Well, it starts out OK, even providing as a citation Musicae Sacrae Disciplina--but curiously omitting the work of Pius X, whose writings on the topic are arguably the touchstone for all further discussion of the topic of Sacred and liturgical music.
It is clear that there were two or three (maybe more) "hands" which wrote the document, because there are far too many vague, unclear, directionless (or bi-directional) statements. It's a bit heavy on verbage and very light on definitions.
Some quick observations follow.
In #29, the authors allow the camel's nose into the tent:
Choirs (and ensembles—another form of choir that commonly includes a combination
of singers and instrumentalists) exercise their ministry in various ways
So far, there's no 'splanation of what "instrumentalists" might be inappropriate. "Ensembles" arise again in #42 with no clear modifying terms.
They are also vague here:
Other Mass parts may also be sung in dialogue or alternation, especially the Gloria, the Creed, and the three processional songs: the Entrance, the Preparation of the Gifts, and Communion.
This formulation does not specifically mention "Propers," (and in most missalettes the Offertory Proper is not even printed.) In fact, the Introit and Communio Propers ARE set up for verses (sung to a psalm-tone) and antiphon (usually more complex Chant.) Too bad it wasn't specifically mentioned. (Later, the 'Preparation of the Gifts' processional disappears!)
Compromises abound. In #30, we read:
The choir may draw on the treasury of sacred music, singing compositions by composers of various periods and in various musical styles, as well as music that expresses the faith of the various cultures that enrich the Church.
"Various styles" is overly broad. It certainly cannot be supported based on the teachings of Pius X, (nor of Pius XII,) who were explicit in mentioning Chant and Chant-based music first...
Also in #30 we see:
The music of the choir must always be appropriate to the Liturgy, either by being a proper liturgical text or by expressing themes appropriate to the Liturgy.
Which is also overly vague, allowing "various styles" to include all sorts of things. No mention of the gravitas of the Mass here, which would be a useful insertion.
On Page 27, the document mentions Latin.
...care should be taken to foster the role of Latin in the Liturgy, particularly in liturgical
song. Pastors should ensure “that the faithful may also be able to say or to sing together in Latin
those parts of the Ordinary of the Mass which pertain to them.”
Which is good. But it's followed by this:
Whenever the Latin language poses an obstacle to singers, even after sufficient
training has been provided—for example, in pronunciation, understanding of the text, or
confident rendition of a piece—it would be more prudent to employ a vernacular language in the
Liturgy.
Meaning what, exactly? Maybe this:
In promoting the use of Latin in the Liturgy, pastors should always “employ that form
of participation which best matches the capabilities of each congregation".
In Section III, the document discusses 'different kinds of music for the liturgy.'
“Sacred music is to be considered the more holy the more closely connected it is with
the liturgical action, whether making prayer more pleasing, promoting unity of minds, or
conferring greater solemnity upon the sacred rites.” This holiness involves ritual and spiritual
dimensions, both of which must be considered within cultural context.
68. The ritual dimension of sacred music refers to those ways in which it is “connected
with the liturgical action” so that it accords with the structure of the Liturgy and expresses the
shape of the rite. The musical setting must allow the rite to unfold with the proper participation
of the assembly and its ministers, without overshadowing the words and actions of the Liturgy.
Yes--although since sacred music (by definition) uses words of the Liturgy, it can hardly 'overshadow' the words of the Liturgy.
69. The spiritual dimension of sacred music refers to its inner qualities that enable it to
add greater depth to prayer, unity to the assembly, or dignity to the ritual. Sacred music is holy
when it mediates the holiness of God and forms the Holy People of God more fully into
communion with him and with each other in Christ.
We're waiting for the term "beauty" to show up here......
70. The cultural context refers to the setting in which the ritual and spiritual dimensions
come into play. Factors such as the age, spiritual heritage, and cultural and ethnic background of
a given liturgical assembly must be considered. The choice of individual compositions for
congregational participation will often depend on those ways in which a particular group finds it
best to join their hearts and minds to the liturgical action.
And we're also waiting for the concept of "educating the Faithful."
But the authors DID quote V2 accurately:
“The Church recognizes Gregorian chant as being specially suited to the Roman
Liturgy. Therefore, other things being equal, it should be given pride of place in liturgical
services.” Gregorian chant is uniquely the Church’s own music. Chant is a living connection
with our forebears in the faith, the traditional music of the Roman rite, a sign of communion with
the universal Church, a bond of unity across cultures, a means for diverse communities to
participate together in song, and a summons to contemplative participation in the Liturgy.
And then comes the "on the other hand":
73. The “pride of place” given to Gregorian chant by the Second Vatican Council is
modified by the important phrase “other things being equal.”69 These “other things” are the
important liturgical and pastoral concerns facing every bishop, pastor, and liturgical musician. In
considering the use of the treasures of chant, pastors and liturgical musicians should take care
that the congregation is able to participate in the Liturgy with song. They should be sensitive to
the cultural and spiritual milieu of their communities, in order to build up the Church in unity
and peace
Holding two dissimilar objectives continues here:
75. Each worshiping community in the United States, including all age groups and all
ethnic groups, should, at a minimum, learn Kyrie XVI, Sanctus XVIII, and Agnus Dei XVIII, all of which are typically included in congregational worship aids. More difficult chants, such as
Gloria VIII and settings of the Credo and Pater Noster, might be learned after the easier chants
have been mastered
The Pater Noster should take an average adult about 6 weeks to learn, if they hear it every week.
76. “The assembly of the faithful should participate in singing the Proper of the Mass as
much as possible, especially through simple responses and other suitable settings.” When the
congregation does not sing an antiphon or hymn, proper chants from the Graduale Romanum
might be sung by a choir that is able to render these challenging pieces well
The red above is an interesting formulation because it implies that "hymns or antiphons" are equally valid substitutes for Propers. They aren't, of course. Propers are the FIRST option, and the order of options actually is significant in formal discourse.
Whenever a choir sings in Latin, it is helpful to provide the congregation with a vernacular translation so that they are able to “unite themselves interiorly” to what the choir sings.
Meaning that OCP will actually print the Offertory versicle in future missalettes?
The document switches back and forth from "liturgical music" to "sacred music" without carefully explaining the difference between the two--and there IS a difference, principally in use. Sacred music uses texts from Scripture or the text of the Missal. Liturgical music may use those texts, but almost always is an adaptation of those texts. Further, "liturgical" music can be used in non-Mass devotions (Hours, Marian devotions, Holy Hours)--sacred music cannot.
There's also no mention of "hymnody" proper, another genre altogether, which might be included in "liturgical" music in this document--but who knows?
Regarding new compositions, the document is equally, ah, fuzzy:
83. The Church never ceases to find new ways to sing her love for God each new day.
The Sacred Liturgy itself, in its actions and prayers, best makes known the forms in which
compositions will continue to evolve. Composers find their inspiration in Sacred Scripture, and
especially in the texts of the Sacred Liturgy, so that their works flow from the Liturgy itself.76
Moreover, “to be suitable for use in the Liturgy, a sung text must not only be doctrinally correct, but must in itself be an expression of the Catholic faith.” Therefore, “liturgical songs must never be permitted to make statements about faith which are untrue.”77 Only within this scriptural, liturgical, and creedal context is the composer who is aware of the Church’s long journey through human history and “who is profoundly steeped in the sensus Ecclesiae” properly equipped “to perceive and express in melody the truth of the Mystery that is celebrated in the Liturgy.”78 No matter what the genre of music, liturgical beauty emanates directly from that mystery and is passed through the talents of composers to emerge in music of the assembled People of God.
Pius X used terms like "form" and "beauty" and "universal." And his formulation was different; whereas this document states that 'liturgical beauty emanates directly from that mystery and ...emerges in music,' Pius was careful to state that the music must be "beautiful" in the sense that it was intellectually rigorous AND capable of 'catching the heart.'
Frankly, this statement is less clear, but a "fixit" paragraph emerges:
Today, as they continue to serve the Church at prayer, composers are encouraged to concentrate on craftsmanship and artistic excellence in all musical genres.
In discussion of instruments, the document is, once again, indefinite. While the discussion begins with citation of the "primacy" of the pipe organ, it wanders a bit:
89. However, from the days when the Ark of the Covenant was accompanied in
procession by cymbals, harps, lyres, and trumpets, God’s people have, in various periods, used a
variety of musical instruments to sing his praise. Each of these instruments, born of the culture and the traditions of a particular people, has given voice to a wide variety of forms and styles through which Christ’s faithful continue to join their voices to his perfect song of praise upon the Cross.
90. Many other instruments also enrich the celebration of the Liturgy, such as wind,
stringed, or percussion instruments “according to longstanding local usage, provided they are
truly apt for sacred use or can be rendered apt.”
Meaning what? "Percussion" instruments include the piano, tympani, and castanets. Of the three, the only one actually authorized (by Pius XII) is the tympani. The 'truly apt/rendered so' language is a barn-door merely waiting for the horses.
And, yes, there was a revolutionary statement made here:
93. Recorded music lacks the authenticity provided by a living liturgical assembly
gathered for the Sacred Liturgy. While recorded music might be used advantageously outside the Liturgy as an aid in the teaching of new music, it should not, as a general norm, be used within the Liturgy.
94. Some exceptions to this principle should be noted. Recorded music may be used to
accompany the community’s song during a procession outside and, when used carefully, in
Masses with children. Occasionally, it might be used as an aid to prayer, for example, during
long periods of silence in a communal celebration of reconciliation. However, recorded music
should never become a substitute for the community’s singing.
Recorded music has NEVER been allowed at Mass, even for chilluns, in the history of the Church. And (by the way) what's wrong with "long periods of silence" during communal reconciliation? A lack of entertainment is uncomfortable, but sinners OUGHT to be uncomfortable.
Either the music is or is NOT that of 'a living assembly.' Facsimile-music is, by definition, NOT 'living.'
The discussion of acoustics evades the fact that a 'shoebox'-shaped church (dimensionally similar to a shoebox) provides the best acoustics, if it's not covered in carpet and acoustical tile. There's a reason for that evasion: the Liturgeist Establishment has spent a LOT of other people's money building circus-tent churches, which are acoustic abominations. Mention the reality, and some people might be unhappy...
On PP 43/44, the document makes a curious statement:
The Entrance and Communion chants with their psalm verses serve to accompany the two most important processions of the Mass: the entrance procession, by which the Mass begins, and the Communion procession, by which the faithful approach the altar to receive Holy Communion
Better minds than mine will have to explain what happened to the Offertory procession, in which gifts are brought to the altar of sacrifice...and which was mentioned earlier in the document!
On the other hand, this probably explains what happened to the Offertory versicle in the Pauline Use (at least in the USA--for the European/Solesmes Gregorian Missal still HAS the Offertory versicle.)
A little later, we see this:
...congregational hymns of a particular nation or group that have been judged appropriate by the competent authorities mentioned in the GIRM, nos. 48, 74, and 87, may be admitted to the Sacred Liturgy. Church legislation today permits as an option the use of vernacular hymns at the Entrance, Preparation of the Gifts, Communion, and Recessional
Well, yah, but what is NOT mentioned is that those hymns are the LAST option mentioned in the pertinent Church documents--after the Propers of the Mass.
Here's a cute line:
121. When a Liturgy or music committee is chosen to prepare music for the Liturgy, it
should include persons with the knowledge and artistic skills needed in celebration: men and
women trained in Catholic theology, Liturgy, and liturgical music and familiar with current
resources in these areas. It is always good to include as consultants some members of the
worshiping assembly so that their perspective is represented...
....if actually followed to the letter, most "Liturgy committees" would be reduced to one or two people.
The discussion of "how to pick the music" uses three criteria, and requires that all three be considered equal in arriving at a judgment.
One of those is the "pastoral" judgment, and the latitude provided therein is astounding:
130. The pastoral judgment takes into consideration the actual community gathered to
celebrate in a particular place at a particular time...
...liturgical assemblies are composed of people of many different nations. Such peoples often “have their own musical tradition, and this plays a great part in their religious and social life. For this reason their music should be held in proper esteem and a suitable place is to be given to it, not only in forming their religious sense but also in adapting worship to their native genius. .
Other factors—such as the age, culture, language, and education of a given liturgical
assembly—must also be considered. Particular musical forms and the choice of individual
compositions for congregational participation will often depend on those ways in which a
particular group finds it easiest to join their hearts and minds to the liturgical action
Truck drive-through.
Similarly, the "musical judgment," while beginning soundly:
Only artistically sound music will be effective and endure over time. To admit to the Liturgy the cheap, the trite, or the musical cliché often found in secular popular songs is to cheapen the Liturgy, to expose it to ridicule, and to invite failure.
...doesn't end that way:
Sufficiency of artistic expression, however, is not the same as musical style, for “the
Church has not adopted any particular style of art as her own. She has admitted styles from every period, in keeping with the natural characteristics and conditions of peoples and the needs of the various rites.”104 Thus, in recent times, the Church has consistently recognized and freely welcomed the use of various styles of music as an aid to liturgical worship
This means that the 'trite, cheap, and cliche' will be declared a "style" by the Liturgeists...
Skimming the rest of the document produces much of the same. It's like reading an economist's predictions: "On the one hand.....on the OTHER hand..." with some very good and some utterly silly language.
Another revision? Maybe. More likely Rome will simply intervene.
Friday, November 30, 2007
No Inflation--If You Don't Eat or Buy Fuel
Forget about the gasoline price.
The November All Farm Products Index of Prices Received by Farmers is 1.4% above October's index. Breaking it out, the crop index is up a similar 1.4%, while the livestock index rose a greater 2.3%. Producers received higher soybean, egg, corn and broiler prices, while lettuce, hogs, cattle and broccoli fetched lower prices. With this month's overall price increase, the index is now 20% higher than it was a year ago. The index for prices paid by farmers for inputs also rose this month, gaining 0.6% with rising prices for diesel fuel, complete feeds and gasoline, while lower prices were paid for feeder cattle, potash and phosphate materials and hay and forages. --The Dismal Scientist 11/30/07
So food prices are up 20% in the last year, yet the Feds claim that inflation is only running around 3%.
Maybe the cost of houses is offsetting the cost of food?
The November All Farm Products Index of Prices Received by Farmers is 1.4% above October's index. Breaking it out, the crop index is up a similar 1.4%, while the livestock index rose a greater 2.3%. Producers received higher soybean, egg, corn and broiler prices, while lettuce, hogs, cattle and broccoli fetched lower prices. With this month's overall price increase, the index is now 20% higher than it was a year ago. The index for prices paid by farmers for inputs also rose this month, gaining 0.6% with rising prices for diesel fuel, complete feeds and gasoline, while lower prices were paid for feeder cattle, potash and phosphate materials and hay and forages. --The Dismal Scientist 11/30/07
So food prices are up 20% in the last year, yet the Feds claim that inflation is only running around 3%.
Maybe the cost of houses is offsetting the cost of food?
Stupid Crook Tricks
Only the LawDog can tell the story...go there.
Hint: Did you know that one well-toned construction worker can lift the front end of a Subaru Justy off the ground?
Hint: Did you know that one well-toned construction worker can lift the front end of a Subaru Justy off the ground?
Esenberg's Right
When Rick stated that there are some...ahhh....nasty people who are Mohammedans, he wasn't speculating.
Thousands of people have marched in the Sudanese capital Khartoum to call for UK teacher Gillian Gibbons to be shot.
Mrs Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, was jailed by a court on Thursday after children in her class named a teddy bear Muhammad.
She was sentenced to 15 days for insulting religion, and she will then be deported.
The marchers took to the streets after Friday prayers to denounce the leniency of the sentence.
The protesters gathered in Martyrs Square, outside the presidential palace in the capital, many of them carrying knives and sticks.
Marchers chanted "Shame, shame on the UK", "No tolerance - execution" and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad".
I'm sure that some will assert that this reaction is identical to the reaction of the Catholic League to Miller Brewing's support of a smear of Christ and the Apostles.
But I don't see any AK-47's outside Miller's HQ on Highland Boulevard...
Thousands of people have marched in the Sudanese capital Khartoum to call for UK teacher Gillian Gibbons to be shot.
Mrs Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, was jailed by a court on Thursday after children in her class named a teddy bear Muhammad.
She was sentenced to 15 days for insulting religion, and she will then be deported.
The marchers took to the streets after Friday prayers to denounce the leniency of the sentence.
The protesters gathered in Martyrs Square, outside the presidential palace in the capital, many of them carrying knives and sticks.
Marchers chanted "Shame, shame on the UK", "No tolerance - execution" and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad".
I'm sure that some will assert that this reaction is identical to the reaction of the Catholic League to Miller Brewing's support of a smear of Christ and the Apostles.
But I don't see any AK-47's outside Miller's HQ on Highland Boulevard...
Dave Obey: A Danger to the Republic
In a way, Dave Obey's (D-Defeat) dogged determination to manage the Iraq war from his desk in the House of Representatives is a good thing...his constituents will see him for what he is: a craven, despicable, second-rate political animal.
Meantime, however, he may cause some damage.
President Bush warned Congress yesterday that the Pentagon will soon have to start laying off civilian employees and reducing operations at U.S. military bases unless lawmakers send him an emergency war funding bill that does not mandate troop withdrawals from Iraq.
Escalating a dispute with Democratic lawmakers over his request for $196 billion in supplemental funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Bush complained that a delay in providing the money is jeopardizing important military efforts.
"The missions of this department are essential to saving Americans' lives, and they are too important to be disrupted or delayed or put at risk," Bush said at the Pentagon after he received more than two hours of briefings. "Pentagon officials have warned Congress that the continued delay in funding our troops will soon begin to have a damaging impact on the operations of this department."
Congressional Democrats blame Bush for the delay because he refuses to accept a $50 billion funding bill that includes a requirement to begin pulling combat troops out of Iraq and changing the U.S. military mission there. The House passed the bill earlier this month, but Republicans blocked it in the Senate
Translate "House"-passed as Obey's language, folks.
What a maroon.
Meantime, however, he may cause some damage.
President Bush warned Congress yesterday that the Pentagon will soon have to start laying off civilian employees and reducing operations at U.S. military bases unless lawmakers send him an emergency war funding bill that does not mandate troop withdrawals from Iraq.
Escalating a dispute with Democratic lawmakers over his request for $196 billion in supplemental funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Bush complained that a delay in providing the money is jeopardizing important military efforts.
"The missions of this department are essential to saving Americans' lives, and they are too important to be disrupted or delayed or put at risk," Bush said at the Pentagon after he received more than two hours of briefings. "Pentagon officials have warned Congress that the continued delay in funding our troops will soon begin to have a damaging impact on the operations of this department."
Congressional Democrats blame Bush for the delay because he refuses to accept a $50 billion funding bill that includes a requirement to begin pulling combat troops out of Iraq and changing the U.S. military mission there. The House passed the bill earlier this month, but Republicans blocked it in the Senate
Translate "House"-passed as Obey's language, folks.
