Antioch Road

SmartMoney.com’s 10 Things Not to Buy in 2010: Why No Love for the Compact Digital Camera?

SmartMoney.com gives us 10 things that are heading into the obsolete category and thus we should not buy in 2010. (Link via TruePravda.) Most items on the list make sense.

CDs: While providing better sound quality than alternatives, it’s clearly more convenient to listen to online radio. When I want a track permanently on my computer, Amazon's MP3 store usually provides what I need.

External Hard Drives: Ones I’ve owned have been so fickle and unreliable that I don’t plan on owning another. Backups on CDs or DVDs, networked computers in the house, flash drives, and online solutions work for me. I highly recommend paying Flickr’s relatively cheap yearly fee for online photo backups.

Smartphone Also-Rans: It’s down to Blackberry, iPhone, and Android. I love my Blackberry. My wife has less affection for it.

Newspaper Subscriptions: I’ve never had one and I would say a lot of people my age have never had one.

But then SmartMoney.com’s list includes this curious one: compact digital cameras. They say Digital SLRs are increasingly popular and, impliedly, what to purchase going forward. Digital SLRs may be the tool of professional photographers, but for most people, compacts meet our needs and are more practical and economical. The bestselling digital SLR on Amazon right now is the Canon EOS Rebel T1i. It costs $664. It is 8 x 12 x 7 inches and weighs 1.6 pounds. Compare that with the Canon PowerShot SX120IS, which costs $200, takes fine pictures for amateurs, and is much easier to transport with dimensions of 4.4 x 2.8 x 1.8 inches and one-third the weight of the Rebel. It’s hard to see how SLRs are the better option for how most people use their cameras.

Cedar Rapids sunset 12-2-2009

Cedar Rapids sunset 12-2-2009

I have a great view of the sunset from my downtown Cedar Rapids office. This picture doesn't do it justice, but it gives you an idea. Here are a few more pics from the December 2, 2009 sunset.

One Paragraph Review: Give Me Liberty: The Uncompromising Statesmanship of Patrick Henry by David J. Vaughan

Give Me Liberty: The Uncompromising Statesmanship of Patrick Henry by David J. Vaughan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Give Me Liberty is good because its subject--Patrick Henry--is so interesting, influential, and great. The book is divided into three sections: Henry's life; his character; and (briefly) his legacy. His life was amazing (perhaps more important to the Revolution than anyone save George Washington), his character was almost impeccable, and his legacy is enduring. Author David Vaughan writes on the backs of others: his sources are secondary. Vaughan also writes from a Calvinist perspective. That causes him to treat Henry's Christianity seriously, but also causes him to overstate Calvinism's importance. For instance, Vaughan all but says that Calvinists brought religious liberty to the colonies; he ignores the Baptists' profound influence in securing religious liberty and the history of Puritan persecution of Baptists in New England. There are a few other problems with the book: Vaughan treats Henry as almost flawless. And--perhaps due to the format (separate sections concerning Henry's life, character, and legacy)--there are many repetitions, which should not happen in an under 300 page (with small page size) biography. Despite these problems, Give Me Liberty contains a concise, interesting, and readable study of Henry and the leadership qualities he exhibited.

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One Paragraph Review: Redeeming Law by Michael Schutt

Redeeming Law: Christian Calling and the Legal Profession by Michael P. Schutt

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Redeeming Law aids the Christian lawyer in transforming his view of his practice. Its best quality is emphasizing that work (vocation) is serving Christ and our neighbors; it is not distinct from "Christian ministry" within the local church. Our calling as lawyers must be integrated with the other aspects of our lives -- our callings as husbands, fathers, and church members. We serve and love God and our neighbors by doing our work in a biblical way and with a biblical mindset. The book is more theory than practice. Significant (though surface-level) practical applications don't come until the final 18 pages. It contains too many sentences like this: "We work out norms (through general and special revelation) in light of community (historical and present) existentially (in the context of our dignity as a human and in the context of calling, role, or office). It is uniformly humorless. But it has helped me recognize the significance (and the benefit if done right) of what I do as a lawyer, not on a global level, but on a personal and spiritual level).

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The Bible According to Zondervan Changes Again

Zondervan Publishing Co. (the publisher) and Biblica (the copyright holder) are creating another new version of the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. This is something like version 12 in the quarter-century history of the NIV. Apparently the Word of God keeps changing: no one can get the Apostle Paul to stop making redline changes in Microsoft Word to his second letter to the Corinthians.

