Listen in to my interview with Bill Strickland, CEO of the Manchester Bidwell Corporation in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Manchester Bidwell is an arts and job training organization in inner city Pittsburgh that Bill started in 1968.

Bill has a new book out, Make The Impossible Possible that I highly recommend. In light of my conversation with Andy Crouch earlier this week, I would say that Bill is a leading expert on "culture making". Every city needs a "Bill Strickland" who eschews conventional wisdom and just goes about the business of helping people and treating those who are often ignored with tremendous respect. read more »

Listen in to an interview with my friend Andy Crouch, editorial director of for The Christian Vision Project at Christianity Today. Andy has written a new book released this week called Culture Making: Rediscovering our Creative Calling. In this interview, Andy and I discuss an alternative to Christians seeking to change culture through politics, why non-Christians shouldn't fear Christians seeking to create culture, and examples of culture making.

I highly recommend checking out Andy's new website, Culture Making, and getting his new book.

Culture Making referenced in this interview:
Chick-Fil-A
In-N-Out Burger
Kiva
Prison Entrepreneuership Program

In last week's New York Times, I found a fascinating article about Congressman Charles Rangel and newly released information about his home in New York. I was particularly interested because Rangel's home actually consists of four rent stabilized apartments in Harlem.

As many of you may not know what rent control and rent stabilization is, here is a quick primer. From Wikipedia: "Rent control refers to laws or ordinances that set price controls on the renting of residential housing. It functions as a price ceiling." Actually the original premise of rent control is founded upon good intentions; the idea being that in a city we should be able to provide a stock of affordable housing for lower income families. If only good intentions won the day!

So let's consider a number of things. How likely is it that Congressman Charles Rangel heads a low income family? Well, according to the NYTimes article, his net worth is somewhere between $566k and $1.2 million. Not Bill Gates worthy but certainly not low income. How did Rangel come to acquire not just one rent-stabilized apartment, but FOUR? Certainly there is some sort of income requirements in order to qualify for rent stabilized apartments? Nope. Actually there isn't. So how does one acquire one of these coveted apartments? According to my friends that live in New York City, there are three ways that one acquires a rent stabilized apartment: inheritance, by knowing someone, or by paying what is referred to as "key money" (which, while illegal, is not uncommon). And so how likely is it that low income families acquire rent stabilized apartments through these means? Almost never. read more »

Good Will Hinton interviews U.S. Congressman Hank Johnson in a broad ranging conversation covering the current energy crisis, real estate foreclosures, the War on Terror, and Barack Obama.

Part 1 - Energy Crisis
Part 2 - Real Estate & Foreclosures
Part 3 - War on Terrorism
Part 4 - Byrne/JAG & Arbitration Fairness Act
Part 5 - Barack Obama & Election season

Part 1 covers the energy crisis. read more »

If you read nothing else this week, read David Brook's column today in the New York Times: The Great Seduction.

The loosening of financial inhibition has meant more options for the well-educated but more temptation and chaos for the most vulnerable. Social norms, the invisible threads that guide behavior, have deteriorated. Over the past years, Americans have been more socially conscious about protecting the environment and inhaling tobacco. They have become less socially conscious about money and debt. read more »

So this morning I am reading Wired.com and come across an article "What Is the Ultimate Apocalypsemobile". I am assuming that there are going to be references to Mad Max and descriptions of how to modify cars for what the author and many others fear is a coming world struggling with a lack of oil.

And as far-fetched as this scenario is to some, the author Joe Brown just couldn't resist seeing the Devil at work:

Through both his environmental and foreign policy, George W. Bush has set in motion events that will likely destroy the world as we know it. Our land will cease to support life, our cities will become havens for gangs of the violent undead and we will all be forced out into the scorched wasteland to fend for ourselves, looting gas stations for canned goods, stockpiling water and food.

Don't forget Joe, that when children cry anywhere in the world, it is because of Bush. read more »

This from the Guardian:

"I think it would be the worst mistake that could be made," said Carter. "That would just accumulate the negative aspects of both candidates."

Carter, who formally endorsed the Illinois senator last night, cited opinion polls showing 50% of US voters with a negative view of Clinton.

In terms that might discomfort the Obama camp, he said: "If you take that 50% who just don't want to vote for Clinton and add it to whatever element there might be who don't think Obama is white enough or old enough or experienced enough or because he's got a middle name that sounds Arab, you could have the worst of both worlds."

I'm sure both Obama and Clinton are thrilled about this. Not.

I just looked through Drudge Report to see if there was anything new this weekend and found this report about a new tax proposal in California:

California state lawmakers are considering an unusual idea to solve the state's huge budget shortfall: Tax pornography.

