Earlier this month the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act that barred state-authorized sports gambling with some exceptions. New Jersey plans to join Nevada as another state that will allow legal sports betting. Other states (like Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia) will probably follow.

I wondered how the professional sports associations would react to the decision. We didn’t have to wait long. The NFL said that it has a “long-standing and unwavering commitment to protecting the integrity of the game.” They called on Congress to get involved because of the “potential harms posed by sports betting” and the concern this could erode “public confidence in these events.”

In my chapter on gambling in Christian Ethics in Plain Language, I explained the potential problem. Gamblers bet on the point spread. “Suppose a team was picked to win by more than three points and was leading by one point with less than a minute left. Even if the team was on its opponent’s 20-yard-line, the coach might decide not to kick a field goal, for doing so would risk the possibility of a blocked kick.” Can you imagine the fans and gamblers who might want to call for an investigation?

In my book, I acknowledge that the Bible does not directly address gambling. But there are numerous biblical principles that can be applied. Gambling can breed a form of covetousness (Exodus 20:17) and is often a destroyer of the work ethic (Colossians 3:23-24). Gambling often corrupts values of hard work and thrift, replacing them with dependence on luck and chance.

Gambling can be a family-destroying addiction. Many gamblers fall prey to the “gambler’s fallacy” by believing that a string of losses makes the next win more likely. In fact, some have called gambling just another mind-altering drug.

Unfortunately, it looks like sports gambling will spread to a number of states joining the many others forms of state-sponsored gambling.

A significant percentage of Americans have little or no retirement savings. That means that future debates about Social Security may become even more contentious than they have been in the past. As I have discussed in previous commentaries, the only thing in the Social Security trust fund are IOUs. Sometime in the future, the government may not have the necessary funds for all the Baby Boomers who are currently retiring.

A report from Northwestern Mutual found that one in five (21%) Americans have NO retirement savings at all. The survey also found that two-thirds of people with a savings account or retirement plan are certain that their money will run out sooner than they hoped it would. That means they would be totally dependent upon Social Security.

Even when implemented, Social Security wasn’t intended to fund people‘s retirement for such long times. It was originally intended to provide income supplement for men for about 13 years and for women for about 15 years. That was the life expectancy for 65-year-olds in 1935. Of course, Americans now live more than a decade longer.

When you look at the Baby Boomers who were polled, you find that one in three has $25,000 or less in their retirement savings right now. Many of them are already thinking of extending their retirement dates. In fact, Northwestern Mutual estimates that nearly one in four (38%) will retire at age 70 or older. Because of medical advances, people between the ages of 65 to 70 are often fortunately able to work longer.

But the bigger issue is not whether they are “able” but rather whether they are “willing” to work. Given the option, most Americans would like to kick back and retire at 65. The latest surveys about retirement savings make that less likely. So we will probably observe a graying of the workforce.

We love our smartphones, but many of us wonder if they are controlling our lives in ways that may not be healthy. Markham Reid responds to this question in his commentary in Time magazine: “You Asked: Should I Ditch My Smartphone?” He rehearses much of the evidence I have discussed in previous commentaries.

Dr. Brian Primack, professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh explains how “the little wobble of the emoticon, or the A-flat ding that stimulated the brain’s reward centers—these are designed to maximize people’s desire to stay on their devices.” Add to that the fact that there are teams of engineers and designers whose ultimate goal is to design games and apps that will keep you glued to your device.

We can look at all the psychological data being recorded, or merely use common sense to conclude that spending too much time on these devices is not healthy. It shows up in decreased attention spans, increased anxiety and stress, and a general erosion of wellbeing. Too much time on social media seems to lead to increased feelings of FOMO (fear of missing out).

In light of some of these concerns, it has been interesting to observe a movement away from smartphones to “dumb phones” or “light phones.” I know of people who have kept their flip phones or decided to opt for a dumb phone that doesn’t do too much more than make phone calls. Others are considering a light phone that may have a few additional features like texting, an alarm clock, and driving app.

These features may be exactly what parents desire for their children. They can give their kids a phone so they can call, but prevent them from seeing everything on the Internet and protect them from cyberbullies. That is why we may see more adults and parents of kids opting for something other than a smartphone.

