Channeling his inner Ralph Nader, John Stossel calls shenanigans on the GOP talking points touting the viability of nuclear power. As I noted in the context of a mentary on Obama’s promise of a new generation of nuclear reactors, Ralph Nader has asked a prescient question: “If these nuclear power plants are so efficient, so safe, why can’t they be built with unguaranteed private risk capital?” Stossel similarly says, “I like the idea of nuclear energy too, but if ‘America...

In this week’s Acton Commentary I examine some of the issues surrounding concern for our planet’s growing human population. In “The Science of Stewardship: Sin, Sustainability, and GM Foods,” I argue that increased food production, augmented by advances in genetic modification, has a key role to play in meeting the needs of future generations. And in this panies like Monsanto have contributed greatly to our ability to address the need for increased yields. They have done so in great measure...

Over at Koinonia, Father Gregory Jensen looks at Frank Schaeffer’s vicious, bigoted attack on Robert George in Huffington Post. And George’s response in “Natural Law” and “far right Reconstructionist extremism!” on the Mirror of Justice blog. Fr. Gregory: As George argues in a 2006 essay, (Public Morality, Public Reason) like “devout Catholics, Protestants, Jews, and other believers,” Orthodox Christians find ourselves in a “contest of worldviews . . . against secularist liberals and those who, while remaining within the religious...

“We can add our testimony to that of great heroes like Solzhenitsyn and Sakharov, who have vividly related what Communism is really about.” – Admiral Jeremiah A. Denton, Jr. World Net Daily Books has republished the classic When Hell Was in Session, the chilling account of Admiral Jeremiah Denton’s almost eight years as a prisoner of war of the North Vietnamese (1965-1973). The book, cowritten with Ed Brandt, was reissued in November 2009 with a new epilogue. A naval aviator,...

A mentary from Dr. Donald Condit. Also see the Acton Health Care resource page. +++++++++ Health Care Rights, and Wrongs By Dr. Donald P. Condit As Speaker Nancy Pelosi promoted passage of Sunday’s health care reform bill, she invoked Catholic support. However, those who assert the right to health care and seek greater responsibility for government as the means to that end, are simply wrong. This legislation fails port with Catholic social principles. Claiming an entity as a right requires...

Earlier this week the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association announced that the NIV Stewardship Study Bible was one of five finalists in the Bibles category for the 2010 Christian Book Awards. If you are like me, the question begs, “Exactly how many new Bibles are published every year?” That question is quickly followed by another, “How many Bibles does the Christian world need anyway?” You may or may not be surprised to know that there is a Bible for just about...

In a mentary, “Beck Vs. Wallis,” Acton Research Fellow Marvin Olasky takes another look at the dispute between Glenn Beck and Jim Wallis over the meaning of social justice. Olasky, provost at The King’s College in New York, offers suggestions on how to respond to those who would define social justice as merely the expansion of the welfare state. I can understand Glenn Beck’s frustration. As the Beck-Wallis tempest swirled on March 11, I spent 3½ hours in a long-arranged...

Acton Institute President and Co-Founder Rev. Robert A. Sirico recently delivered a talk on social justice and socialism at St. Thomas More Academy in Raleigh, N.C. The school’s mission is “dedicated to continuing the vital tradition of Catholic education by integrating the very best academic curriculum with the deepest spiritual wisdom of Catholic Christianity.” Rev. Sirico’s talk was part of the school’s Robert L. Luddy Speaker’s Series. Father Sirico at STMA from Randy Luddy on Vimeo. ...

During Holy Week many Christians supplement their religious observances. Some, continuing in a denial that marks Lent; and others choosing to add something to their life in Christ’s worship and ministry. One of the things one can add that for many is sadly not a staple of their daily life is morning and/or evening prayer. In the prayer book that Anglicans use there are many prayers and thanksgivings but on Wednesday I was drawn again to the one “for our...

Now that President Obama has signed into law the massive health care overhaul legislation that was passed by the House of Representatives on Sunday night, it’s time to start noting what will no doubt be a fantastic series of unintended consequences of the legislation. Granted, I could probably turn this into a regular feature on the PowerBlog, akin to my series of Global Warming Consensus Alert posts. But I have a feeling that documenting the ongoing degradation of the health...