Surreptitious Saturday

Weather & Family Update & Barbarian Children + Entitlement Suicide

When Lois & I left Norfolk yesterday it was 41 degrees. By the time we got south of Columbus, it was 61. By the time we got to Lincoln it was 71. The high in Lincoln yesterday was 82. 

We woke up this morning to very windy conditions, rain, & a temp in the high 30s. Not sure snow is in the forecast anymore, but the blizzard warning for Norfolk is still in effect with 6-10" of snow still in the forecast. Rachel & Derek decided to drive down--something that was in doubt last evening. Just a little while ago they texted that they had driven as far as Madison, & visibility was improving. They'll make it.

So, everyone will be together by later today, & everyone will be in church tomorrow morning for Brianna's confirmation.

Wisdom from J.G.

I've blogged more than once that possibly my favorite partisan pundit is Jonah Goldberg. Here are quotes from his recent column on-line, "Suicide of the West," published 4/12.

"Every generation, Western civilization is invaded by barbarians . . . 'We call them children.' Civil society, starting with the family, civilizes barbarians, providing meaning, belonging & virtue. But here's the hitch. When that ecosystem breaks down, people still seek meaning & belonging. And it's breaking down. Its corruption comes from reasons too numerous & complex to detail here, but they include family breakdown, mass immigration, the war on assimilation, & the rise of virtual communities pretending to replace real ones . . . 

"Conservatism is a form of gratitude, because we conserve only what we are grateful for . . . "

"Collectively, we are embracing entitlement over gratitude. That is suicidal."