Today is Memorial Day. For many Americans, it is merely a day off. For others, it marks the start of summer. But hopefully, for many of you, it is a day to honor those who fought for our freedom and especially for those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.

Sure, we can enjoy our picnics and go for a walk or go for a swim. But we should take some time to put up a flag, make a banner, and perhaps participate in a parade honoring our military.

Certainly, those in the military feel more loved than the vets who returned from the Vietnam War. But it wouldn’t hurt to thank those who have served our country and to make them feel appreciated. We will never be able to repay them enough for their service.

What else can we do? If you visit a few websites, you will find all sorts of suggestions. Here are a few to consider. Participate in a “National Moment of Remembrance” at 3 PM today. Pause, listen to taps, and reflect. I was in London’s Heathrow airport on Veterans’ Day. When the time came to stop and reflect, the airport was absolutely quiet for a minute or so. I was impressed. We can learn something from the British and their reverence for their war dead.

You might encourage your friends, neighbors, and family to visit cemeteries and perhaps even place flags on the graves. I have been to military cemeteries in Hawaii and the Philippines and have seen what is done there. We need to do the same back home.

Those of you who live near the nation’s capital might visit one of the memorials for the Vietnam Veterans, the World War II Veterans, or the Korean War Veterans.

I will let you consider what you might do to make this day special. The point is to make this day special. Too often we come to think about it as nothing more than a Monday holiday or the kick off for summer. It should mean so much more for us.

One of the many dividing lines between progressives and conservatives is their belief in the efficiency and effectiveness of government bureaucracies. Liberals may have some misgivings about how they are treated at the Department of Motor Vehicles or by the TSA at airports. Nevertheless, they tend to believe that government is the solution to most social and political problems.

Conservatives are usually more skeptical about government and support the private sector over the public sector. But their reactions seem tempered by the fact that they generally have high respect for people in the military and law enforcement.

This difference in perspective concerning federal bureaucracies shows up in many debates, including the current one about vetting refugees and other immigrants. In a recent column, Kevin Williamson asks, “who seriously thinks that our public institutions are up to the job of properly investigating tens of thousands (or more) refugees, asylum-seekers, and ordinary immigrants every year? If Donald Trump’s temporary order seems to you unreasonable, ask yourself what the next-best option is and how much confidence we should have in it.”

When I read or hear someone assure us that the government screening of refugees and immigrants is very effective, I want to ask them some questions. Have you been to the DMV or the VA recently? Have you visited an immigration office recently? Sometimes you find a well-run organization, but far too often you probably walked out of a government building shaking your head because it is hardly run efficiently and effectively.

Add to this the reality that the information from some of these countries for these refugees and immigrants is sketchy at best. That is why I think some are more trusting of the federal bureaucracy than is warranted.

Ayaan Hirsi Ali begins her commentary with these words: “I was a Muslim refugee once. I know what it’s like.” She was en route to Canada to consummate a marriage arranged against her will by her father. At the Frankfurt Airport, she fled to the Netherlands. There, she learned Dutch and received a master’s degree in political science before coming to America.

She has worked as an interpreter for abused Muslim women and understands the Muslim refugee experience. In the course of working with Muslim communities, she has found four different types of Muslim immigrants: adapters, menaces, coasters, and fanatics.

“Many Muslim immigrants have adapted over time by adopting the core values of Western democracies.” These Muslims have become great US citizens and are the type of people we want to welcome to our country.

The second group is mostly young men, who she says are menaces in their homes and outside in public. They have been subjected to domestic violence and go on to commit it themselves.

Coasters are a third group of Muslim immigrants. They usually have little or no formal education and they thankfully accept welfare and live off it. They also invite their families from abroad to join them on the welfare rolls.

“Finally, there are the fanatics—those use the freedom of the countries that gave them sanctuary to spread an uncompromising practice of Islam.” These immigrants are certainly the group we want to keep out of America.

Her analysis of Muslim immigrants is necessary for our discussion of immigration. We just cannot assume that all Muslim immigrants will perfectly adapt to the American culture and adopt western values. Nor should we assume that all Muslims are fanatics. We need to find a way to welcome adapters but also exclude those who won’t contribute to this country.

