Mollie Hemingway

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Any religion angles here?

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I’ve been following the news about the disruption of an alleged terror plot with some interest. Two of the accused — Najibullah Zazi and his father Mohammed Wali Zazi — hail from my native state of Colorado. The news of the plot broke shortly after the eighth anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. I had a hunch that there was a religion angle to the story but it was left completely unexplored by many of the reports I was reading.


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The Shana Tova redemption

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It died down a bit in recent years but remember the so-called War on Christmas? That’s where various elements in the culture try to secularize or otherwise diminish the sacredness of the season leading up to Christmas. I myself like to talk of the War on Advent (the actual season that precedes Christmas Day) as well as the wars on various other liturgical seasons and festivals. And what about the Jewish liturgical calendar? How much do we read in the mainstream media about the meaning and significance of Jewish holy days?


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Daughter of a preacher man (UPDATED)

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A couple of days ago I wrote about Darryl Fears’ snarky Washington Post story about the independent journalists who have targeted community organizing group ACORN. Their videos show employees of ACORN advising how to set up a brothel with underage girls (who are sex-trafficked!) in the most tax-friendly way. It’s not much of a religion story but Fears has been trying to make it one. And with the reticence that much of the mainstream media has had in covering the story, perhaps it’s good that the Post is covering it at all.


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Moneychangers in the temple?

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The Associated Press had a fascinating look Dave Ramsey, a finance guru. What’s the religion angle? Well, apparently one of his major markets is Christian churches. And he mixes Christian teachings with his message of living debt free and saving money. Jay Reeves penned the piece which is full of information, particularly for an AP piece. Here’s how it begins:


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Consensual sex after life

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Lots of people are good at getting favorable press, but Gunther von Hagens is really good. He’s the guy behind the “Body Worlds” exhibits that show dead, flayed, dissected human beings preserved in plastic. He’s been on the road with this for years and it’s surprising how favorable the press is considering the topic of his show.


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Rebirth of a 'Leave Us Alone' coalition?

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As tmatt mentioned yesterday, I was able to cover the taxpayer protest here in Washington this Saturday. I cover protests here all the time but I don’t think anyone — including the people who came up with the idea for the protest, the marchers, the media or the police — had any idea it was going to be as big as it was.


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