I HAVE been a practising Christian all my life and a deacon and Bible teacher for many years. My faith is a source of strength and comfort to me, as religious beliefs are to hundreds of millions of people around the world. So my decision to sever my ties with the Southern Baptist Convention, after six decades, was painful and difficult. It was, however, an unavoidable decision when the convention’s leaders, quoting a few carefully selected Bible verses and claiming that Eve was created second to Adam and was responsible for original sin, ordained that women must be “subservient” to their husbands and prohibited from serving as deacons, pastors or chaplains in the military service.

This view that women are somehow inferior to men is not restricted to one religion or belief. Women are prevented from playing a full and equal role in many faiths. Nor, tragically, does its influence stop at the walls of the church, mosque, synagogue or temple. This discrimination, unjustifiably attributed to a Higher Authority, has provided a reason or excuse for the deprivation of women’s equal rights across the world for centuries. Read the full entry.

Coverage of Carter’s essay:

Commonweal

Think Progress

Femisting.com

At Examiner.com: Angela Boatright Spencer

Other than judging by context, I had no idea what she was talking about. Today I went looking on the Internet to find out what she might have meant. I just took a stab at how it might be spelled and this is what I found:

These gals know what it is.

And so do these New Yorkers, www.easilypleased.blogspot.com.

But the dictionaries have no clue:
Encarta doesn’t know.
Neither does OneLook.
Nor does Merriam-Webster.

Google search does!

Zeroentropy is where I keep my “chatchke” (they tend to be of the one-dimensional, printed or video variety).

Where do you keep yours?

I’m not a speed reader, but these books are so delicious that I’m positively devouring them. I’m now ready to start book 4, “The Kalahari Typing School for Men.”

Not wishing to be too single-minded, I’m following the lead of my book club — although a few months behind — and I’ll also be diving into “A Guide to the Birds of East Africa.” The Barnes & Noble clerk told me the paperback comes out in September. So I guess I should officially refer to that book in the “back-to-school reading” category.

If you click on the “Birds” title above, you’ll be taken to a review of the “East Africa” book at www.10000birds.com.

This is a site worth wandering around on. Very interesting and beautifully done. You might even return often to poke around. Here’s a little about one of the authors of the blog (who wrote the book review):

Charlie
Charlie works for an airline and has birded all over the world for twenty years. He wants to be a writer, and thinks no-one would believe his life could be so charmed if he didn’t take photos of as many of the birds he sees as possible. Blogging with 10,000 Birds fits his aims, needs, and insecurities perfectly. Really – do birders get much more fortunate than this?

If you’d like to see photos of some birds of East Africa, take a look at this web site.

What are you reading this summer?

Are you taking your books with you on an exotic trip?

Or will your summer vacation be an economical one of the Emily Dickinson variety — “there is no frigate like a book” — right in your own armchair?

The article recounts their experiences while breaking into — and working in — a profession that’s dominated by men (although that’s slowly changing). I’m not a physicist, but I certainly admire the women who have made this area of science their profession.

May the quarks be with you!

The article’s author is Ann K. Finkbeiner and she’s writing about the autobiography of Fay Ajzenberg-Selove, “A Matter of Choices: Memoirs of a Female Physicist.”

Read the article.

The story from the Daily Mail online.

Let’s go surfin’ now! (wish I had some Beach Boy music … but I don’t know how to add audio yet).

Of course, you can’t talk about the Beach Boys without mentioning Junior Brown. Say what? Ok, we’ve totally lost the surfing theme, but what the heck. Now I think I’ll go look for some car sites. Tip o’ the hat to hubby John, the car buff in the family …

And now my favorite Junior Brown song:

Ok, this is actually my favorite Junior Brown song:

Aw heck, I like ‘em all!!!!!!

Which reminds me, at this point I’ll give a shout out to Crooks ‘n Liars, which does the best Late Night Music Club. You’ll always find a good, memorable tune, with video, at the Late Night Music Club (I also like their political commentary, like the Sunday Morning Bobblehead Thread).

See the docs here.

The official site.

Another video of the filming …

And in this New York Times article, you can learn the story of how the costumes were designed for the show.