A Heapin' Plate of Conservative Politics and Religion

by Tom Quiner

A Heapin' Plate of Conservative Politics & Religion

by Tom Quiner

How much confidence do you have in Congress?

By Tom Quiner | July 22, 2010

By Tom Quiner The Gallup Poll surveyed Americans about their attitude toward critical institutions. The poll was conducted July eight through eleventh.  Gallup asked people if they have alot/great deal of confidence in various institutions.  Here are a few high points. The military and small business ranked highest, with 76% and 66% confidence respectively. Congress finished dead last with but 11% confidence. The biggest drop came with the institution of…

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Live this Friday night!

By Tom Quiner | July 21, 2010

By Tom Quiner Scott Stilwell plays at Grounds for Celebration this Friday at 6:30 PM I had the pleasure of working with Scott Stilwell in a musical I produced earlier this year called “A Living Heaven.”  Scott was that perfect blend of being fun, professional, and just plain good!  Check out the music section of this blog for a clip of Scott in action in the role of Jesus. This…

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Should you be free to choose?

By Tom Quiner | July 20, 2010

By Tom Quiner [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cD0dmRJ0oWg&feature=player_embedded] What an interesting question!  It depends on the context, doesn’t it?  It depends on the principle involved. I pose the question in light of the great exchange in the video above between the late, great Nobel laureate economist, Milton Friedman, and a college student who is allegedly Michael Moore.  (I don’t know if it is really Mr. Moore, nor does it matter for purposes of this…

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Should we penalize marriage?

By Tom Quiner | July 19, 2010

By Tom Quiner Society has a vested interest in marriage. The institution was established thousands of years ago as society’s way to protect wives and their children.  To this very day, we see measurable benefits to traditional marriage: Marriage reduces poverty.  The poverty rated for single mothers with children is five times higher than married women. The poverty rate for single fathers is two-and-a-half times higher than married men. Two-thirds…

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Democrats take cynicism to new heights

By Tom Quiner | July 16, 2010

By Tom Quiner [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atD7sAJTiX0&feature=player_embedded] Governor Chet Culver should be ashamed. A group called “Iowans for Responsible Government” have been running attack ads against Republican candidate for Governor, Terry Branstad.  They smear Mr. Branstad as being too liberal, that he would make Bill Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, and Barack Obama proud. The goal of the ads was to tip last months Republican primary to Bob Vanderplaats.  The ads failed. So who is…

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The reason for American Exceptionalism

By Tom Quiner | July 14, 2010

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, is the speaker. With a watershed election coming up in November, it is worth reflecting…

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Ask not what your country can do for you

By Tom Quiner | July 13, 2010

By Tom Quiner [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VB6hLg3PRbY] President John Kennedy’s 1961 inaugural address is considered to be a classic speech.  In it, he invoked his famous line, “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” In his presidency, Mr. Kennedy cut taxes. In his presidency, Mr. Kennedy used NASA to put a man on the moon. In his presidency, Mr. Kennedy faced down evil…

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Should we discriminate on the basis of religious orientation?

By Tom Quiner | July 12, 2010

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.  In other words, sexual acts are only appropriate for people who are complementary, not the…

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Rational reasons to believe in God

By Tom Quiner | July 11, 2010

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 few: 1. Belief in God seems irrational (atheism). 2. God’s existence is unlikely (agnosticism). 3.…

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Why voters are cynical

By Tom Quiner | July 8, 2010

By Tom Quiner [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_foalavjaA] Voters hate to be manipulated. The faux commercial above is funny because it smacks of some truth.  Take the current budget debate. Nine days ago, the Congressional Budget Office made a dire prediction:  America is going to experience long term red ink like we haven’t seen since World War II.  We have a growing crisis.  So what is our leadership in Congress doing about it? Nothing.…

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Liberal judges limit conservative “diversity”

By Tom Quiner | July 7, 2010

By Tom Quiner How often have you heard liberals invoke the word “diversity?” In the context of liberal-speak, diversity is automatically considered to be good.  The University of Oregon says it this way: The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect.  It means understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences.  These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical…

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Are teachers doing their jobs?

By Tom Quiner | July 6, 2010

A series of Jay Leno interviews with regular Americans reveals the woeful state of our education system. Is the National Education Association a root cause of this dumbing down of America?

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