gallons of water at a time, and you don't need it to get to work. Bottled water is a luxury. Gasoline is a necessity.

Jerry Falwell

Jerry Falwell, founder of the Moral Majority and Liberty University and host of "The Old Time Gospel Hour," died today at the age of 73. While many can take issue with aspects of Falwell's long and productive ministry, none can deny his many good works and devotion to his Lord. I hope that Falwell's critics will be kinder to him in death than they were in life.

Talking Tough

This weekend on a political blabfest, Barack Obama derided President Bush for always talking tough but not backing up the talk with wise decisions. Obama assured viewers that he is tough, noting, "Somebody who has arrived where I am, out of Chicago politics, has to have a little bit of steel in them." So why isn't Chicago's mayor running for president?

Obama also said he is unafraid to make tough decisions in the national interest: "I have the capacity, I think, to make strong decisions even if they're unpopular, even if they're uncomfortable, even if sometimes I lose some friends."

Is that why he's unwilling even to consider privatizing even a portion of the financially shaky Social Security system? If Obama can't even stand up to the old lions in the Democratic Party, what does al Qaeda have to worry about?

Facts vs. Will

I remember the time my wife and I sat down with a friend who had lots of questions about Christianity. At the onset I asked him if he would become a Christian if we answered all his questions. He said yes. Then we answered his questions, one by one. But he still declined to become a Christian. It was not for a lack of facts. It was a lack of will. As the Bible says, "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'"

What about the Balkans?

We've had troops in the Balkans since the Nineties, largely to keep the locals from killing each other. Yet we hear nothing from the Democrats about a "timetable for withdrawal" there. So what's the hurry to abandon Iraq before its democracy has had a chance to get established?

It couldn't be politics, could it?

Voicemail Purgatory

"Your call is very important to us."

Oh, yeah? Then why is it being routed into voicemail purgatory?

Tying One On

The annoyingly cloying Ty Pennington, host of ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," was arrested over the weekend, on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Everyone makes mistakes, of course, but there is something so phony and contrived about this show that I can't say that I'm surprised. Asking people to tell their sob stories for an excessive new home, when their families or communities have been unable or unwilling to help, strikes me as undignified.

Incomplete Info

You'll never have complete information. That's why you have to act on faith.

Tote Bag Overload

Scientists estimate there are now 20 billion tote bags in existence worldwide, or about three for every man, woman, and child. We don't need any more tote bags, so the companies that make them need to come up with something else to occupy themselves. And those who own extra tote bags should just share them with those who don't have any.

Bounced in the NBA

In one of the greatest sports upsets ever, last night the eighth-seeded Golden State Warriors bounced the top-seeded Dallas Mavericks from the opening round of the NBA playoffs, winning four games to two. As one who usually roots for the underdog, it is a satisfying result.

But the outcome makes me wonder whether there is a better way to reward excellence during the regular season. The Mavs won a league-best 67 games, which only earned them home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. In the NFL, by contrast, the best teams get a first-round bye.

So why the long, grueling NBA season, followed by a long, grueling round of playoffs (including now best-of-seven series in the first round)? Money is the only answer. So don't expect anything to change, even if the best teams don't always win.

Obama Speaks Frankly

As he campaigns for the Democratic presidential nomination, Barack Obama is speaking frankly about problems in the African American community. From an article in the Washington Post:

"Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is delivering pointed critiques of the African American community as he campaigns for its votes, lamenting that many of his generation are 'disenfranchising' themselves because they don't vote, taking rappers to task for their language, and decrying 'anti-intellectualism' in the black community, including black children telling peers who get good grades that they are 'acting white.'"

Somewhere, Bill Cosby, who was savaged for saying such things, must be thinking, "Better late than never."

Vetoed

With President Bush's veto of a bill setting timelines for the withdrawal of troops in Iraq, here's hoping the Democrats stop the political posturing and get down to the business of governing. And if they want to run the war, here's a tip: Win the presidency.

May Obey Day

Hundreds of thousands are expected to rally today in Chicago and across the United States in support of immigration reform. Energizing activists in the Windy City is last week's raid by federal agents of a ring that produced and sold millions of dollars worth of fake IDs for Mexican illegals. Advocates of "immigration reform" accuse the feds of intimidation tactics.

Hey, it's about time. Those who wantonly break the laws of this country should feel intimidated. There can be no real reform without a shared commitment to obeying the laws already on the books.