In the minds of many Muslims, because the Catholic Church is the oldest and was for centuries the leading institution in the West, the church and the pope as its head are identified as representatives of the West. Though Pope Benedict XVI’s address in Regensburg, Germany, on Sept. 12 was devot

Census Data and the PoorThe poor became poorer last year, according to a recent analysis of the new U.S. Census Bureau data by the nonprofit Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Put another way, the report points out that the proportion of poor people who experienced severe povertythat is, whose

Armies inevitably refight the last war, and generals are often unprepared for the new war their enemy brings them. The law and ethics of war follow the same pattern. Years go by before lawmakers and ethicists recognize the worrisome changes that have overtaken warfare. It took decades for the human

Opening Church DoorsOne of the towering leaders of the church died on Aug. 24 at age 98, in the motherhouse of the Sisters of Loretto in Nerinx, Ky. Though Mary Luke Tobin, S.L., led a life described by superlatives, she may best be remembered as one of only 15 women, and the only American woman, to

Welfare rolls have dropped more than 50 percent over the past decade. Former President Bill Clinton, who spearheaded welfare reform through the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, promised to end welfare as we know it. Now he, along with Secretary of Health, Educati

Alma E. Miller was 102 years old when she died in 1994. For 78 of those years she had been a member of the religious congregation called the Society of the Sacred Heart. During much of that time, she was the mistress of studies, that is to say, the academic dean, in one or other of the schools for g

Cuban Immigrants FavoredCubans stand apart in notable ways from other Hispanic groups in the United States, according to a report by the Pew Hispanic Center. What especially distinguishes them is that U.S. policy has been much more welcoming to Cubans than to immigrants from the Caribbean and Centra

Defying the Rules of WarIn this issue, George A. Lopez argues that the war on terror has led us into a no man’s land of Dirty Harry ethics. The argument for a no-holds-barred approach to terrorism runs: We are in a dirty war, so we have to fight dirty. If they are nasty, we have to be nastier.

As the nation prepares to observe the fifth anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, national security is poised to become once again the central issue in the electoral season. The question is hardly academic, given the revelation in August of a foiled terrorist plot to blow up Americ

Prisons in Latin AmericaThe often horrifying conditions in Latin American prisons receive relatively little attention in the United States. A recent study, Evaluation of Prisons in the Organization of American States, however, casts light on some of them. How well or badly a prisoner is treated in t