In yesterday’s Daily Article, I made the point that mortality is a fact for us all. Reflecting on stories in the day’s news, I stated, “Evil people like the Son of Sam killer can develop heart disease. Heroes like John McCain can develop brain cancer. The death rate is still 100 percent.”

John McCain is still a hero and he still has brain cancer. But a kind reader sent me an extraordinary note about the Son of Sam killer that I asked his permission to share with you today.

An amazing story of redemption

Dr. Steve Foster is pastor of Community Bible Church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In December 2009, he visited the “Son of Sam,” David Berkowitz, in prison.

Thirty years earlier, Berkowitz terrorized New York City, killing six people and wounding seven others. Police mounted the largest manhunt in New York City history, arresting him on August 10, 1977. Berkowitz claimed to have been obeying the orders of a demon manifested in the form of a dog belonging to his neighbor “Sam.” He pled guilty to second-degree murder and has been serving six consecutive life sentences.

I remembered his story when reading that Berkowitz has now been hospitalized for a heart problem. What I didn’t know was the rest of the story.

Dr. Foster tells it well: While in prison, Berkowitz came to faith in Christ. Such “conversions” are often a play for media attention or sympathy from parole boards, but his has clearly been sincere. For decades, he has been ministering to other prisoners in Jesus’ name. He has especially focused on those who are suicidal and emotionally disturbed.

Continue reading Denison Forum – A retraction I am delighted to make →

“I am always thinking for the best. There is always a solution in life. This is what my father has taught me: to always face difficulties and hope for the best.”

This is how one elderly person describes the key to long life, part of a fascinating new study by the University of California San Diego School of Medicine. It reports that such optimism, along with stubbornness, a love for family and country, and a willingness to work hard are traits common among a group of Italians aged ninety to 101.

However, before you decide that optimistic stubbornness is all you need to live longer, take note: other studies claim that owning a dog, drinking coffee, and doing more push-ups and sit-ups contribute to longevity. But another study warns that too much exercise can raise your risk of an early death.

Here’s a fact: no matter how long you live, you won’t live on this planet forever.

Evil people like the Son of Sam killer can develop heart disease. Heroes like John McCain can develop brain cancer. The death rate is still 100 percent.

If we will all die (unless the Lord returns first), why do we try so hard to fight the fact of our mortality?

Jesus is still the Great Physician

One reason is God-given: our Lord cares about our physical health.

Jesus was noted far and wide for his healing ministry (Matthew 4:23–25). The apostles were famous for the healing power of the Spirit at work through them (Acts 5:12–16). The apostle John prayed for Gaius “that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul” (3 John 2).

Continue reading Denison Forum – Is this the key to long life? →

In a “major upset,” Democrat Doug Jones defeated Republican Roy Moore in yesterday’s Senate election in Alabama. This was the fiftieth Senate special election in my lifetime. None has been remotely as controversial as this campaign.

The Denison Forum is nonpartisan and does not endorse or oppose political candidates. As a result, my intention today is not to support or criticize the candidates or their parties. Rather, it is to explore the cultural significance of the election in the context of biblical truth.

It seems to me that four factors influenced the outcome. I predict that these same factors will continue to be relevant to American elections for the foreseeable future.

One: Personal qualifications

Doug Jones has been working for civil rights and reconciliation since high school. He served as an assistant US attorney and private lawyer before being appointed US Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama by President Clinton in 1997. As a result of his work in racial reconciliation, he received 96 percent of the African American vote in yesterday’s election.

Roy Moore graduated from West Point and served in Vietnam. He was elected Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court in 2000 but was removed in 2003 for refusing to remove a Ten Commandments monument he installed in the rotunda of the Alabama Judicial Building. He was reelected in 2012 but was charged with violations of legal ethics in 2016 and suspended; he retired the next year.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Four factors in the Alabama Senate election →

A great white shark nearly took off a salvage diver’s head in South Africa, according to a now-viral video. Carson Wentz, the Philadelphia Eagles’ phenomenal quarterback (and very committed Christian), has been ruled out for the rest of the year with a knee injury.

And the wildfires in California have destroyed over a thousand structures as of this morning. An anesthesiologist lost his home to fire in Santa Rosa last October. Then a second home in Ventura, which he was renting to members of the military, burned down last week.

