{"id":5609,"date":"2019-08-09T15:33:41","date_gmt":"2019-08-09T23:33:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/?p=5609"},"modified":"2019-08-09T15:33:42","modified_gmt":"2019-08-09T23:33:42","slug":"things-glen-found-interesting-volume-213","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2019\/08\/09\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-213","title":{"rendered":"Things Glen Found Interesting, Volume 213"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-4396\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1024%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?resize=1200%2C1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=2048&amp;ssl=1 2048w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag.png?w=1680&amp;ssl=1 1680w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 85vw, 300px\"><\/a>\n\n    On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Things Glen Found Interesting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"simple-list wp-block-list\"><li>\nSeveral articles related to the mass shootings:<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/world-nation\/story\/2019-08-06\/el-paso-shooting-pastor-daughter-faith\">As his daughter lay in a pool of blood in an El Paso Walmart, a pastor held fast to his faith<\/a> (David Montero, Los Angeles Times): \u201cThe pastor had never prayed so fervently. Michael Grady had just learned that his 33-year-old daughter was lying in a pool of blood at Walmart.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/ct\/2019\/august-web-only\/dayton-el-paso-mass-shooting-thoughts-prayers.html\">I\u2019m a Shooting Survivor. If You\u2019re Going to Pray for Us, Here\u2019s How.<\/a> (Taylor Schumann, Christianity Today): \u201cAs a shooting survivor, I believe in action. At the same time, I believe in the power of prayer. I know firsthand what living through a shooting does to a mind and what a bullet does to a body, and I believe that my recovery and healing is a direct result of prayers that were prayed for&nbsp;me.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theamericanconservative.com\/dreher\/why-do-we-have-mass-killers\/\">Why Do We Have Mass Killers?<\/a> (Rod Dreher, The American Conservative): \u201cMy point is that people love to take these horrible events as validating the political narrative they prefer, but these narratives can keep us from understanding what really happened.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theregreview.org\/2018\/11\/09\/gun-regulation-costly-not-only-option\/\">Gun Regulation Is Costly\u2014and Not the Only Option<\/a> (Jennifer Doleac, The Regulatory Review): \u201cEvery mass shooting in the United States generates fresh calls to restrict access to guns, under the theory that fewer guns mean fewer shootings. But if the goal is to reduce gun fatalities, gun regulations ar3e not the only option. In fact, the fight over gun control is distracting policymakers from opportunities to save more lives by other means.\u201d The author is an econ professor at Texas A &amp; M, the article is a few months old.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li>This is something I\u2019ve shared links on before. Back in <a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2016\/06\/17\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-54\">issue 54<\/a> I gave a handful of facts which taken together make both sides uncomfortable: <a href=\"http:\/\/marginalrevolution.com\/marginalrevolution\/2016\/06\/fbi-homicide-data-by-weapon.html\">FBI homicide data by weapon<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/fivethirtyeight.com\/features\/hate-crimes-against-lgbt-people-are-sadly-common\/\">violence against gay people is common<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/volokh-conspiracy\/wp\/2016\/06\/17\/the-history-of-lgbt-gun-rights-litigation\/\">guns deter violence against gay people<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vox.com\/2016\/2\/29\/11120184\/gun-control-study-international-evidence\">some gun control laws do seem to reduce gun deaths<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/volokh-conspiracy\/wp\/2015\/10\/03\/do-civilians-with-guns-ever-stop-mass-shootings\/\">civilians with guns sometimes stop mass shootings<\/a>, and the leading causes of gun deaths are <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gun_violence_in_the_United_States\">suicide followed by homicide<\/a> with <a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/sf\/investigative\/2015\/12\/26\/a-year-of-reckoning-police-fatally-shoot-nearly-1000\/\">police shootings<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gun_violence_in_the_United_States\">accidental shootings<\/a> coming in way behind (shockingly far behind if you extrapolate from what you see on the news). I later stumbled upon the fact that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/ed\/2018\/08\/27\/640323347\/the-school-shootings-that-werent\">there are not nearly as many school shootings as is sometimes reported<\/a>. Also, I found clips of two comedians taking opposite views. Both are vulgar, hilarious, and informative \u2013 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=x9iYvyffAh4\">Bill Burr buys a shotgun<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=0rR9IaXH1M0\">Jim Jeffries on why Americans are nuts<\/a>. Less vulgar and even more informative is this debate between two pastors on guns that I shared back in <a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2016\/05\/06\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-48\">volume 48<\/a> (you have to click through to see it since it\u2019s multiple links)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/religionnews.com\/2019\/08\/06\/conservative-christians-have-a-porn-problem-studies-show\/\">Conservative Christians have a porn problem, studies show, but not the one you think<\/a> (Jana Riess, Religion News Service): \u201cDrawing on numerous studies, Perry finds that, despite the statistical finding that conservative Christians are less likely to use porn, the <em>perception<\/em> within evangelical churches is that this has become an enormous problem for the faithful.