{"id":7330,"date":"2023-12-08T20:29:49","date_gmt":"2023-12-09T04:29:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/?p=7330"},"modified":"2023-12-08T20:29:49","modified_gmt":"2023-12-09T04:29:49","slug":"things-glen-found-interesting-volume-431","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2023\/12\/08\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-431","title":{"rendered":"Things Glen Found Interesting, Volume 431"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/issachar-update-logo-wordswag\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" 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 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>     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<p>This is volume 431, a prime number.<\/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\">\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/12\/02\/opinion\/south-korea-birth-dearth.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Ek0.NkDH.f8o0fYBW0khX&amp;smid=url-share\" target=\"_blank\">Is South Korea Disappearing?<\/a> (Ross Douthat, New York Times): \u201c[South Korea currently has] 0.7 births per woman. It\u2019s worth unpacking what that means. A country that sustained a birthrate at that level would have, for every 200 people in one generation, 70 people in the next one, a depopulation exceeding what the Black Death delivered to Europe in the 14th century. Run the experiment through a second generational turnover, and your original 200-person population falls below 25. Run it again, and you\u2019re nearing the kind of population crash caused by the fictional superflu in Stephen King\u2019s \u2018The&nbsp;Stand.\u2019&nbsp;\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Unlocked. The declining birthrate is truly one of the world\u2019s most important long-term stories. One of the reasons is that it will self-correct, but the way that it will self-correct will transform societies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/americanmind.org\/salvo\/soft-occultism\/\" target=\"_blank\">Soft Occultism<\/a> (Patricia Patnode, The American Mind): \u201cThe new, default spiritual identity for young people in the West is <em>soft occultism<\/em>, or casual witchery. This identity can easily accompany an existing religious affiliation, and often does since it is so obviously integrated in most aspects of modern Western culture.\u2026 Surveys and scientists have repeatedly found that people who have religious beliefs, especially those who attend a formal house of worship, tend to be happier than those who don\u2019t. Despite this, soft occultists prefer to buy purifying green juices and participate in pseudo-religious gatherings. They go to Pilates class but not church, meditate on personal energy but don\u2019t pray. Take vitamin supplements but not communion. Sit through therapy but not confession.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.persuasion.community\/p\/the-forgotten-dispute-that-could?utm_source=%2Finbox&amp;utm_medium=reader2\" target=\"_blank\">The Forgotten Dispute that Could Ignite a War in South America<\/a> (Francisco Toro, Persuasion): \u201cYesterday, Venezuelans voted in a non-binding referendum to annex the Essequibo territory, a stretch of jungle that makes up around two-thirds of the landmass of Venezuela\u2019s eastern neighbor, tiny Guyana. Desperate for a win amid a newly united opposition and a chronically sick economy, the leftist dictatorship of Nicol\u00e1s Maduro dusted off a musty old dispute to fan the nationalist flames. As a matter of international law, Maduro has no leg to stand on. A military adventure into Essequibo is improbable\u2014Venezuela\u2019s military remains laser-focused on the one thing it does well, and that\u2019s trafficking cocaine, not fighting wars. But dictatorships are inherently unpredictable, and the prospect of a military adventure is sending jitters around the region.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Some helpful backstory.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newser.com\/story\/343422\/george-santos-new-gig-selling-videos-on-cameo.html\" target=\"_blank\">Santos\u2019 Cameo Earnings Exceed His House Salary<\/a> (John Johnson, Newser): \u201cSantos\u2019 House salary stood at $174,000, and Semafor reports he has \u2018lined up more than that sum\u2019 in just his first 48 hours on the Cameo platform.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This story seems to summarize something important about the societal moment we are living in. I invite you to draw your own conclusions about what that important something is.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.persuasion.community\/p\/what-the-algorithm-does-to-young?utm_source=%2Finbox&amp;utm_medium=reader2\" target=\"_blank\">What The Algorithm Does To Young Girls<\/a> (Freya India, Persuasion): \u201c\u2026I believe we have <em>some <\/em>personal agency. But I also believe that a 12-year-old\u2019s mind is no match for a giant corporation using the most advanced AI to manipulate her behavior. Gen Z were the guinea pigs in this uncontrolled global social experiment. We were the first to have our vulnerabilities and insecurities fed into a machine that magnified and refracted them back at us, all the time, before we had any sense of who we were. We didn\u2019t just grow up with algorithms. They raised us. They rearranged our faces. Shaped our identities. Convinced us we were&nbsp;sick.