Christianity, academia, and whatever else I happen to be thinking about
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Interview on 100 Huntley Street
Here's an interview that I did on 100 Huntley Street, which is one of Canada's top religious programs. Note the white socks... I forgot to pack dress socks.
Part 1:
Part 2:
6 comments:
Jason Lee
said...
That's a great interview. You've highlighted some really interesting things. I don't know if you cover these negative trends: -the rise of income inequality -rise of executive pay vis a vis others (in the US) -rise of Autism -rise of pornography use -rise of non-marital sex among youth -rise of abortion -rise of sex trafficking -rise of single parent households -rise of obesity -rise of child obesity -rise of civic disengagement ("Bowling Alone")
I loved these interviews, but I'd like to suggest that the nostalgia for the 1950's is cultural, not economic or political. In a 50's movie, Doris Day sings a song that could best be paraphrased as I'm too horny to sleep. She's cute and funny and the foundation of the song is built upon chastity.
Today, a Doris-Day-star-power equivalent like Lady Gaga would be chanting out descriptions of sex acts while dressed in vinyl, waving a riding crop.
What we miss is the innocence than came from genuflecting to a power greater than ourselves, namely God.
I would agree that there are admirable aspects of the 1950s, as with probably any decade. But, we have a very selective memory of it... even the cultural aspects. Would we want cultural attitudes from the 1950s towards race, for example?
Brad, the racism of the 1950s actually illustrates recent cultural decay. Take a look at the statistics of black families from 1955 and today. Despite racism, blacks were considerably more likely to get and stay married and have children inside of marriage than they are today.
I don't think you can understate the cultural strength of the US in the 1950s. If you look at social pathologies related to single parent families, project what our prison populations and drug addiction rates would be if we had the family stability of the 1950s today. Poverty is another good one. These days, poverty is very tightly correlated with single motherhood. We've not seen a decline in the poverty rate, we've seen a shift in its demographics. If we had the culture of the 1950s today, our poverty rate would be much lower.
I love your book and your optimism, but I think you're falling into the popular trap of lumping all aspects of the 1950s together.
6 comments:
That's a great interview. You've highlighted some really interesting things. I don't know if you cover these negative trends:
-the rise of income inequality
-rise of executive pay vis a vis others (in the US)
-rise of Autism
-rise of pornography use
-rise of non-marital sex among youth
-rise of abortion
-rise of sex trafficking
-rise of single parent households
-rise of obesity
-rise of child obesity
-rise of civic disengagement ("Bowling Alone")
Great question, Jason. In the book I cover income inequality, non-marital sex, single-parent households, obesity, and child obesity--all negatives.
Abortion rates have actually declined significantly, as a ratio to live births, since the 1980s.
I loved these interviews, but I'd like to suggest that the nostalgia for the 1950's is cultural, not economic or political. In a 50's movie, Doris Day sings a song that could best be paraphrased as I'm too horny to sleep. She's cute and funny and the foundation of the song is built upon chastity.
Today, a Doris-Day-star-power equivalent like Lady Gaga would be chanting out descriptions of sex acts while dressed in vinyl, waving a riding crop.
What we miss is the innocence than came from genuflecting to a power greater than ourselves, namely God.
Thank you, KT.
I would agree that there are admirable aspects of the 1950s, as with probably any decade. But, we have a very selective memory of it... even the cultural aspects. Would we want cultural attitudes from the 1950s towards race, for example?
Thanks for your response Brad. Rise in cohabitation would also be a negative trend from an orthodox Christian standard.
Brad, the racism of the 1950s actually illustrates recent cultural decay. Take a look at the statistics of black families from 1955 and today. Despite racism, blacks were considerably more likely to get and stay married and have children inside of marriage than they are today.
I don't think you can understate the cultural strength of the US in the 1950s. If you look at social pathologies related to single parent families, project what our prison populations and drug addiction rates would be if we had the family stability of the 1950s today. Poverty is another good one. These days, poverty is very tightly correlated with single motherhood. We've not seen a decline in the poverty rate, we've seen a shift in its demographics. If we had the culture of the 1950s today, our poverty rate would be much lower.
I love your book and your optimism, but I think you're falling into the popular trap of lumping all aspects of the 1950s together.
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