Wisconsin Sobriety Checkpoints?

Yah, well, as Wiggy points out, they ARE illegal in this State.

But when the Feds are waving $200K under your collective noses to set up illegal checkpoints, what DO you DO?

Why, to Hell with the law!!!

That's the Wisconsin of Jim Doyle, anyway.

The Feds Go Crazy

Raiding a Beauty School, for crying out loud:


A beautiful day in Scottsboro turned out to be a little less glamorous for the Gaither and Company Beauty College.

One student said she was in the middle of shampooing someone's hair when law enforcement barged in and served a search warrant.

"A frightening sight to see all these cars and suv's coming over here this morning and blocking everything off," says neighboring worker Cheryl Bankert.

Bankert watched from next-door to the building that law enforcement raided early Wednesday morning.

She watched people wearing guns and bullet proof vests wondering what happened.

Yah. AR-15's and Class III's to raid a Beauty College for Pell Grant fraud.

Hello!! Flies.....Sledgehammers.....Hello!!

HT: Dappled Things

Assembly 97th: The BIG Difference

There's been some fur flying in the race for 97th Assembly. But that's not what we'll mention today.

Rather, it's the Big Issue: taxes and spending in the State.

A detectable difference in the competitors is Kramer's stand that government spending should be controlled by limits set in the state constitution. The hotly debated initiative has failed to clear the Legislature in two forms.

"Taxes should not rise faster than a family's ability to pay them," Kramer said. "Lowering taxes will increase economic activity, and the result is greater revenue for government bodies."

Lufter's response: "I've been fighting on behalf of taxpayers for 15 years. I get involved to see what can be done to change that mind-set by controlling the spending. If you don't control the spending, you'll never get a handle on taxes. You can use fees as taxes, and I'm not for that."

Reducing/controlling spending is the key--that is, Lufter's position is the one which makes sense.

In the end, only spending affects the level of taxes. Don't spend, and you won't tax. On the other hand, guaranteeing an increasing tax-revenue stream WILL lead to spending.

Election Board Slimes to Doyle's Tune

Here's the indictment of the Elections Board:

The board votes reversed a 2001 decision that allowed Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, who was then a member of the House running for governor, to convert about $327,000 from his federal to his state account to help finance his campaign for governor. A complaint over Barrett's transfer of the $327,000 filed by the campaign of Jim Doyle, the then-attorney general who won the election, was dismissed by the board in 2001.

At that time, SlimeJim was just another hack pol.

It's also been reported that the Board's attorney adamantly opposed this decision. He's not long for that world, I would guess.

Living in the western suburbs, I thought I smelled something rotten earlier today. I was right.

Another Look at the Middle East Problem

The Roman Catholic Church has had part of its flock in the Middle East for a long, long time. Thus, when the current Bishop/Patriarch of Jerusalem, Michael Sabbah, has something to say, it is worth reading and thinking about.

"Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God." (Matthew 5:9)

Christian Zionism is a modern theological and political movement that embraces the most extreme ideological positions of Zionism, thereby becoming detrimental to a just peace within Palestine and Israel.

The Christian Zionist program provides a worldview where the Gospel is identified with the ideology of empire, colonialism and militarism. In its extreme form, it laces an emphasis on apocalyptic events leading to the end of history rather than living Christ's love and justice today.

We categorically reject Christian Zionist doctrines as false teaching that corrupts the biblical message of love, justice and reconciliation.

We further reject the contemporary alliance of Christian Zionist leaders and organizations with elements in the governments of Israel and the United States that are presently imposing their unilateral preemptive borders and domination over Palestine.

This inevitably leads to unending cycles of violence that undermine the security of all peoples of the Middle East and the rest of the world.

We reject the teachings of Christian Zionism that facilitate and support these policies as they advance racial exclusivity and perpetual war rather than the gospel of universal love, redemption and reconciliation taught by Jesus Christ.

Rather than condemn the world to the doom of Armageddon we call upon everyone to liberate themselves from the ideologies of militarism and occupation. Instead, let them pursue the healing of the nations!

We call upon Christians in Churches on every continent to pray for the Palestinian and Israeli people, both of whom are suffering as victims of occupation and militarism. These discriminative actions are turning Palestine into impoverished ghettos surrounded by exclusive Israeli settlements.

The establishment of the illegal settlements and the construction of the Separation Wall on confiscated Palestinian land undermine the viability of a Palestinian state as well as peace and security in the entire region.

We call upon all Churches that remain silent, to break their silence and speak for reconciliation with justice in the Holy Land.

Therefore, we commit ourselves to the following principles as an alternative way:

We affirm that all people are created in the image of God. In turn they are called to honor the dignity of every human being and to respect their inalienable rights.

We affirm that Israelis and Palestinians are capable of living together within peace, justice and security.

We affirm that Palestinians are one people, both Muslim and Christian. We reject all attempts to subvert and fragment their unity.

We call upon all people to reject the narrow world view of Christian Zionism and other ideologies that privilege one people at the expense of others.

We are committed to non-violent resistance as the most effective means to end the illegal occupation in order to attain a just and lasting peace.

With urgency we warn that Christian Zionism and its alliances are justifying colonization, apartheid and empire-building.

God demands that justice be done. No enduring peace, security or reconciliation is possible without the foundation of justice. The demands of justice will not disappear. The struggle for justice must be pursued diligently and persistently but without violence.

"What does the Lord require of you: To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8)

This is where we take our stand. We stand for justice. We can do no other. Justice alone guarantees a peace that will lead to reconciliation with a life of security and prosperity for all the peoples of our land. By standing on the side of justice, we open ourselves to the work of peace -- and working for peace makes us children of God."

God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." (2 Corinthians 5:19)

Patriarch Michel Sabbah Latin Patriarchate, Jerusalem

Archbishop Swerios Malki Mourad, Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate, Jerusalem

Bishop Riah Abu El-Assal, Episcopal Church of Jerusalem and the Middle East

Bishop Munib Younan, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land

These are serious people with serious concerns, and they happen to know what's going on in the Middle East--unlike some who pontificate from comfortable chairs behind "golden microphones" or in New York City editorial offices--such as at NRO, for example.

It has been clear that this "Christian Zionism" affects the worldview and editorial concepts behind many of today's electronic media outlets.

I hardly expect that the opinion-maker/Christian Zionists will pay much attention to this statement. But people should.

Colbert & Stewart

Actually, these guys do very well together.

Haven't figured out how to get UTube to post here, so you'll have to go there.

HT The Jester/American Papist

Thought Control in the Twin Cities

It's coming to a city near you:

Today the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that the Minneapolis PD "has temporarily suspended the use of a well-known psychologist who has been screening potential officers for more than a year after community members questioned his affiliation with a group that opposes civil rights for gays."

(see the Star Tribune report here: http://www.startribune.com/462/story/641727.html )

The newspaper reported that Dr. Campion's "affiliation with a conservative Illinois group that says it opposes the 'gay lifestyle' was brought to interim Chief Tim Dolan's attention on Wednesday during a meeting with the Police Community Relations Council."

Campion served on IFI's Board of Directors from 1998 until 2005. The Star Tribune reported that his business, Campion, Barrow & Associates, based in Champaign, Ill., has "received high marks from a consulting firm hired by the Minneapolis Police Department to evaluate his 'general procedural goodness and specific cultural fairness' of his testing procedures."

This is not the first time Dr. Campion has suffered discrimination after having his character assassinated by liberal activists. Last year, the City of Springfield, Illinois, fired Campion as psychological reviewer for police and firefighter candidates after the left-leaning weekly Illinois Times ran an article about his role with Illinois Family Institute.

Professional competency be damned.

Thou Shalt Not THINK of Opposing the Homosexual Agenda...

HT: Gerald

About That REALLY Troublesome In-Law...

Maybe there's a good common-sense explanation:

An Italian exorcist said demonic influence is strong in today’s world, affecting individuals and sometimes entire societies. While it is very rare for a person to be possessed by a demon, history reveals some likely examples — including Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin, said Pauline Father Gabriele Amorth.

Father Amorth, who works as an exorcist in the Diocese of Rome, made the comments in an interview with Vatican Radio Aug. 27. Father Amorth said every culture in history has shown an awareness of the existence of evil spirits.

With the Bible, he said, these spirits were identified as rebellious angels who “tempt man to evil out of hatred for God.” “The devil can possess not only individuals but also entire groups and populations.

Or maybe the entire Governor's Office in Wisconsin?

Naaahhhh....well.......naaahhh.....well........

HT: Cosmos

Teachers and Parents--Here's A Question

You've all heard about this study:

Dee found that having a female teacher instead of a male teacher raised the achievement of girls and lowered that of boys in science, social studies, and English.

Looked at the other way, when a man led the class, boys did better and girls did worse.
The study found switching up teachers could narrow achievement gaps between boys and girls, but one gender would gain at the expense of the other.

Dee also contends that gender influences attitudes. For example, with a female teacher, boys were likelier to be seen as disruptive. Girls were less likely to be considered inattentive or disorderly.

In a class taught by a man, girls were likelier to say the subject was not useful for their future. They were less likely to look forward to the class or to ask questions.

Just for fun, let's assume that the study is reasonably accurate.

So what does DomBet ask? A VERY good question:

If male teachers are so important for male students, how much more important are fathers to their sons? Is a girl raised by two homosexuals or a boy being raised by lesbians in the best environment?

Kentucky Air Traffic Controller Did His Job

Spent a pleasant 90 minutes with Asian Badger yesterday during which he regaled me with tales of piloting aircraft. He's a qualified jet and prop guy, has flown all over the place...

The story about the Ky. ATC who "was doing paperwork" is unfair to the ATC, based on AB's testimony.

Evidently, once a plane is cleared for takeoff, the ATC has zero more responsibilities to that aircraft. None. Nada. Zip.

Right or wrong, that's the rule.

Ted Stevens: Porky Pig AND Jackass

It's quite a combination, no?

Sen. Coburn of Oklahoma has co-sponsored a bill requiring that all "earmarks" be placed online for review by everybody in the country who is interested.

Ted Stevens (R-PigMaster) doesn't like this concept at all.

When someone placed a "hold" on Coburn's bill, they did it secretly. Most of us sorta-kinda KNEW it was PigMaster--but Coburn finally spilled the beans:

One of the senators most criticized for his personal projects, Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, has a hold of his own on Coburn’s bill to make public the spending patterns of the government. Called the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act, the legislation calls for the creation of a database open to the public where citizens can track government spending.

“He’s the only senator blocking it,” Coburn said of Stevens

But did he really do it? Well, he had a motive: As the paper and others have noted, Stevens and Coburn have clashed before -- in particular over Stevens' now-legendary "bridge to nowhere." Coburn attempted (and failed) to block the $233 million boondoggle. And revenge certainly fits the senior Alaskan's m.o. "Stevens can play rough," the Seattle Times noted in June. "Despite denials from his staff, he retaliates - and doesn't mind waiting years to do so."

Frankly, this behavior by Stevens also cost the VA a few million dollars for brain-injury treatment problems earlier this year. Stevens didn't like the sponsor of the earmark.

Stevens should be a target of rotten apples and other stinking vegetables when/if he ever shows up in Wisconsin. He's exactly the model of politician who is MOST vile: petty, arrogant, vengeful, and gives not a damn for the good of the Country.

Screw him.

HT: Captain's Quarters

"Nothing to See Here"--Well, Maybe

Initial reports are non-committal, eh?

As many as 14 people were injured this afternoon by a motorist who drove around San Francisco deliberately running them down before being arrested by police, who believe the same driver struck and killed a man earlier today in Fremont.

At least one hit-and-run victim remained in critical condition this evening.
Reports of the incidents began pouring in at 12:47 p.m., police said.

Within a half-hour, San Francisco police had cornered and arrested 29-year-old Omeed Aziz Popal, who has addresses in Ceres (Stanislaus County) and Fremont.

Last night's Channel 4 News didn't bother with the name of the perp.

Age of Confirmation Dustup

Recently, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee reviewed its 'age-of-Confirmation' policy and it was announced that things will remain the same--that is, that Abp. Weakland's decision to confirm children when they are around 16 (or older) will remain in effect. There's a bit of controversy on this and Get Up/Get Moving has posted on the topic.

This morning's ZENIT newsletter has a VERY interesting note on precisely that topic:

A: This difficulty of well-catechized children spontaneously asking for confirmation even though diocesan policy requires a higher age is increasing in many places.

I suggest that you request an appointment with the local bishop, or another diocesan official with the necessary authority, who can assess the children's free desire and adequate formation and thus arrange for the confirmation to take place.

If met with resistance, the parents, or a canonist who assists them, could point out a December 1999 protocol letter from the Congregation of Divine Worship to an English-speaking (and probably American) bishop on this theme. The letter (protocol No. 2607/98/L) was published in the congregation's official organ, Notitiae, in 1999, pages 537-540.

The case is almost exactly parallel, in that the bishop denied an 11-year-old girl confirmation because diocesan policy held confirmation in sophomore year.

We shall now quote a major portion of this letter

In light of Your Excellency's considered response, this Dicastery considers it necessary to respond in some detail to the considerations you raise, and so the case was submitted to a renewed and attentive examination. The Congregation was anxious to communicate the results of this study as soon as possible asking you to note the authoritative nature of the conclusions contained therein."

After clarifying that the Vatican congregation does have authority to examine the bishop's decision not to allow the confirmation, the letter proceeds:

"In reply to this Congregation's decision that appropriate steps be taken to provide for the girl's confirmation in the near future, Your Excellency had proposed essentially two arguments:

"1. Though willingly admitting that the girl is well instructed and that her parents are very good Catholics, you point out that 'instruction is not the sole criterion for recognizing the opportune time for confirmation; this evaluation is a pastoral one which involves much more than being instructed.'"

2. Your Excellency indicates that the Diocesan Policy establishing that conferral of the Sacrament is to be no earlier than the sophomore year of high school is within the right inherent in the law in light of the legislation complementary to can. 891 for the Conference of Bishops to which you belong.

"With respect to Your Excellency's first point, it is no doubt true that there is a pastoral judgment to be made in such cases, provided that by 'pastoral judgment' one is speaking of the obligation of the Sacred Pastors to determine whether those elements required by the revised Code of Canon Law are indeed present, namely, that the person be baptized, have the use of reason, be suitably instructed and be properly disposed and able to renew the baptismal promises (cf. cann 843,1; 889,2); it is clear this young girl has satisfied each of the canonical requisites for reception of the sacrament.

"In regard to the second point, while the selection of an older age for confirmation is within the bishop's right, the congregation goes on to say:

"[I]t is also clear that any such complementary legislation must always be interpreted in accord with the general norm of law. As has been stated before, the Code of Canon Law legislates that Sacred Ministers may not deny the Sacraments to those who are not prohibited by law from receiving them (cf. can 843,1). Since it has been demonstrated that the girl possesses these requisite qualities, any other considerations, even those contained in the Diocesan Policy, need to be understood in subordination to the general norms governing the reception of the Sacraments." After pointing out that it is the role of parents as the primary educators, and then of the sacred pastors to see that children are properly instructed, the letter adds:

"Consequently, when a member of the faithful wishes to receive this Sacrament, even though not satisfying one or more elements of the local legislation (for example, being younger than the designated age), these elements must give way to the fundamental right of the faithful to receive the Sacraments. Indeed, the longer the conferral of the Sacrament is delayed after the age of reason, the greater the number of candidates who are prepared for its reception but are deprived of its grace for a considerable period of time."

The letter concludes with the Vatican congregation insisting to the bishop that the girl be given the opportunity for confirmation as soon as possible.

Since the mind of the Holy See has been made manifestly clear, most bishops or diocesan officials would be happy to arrange for the confirmation provided the necessary conditions are met.

It is important to point out that the congregation made no evaluation as to the wisdom of this, or any other, bishop's decision to designate an older age for confirmation. Such a decision may be pastorally advisable taking into account the general situation of religious formation and catechesis within the dioceses.

Such a designation, however, should not be a straitjacket, that would deprive a sufficiently well-formed young member of the faithful, who freely requests it, the right to receive the sacrament.

In other words, Diocesan policies cannot restrict rights of Catholics more than the restrictions found in Canon Law.

Another interesting phrase in the letter (almost a passing-note) was the reminder that parents are the primary educators of their children in contrast to, say, DRE's or CCD teachers.

Final Question Response from the Other Guys

Ingrid posts her final essay.

Sadly, about half of it is pure emotion. Stories. Hurt feelings.

When she does get around to facts, they are not really germane:

You simply can’t deny that Michigan’s ban is being used to take away domestic partner health insurance. Or that Ohio judges have cited their ban to dismiss domestic violence charges.

As we have noted before, "domestic partner" health insurance, when contracted or agreed to by a PRIVATE company, will not be affected. And when part of a union-contract with a public entity, they are not likely to be overturned (look, e.g., at Milwaukee County's retirement fiasco.)

However, "domestic partners" may or may NOT be homosexual. The public will not readily agree to offering healthcare benefits to anyone who is shacking up...and that discussion should be had.

As to "domestic violence," (also pointed out before,) this is also called "assault and battery." No problem. Cops arrest people for that every day. By the way, domestic violence of any sort is rarely something "out of the blue." Prudent people can read the signs of the times.

This debate has not been a "close call." Hypotheses about what might happen, what coulda/woulda/shoulda happened, and heartstring-pullers are not substantial, nor evidence.

It remains the case that the State cannot make licit what is naturally il-licit or un-natural, blackrobes notwithstanding.

Thanks, Owen, for a well-presented case. Ingrid was civil (better than some of her allies) and has our respect for that.

But not for her position.

Titles, Bureaucrats, and Lawyers

Supposedly a true story. I had a relative in the Title and Abstract biz (talk about ancien regime ) who would appreciate this:

A New Orleans lawyer sought an FHA loan for a client. He was told the loan would be granted if he could prove satisfactory title to the parcel of property being offered as collateral. The title to the property dated back to 1803, which took the Lawyer three months to track down. After sending the information to the FHA, he received the following reply:

(Actual letter):

"Upon review of your letter adjoining your client's loan application, we note that the request is supported by an Abstract of Title. While we compliment the able manner in which you have prepared and presented the application, we must point out that you have only cleared title to the proposed collateral property back to 1803. Before final approval can be accorded, it will be necessary to clear the title back to its origin."

Annoyed, the lawyer responded as follows

(actual letter):

"Your letter regarding title in Case No. 189156 has been received. I note that you wish to have title extended further than the 194 years covered by the present application.

I was unaware that any educated person in this country, particularly those working in the property area, would not know that Louisiana was purchased, by the U.S., from France in 1803, the year of origin identified in our application.

For the edification of uninformed FHA bureaucrats, the title to the land prior to U.S. ownership was obtained from France, which had acquired it by Right of Conquest from Spain. The land came into the possession of Spain by Right of Discovery made in the year 1492 by a sea captain named Christopher Columbus, who had been granted the privilege of seeking a new route to India by the Spanish monarch, Isabella.