What do these stories have in common?

Shifting themes: A terror attack struck a bus terminal near Times Square yesterday morning. The would-be suicide bomber was reportedly inspired by ISIS attacks on Christmas markets in Europe. Reuters is reporting that Russian-language hackers have stolen nearly $10 million from at least eighteen banks, fifteen of them in the US.

And the New England Patriots played without Rob Gronkowski when they lost to the Miami Dolphins last night. The All-Pro tight end was suspended for the game as punishment for an illegal hit on a Buffalo Bills player last week.

What do these stories have in common?

Continue reading Denison Forum – Great white shark nearly beheads diver →

The first reactions to Star Wars: The Last Jedi are in. According to the Associated Press, “the enthusiastic audience laughed and cheered throughout much of the two-and-a-half-hour film.” If you weren’t invited to the Los Angeles premiere, that’s because you’re not a Hollywood insider.

While being a celebrity might get you into a blockbuster movie opening, it’s no match for the power of nature. Paris Hilton, Chelsea Handler, Jennifer Tilly, and Lea Michele are among the celebrities fleeing wildfires that have grown larger than New York City and Boston combined. Tilly had to go to four hotels to find a room.

Now let’s shift gears to the most popular celebrity of Christmas. National Geographic is reporting on the final remains of St. Nicholas: “Though his remains are venerated worldwide, no one knows for certain where he rests in peace—or more accurately, in pieces.”

The man whose life became the basis for Santa Claus was a venerated Christian leader whose relics were distributed throughout Christendom after his death. A radiocarbon study conducted by Oxford University scholars shows that a relic housed in the Shrine of All Saints in Morton Grove, Illinois, does in fact date to the time of the saint’s death. Other relics of St. Nicholas are housed in more than a dozen churches around the world.

Nicholas of Myra was born in the city of Patara (in modern-day Turkey) in AD 270. His wealthy parents died in an epidemic while he was young.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Why you weren’t invited to the Star Wars premiere →

This New York Times headline that caught my eye: “How the Bot Stole Christmas: Toys Like Fingerlings Are Snapped Up and Resold.”

I had no idea what a Fingerling was or why I should care. Then I learned that fingerlings are “colorful chirping monkeys (and sloths and unicorns) that wrap around your finger.” They have become one of the most sought-after toys on Christmas lists.

Here’s why they are in the news: the fifteen-dollar creatures are sold out online nearly everywhere. You can’t find them at Toys “R” Us, Walmart, or Target. But you can buy them on eBay and Amazon for double, triple, and quadruple their original price. One Fingerling on eBay is advertised for $5,000.

Here’s why: popular items are being purchased by software programs as soon as they are offered for sale. These computer “bots” buy the products at a speed that humans can’t match. They also subscribe to online sales and use multiple email addresses to bypass the purchasing limits set by retailers.

Good Morning America also reported on this story, noting that a Barbie Hello Dream House which retails for $299.99 is being sold on eBay for nearly $1,700. A Nintendo video game that normally sells for $79.99 is being resold for $13,000.

Lawmakers are calling on retailers to “block the bots.” The National Retail Federation is working to “take away the tools being used against innocent customers.” But eBay explains: “As an open marketplace, eBay is a global indicator of trends in which supply and demand dictate the pricing of items. As long as the item is legal to sell and complies with our policies, it can be sold on eBay.”

And therein lies the problem.

The “invisible hand” of greed Continue reading Denison Forum – Why is a $15 toy selling for $5,000?  →

NOTE: Given the complexity and significance of today’s subject, this Daily Article is longer than usual.

“I have determined that it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel,” President Trump announced yesterday. After his statement, Palestinian protesters burned photos of the president in Gaza City. By contrast, the walls of Jerusalem’s Old City were lit with the colors of the American and Israeli flags.

Why is this such a controversial and divisive issue?

I have been to the Holy Land more than twenty times. Each time, I am amazed again by the complexities surrounding Jerusalem, the religious capital of more than half the world’s population.

Rather than make a case for one position, I will survey the history of the Holy City and briefly outline the various arguments on this divisive issue. Then I will ask you to join me in a commitment to two principles that transcend controversy and advance God’s Kingdom.

