Sell my soul for a second on the evening news

• Why do we call it “tug of war”? Shouldn’t it be “war of tug?”

Hasty googling doesn’t reveal much about the etymology of the name, except that the term probably referred to something else before it began to be applied to the game. Happily, though, I also found this — the classic Battle of the Network Stars episode in which the Incredible Hulk vanquished Spenser, Starbuck, Chachi and Billy Crystal:

Yes, that was a thing that happened.

• “Bottom line, without insurance and the subsidy I would simply die, because I could not afford my drugs and my body would reject my liver.”

• Net neutrality wasn’t a partisan issue, but now that President Barack Obama is firmly in favor of it, the Republican Party has come out against it. That’s just how they roll.

I’m not sure that this is a winning equation for the GOP:

… but, hey, if that’s how Republicans choose to identify themselves, I can’t stop them.

• Speaking of the pervasively political nature of “non-political” religion … John Fea points us to a post from the American Society of Church History blog that argues it is “theologically illiterate” to regard Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse as a “Christian crusader” and culture warrior because Sasse is actually a Lutheran committed to old-school Lutheran “two kingdoms” theology.

Not buying it. First because it’s theologically illiterate — particularly for church historians, for goodness’ sake — to pretend that Lutheran two-kingdom theology has ever been anything other than wholly, thoroughly political (see: Germany). And second because we would have to conclude that it is just a huge coincidence — or, rather, a whole series of huge coincidences — that just happens to make Sasse’s political agenda identical on every point to the culture warriors Paul Putz wants to distinguish him from. Oh, Sherlock, what do we say about coincidence?

• An undeniable fact of history, proven again and again, is that trying to spark a revolution by shooting a police officer doesn’t work. It never works. Alas, the kind of people who tend to think it could, or should, aren’t really much influenced by history. Or by reality.

• Libby Anne discusses the mind-bending paradox of “But What If Your Husband Tells You Not To Submit?” This was one of my favorite things growing up in a church that taught that women must “submit” to their husband’s spiritual authority. My mom agreed with the church about that. My dad did not. So, then, wasn’t it rebellious of my mom to disagree with my dad about that? I had too much fun asking that question and watching the response spin in ever-tighter little circles.

• Progressive Christian blogging, ca. 1805.