The good queen, Isabella, being a pious woman and almost as careful about titles as the FHA, took the precaution of securing the blessing of the Pope before she sold her jewels to finance Columbus' expedition.

Now the Pope, as I'm sure you may know, is the emissary of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and God, it is commonly accepted, created this world. Therefore, I believe it is safe to presume that God also made that part of the world called Louisiana.

God, therefore, would be the owner of origin and His origins date back to before the beginning of time, the world as we know it AND the FHA.

I hope you find God's original claim to be satisfactory. Now, may we have our damn loan?"

He got the loan.

HT: ProEcclesia

Wacko in LaCrosse Diocese

LaCrosse Diocese has a little problem:

Fr. Tom Zelinski is a native of Menasha, Wisconsin. He has been a priest for 34 years. He has served on the staff of three different retreat centers for a total of 17 years, including 8 years earlier here at St. Anthony's. He has also served several years in a parish. He has also worked in formation work with younger members of the Capuchin Order as well as in high school campus ministry at St. Lawrence Seminary, Mt. Calvary, Wis. He serves at St. Anthony's as part of the preaching staff, in private spiritual direction, in helping at nearby parishes, and in "hosting," that is, connecting with the various groups who make use of St. Anthony's facilities.

Father Tom is a writer:

...In my church, we simply don’t ordain women ...yet. Theological reasons are given, even though women do much of the heavy lifting in many ministries.

One wonders what lies behind “theology” in both Roman Catholic and Protestant churches when it comes to our attitudes toward women.

At issue may be some deeply ingrained feelings about what women can and can’t do — even when many women do it very well, as in preaching, doing pastoral work, administering large organizations.

I often wonder why some women themselves do not accept women in pastoral leadership. Is this some sort of strange jealousy or envy? And for men, various sorts of the “old boy” network go on and on.

But any of us who apply the term “Christian” to ourselves ought to do some soul-searching about how Christian we really are in our thoughts and feelings about our sisters in Christ.

(Rev.) Tom ZelinskiMarathon, Wis., Aug. 26, 2006

The writer is a Capuchin priest.

Fr. Tom spews this stuff here: St. Anthony Retreat Center

HT: The Cafeteria Is Closed

Correcting Charlie?

Sykes got an email from an unhappy Dem pol, which quibbled with Charlie's calling him 'a rat leaving a sinking ship.'

After you read the email it's clear:

The 'Rats had to get PERMISSION (from 'Red' Fred Kessler) before leaving the ship.

Tells you a little something about...courage...in the Party of Corruption.

Details Matter Here

Not just another story of military deaths in Iraq:

Dozens of people were killed as Shia militiamen battled the Iraqi Army for control of a city in southern Iraq yesterday.

That's right, Shia militamen — that would be Moqtada al-Sadr's "al-Mahdi Army" — attacked the army of Iraq. That's a big deal. That's not insurgency, that's insurrection. Those weren't Americans, or even "coalition troops" they were shooting at. That was the Iraqi Army. It's a direct challenge to the fledgling government of Iraq by... Iran's chief stooge.

HT: RedState

Actual Conservative Pubbies for 2008?

Sam Brownback.

Jim Gilmore.

Tosa Teapot? Records Fixed?

What the blazes is going on in Tosa?

The campaign manager for state Sen. Tom Reynolds (R-West Allis) filed a complaint Monday with the state Elections Board accusing Wauwatosa City Clerk Carla Ledesma of illegally altering the voting record of Reynolds' opponent, Wauwatosa Ald. James Sullivan.

Reynolds claimed the change was made to indicate that Sullivan did not vote twice in the September 1998 election, as the Reynolds camp has charged.

Ledesma defended her actions Monday, saying she changed the record in recent weeks to correct an error and maintained she "did nothing wrong."

"I have a poll list that clearly shows he did not vote" in Wauwatosa in September 1998, Ledesma said. "Yes, I corrected the record."

State Elections Board spokesman Kyle Richmond said local clerks are authorized to correct election records, as long as they document those actions.

Ledesma states that there was no 'ticket number' next to Sullivan's name, meaning that he did not vote in Tosa in that election.

But this is curious:

Ledesma speculated that the discrepancy could have been caused by an antiquated voter software program that was replaced in 2002 after it became clear that it was corrupting data.

Ledesma said she first became aware of the discrepancy in 2000 when Sullivan's critics raised his voting record during his Wauwatosa aldermanic campaign. She said Monday that she could not remember whether she attempted to correct the record at that time.

So---what OTHER voting records were discovered to be erroneous in 2000? Were any of them corrected? If not, why not?

The Final Answer from Owen

Owen posts his answer to the final question.

Summarily, he states that:

1) Marriage is a fundamental societal building block found across all races, societies, religions, and generations. (One can infer that it is NOT a legal 'creation' and thus not subject to legal 're-creation,' but that's up to the reader.)

2) Legal 're-creations' are occurring, (Mass. and Vt.,) and is likely to occur in Wisconsin. Owen inserts a caution to advocates of the fiction of gay "marriage"--what one Court does another may well un-do; i.e., be careful what you wish for...

3) To avoid the prospect of a Legal Positivist forced fiction, The Amendment should be enacted in the upcoming referendum.

Curiously, Owen allows that marriage should be defined by the will of the people, which is contrary to the inference in his #1. I happen to disagree; although positive civil law re-inforces the natural law, positive civil law, no matter HOW it is derived, cannot abrogate, nor derogate from the natural law--which as Owen demonstrated in #1 above, happens to govern marriage.

Those who would have us "Vote No" on The Amendment have resorted to lies and distortions in their advertising campaign, as Owen has pointed out. By and large, their positions on the questions from Jenna have been emotional, not rational. There's a reason for that.

If one thinks rationally about the predicate actions of "gay" sexual activity, one's natural impulse is shock and utter distaste. Therefore, it is very important to the homosexual advocates that the question is not discussed in rational terms, which would include a discussion of homosexual activity--but rather in terms of "rights."

There is no "right" to un-natural activity, which underlies the question at hand.

We'll Buy As Many As Necessary, Abp. Dolan

I know that there are more than a few priests in this Archdiocese which can use this handy-dandy little book. It has large print and some pictures! So just send us an order for whatever you need. No problem--it's for the Faith and the faithful.


This is called "Hooked on Rubrics" and is developed by The Curt Jester. All Rights Reserved. Read the rest of the blurb!!

Wally World Goes Bonkers

We have some reservations about WalMart/WallyWorld. It's not a good customer to have--they treat their suppliers like dirt, or worse.

But now it seems that they've been bitten by the Really Stupid Bug:

Wal-Mart, that bastion of Red State symbolism and middle-class values, apparently feels the need to bow down to Blue Staters as well with a new partnership with the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. Wal-Mart is now a member of the group, a political organization that promotes the radical homosexual agenda including gay marriage and civil unions. For Wal-Mart this means that it will be pushing the homosexual agenda inside the corporation and among its employees and for the gay group it means that they can hit up Wal-Mart to fund their social re-engineering drive.

What a deal. Now, WallyWorld "benefits" include "re-education" camps. Of course, these are provided free of charge.

George Orwell, call home.

HT: Dom Bet

Three Homers in One At-Bat: Abp. Dolan

HooAaaaah! The Archbishop of Milwaukee is taking his turn at bat and is going for the fences:

First, a long-ball on "Cancer" Maguire:

The first issue concerns Daniel Maguire, a professor at Marquette University. He has dramatically dissented from clear church teaching for decades.

After my arrival here four years ago, I sought counsel as to whether or not I should publicly warn the faithful about his erroneous opinions. Voices I considered wise advised me that this was not necessary, since the great majority of our people already recognize his views as clearly inconsistent with legitimate Catholic teaching.

Regrettably, he recently has widely distributed two pamphlets claiming that, as preposterous as I know it sounds, abortion and same-sex marriage are consistent with Catholic teachings. Because of the response generated among shocked and thoughtful people in the archdiocese, I feel obliged to exercise my teaching responsibilities and say such positions are blatantly erroneous and contrary to the clear teaching of the church. To claim the acceptability of such opinions is simply wrong and disingenuous.

ONE outta the park. But he takes another swing:

The second issue concerns the woman from our archdiocese who regrettably participated in a simulation of the sacrament of holy orders on a barge on a river in Pittsburgh. With the exception of a few inquiries from the media, the event has not generated a great deal of public comment, since most people seem to realize that her claims to ordination are groundless. People are saddened to see the sacraments, intended to be a source of unity, become an occasion for lobbying a personal agenda.

TWO outta the park. And now for the Grand Finale:

The third issue has to do with the “Call to Action” conference scheduled for Milwaukee this November. As you may recall, this group, based in Chicago, has been meeting in Milwaukee for decades. This group was actually initiated by the bishops 30 years ago, and started off asking some legitimate questions.

But they have gotten way off track. In this case as well, I inquired some years ago what impact this annual meeting has on the archdiocese, and was told, almost none. Our Catholic people, I was advised, recognize that this is a group that has taken stands totally outside the bounds of church teaching.

Unfortunately, as stated in the official program of this year’s conference, the leadership of that group has decided to include in the program an invitation to invalidly ordained “priests and bishops” to “celebrate a liturgy.”

Here again it becomes my teaching responsibility to state clearly that such an action would make any claim of Catholic identity by the group to be misleading. Faithful Catholics attending these sessions would only promote division and disunity rather than genuine renewal in the church.

People ask why I “allow” Call to Action to meet in Milwaukee. This group, of course, hardly asks my permission, and pays little attention to what any bishop, including the Bishop of Rome, has to say.

Oremus, pro Archiepiscipo Timotheo, ut perhibeat in fide. Etiam, pro hereticis, ut reveniant ad Fidem. Gratias a Deo!

DNA Question for Peg "The Keg"

So........

The DNA evidence is in on the fellow who claimed to kill JonBenet Ramsey.

HOW LONG did that take, Peg?

HOW LONG do you say it takes to get Wisconsin criminal DNA run, Peg?

Owen Should NOT Be Surprised

Owen expresses some disappointment that "Fair" Wisconsin is running deceptive advertising about The Amendment:

But I have to take issue with Ingrid’s group, FAIR Wisconsin, for launching this new rhetorical front.

The second sentence will not only deny civil unions and other legal protections for loving and committed gay families but it will jeopardize legal protections for ALL unmarried couples, gay or straight:

Health Care Benefits
Right to Make Medical Decisions
Hospital Visits
Pensions

That is just false. I would call it a lie, but I know not whether this claim is based on malice or ignorance. Nothing in the marriage amendment would jeopardize any of these things - at all.

The slide into deception (or worse) makes it clear: "Fair" Wisconsin has no case against The Amendment which is, ah, fair.

This should damn near decide the question for Charlie Sykes and Jenna. If the opponents must resort to these tactics, it is clear that their agenda is propaganda.

Memory Lane

For all you aging types, here's Sly and the Family Stone winning a $10K talent contest at Ohio State University in 1968.

Unusual items: a female trumpet player.

The song was not a commercial success, but obviously, Sly & Co. built on the format and motif to make a number of blockbusters.

The Blues Brothers studied the style carefully.

HT: IowaHawk

UN BlueHats Published Military Intelligence

Maybe the IDF's difficulty was due to the fact that the UNIFIL ("peacekeepers") were helping the Hizbollah, according to the Weekly Standard.

DURING THE RECENT month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel, U.N. "peacekeeping" forces made a startling contribution: They openly published daily real-time intelligence, of obvious usefulness to Hezbollah, on the location, equipment, and force structure of Israeli troops in Lebanon.

UNIFIL--the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, a nearly 2,000-man blue-helmet contingent that has been present on the Lebanon-Israel border since 1978--is officially neutral. Yet, throughout the recent war, it posted on its website for all to see precise information about the movements of Israeli Defense Forces soldiers and the nature of their weaponry and materiel, even specifying the placement of IDF safety structures within hours of their construction. New information was sometimes only 30 minutes old when it was posted, and never more than 24 hours old.

HT: Dhimmi Watch

Money Down the Rathole: Fitzgerald

The "straight-shooter Republican" prosecutor from Chicago who's spend a gazillion TAX dollars on his Quest for the Holy Plame Grail has:

PISSED AWAY THE MONEY GLAMORIZING HIMSELF.

Why?

Because everyone KNEW who the leaker was within 4 months of Novak's column:

In the early morning of Oct. 1, 2003, Secretary of State Colin Powell received an urgent phone call from his No. 2 at the State Department. Richard Armitage was clearly agitated. As recounted in a new book, "Hubris: The Inside Story of Spin, Scandal, and the Selling of the Iraq War," Armitage had been at home reading the newspaper and had come across a column by journalist Robert Novak

This means that the Department of Justice knew the source of the Plame leak within four months of its occurrence. It also knew that the leak had no malicious intent. Patrick Fitzgerald, who almost certainly knew of it within the first days of his investigation, never attempted to indict the man whom he knew leaked the information. Why, then, has Fitzgerald's mandate continued after the first week of October?

Fitzgerald took the case on September 26. If this book is accurate about its dates, the DoJ and Fitzgerald would have known about Armitage's role as the source of the leak five days later. Instead of either charging Armitage or closing down the investigation, Fitzgerald went on a witch hunt. He didn't even talk to Scooter Libby until two weeks after Armitage's confession. A year later, Fitzgerald had reporters Judith Miller and Matthew Cooper imprisoned for contempt of court for refusing to divulge a source about a leaker from whom Fitzgerald had already received a confession.

Well, golly gee, Batman--he had a nice office, a big budget, and the opportunity to make a Big Name for Himself.

What's a poor prosecutor to do?

HT: Captain's Quarters

1st Amendment Clobbered; WRTL Files "Mommy, May I?" Petition

In the Regime of Incumbent Protection, anyone wishing to merely mention the name of the Sacred Federal Cows must perform a "Mommy, May I??" dance, groveling before the blackrobes.

So much for the First Amendment in the Feingold Era of "Reform (for the Sake of the Incumbents.)" Therefore:

A pro-life group filed a motion Friday in district court to allow them to air a radio ad calling on Wisconsin citizens to contact Wisconsin Democratic Sens. Russ Feingold and Herbert Kohl and urge them to push the Child Custody Protection Act through conference committee.

Wisconsin Right to Life filed a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction in the District Court for the District of Columbia to allow them to air the ad because the state is currently in the blackout period mandated by the McCain/Feingold campaign finance law.

"Because Senator Kohl appears on the primary election ballot, permission is needed from the federal court to air grassroots lobbying ads mentioning his name, even though the radio ad has nothing to do with elections," said James Bopp, Jr. counsel to Wisconsin Right to Life in a statement.

Feingold made damn sure that no one would screw with the Sacred Incumbents:

"Wisconsin Right to Life officials risk jail terms if the radio ad is aired without permission by the federal court," Bopp added. The group plans to run the ad on Sept. 5.

The ad is favorable to Kohl, Lyons said, because it mentions that Kohl voted in favor of the measure. She said no one can claim "the ad is a 'ruse' to defeat" Kohl.

"It is a genuine grassroots lobbying ad that deserves to be aired. It is free speech in its purest form," Lyons concluded.

Free speech? What's THAT?

Sorry. It's the property of the newspapers only. You know--like the one that did NOT run this story.

Show Us the Money, Bishop Sklba

Provincial Emails catches another interesting fish:

It also left the question about what Bishop Sklba, who continues as Auxiliary Bishop, learned from the experience [the $450K payout of Archdiocesan funds to a grifter/friend of Abp. Weakland.] It appears he learned nothing, according to this "Herald of Hope" column in our Catholic Herald on the recent meeting of the Catholic Biblical Association.

I was re-elected to my third term as chair of the board of trustees ... a minor task which simply requires a five-minute stand up report on the health of the investments of the society.

As a trustee he has what the law calls a fiduciary duty to oversee the activities of the association. A bishop, whose very title I understand comes from the Greek word for overseeing, has at least as high a duty to the people of his diocese. Yet here he is making a joke of his duties as chairman of a board of trustees. It might make for an interesting line of questions in his next deposition.

But that's not the fun part, even though terms like Sarbanes-Oxley come to mind (perhaps inapplicable here...) THIS is the fun part:

While our Archdiocese might be headed for bankruptcy, the CBA is not.

We have a substantial nest egg, generated from royalties to the association because of the generous work of our members in producing and revising the New American Bible.

That's the Bible translation required to be used at Mass in the U.S.

Perhaps the Catholic Biblical Association should tell US Catholics exactly how they are spending our money...aside from the snippy little letters they send which express "concerns" about authoritative documents from the Congregation for Divine Worship.

You could ask them, I suppose:

Dianne Bergant, C.S.A., President
Francis J. Moloney, S.D.B., Vice President
Joseph Jensen, O.S.B., Executive Secretary
Lawrence E. Boadt, C.S.P., Treasurer
Richard J. Dillon, General Editor, CBQ
Christopher T. Begg, General Editor, OTA
Mark Stratton Smith, General Editor, CBQMS
Most Rev. Richard J. Sklba, Chair, Board of Trustees
Dennis C. Duling, Consultor
Corrine Patton, Consultor
Amy-Jill Levine, Consultor
Karen A. Barta, Consultor

Stuff like "How much is there?" "What are the uses of funds?" "Do you document the expenses?" and "Can you substantiate a NEED for the funds? What might that NEED be?"

Perhaps it's not our business, eh?

On StemCells, GWB Should Be Cautious

During the week, it was announced that researchers had developed a method by which they could remove a couple of cells from a blastocyst (early embryo) without harming the embryo; thus, ESCR is "do-able" without the moral concerns.

Well, sort of, maybe, kinda...

The actual study proves that obtaining ES cells from a single blastomere might be able to be done. It has not, in fact, been done.

Why would ACT issue a press release in variance from the actual paper published in Nature? To garner a mountain free, positive publicity, to be sure. But to what end? Follow the money. Here is a potential answer. In the wake of this mass media stampede, ACT's stock has risen about 400%. Investors should do their due diligence more carefully. ACT has a history of money problems temporarily remedied by hyped stories about their supposed breakthroughs that later turn out to have been less than meets the eye.

But money's not necessarily the issue.

USCC weighed in:

Critics, however, have a range of objections to the research. Catholic bishops, in particular, oppose both in-vitro fertilization and [such] testing, and therefore still object to the research, even though the cells would be derived from an embryo that is brought to term.Richard Doerflinger, deputy director for pro-life activities at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the church opposed in-vitro fertilization because of the high death rate of embryos in fertility clinics and because separating procreation from the act of love made the embryo seem "more a product of manufacture than a gift."

Let us recall that to some scientists, 'if it CAN be done, it SHOULD be done.' And you thought Mary Shelley was just some jilted wife who wrote a horror story? Wrong. Another analysis of Frankenstein makes that story the archetypical story of illicit sex; it was the first "horror movie" (without the silver screen, of course) and the scripts have been the same ever since: if you're a bad girl, you suffer serious results--usually death. Or somebody dies, in the case at hand. The point is that mal- or mis-use of the faculty of procreation has grave implications, and they are usually significant.

It would seem that Charlie Sykes wants Mark Green to step off the curb here, while GWB is holding up a "Don't Walk" sign.

