Category Archives: culture

Hikikomori, Again

Posted on June 24, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

Via the Forward: “Dear Jew: You are entering a dangerous place. Shield your eyes.” That’s the Hebrew-language text on a huge billboard that an Orthodox group has paid to post alongside a Brooklyn highway. The “dangerous place” is Manhattan. The … Continue reading →

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Two Religions

Posted on June 24, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

Rio, last week.

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Smitten by God (or Something)

Posted on June 24, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

Here’s Sally Quinn in the Washington Post: The mystics say you can find God anywhere. I believe many women have found him in “Fifty Shades of Grey.” The trilogy has sold more than 10 million copies, mostly to women over … Continue reading →

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“Offensive”

Posted on June 16, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

Via Detroit News: Lansing – House Republicans prohibited state Rep. Lisa Brown from speaking on the floor Thursday after she ended a speech Wednesday against a bill restricting abortions by referencing her female anatomy. Brown, a West Bloomfield Democrat and … Continue reading →

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A Life Worth Ending?

Posted on June 2, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

I’m not going to comment (well, overmuch anyway) on this moving, thought-provoking and beautifully-written piece by Michael Wolff, described by New York magazine in these terms: The era of medical miracles has created a new phase of aging, as far … Continue reading →

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She’s an Actress

Posted on June 2, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

Via the NY Post: Kristen Stewart is under fire for appearing topless and in a threesome in her new movie, “On the Road,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival yesterday. But while decency groups cause a flap about the … Continue reading →

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Worth Buttressing

Posted on May 27, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

It was Winston Churchill (an agnostic, essentially) who famously said that he was not a pillar of the Church of England, but a buttress, ”supporting it from the outside”. I feel much the same way (I would still check C … Continue reading →

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Christians & Muslims Unite…

Posted on May 20, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

…against Lady Gaga. The Guardian reports: Christian groups in the Philippines have called for a ban on Lady Gaga’s Manila concerts, alleging that her song Judas is an offensive mockery of Jesus Christ. Youths gathered at a rally outside the … Continue reading →

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Rage Against The Machinery

Posted on April 28, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

Via the Jewish Press: Tens of thousands of Ultra-Orthodox Jews will participate in a huge rally to be held on Sunday evening, May 20, at Citi Field in Queens, New York, to combat the evils of the Internet and the … Continue reading →

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A Voice for Fundamentalism?

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Andrew Stuttaford

One of life’s minor pleasures is the spectacle of ‘progressives’ calling for Christians to pay more attention to the Bible. Here’s David Sirota writing in Salon: As the Pew Research Center recently discovered, “Most people who agree with the religious … Continue reading →

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