India had its untouchables. Europe had the Jews. Groups of people who were blatantly denied the rights enjoyed by most citizens of their native countries. And we Americans, who just know that we're as close to perfect as humans can get, had our n-word people.

You know the word. I hate it, and it digusts me when some black people throw it around for shock value, or for God-knows-what. Rhymes with "bigger." Continue...

When I was a kid there was speculation in some quarters that Father Charles Coughlin, the notorious anti-Semitic priest, was "The Antichrist." Then some thought it could be Hitler. Then Stalin. One evangelical revivalist insisted it was FDR, who wasn't really dead; his funeral was staged so he could make a new appearance and claim to be resurrected. Meanwhile, a Baptist preacher I knew was certain that the same evangelical revivalist was, himself, The Antichrist.

More recently, a "Christian militia" in Michigan (remember Timothy McVeigh?) seems to believe that President Obama is Satan's Anointed One. A member claimed that they were stockpiling assault rifles because Jesus Continue...

Not too long ago the largest Roman Catholic diocese in Illinois declared defensively that "only" two percent of its priests had engaged in sexual abuse of children. Only??? Let's put that in perspective: When I lived in Chicago, I estimated that there were about 600 adults living on my block, Ainslie Street from LeClaire to Laverne. If "only" 2% of those residents were pedophiles, that would mean that we had twelve adults predisposed to molest or rape a child, within a five-minute walk from my house. Knowing that, would you leave your child alone anywhere on that block?

The latests scandals about flagrant child abuse and coverups by priests in Ireland and Germany underscore the need for the Catholic church to rethink its priorities. The first focus should be on the preposterous requirement of celibacy for priests. If there was ever a justification for this denial of sexual normalcy for the clergy, which I doubt, there certainly is no justification now. It's not as simple as priests having no legitimate sexual outlet so that they satisfy themselves with children, whom they can bully into silence. Continue...

Most mainstream Americans favor equal rights between women and men, at least in theory. In practice, however, some long-standing prejudices still hold. For example, a promiscuous boy is likely to be considered a "stud," while an equally promiscuous girl risks being branded a "slut."

Legal process should always be above such knee-jerk biases. Yet in some instances a particular sex offense committed by a male may be treated as a horrendous crime, while the same offense committed by a female is considered only slightly worse than jaywalking.

For example, take some cases from a west Texas county. Continue...

Words can't begin to describe the plight of the people of Haiti, a close neighbor in the Carribean. You surely know by now: Countless thousands lie buried in rubble, dead or dying, even more are homeless, hungry, thirsty, in need of medical attention. My wife and I made a special contribution via the internet last night; I'm asking you to do the same. If you can afford a large gift, well, I can't think of a worthier and more urgent cause. If all you can afford is the minimum $10, by all means, do your part.

To my knowledge, no one I have ever known is in Haiti, but we are all humans, and I personally thank you for anything you choose to give. Please do it NOW. Here's the link:

Red Cross for Haiti

Both news stories appeared under the "odd" heading. In one, a defendant got a 10-year sentence for stealing an $80 slab of meat. In the other, a driver was fined $290,000 for speeding. "WTF?!" you ask. As the late Paul Harvey would have said, here's the rest of the story: Continue...

The treatment of women in some eastern nations shocks and disgusts me. How can a society with any sense of honor permit such horror, I wonder. How can the males of such a society dare to call themselves men, while condoning unspeakable atrocities against women. Sometimes criminal punishment prescribed by law in those countries is also shocking. Then at times the two meet, in a way that doesn't seem all bad. Take what some fiends in Pakistan did recently to a young woman in revenge for a marriage proposal rejection.

Fazeelat Bibi, 22, was a pretty, fun-loving girl, whose cousin, Sher Mohammed, wanted to marry her. He came with relatives to ask her family's permission. Continue...

Not long ago on this site I told you that Christmas isn't the exclusive property of any religion, in spite of the name, and explained why. Even a sarcastic friend of mine who delusionally believes he's smarter than I am (don't worry, Steve Langer, Ph.D., I'm not going to mention your name) told me it was well researched and well written. But please understand that I still wish all truly devout Christians a joyous and holy experience of this special day. If Christmas is only a secular winter holiday to you, may it be a happy one, and a time to wish for more warmth in your own heart, in your family, in our national life, and in the role of our nation in the world. Continue...

There are only a few places in the United States where adultery is still against the law, and usually only if it's open and notorious. As a species, we just don't have our heads straight about monogamy. We think it's a wonderful idea and we readily take those vows about "forsaking all others," but sooner or later a big portion of us forget to forsake. Depending on which survey you give how much credence, it may be a majority. Continue...

You know about Maurice Clemmons gunning down four police officers, without warning, in a coffee shop, and you know about Mike Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas and Baptist preacher, making it possible for him to be free. Clemmons had been deservedly sentenced to 95 years behind bars. You know how to use search engines, so I won't tell you all the reasons that any behavioral scientist, in fact, any reasonable person, should have known it would take many years, if ever, for the violent, vicious, raging animal that was Clemmons to become someone fit to walk among free human beings. Judges, prosecutors, corrections officials, were horrified at the idea of commuting his sentence, but to radical cleric Huckabee, Clemmons had the Get Out Of Jail Free card: Jesus. Continue...