What a maroon.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Time Warner Pops Price
We don't get fancy cable; we get the basic package.
And that just popped by 4.89%.
But no NFL channel; no Big 10 channel----
So.....how's that work again?
And that just popped by 4.89%.
But no NFL channel; no Big 10 channel----
So.....how's that work again?
Custom and Dogma in Liturgy
Long article, worth reading here, reporting on a talk by Fr. J. Saward, an Oxford scholar (ex-Episcopalian priest)
An excerpt or two:
It is not just the propositional statements of the Church which, when they have the appropriate degree of authority, can be relied upon as guided and guaranteed by the Holy Ghost, but the customs of the Church. What is practised for long ages by the most universally revered authorities cannot suddenly be said to be defective. This is exactly the point made repeatedly by Joseph, Cardinal Ratzinger in his books, and which is repeated clearly by Papa Ratzinger in his Letter to Bishops accompanying the MP. What was holy yesterday cannot be harmful today; indeed, the denial of this principle ‘calls the very existence of the Church into question’ (Feast of Faith). It is for this reason that it must be understood that the previous liturgical tradition was never abrogated. This is a dogmatic matter, and in making this dogmatic point the Holy Father is doing what he always does in the exercise of his office, which is guarding the Faith.
A problem encountered in the Pauline Use is discussed:
...many of the orations of the 1962 Missal are addressed to the Second Person of the Trinity, and two prayers, the Suscipe, sancta Trinitas at the Offertory and the Placeat tibi, sancta Trinitase are addressed to the whole Trinity, despite the fact that the majority of the orations and other prayers use the familiar form of addressing the Father through the Son in the Holy Ghost. This twofold pattern of liturgical prayer reflects and makes manifest the Catholic dogma of the Holy and Undivided Trinity. The 1970 Missal removes almost all of the orations addressed to the incarnate Son and both of the prayers addressed to the whole Trinity. These amputations from the liturgy open the way to misunderstanding. Participants in the liturgy are no longer reminded of the co-equality and consubstantiality of the Persons of the Trinity. This is not a merely theoretical point since a whole series of Trinitarian and Christological errors, tending to the denial of Christ’s Divine nature and co-equality with the Father, have been condemned or censured by the Holy See in recent decades (cf the cases of Edward Schillebeeckx OP and, more recently, of Roger Haight SJ).
...A fourth example is the ceremonial of the Mass, such as the signs of the cross, so many of which have been suppressed in the 1970 Missal. These actions had in the past given rise to a whole genre of spiritual commentaries on the Mass, which assigned dogmatic meanings to the rituals with great consistency. Many saints, including St Thomas Aquinas, contributed to this literature, and took these signs extremely seriously. With the 1970 Missal, not only are these books rendered obsolete, but the signs themselves are no longer there to communicate their dogmatic significance to the onlooker.
Fr. Saward then comments on Ratzinger/B-16's commentary on 'ad orientem' and the 'non-silent' mode of the Pauline Use:
...we turn to the remarkably strongly-worded critique of misleading or unhelpful aspects of the 1970 Missal found in Ratzinger’s works. In The Spirit of the Liturgy Ratzinger made an extremely strong critique of Mass facing the people, warning that such Masses could and in some times and places had become a ‘closed circle’, where attention which should be fixed on God became fixed on Man; he even likened such ‘self-initiated’ and ‘self-seeking’ liturgy to the worship of the Golden Calf: the ultimate substitution of a human artifact for God as the object of worship. In that book and elsewhere, Ratzinger noted the problem of silence in the New Mass, since for the most part periods of silence in the course of Mass were only possible by bringing the liturgy to a temporary halt. On the contrary, Ratzinger argued, to be fruitful silence needs to be an integral part of the liturgy, what he calls ‘filled silence’, and not merely an artificial pause. In these and in other ways the reformed liturgy actually militates against effective participation.
More than just lousy English and sappy songs...
HT: TNLM
An excerpt or two:
It is not just the propositional statements of the Church which, when they have the appropriate degree of authority, can be relied upon as guided and guaranteed by the Holy Ghost, but the customs of the Church. What is practised for long ages by the most universally revered authorities cannot suddenly be said to be defective. This is exactly the point made repeatedly by Joseph, Cardinal Ratzinger in his books, and which is repeated clearly by Papa Ratzinger in his Letter to Bishops accompanying the MP. What was holy yesterday cannot be harmful today; indeed, the denial of this principle ‘calls the very existence of the Church into question’ (Feast of Faith). It is for this reason that it must be understood that the previous liturgical tradition was never abrogated. This is a dogmatic matter, and in making this dogmatic point the Holy Father is doing what he always does in the exercise of his office, which is guarding the Faith.
A problem encountered in the Pauline Use is discussed:
...many of the orations of the 1962 Missal are addressed to the Second Person of the Trinity, and two prayers, the Suscipe, sancta Trinitas at the Offertory and the Placeat tibi, sancta Trinitase are addressed to the whole Trinity, despite the fact that the majority of the orations and other prayers use the familiar form of addressing the Father through the Son in the Holy Ghost. This twofold pattern of liturgical prayer reflects and makes manifest the Catholic dogma of the Holy and Undivided Trinity. The 1970 Missal removes almost all of the orations addressed to the incarnate Son and both of the prayers addressed to the whole Trinity. These amputations from the liturgy open the way to misunderstanding. Participants in the liturgy are no longer reminded of the co-equality and consubstantiality of the Persons of the Trinity. This is not a merely theoretical point since a whole series of Trinitarian and Christological errors, tending to the denial of Christ’s Divine nature and co-equality with the Father, have been condemned or censured by the Holy See in recent decades (cf the cases of Edward Schillebeeckx OP and, more recently, of Roger Haight SJ).
...A fourth example is the ceremonial of the Mass, such as the signs of the cross, so many of which have been suppressed in the 1970 Missal. These actions had in the past given rise to a whole genre of spiritual commentaries on the Mass, which assigned dogmatic meanings to the rituals with great consistency. Many saints, including St Thomas Aquinas, contributed to this literature, and took these signs extremely seriously. With the 1970 Missal, not only are these books rendered obsolete, but the signs themselves are no longer there to communicate their dogmatic significance to the onlooker.
Fr. Saward then comments on Ratzinger/B-16's commentary on 'ad orientem' and the 'non-silent' mode of the Pauline Use:
...we turn to the remarkably strongly-worded critique of misleading or unhelpful aspects of the 1970 Missal found in Ratzinger’s works. In The Spirit of the Liturgy Ratzinger made an extremely strong critique of Mass facing the people, warning that such Masses could and in some times and places had become a ‘closed circle’, where attention which should be fixed on God became fixed on Man; he even likened such ‘self-initiated’ and ‘self-seeking’ liturgy to the worship of the Golden Calf: the ultimate substitution of a human artifact for God as the object of worship. In that book and elsewhere, Ratzinger noted the problem of silence in the New Mass, since for the most part periods of silence in the course of Mass were only possible by bringing the liturgy to a temporary halt. On the contrary, Ratzinger argued, to be fruitful silence needs to be an integral part of the liturgy, what he calls ‘filled silence’, and not merely an artificial pause. In these and in other ways the reformed liturgy actually militates against effective participation.
More than just lousy English and sappy songs...
HT: TNLM
Trent Lott--It Smells Even Worse
Most informed people know that Trent Lott is the brother-in-law of Dickie Scruggs, a PI lawyer and Friend of Bill Clinton.
Seems that Dickie Scruggs is looking at Club Fed with a new eye...
A grand jury in North Mississippi has indicted Richard “Dickie” Scruggs, his son, Zach Scruggs, Scruggs Law Firm attorney Sidney A. Backstrom, attorney Timothy Balducci and former State Auditor Steve Patterson for conspiring to bribe a state court judge in North Mississippi over a case that involved funds from a settlement with State Farm insurance companies.
The indictment, filed late Thursday, said Scruggs attempted to influence Circuit Judge Henry L. Lackey in the case by offering him $40,000 for an order that would resolve the lawsuit Jones vs. Scruggs in favor of Dickie Scruggs and the Scruggs Law Firm.
Dickie Scruggs also is accused of attempting to conceal his and the other attorneys’ involvement in the alleged bribery attempt.
So happens that the case in that court was Trent's very own revenge-suit against State Farm.
HT: Malkin
Seems that Dickie Scruggs is looking at Club Fed with a new eye...
A grand jury in North Mississippi has indicted Richard “Dickie” Scruggs, his son, Zach Scruggs, Scruggs Law Firm attorney Sidney A. Backstrom, attorney Timothy Balducci and former State Auditor Steve Patterson for conspiring to bribe a state court judge in North Mississippi over a case that involved funds from a settlement with State Farm insurance companies.
The indictment, filed late Thursday, said Scruggs attempted to influence Circuit Judge Henry L. Lackey in the case by offering him $40,000 for an order that would resolve the lawsuit Jones vs. Scruggs in favor of Dickie Scruggs and the Scruggs Law Firm.
Dickie Scruggs also is accused of attempting to conceal his and the other attorneys’ involvement in the alleged bribery attempt.
So happens that the case in that court was Trent's very own revenge-suit against State Farm.
HT: Malkin
The Women's Vote: More Gummint Spending
John Lott did the homework, although this is not exactly news.
Even after accounting for a range of other factors — such as industrialization, urbanization, education and income — the impact of granting of women's suffrage on per-capita state government expenditures and revenue was startling. Per capita state government spending after accounting for inflation had been flat or falling during the 10 years before women began voting. But state governments started expanding the first year after women voted and continued growing until within 11 years real per capita spending had more than doubled. The increase in government spending and revenue started immediately after women started voting.
More at the link. HT: Lott and Betsy.
Closely related: "JennyBennies," now a very expensive new MPS program benefitting Jennifer Morales (among others).
What's a few million between ....ah....friends, eh?
Even after accounting for a range of other factors — such as industrialization, urbanization, education and income — the impact of granting of women's suffrage on per-capita state government expenditures and revenue was startling. Per capita state government spending after accounting for inflation had been flat or falling during the 10 years before women began voting. But state governments started expanding the first year after women voted and continued growing until within 11 years real per capita spending had more than doubled. The increase in government spending and revenue started immediately after women started voting.
More at the link. HT: Lott and Betsy.
Closely related: "JennyBennies," now a very expensive new MPS program benefitting Jennifer Morales (among others).
What's a few million between ....ah....friends, eh?
You Know You've Been in Iraq Too Long When...
A collection of phrases which complete the above is found here.
Samples:
You say, "It feels cooler today," only to find out that the temperature is 105
The term "Trailer Trash" is a term of endearment
You call your tent (trailer if you're lucky) "home"
You aren't alarmed when every second person you see has a gun . . .or two. . . or three
You can measure distances based on explosion sounds
"Scoring" means you acquired a new weapon!
Your carry-on luggage includes body armour and a helmet
You can recognize 12 different camouflage patterns
The most fashion-forward accessories are shoulder holsters, thumb-drives and cell phones
You are soothed by the sounds of helicopters flying six feet over your trailer
There are more.
HT: Grim
Samples:
You say, "It feels cooler today," only to find out that the temperature is 105
The term "Trailer Trash" is a term of endearment
You call your tent (trailer if you're lucky) "home"
You aren't alarmed when every second person you see has a gun . . .or two. . . or three
You can measure distances based on explosion sounds
"Scoring" means you acquired a new weapon!
Your carry-on luggage includes body armour and a helmet
You can recognize 12 different camouflage patterns
The most fashion-forward accessories are shoulder holsters, thumb-drives and cell phones
You are soothed by the sounds of helicopters flying six feet over your trailer
There are more.
HT: Grim
Whom to Believe--Fred! or his Campaign?
So here's the transcript:
Yeah, the young lady's question is premised on if abortion becomes illegal. That presumes Roe versus Wade is overturned, which I think should be our number one focus right now. And that has to do with the kind of Supreme Court justices we put on the bench...That would mean that it goes back to the states, and then the states would have to outlaw it at an earlier stage than they outlaw it now. And then the question would be, who gets penalized and what should the penalty be? I think it should be fashioned along the same lines that it is now.
Most states have abortion laws that pertain -- that -- and -- and prohibit abortion after viability. And it goes to the doctor performing the abortion, not the girl or the young girl or her parents, whomever it might be
OK so far. Thompson's a Federalist, and that response comports with those principles.
But because there was some confusion (don't ask me how...) his campaign issued the following:
"In tonight's debate we saw once again that on abortion, Rudy Giuliani is pro-choice and Mitt Romney is multiple choice. I believe abortion should only be allowed in the instances of rape, incest and the life of the mother and penalties should be assessed against the abortion doctor and not the woman."
First time I ever saw that formulation from Fred. That's the Bush (1) formula, which is ridiculous on its face.
Fred's losing face here....
HT: American Spectator Blog
Yeah, the young lady's question is premised on if abortion becomes illegal. That presumes Roe versus Wade is overturned, which I think should be our number one focus right now. And that has to do with the kind of Supreme Court justices we put on the bench...That would mean that it goes back to the states, and then the states would have to outlaw it at an earlier stage than they outlaw it now. And then the question would be, who gets penalized and what should the penalty be? I think it should be fashioned along the same lines that it is now.
Most states have abortion laws that pertain -- that -- and -- and prohibit abortion after viability. And it goes to the doctor performing the abortion, not the girl or the young girl or her parents, whomever it might be
OK so far. Thompson's a Federalist, and that response comports with those principles.
But because there was some confusion (don't ask me how...) his campaign issued the following:
"In tonight's debate we saw once again that on abortion, Rudy Giuliani is pro-choice and Mitt Romney is multiple choice. I believe abortion should only be allowed in the instances of rape, incest and the life of the mother and penalties should be assessed against the abortion doctor and not the woman."
First time I ever saw that formulation from Fred. That's the Bush (1) formula, which is ridiculous on its face.
Fred's losing face here....
HT: American Spectator Blog
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
The Stupid Party, Part 354, Virginia Edition
Hard to believe.
The Republican Party of Virginia has no interest in thoughtful voters. It only wants mindless party loyalists who will vote Republican no matter what.
That's the sad message of a new GOP policy for next year's presidential primary approved by the State Board of Elections this week. People who want to vote in it must sign a loyalty oath swearing their intent to vote in November for the party's nominee, whomever that winds up being.
A Republican voter might look at the primary contenders and conclude Mike Huckabee is the best choice. That voter might also decide he would never vote for Rudy Giuliani. Perhaps he would look for a Libertarian or independent alternative.
Or it could be just the opposite. Perhaps a would-be Republican voter finds Huckabee unsupportable, or Fred Thompson or Mitt Romney.
The oath precludes such careful analysis and leaves Republicans three options:
The Republican Party of Virginia has no interest in thoughtful voters. It only wants mindless party loyalists who will vote Republican no matter what.
That's the sad message of a new GOP policy for next year's presidential primary approved by the State Board of Elections this week. People who want to vote in it must sign a loyalty oath swearing their intent to vote in November for the party's nominee, whomever that winds up being.
A Republican voter might look at the primary contenders and conclude Mike Huckabee is the best choice. That voter might also decide he would never vote for Rudy Giuliani. Perhaps he would look for a Libertarian or independent alternative.
Or it could be just the opposite. Perhaps a would-be Republican voter finds Huckabee unsupportable, or Fred Thompson or Mitt Romney.
The oath precludes such careful analysis and leaves Republicans three options:
Lie. Virginia's ballots are still secret; no one will know if you vote against the party nominee.
Stay home from the Feb. 12 election and keep your options open.
Commit to an unknown Republican candidate nine months before the election.
Honorable Virginians do not give their word lightly and will not lie, even under these obtuse circumstances. We hope, too, that they put candidates' ideas, character and experience ahead of party affiliation.
Honest, responsible voters therefore can only skip the primary.
That, obviously, was not the goal of the Republican loyalty oath. The oath is an outgrowth of Virginia's open primaries and a two-party system that prizes power over all else.
Democrats are susceptible to such electoral foolishness, too. In Roanoke, Democrats who want to help pick the party's city council candidates must vow to support the party's nominees.
Virginians do not register by party, so anyone, even a Democratic-leaning voter, can participate in the GOP primary and skew the results. Though there is scant evidence such crossover voting ever influences elections, political parties deserve the right to control who selects their candidates. They are private organizations, after all.
Anyone who needed more evidence that Virginia's election system is broken has it. Why bother having the election at all? Just count how many Virginians sign away their intent to cast an informed vote.
Un-friggin' believable...
OK, There's Global Warming
See!! Even the Conservatives can admit that temps are going up (if only a tiny, little, incremental bit, and if only within previously-acknowledged parameters.)
But Conservatives who can read will NOT admit that it's all Our Fault.
We thus find ourselves in the situation that the entire theory of man-made global warming—with its repercussions in science, and its important consequences for politics and the global economy—is based on ice core studies that provided a false picture of the atmospheric CO2 levels.
Meanwhile, more than 90,000 direct measurements of CO2 in the atmosphere, carried out in America, Asia, and Europe between 1812 and 1961, with excellent chemical methods (accuracy better than 3%), were arbitrarily rejected. These measurements had been published in 175 technical papers. For the past three decades, these well-known direct CO2 measurements, recently compiled and analyzed by Ernst-Georg Beck (Beck 2006a, Beck 2006b, Beck 2007), were completely ignored by climatologists—and not because they were wrong. Indeed, these measurements were made by several Nobel Prize winners, using the techniques that are standard textbook procedures in chemistry, biochemistry, botany, hygiene, medicine, nutrition, and ecology.
The only reason for rejection was that these measurements did not fit the hypothesis of anthropo-genic climatic warming.
But hey! AlGore & Co. can make money on this (so can General Electric). So what's the problem?
HT: Random10
But Conservatives who can read will NOT admit that it's all Our Fault.
We thus find ourselves in the situation that the entire theory of man-made global warming—with its repercussions in science, and its important consequences for politics and the global economy—is based on ice core studies that provided a false picture of the atmospheric CO2 levels.
Meanwhile, more than 90,000 direct measurements of CO2 in the atmosphere, carried out in America, Asia, and Europe between 1812 and 1961, with excellent chemical methods (accuracy better than 3%), were arbitrarily rejected. These measurements had been published in 175 technical papers. For the past three decades, these well-known direct CO2 measurements, recently compiled and analyzed by Ernst-Georg Beck (Beck 2006a, Beck 2006b, Beck 2007), were completely ignored by climatologists—and not because they were wrong. Indeed, these measurements were made by several Nobel Prize winners, using the techniques that are standard textbook procedures in chemistry, biochemistry, botany, hygiene, medicine, nutrition, and ecology.
The only reason for rejection was that these measurements did not fit the hypothesis of anthropo-genic climatic warming.
But hey! AlGore & Co. can make money on this (so can General Electric). So what's the problem?
HT: Random10
Naomi Wolf (!!!) Makes the Case for the 2A
Ms. Wolf, a Lefty, writes for the WaPo.
