It’s a real challenge to find time to write for the Ink Desk when one is travelling hither and thither in this large country, which dwarves my native land in terms of size if not necessarily in terms of cultural inheritance. I sent a hurried postcard from Nashville a few days ago, and now, after a blissful two days at home with my family, I find myself in Wichita, Kansas. This is virgin territory for me. I’ve been to Kansas before but never to this particular corner of it. As a child it was known to me as the home of the “Lineman” whom Glen Campbell made famous. I know nothing else about it, except that it’s in the middle of a prairie that’s larger in size than England.

The purpose of my visit is to speak at the local chapter of Legatus. My topic: “Catholic Responsibility in a Hostile Government”. Amongst the questions that my address will address: What would St. Thomas More do and say if he met Barack Obama? What does Shakespeare have to say about the obomanation? What does it mean to be the king’s good servant but God’s first? Why is the United States no longer a democratic country? What is necessary to restore real democracy? What does the past tell us about the present and the future?