Blogs

How a B-side Founding Father became the hottest ticket on Broadway – and is changing the face of theater

How a B-side Founding Father became the hottest ticket on Broadway – and is changing the face of theater

Lizzie Short

Biographies on the lives of founding fathers have become popular among a certain echelon of parents and grandparents in recent years. Since David McCullough's work on the life of John Adams, the genre has proved to have staying power among the armchair, sweatered set. But what happens when one of these tomes falls into the hands of a Tony-award winning songwriter and playwright?

If the playwright is Lin-Manuel Miranda and the book is Ron Chernow's "Alexander Hamilton," you get a rap and hip-hop-infused take on the life of one America's least-remembered yet most influential founding fathers. The musical follows the young Hamilton's career — from his days as aide de camp to George Washington up until his famous death. Miranda plays the title role and has composed a diverse cast that he says, "looks like America looks now."

Prayer shaming and San Bernardino
Blogs

Prayer shaming and San Bernardino

Zack Pruitt

There is a particular disdain for religion that has been simmering among some progressives and liberals for quite some time.  Generally, this view stems from a frustration that there is a group of people in this country that see something other than government as their primary authority and source of life. Then-candidate Barack Obama exemplified this attitude in 2008 with his now-famous statement that working-class Midwesterners "cling to guns or religion" to explain his difficulty in garnering their support. Following the San Bernardino terror attacks, the mask slipped again and a significant number of prominent liberals declared the true enemy is those who offer "thoughts and prayers" for the victims, not the terrorists. While certainly not representative of all Democrats, a substantial number of elected officials and pundits sought to shame those whose first reaction to acts of terror was prayer.

What is behind such statements is resentment that following a tragedy, a religious person's first inclination is not toward a government solution. These liberals believe the god of government is our protector and our provider, and those who believe otherwise are blasphemous fools that must be shamed into bending the knee to the almighty State. Thus, instead of rallying a country in support of terror victims, liberals decided to use this moment to attack anyone who believes prayer to be a force for good.

Read More