An introduction to Jerusalem

Jerusalem has been continuously inhabited for almost six thousand years. Three millennia ago, it was captured by King David and made the capital of his kingdom (2 Samuel 5:6–10). His son Solomon built his palace and the first temple there (1 Kings 6–7).

Babylon destroyed the city and its temple in 586 BC; they were rebuilt after the Persian ruler Cyrus the Great liberated the Jews in 538 BC. King Herod enlarged the temple and city greatly, but both were destroyed by the Romans in AD 70. Emperor Hadrian rebuilt the city in AD 129–30, naming it Aelia Capitolina. When Constantine became emperor, he changed the name back to Jerusalem in AD 324.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Should the US declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel? →

Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard what Eric Metaxas calls “perhaps the most important free speech and religious freedom case in our lifetime.”

Eric explains the case succinctly: Jack Phillips is an artist who designs cakes. His business, Masterpiece Cakeshop, is an expression of his faith. He has refused business in the past that conflicted with his faith—for instance, he won’t design Halloween cakes or cakes that celebrate divorce. The Satanic Temple recently asked him to create a cake for Satan’s birthday, but he refused.

When a same-sex couple asked him to design a cake for their same-sex wedding, he declined. He offered them any cake or other product in his store.

But the couple was infuriated and brought him before the Colorado Civil Rights Commission. It fined Phillips and ordered him and his employees to go through a “re-education” program. He has since stopped making custom wedding cakes, a decision that has cost him 40 percent of his business.

The Supreme Court has previously ruled that government cannot force citizens to make, say, or do something that carries a message they reject. For example, the Court has ruled that the government cannot compel Jehovah’s Witnesses to salute the flag. Now the Court is being asked to extend this religious freedom to the rest of us.

Can businesses “discriminate” against customers?

Writing for The Hill, Emilie Kao states, “At stake is whether the First Amendment to the Constitution protects all Americans at all times.” When Justice Anthony Kennedy authored the decision legalizing same-sex marriage in 2015, he stated, “It must be emphasized that religions, and those who adhere to religious doctrines, may continue to advocate with utmost, sincere conviction that, by divine precepts, same-sex marriage should not be condoned.”

Continue reading Denison Forum – Supreme Court hears landmark religious liberty case →

Ravi Zacharias is one of the leading defenders of Christianity in our generation.

Born and raised in India, he was an atheist until the age of seventeen, when he tried to commit suicide by swallowing poison. At the hospital, a Christian worker brought him a Bible and asked his mother to read to him from John 14. When he heard verse nineteen, “Because I live, you also will live,” he committed his life to Christ.

In 1966, he immigrated with his family to Canada, where he earned an undergraduate degree and a Masters of Divinity. He has been active in evangelism and apologetics for many decades, speaking in more than seventy countries and some of the world’s most prestigious universities.

His ministry now has fifteen offices around the world and a global team of speakers. He has authored or edited more than twenty-five books on theology, apologetics, comparative religion, and philosophy. He has been married to his wife, Margie, for forty-five years.

A surprising headline

I have read his books and appreciated his ministry for many years. That’s why this Christianity Today headline was such a shock: “Ravi Zacharias Responds to Sexting Allegations, Credentials Critique.”

The second accusation is that Zacharias has used the title “Dr.” even though he has no earned doctorate. He has received numerous honorary doctorates, a fact that has led publishers and ministries to refer to him as a “doctor.” One claimed that he “holds three doctorate degrees.”

His ministry explains that “neither Ravi nor his ministry has ever claimed he had an earned doctorate.” His team will work to clear up any confusion regarding his credentials in the future.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Defender of the faith defends his integrity →

It was a strange weekend in the news.

Astronauts on the International Space Station made headlines after making pizza in space. Back on earth, the Pontiac Superdome survived implosion due to a wiring error. The first and only full supermoon of 2017 was last night. And college football fans are still debating the decision to include Alabama rather than Ohio State in this year’s tournament.

Meanwhile, I’ve been thinking about an event over the weekend that drew no news coverage whatsoever. My wife and I were watching one of the plethora of Christmas specials on television when a musical group presented a rendition of John Lennon’s “Imagine.” The now-famous lyrics begin:

Imagine there is no heaven / It’s easy if you try / No hell below us / Above us only sky / Imagine all the people living for today.