Is America still America if millions of us no longer know how democracy works?
...at a time when our system of government is under assault from an administration that ignores traditional checks and balances, engages in illegal wiretapping and writes secret laws on torture, it means that we're facing an unprecedented crisis.
As the Founders knew, if citizens are ignorant of or complacent about the proper workings of a republic "of laws not of men," then any leader of any party -- or any tyrannical Congress or even a tyrannical majority -- can abuse the power they hold. But at this moment of threat to the system the Framers set in place, a third of young Americans don't really understand what they were up to.
According to a recent study by the National Center for Education Statistics, only 47 percent of high school seniors have mastered a minimum level of U.S. history and civics, while only 14 percent performed at or above the "proficient" level.
In recent years, the trend away from teaching democracy to young Americans has been at least partly a consequence of the trend of teaching to the standardized tests introduced by the Bush administration. Mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, the tests assess chiefly math and reading comprehension. Basic civics and history have suffered. As a result, teenagers and young adults often have no clue why the United States is different from, say, Egypt or Russia; they have little idea what liberty is.
Few young Americans understand that the Second Amendment keeps their homes safe from the kind of government intrusion that other citizens suffer around the world; few realize that "due process" means that they can't be locked up in a dungeon by the state and left to languish indefinitely
Earlier this year, I helped co-found the American Freedom Campaign to call for a national democracy movement to restore the rule of law. In response, some citizens called a national strike this month on behalf of the Constitution. It was a shaky beginning -- people showed up with their flags and their petitions, but the groups were sparse and shy and out of practice. In New York's Union Square, the sound system failed to carry one new young freedom activist's reading of the Bill of Rights very far. And yet it didn't matter. "For the first time in a long time," said Barbara Martinez as the wind whipped her scarf, "I feel hopeful."
She's right, of course. The 2A does, in fact, keep American homes safe from Gummint intrusion. The Fourth Amendment is helpful, as well.
Thanks, Naomi!
HT: Of Arms and the Law
Is America still America if millions of us no longer know how democracy works?
...at a time when our system of government is under assault from an administration that ignores traditional checks and balances, engages in illegal wiretapping and writes secret laws on torture, it means that we're facing an unprecedented crisis.
As the Founders knew, if citizens are ignorant of or complacent about the proper workings of a republic "of laws not of men," then any leader of any party -- or any tyrannical Congress or even a tyrannical majority -- can abuse the power they hold. But at this moment of threat to the system the Framers set in place, a third of young Americans don't really understand what they were up to.
According to a recent study by the National Center for Education Statistics, only 47 percent of high school seniors have mastered a minimum level of U.S. history and civics, while only 14 percent performed at or above the "proficient" level.
In recent years, the trend away from teaching democracy to young Americans has been at least partly a consequence of the trend of teaching to the standardized tests introduced by the Bush administration. Mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, the tests assess chiefly math and reading comprehension. Basic civics and history have suffered. As a result, teenagers and young adults often have no clue why the United States is different from, say, Egypt or Russia; they have little idea what liberty is.
Few young Americans understand that the Second Amendment keeps their homes safe from the kind of government intrusion that other citizens suffer around the world; few realize that "due process" means that they can't be locked up in a dungeon by the state and left to languish indefinitely
Earlier this year, I helped co-found the American Freedom Campaign to call for a national democracy movement to restore the rule of law. In response, some citizens called a national strike this month on behalf of the Constitution. It was a shaky beginning -- people showed up with their flags and their petitions, but the groups were sparse and shy and out of practice. In New York's Union Square, the sound system failed to carry one new young freedom activist's reading of the Bill of Rights very far. And yet it didn't matter. "For the first time in a long time," said Barbara Martinez as the wind whipped her scarf, "I feel hopeful."
She's right, of course. The 2A does, in fact, keep American homes safe from Gummint intrusion. The Fourth Amendment is helpful, as well.
Thanks, Naomi!
HT: Of Arms and the Law
Offended?
From a Folkbum combox:
they're open to the idea that a cosmic Jewish zombie removed the evil forces from our souls that were placed there when a woman created from a rib took an apple from a talking snake. Or something like that. I can't image that that many people that went to Harvard business school and whatnot actually believe that though.
That enlightened bit of maryjane-fueled 'understanding' from a poster who asks for "more respect" from your humble scribe here:
But whatever Daddio29, you’re obviously narrow-minded and brainwashed. I see little hope for you.
And:
Dad29 isn’t a very nice guy, to say the least. I’m not going to refrain from calling stupid points he makes stupid
This is what passes for 'tolerant, enlightened' comments from the BumperStickerKissers.
they're open to the idea that a cosmic Jewish zombie removed the evil forces from our souls that were placed there when a woman created from a rib took an apple from a talking snake. Or something like that. I can't image that that many people that went to Harvard business school and whatnot actually believe that though.
That enlightened bit of maryjane-fueled 'understanding' from a poster who asks for "more respect" from your humble scribe here:
But whatever Daddio29, you’re obviously narrow-minded and brainwashed. I see little hope for you.
And:
Dad29 isn’t a very nice guy, to say the least. I’m not going to refrain from calling stupid points he makes stupid
This is what passes for 'tolerant, enlightened' comments from the BumperStickerKissers.
DOT: Signs of Waste
Charles Benson noticed, and asked a few questions.
About a dozen new signs are costing taxpayers thousands of dollars
They're on I-94 west of Hy. 16. Are they really needed?
...Jennifer Wensel could not see any difference. "No, I didn't notice anything being different or more reflective,"
"Typically when we do signs, they last 12 to 15 years," explained Tom Heydel, traffic operations engineer for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
That's not a good explanation, Tom. What if they last 30 years? 40 years? And how in Hell would you know? The signage you're replacing is just fine and dandy.
We're told the big new signs cost some $3,000 to $4,000
Does that include the labor to install them? If not, then the actual cost is more like $5,000-$7,500/each--or, in the case at hand, around $50-75K total.
About a dozen new signs are costing taxpayers thousands of dollars
They're on I-94 west of Hy. 16. Are they really needed?
...Jennifer Wensel could not see any difference. "No, I didn't notice anything being different or more reflective,"
"Typically when we do signs, they last 12 to 15 years," explained Tom Heydel, traffic operations engineer for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
That's not a good explanation, Tom. What if they last 30 years? 40 years? And how in Hell would you know? The signage you're replacing is just fine and dandy.
We're told the big new signs cost some $3,000 to $4,000
Does that include the labor to install them? If not, then the actual cost is more like $5,000-$7,500/each--or, in the case at hand, around $50-75K total.
4-K? Nope
The Elmbrook School Board decided that 4-K is not going to happen.
Members opposed to 4-K questioned whether it was needed, whether it would improve long-term student achievement and whether it would be the best way to raise needed revenue as enrollment declines
Frankly, there's little (or no) evidence that 4-K is educationally useful except as cheap babysitting.
Members opposed to 4-K questioned whether it was needed, whether it would improve long-term student achievement and whether it would be the best way to raise needed revenue as enrollment declines
Frankly, there's little (or no) evidence that 4-K is educationally useful except as cheap babysitting.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
The Editor May Have Choked...
From (of all places) America magazine.
ON SEPT. 23 I walked down the center aisle of our parish church, genuflected and made the sign of the cross while saying, In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Thus began my first Mass according to the Roman Missal of 1962 more than 22 years after my first experience of celebrating the Eucharist.
...As a pastor who has tried to respond to people alienated by the perceived rigid conservatism of the church, how could I walk away from people alienated by priests like myself—progressive, “low church” pastors who have no ear for traditional piety?
...As I studied the Latin texts and intricate rituals I had never noticed as a boy, I discovered that the old rite’s priestly spirituality and theology were exactly the opposite of what I had expected. Whereas I had looked for the “high priest/king of the parish” spirituality, I found instead a spirituality of “unworthy instrument for the sake of the people.”
The old Missal’s rubrical micromanagement made me feel like a mere machine, devoid of personality; but, I wondered, is that really so bad? I actually felt liberated from a persistent need to perform, to engage, to be forever a friendly celebrant. When I saw a photo of the old Latin Mass in our local newspaper, I suddenly recognized the rite’s ingenious ability to shrink the priest. Shot from the choir loft, I was a mere speck of green, dwarfed by the high altar. The focal point was not the priest but the gathering of the people. And isn’t that a valid image of the church, the people of God?
My reluctant engagement with the Latin Mass has not undermined my own priestly spirituality, born of Vatican II. Rather, it has complemented and reinforced the council’s teaching that the priest is an instrument of Christ called to serve everyone, regardless of theological or liturgical style. Ultimately it means little whether Mass is in Latin or in the vernacular, whether I see the people praying or hear their silence behind. For sure, I have my preference, but service must always trump that.
Deo Gratias, Alleluia! This is precisely what B-16 intended. And the author is what we expect: an honest man.
HT: Fr. Powell
ON SEPT. 23 I walked down the center aisle of our parish church, genuflected and made the sign of the cross while saying, In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Thus began my first Mass according to the Roman Missal of 1962 more than 22 years after my first experience of celebrating the Eucharist.
...As a pastor who has tried to respond to people alienated by the perceived rigid conservatism of the church, how could I walk away from people alienated by priests like myself—progressive, “low church” pastors who have no ear for traditional piety?
...As I studied the Latin texts and intricate rituals I had never noticed as a boy, I discovered that the old rite’s priestly spirituality and theology were exactly the opposite of what I had expected. Whereas I had looked for the “high priest/king of the parish” spirituality, I found instead a spirituality of “unworthy instrument for the sake of the people.”
The old Missal’s rubrical micromanagement made me feel like a mere machine, devoid of personality; but, I wondered, is that really so bad? I actually felt liberated from a persistent need to perform, to engage, to be forever a friendly celebrant. When I saw a photo of the old Latin Mass in our local newspaper, I suddenly recognized the rite’s ingenious ability to shrink the priest. Shot from the choir loft, I was a mere speck of green, dwarfed by the high altar. The focal point was not the priest but the gathering of the people. And isn’t that a valid image of the church, the people of God?
My reluctant engagement with the Latin Mass has not undermined my own priestly spirituality, born of Vatican II. Rather, it has complemented and reinforced the council’s teaching that the priest is an instrument of Christ called to serve everyone, regardless of theological or liturgical style. Ultimately it means little whether Mass is in Latin or in the vernacular, whether I see the people praying or hear their silence behind. For sure, I have my preference, but service must always trump that.
Deo Gratias, Alleluia! This is precisely what B-16 intended. And the author is what we expect: an honest man.
HT: Fr. Powell
The Stupid Party, Again?
Dreher reads NR, and finds an interesting article by Lowry and Ponnuru.
So while Republicans are depressed these days, their condition is actually worse than they think it is. The deepest cause of the party’s malaise is not the inadequacies of the presidential field. It is that the party’s base is out of step with the public. On issue after issue, polls find independents lining up with Democrats.
Take the economy. Republicans are much happier with their economic circumstances than Democrats: 81 percent of the former, and only 54 percent of the latter, express satisfaction. Independents are exactly where the Democrats are. At their recent economic debate, however, most of the Republican candidates essentially advised dissatisfied Americans to look up some economic statistics to see how well things are going. The ones who acknowledged public gloom proffered protectionism as a remedy. (This may change shortly, as the "R" word gets bandied about--and not from the Lefty press, but from more reliable sources...)
Or take global warming. The public thinks it is real and worrisome, but is not ready to embrace liberal policies that would drastically reduce economic growth. Republicans would have an opening here, if so many of them had not persuaded themselves that global warming is a hoax.
If the public debate is confined to a choice between people who brush off public concerns and those who offer bad solutions, the latter group will win. Conservatives, right now, are not offering better solutions. And because the Republican base is not demanding those solutions, the competitive dynamic of the primary is not producing them. (Real, yah---but remediable by converting to bicycles and charcoal-fire warming? Nope. Real, yah--but within previously-established norms.)
For most of the year, the Republican presidential debates have featured barely a word about health care, the public’s most pressing domestic concern. The leading GOP candidates have belatedly put out plans (except for Thompson, who still hasn’t) — to the seeming indifference of rank-and-file conservative voters. (There ARE proposals which are intriguing--Bush's tax-credit plan was one. Hello??)
Instead, the competition is taking Republicans farther and farther away from a connection with the public. Giuliani has broken with the base of the party, but only in ways that will not help with the larger electorate. And to make up for those deviations on social issues, he is projecting a bring-it-on bellicosity that conservatives like but that most voters simply do not feel. Romney and Thompson, meanwhile, are fighting over who is the most conventional, paint-by-numbers conservative circa 1987. Creative domestic policy is off the table. (Giuliani may well lose by virtue of his bellicosity, which is not restricted to terrorist states. Romney is "paint by numbers," yah, but he's also cardboard. And Thompson is at least playing with alternatives to the current IRS system, not to mention proposing a solution to the onrushing Social Security bankruptcy.)
But in general, I agree with the thesis of these guys. There's little imagination.
Boring....
Here's the answer, according to the authors:
In past periods of Republican weakness, such as the late 1970s and early 1990s, conservatives were able to revive the party by yanking it to the populist right, especially on taxes. The next Republican revival, if it takes place, will involve a change within conservatism as much as an increase in its power over the party.
They are right, of course. I've been saying stuff like that for a year.
So while Republicans are depressed these days, their condition is actually worse than they think it is. The deepest cause of the party’s malaise is not the inadequacies of the presidential field. It is that the party’s base is out of step with the public. On issue after issue, polls find independents lining up with Democrats.
Take the economy. Republicans are much happier with their economic circumstances than Democrats: 81 percent of the former, and only 54 percent of the latter, express satisfaction. Independents are exactly where the Democrats are. At their recent economic debate, however, most of the Republican candidates essentially advised dissatisfied Americans to look up some economic statistics to see how well things are going. The ones who acknowledged public gloom proffered protectionism as a remedy. (This may change shortly, as the "R" word gets bandied about--and not from the Lefty press, but from more reliable sources...)
Or take global warming. The public thinks it is real and worrisome, but is not ready to embrace liberal policies that would drastically reduce economic growth. Republicans would have an opening here, if so many of them had not persuaded themselves that global warming is a hoax.
If the public debate is confined to a choice between people who brush off public concerns and those who offer bad solutions, the latter group will win. Conservatives, right now, are not offering better solutions. And because the Republican base is not demanding those solutions, the competitive dynamic of the primary is not producing them. (Real, yah---but remediable by converting to bicycles and charcoal-fire warming? Nope. Real, yah--but within previously-established norms.)
For most of the year, the Republican presidential debates have featured barely a word about health care, the public’s most pressing domestic concern. The leading GOP candidates have belatedly put out plans (except for Thompson, who still hasn’t) — to the seeming indifference of rank-and-file conservative voters. (There ARE proposals which are intriguing--Bush's tax-credit plan was one. Hello??)
Instead, the competition is taking Republicans farther and farther away from a connection with the public. Giuliani has broken with the base of the party, but only in ways that will not help with the larger electorate. And to make up for those deviations on social issues, he is projecting a bring-it-on bellicosity that conservatives like but that most voters simply do not feel. Romney and Thompson, meanwhile, are fighting over who is the most conventional, paint-by-numbers conservative circa 1987. Creative domestic policy is off the table. (Giuliani may well lose by virtue of his bellicosity, which is not restricted to terrorist states. Romney is "paint by numbers," yah, but he's also cardboard. And Thompson is at least playing with alternatives to the current IRS system, not to mention proposing a solution to the onrushing Social Security bankruptcy.)
But in general, I agree with the thesis of these guys. There's little imagination.
Boring....
Here's the answer, according to the authors:
In past periods of Republican weakness, such as the late 1970s and early 1990s, conservatives were able to revive the party by yanking it to the populist right, especially on taxes. The next Republican revival, if it takes place, will involve a change within conservatism as much as an increase in its power over the party.
They are right, of course. I've been saying stuff like that for a year.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Slogans for Planned Parenthood
Evidently one of the Planned Barrenhood chapters had a contest for a new slogan.
The Curt Jester submitted several entries:
*Making womb and tomb synonymous
* Depopulating the world one person at a time.
* Life without consequences
* Keeping minorities minorities
* Reach out and abort someone
* Betcha can't kill just one
* Giving breath to the culture of death
* Where is everyone?
* Doing our best to reduce class size
* 30 years of providing incest and statutory rape protection
* Support your local Abortuary
* Keeping predatory males happy
* Have you plunged forceps into your kid today?
For some reason, none of those were winners. Nor was his effort even acknowledged!
We'll acknowledge them here and spread the word, CJ!
The Curt Jester submitted several entries:
*Making womb and tomb synonymous
* Depopulating the world one person at a time.
* Life without consequences
* Keeping minorities minorities
* Reach out and abort someone
* Betcha can't kill just one
* Giving breath to the culture of death
* Where is everyone?
* Doing our best to reduce class size
* 30 years of providing incest and statutory rape protection
* Support your local Abortuary
* Keeping predatory males happy
* Have you plunged forceps into your kid today?
For some reason, none of those were winners. Nor was his effort even acknowledged!
We'll acknowledge them here and spread the word, CJ!
Want More Confessions?
OK.
I confess that this article about Madison, WI., came to my attention via a Kansas City blogger. Regardless, it's worth reading, if one is a priest or Bishop.
The spark of resurgence in confessors is most noticeable in Madison on campus; a place where the lure of sin, found in bars and before Badger games, is within walking distance. But so is a church.
St. Paul 's Catholic Center, at 723 State St., reports a rise in the number of students showing up to confess on a regular basis.
Father Randy Timmerman, now at St. John Vianney parish in Janesville, was the priest at St. Paul 's when the transformation began. He often found himself waiting at the scheduled confession time with very few students showing up. Timmerman credits the increased numbers to an assertive campus-wide campaign to bring students into the church.
So they pushed a bit on the campus--sidewalk-chalkings (!!) and other means of outreach, and things began to pick up.
But what REALLY made a difference in the numbers?
...the real change came with the arrival of sisters of the Apostles of the Interior Life ministry from Italy. The sisters questioned Timmerman as to why the confessionals were filled with boxes. Timmerman explained that due to low numbers, confession was held face-to-face in the sacristy twice a week rather than in the traditional confessionals.
The nuns asked Timmerman if he would hold confession in the tiny twin chambers if they cleared them out. Timmerman agreed
AND:
Father Eric Nielsen, now pastor of St. Paul 's, says that low confession attendance resulted in priests holding the sacrament only by appointment.
"This led to many confessionals being used as broom closets, " says Nielsen.
Sister Rafaella Cavellin and Father Victor Mosele cleared out the dust and boxes, and now Nielsen has students who wait 30 minutes at the confession time twice a day
My, my. Using "the box" with a screen and having regular (even daily) availability of the Sacrament gets people to show up and use it!!
Will wonders never cease?
I confess that this article about Madison, WI., came to my attention via a Kansas City blogger. Regardless, it's worth reading, if one is a priest or Bishop.
