Author’s note: I have not written in a while. Sorry for those of you who missed me. But now that the recent election is over, I will be doing some posts about it. The results of the 2024 election should […]
Race
The Years Everything Tipped
From 1405 to 1433, the Ming rulers of China sent ‘treasure fleets’ to Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, and as far as Mozambique. And then in 1434 the Portuguese reached Western Sahara, after which they went farther south every […]
What Being against ‘CRT’ and ‘Wokeness’ Should Not Mean
Those who want to fight against ‘CRT’ and ‘wokeness’ are doing a good thing. But it should not be an excuse for going back and whitewashing our history [pun sort of intended]. I admire the efforts of those on the […]
If We Want to Celebrate National Emancipation, There’s a Better Alternative Than Juneteenth
The new holiday of June 19, though its celebration has spread nationally, has a particular application to Texas. But there is another date that would be more suitable as a national holiday of emancipation: December 18. June 19, known as […]
Pornographic Ideas?
In every society, even those that profess freedom of speech, there are ideas and images that are perceived as too corrupting to be expressed or uttered. We used to think this way about pornography. Now we think this about certain […]
The New Southern Democrats
Large parts of the African American and Latino elements within the Democratic Party are the most moderate elements within the party, playing the same role as the mostly white Religious Right played within the Republicans. A surprising new force has […]
More on Christian Faith and Land Use: The Issue of Profiling
The big moral issue behind intentional racism, classism, and the like is the issue of ‘profiling’. Should we assume that, because of people’s appearance, color, or income, they would be more or less likely to do certain things? Or be […]
Anti-White Racist Remarks are Tolerated Because of White Privilege
In which I argue that it is precisely because of ‘white privilege’ that we tolerate a double standard of ‘racist’ remarks about white people from others; because we aren’t ‘hurt’ as much. Sometimes outspoken women and men, including college professors, […]
I Got Into a Traffic Accident in a Black Area, and Nobody Played the ‘Race Card’
A story in which my own experience in a black neighborhood convinced me that the hope for reconciliation is not dead It was late February, and I was on my way to a men’s retreat in Malibu, California. And I […]
Some Thoughts About ‘Identities’
In the classical Christian church we hear much about our identity in Christ. We also have a host of other identities or roles: parent or child in a family; worker in or owner of an organization; a particular church, denomination, […]