In the meantime, Xoff (who claims to be Catholic) is hoisting the flag of the "Know-Nothing" party:

The Catholic Bishops, who pull Green's strings, are still opposed.

Based on the analysis presented by both Wesley Smith (a genuine scientist), the apparent conflict between the article in Nature and the press release from ACT, and the VERY good questions they both raise, it's not time to 'declare victory' on ESCR.

Local Banker and the Illegals

The Catholic Herald prints a story about Terry Maloney of the Mitchell Bank.

About 300-350 transactions for “undocumented migrants” occur monthly at Mitchell Bank, according to chairman, James Maloney. These transactions are part of the only trial program in Milwaukee, with the Federal Reserve, to send money directly from the United States to people in Mexico.

Maloney gave a speech (herein called a "lecture," which captured its tone better) on the issue:

The lecture was titled “Undocumented Migrants: A Judeo-Christian Response” and it focused primarily on how Maloney thinks Christians should look to “the wisdom of the Catholic Church” to find answers and “transcend simple, nativist positions,” taken in the hotly debated immigration reform issue.

One can infer that Maloney does not intend to make friends with people who are concerned about illegal immigrants--no matter WHAT their reasoning.

Maloney...said Republican Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner’s recent legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives, on immigration reform goes against Catholic social justice teaching.

A position which he utterly failed to document, by the way.

Maloney said he is no foreigner to immigration issues, as his bank — established in 1907 in the Mitchell Street neighborhood on Milwaukee’s south side, in the midst of Irish and Polish immigrant populations — is now home to about 70 to 80 percent Latinos.

The comparison is invalid, but that didn't bother Maloney.

“I believe Sensenbrenner’s goal is to make life so intolerable that (undocumented migrants) must leave,” said Maloney, adding that the U.S. bishops say, “People have a right to seek out other places where they find decent conditions for human life, even in the case of illegal immigration.”

Maloney described the story of Abraham and Sarah attending to a stranger, which appears in Leviticus, to illustrate his position. He further cited the Gospel of Matthew, saying, “for I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”

The fact that John Paul II stipulated that 'illegal immigration should be prevented' was ignored by Maloney. The US Bishops' statement is not founded on Catholic social teaching when it seems to condone illegal activity. USCC/NCCB (the US Bishops' gaggle in Washington) makes a lot of "statements"--some of which are patently ludicrous.

This news story does not come close to revealing the vituperative attacks on Jim Sensenbrenner which Maloney unleashed during his 'lecture,' nor the other remarks he made which displayed a thoroughly condescending attitude towards those who happen to think that borders exist for a reason.

Unfortunately, Maloney makes this into a "black/white" issue with his intemperate language. During his 'lecture' Maloney did offer an interesting factoid (which may be true)--that is, that only 10,000 unskilled Mexicans are legally allowed into the US every year.

Thinking people may opine that 10,000/year is an exceptionally low number. Mr. Maloney will need more friends than the Federal Reserve and his customer base when he argues that increasing the legal number is imperative.

He should speak accordingly.

Gay "Marriage"--The Final Exam

Right off the Shore posted her final question for Owen and Ingrid:

I want you to sum up the strongest reasons why, in your opinion, one should vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on the ban.

If the past is indicative, Ingrid's answers will be laden with feelings; Owen's will be laden with facts.

JS Editorial Board Agrees with Bucher

Another good catch by the GOP3:

The Legislature should criminalize the first offense for driving while intoxicated, now prosecuted under local ordinances rather than as a criminal violation. And it should give law enforcement the ability to operate sobriety checkpoints. JS Editorial 8/25/06

However, the use of security checkpoints is troubling. While they could be an effective tool to stop some drunken drivers, they represent a sledgehammer approach. JS Editorial from 2000

Did the editorial staff change its position because Kate Falk advocates "sobriety checkpoints"? Or because the JS editors have become closet Statists?

"Checkpoints" are the US equivalent of "Your Papers, Please" from certain countries now located on the ash-heap of history.

And Paul Bucher should re-think ANY position he shares with Kate Falk and the JS editors.

CCD Indifferentism

There's a new CCD instructor at one of the West Suburban parishes, and it would appear that she has an affection for Indifferentism.

Discussion was about non-Catholics receiving Commnunion at a Mass and the 'leader' ventured the opinion that what with "all the theologies" out there, that she could understand the young Prots being allowed to receive that Body and Blood of Christ "if they really believed."

Oh?

Apparently there are a number of little darlings in this West Suburban parish who are decidedly Americanist in their outlook--that is, not well-formed in an understanding of the Church's teachings. This became clear in a lengthy discussion of married priests and female "priests."

So who will actually instruct them?

Get Goosed No More!

Fish & Wildlife awakened to reality!

That would be news all by itself, but there's more (and better):

Until now, geese foes have had to obtain permits from the government to kill the geese or destroy their nests and eggs, and that hasn't been easy. But the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a new rule making it easier for farmers, airports, landowners and public health officials to kill the geese without permits.

The new rule went into effect earlier this month.

The new rule includes several provisions, which allow:

Airports, public health officials and landowners to destroy nests and eggs without federal permits.

Private and public airports to round up the birds for destruction without federal permits.

Local governments to round up the birds if they threaten public health by congregating at reservoirs, athletic fields, parks and public beaches.

The new rule also allows states to establish August hunting seasons for the birds. The existing hunting season is Sept. 1 to March 10.

The Fish and Wildlife Service said the rule was prompted in response to "growing impacts from overabundant populations of resident Canada geese."

Of course, some object:

John Hadidian, urban wildlife program director for The Humane Society of the United States, said the Fish and Wildlife Service is trying to bring down the resident population by 1 million birds.

"That means killing that many birds every year, for the next 10 years," Hadidian said. "That's appalling."

Depends. That's a million doses of foie gras available for non-Chicago people.

NEXT OBJECTIVE: the friggin' seagulls!!

HT: Moonbattery

York Hits a Big Home Run SEE COMBOX!

Apparently the Gay "Marriage" crowd needed a bit of Public Sniffling to make its case that unnatural activity needs State blessings, so (surprise, surprise) some guy quits UW-Madison because the State won't provide bennies for his "partner."

York picks up from there:

It would have been nice if the story included information about Rob Carpick's salary, which is currently $90,000. What will he be making at his new job? Isn't that relevant to why he's leaving?

It would have been nice if the story explained why, in a time when most Wisconsin residents are struggling with health care costs, we should be concerned about the boyfriend of a guy making $90,000 who's not willing to pay for health care. In fact, his boyfriend, Carlos Chan, is healthy and able to work, and actually already gets health care from the UW! The catch is, he actually has to work there, but he does so "reluctantly."

It would have been nice if the story recognized that often times, people leave the UW for reasons other than what they publicly state.

I'm not buying this guy's story at all

It does seem....ahhhh....Convenient....no??

UPDATE: Be sure to read the intelligent and articulate argument posted in the combox! Maybe someone's undies are a bit tight this morning?

BOHICA, Baby!

Here it comes, again...

A legislative committee agreed Thursday that the state should crank up spending on transportation by 40% a year to cover longtime funding shortages but offered no ways to come up with the extra money.

There's a REASON that they 'offered no ways to come up with the money:'

Funding options will be developed this year - after most committee members and the two candidates for governor stand for election Nov. 7.

The portion of a draft report adopted unanimously by the Committee on Transportation Needs and Financing said the state needs another $698.2 million a year for the construction and maintenance of highways and local roads and mass transit programs. That would bring the annual budget for that work to $2.41 billion, or 40% more than the current $1.71 billion.

Of course, it's not "fixing" the roads which gets the big bucks:

The bulk of the added money - $544.6 million - would go toward highway construction.

...which highways WILL have to be maintained, but no problem, THAT'S several elections away...

Coming up with $698.2 million would be the equivalent of increasing the gas tax by 21.2 cents a gallon, to 54.1 cents, or nearly quadrupling the $55 annual vehicle registration fee.

The report blames the shortages on declining revenue and a number of other problems. Transportation is largely funded with gas taxes and registration fees, but gas tax revenue is declining because people are driving less in the face of high gas prices.

Yah. So with people driving less, we need ......MORE ROADS!!!

Blogroll Updates

Did some wholesale blogroll stuff today, removing a few inactives and inserting:

Fraley, a Pubbie shill-for-hire
BadgerBlogger, a Milwaukee observer
Grim's Hall, a philosophically-inclined military observer
P-Mac McIlheran, a JS writer who is conservative (!!!)
Random 10, a VERY perceptive science guy from Madistan
Shark & Shepherd, a Milwaukee high Anglican lawyer and prof
Spotted Horse, who can be even nastier than moi
Asian Badger, a pilot, humanitarian, investor, and generally boisterous character
The Other Side of My Mouth, a Brookfield lefty with children
Xoff--this is where you get the G-2 on the wacko Democrat fantasies
View from the Cheap Seats, the guy behind you in the VERY large truck
Vox Day, self-proclaimed to be a Christian Libertarian (it's a contradiction in terms, but...)
Cafeteria is Closed, a B-16 fan with really, really good pix and comments
Chesterton & Friends, where you can get ruminations on and about (and from) GKC
Ten Reasons, a Cincinnatti dad
The Truth of Things, a Green Bay thinker.

Pay a visit, comment, enjoy!

Obnoxious Crescendo of Unwanted Political Stuff

Must be an election coming, eh?

We got our first "push-poll" call from the Doylies about 10 days ago and mentioned it here.

Then it got worse, but it's not the Doylies any more. Now it's the Pubbies.

4-5 times/week I delete emails from a (R) candidate for a local office. I like the other guy; but even if I didn't, my preference would change based on the number of absolutely unwanted "press releases" and "endorsement" emails I'm now getting from this campaign.

THEN there are the tape-recorded phone calls. Hell, I had some fun with the push-poller, who at least was alive. No such luck with tape recordings. No sireee!!

Takes about .3 seconds for me to hang up after I figure out it's a tape and note the name of the candidate. (That's so I can make obnoxious hang-up calls to his/her home after the election.)

Maybe the Pubbies have so damn much campaign money that they can rent automated calling machinery and send endless email communications.

Boys, let me tell you: Money Can't Buy M(y) Love, and intrusions on my email account and/or telephone will buy you some spite.

Cut that crap OUT!

Gregorian Chant--Good Article

Wikipedia (!!!) features Gregorian Chant today. The article is written well and does not require some sort of M.S. degree to understand, although some basic knowledge of music will be helpful.

No, I have NOT read the entire thing yet. However, what I have read comports generally with what I know from past readings and practice.

The links alone will keep you busy for quite some time. This is one "for the evening," or a Saturday when you have a couple of hours to spend, but it will be worthwhile.

HT: Amy

Abp. Dolan, Un-Gloved, Smacks Maguire

When he wants to, His Grace can slap the snot out of the bad guy.

As the bishop of the archdiocese where you reside, I am obliged to reply to your circular form-letter, sent to the bishops of the country on June 19, 2006.

The opinions expressed in the two pamphlets enclosed in that correspondence are totally at odds with clear Church teaching. Sacred Scripture, the Magisterium, and Natural Law are consistent in opposition to abortion and so-called same-sex marriage.

You speak of your duty to dissent. Well, at least call it such. To claim that support for abortion and same-sex “marriage” is consonant with Catholic moral teaching is preposterous and disingenuous.

I, too, have a duty: to teach what the Church clearly believes. Your opinion on these two matters is contrary to the faith and morals of the Church.

It's almost an insult to your intelligence to say so, but the recipient of this missive was none other than the Cancer of Marquette, Dan Maguire.

HT: GOP3

Mark Twain--on the Enviro-Wackies

Didn't think Twain had anything to say about them, eh?

Well, he actually didn't; but this satirical excerpt applies, mutatis mutandis:

In the space of one hundred and seventy six years the Lower Mississippi has shortened itself two hundred and forty-two miles. That is an average of a trifle over a mile and a third per year. Therefore, any calm person, who is not blind or idiotic, can see that in the Old Oölitic Silurian Period, just a million years ago next November, the Lower Mississippi was upwards of one million three hundred thousand miles long, and stuck out over the Gulf of Mexico like a fishing-pole. And by the same token any person can see that seven hundred and forty-two years from now the Lower Mississippi will be only a mile and three-quarters long, and Cairo [Illinois] and New Orleans will have joined their streets together and be plodding comfortably along under a single mayor and a mutual board of aldermen. There is something fascinating about science. One gets such wholesale returns of conjecture out of such a trifling investment of fact.

The rest of the blog entry (linked below) is a demonstration of blind belief in ONE answer to a question which may actually have TWO answers, or elements of both.

HT: Clay Cramer

Dorothy Parker

A bright lady whose birthday WAS yesterday.

Sampling:

By the time you swear you're his,
Shivering and sighing,
And he vows his passion is
Infinite, undying,
Lady, make a note of this —
One of you is lying.

If all the girls at Yale prom were laid end to end, I wouldn't be at all suprised.

If you want to know what the Lord God thinks of money, just look at those to whom he gives it

She must have done it sliding down a barrister. (On hearing an actress had broken her leg)

This is not a book to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force

Parker was a part of the Algonquin Round Table group which included Woollcott, Benchley, Kaufmann, and Ferber.

She was a tad cynical.

Old, Older, Oldest, Not....

Progress, eh?

The little darlings now entering college don't get some stuff: (and this is LAST year's frosh; for THIS year's class, keep scrolling)


Andy Warhol, Liberace, Jackie Gleason, and Lee Marvin have always been dead.

2. They don't remember when "cut and paste" involved scissors. [or REAL paste...]

5. Boston has been working on the "The Big Dig" all their lives. [and will PAY for it until they're dead, or longer]

6. With little need to practice, most of them do not know how to tie a tie.

8. They never had the fun of being thrown into the back of a station wagon with six others. [Not a mommy-van--a genuine station wagon.]

11. Philip Morris has always owned Kraft Foods.

16. Voice mail has always been available.

33. Aretha Franklin has always been in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

39. American Motors has never existed. [Nor Nash, Packard, Studebaker...]

54. They never saw the shuttle Challenger fly. [Nor, perhaps, Peggy Noonan's best speech]

62. Tom Landry never coached the Cowboys.

71. Miss Piggy and Kermit have always dwelt in Disneyland.

And you thought that NPR producers were challenged by historical realities...

This year's frosh:


1. The Soviet Union has never existed

4. Manuel Noriega has always been in jail in the U.S.

12. Smoking has never been permitted on U.S. airlines.

19."Google" has always been a verb

27. There has never been a "skyhook" in the NBA. [And I got an autograph of Lew Alcindor for a brother-in-law....]

34. They have always known that "In the criminal justice system the people have been represented by two separate yet equally important groups."

41. They have always been able to watch wars and revolutions live on television.

47. Small white holiday lights have always been in style.

49. They have always been searching for "Waldo." [which is located on Hy. 57 south of Plymouth]

59. Disneyland has always been in Europe and Asia.

62. Acura, Lexus, and Infiniti have always been luxury cars of choice.

71. The U.S. has always been studying global warming to confirm its existence.

75. Professional athletes have always competed in the Olympics.

And "the Gap" has always been a store, not a generational reality....

Althouse Demolishes Diggs

Ann Althouse is not exactly a Conservative. She's more a legal positivist--one who believes that laws made by men can override the laws of nature--because after all, they are made (directly or indirectly) by lawyers and maintained or adjusted by judges, another classification for lawyers.

I think her confidence in those folks is generally misplaced.

Be that as it may, her Positivist foundation requires her to put the smackdown on errant judges; after all, if the Positivist community lets utter stupidity pass, an observer might begin to question Positivism. So Althouse demolishes Judge Anna:

So often, we’ve heard complaints about “activist” judges. They’re suspected of deciding what outcome they want, based on their own personal or ideological preferences, and then writing a legalistic, neutral-sounding opinion to cover up what they’ve done. That carefully composed legal opinion makes it somewhat hard for a judge’s critics to convince people — especially anyone who likes the outcome — that the judge did not decide the case according to an unbiased legal method of analysis.

So perhaps the oddest thing about Judge Taylor’s opinion in the eavesdropping case is that she didn’t bother to come up with the verbiage that normally cushions us from these suspicions.

Well, Professor, she thought she was among friends...

But this is sheer sophistry. The potential for the president to abuse his power has nothing to do with kings and heredity. (How much power do hereditary kings have these days, anyway?) And, indeed, the president is not claiming he has powers outside of the Constitution. He isn’t arguing that he’s above the law. He’s making an aggressive argument about the scope of his power under the law

It's an excellent piece. Just remember that a Positivist wrote the opinion which Althouse demolished.

How DUMB Can These People Be?

So you've always suspected that there's something wrong with NPR's news...

You have good reason to do so:

"Daniel Schorr is used to producers popping into his Washington, D.C., office at National Public Radio to ask, on deadline: Which war came first, Korea or Vietnam? (Answer: Korea.)"

"....but, but, M.A.S.H. was filmed in the 1970's, no?"

HT: The Marquette Warrior

Still Looking for Mr. (Republican) Goodbar?

Well, if John Lott is right, perhaps McPain (and Gingrich, Giuliani, etc.) will simply be bad memories in a year or so:

I went to see Lynn Swan give a talk tonight, and he did a great job (two of my sons went and they agree). Hitting Rendell's constant fight to raise taxes, his broken promises on cutting the property tax, the waste in state government and other issues, Swan was rocking. This guy could instantly be on a short list to be president if he wins the race this fall.

P-Mac: It Has NOTHING To Do With the Pope

Pat Mcilheran, rested and refreshed (although his picture did not change a whit) commends a review to our reading.

I will quibble with P-Mac's precis, however:

Gilbert’s review amounts to a summary of how wrong, exactly, is the modern notion that Pius XII was anti-Semitic.

From his work drafting Benedict XV’s 1915 denunciation of anti-Semitism, Eugenio Pacelli clearly stood for the liberty of Jews to live peacefully, recounts Gilbert. It was a record that continued through his 55 condemnations of Naziism while serving as the Vatican’s secretary of state right up to his face-to-face dressing-down of German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop in 1940.

This reduction (although technically accurate) leaves the impression that the slandering of Pius XII is directed at Pius XII.

Not really. It's directed at the Roman Catholic Church as a whole, using the Pope as a proxy. The same weltanschauung applies to the prominent mentions that Benedict XVI was a member of Hitler Youth. But it wasn't B-16; it was his election by the College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church that was being questioned.

Gay Marriage, Round III

The third question posed by Jenna was answered by Fair Wisconsin.

The second sentence outlaws civil unions and seriously jeopardizes existing legal protections for thousands of Wisconsin families.

The second sentence, in other words, is meant to prevent our future elected representatives from reaching a decision that Appling, Gundrum, and Fitzgerald don’t like. It's meant to prevent future generations--who already support civil unions in large majorities--from passing such legislation.

Ms. Ankerson begins personalizing the debate--that's called "ad hominem" and it's typical.

Other conservatives believe we should support stable families, and that's precisely why they oppose making life more difficult for gay families.

