see here
Americans Fail the US Citizenship Test Once Again
see here
Israel vs. Palestinians: Will We ever Learn that Revenge Doesn’t Work!
How did the Individual Right to the Free Exercise of Religion become a Right to Impose One’s Own Religion on Others?
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Hobby Lobby case that exempts closely held corporations (not publicly owned) from the Affordable Health Care Act’s mandate to pay for contraceptives, the supporters of Hobby Lobby are declaring it a victory for religious liberty. On the other hand, the Left has framed the issue in terms of women’s rights. Even the respected legal scholar, Douglas Laycock, has framed the issue as a choice between religious liberty on one side and women’s rights on the other (“A Flood of Suits”). While the Court framed it as a balancing act between religious liberty on one side and government interest on the other, per the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). This framing falsely sets up the debate as one between religious liberty on the one hand (represented by Hobby Lobby and its supporters) and either women’s rights or government interest on the other. No one is questioning whether or not Hobby Lobby’s request really is about religious liberty. How can a decision that allows a particular individual’s (or a corporation’s) right to the free exercise of religion trump the right of other individuals to act according to the dictates of their own consciences be a victory for religious liberty?
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Gavilro Princip: Hero or Terrorist? The Origins of the First World War and the Blame Game
June 28 is Vidovdan (Saint Vitus’ Day), a sacred day for all Serbs. It marks the anniversary of the Battle of Kosovo (1389), when the Serbs were defeated by the Ottoman Turks. This is also the anniversary of the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which kicked off WWI. That these two events share the same anniversary is not accident. The young Gavilro Princip, who shot the Archduke of Austria and his wife Sophie, was a Bosnian Serb and a member of the Serbian nationalist terrorist organization Ujedinjenje ili Smrt (Union or Death also known as the Black Hand). The Austro-Hungarian Empire had recently acquired the Bosnian territories, previously part of the Ottoman Empire, to administer per the Congress of Berlin (1878). But this was an inopportune time to acquire these territories. Nationalism was on the rise and the peoples of these regions desired independence. They didn’t fight to throw off the yoke of the Turks to then gain a new master. The Serbs in the newly independent Serbia were not content with their independence they also wanted their Serbian brothers in Bosnia to have the same freedom that they had. Here’s where the connection between the Battle of Kosovo and the Archduke’s assassination comes in. Ferdinand, knowing full well that June 28 was a sacred day for Serbs, decided to visit Sarajevo on that day anyway. He was already hated as a figure of the Austro-Hungarian Empire but this decision sealed his fate as a target.
It may seem strange that the Battle of Kosovo plays such an important role in Serbian history. But the defeat that marked the beginning of 500 years of oppression (at least in myth) created and cultivated the distinctive Serbian character. As Thomas Emmert explains “the Kosovo ethic…expressed a basic attitude toward life itself: democratic, anti-feudal, with love for justice and social equality.” The myth that grew in the aftermath of the battle, skillfully turned a defeat into a victory. In the most popular version of the myth Czar Lazar, the Serbian prince, choose defeat because he would be rewarded with a heavenly kingdom if he did so, thus making the Serbs a “heavenly” people rather than an “earthly” people.
Slobodan Milosevic in Kosovo
TED Talk: “Why We Should Trust Scientists” by Naomi Oreskes
This is a great TED talk. Noami Oreskes, a historian of science, clearly explains why we should believe in science. We all need to make sure our students understand how and why science works. It is vital as a democracy that our citizens understand science. We are all paying the price for the current trend of denialism (vaccines, climate science, evolution).
Huppenthal Should do More than Apologize, He Should Learn Some History
John Huppenthal, superintendent of the Arizona State Department of Education, wrote this on a blog:
“We all need to stomp out balkanization. No spanish radio stations, no spanish billboards, no spanish tv stations, no spanish newspapers. This is America, speak English.”
This guy is in charge of our schools!!!! And this isn’t even the worse thing he’s said or done! (See The Arizona Republic)
The kind of recommendation that he proposes is exactly the kind of thing that led to the balkanization of the Balkans. Intolerance and the desire to purify one’s own territory to achieve an ethnically pure state (one people, one language, one religion) is what led to the extreme violence that has plagued the region since the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Tolerance is the solution not intolerance!
A Lesson From England: “Education Should Be Beyond Belief”
In today’s The New York Times, Kenan Malik wrote a great piece about the alleged “Muslim Plot” in Birmingham: “Education Should Be Beyond Belief: A ‘Muslim Plot’ in Birmingham Shows the Folly of Faith Schools.”
Diane Ravitch Shows What’s Wrong with the Vergara Teacher Tenure Decision:
What role does religion play in the Supreme Court’s decision making?
Supreme Court Justices are supposed to be above the fray of politics and individual bias but in recent years the many 5-4 decisions of the Roberts Court have called this assumption into question. The justices would deny this, of course. Some can claim the mantle of objectivity more credibly than others but in the end the divided court looks a lot like our divided country. Political worldviews accounts for much of the divergent opinions but Bruce Allen Murphy also finds that, at least in the case of Justice Antonin Scalia, religion plays a role. In reviewing Murphy’s book (Scalia a Court of One) Dahlia Lithwick delves into the topic of Scalia’s Catholicism and the role of religion at the Supreme Court in general. (“Scalia v. Scalia: Does his faith influence his judicial decision making?”) I have not read Murphy’s book but Lithwick’s summary is thought-provoking and I think raises some important questions related the Supreme Court’s decision making process. I would highly recommend reading it.
The Seventieth Anniversary of D-Day: A Few Comments and Recommendations
Today is the seventieth anniversary of the Allied invasion of Normandy. It marks the turning point in World War II in favor of the Allies, but it has taken on so much more meaning since the end of the war. It has become a symbol of democratic ingenuity and determination in the face of evil. The democratic Allies (U.S., Canada, and Britain) pulled off an amazing feat. They were able to surprise attack the Nazis with a 7,000 ship armada. It took tremendous planning, coordination, and daring to pull off such a complex mission. It certainly deserves its place in history but it also has a darker side. The loss of life on this one day is astounding, especially on Omaha beach. It must have been terrifying for those men who were shuttled out of landing craft only to face unrelenting fire from the heavily fortified German defenses. These men in no uncertain terms deserve to be honored for their bravery and sacrifice. D-Day has so much to teach us about human ingenuity and courage. But in our desire to mythologized this event we shouldn’t be afraid to examine the many mistakes that were also a part of this awe-aspiring event. To do so is not to denigrate the event but to do honor to those who lost their lives as a result of those mistakes. And if we are willing to learn from these mistakes we will be the better for it. Let’s honor the men who sacrificed their lives on that day by trying to understand what really happened seventy years ago. Continue reading
History Chick in AZ 