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The View from My Ship
2020 Election Reader
Your Essential Christian Guide to the 2020 Presidential Election Who to vote for? Why should I even vote? What difference will it make? This short book–you can read it in less than an hour if you are not interrupted–will answer some of your questions, and, most important, suggest that the answers are in the Bible, […]
Old and New History
May 4, 2021
Slavery was abolished by the Emancipation Declaration of 1863 and uprooted by the final military victory of North over the South in April 1865. There followed a century of conflict largely in the South to free truly the ex-slaves and give them all the rights of all citizens, like the right to vote, to have […]
Biden Administration to Deliver Peace and Prosperity to Central America, Part 2
May 4, 2021
Returning to where we left off last week, the United Fruit Company emerged as one of the great titans in American commerce and industries, so controlling in Latin America that the Costa Ricans had a nickname for it, “Mamita Unai,” or “Mama Uni.” Much money was made, but most went to American banana importers and […]
Posted in: immigration, Latin America and the U. S.
Biden Administration to Deliver Peace and Prosperity to Central America, Part 1
April 12, 2021
This is part 1 of a two-part Port Rail on the history of the Americas, North, Central, and South, and the current immigration crisis or challenge or whatever you want to call the open border policy the Biden administration has put into place with respect to the border and immigration. If it hasn’t become perfectly […]
The Etymology Wars
April 9, 2021
Today the old is being replaced by the new, a necessary stage we are told by scholars of revolutions that has to take place before the revolution can succeed. It is an attempt to replace ancient and accepted truths with the “new” truth. Simply put, old words are given new meanings, or new words are […]
Posted in: History
Academic Freedom
March 29, 2021
Since we live in a university and college town, from the University of Alabama to Stillman College with Shelton State Community College tucked in for good measure, I thought readers would be interested in the state of academic freedom in the U. S. It comes from a piece by Eric Kaufman, “Academic Freedom is Withering” […]
Equity, What Is It?
March 15, 2021
I have written about “equity” in this column, especially last summer focusing on the University of Alabama’s Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. I figured I’ve had my say and am done with it. Then I read a piece, “Equity Is a Mandate to Discriminate” in the March 4, WSJ, and recall, of course, that […]
Posted in: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Red Neck Month
March 15, 2021
A few weeks ago, Black History Month (February) ended, and March 1 ushered in Women’s Month. Less you be uninformed, February also celebrated: National Fasting Month, National Enrolled Agents Month, American Heart Month, An Affair to Remember Month, Canned Food Month, and Creative Romance Month. In March we celebrate: National Breast Implant Awareness Month, Asset […]
Posted in: Humor, Life in America
Teaching with James
March 12, 2021
In earlier columns we dealt with different aspects of research and teaching. We examined teaching in general as one of the three principal missions of a modern university—teaching, research, and service. We also explored the “Socratic method” of teaching. Today let’s consider another approach, in this instance by one of my favorite Biblical teachers, James, […]
Race and José Martí
March 4, 2021
Studying, or rather suffering, angst, over race in this country is like someone focusing on their belly button. Thomas Chatterton Williams’s recent piece in the Wall Street Journal on “Beyond Black History Month” is one (very thoughtful) American’s take on race, bringing the advantage of his having lived elsewhere, I think Paris, for a number […]
Posted in: racism
Excellence and Equality
March 4, 2021
I promised myself not to write any more about politics this year. Everyone with a computer, tablet or cell phone is writing, all the way from Twitter to the New York Times, and most of it is just political importuning from the Left or Right in American politics. The heretofore “objective” role of journalists is […]
Bible Gateway’s Verse of the Day
- Matthew 18:15“[Dealing With Sin in the Church] “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.”
October 10, 2020
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