Really? "Stable"? And your proof is.....where?

Labor unions too have looked seriously at the language. They’re pointing out that the second sentence could take bargaining rights away from working families. We’re talking about health insurance policies that have already been negotiated and adopted for public employees, including at the La Crosse School District, the City of Madison, and the City of Milwaukee, as well as future contracts.

"Could" is right. But as we all know, contracted agreements are not LIKELY to be broken, unless they are blatantly discriminatory--like providing benefits ONLY for "gay" couples.

Legal protections such as medical decision-making and financial powers of attorney will be vulnerable to legal challenges if the ban passes. The Coalition of Wisconsin Aging Groups has been especially vigilant in its opposition.

Uhhh--nope, Ingrid. The Legislature retains the power (even after the 2nd sentence) to allow power-of-attorney arrangements.

Owen's support of the Second Sentence rests on an understandable concern: the propensity of Legislators to weasel their way around common sense:

This is precisely why the second sentence of the marriage amendment exists. The objective of the amendment is to protect the institution of marriage from being arbitrarily redefined by a court.

...Without it, the first sentence will only protect the word “marriage” – not the institution.

The second sentence leaves the amendment open to the rhetoric that it “bans civil unions” which turns some folks against it. Of course, nobody actually bothers to define “civil unions.” It means different things to different people.

Owen CLEARLY understands that controlling the language will control the outcome of the debate. It's one thing to give a friend Power of Attorney privileges. It's another thing entirely to vest "civil unions" with ALL the privileges of marriage.

The Wiggle Word of the Day is "civil union."

And the objections of Ingrid are based on Wiggle Words. There's no "there" there, as we have pointed out before.

Public Schools "Success" Study: Not Necessarily So

When a study released by the Federal Dep't of Education indicated that public school students were doing just as well as private school students, eyebrows were raised.

They should have been. It ain't really so.

Test scores from the 2003 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) indicated that public-school students enjoyed a 4.5% advantage over private school students in 4th-grade math and were competitive with them in 4th-grade reading and 8th-grade math. They were, though, at a decided 7.3% disadvantage in 8th-grade reading.

These results, mixed though they were, prompted Reg Weaver, the head of the nation’s largest teachers’ union, the National Education Association, to boast that “the results were nothing more than we expected” and that public schools were “doing an outstanding job.” The Palm Beach Post weighed in with a mean-spirited editorial titled “Bush-suppressed study dispels voucher myth.”

Weaver may want to re-cork his champagne. In a meticulous 56-page critique, distinguished education expert Paul Peterson of Harvard lambasted the government study for its flawed methodology. The study, he found, fell short of routine academic standards by improperly boosting the performance of public-school students relative to their private-school peers.

The Department of Education researchers “adjusted” the raw NAEP data to account for differences in the socioeconomic status between the two groups. They did this, however, by classifying students according to whether they received federal aid such as subsidized school lunches or Title I assistance, rather than by a more even-handed approach.

Public schools receive federal aid on a “school-wide” basis (that is, the assistance flows to the entire school based on the percentage of poor students enrolled) but reaches private-school students on an individual basis only. Once a public school qualifies, therefore, every student at the school, regardless of poverty level, is technically counted as a recipient of those services.

In other words, the Feds adjusted "the curve" to pump up public schools' grades.

Peterson substituted better criteria, such as the parent’s level of education and whether another language is spoken in the home, and found that “when student characteristics are estimated consistently across school sectors, a private-school advantage relative to public schools is evident at all grade levels in both math and reading in all estimations but one.”

S'pose Folkbum will take back all that stuff he said about P-Mac?

DWI: How to Fix It in Wisconsin

Owen points out an article which asks for substantive opinion from the AG candidates.

Attorney general candidates Paul Bucher and Kathleen Falk favor criminalizing first-time drunken-driving offenses in Wisconsin, the last state where such an offense is only an ordinance violation.

The Republican Bucher and the Democrat Falk also favor giving law enforcement the power to conduct roadside sobriety checkpoints. Wisconsin is one of 11 states prohibiting the checkpoints.

It is clear that Wisconsin laws on DWI are simply a laughingstock. However, I cannot support criminalizing the first DWI unless there are extenuating circumstances--for example, a BAT in excess of 1.2, or a serious-injury/fatal accident resulting from the offense.

As to the second DWI--it should be criminal and require 10 years, no parole. Third? 20 years, no parole.

The people who control this are members of the Legislature, and it is well-known that THAT particular club takes care of its own. Read the Madison-insider blogs if you want to know which Legislators will NEVER vote to criminalize DWI...

Moving on: I completely agree with Owen that "dragnet" stop/search activities is not only un-necessary, but offensive. Sorry, Paul, we aren't going to agree on this one.

On the other hand, reasonable suspicion means just that; LEO's should NOT be second-guessed by ditz-bed-wetter Circuit Court judges.

News to NAP(A)LM Liturgeists

The kids cannot STAND musical crapola in church...and know where it SHOULD be. Of course, so long as the StLouieJebbieBluesandRockabillyBoys maintain their deathgrip on the "minds" of Liturgeists such as those commonly found at regional meetings of Nat'l Ass'n of Pastoral Liturgical Musicians (more accurately known as NAPALM), the kids will be forced to eat this stuff, regardless...

It interviews Dr. Barbara Resch, who conducted a survey of nearly 500 teenagers from across the United States on the topic of the appropriateness of music for the church.

Across this diverse group of students there was clear agreement about the kind of music that was "right for church": it was choral music, not instrumental sung by a group of singers rather than a soloist characterized by a simple musical texture and understandable text.

Musical examples reminiscent of popular styles (rock, jazz, country) were overwhelmingly rejected as church music. The example rated most appropriate was a male choir singing a four-part version of Psalm 98 (The Lutheran Hymnal 667!).

Church background was an important predictor of the kind of music considered appropriate. The frequency with which a given style was heard also tended to be related.

For example, some settings of traditional choral music were considered appropriate by nearly everyone. Conversely, the examples of Christian rock and jazz were considered inappropriate by the great majority.

But it was also clear that students from nondenominational churches who heard contemporary Christian music in their churches considered that music more appropriate. Likewise, gospel choir music and popular styles were considered more fitting by students who attended Pentecostal churches.

The traditional choral sound was given its highest ratings by the Catholic and Lutheran students in the study.

Several students wrote comments on their survey sheets indicating when and where each excerpt would be appropriate. Although all of the examples played were representative of the range of music heard in American churches today, the contexts with which the students associated various pieces were Sunday brunch, a movie soundtrack, "church services of the 40s," a campground, and an opera.

Nearly 12 percent of the respondents did not belong to or attend church. As might be expected, their responses were very diverse. One surprise was that their responses were not significantly different from the church members in their disapproval of rock music for church.Interestingly, the unchurched students gave their lowest ranking of appropriateness to contemporary Christian music

There is some bad news:

But it was also clear that students from nondenominational churches who heard contemporary Christian music in their churches considered that music more appropriate. Likewise, gospel choir music and popular styles were considered more fitting by students who attended Pentecostal churches.

What THAT means is that Catholic children who have been deprived of their rightful heritage by the poofter-wonk-LitNiks over the last 20+ years are not likely to correctly identify 'church' music.

HT: Christus Vincit

The Rio Grande's Secret Passage

HT to No Runny:

The chief law enforcement officers of several Texas counties along the southern U.S. border warn that Arabic-speaking individuals are learning Spanish and integrating into Mexican culture before paying smugglers to sneak them into the United States. The Texas Sheriffs' Border Coalition believes those individuals are likely terrorists and that drug cartels and some members of the Mexican military are helping them get across the border.

Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez of Zapata County, Texas told Cybercast News Service that Iranian currency, military badges in Arabic, jackets and other clothing are among the items that have been discovered along the banks of the Rio Grande River. The sheriff also said there are a substantial number of individuals crossing the southern border into the U.S. who are not Mexican. He described the individuals in question as well-funded and able to pay so-called "coyotes" - human smugglers - large sums of money for help gaining illegal entry into the U.S.

Although many of the non-Mexican illegal aliens are fluent in Spanish, Gonzalez said they speak with an accent that is not native.

"It's clear these people are coming in for reasons other than employment," Gonzalez said.

This is not the first time that Other Than Mexican (OTM) border incursions have been mentioned.

It WOULD be the last, if GWB would get serious about that silly little Oath--you know, "protect and defend the US against all its enemies..."

But he's preoccupied, I suppose.

Lazy, Hazy, Crazy...

Took the annual 2 days' vacation.

Went to Sheboygan. No, that's not a joke. Forced the chilluns to learn some things about the history of that area, all the way back to the Ice Age.

Factoids of no particular significance:

1) Savage (560 AM, Chicago) comes in fine all the way to Sheboygan. No need to listen to the local yokel after 4:00 PM on weekdays.

2) Sheboygan area was so blessed with German-speaking immigrants that anyone who wanted to do business up there in the Old Days had to learn German. (The Germans were LEGAL immigrants and did not fly the German flag.)

3) Global cooling can be extremely serious. Ask any wooly mammoth or giant beaver (which evidently were as large as black bears.)

4) You can purchase an excellent dinner for 5 for less than $90.00 at a REAL restaurant in Sheboygan.

5) The Sheboygan PD has the State champion pistol marksman on its payroll.

6) There is NO GOOD REASON WHATSOEVER to widen Hy. 164 north of Richfield. None. Zero. Zip. Except if one is owned by the Highway Pavers Consortium and/or has a large tract of land or three bordering the right-of-way.

7) Ever notice the similarity between "getting the railroad here" and "getting 4-lanes, divided here" discussions? Notice that it has a lot to do with more money more money more money?

8) You waste your time looking for better scenery that that which is available within 100 miles of Milwaukee, unless: A) it is the Rockies; or B) you are thinking of feminine pulchritude.

Nexus: Cdl. Bernardin

Exceptionally hot chapter excerpts from a forthcoming book.

We don't have to make the case that ordaining homosexuals is a bad idea. The Vatican already did, at least twice.

But since the instruction of the early 1960's was ignored, the Vatican put out a new one.

It remains to be seen whether the seminaries will actually obey.

Wailing and Ululation from the Left: No Hispanic Voters Here!

Poooooooor ol' Watchdog.

Recent US census figures suggest that hispanics number nearly 100,000 in Milwaukee County but does this translate into real political influence?

If historical trends hold true, the answer is no.

Demographically speaking, hispanics areas of town show a more abysmal lack of interest in our political process than any other group.

...until I found out that less than 3000 bother to vote in any given Supervisory race and that's from a district that used to have nearly 40,000 constituents

It's entirely possible that the Hispanics in question fear showing up at any place where they might have to prove, ah, citizenship...which is NOT a requirement for marching up and down 6th Street.

"Family" Violence in Australia: Feminism's Arguments Destroyed

Well, there's no comparable US study that we know of...

But the numbers are interesting, especially given the post/comments below. Perhaps (underline perhaps) the figures are comparable to those in the USA.

• Men are more than twice as likely as women to be the victims of violence and are being physically or sexually assaulted or threatened at the rate of up to 2 incidents per second

• Women are not the victims of family (domestic) violence as often as the quoted 1 in 4, nor even 1 in 8, nor even 1 in 10, but actually 1 in 100

• Women are not being raped every 26 seconds, nor even every 90 seconds, as feminists frequently claim, but are in fact experiencing sexual assault - not necessarily rape - including both reported and all unreported incidents, at a rate of less than 1 per 5 minutes. This is a rate 91% less than that which feminists have previously claimed

• The ratio of female to male family (domestic) violence victims in a home is not 99:1, nor 9:1, nor even 5:1, but is actually closer to 2:1

Next time you read all about "victims," bear in mind that some of the numbers may just be exaggerated...

Lefty Lexicon from Jolly Olde England

A chap named Inigo Wilson got fired from the cellphone company "Orange" after publishing this item on his blog. It's likely an opportunity for him, as he is a gifted social satirist.

A few examples of "Lefty Lexicon", his creation:

Best practice - normally 'established' when a Lefty wants to saddle a process with more complexity. Replaces 'working it out yourself'.

Child-centred - education: "we can't be bothered to teach them… perhaps they’ll do it themselves".

Class - grouping people by the contents of their wallet rather than, say, how they think, feel or behave as individuals.

Consultation - a formal system for ignoring public views while patronising them at the same time. London's Congestion Charge for instance.

Diversity - creating a workforce based on how people look rather than on their skills or aptitude

‘Green’ issues - “if we can’t control the means of production then we’ll close it down”. NB. the US is the ‘biggest polluter in the world’ which is wholly unrelated to the fact it’s the world’s most productive economy.

Human rights - using the legal system to pursue political ends.

Intolerance - Intolerance can only [be] committed against certain defined groups of people. These do not include, Americans, the middle class, white manual workers, rural people, business and Christians obviously.

Islamophobic - anyone who objects to having their transport blown up on the way to work

Multi-cultural - All culture is valid - unless Western in some way. Usually to be 'celebrated' and always found to be 'vibrant'. See 'diversity'.

Nazi - informal: describes non-Lefty views and useful to link with people Lefties don’t like. Thus Germany’s Nazi period is the only noteworthy formative experience of Pope Benedict.

Racist - means "shut up!" - and is much, much worse than being violent, thoughtless or unkind. In fact, easily the worst crime ever conceived of.

Religion -
Christianity: irrational, dangerous belief that material things may not be the principal motive behind human behaviour.
Judaism: most Israelis are Jewish, so probably 'intolerant'.
Islam: always needs to be 'understood'.

Subsidised art - art no one would buy.

The meaning of language has certainly advanced since 'enry 'iggins, eh wot?

HT: Moonbattery

Non-Predatory Mortgages for Illegals

Both Guaranty Bank and Mitchell Bank now offer State of Wisconsin-backed mortgages for illegals.

So what's this from Jessica's mailbox?

We have advocated against predatory lending to come up with a bank funded criteria ($750 Billion commitment) of No Money Down, No Closing Cost or Fees (absorbed by the bank), No Perfect Credit Required and a One Percent (1%) Below Market Interest Rate (today's rate 5.625% for 30yr fixed with no PMI). We are the only non-profit housing services agency that does ITIN lending for immigrants without social security numbers. We have been in the City of Milwaukee, WI for three years and looking for an opportunity to spread the word about the most affordable mortgage in America

Mitchell Bank, Predator? Guaranty Bank, Predator? State of Wisconsin, Predator?

GWB's "Democracy" in Iraq

Perhaps these are not exactly the results GWB wants advertised:

But even in Iraq there was an early, concrete sign (February 2004) of things going awry: the refusal of the interim Iraqi government to allow its ancient, historically oppressed (often brutally so) Jews to return in the wake of the 2003 liberation. Singling them out was agreed upon absent any objection, except for the dissent of one lone Assyrian Christian representative in the interim government, who knew well what such bigotry foreshadowed: the oppression and resultant exodus of the Assyrian community, which is now transpiring. And last spring came this harrowing story about Shari’a and Sistani-supporting women in the Iraqi Parliament: (Iraq’s women of power who tolerate wife-beating and promote polygamy):

As a devout Shia Muslim and one of eighty-nine women sitting in the new parliament, she knows what her first priority there is: to implement Islamic law. When Dr Ubaedey took her seat at last week’s assembly opening, she found herself among an increasingly powerful group of religious women politicians who are seeking to repeal old laws giving women some of the same rights as men and replace them with Sharia, Islam’s divine law.

Clearly, the Bush Boyzzz don't understand that perpetuating Mohammedan principles and rule in the Middle East is directly inimical to the interests of the USA and the West in general.

No wonder Lowry and Dreher are beginning to worry.

HT: Dhimmi Watch

The Bill of Goods Wasn't Exactly True

Yah.

So far this year, Miller Park sales tax revenue has fallen $1.67 million below projections, according to new figures.

That represents a 0.11% decrease compared with the same time period last year.

Since the tax first went into effect in 1996, a total of $228.89 million has been collected in the five-county region.

Based on forecasts, the district board hopes to end the tax in 2014. However, the district's board has watched with alarm as sales tax collections have not kept up with projections, raising fears that the tax may have to be extended beyond 2014.

"We remain frustrated and concerned with the sales tax collection rates for the district," said Mike Duckett, the district's executive director. "We are very concerned about the sales tax revenue's impact on our projected sunset date of 2014 for the tax."

Of course, the Stadium Board doesn't question the validity of their projections--they question the integrity of the State's reporting and collections efforts.

It never occurred to such luminaries as Tommy Thompson that sales-tax revenues could ever go down between 1997 and 2014. Nope. Never.

"Stick it to 'em!!" Tommy.

Salvatorian Fr. Bergner's Stupid Suggestion

Fr. David Bergner, new Provincial Superior of the Salvatorians, has a problem. He didn't think too carefully before making an astounding statement:

...Bergner said in an interview that he had great empathy for victims of clergy sexual abuse and would support legislative efforts in Wisconsin to permit victims to sue dioceses and other religious organizations no matter how long ago the abuse occurred. That position surprised SNAP leaders.

Bergner should have been concentrating on keeping one of his priests, Fr. Jos. Henn, in sight, instead of allowing him to be cavorting around in Rome:

The whereabouts of a priest who once served at a Wauwatosa parish remained unknown Friday, more than a month after he apparently fled house arrest in Rome as Italian authorities were preparing to extradite him to the United States to face sexual molestation charges in Arizona.

Interpol issued a warrant for the arrest of Father Joseph Henn and is actively searching for him in Europe, said Father Dave Bergner, the provincial superior, or head, of Salvatorian priests and brothers in the U.S. The order, of which Henn is a member, will tell authorities if it learns where he is, Bergner added.

We have ZERO sympathy for perps-in-collars; the history of this blog is clear.

On the other hand, we have some vestigial interest in justice for defendants, as well as for victims. Defending against allegations of 20-, 30-, or 50-year old abuse is virtually impossible.

Even Bergner understands that:

Bergner, however, resisted a call by the victims group for the religious order to reveal the names and addresses of all of its priests who have had a credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor made against them. He said that such allegations go back decades, that those priests have been removed from ministry and are aged or dead, and that it would be harmful to their family members to make that information public now.

You can't have it both ways, Father.

$5 Million to Fix the Crime Lab Backlog?

Norm Gahn is a highly-experienced and eminently sensible fellow who works as a lead prosecutor in the Milwaukee DA's office. Norm is also a leader in the utilization of technology in criminal prosecutions, particularly sex crimes.

Here's an interesting quote from Norm about the current DNA brouhaha:

"If you wanted to solve this problem, everybody in the state of Wisconsin should petition the state Legislature this afternoon and ask them to allocate $3 million in emergency funds directed at outsourcing our backlog at the crime lab," Gahn said. "and allocate another $2 million in January to take care of all the cases that would come in until then and seriously take a look at expansion of our crime lab. . . .

"But unfortunately, I think the people in the state of Wisconsin are asking for something that they'll be unwilling to pay for."

$5 MILLION??? That's all??? Do you mean to tell me that Peg 'The Keg' couldn't re-direct $5 million to this??

