Hi Marilyn, I read A Long Way Gone and really enjoyed it. While I was reading it I was considering the fate of several child soldiers who are currently being held in Guatanamo Bay. Just a few weeks ago I read some controversy about Ishmael Beah's recollection of his life as recorded in his memoir. Y...

Hi Chris,

My condolences. Take care, Jan.

Hi Mr. P. I believe most Canadians are very similar to their American counterparts - but our banks have more rules. The sub-prime mortgage problem would not happen here - not because of Canadians self control, but because of these rules. My brother wanted a mortgage, and was declined by the bank. On...

Abegail, Does the bible say that some sins are worse than others? (I know the Catholic church has venial and carnal sins - but don't know if this is biblical). If a sin is a sin, wouldn't gluttony and homosexuality have the same consequences? But no church seems to condemn overweight people. Some ch...

Hi lovejoy,

I have just purchased Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky. It looks a bit daunting, but interesting all the same. Have you read it?

Jan.

Hi Mr. P. You are correct - the high cost of medical insurance does balance the tax difference out. So I'm wondering then, why do most blue collar workers in the US seem so much better off than blue collar workers in other nations? About the medical coverage - is there a low-income threshold where t...

Hi Ophelia, I know next to nothing about French politics. Do I understand you correctly that France has both a President and a Prime Minister? If so, are they both elected? Generally, what are the roles of each? I agree with you on his holocaust idea - I can see no benefits and some harms from it. D...

I have finally started it - and was pleasantly suprised at how interesting it is - from the first page. I find my mind wandering through some of the scenic descriptions, and have to go back and reread them to see if I've missed an important bit of the plot. When I purchased Heart of Darkness I also ...

That is the tennet that sticks in my throat and I can't swallow. That some are chosen.......means that others are rejected..... There is a futility to that, isn't there? It is a fine thing to believe if you believe you are someone who God has chosen. But if God has chosen that you are going to be h...

Rob Bell, the author that i'm reading, compares the ideas of the 'old church' to a brick wall, he states "The problem with brckianity is that walls inevitably keep people out. Often it appears as though you have to agree with all of the bricks exactly as they are or you can't join" This b...