The spark of resurgence in confessors is most noticeable in Madison on campus; a place where the lure of sin, found in bars and before Badger games, is within walking distance. But so is a church.
St. Paul 's Catholic Center, at 723 State St., reports a rise in the number of students showing up to confess on a regular basis.
Father Randy Timmerman, now at St. John Vianney parish in Janesville, was the priest at St. Paul 's when the transformation began. He often found himself waiting at the scheduled confession time with very few students showing up. Timmerman credits the increased numbers to an assertive campus-wide campaign to bring students into the church.
So they pushed a bit on the campus--sidewalk-chalkings (!!) and other means of outreach, and things began to pick up.
But what REALLY made a difference in the numbers?
...the real change came with the arrival of sisters of the Apostles of the Interior Life ministry from Italy. The sisters questioned Timmerman as to why the confessionals were filled with boxes. Timmerman explained that due to low numbers, confession was held face-to-face in the sacristy twice a week rather than in the traditional confessionals.
The nuns asked Timmerman if he would hold confession in the tiny twin chambers if they cleared them out. Timmerman agreed
AND:
Father Eric Nielsen, now pastor of St. Paul 's, says that low confession attendance resulted in priests holding the sacrament only by appointment.
"This led to many confessionals being used as broom closets, " says Nielsen.
Sister Rafaella Cavellin and Father Victor Mosele cleared out the dust and boxes, and now Nielsen has students who wait 30 minutes at the confession time twice a day
My, my. Using "the box" with a screen and having regular (even daily) availability of the Sacrament gets people to show up and use it!!
Will wonders never cease?
Benedict XVI and the Muslims, Part II
Some people are aware of the Muslim response to B-16's Regensburg lecture. 138 Imams sent a letter to B-16, evidently in search of 'common ground.'
The letter from the 138 Muslims addressed last month to Benedict XVI and to the heads of the other Christian churches received a spectacular collective reply in a message signed by 300 scholars and published in "The New York Times" on November 18.
So far, so good.
But the Vatican's response was a lot quieter than that collective reply.
Why? Because 'the 138' are avoiding the real issue:
Troll notes that the letter of the 138 Muslims, with its insistence on the commandments of the love of God and neighbor as the "common word" of both the Qur'an and the Bible, seems intended to bring dialogue onto the sole terrain of doctrine and theology.
But – Troll objects – there is a gaping distinction between the one God of the Muslims and the Trinitarian God of the Christians, with the Son who becomes man. This cannot be minimized, much less negotiated. The true "common word" must be sought elsewhere: in "putting into effect these commandments in the concrete, here-and-now reality of plural societies." It must be sought in the defense of human rights, of religious freedom, of equality between man and woman, of the distinction between religious and political powers. The letter of the 138 is elusive or silent on all of this.
Perhaps the Interfaith Council should take note of the reality here....
What Benedict XVI sought was this:
"The content of the dialogue between Christians and Muslims will be at this time especially one of meeting each other in this commitment to find the right solutions. We Christians feel in solidarity with all those who, precisely on the basis of their religious conviction as Muslims, work to oppose violence and for the synergy between faith and reason, between religion and freedom."
The Muslim response was....ahhh...non-responsive.
The linked article goes on to point out that, when Muslims are a minority, Shari'a binds them to obey the laws of the State in which they reside. But there is no such restriction when Muslims achieve majority-status in a State; at that time, they are bound to establish and enforce Shari'a.
In the USA, this is simply not an issue at this time. But it IS becoming an issue in other Western countries such as Germany, and to a lesser degree, France and England.
The letter from the 138 Muslims addressed last month to Benedict XVI and to the heads of the other Christian churches received a spectacular collective reply in a message signed by 300 scholars and published in "The New York Times" on November 18.
So far, so good.
But the Vatican's response was a lot quieter than that collective reply.
Why? Because 'the 138' are avoiding the real issue:
Troll notes that the letter of the 138 Muslims, with its insistence on the commandments of the love of God and neighbor as the "common word" of both the Qur'an and the Bible, seems intended to bring dialogue onto the sole terrain of doctrine and theology.
But – Troll objects – there is a gaping distinction between the one God of the Muslims and the Trinitarian God of the Christians, with the Son who becomes man. This cannot be minimized, much less negotiated. The true "common word" must be sought elsewhere: in "putting into effect these commandments in the concrete, here-and-now reality of plural societies." It must be sought in the defense of human rights, of religious freedom, of equality between man and woman, of the distinction between religious and political powers. The letter of the 138 is elusive or silent on all of this.
Perhaps the Interfaith Council should take note of the reality here....
What Benedict XVI sought was this:
"The content of the dialogue between Christians and Muslims will be at this time especially one of meeting each other in this commitment to find the right solutions. We Christians feel in solidarity with all those who, precisely on the basis of their religious conviction as Muslims, work to oppose violence and for the synergy between faith and reason, between religion and freedom."
The Muslim response was....ahhh...non-responsive.
The linked article goes on to point out that, when Muslims are a minority, Shari'a binds them to obey the laws of the State in which they reside. But there is no such restriction when Muslims achieve majority-status in a State; at that time, they are bound to establish and enforce Shari'a.
In the USA, this is simply not an issue at this time. But it IS becoming an issue in other Western countries such as Germany, and to a lesser degree, France and England.
On the Bumper Sticker
Last post on this silliness. The distillation of the whole brouhaha is presented by CWN:
Take the issues one-by-one: the war in Iraq, abortion, gun control, illegal border crossing. For the most part, conservatives believe those who disagree with them on a particular issue, in virtue of their disagreement, are wrong. For the most part, liberals believe those who disagree with them on a particular issue, in virtue of their disagreement, are wrong and wicked. There are exceptions on both sides...
And he wasn't even posting about The Bumper Sticker.
Take the issues one-by-one: the war in Iraq, abortion, gun control, illegal border crossing. For the most part, conservatives believe those who disagree with them on a particular issue, in virtue of their disagreement, are wrong. For the most part, liberals believe those who disagree with them on a particular issue, in virtue of their disagreement, are wrong and wicked. There are exceptions on both sides...
And he wasn't even posting about The Bumper Sticker.
Lott, Hastert Out by Year-End; It's the Money, Honey
The Captain tells us that Trent Lott will retire before year-end, as will Denny Hastert.
What he doesn't mention is the reason for the "before-year-end" timing.
Simple.
After 1/1/08, Senators and Reps who retire must spend two years on the sidelines before joining a lobbying business. In order for these guys to parlay their elected experience into REAL money, they have to get out now.
Neither is much of a loss for Conservatives.
What he doesn't mention is the reason for the "before-year-end" timing.
Simple.
After 1/1/08, Senators and Reps who retire must spend two years on the sidelines before joining a lobbying business. In order for these guys to parlay their elected experience into REAL money, they have to get out now.
Neither is much of a loss for Conservatives.
Our Man in Washington
A perspective on the Presidential race from the Badger-in-DC.
He handicaps all of them and has some interesting comments about the Democrats' REAL objective (hint: winning the White House is only #2)...
Good read.
He handicaps all of them and has some interesting comments about the Democrats' REAL objective (hint: winning the White House is only #2)...
Good read.
Wisconsin: Another Day Older and Deeper in Debt
The State of Wisconsin should adopt Tennessee Ernie Ford's "Sixteen Tons" as its theme song.
To pay for highways, buildings and environmental programs, state government slid 87% deeper in long-term debt over the past 10 years.
According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, the state had $8.28 billion in general-obligation, transportation and environmental debt in mid-2006; the same debts totaled $4.41 billion in 1996.
You can call that 'an 87% increase,' or you can say that 'it damn near doubled.'
Principal and interest payments on general-obligation bonds will exceed $700 million for the first time this year; and payments on transportation bonds will cost an additional $174 million.
Don't you just love this steaming-pile explanation?
Schmiedicke said incurring more debt allowed Doyle and legislators to protect public schools, aid to local governments and the transportation infrastructure. It also freed up state aid to control increases in property tax bills, he added.
Let me translate:
"Protect" WEAC, the RoadBuilders, and local co-conspirator Spend It Now gummints, not to mention AFSCME employees of those locals.
Wisconsin has the largest deficit of any state, under the so-called generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, system of budgeting, Berry noted. Berry said the state's annual deficit under GAAP - which reflects the imbalance between future spending commitments and expected tax collections - is $2.1 billion
Not to worry!
...state officials discount the GAAP budgeting method. Wisconsin is unique because it promises to return $6 out of every $10 collected in future taxes to local governments - a cash-flow cycle that GAAP goes not take into account, officials said
That's a crock, folks. GAAP is GAAP is GAAP, and just because the State is sending money to the locals doesn't make it a rose.
Face it: it's the SPENDING, STUPID!!!
To pay for highways, buildings and environmental programs, state government slid 87% deeper in long-term debt over the past 10 years.
According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, the state had $8.28 billion in general-obligation, transportation and environmental debt in mid-2006; the same debts totaled $4.41 billion in 1996.
You can call that 'an 87% increase,' or you can say that 'it damn near doubled.'
Principal and interest payments on general-obligation bonds will exceed $700 million for the first time this year; and payments on transportation bonds will cost an additional $174 million.
Don't you just love this steaming-pile explanation?
Schmiedicke said incurring more debt allowed Doyle and legislators to protect public schools, aid to local governments and the transportation infrastructure. It also freed up state aid to control increases in property tax bills, he added.
Let me translate:
"Protect" WEAC, the RoadBuilders, and local co-conspirator Spend It Now gummints, not to mention AFSCME employees of those locals.
Wisconsin has the largest deficit of any state, under the so-called generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, system of budgeting, Berry noted. Berry said the state's annual deficit under GAAP - which reflects the imbalance between future spending commitments and expected tax collections - is $2.1 billion
Not to worry!
...state officials discount the GAAP budgeting method. Wisconsin is unique because it promises to return $6 out of every $10 collected in future taxes to local governments - a cash-flow cycle that GAAP goes not take into account, officials said
That's a crock, folks. GAAP is GAAP is GAAP, and just because the State is sending money to the locals doesn't make it a rose.
Face it: it's the SPENDING, STUPID!!!
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Reflection on "The Wisconsin Way"
One other thought and a P.S. on "The Wisconsin Way."
Their interest is in removing (or substantially reducing) both school and County taxes applied as property-tax. Since they cannot seem to utter the words "reduce spending" in that precise sequence, however, there are few options remaining.
Increase income taxes. Increase sales taxes. Increase "fee" revenues.
In the first two instances, the State's coffers get larger. The "fee" item may or may not be State revenue--but in any case, the money will be almost insignificant in comparison to a State income-tax or sales-tax increase sufficient to offset loss of prop-tax revenues.
Now it is presumed that the State's revenue bulge will be temporary--that the State will merely serve as a conduit to Schools and Counties (less the transfer-fees, of course).
But that ignores the Golden Rule: "He who has the gold makes the rules."
So, whether in 3, 5, or 20 years, the State will be making all the rules for Counties and Schools, because, after all, the State will be funding them.
So much for the idea of 'local control,' and the Principle of Subsidiarity. Put another way, Statism will have emerged victorious.
P. S. Do you think that the Counties will disband themselves because they no longer collect or spend money? What about the School Boards and Administrations?
Their interest is in removing (or substantially reducing) both school and County taxes applied as property-tax. Since they cannot seem to utter the words "reduce spending" in that precise sequence, however, there are few options remaining.
Increase income taxes. Increase sales taxes. Increase "fee" revenues.
In the first two instances, the State's coffers get larger. The "fee" item may or may not be State revenue--but in any case, the money will be almost insignificant in comparison to a State income-tax or sales-tax increase sufficient to offset loss of prop-tax revenues.
Now it is presumed that the State's revenue bulge will be temporary--that the State will merely serve as a conduit to Schools and Counties (less the transfer-fees, of course).
But that ignores the Golden Rule: "He who has the gold makes the rules."
So, whether in 3, 5, or 20 years, the State will be making all the rules for Counties and Schools, because, after all, the State will be funding them.
So much for the idea of 'local control,' and the Principle of Subsidiarity. Put another way, Statism will have emerged victorious.
P. S. Do you think that the Counties will disband themselves because they no longer collect or spend money? What about the School Boards and Administrations?
Woopsy! Missed!! Too Bad!
A simple phone call or two might have been smart, boyzzz.
A SWAT team from the Milwaukee Police Department burst into Denise Berndsen's apartment and turned the place upside down looking for evidence of child porn...
A friggin' SWAT TEAM? For a child porn bust? That's the first question I might have asked, but certainly not the only one...
...they roughed up Berndsen, who had returned home from back surgery that day, her 74-year-old father, and a man she had just started dating and who for a few terrifying minutes wondered what he got himself into.
The second question: why didn't the DA (or the cop-shop) do the elementary stuff?
The man they were targeting had moved out five weeks earlier
A West Allis police report put it this way: "It was later determined MPD's suspect had moved out sometime in mid to late September, and we were now talking to the new tenants."
Actually it was more like Sept. 6, said the landlord, who asked that her name not be dragged into this.
Doh.
Sure, we want the kiddie porn types to be ...ah...dis-welcomed.
But a full-game SWAT team? No due diligence?
A SWAT team from the Milwaukee Police Department burst into Denise Berndsen's apartment and turned the place upside down looking for evidence of child porn...
A friggin' SWAT TEAM? For a child porn bust? That's the first question I might have asked, but certainly not the only one...
...they roughed up Berndsen, who had returned home from back surgery that day, her 74-year-old father, and a man she had just started dating and who for a few terrifying minutes wondered what he got himself into.
The second question: why didn't the DA (or the cop-shop) do the elementary stuff?
The man they were targeting had moved out five weeks earlier
A West Allis police report put it this way: "It was later determined MPD's suspect had moved out sometime in mid to late September, and we were now talking to the new tenants."
Actually it was more like Sept. 6, said the landlord, who asked that her name not be dragged into this.
Doh.
Sure, we want the kiddie porn types to be ...ah...dis-welcomed.
But a full-game SWAT team? No due diligence?
Illegals and Rudy and Romney
We've already mentioned Rudy's extraordinary lenience toward the illegals.
Turns out Mitt Romney has the same inclinations.
Of course, they're both fudging their records, too.
Giuliani, the mayor of New York from 1994 to 2001, and Romney, the governor of Massachusetts from 2003 through January, are battling for the Republican presidential nomination amid an uproar over illegal immigration. So they're gritting their teeth, squaring their shoulders and vowing to throw the bums out and keep them out.
Giuliani and Romney also are battling about who was more tolerant of undocumented workers.
The Romney camp likes to trot out a 1994 Giuliani statement: "If you come here and you work hard and you happen to be in an undocumented status," he said, "you're one of the people we want in this city.
"You're somebody we want to protect, and we want you to get out from under what is often a life of being like a fugitive, which is really unfair."
Thompson has the only common-sense position on the immigration situation, by the way.
Turns out Mitt Romney has the same inclinations.
Of course, they're both fudging their records, too.
Giuliani, the mayor of New York from 1994 to 2001, and Romney, the governor of Massachusetts from 2003 through January, are battling for the Republican presidential nomination amid an uproar over illegal immigration. So they're gritting their teeth, squaring their shoulders and vowing to throw the bums out and keep them out.
Giuliani and Romney also are battling about who was more tolerant of undocumented workers.
The Romney camp likes to trot out a 1994 Giuliani statement: "If you come here and you work hard and you happen to be in an undocumented status," he said, "you're one of the people we want in this city.
"You're somebody we want to protect, and we want you to get out from under what is often a life of being like a fugitive, which is really unfair."
Thompson has the only common-sense position on the immigration situation, by the way.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
The Wisconsin Way: Spend More, Stupid!
Spent 30 minutes or so this afternoon listening to James Wood (he ran for Governor of Wisconsin and was defeated) talk with a paid lobbyist for the Wisconsin Counties Ass'n and and a host from some consulting group in Milwaukee.
They talked about "The Wisconsin Way."
In 30 solid minutes, I NEVER heard the phrase "cut spending." What I DID hear was "increase investment" and "re-align taxation."
(That means increasing the state income tax--both the top rate AND the graduation of the curve. Now you know why the Realtors are in this. Less proptax means larger home values means larger commissions. Duhhh.)
You know what that means, dear reader...
Yup....
The Roadbuilders, County Boards, Teachers, and Realtors are "helping" you to Spend More Money!!
And a tax-paid lobbyist is one of the leaders of the charge--along with a Democrat PR type from Madistan who ran for Governor and was,....ah...defeated.
One of the humorous parts occurred when the term "tax Hell" was brought up. Naturally, Sykes, Belling, and Weber were the Bad Guys--because they have the nerve to use the term. There was no interest in defining "tax Hell," of course--because that might mean mentioning that Wisconsin is somewhere between 4th and 6th in the country in state/local/sales tax/capita.
Nope. We're just going to say that those who USE the term are the bad guys.
And we're going to persuade you to Spend More Money because, of course, that's the solution to everything. More highways to noplace (see e.g., Hy 151 west of Madison.) More school-money. More "help" for senior citizens (who are leaving as fast as they can.)
They're coming to a place near you soon. Guard the women and children...
They talked about "The Wisconsin Way."
In 30 solid minutes, I NEVER heard the phrase "cut spending." What I DID hear was "increase investment" and "re-align taxation."
(That means increasing the state income tax--both the top rate AND the graduation of the curve. Now you know why the Realtors are in this. Less proptax means larger home values means larger commissions. Duhhh.)
You know what that means, dear reader...
Yup....
The Roadbuilders, County Boards, Teachers, and Realtors are "helping" you to Spend More Money!!
And a tax-paid lobbyist is one of the leaders of the charge--along with a Democrat PR type from Madistan who ran for Governor and was,....ah...defeated.
One of the humorous parts occurred when the term "tax Hell" was brought up. Naturally, Sykes, Belling, and Weber were the Bad Guys--because they have the nerve to use the term. There was no interest in defining "tax Hell," of course--because that might mean mentioning that Wisconsin is somewhere between 4th and 6th in the country in state/local/sales tax/capita.
Nope. We're just going to say that those who USE the term are the bad guys.
And we're going to persuade you to Spend More Money because, of course, that's the solution to everything. More highways to noplace (see e.g., Hy 151 west of Madison.) More school-money. More "help" for senior citizens (who are leaving as fast as they can.)
They're coming to a place near you soon. Guard the women and children...
MSO to Pursue Radio Station License
Reported on Fox6/Business Journal news last night...
The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra has filed with the FCC to obtain a license for radio broadcast of classical music in the Milwaukee area.
The Fox6 website does not provide a confirming link at this time, nor does the Business Journal; nor does the MSO webpage.
That's good news for a small number of hard-core classical listeners who do not have digital radio-receivers capable of picking up similar programming from the State radio system.
The question: is that 'small number of listeners' enough to offset the MSO's cost?
Let's hope so!
