“The Odyssey Years”

David Brooks writes in the New York Times (via Greg Brothers):

There used to be four common life phases: childhood, adolescence, adulthood and old age. Now, there are at least six: childhood, adolescence, odyssey, adulthood, active retirement and old age. Of the new ones, the least understood is odyssey, the decade of wandering that frequently occurs between adolescence and adulthood.

During this decade, 20-somethings go to school and take breaks from school. They live with friends and they live at home. They fall in and out of love. They try one career and then try another.

Their parents grow increasingly anxious. These parents understand that there’s bound to be a transition phase between student life and adult life. But when they look at their own grown children, they see the transition stretching five years, seven and beyond. The parents don’t even detect a clear sense of direction in their children’s lives. They look at them and see the things that are being delayed.

They see that people in this age bracket are delaying marriage. They’re delaying having children. They’re delaying permanent employment. People who were born before 1964 tend to define adulthood by certain accomplishments — moving away from home, becoming financially independent, getting married and starting a family.

In 1960, roughly 70 percent of 30-year-olds had achieved these things. By 2000, fewer than 40 percent of 30-year-olds had done the same.

Who Is an Adult?

Politicians are debating the drinking age once more, and “Safety” groups are madd (as it were). The oft-mentioned problem is that young men can fight and die for the country at 18, but can’t have a drink until they’re 21. I think this is getting at the right question, which is, “What is an adult?” I think there should be a “consistent age of adulthood” bill, stipulating one universal age that is to be considered an adult–at which you can drink, vote, marry, make decisions on your own without parental control, be charged “adult” tickets at Disney World and adult prices at buffets. I think 18 is reasonable. As it is, for some things you are an adult at 21, others at 18, others 17 (criminal offenses in Texas), others 10 (tickets at Disney parks). This is ridiculous.

“An Act of Courage”

Jim Herrington writes of his father’s decision to continue to send his kids to public school in Louisiana after a white exodus prompted by a segregation order.

The Continued Erosion of Constitutional Protections

The Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from someone who claims he was illegally detained by the CIA, on the grounds that hearing the case might reveal “state secrets.” This is new in our history–the theory that governmental power and secrecy trumps individual rights to due process. The Bush administration has used this claim more than any other, more even that at the height of the Cold War.

Our freedoms and constitutional protections are being whittled away bit by bit. Who will protest, before it is too late?

Will Christians Be Silenced in the UK?

Proposed UK law would criminalize “inciting hatred” of homosexuals; Christians fear it could be used to target those who defend Biblical teaching.

Lucy Promoted While Being Demoted

The Houston Museum of Natural Science is promoting “Lucy” as a human ancestor. Meanwhile, the latest research blows that theory out of the water.

M. L. Andreasen and Questions on Doctrine

Chapter from Julius Nam’s dissertation on the Questions on Doctrine controversy, focusing on the reaction of M. L. Andreasen. He’s lost his footnotes, but you can see them here. Seventh-day Adventists Answer Questions on Doctrine was published 50 years ago, in response to questions asked of some GC leaders by Walter Martin and Donald Barnhouse. Issues raised in the way it discussed a couple of topics contributed to almost every theological controversy within Adventism over the past 50 years. Most of what has been written about it has been highly partisan in nature, so it is fortunate that scholars like Julius Nam and George Knight have been giving us fresh, objective insight into the book and the controversy. They’ll both be involved in a conference at Andrews later this month (I’ll be attending).

San Diego Diocese Asks Laity to Pay

The San Diego Diocese is asking the laity to cough up the money to pay for the failures of priests and bishops. The priests are standing with their bishop–the laity are balking.