Jefferson's Utopian Experiment

Jefferson's Utopian Experiment: In what was perhaps the greatest sentence ever written, Thomas Jefferson devised the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom in 1779. When it later passed the Virginia General Assembly in 1786, after support from James Madison, it marked the first law of religious freedom in a modern world republic. In the statue, Jefferson purports a simple, but effective argument for religious freedom in republican societies. Given that "Almighty God hath created the mind free," then it was only natural to make religious worship a free and open practice. He realized that the worst kind of tyranny occurred when religion and government worked hand-in-hand to create a theocracy. State-imposed religion curtailed the most elemental faculty of man, namely his free will. Now keep in mind that Jefferson drafted this statute in the middle of the American Revolutionary War. There was no guarantee that the American Republic would survive the onslaught of the British forces. Even so, after securing a key alliance with France in 1778 and winning a mere three out of nine major battles, the United States persevered on its way to eventual victory over Great Britain. Aside from the military campaign, Jefferson's statue represented an alternative course in the ideology of republicanism. It allowed for the creation of a wall that separated religion and government. Therefore, some view Jefferson's statute as a gateway to secularization, while others see it as common sense.

Nine Inch Nails Reinvigorated

Nine Inch Nails Reinvigorated: After several unsuccessful bids to carve out a living in the music industry, Nine Inch Nails' (NIN) brainchild, and only official member, Trent Reznor, finally tasted the benefits of widespread notoriety with the release of NIN's first album, Pretty Hate Machine, in 1989. Generally described as an industrial metal group noted for eccentric tones and heavy drum and bass elements, NIN has effectively become a musical genre in their own right. The above video is actually a remix of the 2005 NIN song "Only." It includes a visual interpretation of the lyrics while incorporating animation from The Sims 2. Although the remix is neither produced nor engineered by Reznor, major portions of the original song are still intact. As for the bigger picture, NIN is considered one of the most creative industrial bands that originated in the 1980s. With songs like "Wish" and "Happiness in Slavery," both of which won Grammys for Best Metal Performance in 1992 and 1995 respectively, Reznor truly lets his soul bleed into NIN's music. And likewise, one must commend him for maintaining such a high degree of musical integrity throughout NIN's career.

Technics in Time

Technics in Time: The origins of the mechanical clock can be traced back to a French monk at the close of the tenth century named Gerbert d'Aurillac, who later became Pope Sylvester II. Attributing full credit to him is still controversial, but the overall implications surrounding the invention of the mehcanical clock are widespread and undeniable. At that time, the monastery was the seat of a regular life where bells rang at specified intervals to call the monks to prayer. Although sundials and water clocks had been in existence for thousands of years, the invention of the mechanical clock signaled a fundamental change in the progression of daily life. As a result, a definitive form of social regimentation developed in urban life around the thirteenth century. The drive for routine and rigidity stemmed primarily from the introduction of the mechanical clock, which demanded efficiency, punctuality, and responsibility from all citizens. Such a radical departure from previous epochs in human history, where people subjected time to their individual needs, could only mean that modern man was a creature that necessitated discipline. And it was precisely this healthy appetite for discipline that led to the foundation of modern capitalism. Man was finally able to self-actualize and create a better future for himself by furthering innovation.

Family Guy: A Crude Reality

Family Guy: A Crude Reality: No animated cartoon series has had a bigger impact on the world of cable television than Family Guy. Sure, there are other cartoon shows like South Park and King of the Hill, but Family Guy current airs on as many as five channels in any given week. In 2008, creator of the series, Seth MacFarlane, became the highest paid cartoonist in history after signing a four-year, $100-million contract with FOX. Given Family Guy's liberal slant, Rupert Murdoch, current Chairman and CEO of News Corporation (owner of FOX), is clearly a businessman first and a conservative second. Part of what makes the show popular entails its controversial depiction of middle-class family life in America. Nothing in American culture, especially Christianity and conservatism, is safe from the tantalizing and sarcastic commentary that arises from characters in the series. In fact, the show frequently employs cutaway gags and tangential vignettes to elicit a comedic reaction from the audience. Another common feature of Family Guy involves the blatant self-awareness of its characters to know that they are on television. Otherwise known as metahumor or "breaking the fourth wall," such a tactic merely enhances the comedic response of viewers.

Half-Way Covenant

Half-Way Covenant: Conceived by New England Puritans in 1662 as a means to incorporate partial church membership, the Half-Way Covenant offered a viable alternative for congregants to participate in ecclesiastic circles without having had an authentic "conversion experience." Reverend Solomon Stoddard very much promoted this doctrine in order to extend the church's influence throughout the Puritan community, which was in danger of growing impious due to the increased commercialization of New England in the late seventeenth century. The central problem undoubtedly rested with the third generation of Puritan settlers, whose religious merits seemed evermore aloof. Less and less parishioners received baptism, and thus, the rights to exercise the church's fundamental dogma. Therefore, ministers preached warnings of moral decay, otherwise known as "Jeremiads" after the ancient Hebrew prophet Jeremiah, as a great fear of societal declension swept through the colony. Often cited as one of the first religious crises in early America, the controversy surrounding the Half-Way Covenant served as a precursor to the First Great Awakening, which entailed Reverend Jonathan Edwards delivering his notorious Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God sermon in 1741.