I think Norm is wrong about the mood of Wisconsin citizens. But that's easy to remedy.

What's also easy will be to remedy the Doyle/Lautenschlaeger mismanagement of the State Crime Lab.

It's called The Election.

CLOSED: More Abortion Mills (Florida & Alabama)

A few children will be safe:

Half a dozen abortion clinics in Florida and Alabama have had their doors locked after state health boards became concerned by alleged rule and drug violations, including claims of an illegal late-term procedure in Florida.

The Florida Department of Health issued a notice confirming that there was an emergency suspension of the license for James Scott Pendergraft, who runs clinics in Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, for allegedly doing an abortion in the third trimester.

And in Alabama, the state Board of Health suspended the license for Reproductive Health Services of Montgomery because the business lacked a physician with admitting privileges at a local acute care hospital.

It's been a difficult August for the abortion industry, with an investigation into what appears to have been a homicide at an abortion clinic in Hialeah, Fla., going on, and the pro-life group Operation Rescue taking possession of a Wichita, Kan., building that for decades was used as an abortion business.

Gratias Deo!!

IslamoFascism and Abortionists: A Commonality

Heh.

But another angle has presented itself in a stark way: the way that children pay the price for their mother’s mistakes. Obviously, we’ve seen over the last thirty years a lot of confusion over abortion—and defenders claim that it’s an essential choice which must be available for women who are faced with children they cannot raise. Or children who are ... inconvenient. Or who must be sacrificed for a Higher Cause.

Interestingly, this idea of sacrificing children to a noble cause is not only on the side of the “pro choice” movement in the West, but it’s to be found in the Islamic world as well. Many have seen the pictures of children dressed as suicide bombers, just as western children would dress as Woody or Spiderman. Trading cards with “martyr-heroes” are offered to children, and their neighbours who die in such circumstances are praised as virtuous.

And certain folks (employed by Planned Parenthood) ridiculed John Paul II for his use of the phrase "Culture of Death."

HT: Dom Bet, quoting Genevieve Kinecke

Stupid Defendant Tricks

The LawDog tells another fabulous tale of Texas defendants and jurisprudence.

You have the right to SHUT UP! No, you cannot waive any rights! I will not allow you to waive any rights! I require you to assert your rights! I order you to flaunt your rights with your head held high! Now plead and get out of my courtroom!"

"Umm."

The rest of it is even better...

Cheech and Chong: (D) Candidates for AG

Peg "the Keg" Lautenschlaeger may be the one of the worst AG's in Wisconsin history, but her competitor, Kate-the-Doyenne-of-Dane is a threat to her standing:

A Kathleen Falk for Attorney General mailer arrives today and the following sentence is worth noting. “There is no office more important when it comes to protecting our environment, our rights, our communities, our families and our future.”

Anyone who writes understands that priorities are expressed by 'ordering' within a sentence or paragraph. In this case, Kate 'orders' the functions of AG as "environment" followed by "rights." Insofar as it is a campaign mailer, it can't be a thoughtless error as one might make in response to a reporter's question.

Moreover, it shows a philosophical vacuity, or worse. Most thinking people understand that their 'rights' INCLUDE a reasonably clean 'environment.' This flows from a proper understanding of the order of Nature, evidently not present in the mind of Kate.

The analysis of Random10 is dead-on.

LAPD Moron-Members

Some are concerned about gun owners.

They SHOULD be worried about morons with guns (that's a subset, for the mentally handicapped), many of whom are employed as LEO's by the City of the Angels:

LAPD appears to be having some problems with unintentional firearm discharges.

"Officers over those years shot themselves or one another nearly as often as they were shot by suspects.

Since 1985, there have been more than 350 accidental discharges by LAPD officers. There also have been more than a dozen so-called friendly fire incidents....

One off-duty officer shot himself in a leg as he sat behind his desk and, according to department records, contemplated "a complex mathematical problem." [Using his trigger finger to count?]Another officer inadvertently pulled the trigger when his African gray parrot flew into his face. [An Attack-Parrot]

One officer accidentally shot his girlfriend in a leg while trying to retrieve a cartridge from his handgun as a "memento" of their date. [I'm sure she felt honored.] Yet another officer admitted that he accidentally fired his gun because he was startled by a woman holding a teddy bear. Two officers accidentally discharged their weapons as they handled them at home while watching themselves in mirrors." [How would Wyatt Earp draw?]

HT: Of Arms and the Law

Dreher's Warning

Rod Dreher is not a "pacifist" in the WOT. But he has an understanding which eludes the Bush Boyzzz.

What is starting to unnerve me is the sense that the wheels are coming off, and nobody knows how to put them back on. This confidence game the Republicans are playing is an insult. No, it's far worse than that: it's dangerous, because they seem to believe that all they have to do is keep banging away on the public's fear that the Democrats would be worse, and all will be well for them. It reminds me of Rep. Mike Pence's moronic quote from earlier this year: "The best thing we have going for us is the Democrats. We may be the party of Big Government, but they are the party of Really Big Government."

Well, that's strong talk from a columnist. What's the origin of his angst?

National Review editor Rich Lowry whispers sotto voce that Bush might have led us all into another Vietnam. This is not, of course, a fresh observation. What's new -- and significant -- is who's saying it.

Yah, well, Rich Lowry...what does HE know?

Maybe it's related to this:

Over on The Corner, Andy McCarthy and my friend John Podhoretz have been fighting over democracy, terrorism and Islam. I really do think Andy slam-dunks it in this posting, in which he says those (like President Bush) who insist that the problem in the Arab Muslim world is a lack of democracy are dangerously fooling themselves. They can't wrap their mind around the idea that millions of people would voluntarily choose to live as they believe God commands them.

Over lunch with a business-friend, this was broached. While it is clear that ALL people can understand and live within a functioning democracy-based political system, it is NOT clear that all people are religiously conditioned to do so. In the West, Aristotlean concepts of government were effectively blessed by a religion (Roman Catholic) which values each individual person's rights in the very broad sense. This allowed the Magna Carta and its 500-year-later offspring, the US Constitution to actually work. (Let's not quibble about smaller issues, please.)

But the Mohammedans do not "need" nor necessarily "want" democracy--rights of individuals under the Shari'a do not occupy the same space as they do under Christianity, broadly speaking.

More from McCarthy:

What is variously called "radical Islam," "militant Islam," "political Islam," "fundamentalist Islam," "Islamo-fascism," etc., is not a fringe cult. It is a highly developed system the history of which traces back centuries and which counts among its adherents many highly educated, highly intelligent people. It rejects fundamental premises of Western democracy — indeed, it blames Western democracy for the ills of the world.

Now, here's what you don't seem to get: it's not just terrorists who believe this. The terrorists are the ones willing to fight over it, but there are tens of millions who agree with their beliefs and aims even if they are not willing to kill to see them actualized. That is why terrorism is not irreconcilable with democracy, but Islam may well be. [Read that line again...]

You can keep pretending, if you'd like, that the problem here is "tyranny" and "terrorism" and that things would turn around if only we injected a little freedom into the equation. But that is not going to deal with the "root cause," and it is not going to make Muslims like you better (as we are seeing in Iraq on a daily basis).

You insult these millions of Muslims profoundly because the logic of your argument is that no one who was truly free would choose the life they sincerely believe God has commanded. You are stuck in a pre-1979 mindset which refuses to acknowledge that a religion-based revolution is possible, and that the millions of people are freely choosing a belief system that opposes Western democracy.

I'm not going along. I've spent lots of time with our enemies and I respect them. That's why I know they have to be defeated, not courted.

This IS the problem with the "One World" Globaloney crowd whose most vigorous proponents happen to be members of the Bush family (but they are hardly alone...) They don't GET it.

Just as a reminder:

Over the past few decades, studies have shown again and again that Americans tend to have a poor grasp of history. In fact, the scholar Christopher Lasch once wrote that Americans love nostalgia, because we see it as a form of entertainment. But we dislike real history, because real historical facts are inconvenient. ...

Catholics who do know history may remember the following: Islam has embraced armed military expansion for religious purposes since its earliest decades. In contrast, Christianity struggled in its divided attitudes toward military force and state power for its first 300 years. No “theology of Crusade” existed in Western Christian thought until the 11th century. In fact, the Christian Byzantine Empire had already been resisting Muslim expansion in the East for 400 years before Pope Urban II called the First Crusade — as a defensive response to generations of armed jihad.

Much of the modern Middle East was once heavily Christian. Muslim armies changed that by imposing Islamic rule. Surviving Christian communities have endured centuries of marginalization, discrimination, violence, slavery and outright persecution — not always and not everywhere; but as a constant, recurring and central theme of Muslim domination.

That same Christian suffering continues down to the present. In the early years of the 20th century, the Muslim Ottoman Empire murdered more than 1 million Armenian Christians for ethnic, economic, but also religious reasons. Many Turks and other Muslims continue to deny that massive crime even today. Coptic Christians in Egypt — who, even after 13 centuries of Muslim prejudice and harassment, cling to the faith — continue to experience systematic discrimination and violence at the hands of Islamic militants.

Harassment and violence against Christians continue in many places throughout the Islamic world, from Bangladesh, Iran, Sudan, Pakistan and Iraq, to Nigeria, Indonesia and even Muslim-dominated areas of the heavily Catholic Philippines. In Saudi Arabia, all public expressions of Christian faith are forbidden. The on-going Christian flight from Lebanon has helped to transform it, in just half a century, from a majority Christian Arab nation to a majority Muslim population.These are facts. The Muslim-Christian conflict is a very long one, rooted in deep religious differences, and Muslims have their own long list of real and perceived grievances. But especially in an era of religiously inspired terrorism and war in the Middle East, peace is not served by ignoring, subverting or rewriting history, but rather by facing it humbly as it really happened and healing its wounds. (Abp Chas. Chaput of Denver) HT: Bonfire of the Vanities

"Education in History" in all the admirable colleges tends to characterize the Crusades as some sort of "Catholic jihad," and as a result, many students dissociate these wars from their real roots: they are religious wars and result from a religious weltanschauung.

The Bush Administration's insistence on 'democracy' is a fool's errand.

Ironically, GWB retracted his spot-on definition--Islamic Fascism. Let's hope that he regains that understanding and then re-formulates his raison d'etre for having the troops in Iraq.

The Poetry of Realpolitik

GKChesterton saw it clearly:

The World State

Oh, how I love Humanity,
With love so pure and pringlish,
And how I hate the horrid French,
Who never will be English!

The International Idea,
The largest and the clearest,
Is welding all the nations now,
Except the one that's nearest.

This compromise has long been known,
This scheme of partial pardons,
In ethical societies
And small suburban gardens—

The villas and the chapels
where I learned with little labour
The way to love my fellow-man
And hate my next-door neighbour.

HT: Chesterton & Friends

A Bishop Speaks on the Sacraments of Secularity

This from Bp. Doran of Rockford, IL., who obviously is not concerned about "PC"

Many of the issues that confront us are serious, and we know by now that the political parties in our country are at loggerheads as to how to solve them. We know, for instance, that adherents of one political party would place us squarely on the road to suicide as a people.

The seven “sacraments” of their secular culture are abortion, buggery, contraception, divorce, euthanasia, feminism of the radical type, and genetic experimentation and mutilation. These things they unabashedly espouse, profess and promote. Their continuance in public office is a clear and present danger to our survival as a nation. [Pretty close to the Jim Doyle platform, eh?]

Since the mid-1940s we have been accustomed to look askance at Germans. They were protagonists of the Second World War and so responsible for fifty million deaths. We say, “How awful,” and yet in our country we have, for the most part, allowed the party of death and the court system it has produced to eliminate, since 1973, upwards of forty million of our fellow citizens without allowing them to see the light of day. They have done their best to make ours a true culture of death. No doubt, we shall soon outstrip the Nazis in doing human beings to death.

This is what is called "Exercising the Munus", a Bishop's responsibility to teach...and, conveniently, it's in alphabetical order for the memory-challenged!

"More Is Better" Spending: Effective?

Who knows?

That's the conclusion drawn by Arnold Kling, author and essayist in TCS today. His topic is not "education" nor "war on poverty," but health-care--another field in which the "More Is Better" school seems to have a solid grip.

In the process of writing Crisis of Abundance, my book on U.S. health care policy, I came across study after study that indicated that intensive utilization of medical services has little effect on aggregate outcomes. For example, Dartmouth Professor John Wennberg and colleagues have found very different levels of utilization by Medicare patients in different regions, but with similar health outcomes.

What these studies suggest is that we are sending patients to specialists, to hospitals, and for expensive diagnostic tests without knowing when this is cost-effective and when it is not. In a nation where health care spending as a share of income has roughly doubled over the past thirty years, and where consumers are more than 85 percent insulated from the cost of health care (because 85 percent of personal health care spending is paid by either private insurance or government), ignorance about cost-effectiveness is a major economic concern.

It is fair to argue that "over-care" is licit in the face of malpractice concerns--but how much is "enough"? How much is pure waste?

I think that many people would prefer not to have the answers to these sorts of questions. For the most part, consumers and taxpayers would rather not know whether education, health care, and foreign aid are cost-effective. Instead, people would rather "trust the experts" and attribute high skill levels to educators, doctors, and aid agencies. And, of course, the experts would like us to continue to pay their salaries without questioning their results. As on many other issues, in seeking cost-benefit analysis economists are fighting an uphill battle.

Back a hundred years ago, my parents were always suspicious of the MD's who prescribed pills for whatever seemed to be an ailment. I think they recognized that some diseases simply ran their course and went away--without any assistance whatsoever from the MD's.

But preferring total ignorance about the efficacy of 15% of the GNP doesn't seem to be a prudent course, does it?

A 10/22 SemiAuto at 600 Rounds/Minute

Have a skunk problem? Too many squirrels (JIB!!)? Really BIG raccoons in your garbage can?

How about a street-legal 10 rounds/second varmint eliminator?

Cool.

The End of the NYTimes?

Apparently there are some serious discussions afoot.

The state of affairs aboard the New York Times must truly be grim, considering that the paper's liberal elite colleagues at Vanity Fair are already writing its obituary.

Detailing the "crisis of confidence" at the Times, Michael Wolff points out that it has become "a liberal caricature" that makes an easy punching bag for the Bush Administration.

But that's just the political stuff, which (sadly) is not of any consequence. Here's the good stuff:

Wolff's prognosis is dire. First come the layoffs, then more restiveness on the part of board members,

followed by little changes in the nature of control, and then asset sales, and lots of secret meetings among family members on the subject of what to do about Arthur, and then a plan afoot to take the title of publisher from him, and on and on … until … the powers that be face the dreadful discrepancy between the declining fortunes of business as usual and a more probable upside of dismantling, selling, and letting the market have its certain way.

Summarily, it's all about the money...

HT: Moonbattery

Hollywood Against Terrorism

No, I really mean that.

NICOLE Kidman has made a public stand against terrorism.The actress, joined by 84 other high-profile Hollywood stars, directors, studio bosses and media moguls, has taken out a powerfully-worded full page advertisement in today's Los Angeles Times newspaper.

It specifically targets "terrorist organisations" such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine.

"We the undersigned are pained and devastated by the civilian casualties in Israel and Lebanon caused by terrorist actions initiated by terrorist organisations such as Hezbollah and Hamas," the ad reads.

"If we do not succeed in stopping terrorism around the world, chaos will rule and innocent people will continue to die.

"We need to support democratic societies and stop terrorism at all costs."

A who's who of Hollywood heavyweights joined Kidman on the ad.The actors listed included: Michael Douglas, Dennis Hopper, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Danny De Vito, Don Johnson, James Woods, Kelly Preston, Patricia Heaton and William Hurt.

Directors Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, Michael Mann, Dick Donner and Sam Raimi also signed their names.

Progress. HT: ClayCramer

Pork-Busting Bill "On Hold"

The US Senate version of a sunshine law has been placed "on hold" by an Anonymous Senator:

...In order to really blow the lid off of pork, we need to have an interactive database like this that covers the entire federal budget. Senators Tom Coburn and Barack Obama have proposed just that solution in S 2590, which came out of committee last month. However, we have discovered that at least one Senator has placed an anonymous hold on 2590, attempting to spike the bill before it comes up for a vote. We need to get every Senator on the record as to whether they placed the hold on the legislation. Call your Senator and get an answer, then leave your notes in the comments section here. Let them know that we're watching.

Couldn't be Ted Stevens (R-PigMaster) could it?

HT: Captain's Quarters

Illegal? No Problem!!

THIS will not help Voces de la Frontera's propaganda:

A state Division of Motor Vehicles employee issued 38 fraudulent permits, licenses or identification cards, according to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in Dane County.

Vicente A. Rea, 35, of Madison faces 38 counts of misconduct in office, charges that carry a maximum sentence of 133 years in prison and a $38,000 fine. Rea has not entered a plea in the case, according to online court records. He posted a $1,900 bail on Tuesday.

Another DMV employee, Martha Patricia Cervantes, was arrested last week on suspicion of similar activities. No charges have been issued in Cervantes' case, which is being handled by U.S. Attorney Erik C. Peterson.

Rea and Cervantes worked from separate offices in Madison and are not believed to have worked in concert with one another, according to Gary Guenther, the DMV's field services director. Both have been suspended without pay.

The criminal complaint does not say why people sought the fake IDs, but Guenther said the cards appeared to go to illegal immigrants. The state has canceled all 38 cards issued by Rea, as well as 40 cards issued by Cervantes, he said.

"Highly Qualified" May Be a Can of Worms

This may be a case of "You Don't Want to KNOW the Truth"--

Wisconsin officials take pride in being at the top of at least one list nationally when it comes to putting "highly qualified" teachers in classrooms, but Wednesday they found themselves at the bottom of the list when it comes to meeting federal rules for doing exactly that.

U.S. Department of Education officials announced they had rejected as inadequate every one of the responses Wisconsin gave when asked how it was dealing with six general requirements for assuring that every child has a highly qualified teacher

One expects that Wisconsin's DPI, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of WEAC, would be dissembling and spinning to favor its client, WEAC. No big deal. Of course, DPI's claims of 'compliance' are interesting:

Wisconsin's Department of Public Instruction says that in its most recent calculations, 99.3% of teachers in the state - all but only 346 out of 51,862 in the 2004-'05 school year - met the definition of highly qualified the state uses for requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind education law.

...almost as good as Ivory Soap!

It looks as though seniority may play a part:

The Education Trust, a non-profit organization that has been influential in discussions of teacher quality, issued a report in June that criticized Wisconsin for having a disproportionate number of inexperienced teachers in low-performing schools, particularly in Milwaukee.

The organization issued a separate report last week that said Wisconsin was among a handful of states that had not put together data on the percentage of high-quality teachers vs. inexperienced teachers in schools where poverty and minority enrollment are high.

DPI officials agree there is a concern about inexperienced teachers, particularly in Milwaukee Public Schools, and say they are launching efforts to improve mentoring and training of such teachers.

But a determination of what, exactly, constitutes "highly qualified" may be far more interesting than a bureaucratic hissy-fit over the numbers.

