While the Maxim Institute is still running its annual youth indoctrination camp at Snells Beach Auckland, there have been some interesting developments. Firstly, it would appear that they've settled down to using a standardised format and local speakers, for the most part, apart from one US fundamentalist university lecturer who has been retained to talk about 'worldviews'. Moreover, they appear to be using the same workbook as last time, which suggests the same content will also be delivered. Secondly, this means the workshops and seminars will concentrate largely on conservative Christian theological interpretations of the virgin birth, Christ's incarnation, the crucifixion, resurrection and what's 'wrong' with the works of Peter Singer and Paul Kurtz, as opposed to Francis Schaeffer, the late Reformed fundamentalist philosopher and agitator, whose work concentrated primarily on opposition to abortion and euthanasia in the late seventies and early eighties. Needless to say, there's an interesting aspect to all this. It doesn't include family policy, or mention 'normative' family models, which has some implications. Have they finally given up opposing LGBT rights? Is the problem that it's not worth opposing adoption reform, or that they don't have anyone sufficiently mainstream to do it? Come to think of it, this also means sidelining the Section 59 Repeal issue, which raises some other questions about the Institute's future. Even if it is holding Compass 2007, they haven't branched out into new issues or content. Therefore, is it the case that the Institute is downplaying its points of difference with the mainstream centre-right, and if so, why? Is one possibility a Centre for Independent Studies/Maxim Institute merger, with the Institute as a specialist educational policy unit within the merged organisation? Watch this space. Recommended: Compass 2007 http://www.compass.org.nz Maxim Institute http://www.maxim.org.nz Craig Young - 9th January 2007