The New York Times stirred up a little controversy over the weekend by publishing a report headlined "A Voice of Hate in America's Heartland." It focused attention on a nondescript young couple from New Carlisle, Ohio --- Tony and Maria Hovater --- distinguished only because of his active role in American white nationalism. The piece caught my eye, in part, because a friend of mine --- among those least likely to sympathize in any way with Hovater or his causes --- recently moved to Chariton from New Carlisle. And also because some of my forbears lived there for a time before heading west into Iowa during the 1850s. Much of the criticism of The Times piece involved allegations that it focused too much attention on the banality of the young Ohio couple --- your typical friendly neo-Nazis next door --- and too little on the evils of the causes they espouse. All of which has caused me to scurry around the cyber-universe this morning, reading up on Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), who coined the phrase "banality of evil" as part of the title of her 1963 book, "Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil." Arendt, who had barely escaped Nazi Germany with her life, was commissioned by The New Yorker magazine in 1962 to cover the trial in Jerusalem of Adolph Eichmann, a principal architect of the Holocaust. Her reports appeared in The New Yorker, then were augmented for publication as a book. The quote used here for illustrative purposes is from another of her works, "The Origins of Totalitarianism." One of the better discussions of Arendt's ideas (shared by many other thinkers) appears in a post from earlier this year by Maria Popova on her blog, "Brain Pickings." I'd recommend it to you. It's entitled, "The Banality of Evil: Hannah Arendt on the Normalization of Human Wickedness and Our Only Effective Antidote to It."
If you need protection you can say these prayers, Bible verses and scriptures to cancel the evil plan of the enemy.
Is this about a generation gap or some people are just plain rude? What have we come to? You'd think people would be more sensitive towards other humans. Whether it's a different cast, religion, race, or if someone has a different sexual preference. The world of social media has made us so much more modern
Luke 1 vs. 74-75: If you are not delivered out of the hands of your enemies, you will not be able to serve the Lord in Holiness and righteousness. Prayer Point: This night my enemies shall cry,…
Philip Zimbardo is an American psychologist perhaps best known for his famous Stanford Prison Experiment. Learn more about his life and theories.
Read the most profound, exciting, and thought-provoking books about good and evil of all time. Best fiction & fantasy good vs evil books.
Commentary By: Gordon King Church is a place of worship. A place for fellow believers in our Lord Jesus Christ, to come to him in praise, thanks giving and adoration. To worship our God together…
In 1917, glow-in-the-dark watches were all the rage. But the girls who painted them with radioactive paint weren’t told how dangerous it was.
3:00 AM: Done at last!! Now I just have to print and I'll be in bed in minutes. ... That's some really cute wishful thinking.
HOAs are a bit like landlords—either they’re fantastic or they’re illogical and power-tripping.
