A victory for the little people

By Tom Quiner Look at the photo of the human embryo above.  It is about 33 days old.  To simplify discussion of important recent events regarding its future, let’s give it a name. How about if we call it Jesus. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth has stopped President Obama in his tracks in his desire…

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Which art is more beautiful?

By Tom Quiner I stepped into the Cincinnati Contemporary Art Museum several years ago and got the shock of my life.  The “art”, and I use the term loosely, was ugly. It was pornographic. It demeaned. It was the kind of art that pulls you down into the muck. What happened to beautiful art?  I’m…

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“The world will be won by beauty.” Part 1

By Tom Quiner [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7HoZGjle88] I am exactly like you.  I love beauty. Every human soul is instinctively attracted to beauty.  This modern world needs more beauty.  To that aim, Quiner’s Diner will begin a regular feature titled “The world will be won by beauty.”  We will occasionally post a work of art that transcends this…

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Auschwitz vs. Ground Zero

By Tom Quiner Edith Stein was executed at Auschwitz on August 9th, 1942, for the crime of being a Jew.  This 68th anniversary of her death is relevant today. Some background is in order.  She was born into a devout Jewish family on Yom Kippur, the youngest of eleven children.  As a teen, she moved…

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A Modest Proposal to Save Iowa

Copyright 2010 by Tom Quiner Iowa is dying. The numbers are damning.  We’re not replacing ourselves.  Our population growth is stagnant.  The magic number needed to replace ourselves is 2.1 live births per woman.  That’s known as the Total Fertility Rate (TFR). Iowa’s TFR is only 1.98 according to National Vital Statistics.  We’re one of…

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The reason for American Exceptionalism

By Tom Quiner [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNUc8nuo7HI] Why has America been exceptional? It is because we have embraced a set of exceptional values.  These values have defined and shaped our greatness.  The video clip above, taken at a forum at the University of Denver in May, talks about this very subject.  West Coast talk show host, Dennis Prager,…

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Should we discriminate on the basis of religious orientation?

By Tom Quiner [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTE9zWaQc_Y] The answer is yes if you’re the University of Illinois. They fired Kenneth Howell who teaches Introduction to Catholicism and Modern Catholic Thought.  His sin?  He expressed Catholic thought on the subject of homosexuality.  Here is his fire-able quote: Natural Moral Law says that Morality must be a response to REALITY. …

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Rational reasons to believe in God

By Tom Quiner It’s the biggest question of our life.  Does God exist?  If He does, it changes everything. Some people drift away from a belief in God as they get older, just as some draw closer to Him.  Why do some draw away from Him?  I suppose there are many reasons.  Here are a…

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Was Jesus Real?

By Tom Quiner Lee Strobel was an atheist who came to believe in Jesus after spending two years trying to disprove His divinity. Be sure to watch the video from my previous post where Mr. Strobel, a former reporter for the Chicago Tribune, talks about his surprising findings about Christ. C.S. Lewis was another atheist…

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Is the Bible true?

By Tom Quiner Liberal comedienne, Janeane Garofalo, recently called the Bible a “work of fiction.”  Watch … [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nt5xruQBQ98&feature=player_embedded#!] I don’t know how much Ms. Garofalo has read, studied, or even contemplated the Bible.  But I mention her quote because she will influence a certain segment of her audience with her dismissive attitude of the most…

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