I never imagined that I would hear “Imagine” performed as a Christmas song. But that’s how secular the holidays have become.

According to Gallup, 95 percent of Americans celebrate Christmas, but only 51 percent describe the holiday as “strongly religious” for them. One in four American adults say December 25 is simply a cultural holiday, not a religious holy day. Only 49 percent of those who celebrate Christmas believe that the Virgin birth is historically accurate.

How should we respond to the escalating secularity of this season?

Using a pagan ship to witness to Caesar

Continue reading Denison Forum – A ‘Christmas’ song I never thought I’d hear →

The Matt Lauer “earthquake” continues to unfold, with as many as eight accusers now being reported. Meanwhile, Rep. Joe Barton will not seek reelection after sexual images he shared in an extramarital relationship were made public. Nancy Pelosi is calling on Rep. John Conyers Jr. to resign amid multiple allegations that he sexually harassed female aides.

Two more women accused Sen. Al Franken of sexual misconduct yesterday. Accusations have also surfaced against music executive Russell Simmons and playwright Israel Horovitz.

Our society is clearly at a tipping point. As a friend pointed out to me this week, a relativistic culture that accepts no absolute right or wrong has declared sexual abuse to be an absolute wrong. As we should.

Now that we have decided on at least one objective moral standard, how can we reinforce it? Let’s consider ancient wisdom that our culture has tragically rejected in recent generations.

In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus stated: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27–28).

Imagine the difference in our culture if we obeyed his command today.

Adultery

Continue reading Denison Forum – Matt Lauer ‘earthquake’ continues to escalate →

Another day, another bombshell. Garrison Keillor, the former host of A Prairie Home Companion and longtime cultural icon, says he’s been fired by Minnesota Public Radio over allegations of improper behavior. And rapper Jay-Z admitted that he has cheated on his wife, Beyoncé.

This after Matt Lauer’s firing yesterday by NBC News stunned America. The list of powerful men facing allegations of sexual misconduct continues to grow by the day.

Media coverage has centered on these men and their actions. However, I have seen much less attention given to women who are the victims of such abuse. As a result, I will focus on them today.

As a man, I cannot comprehend what it is like for women to experience and disclose sexual abuse. But I can offer three biblical responses to their pain.

Your courage is to be applauded.

Megyn Kelly’s response to Lauer’s firing was especially powerful. After showing video of Today show anchors Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb responding to the news, she replied: “I see the anguish in my colleagues’ faces. When this happens, what we don’t see is the pain on the faces of those who found the courage to come forward. It is a terrifying thing to do.”

She explained: “We don’t see the career opportunities women lose because of sexual harassment, or the intense stress it causes a woman dealing with it when she comes to work each day. I am thinking of those women this morning, hoping they are OK.

Continue reading Denison Forum – What Garrison Keillor and Jay-Z now have in common →

Matt Lauer has been a fixture on American television for more than two decades. He began his career at NBC News as a news anchor on the Today show. In 1998, he became co-anchor of that program and has continued in that capacity for nearly twenty years.

Lauer has co-hosted the opening ceremonies of several Olympic Games. He has appeared on numerous other television shows and has interviewed presidential candidates and global celebrities. He has been one of the most recognizable and successful figures in American culture.

This morning, NBC News announced that he had been fired for “inappropriate sexual behavior.” NBC News Chairman Andy Lack released a statement to his employees that begins:

“On Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer. It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards. As a result, we’ve decided to terminate his employment. While it is the first complaint about his behavior in the over twenty years he’s been at NBC News, we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident.”

Lauer’s Today show co-anchors Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb announced his firing at the beginning of this morning’s broadcast. Near tears, Guthrie said, “All we can say is we are heartbroken; I’m heartbroken.”

She described Lauer as “a dear, dear friend” and added that she was “heartbroken for the brave colleague who came forward to tell her story.” She continued, “How do you reconcile your love for someone with the revelation that they have behaved badly?”

As you discuss this developing story with friends and colleagues today, please remember three biblical principles.

Private sin never stays private. Continue reading Denison Forum – NBC fires Matt Lauer for ‘inappropriate sexual behavior’ →

Rachel Meghan Markle was born in 1981 to a Caucasian father and African American mother. She grew up in Los Angeles before graduating from Northwestern University with a degree in theater and international studies.

