What does Tolkien mean by insinuating that centaurs and dragons are more “alive” than cars? Well, he is referring to the fact that centaurs and dragons are animate creatures, albeit animated only by the imagination. He seems also to be saying that subcreation in the service of goodness, truth and beauty is better than subcreation [...]
Isn’t this the next thing we really want—young people with vision and confidence, willing to stand up and speak the truth? The metaverse is pure sophistry, the flattery of an audience it literally encompasses. Our students speak on behalf of God and the best of our inheritance. Where are the billions being invested on their [...]
No one wants these disproportional, ugly windmills. People don’t want their views obstructed. Even in a godless society, the modern cult of ugliness is so unnatural that human nature rebels against it. So why can’t they make beautiful windmills? Why must the industry insist upon these cold, depressing behemoths? A green new world is coming [...]
Whether it be in the context of public schools, private schools, home-centered education, co-ops, or learning pods, revisiting Neil Postman’s vision will help foster humane education in our Zoom World. It was nearly sixty years ago when famed media theorist Marshall McLuhan penned The Gutenburg Galaxy as “a series of historical observations” regarding the cultural [...]
When the pandemic separated us from our sacred spaces like the church or other communal places, Zoom promised connection. However, Zoom—as a medium of education and relationship—prevents us from truly connecting because of technology’s nature to divide, distract, and isolate. But when it came to the subject of letters, Theuth said, ‘But this study, King [...]
The internet is like a city; websites are like buildings. In the same way that architecture works in and through the technological design of the building and produces an aesthetic effect, so does web design. Therefore, the websites we visit are forming our souls, not merely by their content, but also through their design. The [...]
I believe we are stepping into a new era for the arts, particularly for Christians and conservatives, if we are willing to fight hard for it. We have been hidden too long, and our new digital world, as foreign and alien as it may seem to the thoughtful artist, can be an ally rather than [...]
Although personal computers in the high school classroom were becoming a norm before COVID, the pandemic accelerated the process and forced the rest of K-12 to adopt them. By all means, introduce computers in middle school and teach computer technology in high school, but keep them out of elementary schools. Of the many bizarre responses [...]
The social-media giants won't stop censoring conservative speech anytime soon. Why would they? The reality is that conservatives must fight back against big tech immediately. Here are several ways to do it. Will you see this essay on Facebook or Twitter? Maybe, maybe not. The two major social media networks have been censoring political speech [...]
Big Tech want to impose upon us all a kind of insane and inhumane conformity. Yet, the critical point is that they do not impose themselves upon us as much as we let them impose themselves upon us. So, the most important thing we can do is exit. The following essay was originally a presentation [...]
There are certain tools that can help in the writing process. Think of a keyboard, for example, as the equivalent of a rock musician’s guitar. Just as a musician would only want to perform before an audience with a quality guitar, a professional or serious writer will definitely want to invest in a good keyboard. [...]
Today, Theodore Roosevelt prompts us to ask the same question he raised over a century ago in his speech “The Man with the Muck-Rake”: How do we devote our attention to society’s problems without allowing them to devour us? Our survival in the Information Age hinges upon on our ability to address this problem. In [...]
The battle for civilization requires knowledge of what is at its roots. Our digital culture is good for providing access, though of a precarious kind, to such knowledge. The battle also requires, however, habits of reading, listening, watching, thinking, and reflecting that are cultivated best in a non-digital environment. We are in a cold civil [...]
If we truly seek to solve the problem of diminished community and isolation, we are not going to be able to fill that void with thousands of Facebook friends or Twitter followers. That void can only be filled by a recommitment to the principles of authentic friendship that are best built in person with those [...]