Asides

I was skeptical, but it is a plausible contender.

The best word ever

Over the past two months, Ted McCagg has been running a contest on his blog to find the best word ever. A winner was recently anno

This is a life-saving chart and should be posted prominently wherever men and women cross paths.

When Is It Okay to Ask a Woman If She’s Pregnant?

It’s a tricky question, but this chart provides a good rule of thumb. HT: The CornerIt’s a tricky question, but this chart provides a good rule of thumb. HT: The Corner

I have always thought this is the dumbest possible criticism of the Catholic Church. It’s like saying that Batman doesn’t fight crime because Bruce Wayne goes to parties. It misses the way the narrative fits together.

Out of Ur: Do Megachurches Hurt the Poor?

Conversations for Ministry Leaders

File this under “terrifying anecdotes”

Seth’s Blog » Blog Archive » Unaccountable by Marty Makary

The author, Marty Makary, asked the same question at his talks and got the same response. Both of them — Leape and Makary — should have started asking “What fraction of the surgeons you work with are …

I am hugely in favor of genetically modifying all kinds of stuff. I think it’s a great way to honor God. 

Should there be required labeling of GMOs?

Here is one on-the-mark take (of many): …there have been more than 300 independent medical studies on the health and safety of genetically modified foods. The World Health Organization, the National A…

I am not sure whether media or education is more at fault in this, but I believe they inadvertently collaborate to produce this confusion.

Americans Confused About the Number of Protestants, Atheists, Mormons, and Muslims

A new study finds that Americans underestimate the proportion of Protestants in the U.S., while overestimating the proportions of Mormons, Muslims, and atheists/agnostics.A new study finds that Amer…

This is pretty informative despite the author. He does not seem to be open to the possibility that porn is intrinsically not-so-good. He swiftly moves from this admission, “most of the porn workers (and especially the women) interviewed here were sexually abused, or had run out of money, or were addicts, or had no support network—they were people who had been pushed into a corner” to “the problems porn workers encounter seem like problems lots of workers encounter: abusive working conditions, inadequate (or more often non-existent) pensions, and lack of options.” Really?

Ex Porn Stars Are the 99 Percent

The documentary ‘After Porn Ends’ is more about work than sex.

True of sermons as well. 

Getting Feedback: Diagnosis and Remedy Are Different Things | Ben Casnocha

Totally agree. A related anecdote: In the months leading up to the healthcare bill, Atul Gawande for the New Yorker and David Goldhill for the Atlantic had phenomenal articles detailing what was wrong…

This. Yes.

Old Enough to Critique But Too Young to Parent

A Wheaton College professor of theology explains that his students can come up with sophisticated critiques of their parents’ faith but are flummoxed when asked to explain the meaning of the gospel.A …

The last bullet point rings so true it ought to have first chair in a symphony. 

Are “frenemies” even worse than enemies? — Barking up the wrong tree

“Friends that we feel ambivalently about raise our blood pressure more — cause more anxiety and stress — than people we actively dislike.” This is from an episode (“Frenemies”) of the consistently e…