Declarations of social revolutions are often overblown. After all, the technological advances of the last two centuries include everything from the harnessing of steam engines to the promise of nanotechnology. Nevertheless, the 25th anniversary of the IBM personal computer (known almost universally as the “PC”) is a landmark worthy of thoughtful consideration.

Professor Leon Kass, former chairman of President Bush’s Council on Bioethics, issues a warning about the “technological mentality” that threatens to reduce all matters of morality to issues of technology and technique. Dr. Kass is a medical doctor, biologist, teacher, and philosopher. See these prophetic paragraphs:

Dr. Theodore Dalrymple [actually the pen name for Anthony (A.M.) Daniels, M.D.] offers another article debunking the addiction hypothesis in The Times [London]. Dr. Dalrymple is a prison doctor and psychiatrist who writes with extraordinary insight and clarity.

Philip Rieff, who died last Saturday at age 83, was one of those few individuals in any generation who names their own age in indelible ink. Philip Rieff, known best as a sociologist and interpreter of Sigmund Freud, did this in 1961 when he wrote of the “triumph of the therapeutic” in contemporary culture.

Frustration with the human condition has led many mortals astray. Indeed, the primal temptation that came to Adam and Eve in the garden was, in essence, to escape their own creaturely finitude and grasp after knowledge that had been forbidden them. Thus, by eating the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve effectively redefined humanity, now “knowing the difference between good and evil.” Efforts to transcend the natural limits of human life and experience are regular features of ancient mythologies and modern literature. Strangely enough, ideas and proposals once limited to the world of science fiction are now taken seriously in some scientific circles. If you demand evidence for that assertion, just consider the “Human Enhancement Technologies and Human Rights” conference, held May 26-28 at the Stanford Law School.

The transcript for last night’s edition of CNN’s “Larry King Live” is available here. I will comment about the show, and be back to the regular blogging program starting Sunday night. Thank you for your prayer and concern as I recovered this week from eye surgery and dealt with responsibilities with the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention.

I am scheduled to discuss the issue of homosexuals and the Christian ministry on tonight’s “Larry King Live” show, on CNN at 9:00 e.d.t.

The two-edged sword of advanced medical technology is evident in a story from today’s edition of The Guardian [London]. According to the paper, some doctors are calling for a policy revision that would allow women with a family history of breast cancer to use IVF technology in order to give birth to children who do not carry genes associated with the disease.

Tony Long contributes a thoughtful piece on the speed of modern life in “A Sour Note on Modern Times,” published at Wired magazine. Long begins with a lament on the fact that classical music stations, in a desperate attempt to attract new listeners, are chopping up symphonies for quick bite-sized listening.

I will discuss the Christian understanding of Islam on Fox News’ The O’Reilly Factor tonight, broadcast at 8:00 p.m. EST and rebroadcast at 11:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. The background to the discussion will be recent statements by Franklin Graham and Pat Robertson.