The Moral Majority is with us still

Edition: US - Today's top story: Revisiting the legacy of Jerry Falwell Sr. in Trump's America [Click here to view this message in your web-browser](. Edition: US 11 July 2017 [[The Conversation]Academic rigor, journalistic flair]( Editor's note President Donald Trump has asked evangelical leader Jerry Falwell Jr. to lead a White House education reform task force. Falwell, the president of Liberty University, is the son of late Jerry Falwell Sr. USC Dornsife’s Richard Flory argues that the senior Falwell was largely responsible for encouraging evangelical Christians in America to [stop simply leaving things in God’s hands]( and to get involved in politics – with enormous impacts on the country. One reason so many cities try to banish panhandlers is a presumption, recently aired by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, that they are scammers. A sociologist and an economist based in New York City who have researched curbside solicitation say that issuing [panhandling ID cards]( would make more sense than forbidding the practice altogether. And Nicholas Bowman at West Virginia University considers a proposed law in Colorado that would prevent kids from using smartphones. It comes from more than just concerned parents; it’s part of a centuries-long [tendency to fear technology]( that goes back at least as far as Socrates, he writes. Kalpana Jain Senior Editor, Religion & Ethics Top story U.S. President Donald Trump stands with Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. after delivering keynote address at commencement in Lynchburg, Virginia, May 13, 2017. Yuri Gripas/Reuters [Revisiting the legacy of Jerry Falwell Sr. in Trump's America]( Richard Flory, University of Southern California – Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences Falwell Sr. was a pastor who founded the Moral Majority, a conservative Christian political lobbying group. He changed the way American Christians think about their faith and politics. Economy + Business - [Give and take: Credentials could aid panhandling]( Brendan O'Flaherty, Columbia University; Gwendolyn Dordick, City University of New York The courts are saying that down-and-out Americans have a right to seek curbside alms despite efforts to ban the practice. Two scholars have come up with an alternative to anti-panhandling ordinances. - [Why we need to save the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau]( Jeff Sovern, St. John's University; Ann L. Goldweber, St. John's University; Gina M. Calabrese, St. John's University Republicans are hoping to eliminate or at least defang the only federal agency tasked solely with protecting consumers from financial abuses. What would we miss if they succeed? Science + Technology - [Banning smartphones for kids is just another technology-fearing moral panic]( Nicholas Bowman, West Virginia University Teaching fear and avoidance of technology may protect people from negative consequences. But it also prevents them from finding, and benefiting from, productive uses of new innovations. Arts + Culture - [CNN-Reddit saga exposes tension between the internet, anonymity and power]( Bree McEwan, DePaul University The national story of an anonymous Reddit user's post – and the threat to unmask him – raises important questions about the role of online communication in our society. Politics + Society - [Is it ever a good idea to arm violent nonstate actors?]( Patricia Sullivan, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill The US is doing so with increasing frequency around the world – most recently with Kurdish fighters in Syria. A scholar explains what can go wrong, and why this approach is likely to continue. - [Is the world ready for a strong German leader?]( Johanna Schuster-Craig, Michigan State University Merkel’s popularity at home and on the global stage continues to grow as she runs for a fourth term as chancellor. Environment + Energy - [Cleaning up toxic sites shouldn't clear out the neighbors]( Lindsey Dillon, University of California, Santa Cruz Cleaning up and reusing contaminated sites, known as brownfields, can create jobs and promote economic growth. But it also can drive gentrification that prices out low-income residents. Education - [How daughters can repair a damaged relationship with their divorced dad]( Linda Nielsen, Wake Forest University Daughters across the US feel like their relationship with their father was damaged by their parents' divorce. Here are steps daughters can take to repair that relationship. From our international editions - [Rodrigo Duterte's first year: a human rights disaster the world prefers to ignore]( Tom Smith, University of Portsmouth It turns out that the president of the Philippines is exactly who he said he was. - [Don't worry about the huge Antarctic iceberg – worry about the glaciers behind it]( Chen Zhao, University of Tasmania; Christopher Watson, University of Tasmania; Matt King, University of Tasmania A huge iceberg is set to break free from Antarctica. While the iceberg isn't hugely concerning, it could herald the breakup of the entire Larsen C ice shelf, which could trigger more sea-level rise. - [The risky lure of Caribbean offshore medical schools]( Valorie A. Crooks, Simon Fraser University; Jeffrey Morgan, Simon Fraser University Competition for spaces is driving Canadian undergraduates to medical school in the tropics. And there are risks - for student career prospects and Caribbean health systems. - [From the margins, reggae in South Africa continues to struggle for human dignity]( Tuomas Järvenpää, University of Eastern Finland Reggae in South Africa has lost its visibility and prominence inside the country after apartheid. But local artists have built up extensive international links. Today’s quote [Merkel’s governance style has earned its own verb. 'To merkel' is to deliberate, evaluate a course of action and eventually choose a suitable option at the last possible moment.]( [Is the world ready for a strong German leader?]( Johanna Schuster-Craig Michigan State University [Johanna Schuster-Craig] [Follow us on Twitter.]( [Join us on Facebook.]( You’re receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation](. Not interested anymore? [Unsubscribe instantly](. We’ll miss you. 625 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02139 USA