Peg "The Keg": DNA Testing Program No Big Deal

While "Keg" Lautenschlaeger finds all kinds of budget dollars to harass and prosecute cranberry bog owners, and to sue the Feds to make babykilling chemicals available at Target (just like aspirin) other functions at the State DOJ remain, ah, undone.

Take criminal DNA testing, for example.

Assistant District Attorney Jeffrey Greipp, who took over the prosecution of the sexual assault case after the previous prosecutor, Jane Carroll, was elected judge, said the crime lab has a backlog of DNA evidence waiting to be tested.

"Frankly, they have a right to be frustrated, they really do," Greipp said of the victims of Bolden's crimes. "It's not anyone's fault from working on it (badly). It's just a legitimate major problem right now in the system."

Greipp added that similar delays have plagued matters besides Bolden's.

"We have a lot of cases that we want to issue," he said, "but it's completely dependent upon DNA."

While the JSOnline story does not say so, it is clear that The Keg's budgeting priorities are simply ridiculous. Her political and social-crusades are sucking up budget dollars which SHOULD be spent on the equipment and personnel necessary to put rapists and killers behind bars.

This is another Peg Problem for which there IS a "cure." It's called Throw Her Ass OUT!

Health Care Expense Relief--And a Tour!!

See the Taj Mahal! Spend some time on the beach! Get a couple of stents!!

Maybe Aurora's new digs in Oconomowoc will be a white elephant in a couple of years:

By Patrik Jonsson Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

ATLANTA

Carl Garrett, a paper-mill technician in Leicester, N.C., is scheduled totravel Sept. 2 to New Delhi, where he will undergo two operations. Though American individuals have gone abroad for cheaper operations, Mr. Garrett is a pioneer of sorts. He is a test case for his company, Blue Ridge Paper Products, Inc., in North Carolina, which is set to provide a health benefit plan that allows its employees and their dependents to obtain medical care overseas beginning in 2007.

"It's brand-new and nobody's ever heard of going to India or even South Carolina for an operation, so it's all pretty foreign to people here," saysGarrett. "It's a frontier."Garrett's medical care alone may save the company $50,000. And instead of winding up $20,000 in debt to have the operations in the US, he may now get up to $10,000 back as a share of the savings. He'll also get to see the Taj Mahal as part of a two-day tour before the surgery.

His two operations could cost $100,000 in the US; they'll run about $20,000 in India. With US health insurance costs soaring, cash-squeezed companies such as Blue Ridge and poor states such as West Virginia are considering affordable plans that may require their employees to travel to India, Thailand, orIndonesia.

Critics say that limited malpractice laws in foreign countries makes such travel risky as well as the prospect of spending 20 hours on an airplane after invasive surgery. Despite the concerns, "medical tourism" is morphing into "global healthcare."

"Global healthcare is coming and American healthcare, which is pricing itself out of reach, needs to know there are alternatives" in order to improve, says Alain Enthoven, senior fellow at the Center for Health Policy in Stanford, Calif.

The average American hospital bill was $6,280 in 2004, twice that of otherWestern countries, according to the National Coalition on Health Care (NCHC) in Washington. The cost savings have prompted a few hundred Americans this year to fly to India, Jakarta, or Bangkok for serious medical conditions, receiving heart stints and hip replacements. But most of the some 150,000 "medical tourists" nationwide go for a tooth filling or plastic surgery and a week at a sunny beach resort where the dollar stretches like lycra.

More companies - especially those with smaller company-run plans - are investigating people's claims of good overseas hospital care. The International Standards Organization in Geneva accredits these hospitals and audits American hospitals, too.

Companies are also attracted to the relatively inexpensive price tag forcare at foreign hospitals, which have been reported to be up to 80 percentless than in the US. In New Delhi, for example, the Apollo chain of hospitals gives resort-style convalescence care for $87 a night.

[Source: ZaZona.com]

Lemmeesee, heah...a couple of new choppers, a little heart work; that's 6 days, 5 nights in Bangkok and Bombay. Good January trip, especially if Blue Cross picks up the tab and pops a little spending cash, too...

NRA v. New Orleans: NO Loses, Loses, ...

But hey, it's only taxpayer funds--so let's keep fighting!

Today, in a landmark victory for NRA and law-abiding gun owners, Judge Carl J. Barbier of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana denied the City of New Orleans' motion to dismiss NRA's lawsuit against the city and held that the Second Amendment applies to law-abiding residents in the State of Louisiana and the City of New Orleans. Straining the bounds of credibility and reflecting the true sentiment of anti-gunners, the City of New Orleans contemptuously argued that the Second Amendment does not apply to residents in the State of Louisiana and the City of New Orleans.

NRA first filed suit after reports surfaced indicating that, following Hurricane Katrina, firearms were confiscated from law-abiding New Orleans residents. Former New Orleans Police Chief Eddie Compass issued orders to confiscate firearms from all citizens, under a flawed state emergency powers law. With that one order, the one means of self-protection innocent victims had during a time of widespread civil disorder was stripped away.

NRA filed suit in federal court and won a preliminary injunction ending all the illegal gun confiscations. After the City of New Orleans failed to comply with the court's ruling and dishonestly claimed that the gun confiscations never occurred, NRA filed a motion for contempt that included an order directing all seized firearms be returned to their rightful owners.

After denying the illegal confiscations for months, on March 15, 2006, Mayor Nagin and the New Orleans Police Department finally conceded in federal court that the seized firearms were stored in two trailers. The city then agreed in court to a process by which law-abiding citizens would be able to file a claim to receive their confiscated firearms. However, few firearms were returned because the NOPD never notified gun owners how to claim their guns, and turned many away citing impossible standards for proof of ownership. [For example, the NOPD required gun owners to submit their original bill of sale, or other documentation proving ownership of the gun. For some reason or other, many owners did not HAVE the documents any more...]

Today's ruling sets the stage for a continued legal fight in which NRA will be forced to expend additional resources to fight back the anti-gunner's blatant and shameful attempts to ignore the Second Amendment. The case will now move to discovery and pre-trial preparation.

[Source: NRA Newsletter, 8/16/06]

NO's tax base is diminished; the State of Louisiana has sent National Guard troops to assist the NOPD in maintaining order. One wonders exactly how Absentee-Mayor Nagin and his City Attorney justify spending more on this ridiculous trial.

But hey! It's just tax money; and knowing Our President's spending habits, most likely the Federal Government will cover the expenses.

No problem.

Nelson Endorses Profiling, Channel 4 Has Heart Attack

It's fun to watch the MSM and particularly to listen to their voices when a Congressional candidate actually Breaks The Taboo(!!!!) and endorses profiling.

Tonight at 6:00, Mike Jacobs got the assignment of recoiling in horror on relating the position of Paul Nelson (R), who is running for Congress in Wisconsin's 3rd District (Eau Claire area.)

What did this Ogre, this, this, Hate-Monger, Nelson, do?

He said that it's about damn time we start profiling air passengers for close inspections. Asked how he would determine someone's a Muslim, Nelson stated,

"Well, if he's wearing a turban and his name is Muhammad, that's a start!"

Nelson is a Realtor and ex-Marine.

Jacobs played his part well and following the MSM line, Channel 4's production crew supplied large-print graphics of the quotations from Nelson, highlighting them--better treatment than most statements from Tom Barrett, the Milk-Carton-Mayor receive from this station.

Will Dan Maguire EVER STFU?

Well, the MSM had to have some 'Catholic' quote, and sure enough, they found Dan Maguire, execrable worm-in-the-apple at Marquette University.

USAToday printed an article on the topic of abortion and said that a certain St. Antoninus 'endorsed' abortion.

Only in the fevered mind of a proof-texter who denudes the statement from historical context, and even THEN it's questionable--but the fevered mind was inside the cranium of Dan the Cancer:

In a recent statement, the nation's Roman Catholic bishops described abortion as a fundamental threat to the health of civil society (news article, Nov. 19). In fact, the church's ban on abortions is a novelty of this century. Pro-choice and no-choice positions have co-existed throughout the church's history. St. Antoninus, Archbishop of Florence, the 15th-century Dominican who wrote the first treatise on abortion, taught that early abortion to save a woman's life was moral. (Letter to the Editor, NYTimes, 1996.)

So what did this maligned Saint actually say?

It was not until the late Middle Ages that Christian theologians begin to address directly the question of abortion to save the woman's life.

One of the first to discuss this case was Antoninus of Florence. He declared that it was neither legitimate to kill the woman to save the child (by Caesarean section) nor to kill the infant to save the woman (by abortion). If the only way to save someone is by killing someone else, it is better to do nothing. However, he made one exception to this rule. Citing fellow Dominican John of Naples, he argued that before the soul was infused into the embryo (which, following Thomas Aquinas, he regarded as occurring at 40 days for males and 80 days for females) it was legitimate to abort the embryo to save the mother's life. This was not homicide, strictly speaking. However, an act that destroyed the early embryo and so prevented a child from coming to be was very close to homicide, therefore it could only be justified to save the mother's life. Furthermore, if it were doubtful whether or not the embryo possessed a human soul then it was not to be harmed. Antoninus only permitted abortion of the pre-ensouled embryo to save the mother's life. Nevertheless, it was very significant in explicitly allowing an exception to the traditional prohibition. Antoninus had great authority and was followed by several theologians such as Sylvester Prierias (d. 1523) and Martin Aspilcueta (1493-1586), more commonly known as Doctor Navarrus. [pp. 178-179; emphasis added]

Dan Maguire "forgot" to mention in his letter that in ca. 1400AD, there was not too much knowledge about what went on in the womb--certainly not as much as we have now.

So if you look at the red-italic-bold portion of the quote, you see Catholic teaching on the topic (without the "double effect" addition) and teaching which was as sound then as it is now.

HT: Amy and Curt Jester

The Youthful Ratzinger on Liturgical Reform

Speaking as a priest (!!!)--not Bishop, not Cardinal, and not Pope, in 1966:

Among theologians, there is a certain archaism with the wish to restore the classical form of the Roman liturgy as it was before the additions of the Carolingian age and of the Middle Ages. One does not ask oneself, "What should the liturgy be like?"; but, rather, "What was it like once?"

While the past gives us an indispensable aid to solve the problems of our age, it is not the criterion on which one should found the reform purely and simply.

Knowing how Gregory the Great proceeded [to do] is good, but it does not force one to do the same. With such archaisms, the road towards legitimacy [in liturgical reform] has often been destroyed....Must every Mass be truly celebrated turned towards the people? Is it that important to be able to see the face of the priest? Isn't it often good to think of him as a Christian with the others and that, consequently, he has all reasons to turn with them towards God and by this act say Our Father with them?

The tabernacle is detached from the High Altar, and there may be good reasons for that. But one should feel uncomfortable by seeing its place taken by the chair of the celebrant, expressing thus in the liturgy a clericalism which is much worse than that of before.

It is fair to say that Pope Benedict's interest in the Liturgy continued through the present date, and he has continued to be skeptical of "progress."

HT: Rorate Coeli

GWB Is "Frustrated"

Yah, well...

More generally, the participants said, the president expressed frustration that Iraqis had not come to appreciate the sacrifices the United States had made in Iraq, and was puzzled as to how a recent anti-American rally in support of Hezbollah in Baghdad could draw such a large crowd. “I do think he was frustrated about why 10,000 Shiites would go into the streets and demonstrate against the United States,” said another person who attended.

What? Democracy doesn't cure all ills?

Perhaps there will be a group-RE-think of our objectives and the methodology. For some, it is utterly preposterous that "democracy" can be installed and become fully functional in <5 years.

It is so because Muhammedanism is NOT a good foundation for 'democracy,' or even 'republicanism.'

Jimbo Doyle Wants to Buy Your Love

Doyle, (D-Highest Bidder) continues to attempt the purchase of his election, this time with a proposal which makes sense, but ...

Gov. Jim Doyle said this morning that, if re-elected in November, he will propose letting Wisconsin residents claim a tax deduction for health-care premiums they pay their employers.

Later, it was estimated that this would decrease State revenues by about $50 million. Doyle's pig-painter, a fellow named Schmeidicke, said "Not to worry. We'll make up for it with 5%/year economic growth, or something."

Doyle DOES have a track record, of course:

"Governor Doyle vetoed efforts to make Health Savings Accounts tax free, he tried to put a new tax on health insurance and he even tried raising the bed tax on nursing homes," said Green, in the statement. "He's had four years of chances to make health care more affordable, but he did absolutely nothing. Actually, he made the situation even worse."

His first overt attempt to purchase votes was the ethanol-gas-price scam.

Well--as to purchasing loyalty, Jim can say, truthfully "It Works for ME!!"

Kevin Barrett Runs His Yap for Medved

Yesterday's Medved show (heard here on 560AM in the mid-afternoon) featured Moonbat Barrett, the UW instructor in Muslim whatever...

Needless to say, Barrett made a fool of himself. Medved did little work to effect that.

Unfortunately, Medved laid particular emphasis on the fact that Moonbat Barrett is an instructor at UW-Madison and mentioned that Moonbat Barrett will be teaching young and impressionable students, finally mentioning that parents may wish to consider this fact when evaluating college possibilities for their Darling Chillluns.

This will CERTAINLY help the UW to attract more out-of-State students, right? National radio exposure for the Moonbat faculty star!!

By the way, wasn't Barrett asked to keep his big f*&^n trap shut?

Who "Won" the Cease-Fire?

In some ways, that question is ludicrous, although it's the ONLY question the radio guys discussed yesterday, from the locals through the nationals. Same-o the bloggers. Agenda, anyone?

By definition, a cease-fire is a compromise. Nobody "wins" a cease-fire, and nobody "loses."

Put another way, neither party is perfectly happy with the results.

Here's an assessment from a Middle East scholar, Juan Cole:

It was such a stupid war. It was thick-as-two-blocks-of-wood strategy on all sides. It was moronic for the Israelis to plan it out last year. It was idiotic for Hizbullah to cross over into Israel, kill soldiers, and take two captive. It was brain dead for the Israeli officer corps and politicians to think they could get anything positive out of bombing Lebanon back to the stone age and making a million people homeless. It was dim-witted for Hasan Nasrallah to threaten Israelis with releasing poison gases from Haifa chemical plants on them. It was obtuse for the Israelis to confront a dug-in guerrilla movement with green conventional troops marching in straight lines. It was dull of Hizbullah to fire thousands of katyushas into open fields where they mainly damaged wild grass. The few times when the rockets managed to kill someone, it was often an Arab Israeli civilian. Stupid.

Better question: which party was Stupid-er? Stupid-est?

Doyle: "Less Is More--Don't You Belive Me?"

Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, wiped out the State deficit, lowered property taxes, and increased the State's take on casinos.

So reads Jim Doyle's (D-Highest Bidder) campaign literature.

That puts [Potowatomi Casino's] gross revenue for the 2005-'06 fiscal year at $304 million, or $20 million more than the Milwaukee casino took in in the prior year.

The tribe paid $43.6 million to the state in February, essentially a payment covering the 2004-'05 fiscal year, and $24 million July 1 for the most recent fiscal year.

The state payment declined based on a formula negotiated by Gov. Jim Doyle, even though casino revenue grew. Doyle administration officials have said he secured a higher casino payment rate from the Potawatomi and other tribes three years ago to help solve a state budget deficit.

...and the Queen said to Alice, "Words mean exactly what I SAY they mean."

More Katrina Wailing to Follow

In a decision which is bound to have MSM cameras and reporters all over the Gulf Coast:

A federal judge ruled Tuesday that an insurance company's policies do not cover damage from flood waters or storm surge in a decision that could affect hundreds of upcoming cases related to property damage from Hurricane Katrina

...Senter's ruling could set a precedent for hundreds of other court challenges to the insurance industry for denying billions of dollars in claims after the Aug. 29 hurricane ravaged the coasts of Louisiana and Mississippi.

The policy language was ruled "ambiguous." That's not uncommon for casualty language.

A larger question which should be addressed: did these homeowners have FLOOD insurance? If not, why not?

Biblical Exegetes--A Warning

From the introduction to John Who Saw, by Adrian Green-Armytage (London: Faber & Faber, 1952)

There is a world -- I do not say a world in which all scholars live but one at any rate into which all of them sometimes stray, and which some of them seem permanently to inhabit -- which is not the world in which I live.

In my world, if The Times and The Telegraph both tell one story in somewhat different terms, nobody concludes that one of them must have copied the other, nor that the variations in the story have some esoteric significance. But in that world of which I am speaking this would be taken for granted. There, no story is ever derived from the facts but always from somebody else's version of the same story.

In my world, almost every book, except some of those produced by Government departments, is written by one author. In that world almost every book is produced by a committee, and some of them by a whole series of committees.

In my world, if I read that Mr. Churchill, in 1935, said that Europe was heading for a disastrous war, I applaud his foresight. In that world no prophecy, however vaguely worded, is ever made except after the fact.

In my world we say, "The first world-war took place in 1914–1918." In that world they say, "The world-war narrative took shape in the third decade of the twentieth century."

In my world men and women live for a considerable time -- seventy, eighty, even a hundred years -- and they are equipped with a thing called memory. In that world (it would appear) they come into being, write a book, and forthwith perish, all in a flash, and it is noted of them with astonishment that they "preserve traces of primitive tradition" about things which happened well within their own adult lifetime.

What we have here, in other words, is a projection of the self-doubt of the exegetes. Don't take them too seriously...

HT: Catholic World News

News Report: Seven Dwarfs Better Known than US Supremes

Breathless report by Reuters from a Zogby poll:

Three quarters of Americans can correctly identify two of Snow White's seven dwarfs while only a quarter can name two Supreme Court Justices, according to a poll on pop culture released on Monday.

Remedied, delightfully, by Southern Appeal. Yes, you SHOULD click this link!

How Drunk Is Drunk?

Jessica catches a good one:

Guy is weaving back and forth in his lane. Observant cop pulls him over to check for drunk driving. Turns out the guy is a 5 time drunk driver whose BAC is nearly three times the legal limit. Guy appeals. Nutty appeals court overturns the conviction, saying the cop violated his constitutional rights because it's not reasonable to develop a hunch that someone is driving drunk because they are weaving back and forth in their own lane.

From the decision, which will likely become enshrined in Ripley:

...Post’s slight deviations within one lane of travel, with nothing more, does not, in our view, reach that quantum of evidence necessary to make the officer’s hunch that Post might be intoxicated reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.

From here on, the LEO's will have to measure 'deviation,' we suppose. The Court has now determined that "suspicion" is not sufficient.

I suppose the LEO could have waited until Mr. Post killed someone....

"Settlement" in South Lebanon?

Early reports are not very encouraging:

I saw television footage of the destruction of downtown Nabatiyah, with dress shops and delis in ruins. There were no rocket emplacements there. No one can understand why the Israelis just destroyed the downtown.

