Last year, when I was still a Legislative Assistant in the Michigan House of Representatives, I had a front-row seat for the debate over House Bill 5632, the legislation that raised cigarette taxes by 75 cents and placed Michigan at #2 on the list for highest cigarette taxes in the country. If my memory serves me correctly, the debate was utterly predictable. Those in support of the tax argued in two primary (and seemingly contradictory) directions: first, that the state...

From today’s Ecumenical News International: UN, NGOs told Faith-Based Organizations crucial in AIDS fight Geneva (ENI). Up to 40 per cent of health care in poor countries is delivered by private religious institutions according to the first systematic study of faith-based organizations and HIV/AIDS. Dr Rabia Mathai, the senior vice-president, Global Program Policy, of the US-based Catholic Medical Mission Board, told members of United Nations’ and non-governmental organizations in Geneva that faith-based organizations are “true partners” in the struggle against...

The following is from Archbishop Tomasi’s address at the 93rd International Labor Conference in Geneva. (Click here for the full text of his remarks.) “It is the dignity of every human person that requires access to work in condition of personal security, health, fair remuneration, a safe environment. Work is a right and the expression of human dignity…work is the motor for development and poverty elimination, for unlocking the hidden resources of nature, for personal and professional fulfillment and family...

Breaking news for the day: Sandra Day O’Connor has announced that she is retiring from the United States Supreme Court. Yesterday, Anthony Bradley asked what the President should look for in a Supreme Court Nominee. Join the discussion here. ...

Rev. Robert Sirico wrote a column in the Detroit News’ Faith and Policy series over the weekend on the Kelo v. New London decision handed down by the US Supreme Court. In “Court reveals conflicting ownership ideas,” Sirico writes, In the Supreme Court’s “new” ownership society, the very safety and security of God-given, inalienable rights are threatened. Pope Leo XIII was pointing to this when he described private ownership as “a natural right of man” and a right that must...

Three separate studies published by the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine suggests that too much TV-watching can harm children’s ability to learn. The article says that in one study, involving nearly 400 northern California third-graders, those with TVs in their bedrooms scored about eight points lower on math and language arts tests than children without bedroom TVs. A second study, looking at nearly 1,000 adults in New Zealand, found lower education levels among 26-year-olds who had watched lots of...

The worldwide Live 8 shows e and gone, and are being hailed as perhaps the greatest collection of concerts ever. While moments like the introduction of Birhan Woldu or (to a lesser extent) the reunion of the estranged members of Pink Floyd certainly made pelling television, only time will tell whether or not they will have a significant impact on Africa’s future. One item of news that could have a significant impact seems to have been lost in the American...

A study released late last month by the Hudson Institute found “$62.1 billion in U.S. private donations to developing countries in 2003, the last year numbers are available.” The report, cited in an op-ed in today’s Wall Street Journal, goes on to argue that the formula used by the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD) to judge the generosity of various countries “fails to take into account the primary way in which Americans help others abroad: through the private...

The Group of Eight (G8) conference this week in Gleneagles, Scotland has been the object of a lot of attention from various charity campaigns. Jordan Ballor writes, “What is similar in all these movements is an emphasis on the role of government in providing assistance to the poor. But it is precisely this aspect of the initiatives that is most problematic from a Christian perspective.” Read the full text here. ...

President Bush, on his way to the G-8 Summit, said that views like abortion or gay marriage will not serve as litmus tests for selecting a Supreme Court nominee. “I’ll pick people who, one, can do the job, and people who are honest, people who are bright and people who will strictly interpret the Constitution and not use the bench to legislate from,” Bush said. “I will take my time,” Bush said. “I will be thorough in my investigation.” The...

A question over at the ONE Campaign blog: Why don’t these celebrities cough up their own money and stop asking for mine? Answer: First off, they are. Most of the celebs involved in the campaign give hundreds of thousands, if not millions to charity. They just choose not make it public. But this campaign is not about asking you for YOUR money either, we want your voice. We are also talking about BILLIONS of dollars here. Not millions. If all...

So says Dr. George Ayittey, a professor of economics at American University and founder of the Free Africa Foundation, in an interview on today’s Morning Edition from NPR. Ayittey argues in part that after the African nations gained independence, they rejected the market system out of hand as a Western innovation, to the detriment of their societies. He calls for a return to indigenous structures of civil society, which embrace markets and free trade. He also says that we need...