The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra has filed with the FCC to obtain a license for radio broadcast of classical music in the Milwaukee area.
The Fox6 website does not provide a confirming link at this time, nor does the Business Journal; nor does the MSO webpage.
That's good news for a small number of hard-core classical listeners who do not have digital radio-receivers capable of picking up similar programming from the State radio system.
The question: is that 'small number of listeners' enough to offset the MSO's cost?
Let's hope so!
Health Price Disclosures: Go For It
There's progress on the "health care" costs front.
Sen. Jim Sullivan (D-Wauwatosa) and Rep. Steve Wieckert (R-Appleton) this week introduced a bill requiring health care providers and insurance companies to make available information about the cost of procedures or services to patients who ask for it.
And maybe more progress to follow:
Rep. Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), chairwoman of the Assembly's Committee on Health and Health Care Reform, said she would introduce her own proposal in the coming weeks.
"Merely taking the top 50 procedures out there, what if you have procedure 51?" Vukmir said. "How does that help you?"
Knowledge is power. The difference between "list" and "negotiated" prices for hospital and MD care is often substantial, raising the question "what's it REALLY worth?" in the mind of the consumer--especially the consumer who is un-insured.
Sen. Jim Sullivan (D-Wauwatosa) and Rep. Steve Wieckert (R-Appleton) this week introduced a bill requiring health care providers and insurance companies to make available information about the cost of procedures or services to patients who ask for it.
And maybe more progress to follow:
Rep. Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), chairwoman of the Assembly's Committee on Health and Health Care Reform, said she would introduce her own proposal in the coming weeks.
"Merely taking the top 50 procedures out there, what if you have procedure 51?" Vukmir said. "How does that help you?"
Knowledge is power. The difference between "list" and "negotiated" prices for hospital and MD care is often substantial, raising the question "what's it REALLY worth?" in the mind of the consumer--especially the consumer who is un-insured.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Wisconsin's Price-Fix Laws
Yup. The Leggies have introduced a bill to delete Wisconsin's Price-Fixing laws.
Take THAT, Wiggy!
Madison – Today, Representative Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa) and Representative Bill Kramer (R-Waukesha) unveiled legislation that will repeal Wisconsin’s archaic Unfair Sales Act and put into place a legislative framework that fosters competition, puts consumer welfare paramount, and reflects a vibrant 21st century marketplace.
The statutes will reflect United States and Wisconsin Supreme Court standards for determining anticompetitive behavior. Recent decisions by the courts have clearly stated that competition, not competitors, should be the overriding interest in the marketplace. As Daniel Crane of the Benjamin Cardozo School of Law points out, “punishing excessively low prices is paradoxical because the very objective of […] antitrust laws is to secure low prices for consumers.”
Take THAT, Wiggy!
Madison – Today, Representative Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa) and Representative Bill Kramer (R-Waukesha) unveiled legislation that will repeal Wisconsin’s archaic Unfair Sales Act and put into place a legislative framework that fosters competition, puts consumer welfare paramount, and reflects a vibrant 21st century marketplace.
The statutes will reflect United States and Wisconsin Supreme Court standards for determining anticompetitive behavior. Recent decisions by the courts have clearly stated that competition, not competitors, should be the overriding interest in the marketplace. As Daniel Crane of the Benjamin Cardozo School of Law points out, “punishing excessively low prices is paradoxical because the very objective of […] antitrust laws is to secure low prices for consumers.”
Cranmer's Dead! Long Live Cranmer!!
Some Englishmen still think Henry VIII was right.
Earlier this year Benedict XVI finally sacked Archbishop Piero Marini, the liberal papal Master of Ceremonies who is strongly opposed to the Pope’s liturgical reforms. A furious Marini has now written a book ...
And guess where the book is being launched? In the throne room of Archbishop’s House, Westminster, by His Eminence Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor.
Heh.
You may prophesy in the combox which US prelate will host a similar rebellion when the book is launched here.
Of course, "launch" and "hurl" are interchangeable terms with respect to Marini's screed.
HT: Damian Thompson
Earlier this year Benedict XVI finally sacked Archbishop Piero Marini, the liberal papal Master of Ceremonies who is strongly opposed to the Pope’s liturgical reforms. A furious Marini has now written a book ...
And guess where the book is being launched? In the throne room of Archbishop’s House, Westminster, by His Eminence Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor.
Heh.
You may prophesy in the combox which US prelate will host a similar rebellion when the book is launched here.
Of course, "launch" and "hurl" are interchangeable terms with respect to Marini's screed.
HT: Damian Thompson
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Konrad Adenauer on Islamism
Another little bit of wisdom from a fellow who was on the front lines (different war...)
"An infallible method of conciliating a tiger is to allow oneself to be devoured."
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Home Depot's Command-Economy Tricks
A floodlight burned out. It's our "critterwatch" flood, one of a pair focused on the back yard, where wildlife occasionally wanders through in the evening.
Them critters which we don't shoot we watch. Some are very cute.
So, anyway, to replace the floodlight, I trek over to HomeDespot Depot.
The old one was a 150-watt incandescent.
Spent about 3 full minutes looking at the light-display. Up, down, sideways; walk back and forth, looking high and low.
Zero, Zip, Nada 150-watters. None.
The Despot went "green" on my behalf. Best I can get is a 90-watter, non-incandescent--some sort of rare-earth metallic compound.
Let's hope Lowe's understands "market-demand" retailing, eh?
Them critters which we don't shoot we watch. Some are very cute.
So, anyway, to replace the floodlight, I trek over to Home
The old one was a 150-watt incandescent.
Spent about 3 full minutes looking at the light-display. Up, down, sideways; walk back and forth, looking high and low.
Zero, Zip, Nada 150-watters. None.
The Despot went "green" on my behalf. Best I can get is a 90-watter, non-incandescent--some sort of rare-earth metallic compound.
Let's hope Lowe's understands "market-demand" retailing, eh?
Kindle? I'd Rather Use Matches
Curt Jester happens to be a technophile and has a critique of the Amazon Kindle:
Three years in the making and much delayed and they came up with a device obviously designed by a committee where little interest was paid to people who would want an e-book reader in the first place. Now if I wanted to design an e-book reader that was sure to fail and possibly serve as a tax write off like in The Producers these are some of the features I would include.
Three years in the making and much delayed and they came up with a device obviously designed by a committee where little interest was paid to people who would want an e-book reader in the first place. Now if I wanted to design an e-book reader that was sure to fail and possibly serve as a tax write off like in The Producers these are some of the features I would include.
- Charge $399 for the reader.
- Make it really ugly with lots of angles.
- Make it incompatible with the ebook format you use to sell.
- Not allow you to add your own files such as PDF, docs, and text without going through the companies site with a fee attached.
- Charge you two bucks for books available for free at Project Gutenberg.
- Allow you to read from a group of blogs selected by the company and then charge you $1 to $2 a month for each blog you subscribe to.
- Have EVDO available but not WI-FI.
- Charge you $14 dollars a month to view newspaper content freely available on the web.
Add a crappy cover that won't last long.
Helluvadeal!
Fun With "Jed" and "Wilbur"
Ah, those cute little Lefties.
Stamping their feets, squalling, shrieking, and attempting humor without a license (nor a humorous bone in their bodies...) It's enough to make me ask 'em to just go hide behind their own skirts.
"Jed" and "Wilbur" take exception to a couple of posts, here and here.
(I KNOW that school's out for a lot of the kiddies, and Mom lets them play with the computer.)
By the way, judging from my Sitemeter, "Jed" and "Wilbur" work for Milwaukee County.
Stamping their feets, squalling, shrieking, and attempting humor without a license (nor a humorous bone in their bodies...) It's enough to make me ask 'em to just go hide behind their own skirts.
"Jed" and "Wilbur" take exception to a couple of posts, here and here.
(I KNOW that school's out for a lot of the kiddies, and Mom lets them play with the computer.)
By the way, judging from my Sitemeter, "Jed" and "Wilbur" work for Milwaukee County.
Kumbaya and Screaming Victims
Yah. Shari'a is so...."Co-Exist-ish."
Here's "Co-Existence" in full:
Saudi Arabia defended on Tuesday a court's decision to sentence a woman who was gang-raped to 200 lashes of the whip, after the United States described the verdict as "astonishing".
The 19-year-old Shi'ite woman from the town of Qatif in the Eastern Province and an unrelated male companion were abducted and raped by seven men in 2006.
Ruling according to Saudi Arabia's strict reading of Islamic law, a court had originally sentenced the woman to 90 lashes and the rapists to jail terms of between 10 months and five years. It blamed the woman for being alone with an unrelated man.
Last week the Supreme Judicial Council increased the sentence to 200 lashes and six months in prison and ordered the rapists to serve between two and nine years in jail.
Milwaukee's Interfaith Council members will be singing Kumbaya during the administration of the 200-lash punishment.
I don't think that the singing will drown out the screaming from the rape-and-Sharia victim, do you?
Here's "Co-Existence" in full:
Saudi Arabia defended on Tuesday a court's decision to sentence a woman who was gang-raped to 200 lashes of the whip, after the United States described the verdict as "astonishing".
The 19-year-old Shi'ite woman from the town of Qatif in the Eastern Province and an unrelated male companion were abducted and raped by seven men in 2006.
Ruling according to Saudi Arabia's strict reading of Islamic law, a court had originally sentenced the woman to 90 lashes and the rapists to jail terms of between 10 months and five years. It blamed the woman for being alone with an unrelated man.
Last week the Supreme Judicial Council increased the sentence to 200 lashes and six months in prison and ordered the rapists to serve between two and nine years in jail.
Milwaukee's Interfaith Council members will be singing Kumbaya during the administration of the 200-lash punishment.
I don't think that the singing will drown out the screaming from the rape-and-Sharia victim, do you?
Happy Thanksgiving--(With History)
This is from Patriot Post:
Contemporary textbook narratives of the first American harvest celebration portray the Pilgrim colonists as having given thanks to their Indian neighbors for teaching them how to survive in a strange new world. This, of course, is in stark contrast to the historical record, in which the colonists gave thanks to God Almighty, the Provider of their blessings.
The “First Thanksgiving” is usually depicted as the Pilgrims’ three-day feast in early November 1621. The Pilgrims, Calvinist Protestants who rejected the institutional Church of England, believed that the worship of God must originate freely in the individual soul, under no coercion. The Pilgrims left Plymouth, England, on 6 September 1620, sailing to the New World on the promise of opportunity for religious and civil liberty.
For almost three months, 102 seafarers braved the brutal elements, arriving off what is now the Massachusetts coast. On 11 December, before disembarking at Plymouth Rock, the voyagers signed the Mayflower Compact, America’s original document of civil government predicated on principles of self-government. While still anchored at Provincetown harbor, Pastor John Robinson counseled, “You are become a body politic... and are to have only them for your... governors which yourselves shall make choice of.” Governor William Bradford described the Mayflower Compact as “a combination... that when they came a shore they would use their owne libertie; for none had power to command them...”
Upon landing, the Pilgrims conducted a prayer service and quickly turned to building shelters. Malnutrition and illness during the ensuing New England winter killed nearly half their number. Through prayer and hard work, with the assistance of their Wampanoag Indian friends, the Pilgrims reaped a rich harvest in the summer of 1621, the bounty of which they shared with the Wampanoag. The celebration incorporated feasting and games, which remain holiday traditions.
Such ready abundance soon waned, however. Under demands from investors funding their endeavor, the Pilgrims had acquiesced to a disastrous arrangement holding all crops and property in common, in order to return an agreed-to half of their produce to their overseas backers. (These financiers insisted they could not trust faraway freeholders to split the colony’s profits honestly.) Within two years, Plymouth was in danger of foundering under famine, blight and drought. Colonist Edward Winslow wrote, “The most courageous were now discouraged, because God, which hitherto had been our only shield and supporter, now seemed in his anger to arm himself against us.”
Governor Bradford’s record of the history of the colony describes 1623 as a period of arduous work coupled with “a great drought... without any rain and with great heat for the most part,” lasting from spring until midsummer. The Plymouth settlers followed the Wampanoag’s recommended cultivation practices carefully, but their crops withered.
The Pilgrims soon thereafter thought better of relying solely on the physical realm, setting “a solemn day of humiliation, to seek the Lord by humble and fervent prayer, in this great distress.” In affirmation of their faith and providing a great witness to the Indians, by evening of that day the skies became overcast and gentle rains fell, restoring the yield of the fields. Governor Bradford noted, “And afterwards the Lord sent to them such seasonable showers, with interchange of fair warm weather as, through His blessing caused a fruitful and liberal harvest, to their no small comfort and rejoicing. For which mercy, in time convenient, they also set apart a day of thanksgiving.”
Winslow noted the Pilgrims’ reaction as believing “it would be great ingratitude, if secretly we should smother up the same, or content ourselves with private thanksgiving for that, which by private prayer could not be obtained. And therefore another solemn day was set apart and appointed for that end; wherein we returned glory, honor, and praise, with all thankfulness, to our good God, which dealt so graciously with us...” This was the original American Thanksgiving Day, centered not on harvest feasting (as in 1621) but on gathering together to publicly recognize the favor and provision of Almighty God.
Bradford’s diary recounts how the colonists repented of their financial folly under sway of their financiers: “At length, after much debate of things, the Governor (with the advice of the chiefest amongst them) gave way that they should set corn every man for his own particular, and in that regard trust to themselves; in all other things to go in the general way as before. And so assigned to every family a parcel of land, according to the proportion of their number.”
By the mid-17th century, autumnal Thanksgivings were common throughout New England; observance of Thanksgiving Festivals spread to other colonies during the American Revolution. At other junctures of “great distress” or miraculous intervention, colonial leaders called their countrymen to offer prayerful thanks to God. The Continental Congresses, cognizant of the need for a warring country’s continuing grateful entreaties to God, proclaimed yearly Thanksgiving days during the Revolutionary War, from 1777 to 1783.
In 1789, after adopting the Bill of Rights to the Constitution, among the first official acts of Congress was approving a motion for proclamation of a national day of thanksgiving, recommending that citizens gather together and give thanks to God for their new nation’s blessings. Presidents George Washington, John Adams and James Madison followed the custom of declaring national days of thanks, though it was not officially declared again until another moment of national peril, when during the War Between the States Abraham Lincoln invited “the whole American people” to observe “a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father... with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience.” In 1941, Congress set permanently November’s fourth Thursday as our official national Thanksgiving.
The Pilgrims’ temporary folly of sundering and somersaulting the material as transcendent over the spiritual conveys an important lesson that modern histories are reluctant to tell. The Founders, recognizing this, placed first among constitutionally recognized rights the free exercise of religion—faith through action.
If what we seek is a continuance of God s manifold blessings, then a day of heartfelt thanksgiving is a tiny tribute indeed.
This Thanksgiving, please pray for our Patriot Armed Forces standing in harm’s way around the world, and for their families—especially the families of those fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen who have died in defense of American liberty.
A thought which I happily pass on to you.
Contemporary textbook narratives of the first American harvest celebration portray the Pilgrim colonists as having given thanks to their Indian neighbors for teaching them how to survive in a strange new world. This, of course, is in stark contrast to the historical record, in which the colonists gave thanks to God Almighty, the Provider of their blessings.
The “First Thanksgiving” is usually depicted as the Pilgrims’ three-day feast in early November 1621. The Pilgrims, Calvinist Protestants who rejected the institutional Church of England, believed that the worship of God must originate freely in the individual soul, under no coercion. The Pilgrims left Plymouth, England, on 6 September 1620, sailing to the New World on the promise of opportunity for religious and civil liberty.
For almost three months, 102 seafarers braved the brutal elements, arriving off what is now the Massachusetts coast. On 11 December, before disembarking at Plymouth Rock, the voyagers signed the Mayflower Compact, America’s original document of civil government predicated on principles of self-government. While still anchored at Provincetown harbor, Pastor John Robinson counseled, “You are become a body politic... and are to have only them for your... governors which yourselves shall make choice of.” Governor William Bradford described the Mayflower Compact as “a combination... that when they came a shore they would use their owne libertie; for none had power to command them...”
Upon landing, the Pilgrims conducted a prayer service and quickly turned to building shelters. Malnutrition and illness during the ensuing New England winter killed nearly half their number. Through prayer and hard work, with the assistance of their Wampanoag Indian friends, the Pilgrims reaped a rich harvest in the summer of 1621, the bounty of which they shared with the Wampanoag. The celebration incorporated feasting and games, which remain holiday traditions.
Such ready abundance soon waned, however. Under demands from investors funding their endeavor, the Pilgrims had acquiesced to a disastrous arrangement holding all crops and property in common, in order to return an agreed-to half of their produce to their overseas backers. (These financiers insisted they could not trust faraway freeholders to split the colony’s profits honestly.) Within two years, Plymouth was in danger of foundering under famine, blight and drought. Colonist Edward Winslow wrote, “The most courageous were now discouraged, because God, which hitherto had been our only shield and supporter, now seemed in his anger to arm himself against us.”
Governor Bradford’s record of the history of the colony describes 1623 as a period of arduous work coupled with “a great drought... without any rain and with great heat for the most part,” lasting from spring until midsummer. The Plymouth settlers followed the Wampanoag’s recommended cultivation practices carefully, but their crops withered.
The Pilgrims soon thereafter thought better of relying solely on the physical realm, setting “a solemn day of humiliation, to seek the Lord by humble and fervent prayer, in this great distress.” In affirmation of their faith and providing a great witness to the Indians, by evening of that day the skies became overcast and gentle rains fell, restoring the yield of the fields. Governor Bradford noted, “And afterwards the Lord sent to them such seasonable showers, with interchange of fair warm weather as, through His blessing caused a fruitful and liberal harvest, to their no small comfort and rejoicing. For which mercy, in time convenient, they also set apart a day of thanksgiving.”
Winslow noted the Pilgrims’ reaction as believing “it would be great ingratitude, if secretly we should smother up the same, or content ourselves with private thanksgiving for that, which by private prayer could not be obtained. And therefore another solemn day was set apart and appointed for that end; wherein we returned glory, honor, and praise, with all thankfulness, to our good God, which dealt so graciously with us...” This was the original American Thanksgiving Day, centered not on harvest feasting (as in 1621) but on gathering together to publicly recognize the favor and provision of Almighty God.
Bradford’s diary recounts how the colonists repented of their financial folly under sway of their financiers: “At length, after much debate of things, the Governor (with the advice of the chiefest amongst them) gave way that they should set corn every man for his own particular, and in that regard trust to themselves; in all other things to go in the general way as before. And so assigned to every family a parcel of land, according to the proportion of their number.”
By the mid-17th century, autumnal Thanksgivings were common throughout New England; observance of Thanksgiving Festivals spread to other colonies during the American Revolution. At other junctures of “great distress” or miraculous intervention, colonial leaders called their countrymen to offer prayerful thanks to God. The Continental Congresses, cognizant of the need for a warring country’s continuing grateful entreaties to God, proclaimed yearly Thanksgiving days during the Revolutionary War, from 1777 to 1783.
