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The new Lou, Part II
BYI saw that BK got a two year extension, and I thought, Hmmm, after two seasons is he still the New Lou?
Read full articleThe Four Horsemen against the Bomb
BYMilitary officials and politicians today seem unable to conceive of a future without the Bomb. Old thinking retains its grip at the Pentagon. Yet some of the principal architects of the Cold War have now become advocates of disarmament.
Read full articleTV or not TV: Shakedown the Tweets
BYSports fandom is best experienced among others. Because of some terrible travel planning, I was scheduled to experience the Notre Dame-USC game all by myself. But thanks to Twitter, I was not alone.
Read full articleBy Design: Walking Rome
BYWalking: it can be hard on your soles but good for the soul. This past summer I spent four weeks in Rome, a city that offers ample rewards to hardy visitors willing to walk.
Read full articleHow to prevent war and be secure
BYThe United States recently wound down a protracted war in Iraq and is currently fighting one in Afghanistan. What policy should Washington adopt with respect to a turbulent Middle East and a rising China? What policy can the United States pursue that will keep it safe while minimizing the chances of war?
Read full articleThe Common Good: Labor Day thoughts
BYCatholic Social teaching claims, most forcefully in Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Laborem excercens, that work is integral to the development of the human person.
Read full articleWhere U at?
BY“Where U at?” This was the last text a young woman wrote before fatally crashing into oncoming traffic. How is it that we humans can be so fully immersed in our symbolic lives that we can lose our sense of physical surroundings?
Read full articleThe Common Good: Averting the next ‘too big to fail’ bank crisis
BYIn a recent New York Times Op-Ed article, Thomas Hoenig, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, wrote that despite financial reform legislation, the biggest banks still control our economy and pose a serious threat.
Read full articlePeace in South Sudan: A Catholic Agenda
BYReligious institutions, especially the Anglican and Catholic churches, have played a leading role in peacebuilding in Sudan for decades. Their role in the process leading to South Sudan’s independence is the most recent example.
Read full articleGreat God, It’s the Great God Debate
BYOn April 7, a sold-out audience in Notre Dame’s Leighton Concert Hall watched this year’s edition of “The God Debate.”Before a packed house, “New Atheist” Sam Harris and philosopher of religion William Lane Craig argued whether God is the source of morality.
Read full articleLessons from the Japanese nuclear disaster
BYRecent events in Japan highlight the dangers of storing used nuclear fuel at reactor sites for lengthy time frames, and may increase the sense of urgency for a final solution in the United States.
Read full articleIslamophobia, Nuclear Zero and Cold War Rhetoric
BYFour senior U.S. statesmen — George P. Shultz, William J. Perry, Henry A. Kissinger and Sam Nunn — captured world attention in January 2007 with their call for "A World Free of Nuclear Weapons.” Their premise is compelling: nuclear deterrence is no longer required in the post Cold War.
Read full articleEthics Now: When the worst is done, intended or not
BYThe study of behavioral ethics suggests that individuals often behave unethically despite their best ethical intentions.
Read full articleThe Way Out of Afghanistan: Reversing a Deadly Dynamic
BYAs the scale of the military intervention has increased in Afghanistan, so has the armed violence and influence of the Taliban. Reversing this deadly dynamic will require an approach that pursues demilitarization through the gradual disengagement of U.S. and NATO military forces.
Read full articleThe Common Good: Google’s gift and the pope’s teaching
BYGoogle employees can now have personal odd jobs done at company expense. If Pope Benedict XVI knows about the perk, doubtless he would give his blessing.
Read full articleTV or Not TV: Sanity is in the eye of the beholder
BYThe varied viewpoints about Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert’s Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear are indicative of what prompted the rally in the first place: divided experiences are leading to intractably divided viewpoints.
Read full articleThe Common Good: Debts, Deficits and Economic Growth
BYThe old advice: “Keep your eye on the ball” makes sense when discussing the problems of the U.S. economy. We have become diverted from the immediate issue — jobs — to the issues of deficits and the national debt.
Read full articleBeyond Just War in Afghanistan
BYAre current U.S. government peace-building practices enough? What does it take to build peace?
Read full articleTV or Not TV: Work of Reality TV
BYWork of Art brought together two different cultural milieus: reality TV and the world of art. But did it work?
Read full articleGood Kids: Time to spoil that baby
BYWarm, responsive caregiving is linked to better health and well-being in children.
Read full articleTV or not TV: Breaking Bad Men
BYIf I read about Walter White’s drug world exploits in the newspaper, I’d want him thrown in jail. If Don Draper was my grandfather and my mother told me about his legacy of adulterous and abusive behavior, I would refuse to spend the holidays with him.
Read full articleConcelebrating Mass at the border
BYDuring the Feast of All Souls, I had the great privilege of concelebrating Mass at the border between Ciudad Juarez in Mexico and Anapra in New Mexico. Each year Mass is offered for all those who have died trying to cross the border.
Read full articleTV or not TV: USChadenfreude:Boohoohaha
BYMy Facebook friends list is filled with Chicagoans and Domers. A week ago Thursday, half the status updates on my feed were celebrations of the Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup victory; the other half were celebrations of USC’s impending NCAA sanctions, evidence that justice reckoned can taste as sweet as victory.
Read full articleExtraterrestrials at Notre Dame
BYStephen Hawking’s warning that sending signals into space could lead to extraterrestrials invading our planet has attracted widespread attention.This topic, which has often been seen as the providence of kooks, can be illuminated by serious scholarship.
Read full articleThe many careers of Frank Yeandel
BYNotre Dame marketing professor Robert Drevs called Yeandel "one of the most generous men I’ve ever known.” He was also, perhaps inadvertently, a matchmaker of ND and Saint Mary’s students.
Read full articleHow to read to kids: The moral of the story
BYRemember the train that said “I think I can, I think I can”? Do you remember the moral of The Little Engine That Could? Readers typically latch on to the theme about perseverance — if you keep trying, you will succeed.
Read full articleNo St. Paddy’s Day for the Fighting Irish
BYAt Notre Dame, the home of the Fighting Irish, the University’s founder, Father Edward Sorin, CSC, actually banned observance of St. Patrick’s Day.
Read full articleTV or not TV: The Battle for Oscar: Avatar vs. Hurt Locker
BYOf the 10 Academy Award nominees for Best Picture, two films offer the most compelling competitive storyline: Avatar and The Hurt Locker.
Read full articleWinter Olympics: past and present
BYSports fans watching the Winter Olympics in Vancouver may not realize the connection to the 1964 movie The Pink Panther.
Read full articleBob Burns: May his memory be cherished
BYThe thing about Bob Burns that impressed me most was his zest for life, his adventuresome spirit. He was always ready to try something new.
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