Bob Collins
1) Can we ignore Pat Robertson, yet still look at Haiti from a spiritual and religious view? Let’s try. On his blog, The Livesay [Haiti] Blog, Troy and Tara Livesay write, “Sometimes life in Haiti leaves you wondering ‘Where are you God?’ and other times we witness miracles with our own eyes.” Writing on BeliefNet, Ben Witherington takes on Pat Robertson:
It is easier in some ways to explain what is not the case than to say what is the case when it comes to God and natural disasters like this earthquake, despite fundamentalist preachers who are apt to glibbly say things like— “Haiti is the center of voodoo in the Western hemisphere therefore God judged them.” This hardly explains why all the Christian relief agencies, and various orthodox Christians in Haiti are also reeling from the blow just now. Were they just in the wrong line of fire, or is God’s aim that bad???
“If God loves people, why does he wipe them out?” this blogger asks.
The BBC’s World Have Your Say program is asking the same question today.
Lots of people are, apparently:
Related: Google is updating its Google Earth pictures of Haiti. What slows the delivery of disaster aid? The lack of maps. Only 15 percent of the world is mapped:
Some other before-and-after pictures can be found here. CBS has obtained video of the earthquake:
2) If you watched the PBS special on Sam Cooke last night, you might have found yourself thinking of other singers who were signature voices of their generation. Otis Redding, perhaps. Teddy Pendergrass, too. Pendergrass has died at 59. He spent his last 28 years in a wheelchair.
3) Science! It may be possible to detect Alzheimer’s with an eye test.
How many minutes until Doomsday? They’ve brought back — or at least updated — the famous Doomsday Clock.
4) It’s odd that they weren’t saying mean things about the Minnesota Vikings’ player strategy when Tavaris Jackson was running the team. The Wall St. Journal analyzes how the Vikings go to the edge of a Super Bowl. The Journal alleges the Vikes “plundered” other teams, hinting at unfairness.
5) Five emotions you never knew you had: Elevation, interest, gratitude, pride, and confusion. These go along with the six in-your-face emotions: joy, sadness, anger, fear, surprise and disgust. New Scientist says these old-time emotions are so yesterday, and these newer ones deserve a place alongside.
Commentary: A legendary coach steps down, and a woman takes his place.
TODAY’S QUESTION
About 30 percent of teachers in Minnesota leave the profession within five years. It’s one of the factors involved in a drive, being discussed today on Midmorning, to put highly effective teachers into public classrooms. How could Minnesota schools get and keep the best teachers?
WHAT WE’RE DOING
Midmorning (9-11 a.m.) – First hour: The Bush Foundation recently announced a $40 million grant to significantly overhaul how K-12 teachers are recruited and trained in Minnesota. The goal of the project, which will be watched closely be educators around the nation, is to create and retain effective teachers and increase student achievement.
Second hour: As a young child in 1963, Nancy Rappaport lost her mother to suicide during a bitter custody battle. Years later she became a child psychiatrist and uses the lens of this expertise to understand the mystery of her mother’s depression and suicide.
Midday (11 a.m. – 1 p.m.) – First hour: An update on the Haiti earthquake.
Second hour: Remebering Miep Gies, who helped shelter Anne Frank’s family from the Nazis. She died this week at age 100.
Talk of the Nation (1-3 p.m.) – First hour: Before the earthquake, Haiti suffered from extreme poverty — and now, things are worse. The tiny island nation with a rich culture was has been hit hard. Haiti and the earthquake: before and after.
Second hour: TBD
All Things Considered (3-6:30 p.m.) – We’ll have updates on rescue and recovery operations — on the arrival of humanitarian aid — and on mounting casualties.