In 1789, after adopting the Bill of Rights to the Constitution, among the first official acts of Congress was approving a motion for proclamation of a national day of thanksgiving, recommending that citizens gather together and give thanks to God for their new nation’s blessings. Presidents George Washington, John Adams and James Madison followed the custom of declaring national days of thanks, though it was not officially declared again until another moment of national peril, when during the War Between the States Abraham Lincoln invited “the whole American people” to observe “a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father... with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience.” In 1941, Congress set permanently November’s fourth Thursday as our official national Thanksgiving.
The Pilgrims’ temporary folly of sundering and somersaulting the material as transcendent over the spiritual conveys an important lesson that modern histories are reluctant to tell. The Founders, recognizing this, placed first among constitutionally recognized rights the free exercise of religion—faith through action.
If what we seek is a continuance of God s manifold blessings, then a day of heartfelt thanksgiving is a tiny tribute indeed.
This Thanksgiving, please pray for our Patriot Armed Forces standing in harm’s way around the world, and for their families—especially the families of those fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen who have died in defense of American liberty.
A thought which I happily pass on to you.
Charlie Sykes Sends a Message
...and the message is forceful.
Evidently the weenies at the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee are "offended" by Sykes' reproduction of a parody on his website.
The parody was inspired by the snarky, condescending "Co-Exist" bumper stickers (which are, evidently, weenie-approved.) The parody has gone national, justifiably, and credit should be given to Tom McMahon, a brilliant satirist and blog-writer.
So anyway, the weenies "asked" Charlie to delete the post.
Charlie told them to stuff their request where the sun doesn't shine (in far more elegant, but no less emphatic language.)
Now we can put Charlie into an exclusive league.
Back about 20 years ago, I was painting the porch woodwork while listening to Rush. At that time, Limbaugh was commenting on one of the the ACLU's lawsuits against the Boy Scouts of America--IIRC, it was about the Oath's reference to God.
Rush's comment, unforgettable, was "Well, SCREW the ACLU!!" (And that's exactly what he said.)
Although Sykes has had a few defining moments (his co-production of "schoolhouse door" was one), and although he and I disagree over a few things, Charlie's been a leading light of the Conservative movement for years.
He just affirmed that position. And I will be proud to have his 6.
By the way, the Interfaith Council has a very strange bedfellow, according to John McAdams (HT: Tex)
...Zulfiqar Ali Shah... has continued to bask in the spotlight. He now sits in his new digs in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the Religious Director of a large Islamic institution and the toast of the media. Today, the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee will be sponsoring a Shah talk, taking place at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church.
What makes Shah so interesting, aside from his Milwaukee location and the hugs-and-kisses from the Interfaith Conference?
When the Toledo charity KindHearts was shut down this past February, for raising millions of dollars for Hamas, the group’s leaders got off scott free
And yes, Shah was one of the "leaders" of the group.
But that's hardly all.
Shah’s love for his fellow man was not manifest, when, just a few years prior, in June of 2001, he spoke of a wild conspiracy regarding Jews retaking the Saudi city of Medina. He said, “If we are unable to stop the Jews now, their next stop is Yathrib (The Prophet’s city of Medina), where the Jews used to live until their expulsion by Prophet Muhammad. That’s the pinnacle of their motives.”
My, my. Does "anti-Semitic" apply here? Or only to Sykes and McMahon?
Evidently the weenies at the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee are "offended" by Sykes' reproduction of a parody on his website.
The parody was inspired by the snarky, condescending "Co-Exist" bumper stickers (which are, evidently, weenie-approved.) The parody has gone national, justifiably, and credit should be given to Tom McMahon, a brilliant satirist and blog-writer.
So anyway, the weenies "asked" Charlie to delete the post.
Charlie told them to stuff their request where the sun doesn't shine (in far more elegant, but no less emphatic language.)
Now we can put Charlie into an exclusive league.
Back about 20 years ago, I was painting the porch woodwork while listening to Rush. At that time, Limbaugh was commenting on one of the the ACLU's lawsuits against the Boy Scouts of America--IIRC, it was about the Oath's reference to God.
Rush's comment, unforgettable, was "Well, SCREW the ACLU!!" (And that's exactly what he said.)
Although Sykes has had a few defining moments (his co-production of "schoolhouse door" was one), and although he and I disagree over a few things, Charlie's been a leading light of the Conservative movement for years.
He just affirmed that position. And I will be proud to have his 6.
By the way, the Interfaith Council has a very strange bedfellow, according to John McAdams (HT: Tex)
...Zulfiqar Ali Shah... has continued to bask in the spotlight. He now sits in his new digs in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the Religious Director of a large Islamic institution and the toast of the media. Today, the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee will be sponsoring a Shah talk, taking place at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church.
What makes Shah so interesting, aside from his Milwaukee location and the hugs-and-kisses from the Interfaith Conference?
When the Toledo charity KindHearts was shut down this past February, for raising millions of dollars for Hamas, the group’s leaders got off scott free
And yes, Shah was one of the "leaders" of the group.
But that's hardly all.
Shah’s love for his fellow man was not manifest, when, just a few years prior, in June of 2001, he spoke of a wild conspiracy regarding Jews retaking the Saudi city of Medina. He said, “If we are unable to stop the Jews now, their next stop is Yathrib (The Prophet’s city of Medina), where the Jews used to live until their expulsion by Prophet Muhammad. That’s the pinnacle of their motives.”
My, my. Does "anti-Semitic" apply here? Or only to Sykes and McMahon?
"Jenny-Bennies", MPS, and Babylon
It's really easy to spend someone else's money.
Milwaukee Public Schools took a major step Tuesday night toward becoming the first public school district in southeastern Wisconsin to offer fringe benefits to domestic partners of employees.
The School Board's Finance Committee voted 4 to 1 to recommend a resolution proposed by board member Jennifer Morales that the board support "equal provision of employment benefits regardless of an employee's sexual orientation or family status."
This is the "Morales Bennie." It's expected that (should the deal get done) Jennie-Bennie will get health coverage through her 'spouse' (??), an MPS principal.
MPS administrators suggested that adding domestic partners could cost millions of dollars, but Patrick Flaherty, director of community relations for Center Advocates Inc., an organization supporting the benefits, said the experience of other government units has been that only a small number of employees ask to add partners to health coverage and other benefits. He suggested the cost would be under $1 million for MPS if 1% of employees used the option.
Uh huh.
Establishing as a principle that a housemate arrangement is identical to marriage with respect to employment benefits?
Priceless.
Just ask Babylon.
Milwaukee Public Schools took a major step Tuesday night toward becoming the first public school district in southeastern Wisconsin to offer fringe benefits to domestic partners of employees.
The School Board's Finance Committee voted 4 to 1 to recommend a resolution proposed by board member Jennifer Morales that the board support "equal provision of employment benefits regardless of an employee's sexual orientation or family status."
This is the "Morales Bennie." It's expected that (should the deal get done) Jennie-Bennie will get health coverage through her 'spouse' (??), an MPS principal.
MPS administrators suggested that adding domestic partners could cost millions of dollars, but Patrick Flaherty, director of community relations for Center Advocates Inc., an organization supporting the benefits, said the experience of other government units has been that only a small number of employees ask to add partners to health coverage and other benefits. He suggested the cost would be under $1 million for MPS if 1% of employees used the option.
Uh huh.
Establishing as a principle that a housemate arrangement is identical to marriage with respect to employment benefits?
Priceless.
Just ask Babylon.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Supremes to Hear DC Gun Ban (and) Papal Shooter, to Boot!!
Here we go, folks!
The Supreme Court said Tuesday it will decide whether the District of Columbia can ban handguns, a case that could produce the most in-depth examination of the constitutional right to "keep and bear arms" in nearly 70 years.
The main issue before the justices is whether the Second Amendment of the Constitution protects an individual's right to own guns or instead merely sets forth the collective right of states to maintain militias. The former interpretation would permit fewer restrictions on gun ownership.
The current title: The case is District of Columbia v. Heller, formerly known as Parker.
That's nowhere near as interesting as this little blog-item:
In the curriculum [vitae] of Pius XI there is a certificate for being a first-rate shot
In L’Osservatore Romano for 20 November, ... there stands out in the cultural page a bizarre headline: "the librarian with the pistol".
We are not dealing with just any librarian, but with Achille Ratti, who became Pope with the name Pius XI.And the gun?
Here’s the explanation of this oddity. When he was prefect of the Ambrosian Library in Milan, Ratti kept a a revolver close at had "as a deterent to keep off possible miscreants with gunshots in the air, or the like.
"Once promoted to the Vatican Library, he brought his gun with him. And when in 1918 Benedict XV sent him to Poland as an apostolic visitor, he sent to Warsaw via the diplomatic pouch, "a small revolver and ammunition".
This should make the Heller decision simple. 5 Papists, 4 not.
Of course, that's a simplification.
Lots more here, here, and here.
Nothing SCOTUS does will alter Wisconsin's 25th Amendment, however.
The Supreme Court said Tuesday it will decide whether the District of Columbia can ban handguns, a case that could produce the most in-depth examination of the constitutional right to "keep and bear arms" in nearly 70 years.
The main issue before the justices is whether the Second Amendment of the Constitution protects an individual's right to own guns or instead merely sets forth the collective right of states to maintain militias. The former interpretation would permit fewer restrictions on gun ownership.
The current title: The case is District of Columbia v. Heller, formerly known as Parker.
That's nowhere near as interesting as this little blog-item:
In the curriculum [vitae] of Pius XI there is a certificate for being a first-rate shot
In L’Osservatore Romano for 20 November, ... there stands out in the cultural page a bizarre headline: "the librarian with the pistol".
We are not dealing with just any librarian, but with Achille Ratti, who became Pope with the name Pius XI.And the gun?
Here’s the explanation of this oddity. When he was prefect of the Ambrosian Library in Milan, Ratti kept a a revolver close at had "as a deterent to keep off possible miscreants with gunshots in the air, or the like.
"Once promoted to the Vatican Library, he brought his gun with him. And when in 1918 Benedict XV sent him to Poland as an apostolic visitor, he sent to Warsaw via the diplomatic pouch, "a small revolver and ammunition".
This should make the Heller decision simple. 5 Papists, 4 not.
Of course, that's a simplification.
Lots more here, here, and here.
Nothing SCOTUS does will alter Wisconsin's 25th Amendment, however.
Motu Proprio for SSPX? Not Entirely
The official spin (seen in lotsa 'instructions' from Bishops about Summorum Pontificum) is that the document was written in order to lure SSPX members back to the Church.
Pish-posh.
A lack of respect for the norms for celebrating the Mass after the Second Vatican Council contributed to Pope Benedict XVI's decision to grant wider permission for the celebration of the Tridentine Mass, a Vatican official said.
"There is a certain tendency to interpret the post-conciliar liturgical reform using 'creativity' as the rule," said Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments.
....umnnnnhhhh....what were we saying (below)?
HT: TNLM
Pish-posh.
A lack of respect for the norms for celebrating the Mass after the Second Vatican Council contributed to Pope Benedict XVI's decision to grant wider permission for the celebration of the Tridentine Mass, a Vatican official said.
"There is a certain tendency to interpret the post-conciliar liturgical reform using 'creativity' as the rule," said Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments.
....umnnnnhhhh....what were we saying (below)?
HT: TNLM
Rome to Seminaries: Teach the Old Rite
Makes sense to me.
According to Italian news agency Adnkronos, the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei" will soon publish an order addressed to seminaries "in which it is required that the celebration of the Latin Mass be taught to future priests":
"According to what has been learned from authoritative sources, the dicastery presided by Cardinal DarÃo Castrillón Hoyos (among the main supporters of the return of the Mass according to the pre-Conciliar rite) would be considering a circular addressed to seminarians which, in practice, is aimed directly to those bishops who [are] 'disobeying' the Pope's motu proprio (...)."
It is not entirely clear from the report if the order will be an exclusive document or if it will be part of the general document of clarification of the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum which will be published shortly (according to several news agencies and sources).
Would be nice if priests in Milwaukee were taught how to celebrate the NEW Rite, as well. You know, using radical concepts like "Say the black, do the red."
HT: CustosFidei
According to Italian news agency Adnkronos, the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei" will soon publish an order addressed to seminaries "in which it is required that the celebration of the Latin Mass be taught to future priests":
"According to what has been learned from authoritative sources, the dicastery presided by Cardinal DarÃo Castrillón Hoyos (among the main supporters of the return of the Mass according to the pre-Conciliar rite) would be considering a circular addressed to seminarians which, in practice, is aimed directly to those bishops who [are] 'disobeying' the Pope's motu proprio (...)."
It is not entirely clear from the report if the order will be an exclusive document or if it will be part of the general document of clarification of the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum which will be published shortly (according to several news agencies and sources).
Would be nice if priests in Milwaukee were taught how to celebrate the NEW Rite, as well. You know, using radical concepts like "Say the black, do the red."
HT: CustosFidei
Embryonic Stem-Cells? So '90's, Man...
Another silver cross through the heart of ESCR.
Scientists have made ordinary human skin cells take on the chameleon-like powers of embryonic stem cells, a startling breakthrough that might someday deliver the medical payoffs of embryo cloning without the controversy
Fortunately, Wisconsin is in this race:
...the Science paper is from a team led by Junying Yu, working in the lab of in stem-cell pioneer James Thomson of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, which holds three patents for Thomson's work, is applying for patents involving his new research, a spokeswoman said. Two of the four genes he used were different from Yamanaka's recipe.
Congrats to Prof. Thompson!
Scientists have made ordinary human skin cells take on the chameleon-like powers of embryonic stem cells, a startling breakthrough that might someday deliver the medical payoffs of embryo cloning without the controversy
Fortunately, Wisconsin is in this race:
...the Science paper is from a team led by Junying Yu, working in the lab of in stem-cell pioneer James Thomson of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, which holds three patents for Thomson's work, is applying for patents involving his new research, a spokeswoman said. Two of the four genes he used were different from Yamanaka's recipe.
Congrats to Prof. Thompson!
"A Failure....to Collect-icate"
Well, there's another $million gone...
27 News has found despite a state law requiring internet cigarette retailers and other direct marketers of cigarettes to register with the state and agree to collect state taxes, not one business has done so since the law's inception in 2005. (Duhhhh.)
"We have no submissions," wrote Department of Revenue Deputy Tax Division Administrator Lili Best Crane, in response to a request from 27 News for information on the permits required to directly market cigarettes in Wisconsin. (Duhhhh.)
Wisconsin's cigarette tax is slated to increase by $1 to $1.77 per pack. Trade group representatives for merchants selling cigarettes at retail outlets have predicted the increase would motivate some purchasers to defect to the internet in an attempt to avoid paying sales tax. (Duhhh.)
In 2004, Department of Revenue Auditor Christopher Roy projected sales tax collections as a result of requiring direct cigarette marketers to obtain permits and submit taxes on their sales would total $1.1 million by 2007. (Whaddya wanna bet that that "projection" has been SPENT already?)
Anyone 'thinking' that cigarette buyers are going to patronize the high-priced places is nuts. When DarthDoyle moves to force US internet retailers into compliance, the cigarette buyers will patronize off-shore vendors.
Too bad, Brandon.
27 News has found despite a state law requiring internet cigarette retailers and other direct marketers of cigarettes to register with the state and agree to collect state taxes, not one business has done so since the law's inception in 2005. (Duhhhh.)
"We have no submissions," wrote Department of Revenue Deputy Tax Division Administrator Lili Best Crane, in response to a request from 27 News for information on the permits required to directly market cigarettes in Wisconsin. (Duhhhh.)
Wisconsin's cigarette tax is slated to increase by $1 to $1.77 per pack. Trade group representatives for merchants selling cigarettes at retail outlets have predicted the increase would motivate some purchasers to defect to the internet in an attempt to avoid paying sales tax. (Duhhh.)
In 2004, Department of Revenue Auditor Christopher Roy projected sales tax collections as a result of requiring direct cigarette marketers to obtain permits and submit taxes on their sales would total $1.1 million by 2007. (Whaddya wanna bet that that "projection" has been SPENT already?)
Anyone 'thinking' that cigarette buyers are going to patronize the high-priced places is nuts. When DarthDoyle moves to force US internet retailers into compliance, the cigarette buyers will patronize off-shore vendors.
Too bad, Brandon.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Bp. Serratelli, Chairman, USCC Liturgy Committee
Bp. Serratelli's chairmanship will be notably different than that of his predecessor (whose name rhymes with Fish-person.)
...St. Luke ends his gospel with the Emmaus story in which the two disciples recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread (Lk 24:30-32). He begins Acts of the Apostles with this picture of the infant Church: “These remained faithful to the teaching of the apostles, to the brotherhood, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers” (Acts 2:42). Clearly for the evangelist, the Eucharist is the Presence of the Risen Lord building up the Church in the unity of faith and love.
(Note the fact that they 'recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread. That's significant.)
...To every priest is given the great privilege of celebrating the Eucharist by virtue of his ordination. The priest presides at the Eucharist in persona Christi.
Therefore, every priest has the obligation to celebrate the Liturgy in such a way that he provides a witness of faith to the sacredness of the gift given to the Church by her Lord. He is to be faithful to the Church’s norms for the Liturgy so as to be at the service of communion, not only for the community directly taking part in the celebration, but also for the whole Church. [And so that 'Christ may be recognized in that celebration...] The Mystery of the Eucharist “is too great for anyone to permit himself to treat it according to his own whim, so that its sacredness and its universal ordering would be obscured” (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 52).
...In each particular Church, the diocesan bishop has a most serious responsibility before God for the faithful celebration of the liturgy.
...Recognizing this serious duty placed upon me, I ask every priest in this diocese to follow The General Instruction of the Roman Missal as well as Redemptionis Sacramentum, issued in 2004 by the mandate of Pope John Paul II.
...Since the people of God have the right to the Liturgy as the Church has established, both instructions are to be followed in their entirety.
...and so on.
Moving from Trautman to Serratelli will be like going from b/w to color TV. Big, Wonderful, difference!
HT: Fr Z
...St. Luke ends his gospel with the Emmaus story in which the two disciples recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread (Lk 24:30-32). He begins Acts of the Apostles with this picture of the infant Church: “These remained faithful to the teaching of the apostles, to the brotherhood, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers” (Acts 2:42). Clearly for the evangelist, the Eucharist is the Presence of the Risen Lord building up the Church in the unity of faith and love.
(Note the fact that they 'recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread. That's significant.)
...To every priest is given the great privilege of celebrating the Eucharist by virtue of his ordination. The priest presides at the Eucharist in persona Christi.
Therefore, every priest has the obligation to celebrate the Liturgy in such a way that he provides a witness of faith to the sacredness of the gift given to the Church by her Lord. He is to be faithful to the Church’s norms for the Liturgy so as to be at the service of communion, not only for the community directly taking part in the celebration, but also for the whole Church. [And so that 'Christ may be recognized in that celebration...] The Mystery of the Eucharist “is too great for anyone to permit himself to treat it according to his own whim, so that its sacredness and its universal ordering would be obscured” (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 52).