In 2002, she appeared in an episode of the daytime soap opera General Hospital. She has appeared in numerous television shows and movies since, most famously playing Rachel Zane on the long-running legal drama Suits.

She says that early in her career, she had difficulty finding roles because “I wasn’t black enough for the black roles and I wasn’t white enough for the white ones.” She called herself “the ethnic chameleon who couldn’t book a job.”

Now she has a job unlike any other: royal princess.

A surprising British royal

Meghan’s background is unusual for a member of the British royal family, to say the least. She was divorced in 2013. Some have speculated that she is Jewish, though others deny this claim. She attended a Catholic high school in California. She and Prince Harry have been living together for the last ten months.

Until recently, any of these facts would have made their engagement scandalous. But the times have changed.

The couple is already popular in Great Britain, in part because of their commitment to benevolent work. Princess Diana exposed her sons to suffering around the world, hoping they would join her in helping solve our most pressing problems. Prince Harry has made it his life mission to honor and build on his mother’s humanitarian legacy.

Continue reading Denison Forum – What Meghan Markle and a Redskins player have in common →

Note: Our office is closed today, but I hope this reflection will help you celebrate Thanksgiving every day.

The last season of Fixer Upper started Tuesday. But Chip and Joanna Gaines’s lifestyle empire will continue long after they leave their incredibly successful television show.

Remarkably, their Magnolia Market at the Silos is even more popular than the Alamo.

When they bought the property that is now the heart of their amazing business, few would have imagined that it would become what it is. But they engaged in “reframing,” a psychological technique by which we choose to view circumstances in a different light. Chip and Joanna do this with each house they transform, turning what it is into what it could be.

Reframing is essential for every dimension of life in this fallen world. Consider the biblical injunction to “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). How can we be grateful in all circumstances, both challenging and joyful?

Note that the text does not call us to give thanks for all circumstances. Jesus wept at the grave of Lazarus; he sweat blood in Gethsemane; he cried out in lonely agony on the cross.

Rather, it calls us to give thanks in all circumstances. We can reframe any challenge, no matter how difficult, to find a reason for gratitude.

Consider three examples.

North Korea Continue reading Denison Forum – ‘Fixer Upper’ changes Waco and beyond →

Wishbone and Drumstick are the luckiest turkeys in America. Wishbone was born last June 28. He weighs thirty-six pounds and has a wingspan of four feet, eight inches. He is said to be partial to the music of Tim McGraw and Faith Hill.

Drumstick was born on the same day. He weighs forty-seven pounds, with a wingspan of five feet. He prefers the band Journey.

How do we know so much about these two turkeys? Because they were chosen to participate in the seventieth annual presidential pardon. They stayed at the Willard InterContinental Hotel in downtown Washington before being pardoned by President Trump on Tuesday. (Per tradition, Drumstick was pardoned publicly; Wishbone was pardoned in absentia.)

Today will be a bad day for forty-six million turkeys, but a good day for at least two.

Fortunately, we won’t be eating other foods the first English colonists consumed. Researchers studying bones in an early seventeenth-century well at Jamestown discovered that the people also ate horses, rats, and snakes during times of privation.

Nor will we be wearing black clothes and buckled hats like the Pilgrims. (It turns out, they didn’t wear them, either.) And I hope we won’t abstain from having fun like the stodgy Puritans. (Actually, they enjoyed laughter and dressed in bright colors.)

As you prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving today, I’d like you to consider another bird in addition to the famous American turkey.

When I was in Israel last week, I prayed at the Western Wall of the Temple Mount. Above me towered the Dome of the Rock, located at the place where Herod’s temple stood in Jesus’ day.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Meet the world’s luckiest turkeys →

“This is a moment that demands a frank and honest assessment about where we stand and more generally the safety of women. Let me be clear: There is no excuse for this alleged behavior. It is systematic and pervasive.”

With these emotional words, Norah O’Donnell reported Tuesday morning that Charlie Rose, her colleague at CBS This Morning, had been suspended after eight women accused him of sexual misconduct. The network fired Rose yesterday afternoon. PBS canceled his show shortly thereafter.

Meanwhile, the longest-serving member of the House of Representatives is facing an ethics investigation.

