Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Politics and Religion
Monday Miscellany, 4/15/24

Monday Miscellany, 4/15/24

Last updated on: April 15, 2024 at 6:00 am by Gene Veith

0 Comments

Monday Miscellany, 4/15/24 2024-04-12T12:49:02-04:00 Gene Veith

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Second jobs; women as closet conservatives; and why does it take so long to build things anymore?

Second Jobs

The economy added 303,000 jobs in March, according to recent headlines, a sure sign that Bidenomics is working and happy days are here again!

Well, according to Joseph LoBue in the Federalist, there is rather more to the story than that. There was no increase in the number of full-time jobs. In fact, in March there were 6,000 fewer full-time jobs, part of a steady decline over the last four months, during which 1,787,000 fewer Americans found full-time employment.

The increase is due largely to part-time jobs. And 75% of these are second jobs. Which means, according to LoBue, that

Under the Biden economy, the number of people who have had to simultaneously work both a full-time job and a second part-time job just to make ends meet has hovered at historical highs. In March, the number of people who added a second part-time job on top of their other full-time employment totaled 225,000. The Democrats’ “good news” is just you having to work longer and harder to survive.

Or, in the words of the title of his article, Biden Is Only ‘Adding’ Jobs Because Americans Need Extra Side Hustles To Make Ends Meet.

It’s a sign of Americans’ work ethic and of the dynamism of the free market economy that “side hustles” are possible. I think of the Uber drivers that I increasingly rely upon. Is this phenomenon a manifestation of America as the “land of opportunity” or a sign of a dysfunctional economy?

I’d be glad to hear from any of you who have taken on a “side hustle.” Are you doing that to get ahead, or just to make ends meet?

Women Tend to Be Closet Conservatives

Women are far more likely than men to embrace progressive causes. And yet in private they tend to hold conservative views.

Kimberly Begg writes about this paradox in the Federalist:

Among all women (80 percent of whom did not identify as conservative): 79 percent think a stay-at-home mom is equal in success to women in a professional field; 74 percent think kids should have the opportunity to attend a school of their choice, regardless of zip code; 71 percent oppose transgender surgeries for minors; 68 percent plan to be married with at least one child by the time they’re 30; 64 percent think hook-up culture is harmful to women; and 62 percent oppose men competing in women’s sports.

And yet many women are hesitant to express what they really believe:

The KAConsulting survey reveals that 42 percent of all women conceal or downplay their views. Among these, 75 percent cite the desire to avoid conflict, and another 10 percent fear losing friends or family. Among self-identified conservative women, 50 percent conceal their views and, in addition to avoiding conflict, 10 percent fear “being canceled” and 9 percent fear a negative effect on their grades.

Why is that? Beggs says, “Studies show that young women spend more time on social media and are more likely to conform to a group than young men.” The social media culture tends towards progressivism, and it is viciously hateful to dissenters. Beggs also cites “women’s prioritization of friendships and family relationships.” They don’t want to stir up conflicts or hurt anyone’s feelings.

But surely in the privacy and anonymity of the voting booth women should be able to register what they really think. The conservatism found in this study is cultural conservatism, and it makes sense that women as custodians of the family and the bearers of children would be protectors of culture. But perhaps that doesn’t always correlate with political conservatism. The same protective impulses might translate into economic liberalism, believing that redistributing wealth would help people in need and that restricting gun ownership would make children more safe. And some convictions take priority over others.

How would you account for this?

Why Does It Take So Long to Build Things Anymore?

After a huge cargo ship brought down the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore, experts are saying that rebuilding it will likely take a decade, at the cost of up to $800 million.

Stephen Green observes that this is twice as long as it took the first time to build the bridge some 50 years ago, at four times the cost. Back then the entire structure cost the equivalent of $200 million in inflation-adjusted dollars.

Such a long time frame is not unusual. He cites a civil engineering professor who said, “Projects that large take rarely less than 10 years.” Another story from the Associated Press, quotes the same engineer, Ben Shafer:

“The lead time on air conditioning equipment right now for a home renovation is like 16 months, right?” Schafer said. He continued: “So it’s like you’re telling me they’re going to build a whole bridge in two years? I want it to be true, but I think empirically it doesn’t feel right to me.”

Green notes that, by contrast, putting a man on the moon took seven and half years. The Hoover Dam took five years. And the Empire State Building only took one year.

Factors for the bridge rebuild taking so long, according to the AP story, range from “the design of the new bridge to how swiftly government officials can navigate the bureaucracy of approving permits and awarding contracts.”

A different civil engineer, Ed McSpedon, writing in the Wall Street Journal, says that the bridge could be repaired much more quickly and cheaply, using the bridge’s existing environmental-impact statement, the same foundations for the piers, and new “float-in modular construction” techniques. But we’ll see how this goes.

Francis Scott Key Bridge

side hustles

Previous Post

April 12, 2024

"White Rural Rage"

Next Post

April 16, 2024 Beliefs as Status Symbols

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"I know wired earbuds are making a comeback (I never stopped using them as I ..."

reg

Luther on Tools

"VCRs, tape decks, and cassette players are all having a revival among a segment of ..."

Tom Hering

Luther on Tools

"As a (retired) lawyer I see potential liability from sharing things like power or sharp ..."

reg

Luther on Tools

"I am not sure the items you mentioned, though disused, discontinued, discarded, could be considered ..."

reg

Luther on Tools

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category America Apologetics Art baseball Bible Blog Christ Church crime Culture Economics Education Ethics Family Food Football Government History Holidays Holy Week Humor International Islam Language Law Life Issues Literature Media Medicine Movies Music Nature News Personal Philosophy Politics psychology Reformation Religions Sacraments Science sex Social Science Sports technology television terrorism Theology Uncategorized Vocation war

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

True or False: Daniel interpreted King Nebuchadnezzar's dream about a statue made of different metals.

Select your answer to see how you score.

TRUE FALSE

Books by This Author Books by Gene Veith

See All Titles »