WORLD Magazine's Joel Belz praises the decision to create a new version after no one liked the last one, the so-called Today's New International Version (TNIV). In his column in the Sept. 26, 2009 issue, Belz quotes Biblica CEO Keith Danby as saying, in essence, the TNIV failure was a marketing failure: "We failed to make the case for revisions and we made some important errors in the way we brought the translation to publication."

Errors in the way you brought the translation to publication? Did you take a wrong turn on the way to the printing press? I don't get it.

Oh, well, like the computer company's yearly software update, Zondervan is doing its part to jump start the economy.

One Paragraph Review: What He Must Be by Voddie Baucham

What He Must Be: ...If He Wants to Marry My Daughter by Voddie T. Baucham Jr.

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

In What He Must Be, Voddie Baucham gives us a Biblical model for what our sons must be to fulfill their roles as husbands and fathers, and what our daughters must expect in a future husband. This book is primarily written for fathers. It challenges current dating and parenting models as unbiblical. It calls us to reevaluate how we train our children. For if we care at all about the lives our children lead as adults and about our grandchildren and great-greatchildren, we must care deeply about the spouses our children choose and how they go about making those choices. As Baucham notes, it is a father's duty to protect his daughter, provide for his daughter, and lead his family in worship of God and in Biblical instruction. As a result, when a father gives away his daughter to another man, he must be certain that man will assume those roles. To be so certain, a father must play a significant part in assisting in his daughter's choice of a husband (and protecting her physically, emotionally, and spiritually until that time). Not just any one will do. There are clear things "he must be."

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One Paragraph Review: America in Crimson Red by James Beller

America In Crimson Red: The Baptist History Of America by James R. Beller

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the best worst written book I have ever read. Or maybe it is the worst best written book I have ever read. Either way, everyone should read it. "The Baptist History of America" is really a history of how the United States went from independent states that almost uniformly practiced religious persecution to United States that understood religious freedom as a basic right. Before the formation of the United States, many Baptists died, lost their homes and other property, and were kicked out of their communities merely because they refused to baptize infants and refused to pay the tax for the salaries of the pastors of government-established churches. Through the persecution, the Baptists in America thrived and ultimately led America to embrace religious freedom. We have since lost that understanding, meshing Baptists into Protestantism. James Beller, importantly, reminds us of this history and the important people who played a part in this history, with great attention to detail, good story telling, and impeccable research. Unfortunately, he needed an editor, or a better one, for every page of the book contains poor sentence structure, commas out of place, and many other grammatical problems. Nevertheless, everyone should overlook those faults and read this book.

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Simmons Perrine Moyer Bergman Merger Advertisement

My law firm ran the following advertisement on page A15 of today’s Cedar Rapids Gazette. My picture is near the lower left-hand corner.

One Paragraph Review: How to Dethrone the Imperial Judiciary by Edwin Vieira.

How to Dethrone the Imperial Judiciary by Edwin Vieira

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I really would like to give this book more than three stars. It is smart, persuasive, well-researched, and almost always right. It also, unfortunately, contains sentences that go on too long, favors ostentation over clarity, and is boring. Nevertheless, it is an important book. Edwin Vieira convincingly argues against the United States Supreme Court's decision in Lawrence v. Texas. The Lawrence Court illegally employed foreign law to interpret the U.S. Constitution and preposterously purported to strike down all legislation based on traditional morals. Vieira demonstrates the absurdity of "judicial supremacy," the notion that the U.S. Supreme Court is the supreme interpreter of the U.S. Constitution. And then he demonstrates several practical things "We the People" can do to curtail the Supreme Court's power grab. The options include amending the Constitution (not ideal because it implies the Supreme Court got the pre-amendment interpretation right), pardons by the President, presidential refusal to enforce an unconstitutional decision, limitation of the court's jurisdiction, and removal of judges for lack of "good behaviour," among other possibilities. Many of the proposed actions are not currently politically possible. However, We the People delegated to the judicial branch the judicial power. We the People have the right and responsibility to ensure that power is not abused. How to Dethrone the Imperial Judiciary presents an important warning and challenge and ultimate plan of remediation. It is worth reading despite its faults.

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Go Cubs Go as a Bible Song?

After family Bible devotions, I have our family sing a Bible song. My four-year-old daughter, Hannah, usually picks the song and we end up singing “Jesus Loves Me” or “Jesus Loves the Little Children,” only occasionally straying into a verse of a hymn. Tonight I asked Noah, my son who turned two yesterday, what we should sing. His choice: “Go Cubs Go.” We’re going to have to work on his priorities.