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/marginalrevolution.com\/marginalrevolution\/2023\/12\/the-university-presidents.html?utm_source=feedly&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=the-university-presidents\" target=\"_blank\">The University presidents<\/a> (Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution): \u201cOverall this was a dark day for American higher education. I want you to keep in mind that the incentives you saw on display rule so many other parts of the system, albeit usually invisibly. Don\u2019t forget that. These university presidents have solved for what they think is the equilibrium, and it ain\u2019t pretty.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>You can find the video of the Harvard, MIT, and Penn presidents\u2019 Congressional testimony easily with a search if you haven\u2019t seen it yet. Here is <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Daniel_Sugarman\/status\/1732363021287035145\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Daniel_Sugarman\/status\/1732363021287035145\">the specific snippet<\/a> Cowen is commenting on.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Related: <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/stanforddaily.com\/2023\/12\/08\/stanford-condemns-calls-for-genocide-of-jews\/\" target=\"_blank\">Stanford condemns calls for genocide of Jews<\/a> (Caroline Chen, Stanford Daily): \u201cStanford \u2018unequivocally\u2019 condemned \u2018calls for the genocide of Jews or any peoples\u2019.\u2026 The statement opened with acknowledgment of \u2018the context of national discourse,\u2019 amid national controversy over a Wednesday congressional hearing where the presidents of Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Pennsylvania appeared to evade questions on disciplining students who called for the genocide of Jewish people.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/mereorthodoxy.com\/the-crooked-inklings\" target=\"_blank\">The Problematic Inklings<\/a> (G. Connor Salter, Mere Orthodoxy): \u201cOf course, seeing someone as a saint makes it hard to believe the person had flaws. It\u2019s not easy to admit that the Inklings\u2014Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and their friends who met weekly to share their writings\u2014weren\u2019t the perfect heroes revered in Christian homeschool guides. But eventually, we must recognize that everyone\u2019s life is complicated.\u201d&nbsp;<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Surprising details I did not know, mostly about some of the less famous Inklings.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/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\">\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/man-hopes-to-one-day-be-as-happy-as-the-people-in-this-hepatitis-b-commercial\/\" target=\"_blank\">Man Hopes To One Day Be As Happy As People In This Hepatitis B Commercial<\/a> (Babylon Bee)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smbc-comics.com\/comic\/ugly-2\" target=\"_blank\">Hacking The Ugly Sweater Contest<\/a> (SMBC)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/babylonbee.com\/news\/california-man-confused-why-he-would-play-gta-vi-when-he-can-commit-crimes-without-consequence-in-real-life\/\" target=\"_blank\">California Man Confused Why He Would Play \u2018GTA VI\u2019 When He Can Commit Crimes Without Consequence In Real Life<\/a> (Babylon Bee)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecut.com\/2019\/01\/bald-guys-are-hot-fact.html\" target=\"_blank\">Why Would Any Man Not Want to Be Bald?<\/a> (Edith Zimmerman, The Cut): \u201cTo which I say, objectively, why would any man resist going bald? It\u2019s so attractive, it boggles my mind. If I were a guy, I\u2019d be excited. I\u2019d kneel beside my bed at night and pray for it. Baldness signals testosterone (well, complicatedly), wisdom, and manliness; why would anyone fight that? I know we\u2019re all different, but honestly why would anyone have any other opinion on this topic?\u201d Older, but I wanted to pass it along to you all. Be blessed by this wisdom.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\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:\/\/theglendavis.substack.com\/\">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. This is volume 431, a prime number. Things Glen Found Interesting Less Serious Things Which Also Interested\/Amused Glen Why \u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/archives\/2023\/12\/08\/things-glen-found-interesting-volume-431\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> \u201cThings Glen Found Interesting, Volume 431\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":"Links to inform and entertain, including one which holds forth persuasively on the virtues of baldness.","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":[131,120,327,117,260,268,330],"class_list":["post-7330","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-links","tag-academia","tag-famous-christians","tag-fertility","tag-politics","tag-social-media","tag-south-america","tag-south-korea"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6Ded-1Ue","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7330","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=7330"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7330\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7331,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7330\/revisions\/7331"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7330"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7330"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glenandpaula.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7330"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}