Likewise, Aljazeera did a street interview from south Beirut, which looked like the surface of the moon. Apartment buildings were collapsed for what looked like blocks, concrete hanging down like confetti. One woman said that she was brought up there but now lived in a town to the south, where her home had been destroyed. She said that the dust, the water, everything in Dahiya was precious to her as part of the Lebanese homeland, and that the Shiites of that region had not earlier all supported Hizbullah, but now they did. She said that they were going to insist on living there and supporting Nasrallah, would show forth steadfastness in the face of Israeli bombs. Others in the crowd were shouting angry slogans.

One must consider the source--in this case, Al-Jazeerah. On the other hand, it's difficult to make friends when you destroy most everything they had.

But the Israelis are not happy, either--and complain that the "bomb-only" concept was flawed:

...It was the government’s responsibility to critique and question the IDF’s operational model of aerial warfare and to cut its losses when after two or three days it was clear that the model was wrong. At that point the government should have called up the reserves and launched a combined ground and air offensive.

But the government didn’t feel like it. It wanted to win the war on the cheap. And when the air campaign did not succeed, it abandoned its war goals, declared victory and sued for a cease-fire. When the public objected, after waiting two precious weeks, the government called up the reserves but then waited another unforgivable 10 days before committing them to battle.

So the Olmert Government managed to both: 1) alienate sympathetic Christians (and others) in South Lebanon by pretty much demolishing their entire lives through a sloppy air-campaign; and 2) anger Israelis who saw the campaign as ineffective.

Of course, air-only campaigns which merely destroy infrastucture and not the enemy are "Proportionate", right?

Revise "Not Guilty/Insanity"

Here's a project for our State Legislators for the next session: create a "Guilty and Insane" category of crime.

I was watching The O'Reilly Factor the other night, and O'Reilly and Geraldo Rivera were discussing the Andrea Yates re-trial for the drowning murders of her five children. O'Reilly and Rivera were both horrified that she was found not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI).

Now, there are some very serious problems with NGRI--which is why a number of states, in the last few years, have replaced NGRI with "guilty, but insane." You don't get out any sooner, but you end up in a hospital for the criminally insane--not a prison. But O'Reilly and Rivera were insisting that Yates was not insane, because of the level of premeditation involved. This shows that O'Reilly and Rivera have not the least understanding of the basis of NGRI, or paranoid schizophrenia.

HT and more discussion at Clayton Cramer's blog.

Q2 on Gay "Marriage"--Owen's Answer and Ingrid's Response

From Boots: (see response updates below)

The question, in essence:

what are the possible court cases Wisconsinites could expect if it passes and if it fails?

The answer, in essence:

[See, e.g., in Massachusetts] Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that the state may not “deny the protections, benefits and obligations conferred by civil marriage to two individuals of the same sex who wish to marry.” [should the Amendment fail.]

[Should the Amendment pass] I suspect that some overzealous folks will sue to deny same-sex benefits. ...but they may progress substantially when concerning public employers. [They will be thrown out early if/when filed against private employers.]

For example, if the State of Wisconsin wants to extend insurance coverage to anyone who cohabitates, then that’s fine, but it would also have to include unmarried couples and roommates who are cohabitating. The qualifications for benefits would have to be crafted in a way that does not require the status of “marriage.”

In other words, passage will force "equal treatment" for extension of benefits by public bodies. Or (looking at it another way) passage will NOT favor gay "partnerships" over other "partnerships."

And that's fair, no? Or does "Fair Wisconsin"'s agenda simply favor homosexuals?

Response:

It’s about couples who have been together for 10, 20, 30 years or more. Couples doing all the hard work of caring for each other and raising families without the legal protections a marriage or a civil union could provide. It's about thousands of Wisconsin families who have strung together bits and pieces of legal protections for their partners and their children, and who are extremely concerned—rightfully so—about what will happen if the ban passes.

If we pass the ban, the first round of lawsuits will likely be aimed at public employers that currently offer domestic partner health packages.

(Several examples follow. However, either they have not been finally decided, OR they are within the "governmental units" category above--IOW, if benefits are to be awarded to "gay" couples, they most likely will have to be awarded to ALL co-habitors with a public-payroll non-marital person.)

And then there are the domestic violence cases. In Utah there’s a case pending. In Ohio, results are split. Some mid-level courts have ruled the ban doesn’t invalidate domestic violence laws as they pertain to unmarried survivors, and some ruled that it does. The state Supreme Court agreed to hear one abuser's appeal.

Unfortunately, Ingrid, this paragraph is FAR from "compelling" in terms of settled cases...

...polls continue to show a majority of Wisconsinites want to provide at least some legal recognition to gay families. They want their gay co-worker to have access to bereavement leave, their lesbian niece to have automatic hospital visitation rights for her partner, or their gay neighbors to share health and retirement benefits.

And it has been CLEARLY stated that these adjustments to civil law CAN be made under the Amendment, if passsed, with the possible exception of public-employee "bennie sharing."

Finally, it’s simply untrue that if we defeat the ban judges will automatically rule in favor of marriage equality.

This assertion is questionable, at best. The Abrahamson-majority WI Supremes have proven their willingness to overturn precedent which does not fit Screechin'Shirley's Social Agenda.

If the ban fails, we can continue the conversation and work towards a solution that a majority of Wisconsinites approve.

If it passes, that conversation is cut short.

Thank God.

Q2 goes to Owen. The response hangs on emotions, un-settled "cases," and the assertion that the Wisconsin Supreme Court will preserve the status quo, which is not likely with its current composition. The elements of the Responder's case which are sensible can (and most likely WILL be enacted: visitations and bereavement.) As to "domestic violence"--we already have substantial legislation dealing with assault and battery. Until 15-20 years ago, that was a very effective tool. Still is, if it's used properly by police agencies.

Summarily: there's good reason to affirm the current situation. PASS THE AMENDMENT.

UPDATE:

Ingrid's 250-word rebut to Owen is up.

In brief, the rebuttal is non-responsive; it is more and more clear that defeating The Amendment serves only the interests of homosexual lovers, particularly in the area of "benefits."

USCC/NCCB: Soon to Be A Memory?

Pointed out by CWN with a HT to Amy:

The future Benedict XVI told me that among the unforeseen and contradictory effects of Vatican-II was the diminution in the importance of bishops, which on the contrary, the Council wished to re-emphasize. In fact, however, the autonomy and the freedom itself of a bishop over his own diocese were caged in and coopted by the establishment of national bishops' conferences.

These conferences, Ratzinger pointed out, have no theological basis; they are not part of the Church structure as are parishes, dioceses and the papacy. They are simply institutions, of recent origin, which were created for practical reasons but which have gradually created a weighty structure of their own, becoming in effect "little Vaticans." Because these conferences are governed by majority rule, with the inevitable compromises, pressure groups and maneuverings in the 'corridors of power' associated with what amounts to 'parliamentary democracy'!

This has ended up suffocating the power of the individual bishop, who, from teacher of the Faith and pastor of his flock, has been reduced to membership in commissions and participation in discussions which end up being dominated by organized and powerful lobbies. From this point of view, if I understood Ratzinger well, a 'revolution' was necessary, which consists simply in returning to Tradition: to the universal Church, as an organic union and agreement of bishops, therefore of responsible autonomous individuals, rather than a federation of 'states' as constituted by the national bishops' conferences.

Not an easy task, Cardinal Ratzinger pointed out, in view of the expected resistance from powerful clerical groups who subscribe to political correctness, namely, elections, referenda, majority rule (to make decisions). However, such a 'revolution' is considered necessary by Joseph Ratzinger, and therefore, by his faithful collaborator. Who has the advantages of a character that is both cordial and firm, the DNA of a tough Piedmontese and the persuasive tenacity of a Salesian, trained to wield, if necessary, an iron fist in a velvet glove. [This reference is to the incoming Secretary of State, Cdl. Bertone.]

This is not exactly "news;" the original quotation was published in The Ratzinger Report several years ago. And, in fact, Bp. Bruskewitz of Lincoln demonstrated that the competent territorial authority (the Bishop of a Diocese) can ignore silly 'mandates' of silly 'conferences' (e.g., altar "girls" or invasive witch-hunts led by invasive witches; Rome approves.

But it will lead to interesting consequences, because some US Bishops have forgotten their proper munus: to teach, preach, and rule in the Name of Christ.

Chesterton Surfaces

...in an interview with the Pope:

...But I think it's very important to be able to see the funny side of life and its joyful dimension and not to take everything too tragically. I'd also say it's necessary for my ministry. A writer once said that angels can fly because they don't take themselves too seriously. Maybe we could also fly a bit if we didn't think we were so important.

That "writer," of course, was G K Chesterton.

"Connecticut Voters"? Nope.

Despite the ad nauseam MSM repetition of the phrase "Connecticut voters" [defeated Joe Lieberman] and thus reject Bush, reject war, blah, blah, blahhhhh....

It just ain't so.

only 20 percent of Connecticut Democrats actually participated in the purge

Note well: ONLY Democrats voted here, and ONLY 20% of them.

Remember that the next time you hear about "Connecticut Voters." Particularly when you hear it from Russ Feingold (D-AlQuaeda).

Are the Poncho Ladies Excommunicated?

Maybe not!

Here's Ed Peters, a canon lawyer, on the question: (scroll down to July 6 entry)

You see, there is no canon directly punishing the "ordination" of women. Canon 1382, which prohibits, upon pain of automatic excommunication, episcopal ordinations without papal mandate (e.g., the Lefebvre case) does not apply here, for these female “ordinations” were not to the episcopate, but to the presbyterate. Canon 1383, a little closer to our facts, prohibits bishops from ordaining priests without what are called “dimissorial letters" but, while the ladies did not have recognized dimissorial letters, the penalty for violating Canon 1383 is not excommunication, but only suspension. Besides, the "ordainers" were not bishops, and in any case the failure to complete some ordination paperwork is not likely to explain the sense of outrage that many Catholics understandably feel upon reading about these latest feminist shenanigans. Canon 1384 for its part punishes with “a just penalty” one who illicitly performs a “priestly function or other sacred ministry” but of course, sacramentally speaking, the women in these cases manifestly could not perform a priestly function (female ordination being impossible under Canon 1024 and a host of supporting Church teachings) and one cannot be punished for something one in fact did not do. There certainly is, however, Canon 1379 which threatens “a just penalty” for the simulation of a sacrament, but, while the “ordination” of a woman would fit squarely within the scope of this canon, interestingly, this norm was not cited as a basis for penal action taken by CDF in 2002. (I do not know whether Cdl. Barbarin relied on it earlier this week.)

So what exactly is going on here? How are these excommunications (CDF’s certainly, and perhaps Barbarin’s) being implemented?

Enter Canon 1319 § 1: “To the extent that one can impose precepts [directive orders] in the external forum because of one powers of governance, one can also impose determinate penalties by precept, with the exception of [what are known as] perpetual expiatory penalties” (my emphasis). In other words, Canon 1319, which applies to a huge swath of ecclesiastical authority figures, is being read by CDF (which dicastery, incidentally, received the canonically very important “specific approval” of Pope John Paul II for its action) as enabling penal actions in a wide range of situations not directly mentioned in the 1983 Code. And this, without even resorting to the oft-overlooked Canon 1399 (which already seems to offer considerable possibilities for broader-than-legislated penal actions in cases of seriously delictual behavior, an offer Church leaders have been slow to act on.)

Besides occasioning, then, this intriguing application of Canon 1319, these excommunications shed light on another question. To the extent that the values behind such Canons as 1379 and 1399 influenced the dicasterial and episcopal action in these cases—and clearly such norms are relevant even if they are not cited—the imposition of “excommunication” in situations that seem, at first glace, to warrant only the less specific “just penalty,” adds to the argument that "excommunication" need not be expressly listed as a penalty for a given crime in order for it, at some point at least, to be applicable to that crime. In brief, the strength of the hands of Church leaders faced with increasingly bizarre and disruptive behavior is waxing. It will be interesting to see what they do with it.

Excommunication is a "medicinal penalty" (see 1983 CIC 1312, distinguishing excommunication, by the way, from "expiatory" penalties not eligible for imposition under Canon 1319). The hoopla surrounding excommunication notwithstanding, it is fundamentally oriented toward bringing Catholics to repent of certain seriously wrong behaviors. Sometimes the penalty achieves its end, sometimes it doesn't. But Cdl. Barbarin is right to try it, and he gives a good example to his brothers who might face similar situations in their dioceses sooner than later.

Thus it would seem that the Poncho-ettes are not excommunicated until they're excommunicated, (or a fat lady sings.) However, as Peters notes in the second-last graph of this citation, they have managed to push the "excommunication" card much closer to the top of the deck, and one suspects that local Ordinaries will be given some latitude there.

That will save a lot of long-distance and postage costs.

HT: FreeRepublic/Curt Jester

You Think It Can't Happen Here? WRONG!

This is interesting, and chilling:

Prosecutors say they are confident the men are linked to a terrorist network and filed additional felony charges Thursday relating to the buying and selling of specific microchips found in only a few types of cell phones.

The two men were arrested in Marietta Tuesday.

Authorities say the phones are being modified by terrorists to make untraceable international calls and also in the production of roadside bombs.

The 'innocent, all-American boys' are from Hizbollah High in Dearborn, MI.

ROADSIDE BOMBS??? HERE???

Some of the bomb-components were purchased in Wisconsin.

VanHollen is NOT making stuff up about terror threats...

UPDATE:

Owen has a bit more info. Can one demolish the Mackinac Bridge w/roadside bombs?

The Warrior on Campaign Finance "Reform"

Perhaps even worse than the MSM bias (see below for a small example) is the Incumbent Protection Act, aka McCain-Feingold. The Warrior doesn't like it, either, and shows us why.

Ironically, Joe Lieberman was a victim of the Act which he voted for, largely because of an "incoherent" Supreme Court decision (I agree with the adjective, but the Warrior used it first...)

More than 60 percent of Ned’s campaign expenditures came from Ned. Without Ned, Ned loses. In fact, no political observer thought any candidate dependent on a $2000 contribution limit had any kind of chance of ousting Lieberman. Ned was a very poor candidate. Inarticulate with zero charisma. But by spending his own money he enfranchised the Democrats of Connecticut who otherwise, given the contribution limits, were disenfranchised. The Democrats in Connecticut hate the war in Iraq, Lieberman has rather energetically endorsed it. Yet the federal election laws would have assured Lieberman reelection were it not for the “loophole.”

Unlike many others, I think Joe Lieberman's record in the Senate (a carbon copy of Russ Feingold's except on the Iraq War) is atrocious from a Conservative point of view.

Now maybe even Joe understands why, at least in regard to Finance "Reform."

The MSM Just Can't Help Itself

You'd think that the MSM would be working a little harder to clean up their obnoxious and blatant bias, particularly since FreeRepublic and the Blogs are out there, clearly pointing out the problems.

Nope.

At the Washington DC demonstrations over US policy in the Middle East, we find Reuters taking pictures; the captions are blatantly wrong:

A woman shouts at anti-Muslim protesters during a rally in Washington against the Middle East conflict August 12, 2006.

They are NOT anti-Muslim protesters. They are PRO-US position demonstrators.

In 750 Words or Less

The Gay "Marriage" debate continues.

This time, Owen will be the first responder to Jenna's query:

Based on what we’ve seen in states that have passed a ban, or simply your own extrapolation, what are the possible court cases Wisconsinites could expect if it passes and if it fails? For example, if it passes, would we see challenges to all non-marital shared benefit packages? Or, if it doesn’t pass, will we see court challenges to allow same-sex marriages?

So all he has to do is capture the entire range of lawyerly penumbras and emanations on the issues presented in 750 words or less.

In his own words: "Heh."

He Just Made a Mistake!

This fellow Donovan Riley really believes in elections.

So he votes twice in the same one?

The complaint by All Children Matter, a proponent of private school vouchers, cites documents that suggest that Riley, a 69-year-old former CEO of the University of Illinois Hospital, voted twice in the 2000 general election, once in Chicago and then again in Oconomowoc. A well-heeled liberal Democrat, Riley is running a vigorous primary campaign against state Sen. Jeff Plale, a conservative Dem from South Milwaukee.

Of course there's an explanation.

Late Friday, Riley offered this stunning written response to the charges:

"My best recollection is that I was splitting my time between Wisconsin and Illinois, and it's possible I made a mistake. If the Elections Board decides to look into this matter, I will gladly assist."

Stuff happens, right?

Bishop Sklba's New Old Testament-Lite

Our own Bp. Sklba has interesting reflections:

The poets of Israel, for example, often attempted to describe the supreme power of their God by resorting to their extreme human experiences of power, namely vast gory military battles and final crushing victory.

...The Psalms are filled with references to the power of God, smashing the enemies of Israel (and also of God because they were presumably on the same side against “the nations”). The Book of Revelation describes the final battle between good and evil (God and the Beast).

...It is brutal and lethal; but God wins and for all the imagery of the book, that’s the fundamental point of its message. Still, we ought to be more cautious about invoking those symbols.

Our ultimate purpose in all areas of human disagreement and conflict, however, is civil conversation and conversion, not confrontation or conflict. That is why it may be time for our Catholic religious imagination to seek new ways to picture divine power and majesty. Any act of mercy, for example, is an expression of power too. Religious education has a big challenge on this score.

Sooooo.....now we should exculpt Jericho (like ICEL exculpts the homosexuals from Sodom)? Get rid of that silly Red Sea-parting stuff because it wasn't really a Civil Conversation? Forget the Ammonites? The Babylonians?

It's fair to say that the US did not start the war with Islamic terrorists--nor the Second World War, nor the First World War (in both, we stayed as far away as possible until forced to join.)

Even Bp. Sklba admits as much:

There may well be times in this very imperfect world when physical force is needed to protect the innocent and when moral strength is required to confront and contain injustice. One of the deepest and (I believe) God-given instincts in creation is to protect new life and offspring, which is why abortion is such a deep moral issue.

But the good Bishop narrowly constructs both the occasions for appropriate uses of violence AND "innocent life" were he to have his way with the above paragraph.

It's not just abortion--and unborn babies are hardly the ONLY "innocent lives" we deal with. The Bishop may wish to consider the force used by cops when detaining suspects, or the (sometimes lethal) force required to prevent violence to innocent adults under ordinary civil law. Would the Bishop suggest that the Church re-write its rules on self-defense? Or defense of one's family (which includes one's adult wife or husband)?

The Bishop can easily consult the Martyrology, or any of the Gospel Passion accounts (we know he won't view Gibson's version.) There he can find excellent examples of Christian "re-visioning" of Divine power and majesty. In fact, they are prototypical examples.

I'm sure that those examples are what the Bishop meant.

THIS Is How to Screen Passengers

....not just have silly and useless "bottle bans"


For Americans considering an end to free and easy flying in the USA, El Al provides a glimpse of what might lie ahead...

Despite their current anxieties, Americans also might balk at El Al-style ethnic profiling. [Frankly, I doubt it.] Staff scrutinize the passengers’ names, dividing them into low-risk (Israeli or foreign Jews), medium-risk (non-Jewish foreigners) and extremely high-risk travelers (anyone with an Arabic name). These people automatically are taken into a room for body and baggage checks and lengthy interrogation. Single women also are considered high-risk, for fear they might be used by Palestinian lovers to carry bombs.