...In each particular Church, the diocesan bishop has a most serious responsibility before God for the faithful celebration of the liturgy.
...Recognizing this serious duty placed upon me, I ask every priest in this diocese to follow The General Instruction of the Roman Missal as well as Redemptionis Sacramentum, issued in 2004 by the mandate of Pope John Paul II.
...Since the people of God have the right to the Liturgy as the Church has established, both instructions are to be followed in their entirety.
...and so on.
Moving from Trautman to Serratelli will be like going from b/w to color TV. Big, Wonderful, difference!
HT: Fr Z
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Wisconsin Bishops v. Bp. Vasa on "Plan B"
Well, it had to happen sometime.
The Wisconsin Bishops issued a "nolo contendere" regarding the Legislative initiatives to require "Plan B" abortifacients. There are a few quibbles (page 2 of the document) but they basically caved on this Planned Parenthood initiative.
They cite the Ethical and Religious Directives of the USCC:
" A female who has been raped should be able to defend herself against a potential conception....
if after appropriate testing...there is no evidence that conception has occurred...., she may be treated with medications that prevent ovulation, sperm capacitation, or fertilization.
"It is not permissible...to initiate or to recommend treatments that have as their purpose or direct effect the removal, destruction, or interference with the implantation of a fertilized ovum."
Yah, well...
Bishop Vasa of Oregon has a more critical take:
...Nothing is to be done which impedes the natural progress of a child already conceived. This principle, at least in the ideal, is understood and practiced in Catholic hospitals. There is a huge difficulty with Plan B. If a pregnancy is confirmed by way of a standard pregnancy test then Plan B is neither warranted nor needed since such a readily identified pregnancy would not be the result of a very recent sexual assault. If the standard pregnancy test returns a negative for pregnancy then this only proves that the woman was not pregnant prior to the assault. The critical question, which must be answered with very great care, is whether the assaulted woman has already conceived a child as a result of the assault.The answer to this question may not be able to be given with certainty and I maintain that it must be given with certainty in order to proceed with Plan B. The utilization of Plan B without this certainty runs the unjustifiable risk of destroying new life while ostensibly intending to prevent the assault from engendering that life. It turns an uncaring eye to the new life which may have already begun.
Bp. Vasa goes on to explain further:
Using a bit of verbal engineering allows the proponents to assure us that the product prevents “conception” and does not disrupt “pregnancy.” A closer look reveals that when proponents of Plan B use terms like conception or pregnancy they almost always mean an already implanted, growing baby in the womb of his or her mother. Most proponents of Plan B would maintain that pregnancy begins at implantation whereas it is much more honest to affirm that pregnancy begins at conception. Thus, though the language is the language of protecting a woman from a pregnancy as a result of sexual assault the truth is that the desire to protect a woman from such a pregnancy extends even to destroying the newly conceived child if necessary.
In other words, the pregnancy test is not really capable of determinining whether conception has occurred within 24 (or less) hours of the assault. And in the case where the question cannot be answered with moral certainty, the correct path is NOT to proceed with "Plan B."
Bp. Vasa happens to base his opinion on solid medical testimony AND on an understanding of the moral law (as enshrined in the Hippocratic Oath, before that became irrelevant...) "First thing, DO NO HARM."
It would be useful for Abp. Dolan to take action correcting the Wisconsin Catholic Conference's position--sooner rather than later.
HT: Jester and Terry
The Wisconsin Bishops issued a "nolo contendere" regarding the Legislative initiatives to require "Plan B" abortifacients. There are a few quibbles (page 2 of the document) but they basically caved on this Planned Parenthood initiative.
They cite the Ethical and Religious Directives of the USCC:
" A female who has been raped should be able to defend herself against a potential conception....
if after appropriate testing...there is no evidence that conception has occurred...., she may be treated with medications that prevent ovulation, sperm capacitation, or fertilization.
"It is not permissible...to initiate or to recommend treatments that have as their purpose or direct effect the removal, destruction, or interference with the implantation of a fertilized ovum."
Yah, well...
Bishop Vasa of Oregon has a more critical take:
...Nothing is to be done which impedes the natural progress of a child already conceived. This principle, at least in the ideal, is understood and practiced in Catholic hospitals. There is a huge difficulty with Plan B. If a pregnancy is confirmed by way of a standard pregnancy test then Plan B is neither warranted nor needed since such a readily identified pregnancy would not be the result of a very recent sexual assault. If the standard pregnancy test returns a negative for pregnancy then this only proves that the woman was not pregnant prior to the assault. The critical question, which must be answered with very great care, is whether the assaulted woman has already conceived a child as a result of the assault.The answer to this question may not be able to be given with certainty and I maintain that it must be given with certainty in order to proceed with Plan B. The utilization of Plan B without this certainty runs the unjustifiable risk of destroying new life while ostensibly intending to prevent the assault from engendering that life. It turns an uncaring eye to the new life which may have already begun.
Bp. Vasa goes on to explain further:
Using a bit of verbal engineering allows the proponents to assure us that the product prevents “conception” and does not disrupt “pregnancy.” A closer look reveals that when proponents of Plan B use terms like conception or pregnancy they almost always mean an already implanted, growing baby in the womb of his or her mother. Most proponents of Plan B would maintain that pregnancy begins at implantation whereas it is much more honest to affirm that pregnancy begins at conception. Thus, though the language is the language of protecting a woman from a pregnancy as a result of sexual assault the truth is that the desire to protect a woman from such a pregnancy extends even to destroying the newly conceived child if necessary.
In other words, the pregnancy test is not really capable of determinining whether conception has occurred within 24 (or less) hours of the assault. And in the case where the question cannot be answered with moral certainty, the correct path is NOT to proceed with "Plan B."
Bp. Vasa happens to base his opinion on solid medical testimony AND on an understanding of the moral law (as enshrined in the Hippocratic Oath, before that became irrelevant...) "First thing, DO NO HARM."
It would be useful for Abp. Dolan to take action correcting the Wisconsin Catholic Conference's position--sooner rather than later.
HT: Jester and Terry
"Praise Music"? Not for Catholics
A good synopsis of the issue:
God is not glorified by bodies swaying with arms raised in affective intoxication. Rather, He is glorified when man understands who God is and who he is. God is glorified by man’s holiness which is only possible through His grace, i.e. cooperative communion with God. It takes much effort on fallen man’s part. He must soak himself in grace and cooperate with it such that he is able to become “virtuous,” from the Latin term which perhaps could be equated with St. Irenaeus’ dictum.
The Mass is the starting place for practicing self possession. It is the place for moving away from the noise of the world which distracts us from the emptiness we have inside because we are not yet what we were made to be. It is the place to move toward God in silent, communal self-gift which is enabled by self-possession and self-mastery. Praise and worship may be fine for prayer meetings. Hymnody is perhaps better placed in other venues such as the Liturgy of the Hours. But for the Mass, we must return to the foundation of chant and sacred polyphony and require that future developments in liturgical must must arise organically from these venerable traditions.
Therefore, we must not allow the “consumer” mentality to drive our liturgy. We must give people what they need, not what they think they want.
It's not hard to go from the above to the watchword of St. Pius X, that 'sacred music should elevate the minds AND hearts of the Faithful to God.' And, in fact, the author did exactly that:
...St. Ireneaus’ teaching that “the glory of God is man fully alive” (Against Heresies) means man fully himself. That is, man who is fully self-possessed such that he can give himself fully to God–traditionally we call this holiness.
Fully himself: mind AND heart. Yes, that means that the music cannot be "heartless," but it also cannot be "mindless," with the accompanying danger of satisfying concupiscience (that ain't just for sex, you know...)
Is this some sort of "intellectualoid" protest? Yes, in a way--but it does not take an "intellectualoid" to understand, nor be affected in BOTH ways, by Gregorian Chant and its derivatives.
God is not glorified by bodies swaying with arms raised in affective intoxication. Rather, He is glorified when man understands who God is and who he is. God is glorified by man’s holiness which is only possible through His grace, i.e. cooperative communion with God. It takes much effort on fallen man’s part. He must soak himself in grace and cooperate with it such that he is able to become “virtuous,” from the Latin term which perhaps could be equated with St. Irenaeus’ dictum.
The Mass is the starting place for practicing self possession. It is the place for moving away from the noise of the world which distracts us from the emptiness we have inside because we are not yet what we were made to be. It is the place to move toward God in silent, communal self-gift which is enabled by self-possession and self-mastery. Praise and worship may be fine for prayer meetings. Hymnody is perhaps better placed in other venues such as the Liturgy of the Hours. But for the Mass, we must return to the foundation of chant and sacred polyphony and require that future developments in liturgical must must arise organically from these venerable traditions.
Therefore, we must not allow the “consumer” mentality to drive our liturgy. We must give people what they need, not what they think they want.
It's not hard to go from the above to the watchword of St. Pius X, that 'sacred music should elevate the minds AND hearts of the Faithful to God.' And, in fact, the author did exactly that:
...St. Ireneaus’ teaching that “the glory of God is man fully alive” (Against Heresies) means man fully himself. That is, man who is fully self-possessed such that he can give himself fully to God–traditionally we call this holiness.
Fully himself: mind AND heart. Yes, that means that the music cannot be "heartless," but it also cannot be "mindless," with the accompanying danger of satisfying concupiscience (that ain't just for sex, you know...)
Is this some sort of "intellectualoid" protest? Yes, in a way--but it does not take an "intellectualoid" to understand, nor be affected in BOTH ways, by Gregorian Chant and its derivatives.
"Watchdogs" Yipping at Ghosts
To sum it all up: there's no "there" there.
But there are a couple of thousand words.
The JS schnauzers found that our Leggies claim per-diems of $88.00/day and on the same days, ALSO spend money from their re-election accounts for political activity.
The per-diem statute is clear:
Lawmakers "shall be entitled to an allowance for expenses incurred for food and lodging for each day that he or she is in Madison on legislative business."
The important word in that sentence is "shall."
So when Leggie Lew goes to Madistan and spends a day in session--and then goes out to a campaign-related event that evening, where he spends $50.00, it's clear to me that use of BOTH funds is perfectly fine. He should get a campaign-fund reimbursement for the $50.00 AND his per-diem for spending the day in Madistan on Legislative business.
Note well: the law as written requires the full $88.00 payment. There's no "splitting" allowed--i.e., charging $60.00 to the State for mileage and hotel and $50.00 to the political fund for dinner.
Look at it this way:
If Leggie Lew went to Madistan and spent a day in session and went to a campaign-related event that evening, and billed the WHOLE day to his campaign fund, what would the Schnauzers say?
I'll TELL you what they'd say:
"Gott im Himmel!!! Leggie Lew's political contributors financed Lew's day in Madison!!!"
See how that works?
But there are a couple of thousand words.
The JS schnauzers found that our Leggies claim per-diems of $88.00/day and on the same days, ALSO spend money from their re-election accounts for political activity.
The per-diem statute is clear:
Lawmakers "shall be entitled to an allowance for expenses incurred for food and lodging for each day that he or she is in Madison on legislative business."
The important word in that sentence is "shall."
So when Leggie Lew goes to Madistan and spends a day in session--and then goes out to a campaign-related event that evening, where he spends $50.00, it's clear to me that use of BOTH funds is perfectly fine. He should get a campaign-fund reimbursement for the $50.00 AND his per-diem for spending the day in Madistan on Legislative business.
Note well: the law as written requires the full $88.00 payment. There's no "splitting" allowed--i.e., charging $60.00 to the State for mileage and hotel and $50.00 to the political fund for dinner.
Look at it this way:
If Leggie Lew went to Madistan and spent a day in session and went to a campaign-related event that evening, and billed the WHOLE day to his campaign fund, what would the Schnauzers say?
I'll TELL you what they'd say:
"Gott im Himmel!!! Leggie Lew's political contributors financed Lew's day in Madison!!!"
See how that works?
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Where's That Stolen SUV?
Did someone steal your SUV?
Maybe you can find it ....in Syria!
The FBI's counterterrorism unit has launched a broad investigation of US-based theft rings after discovering that some of the vehicles used in deadly car bombings in Iraq, including attacks that killed US troops and Iraqi civilians, were probably stolen in the United States, according to senior government officials.
...The inquiry began after coalition troops raided a bomb-making factory in Fallujah last November and found a sport utility vehicle registered in Texas that was being prepared for a bombing mission.
Investigators said they are comparing several other cases where vehicles evidently stolen in the United States wound up in Syria or other Middle East countries and ultimately into the hands of Iraqi insurgent groups -- including Al Qaeda in Iraq, led by Jordanian-born Abu Musab Al Zarqawi
So how do you spell "Chop-Shop" in Arabic?
HT: Clay Cramer
Maybe you can find it ....in Syria!
The FBI's counterterrorism unit has launched a broad investigation of US-based theft rings after discovering that some of the vehicles used in deadly car bombings in Iraq, including attacks that killed US troops and Iraqi civilians, were probably stolen in the United States, according to senior government officials.
...The inquiry began after coalition troops raided a bomb-making factory in Fallujah last November and found a sport utility vehicle registered in Texas that was being prepared for a bombing mission.
Investigators said they are comparing several other cases where vehicles evidently stolen in the United States wound up in Syria or other Middle East countries and ultimately into the hands of Iraqi insurgent groups -- including Al Qaeda in Iraq, led by Jordanian-born Abu Musab Al Zarqawi
So how do you spell "Chop-Shop" in Arabic?
HT: Clay Cramer
PRChina: Economic Mouse? No More War??
Captain Ed cites a new report which plays a different tune than most.
China's economy is 40 percent smaller than most recent estimates, a US economist said Wednesday, citing data from the Asian Development Bank and guidelines from the World Bank.
Albert Keidel, a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former US Treasury official and World Bank economist, made the comments in a report published by the US think tank and in a commentary in the Financial Times.
That economist also postulated that PRChina has been spending a lotta money on 'moving its population above the poverty line.'
Yah, well, maybe. PRChina's Commies-in-Charge have used bullets to reduce the number of impoverished peasants for well over 50 years, and there's no reason to believe that that particular method has fallen out of favor.
Of course, this report (if true) ALSO throws a large monkey-wrench into the FreeTraitor argument that 'PRChina is the largest consumer market in the Universe!!!!!' justifying moving production assets to that slave-labor/theft-of-patent-and-copyright Workers' Paradise.
The Captain fails to mention that angle.
Then the Captain, normally a level-headed type, starts buying into the peacenik flappayappa(!!):
It may also have some impact on long-term military planning here in the US, taking us from a near-panic mode to something more rational, allowing us to plan wisely for growth in our Pacific assets without provoking an arms race that neither country can afford.
So all that stuff the Pentagon's Intel people give us is what....propaganda?
China's economy is 40 percent smaller than most recent estimates, a US economist said Wednesday, citing data from the Asian Development Bank and guidelines from the World Bank.
Albert Keidel, a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former US Treasury official and World Bank economist, made the comments in a report published by the US think tank and in a commentary in the Financial Times.
That economist also postulated that PRChina has been spending a lotta money on 'moving its population above the poverty line.'
Yah, well, maybe. PRChina's Commies-in-Charge have used bullets to reduce the number of impoverished peasants for well over 50 years, and there's no reason to believe that that particular method has fallen out of favor.
Of course, this report (if true) ALSO throws a large monkey-wrench into the FreeTraitor argument that 'PRChina is the largest consumer market in the Universe!!!!!' justifying moving production assets to that slave-labor/theft-of-patent-and-copyright Workers' Paradise.
The Captain fails to mention that angle.
Then the Captain, normally a level-headed type, starts buying into the peacenik flappayappa(!!):
It may also have some impact on long-term military planning here in the US, taking us from a near-panic mode to something more rational, allowing us to plan wisely for growth in our Pacific assets without provoking an arms race that neither country can afford.
So all that stuff the Pentagon's Intel people give us is what....propaganda?
Shall We Praise Vrakas for Increasing Spending?
Yada yada yada...
Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas on Thursday signaled his intention to approve a new $255 million county budget without vetoing any provision.
Citing the relatively low property tax increase of $1.8 million, Vrakas called it "one of the most conservative public sector budgets in the state."
An increase in the levy is an increase in the levy, Dan-o.
Sheriff's deputy patrols in public schools survived Tuesday in a $255 million budget for Waukesha County that also will boost spending next year on criminal rehabilitation programs.
The sheriff assigns deputies to Arrowhead, Hamilton and Kettle Moraine high schools, asking only voluntary contributions from the school districts to offset the cost.
Let me see if I get this straight. Waukesha County spends about $1.5 MILLION to watch the kiddies at 3 districts which have...umnnnnhhh...plenty of tax-base resources. What...there's no local cop-shop in Hartland? Delafield? Or those Districts cannot afford their own security services?
Puhleeeze...
...county supervisors boosted spending for a new Aging and Disability Resource Center, for a Waukesha freeway bypass development and for a courthouse remodeling project.
Tell you what, Dan. Take the air-conditioning out of the prisoners' area at the County Jail. That will pay for the "courthouse remodeling."
Tell Sheriff Dan that the prisoners can sweat.
As to Mr. Vrakas: did "LESS SPENDING" ever cross your radar-screen? Or is Scott Walker the only County Exec who gets it?
Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas on Thursday signaled his intention to approve a new $255 million county budget without vetoing any provision.
Citing the relatively low property tax increase of $1.8 million, Vrakas called it "one of the most conservative public sector budgets in the state."
An increase in the levy is an increase in the levy, Dan-o.
Sheriff's deputy patrols in public schools survived Tuesday in a $255 million budget for Waukesha County that also will boost spending next year on criminal rehabilitation programs.
The sheriff assigns deputies to Arrowhead, Hamilton and Kettle Moraine high schools, asking only voluntary contributions from the school districts to offset the cost.
Let me see if I get this straight. Waukesha County spends about $1.5 MILLION to watch the kiddies at 3 districts which have...umnnnnhhh...plenty of tax-base resources. What...there's no local cop-shop in Hartland? Delafield? Or those Districts cannot afford their own security services?
Puhleeeze...
...county supervisors boosted spending for a new Aging and Disability Resource Center, for a Waukesha freeway bypass development and for a courthouse remodeling project.
Tell you what, Dan. Take the air-conditioning out of the prisoners' area at the County Jail. That will pay for the "courthouse remodeling."
Tell Sheriff Dan that the prisoners can sweat.
As to Mr. Vrakas: did "LESS SPENDING" ever cross your radar-screen? Or is Scott Walker the only County Exec who gets it?
"Warrantless Search" or Common Sense Policework?
Drudge's headline on this is curious; he calls it "warrantless search" in Boston.
Ever the civil liberties guy I went to the story--and found something a little different.