John Conyers has been representing Michigan’s thirteenth congressional district in Washington since 1965. Now reports allege that he paid over $27,000 to settle a complaint from a woman who claimed she was fired from his staff because she rejected his sexual advances.

Other staff members stated that they witnessed Conyers touching female staffers inappropriately and requesting sexual favors. The congressman has denied the charges: “I expressly and vehemently denied the allegations made against me, and continue to do so.”

This after Sen. Al Franken was accused of inappropriate conduct by a second woman. Senate candidate Roy Moore continues to deny numerous allegations of sexual misconduct.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Charlie Rose and the epidemic of sexual immorality →

I am returning this morning from leading a study tour of the Holy Land. (Today’s article was posted yesterday before our plane left Tel Aviv.) Each time I travel to Israel, I am impressed again with the beauty, history, and spiritual significance of this singular land.

As our group took communion while looking over Jerusalem, I reminded them that this “Holy City” is venerated by the world’s great monotheistic religions and more than half of the planet’s population. Before us stood some of the most famous structures in these religions.

For Muslims, the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock comprise the third-holiest site in the world. For Jews, the Western Wall of the Temple Mount is the holiest place on earth. For Christians, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre or Garden Tomb is believed to be the location of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Throughout our stay in Israel, we were surrounded by the fervency of religion. Muslims streamed to the Temple Mount for Friday prayers. Jews crowded the Western Wall on the Sabbath. Christians gathered for Sunday worship in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

As I experienced what is arguably the world’s most religious city, I was reminded of the deception of religion.

An illustration from Leonardo da Vinci

To illustrate my point, I’d like you to consider what is now the world’s most expensive painting.

Continue reading Denison Forum – I was reminded in Israel that religion doesn’t work →

Starbucks has unveiled its new holiday campaign. It features what appears to be an affectionate lesbian couple in its promotional video. Some believe that the design of the new cup includes a same-sex couple as well.

The British LGBT Awards tweeted, “We’re loving @Starbucks’ new festive ad with a lesbian couple.” Other LGBT advocates are cheering the Holiday Cup design that seems to incorporate the couple. Predictably, those who oppose such “inclusiveness” are being labeled as “closed-minded” and ridiculed.

As unbiblical morality becomes increasingly popular, it’s worth asking: Why should Christians stand up against cultural trends?

The popularity of popularity

I often write about our culture’s postmodern belief that truth is what we believe it to be. Here’s a corollary consequence: popularity has become our definition of success.

Possessions are measured by popularity. Why do we want to drive and wear what is fashionable? Why do we care what other people think of our cars and clothes so long as they do their job?

Social media is driven by popularity measured in “likes,” “click-throughs,” and “follows.” The larger your audience, the more valuable your message. Or so we think.

Morality is driven by popularity as well. Since 61 percent of Australians voting in a recent election supported same-sex marriage, lawmakers will now change the centuries-old definition of marriage to accommodate the popular vote. Whether gay marriage is actually harmful to gay people and society at large is not a factor in the conversation.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Starbucks Cup cheered by LGBT advocates →

In a Facebook post last month, Sen. Al Franken stated: “The women who have shared their stories about Harvey Weinstein over the last few days are incredibly brave. It takes a lot of courage to come forward, and we owe them our thanks.

“And as we hear more and more about Mr. Weinstein, it’s important to remember that while his behavior was appalling, it’s far too common.”

Now Sen. Franken has been accused of similar behavior.

Leeann Tweeden is a broadcaster and model. She participated with Franken in a USO tour in 2006. Yesterday she claimed that Franken “forcibly kissed” her and groped her on the tour. She added, “There’s nothing funny about sexual assault.”

When her story broke, Franken apologized. The Senate Majority Leader and Senate Minority Leader then called for an ethics inquiry. Franken issued a larger apology and agreed to cooperate fully with any investigation.

An article I feel compelled to address

You have probably seen the Franken story by now. I am addressing it as a commentary on another news item you may not have seen.

Matt Bai is the national political columnist for Yahoo! News. He wrote previously for the New York Times Magazine and has authored well-reviewed books. I don’t always agree with him, of course, but I read all his articles and consider him one of the most perceptive writers on politics today.

However, his article posted yesterday troubles me greatly.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Al Franken accused of sexual assault →