To sift out who is who, screeners usually begin by asking passengers whether they understand any Hebrew, which most Jews do. Officials argue that such blatant discrimination is necessary.
... In fact, El Al’s security kicks in long before the passenger will notice. Call an El Al office in any city to book a ticket, and your name will be checked against a computer list of terrorist suspects compiled by Interpol, the FBI, Shin Bet (Israel’s intelligence service) and others.

... Once you board, up to five armed undercover agents will travel with you in strategic aisle seats, ready for attack. Furthermore, like many Israelis, cabin crews are former soldiers in the Israeli military who have received combat training. The cockpit door, of reinforced steel, is locked from the inside before passengers board and is opened only after everyone has disembarked at their destination. No matter what’s going on in the rest of the plane, it is never opened during flight.

... By El Al’s standards, my screening was light — only 10 minutes of questioning by two well-paid officials with full military training. It ended with one of them locking all the zippers on my suitcase with plastic ties.

... A lot happens behind the scenes, too. Once luggage moves from the check-in desk to the conveyer belt, it is put in a pressurized box that detonates any explosive before the bag is loaded on the plane, Dror says. No unaccompanied bags are allowed. Those bags remain behind.

Banning perfume? Nope.

Pop quiz: how many El Al flights have been hijacked in your memory? How many have been flown directly into buildings, or the ground?

GWB could do us all a favor and instruct Chertoff to install this protocol. Yah, there are a few more interrogatories than we are used to. And more Young Islamist Males in the US than in Israel. So what?

HT: Dom Bet

Krueger for DA

It's that time of the year!

Since Paul Bucher's leaving the post, Waukesha County will need a new DA.

Krueger's the man!

He knows the County; he's taken on the sex-predators AND the Illegal-Enablers; and he has the endorsement of Pro-Life Wisconsin.

Anybody who can raise FOUR daughters at once is eminently qualified for running the DA's office. (People with more daughters than that--like me--are qualified for the Funny Farm, which is why I blog.)

Send money and VOTE KRUEGER in the primary, September 12th!!!

Charlie's Dark Night of Doubt

The esteemed Charlie Sykes, PapaBlogger and thinker, is worried about The Amendment.

We submit that this is a case in which Charlie thinks far too much.

While it is clear that the anti-Amendment folks intend to throw a large cloud of foo-foo dust into the atmosphere, hoping that it will confuse Wisconsin voters, Charlie's downbeat take doesn't give too much credit to those very same Wisconsin voters--nor to the ongoing and increasing efforts of the pro-Amendment camp.

The center of the angst is here:

A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized in this state."

which is the Second Sentence of The Amendment.

Sykes goes on:

While the first sentence is clear, straightforward, and quite specific the second sentence is far more sweeping and ambiguous, lending itself to a wide range of interpretations. The language seems to ban civil unions but does it also extend to other benefits, as well? And if so, which ones?

As Owen demonstrated convincingly, the Second Sentence changes NOTHING--it only prevents creative judicial-types from inventing Gay Marriage under a different name. Nothing in this sentence voids existing labor contracts or benefits agreements. Nothing in this sentence prohibits the Legislature from extending benefits and 'power-of-attorney' arrangements to willing parties. Nothing. And in all likelihood, the Legislature WILL enable these arrangements, carefully written and limited to "common-sense" solutions.

It may be argued that the framers of The Amendment tried to kill two birds with one stone--not only Gay "Marriage" but wacko judicial re-writes--that's true.

What's wrong with THAT?

Charlie is tolling the bell far too early. The voters of Wisconsin have shown both common sense and compassion. This Amendment gives them exactly that.

Malkin's Punditry Shines

Here's the pic. AP says it's a father and daughter and the daughter was killed by Israeli bombs.


Not exactly. As LGF points out, she was ACTUALLY killed after falling off her swingset.

Malkin calls these pictures "FAUXtos" Good to maintain a sense of humor.

Why Ban Carryons When You SHOULD Ban the Cause?

The answer to airline security is not banning water bottles, perfume, or nail polish. It is not in banning laptop computers or Ipods.

I'll give you all a hint, direct from Patriot Post. See if YOU can figure out what (or whom) to ban from the airlines.

In 1968 Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed by:
(a) A salesman from Utah
(b) An construction worker
(c) A college student on Spring Break
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17and 40.

In 1972, 11 Israeli athletes were killed at the Munich Olympics
by:
(a) Your grandmother
(b) A Midwest auto-parts dealer
(c) A mom and her 6-year-old son visiting from Indiana
(d) MiddleEastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1979, the U.S. embassy in Iran was taken over by:
(a) A bluegrass band
(b) Dallas Cowboy fans
(c) A tour group of80-year-old women
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

During the 1980's numerous Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon by:
(a) A family on their way to Disney World
(b) Jesse Ventura
(c) A Boy Scout Troop
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1983, the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut was blown up by:
(a)A pizza delivery boy
(b) The UPS guy
(c) Geraldo Rivera making up for a slow news day
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1985 the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked, and a 70-year-old disabled American passenger was murdered and thrown overboard by:
(a) A girls' choir
(b) A hardware store owner
(c) A secretary
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1985 TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens, and a U.S. Navy diver was murdered by:
(a) A Marine officer with two weeks leave
(b) A plumber going to visit his mom
(c) A Catholic nun
(d)Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed by:
(a) A college-bound freshman
(b) A cardiac surgeon on his way to Houston
(c) A waitress
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17and 40.

In 1993, the World Trade Center was bombed by:
(a) A starving actress
(b) A mom with a newborn
(c) Twin six-year-old boys
(d)Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1995, a plot to blow up U.S.-bound international flights over the Pacific was attempted by
(a) Hawaiian school kids
(b) A decorated Vietnam Veteran
(c) Twin sisters on their way to Paducah
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1998, the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by:
(a) A local TV weatherman
(b) A dad and his two sons on a ski trip
(c) A widower going to visit his grandchildren
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2000, 17 sailors died in an attack on the USS Cole (DDG 67) inYemen by:
(a) A child in a stroller
(b) A high school class on their way to visit Washington, DC
(c) Newlyweds on their way to Miami
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

On 9/11/01, four airliners were hijacked -- two flown into the World Trade Centers, one into the Pentagon and one into the ground in rural Pennsylvania. They were hijacked by:
(a) A retired police officer on a mission trip to Haiti
(b) A firefighter going to Maryland for training
(c) A paramedic on his way to vacation in Hawaii
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2002 the United States liberated Afghanistan from:
(a) USAID relief workers
(b) Jewish Pilgrims
(c) Christian missionaries
(d)Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2002 reporter Daniel Pearl and other Westerners were kidnapped and beheaded by:
(a) The Peace Corps
(b) Scottish clansmen
(c)Cuban refugees
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2002, more than 330 hostages in Beslan and 130 hostages in Moscow were murdered in sieges by:
(a) Russian exchange students
(b) The Red Guard
(c) Church planters
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2003 the United States liberated Iraq from "The Butcher of Baghdad," but most American military personnel were killed by:
(a) Iraqi school-girls
(b) Street vegetable vendors
(c) Women without burkas
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2004, more than 200 Spanish civilians were murdered on trains by bombs in Madrid, detonated by:
(a) Morning commuters
(b) A three-year-old Chinese girl
(c) Flamenco dancers
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2005 more than 50 UK citizens were killed by bombs on trains in London, detonated by:
(a) Rail workers
(b) Those unable to hail taxis
(c) Wheelchair-bound grandmothers
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2005, there were hundreds of casualties, men, women and children, killed by bombs in Jerusalem, Riyadh and Amman. These innocent civilians were murdered by:
(a) Construction workers
(b)Farmers
(c) Christian missionaries
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2005, the city of Paris, and other European cities experienced an extended period of riots and destruction. The unrest was led by:
(a) "Youth"
(b) Soccer fans
(c) Catholic nuns
(d) MiddleEastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

Since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom, more than 2,500 Americans have been murdered by terrorists. 35,000 Iraqi men, women and children have also been murdered by terrorists. Most of the combat and civilians casualties were the result of bombs detonated in civilian population centers by:
(a) Fruit vendors inBaghdad
(b) Disgruntled transit union workers
(c) Iraqi schoolteachers
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2006, hundreds of Israeli civilians have been killed by rockets launched by:
(a) the Salvation Army
(b) remnants of the'Jackson Five'
(c) the cast of 'Friends'
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 2006, a plot to blow up 10 U.S.-bound planes from the U.K. was attempted by
(a) members of the royal family
(b) Japanese tourists
(c) groupies of the band 'Cream'
(d) Middle EasternIslamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

Since 2001, the FBI reports that there are major terrorist cells still in U.S. urban centers. Several of these cells have been uncovered and cell members arrested. In every case, the terrorists cell members were:
(a) Southern Baptists Conventioneers
(b) Lutheran Youth Groups
(c) Presbyterian Elders
(d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

President George Bush said this week, "America is at war withIslamic fascists who will use any means to destroy those of uswho love freedom, to hurt our nation." The Council on American-Islamic Relations issued an immediate objection to thePresident's reference to "Islamic fascists".

Nihad Awad,executive director of CAIR protested, "We have to isolate these individuals because there is nothing in the Koran or the Islamic faith that encourages people to be cruel or to be vicious or to be criminal. Muslims world wide know that for sure."

In light ofthis objection, we are left to ponder why every Islamic leader in
the U.S., and the world, does not publicly condemn every terror action being undertaken in the name of the god of Islam. Their silence is deafening...Between 1970 and present, there were more than 60 other notable examples of terrorism perpetrated by Middle Eastern male Islamists between the ages 17 and 40, but we think you get the point. Singling out "Middle Eastern male Islamists between theages 17 and 40" is not "ethnic profiling," it's "terrorist profiling" -- acting on prolific evidence.

Anyone for Terrorist Profiling?

Or should we harass American citizens instead?

For FAR MORE on Dhimmitude in Detroit, see Texas Hold'Em

AlGore: Energy Hog

From ShopFloor:

Public records reveal that as Gore lectures Americans on excessive consumption, he and his wife Tipper live in two properties: a 10,000-square-foot, 20-room, eight-bathroom home in Nashville, and a 4,000-square-foot home in Arlington, Va. (He also has a third home in Carthage, Tenn.) For someone rallying the planet to pursue a path of extreme personal sacrifice, Gore requires little from himself.

10,000 square feet!! Holy cleaning-ladies!!

Then there is the troubling matter of his energy use. In the Washington, D.C., area, utility companies offer wind energy as an alternative to traditional energy. In Nashville, similar programs exist. Utility customers must simply pay a few extra pennies per kilowatt hour, and they can continue living their carbon-neutral lifestyles knowing that they are supporting wind energy. Plenty of businesses and institutions have signed up. Even the Bush administration is using green energy for some federal office buildings, as are thousands of area residents.

But according to public records, there is no evidence that Gore has signed up to use green energy in either of his large residences. When contacted Wednesday, Gore's office confirmed as much but said the Gores were looking into making the switch at both homes. Talk about inconvenient truths."

Al ougtha look into windmill-energy. He could be His Own Personal Utility.

Jury Finds that Wal-Mart Sucks

Katoria Lee refused a carjacker's command to surrender her car-keys in 2001, so he shot her in the back. This, a Georgia state court jury decided, was the fault of Wal-Mart, who owned the parking lot where the shooting occurred. Eric Deown Riggins, 22, was caught within minutes, and is serving a 15-year sentence in state prison for the crime.

Lee's attorney, Lance Cooper, mentioned the 398 visits by police to the Riverdale Wal-Mart in the twenty months before the accident as evidence that there should have been "more" security that made Wal-Mart at fault for a third-party's malicious crime...

To the tune of $4.+ million dollars...

HT: Overlawyered

Doyle-Rules

Lakeshore sneaked into the Doyle (D-Highest Bidder) campaign HQ and found these. (Since I am Deep Throat, I am speaking to you from a garage deep beneath Capitol Square.)

Worth the read, and accurate...

P-Mac Discovers Dimowit Tendencies

Pat McI. found some interesting stats in an Ann Coulter column:

“To give you a snapshot of today's Democratic Party,” she writes, “in 2004, pollster Scott Rasmussen asked likely voters if they believed America was generally a fair and decent country and whether they believed the world would be a better place if more countries were like America.

“Republicans agreed that America is generally fair and decent, 83 percent to 7 percent. Eighty-one percent agreed that the world would be a better place if more countries were like the United States.

“By contrast, Democrats were nearly split, with only 46 percent agreeing that America is generally a fair and decent country, and with 37 percent saying America is not a generally fair and decent country.” (note: where Coulter calls this subset “Democrats,” Rasmussen called them “Kerry voters.” -PM)

“Only 48 percent of Democrats said they thought that the world would be a better place if more countries were like the United States.

Well, that's because GWB is the President and Congress has a (R) majority--

Or maybe it's because the Dimowits watch CBS News and read Reuters (exclusively.)

Iraqi Chickens and Roads

For the definitive Iraqi-chicken-crosses-the-road roundup, see this post.

HT: Grim's Hall

A Lonely Call for Common Sense on Airport Screening

CQ and the Washington Examiner point out what's obvious to EVERYONE except Chertoff and CAIR:

...scan the many news photos of the long lines of frustrated travelers Thursday, and it is impossible not to notice how few match the typical terrorist profile — natives of or descended from families that came from or still live in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt or another Middle Eastern, Asian or African nation with a Muslim majority or significant Muslim minority.

We recognize that the vast majority of Muslims do not share the Jihadist obsessions with killing Americans, Brits and other Westerners. But there is one undeniable fact about the 1993 World Trace Center bombers, the Sept. 11 murderers, the Madrid bombers, the London subway bombers and the present liquid bomb plotters — all are clearly identifiable as being from Muslim nations. We’ve yet to see bombers who look even remotely like a gray-haired governess from Southampton, a harried middle-aged U.S. sales executive from Los Angeles or a haggard dad and mom with kids in tow returning home to Atlanta.

There is no room left for the blind politically correct procedures that ignore this reality — our enemy is nearly always a young to middle-aged man from a Muslim nation or culture, and it is madness not to focus mainly on those who most readily match the known profile. If preventing another Sept. 11 horror means delaying all travelers from such nations, well, then so be it.

Yah, hey!

On the other hand, maybe TSA will have a vast rummage sale of confiscated nail-polishes and recoup some of their budget...

NYSlimes Leakers in Deep Doo-Doo?

Just a tantalizing tidbit from the Spectator blog:

Lost amid the success by British intelligence and law enforcement in breaking up parts of the airline terror threat is the fact that U.S. intelligence sources were in on the case.

How?

Well, let's just say the NSA should come out of this case looking pretty good. And whoever leaked classified information about international eavesdropping on terrorist conversations should be getting very nervous. This British case just became Exhibit A for how important the listening program is.

S'pose we'll see the Slimes editor being frog-marched out of the building?

UPDATE: Maybe so. Seems that a Fed Judge ruled that private citizens may be prosecuted for revealing classified info. Let us pray.

Hairdo Is Cause of Problems

The way I see it, it was the hairdo appointment that led to this:

An 86-year-old Pewaukee man drove his car through the front doors of the Brookfield McDonald's on Thursday morning and had to be pulled from the vehicle by retired police officers who had gathered at the restaurant for coffee, police said.

The man had dropped his wife off at J.C. Penney at Brookfield Square mall for a hair appointment

I know a couple of the retired coppers who are usually over there on Thursday AM's. An interesting way to start your day, no?

Permanent Pedestrian?

So this guy disses the Sheriff and does hard time, walking around Milwaukee streets.

The Sheriff eventually re-assigns him and he winds up driving!

Bad move.

A veteran Milwaukee County sheriff's deputy was hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries suffered when the squad car he was driving struck another car and rolled over as he was pursuing a fleeing vehicle Thursday afternoon.

Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. said the deputy, Michael Schuh, was northbound on Green Bay Road in a marked department Jeep Cherokee shortly after 3 p.m. in pursuit of a tan Nissan Altima occupied by suspects in an armed robbery. Near where W. Teutonia Ave. joins Green Bay, Clarke said, Schuh struck a Saturn sedan and the squad car rolled over and came to rest in a grassy median.

The SpiceBoyzzz might have to eat their snark...(scroll down a bit)

ICE Hits Whitewater's Star Packaging 3 UPDATES

Last night's Channel 4 News mentioned that Immigration Control hit a place called Star Packaging in Whitewater, dragging out over two dozen illegals and a Company officer.

UPDATE: The JSOnline has some info:

[Pedro's] (not his real name) wife was one of 25 people taken into custody after a task force executed a search warrant at Star Packaging. The task force included members from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Milwaukee, the Social Security Administration, the Walworth County Sheriff's Department and the Whitewater Police Department.

Allen L. Petrie, owner of Star Packaging, was taken into police custody for allegedly conspiring to commit misappropriation of identification and for being party to a crime of misappropriation of identification.

This curious clause about the raid is WAY down in the article:

which Whitewater police insisted was directed not at the workers but at Petrie

From non-business dealings I am acquainted with the Al Petrie.

Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

Apparently ICE folks haven't had their Sensitivity Vitamin Boosters, either:

There were other terms for which immigration officials and the audience - more than 40 Hispanic men, women and children - had different definitions.

During the meeting, Sandra Jiménez asked the immigration officer, who insisted on calling the detainees "illegal aliens" because "that is the legal term," to consider using a less offensive term, such as undocumented workers.

"The word alien makes me think of strange little creatures," Sandra Jiménez, a legal immigrant from Mexico, said. "I am not a Martian."

Right, Sandra. You're a twit, not a Martian.

UPDATE TWO:

Allen Petrie, who owns and operates Star Packaging at 960 E. Milwaukee St., and the employees were arrested about 10 a.m. at the business.

Whitewater police will ask the Walworth County district attorney to charge Petrie with party to conspiracy to commit misappropriation of identification, said Lt. Lisa Otterbacher, who is acting chief.

Petrie, 47, is accused of employing people without proper documentation, including Social Security numbers, that would allow them to live and work in the United States, Otterbacher said.

Otterbacher said Petrie's arrest came after "a number of meetings between the company owner and the investigators."She said Petrie was told many times that he couldn't employ illegal immigrants, but he didn't change his way of operating.

Evidently Mr. Petrie is not real good at taking a hint, eh?

UPDATE 3:

"In this country, an employer has the obligation under federal law to ask for identification, and that's it," attorney Frank Lettenberger said. "That's what this employer has been doing."

"There is an allegation that Mr. Petrie may be employing workers who are illegal aliens who are using false Social Security numbers to gain employment," Krueger said.

The Whitewater Police Department has contacted Petrie several times during an investigation that started in February, Lt. Lisa Otterbacher said.

Lettenberger found it peculiar that Whitewater Investigator Larry Meyer led the investigation into Star Packaging.

Meyer currently has an open civil suit in federal court filed by another Whitewater businessman, Steve D. Cvicker, owner of Whitewater Rock and Mulch.

The attorney's defense seems to rest on a combination of "My client is stupid AND the investigator is really nasty."