Whenever I speak to an audience about the influence of the media on children, I quote from a survey done by the Kaiser Family Foundation concerning electronic media. When you add together the amount of time children spend with television, cell phones, iPads, video games, and computers, it essentially becomes a full-time job of more than 53 hours. This is a dramatic increase from over a decade ago.

The findings of the survey of over 2,000 young people ages 8 to 18 found that their digital day lasted more than seven hours. The primary media inputs were television and music. But substantial amounts of time were also spent on the computer and playing video games.

Although time spent with electronic media is increasing, the researchers did find one area that was decreasing: ink. Daily book readership remained somewhat steady, but reading a magazine dropped 20 percent and reading a newspaper dropped nearly 20 percent.

The survey had a few surprises. For example, the greatest consumers of electronic media were African-American and Hispanic kids who spend nearly one-third more time each day with electronics than white kids. And heavy media users aren’t necessarily couch potatoes. They actually find ways to cram more physical exercise into their lives than light users. While that may be true, I still believe that almost all young people spend too much time with electronic media. I would recommend you consider having certain times of the day when your children are required to disconnect from electronic media.

For the last two decades, I have been talking about the media storm that surrounds our children and grandchildren. This survey of our kids’ digital day shows that they are in the midst of a greater storm than we ever imagined. This should concern parents and educators.

We often talk about worldviews, but do we know how they were formed through history? Professor Glenn Sunshine wrote a great book entitled Why You Think the Way You Do: The Story of Western Worldviews from Rome to Home. It helps us see the influence of worldviews through history. He defines worldview as “the framework you use to interpret the world and your place in it.”

He begins by discussing the worldview of Rome. By the end of the book, we return to that same worldview. Western civilization is a product of ancient Roman civilization plus Christianity. Glenn Sunshine argues that once you removed Christianity, modern society reverted back to Roman society and a recovery of the ancient pagan worldview.

Like Rome, we value toleration as the supreme virtue. The Romans lived in an oversexed society. So is our society. Rome practiced abortion. So does our society. Rome was anti-natalist and made a deliberate attempt to prevent pregnancy. They focused on sexual enjoyment and did not want to bother with kids. In our modern world, birthrates in most of the western democracies are plummeting.

So how should Christians live in this world? Of course, we should live out a biblical worldview. Every generation is called to live faithfully to the gospel, and our generation is no exception.

This is especially important today since we are facing a society that is not willing to accept biblical ideas. In many ways, we face a challenge similar to the early church, though not as daunting.

From history, we can see that the early church did live faithfully and transformed the Roman world. Christians produced a totally new civilization: western culture. By living faithfully before the watching world, we will increase our credibility and earn the respect from those around us by living in accordance with biblical principles.

Over the last few weeks, I have read editorials and heard comments that have used the phrase “educational fraud.” The reason is simple. We are spending more and more money on public education and have less and less to show for it.

Last month was the release of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Many people call it the “Nation’s Report Card.” This is not a report card you would want to show to your parents. It isn’t something America’s taxpayers want to see either.

About a third (37%) of the nation’s 12th-graders tested proficient or better in reading. Only one fourth (25%) were proficient or better in math. We spend all this time and money and still have a majority of students who cannot read or compute at their grade level.

Dr. Walter Williams is a columnist and economist at George Mason University. Because he is African-American, he also focuses some of his attention on black students. Sadly, they did even worse in these tests: 17 percent proficient in reading, and 7 percent proficient in math.

He asks an important question. Why are we giving these kids diplomas? The national high school graduation rate is over 80 percent. That means two-thirds of these graduates cannot read at the 12th grade level and three-fourths cannot compute at the 12th grade level.

Not only is there fraud in high school diplomas, but the fraud continues when we look at the percentage of these students who then go on to college. According to government statistics, about 70 percent of white high school graduates were enrolled in college, and 58 percent of black high school students were enrolled in college. This is also educational fraud since so many of them are hardly college-ready if they cannot read even at the high school level.

Perhaps you can now see why so many of us are frustrated by what has become rampant educational fraud.