Recently, some online friends began discussing the book The Benedict Option, so I went off in search of this letter by the late Paul Weyrich. I remember the fuss he stirred up back then, in 1999, because people thought he was being too pessimistic about the state of our culture.
He wasn't too pessimistic; I think he was prophetic. He knew we'd arrived at the end of Christian culture, and that was 16 years before the SCOTUS ruling on "gay marriage". And I think he deserves credit for suggesting something like "The Benedict Option", though he didn't call it that.
Anyway, in googling for Mr. Weyrich's letter, I came across the name of his colleague and friend, Amy Ridenour, who I remembered from my long-ago blogging days. Amy, who founded the National Center for Public Policy Research, had linked to my blog during the 2005 kerfluffle, as she put it, over the remarks of Lawrence Summers, then-president of Harvard, about the differences between men and women. (It ended up being much more than a kerfluffle as the left forced Summers' resignation, which now is the standard practice of the liberal fascists whenever someone says something they don't like.)
Here was the post she linked to:
And now, in our "Dumb Ironies" Department
"When he started talking about innate differences in aptitude between men and women, I just couldn't breathe because this kind of bias makes me physically ill," she said Monday.
And why did I post this today? Because today I learned that Amy Ridenour, age 57, died just a few weeks ago, on March 31. While searching for her old blog, Google suggested "Amy Ridenour obituary". Shocked, I pursued it - and yes, she did pass away.
Her obituary lists an amazing number of accomplishments. A highlight: she and Paul both encouraged President Reagan to make his "evil empire" speech, and to stand strong against the nuclear freeze proponents on the left - which helped bring down the Soviet Union. Here is her tribute to Paul Weyrich after his death.
Amy Ridenour played a part in bringing down the USSR. Say that again. Think about having that in your obituary.
Rest in peace, Amy and Paul.
