By George A. Ricker There is a curious naiveté reflected in all the commentary about our nation’s economic difficulties. The American people have been told by various pundits and prognosticators that our current difficulties are due to the housing crisis (Who did not see that coming?), the high cost of fuel, the high cost of …
By George A. Ricker A recent skirmish in the so-called “culture war” between the Religious Right and those who dare suggest there might be other, possibly even better, ways to view the world has been waged in the unlikely town of Chambersburg, PA. It’s a battle of dueling billboards that has spilled over into the …
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By George A. Ricker “Not Godly enough!” That’s the verdict rendered on the newly opened Capitol Visitor’s Center by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and a few other conservative lawmakers. Specifically, DeMint objected to the erroneous presentation of the phrase “E Pluribus Unum”—the words are Latin and mean “from many, one”—as the national motto, instead of “In God We Trust.” …
By George A. Ricker There is an argument that gets made with maddening regularity by religious believers. What they do not seem to understand is that in making the argument, they remove themselves from any possibility of rational discourse and the benefits associated with such discourse. The argument goes something like this. “Since my religious …
* A talk delivered at the Friendship Fellowship at Pineda, a Unitarian Universalist congregation in Brevard County, FL, on January 27, 2008. Introduction: Good morning. I want to begin my talk with a brief disclaimer. Though I’m sure it was done innocently and may simply have been a newspaper typo, I have to make it …