\u201d<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theatlantic.com\/ideas\/archive\/2019\/08\/what-if-left-was-right-race\/595777\/?utm_source=feed\">What Ails the Right Isn\u2019t (Just) Racism<\/a> (Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic): \u201cPut another way, the right is correct that crying wolf matters. And the left is correct that The Boy Who Cried Wolf ends with a wolf feasting on folks who concluded that they shouldn\u2019t worry about wolves because one kid fibbed.\u201d I found this far more interesting than the title led me to anticipate.<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/slatestarcodex.com\/2019\/07\/29\/against-against-billionaire-philanthropy\/\">Against Against Billionaire Philanthropy<\/a> (Scott Alexander, Slate Star Codex): \u201cI worry the movement against billionaire charity is on track to damage charity a whole lot more than it damages billionaires.\u201d This is a very interesting essay, and he has a follow-up, <a href=\"https:\/\/slatestarcodex.com\/2019\/08\/07\/highlights-from-the-comments-on-billionaire-philanthropy\/\">Highlights From The Comments on Billionaire Philanthropy<\/a>, which thoughtfully responds to criticisms. Highly recommended.<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/quillette.com\/2019\/08\/06\/how-and-why-to-kissass\/\">How (and Why) to KISSASS<\/a> (Kevin Mims, Quillette): \u201c\u2026if you\u2019re not a member of the professional class, the key to getting your personal essays published in prominent publications is KISSASS\u2014Keep It Short, Sad, And Simple, Stupid.\u201d This is a follow-up to an article I shared previously and I found it fascinating.<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/news\/2019\/july\/carol-swain-vanderbilt-nashville-mayor-christian-faith.html\">Carol Swain Worked to Hold Politicians Accountable. Then She Felt God Call Her to Run.<\/a> (David Roach, Christianity Today): \u201cFor Swain, change has been a recurring theme in her life. She went from low-income single mother to Ivy League academic, from Democrat to Republican media commentator, and from Jehovah\u2019s Witness turned non-churchgoer to committed follower of Christ.\u201d What a fascinating lady.<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/magazine\/2019\/08\/26\/why-im-not-a-liberal\/\">Why I\u2019m Not A Liberal<\/a> (Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review): \u201cBecause liberalism is based on individual rights, it naturally favors the individual asserting his rights against traditional social subjects, whether they be the community, the family, or even his own marriage. If a classically liberal system has no effect on the values of society, it is an astonishing coincidence that wherever liberal political arrangements emerge, a new liberal understanding of marriage eventually replaces the previous Christian understandings as the legal and social reality.\u201d This essay covers a lot of ground.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Less Serious Things Which Also Interested\/Amused Glen<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"simple-list wp-block-list\"><li>Wow \u2014 there are a lot of amusing links this week. In my defense, I try to limit the serious links above to seven major bullet points but I let this section grow without limit, and I\u2019ve got two weeks\u2019 worth of material here.&nbsp;Enjoy!<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smbc-comics.com\/comic\/opinions\">Why study science?<\/a> (SMBC)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gocomics.com\/pearlsbeforeswine\/2019\/07\/28\">We killed journalism<\/a> (Pearls Before Swine)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smbc-comics.com\/comic\/critical\">Mass<\/a> (SMBC)&nbsp;<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/dilbert.com\/strip\/2019-08-03\">When Can You Meet?<\/a> (Dilbert) I relate to this too&nbsp;much<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/gallery\/vMdjpmG\">Intriguing<\/a> (Imgur)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/local-christian-would-do-anything-for-jesus-except-believe-things-that-are-unpopular\">Local Christian Would Do Anything For Jesus Except Believe Things That Are Unpopular<\/a> (Babylon Bee)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/xkcd.com\/2184\/\">Unpopular Opinions<\/a> (xkcd) \u2014 this is a really good&nbsp;point<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/new-legislation-targeting-violent-gun-wielding-groups-accidentally-bans-government\">New Legislation Outlawing Violent Gun-Wielding Groups Accidentally Bans Federal Government<\/a> (Babylon Bee) \u2014&nbsp;ouch<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=2F1vzt-60fw\">Eric Chien Coin Magic<\/a> (America\u2019s Got Talent, YouTube): six minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-Z7OsTUbdr4\">&nbsp;Xulio Merino Sponge Magic<\/a> (Penn &amp; Teller Fool Us, YouTube): nine minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-FaPe3U9DXE\">Marcus Eddie Not A Card Trick<\/a> (Penn &amp; Teller Fool Us, YouTube): six minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=9linAyhf2Cc\">Robert Ramirez iPhone Magic<\/a> (Penn &amp; Teller Fool Us, YouTube): nine minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=g72vllm7kv4\">Blake &amp; Jana Crushing Magic<\/a> (Penn &amp; Teller Fool Us, YouTube): eight and a half minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ZN97snpLIys\">Mongolian Strong Man<\/a> (Australia\u2019s Got Talent, YouTube): eight minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=kWIVWiAd8ME\">Lioz Shem Tov Funny Magician<\/a> (Australia\u2019s Got Talent, YouTube): eight minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=xLyEDe43WE4\">Zoe Lafleur, Sixth-Grade Magician<\/a> (Penn &amp; Teller Fool Us, YouTube): seven and a half minutes<\/li><li><a href=\"http:\/\/digg.com\/video\/magician-visual-illusion-tricks\">Clever Visual Illusions<\/a> (Digg)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2019\/jul\/29\/trump-straws-plastic-sales-2020-campaign-fundraising\">Trump re-election campaign raises $460,000 from selling plastic straws<\/a> (Adam Gabbat, The Guardian): this is real news, albeit amusing<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Things Glen Found Interesting A While&nbsp;Ago<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Every week I\u2019ll highlight an older link still worth your consideration. This week we have <a href=\"http:\/\/slatestarcodex.com\/2018\/07\/03\/ssc-journal-club-dissolving-the-fermi-paradox\/\">Dissolving the Fermi Paradox<\/a> (Scott Alexander, Slate Star Codex): \u201cImagine we knew God flipped a coin. If it came up heads, He made 10 billion alien civilization. If it came up tails, He made none besides Earth. Using our one parameter Drake Equation, we determine that on average there should be 5 billion alien civilizations. Since we see zero, that\u2019s quite the paradox, isn\u2019t it? No. In this case the mean is meaningless. It\u2019s not at all surprising that we see zero alien civilizations, it just means the coin must have landed tails. SDO say that relying on the Drake Equation is the same kind of error.\u201d&nbsp; First shared in <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2018\/07\/06\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-159\">volume 159<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Why Do You Send This&nbsp;Email?<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In the time of King David, the tribe of Issachar produced shrewd warriors \u201cwho understood the times and knew what Israel should do\u201d (1 Chron 12:32). In a similar way, we need to become wise people whose faith interacts with the world. I pray this email gives you greater insight, so that you may continue the tradition of Issachar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><b>Disclaimer<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Chi Alpha is not a partisan organization. To paraphrase another minister: we are not about the donkey\u2019s agenda and we are not about the elephant\u2019s agenda \u2014 we are about the Lamb\u2019s agenda. Having said that, I read widely (in part because I believe we should aspire to pass <a href=\"http:\/\/econlog.econlib.org\/archives\/2011\/06\/the_ideological.html\">the ideological Turing test<\/a> and in part because I do not believe I can fairly say \u201cI agree\u201d or \u201cI disagree\u201d until I can say \u201cI understand\u201d) and may at times share articles that have a strong partisan bias simply because I find the article stimulating. The upshot: you should not assume I agree with everything an author says in an article I mention, much less things the author has said in other articles (although if I strongly disagree with something in the article I\u2019ll usually mention it). And to the extent you can discern my opinions, please understand that they are my own and not necessarily those of Chi Alpha or any other organization I may be perceived to represent.\n\nAlso, remember that I\u2019m not reporting news \u2014 I\u2019m giving you a selection of things I found interesting. There\u2019s a lot happening in the world that\u2019s not making an appearance here because I haven\u2019t found stimulating articles written about it.\n\nIf this was forwarded to you and you want to receive future emails, sign up <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/\">here<\/a>. You can also <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/category\/links\">view the archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Fridays I share articles\/resources about broad cultural, societal and theological issues. Be sure to see the explanation and disclaimers at the bottom. I welcome your suggestions. If you read something fascinating please pass it my&nbsp;way. Things Glen Found Interesting Several articles related to the mass shootings: As his daughter lay in a pool of \u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2019\/08\/09\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-213\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> \u201cThings Glen Found Interesting, Volume 213\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Articles about gun violence, racism, pornography, and other casual dinner-table topics. Plus magic videos. Lots of magic videos.","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[16],"tags":[119,120,144,117,136,172],"class_list":["post-5609","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-links","tag-charity","tag-famous-christians","tag-guns","tag-politics","tag-pornography","tag-racism"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6Ded-1st","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5609","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5609"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5609\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5620,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5609\/revisions\/5620"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}