The idea was proposed by a state assemblyman, and would impose a 25 percent tax on the production and sales of pornographic videos -- the vast majority of which are made in southern California.

It is unknown, however, how seriously lawmakers will take the idea or how the porn business would deal with the new tax. It is likely, though, that porm-makers would simply pass the cost along to consumers by making pornographic materials more expensive. read more »

A friend of mine just sent me this article:

Hillary Clinton today brought up the assassination of Sen. Robert Kennedy while defending her decision to stay in the race against Barack Obama.

"My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. I don't understand it," she said, dismissing calls to drop out.

Watch a video of the editorial board meeting here.

Clinton made her comments at a meeting with the Sioux Falls Argus-Leader's editorial board while campaigning in South Dakota, where she complained that, "People have been trying to push me out of this ever since Iowa."

Obama, the first African-American to advance so far in the race for the White House, has faced threats, sources have said. read more »

Maybe a reason to vote for McCain?

McCain Vows To Replace Secret Service With His Own Bare Fists

If you are like me, you are probably starting to feel some angst over the continuing rise is gas prices. My wife and I are discussing the idea of selling our cars to get more fuel efficient ones. I may even get a Vespa.

A large factor that is driving my concern is the growing realization that our government doesn't have a clue about what a real energy policy should look like. Unfortunately it appears that both parties simply want to demogogue and attempt to buy votes. read more »

A friend of mine posed these very thought-provoking questions:

I have a question for any Obama voters from one who is sympathetic to Obama, has defended him on many occasions, voted for him in the primary, but isn't sure that he could ever vote for him in the general election:

Four observations and then a question:

1) Today NARAL endorsed Obama.
2) The New York Times recently reported that the Obama campaign will make abortion an issue in the general election in an effort to draw independent and Republican moderate women who may be uncomfortable with the prospect of Roe v. Wade being overturned.
3) Obama voted against Roberts and Alito. Let me focus on Roberts: eminently experienced, qualified, and respected across the board. In my estimation, there was no reason to vote against him unless you were making abortion a litmus test. Keep in mind that there is a long precedent of giving the president some respect in terms of Supreme Ct. nominees. This explains why John McCain voted for Ginsburg and Breyer despite disagreeing with them on abortion.
4) Obama has never voted against any abortion measure, including partial birth abortion.

So...

How does this fit with Obama's post-partisan political persona? Isn't this just hardball partisan politics because no one could get the Democratic nomination without capitulating to the pro-choice lobby? Wouldn't it be more consistent with his post-partisanship to say: "You know what? 2/3 of Americans are against partial birth abortion. We need to respect that and find some common ground. Etc. Etc."

This is a big, big problem for me. Discuss...

Not that many politicians are innocent when it comes to demagoguery and "saying whatever it takes to win". But I did find Hillary Clinton's remarks about OPEC particularly over the top.

"We’re going to go right at OPEC. They can no longer be a cartel, a monopoly that get together once every couple of months in some conference room in some plush place in the world, they decide how much oil they’re going to produce and what price they’re going to put it at."

Um, last I checked, counties can do anything they damn well please regarding the exporting of their natural resources. I also don't recall hearing about any sort of "World Constitution" that would regulate things like this.

Next thing you know, Hillary is going to call for the abolition of the law of supply and demand. Go ahead girl, knock yourself out.

I could write my own thoughts but why bother when someone has done such a superior job covering all the angles. I highly recommend checking out Joe Gandelman's blog post this morning at The Moderate Voice.

Senator Hillary Clinton got the Pennsylvania Democratic primary victory she needed so she could press the case that she should continue in the race because rival candidate Senator Barack Obama could not close the deal after vastly outspending her.

But her victory margin (a 10 percent margin, at this writing) most certainly means that the increasingly ugly battle for the Democratic party nomination will go well into June…and perhaps all the way to the convention. read more »

It appears that Pastor Roger Byrd of Jonesville, SC thinks so. I read this article today about a sign that Byrd placed in front of his church.

It reads: "Obama, Osama, hmm, are they brothers?"

Byrd then goes on to explain....actually, he goes on to lie about why he put the sign up.

Byrd said that the message wasn't meant to be racial or political.

"It's simply to cause people to realize and to see what possibly could happen if we were to get someone in there that does not believe in Jesus Christ," he said.

When asked if he believes that Barack Obama is Muslim, Byrd said, "I don't know. See it asks a question: Are they brothers? In other words, is he Muslim ? I don't know. He says he's not. I hope he's not. But I don't know. And it's just something to try to stir people's minds. It was never intended to hurt feelings or to offend anybody." read more »