Boston police are launching a program that will call upon parents in high-crime neighborhoods to allow detectives into their homes, without a warrant, to search for guns in their children's bedrooms.
Note that "parents" will be asked to "allow" cops into the homes. So far, so good.
The program, which is already raising questions about civil liberties, is based on the premise that parents are so fearful of gun violence and the possibility that their own teenagers will be caught up in it that they will turn to police for help, even in their own households.
In the next two weeks, Boston police officers who are assigned to schools will begin going to homes where they believe teenagers might have guns. The officers will travel in groups of three, dress in plainclothes to avoid attracting negative attention, and ask the teenager's parent or legal guardian for permission to search. If the parents say no, police said, the officers will leave.
If officers find a gun, police said, they will not charge the teenager with unlawful gun possession, unless the firearm is linked to a shooting or homicide.
Who in hell could object to THAT?
That's just a rhetorical question; you already know the answer.
"I just have a queasy feeling anytime the police try to do an end run around the Constitution," said Thomas Nolan, a former Boston police lieutenant who now teaches criminology at Boston University
College prof.
"Our biggest concern is the notion of informed consent," said Amy Reichbach, a racial justice advocate at the American Civil Liberties Union. "People might not understand the implications of weapons being tested or any contraband being found."
Anti-Catholic Libertines Union.
This isn't real difficult. The parent(s) allow the cops to take a look; the cops confiscate illegally-possessed guns. If the parents say "no," the cops go away.
Ever the civil liberties guy I went to the story--and found something a little different.
Boston police are launching a program that will call upon parents in high-crime neighborhoods to allow detectives into their homes, without a warrant, to search for guns in their children's bedrooms.
Note that "parents" will be asked to "allow" cops into the homes. So far, so good.
The program, which is already raising questions about civil liberties, is based on the premise that parents are so fearful of gun violence and the possibility that their own teenagers will be caught up in it that they will turn to police for help, even in their own households.
In the next two weeks, Boston police officers who are assigned to schools will begin going to homes where they believe teenagers might have guns. The officers will travel in groups of three, dress in plainclothes to avoid attracting negative attention, and ask the teenager's parent or legal guardian for permission to search. If the parents say no, police said, the officers will leave.
If officers find a gun, police said, they will not charge the teenager with unlawful gun possession, unless the firearm is linked to a shooting or homicide.
Who in hell could object to THAT?
That's just a rhetorical question; you already know the answer.
"I just have a queasy feeling anytime the police try to do an end run around the Constitution," said Thomas Nolan, a former Boston police lieutenant who now teaches criminology at Boston University
College prof.
"Our biggest concern is the notion of informed consent," said Amy Reichbach, a racial justice advocate at the American Civil Liberties Union. "People might not understand the implications of weapons being tested or any contraband being found."
Anti-Catholic Libertines Union.
This isn't real difficult. The parent(s) allow the cops to take a look; the cops confiscate illegally-possessed guns. If the parents say "no," the cops go away.
Friday, November 16, 2007
Don't Like High Prices in Wisconsin?
If you're a resident of Wisconsin and do not like high prices, then pay attention to the news releases from the (R) side of the Legislature on Tuesday and/or Wednesday of next week.
Sources tell me that a bill which will eliminate ALL minimum markup requirements will be introduced.
ALL of them. Not just the 9%+ on gasoline. Not just the 6% on all retail goods which causes embarrassments like this. ALL of them.
Wanna see a reduction in the cost of living?
This might be fun.
Sources tell me that a bill which will eliminate ALL minimum markup requirements will be introduced.
ALL of them. Not just the 9%+ on gasoline. Not just the 6% on all retail goods which causes embarrassments like this. ALL of them.
Wanna see a reduction in the cost of living?
This might be fun.
God Acts Through Earthly Instruments
Heh.
A United States Marine was attending some college courses between assignments. He had completed missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. One of the courses had a professor who was a vowed atheist and a member of the ACLU. One day the professor shocked the class when he came in. He looked to the ceiling and flatly stated, “God, if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I’ll give you exactly 15 minutes.”
The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop. Ten minutes went by and the professor proclaimed, “Here I am God. I’m still waiting.”
It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him; knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.
The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently. The other students were shocked and stunned and sat there looking on in silence. The professor eventually came to, noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked, “What the hell is the matter with you? Why did you do that?”
The Marine calmly replied, “God was too busy today protecting America’s troops who are protecting your right to say stupid shit and act like an asshole. So, He sent me.”
Stolen from Cavey!
A United States Marine was attending some college courses between assignments. He had completed missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. One of the courses had a professor who was a vowed atheist and a member of the ACLU. One day the professor shocked the class when he came in. He looked to the ceiling and flatly stated, “God, if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I’ll give you exactly 15 minutes.”
The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop. Ten minutes went by and the professor proclaimed, “Here I am God. I’m still waiting.”
It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him; knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.
The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently. The other students were shocked and stunned and sat there looking on in silence. The professor eventually came to, noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked, “What the hell is the matter with you? Why did you do that?”
The Marine calmly replied, “God was too busy today protecting America’s troops who are protecting your right to say stupid shit and act like an asshole. So, He sent me.”
Stolen from Cavey!
Beagle's Things--Caninity in Hymnody
From the irrepressible Christus Vincit, the first draft of a certain hymn-text:
You who dwell in the kennel of the Lord
with your Alpo and Kibbles and Bits;
Sometimes it's Eukanuba;
sometimes it's Gravy Train.
(Refrain)And he shall speak to you of beagle's things,
rubber toys and chewy things;
Make you to sit in his lap
and pat you on the top of your head.
His collar, his wormer, his visit to the vet;
I want to take care of my pet.
When we come back from "walkies",
he'll get his doggie treat.
(to refrain)
The barking, the baying, the howling at the moon;
I hope that he stops it real soon.
It can be most annoying
when he's out of control.
(to refrain)
You who dwell in the kennel of the Lord
with your Alpo and Kibbles and Bits;
Sometimes it's Eukanuba;
sometimes it's Gravy Train.
(Refrain)And he shall speak to you of beagle's things,
rubber toys and chewy things;
Make you to sit in his lap
and pat you on the top of your head.
His collar, his wormer, his visit to the vet;
I want to take care of my pet.
When we come back from "walkies",
he'll get his doggie treat.
(to refrain)
The barking, the baying, the howling at the moon;
I hope that he stops it real soon.
It can be most annoying
when he's out of control.
(to refrain)
The Reality of Education
Of course, G K Chesterton said it.
WHEN society is in rather a futile fuss about the subjection of women, will no one say how much every man owes to the tyranny and privilege of women, to the fact that they alone rule education until education becomes futile?
For a boy is only sent to be taught at school when it is too late to teach him anything. The real thing has been done already, and thank God it is nearly always done by women. Every man is womanized, merely by being born.
They talk of the masculine woman; but every man is a feminized man. And if ever men walk to Westminster to protest against this female privilege, I shall not join their procession. --Orthodoxy
Of course, this raises the question about the nature and temperament of mothers in Milwaukee who raise gang-bangers and dope dealers...but then, the fickle finger points wherever...
WHEN society is in rather a futile fuss about the subjection of women, will no one say how much every man owes to the tyranny and privilege of women, to the fact that they alone rule education until education becomes futile?
For a boy is only sent to be taught at school when it is too late to teach him anything. The real thing has been done already, and thank God it is nearly always done by women. Every man is womanized, merely by being born.
They talk of the masculine woman; but every man is a feminized man. And if ever men walk to Westminster to protest against this female privilege, I shall not join their procession. --Orthodoxy
Of course, this raises the question about the nature and temperament of mothers in Milwaukee who raise gang-bangers and dope dealers...but then, the fickle finger points wherever...
Democrat Common Sense?
Well, ain't this interesting?
Three state lawmakers are asking for an audit of the University of Wisconsin athletic department's contract with the Big Ten Network.
In a letter sent to the co-chairs of the Joint Audit Committee last week, Reps. David Travis, D-Madison, Frank Boyle, D-Superior, and Mary Hubler, D-Rice Lake, asked for an audit of the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics at the UW-Madison.
They asked the same question I did:
"How did Wisconsin get in the position that its public university can't televise its own games on public television?" Travis asked during an interview Thursday.
"Everybody is lateraling the ball here" by shifting the blame for the agreement, he said.
"Nobody is taking responsibility for it."
Duh...
Three state lawmakers are asking for an audit of the University of Wisconsin athletic department's contract with the Big Ten Network.
In a letter sent to the co-chairs of the Joint Audit Committee last week, Reps. David Travis, D-Madison, Frank Boyle, D-Superior, and Mary Hubler, D-Rice Lake, asked for an audit of the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics at the UW-Madison.
They asked the same question I did:
"How did Wisconsin get in the position that its public university can't televise its own games on public television?" Travis asked during an interview Thursday.
"Everybody is lateraling the ball here" by shifting the blame for the agreement, he said.
"Nobody is taking responsibility for it."
Duh...
"Pollution Pact"---Politics As Usual
So, when you want coal to go away, can't really afford natural gas, and oil just won't do, how do you provide electricity?
Not Nukes.
And by the way, we like getting re-elected, so car-exhaust regs aren't here, either.
Nuclear power, which generates no greenhouse gas emissions, was deemed too divisive to include in an energy and climate-change platform that 11 Midwestern governors endorsed Thursday.
...nuclear power was "too controversial" to include in the regional plan, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle said. Also absent: regulations that would regulate emissions of global warming gases from vehicle tailpipes.
So the ways to make pollution disappear?
1) Squash industrials.
2) Pray for lotsa wind.
Not Nukes.
And by the way, we like getting re-elected, so car-exhaust regs aren't here, either.
Nuclear power, which generates no greenhouse gas emissions, was deemed too divisive to include in an energy and climate-change platform that 11 Midwestern governors endorsed Thursday.
...nuclear power was "too controversial" to include in the regional plan, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle said. Also absent: regulations that would regulate emissions of global warming gases from vehicle tailpipes.
So the ways to make pollution disappear?
1) Squash industrials.
2) Pray for lotsa wind.
The Writers Strike Back
Heh.
The script-writers have a point, and they deliver it.
About 4 minutes, during which Hypocrisy is (brilliantly) revealed.
The script-writers have a point, and they deliver it.
About 4 minutes, during which Hypocrisy is (brilliantly) revealed.
Know Your News Source
It's common knowledge that the MSM leans (if not falls) Left, and that the Wall Street Journal is lefty on the news pages and right-ish on the editorial side, although a number of observers (myself included) are chary of the WSJ's corporate toady-ism.
Who knew that Dow Jones/WSJ is tight with a bunch of Islamists?
While the Wall Street Journal has recently published articles with criticism of politicians who link Islam to terrorism, the Wall Street Journal's financial reporting on Shariah finance seems to show no understanding of the political ideology of Islamism. An August 9, 2007 Wall Street Journal article clearly states WSJ's view of Shariah as "Islamic law" which "stems from the Quran and subsequent interpretations by scholars". Neither the Wall Street Journal nor Dow Jones addresses the role of Shariah as part of the Islamist political ideology, or the role of Islamist political ideology in promoting Jihad. The WSJ and Dow Jones efforts are effectively legitimizing the political Islamist ideology by defining Shariah as "Islamic law" and developing financial vehicles based on that ideology -- one that is not shared by Muslims that view Shariah law as neither "Islamic" nor compatible with the norms of modern society.
If you've heard Limbaugh lately, you know that the propaganda war is on. He's spent a lot of air-time yapping about the Wonders of the UAE...
HT: CounterTerrorism Blog
Who knew that Dow Jones/WSJ is tight with a bunch of Islamists?
While the Wall Street Journal has recently published articles with criticism of politicians who link Islam to terrorism, the Wall Street Journal's financial reporting on Shariah finance seems to show no understanding of the political ideology of Islamism. An August 9, 2007 Wall Street Journal article clearly states WSJ's view of Shariah as "Islamic law" which "stems from the Quran and subsequent interpretations by scholars". Neither the Wall Street Journal nor Dow Jones addresses the role of Shariah as part of the Islamist political ideology, or the role of Islamist political ideology in promoting Jihad. The WSJ and Dow Jones efforts are effectively legitimizing the political Islamist ideology by defining Shariah as "Islamic law" and developing financial vehicles based on that ideology -- one that is not shared by Muslims that view Shariah law as neither "Islamic" nor compatible with the norms of modern society.
If you've heard Limbaugh lately, you know that the propaganda war is on. He's spent a lot of air-time yapping about the Wonders of the UAE...
HT: CounterTerrorism Blog
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Vatican II--the Misinterpreters
In the middle of a long article about the mis-interpretation of Vatican II, we find an indication of who the 'mis-interpreters' are:
...that group of scholars from Bologna – let's call them that – led by Prof. G. Alberigo and ably assisted by an affiliated team of authors (including, but not limited to, some from the Louvain), who find themselves fundamentally united in a single line of thought, succeeded, through a wealth of means, industriousness, and generous friendships, in monopolizing and imposing an off-kilter – in our opinion – interpretation, thanks especially to the publication of a "Storia del Concilio Vaticano II [History of Vatican Council II]," published by Peeters/Il Mulino, in five volumes, already released in Italian and nearly ready for final publication in French, English, Spanish, German, Portuguese, Russian, and Japanese
What's wrong with Alberigo/Bologna/Louvain?
I refer to the contrast drawn between John XXIII and Paul VI, to the question of "modernity" (what does this mean?), and to the unwarranted passage from this to "humanity." We refer to the displacement of the Council's center of gravity from the assembly (and the accompanying Acta Synodalia) to the committees (and to the personal diaries), to the tendency to consider as "new" frameworks that are not new at all, to the view of an "autocephalous" conciliar assembly, to the biased vision of religious freedom.
Well, that's a start, eh?
Of course, the "Louvain" connection is interesting to Milwaukee-area seminarians.
HT: TNLM
...that group of scholars from Bologna – let's call them that – led by Prof. G. Alberigo and ably assisted by an affiliated team of authors (including, but not limited to, some from the Louvain), who find themselves fundamentally united in a single line of thought, succeeded, through a wealth of means, industriousness, and generous friendships, in monopolizing and imposing an off-kilter – in our opinion – interpretation, thanks especially to the publication of a "Storia del Concilio Vaticano II [History of Vatican Council II]," published by Peeters/Il Mulino, in five volumes, already released in Italian and nearly ready for final publication in French, English, Spanish, German, Portuguese, Russian, and Japanese
What's wrong with Alberigo/Bologna/Louvain?
I refer to the contrast drawn between John XXIII and Paul VI, to the question of "modernity" (what does this mean?), and to the unwarranted passage from this to "humanity." We refer to the displacement of the Council's center of gravity from the assembly (and the accompanying Acta Synodalia) to the committees (and to the personal diaries), to the tendency to consider as "new" frameworks that are not new at all, to the view of an "autocephalous" conciliar assembly, to the biased vision of religious freedom.
Well, that's a start, eh?
Of course, the "Louvain" connection is interesting to Milwaukee-area seminarians.
HT: TNLM
Labor Cost--How Big Is It?
One runs across moronic blather like this all the time:
Since labor is such a big part of both manufactured goods and services, it is reasonable to think that lower wages will lead to lower prices. (Daily Reckoning newsletter 11/15/07)
Sure wish this character actually knew something about manufacturing economics.
Most manufacturing firms will tell you that "direct labor" constitutes about 5% (yes, FIVE percent) of the cost of a manufactured good. Now "direct labor" doesn't include benefits for the plant workers--nor does it include "supervisory labor," nor "managerial labor," nor "sales and marketing labor".
But for the fun of it, let's multiply "direct labor" times two to include the cost of benefits attributed to the plant workers.
Now we're up to 10% of the cost of a manufactured good.
Is that really a "big part" of the cost? Not in my book.
Add in supervisory wages and bennies, and you're up to 15% of the cost of a manufactured good.
Sales, General and Administrative adds another big bunch--probably 25-30%--that's all the salaries and bennies of everybody else working in the Company.
The REAL cost-driver? Usually materials.
Of course, there are taxes and regulatory costs.
Since labor is such a big part of both manufactured goods and services, it is reasonable to think that lower wages will lead to lower prices. (Daily Reckoning newsletter 11/15/07)
Sure wish this character actually knew something about manufacturing economics.
Most manufacturing firms will tell you that "direct labor" constitutes about 5% (yes, FIVE percent) of the cost of a manufactured good. Now "direct labor" doesn't include benefits for the plant workers--nor does it include "supervisory labor," nor "managerial labor," nor "sales and marketing labor".
But for the fun of it, let's multiply "direct labor" times two to include the cost of benefits attributed to the plant workers.
Now we're up to 10% of the cost of a manufactured good.
Is that really a "big part" of the cost? Not in my book.
Add in supervisory wages and bennies, and you're up to 15% of the cost of a manufactured good.
Sales, General and Administrative adds another big bunch--probably 25-30%--that's all the salaries and bennies of everybody else working in the Company.
The REAL cost-driver? Usually materials.
Of course, there are taxes and regulatory costs.
Smothers Brothers
Some of you may recall the "You were always Mom's favorite" patter of the Brothers.
Well, here's another way to tell which offspring is favored...
Exactly Who Is Booming Bhutto?
I shoulda known.
On Sept. 20, Osama bin Laden cued liberals by issuing another tape demanding Musharraf's ouster. The Democrats and the media quickly followed suit.
Weeks later, the New York Times editorial page called on "masses of Pakistanis" to participate in "peaceful demonstrations" against Musharraf...
Media darling Bhutto returned to Pakistan after fleeing the country following her conviction for corruption as prime minister. Her conviction was later overturned by the corrupt Pakistani Supreme Court...She was again convicted in a Swiss court of money laundering.
...Bhutto demonstrates her own deep commitment to democracy by giving herself the title "chairperson for life" of the Pakistan Peoples Party
In contrast,
You wouldn't know it to read the headlines, but Musharraf has not staged a military coup. In fact, he was re-elected – in a landslide – just weeks ago under Pakistan's own parliamentary system.
And as we mentioned earlier, Musharraf sicced the Army on Paki lawyers.
No wonder the election was a landslide.
See also: "Aunt Benazir's False Promises" written by Bhutto's niece--who thinks dear Auntie may have arranged for the execution of Bhutto's brother--the father of the author.
Helluvagal, that Benazir!
On Sept. 20, Osama bin Laden cued liberals by issuing another tape demanding Musharraf's ouster. The Democrats and the media quickly followed suit.
Weeks later, the New York Times editorial page called on "masses of Pakistanis" to participate in "peaceful demonstrations" against Musharraf...
Media darling Bhutto returned to Pakistan after fleeing the country following her conviction for corruption as prime minister. Her conviction was later overturned by the corrupt Pakistani Supreme Court...She was again convicted in a Swiss court of money laundering.
...Bhutto demonstrates her own deep commitment to democracy by giving herself the title "chairperson for life" of the Pakistan Peoples Party
In contrast,
You wouldn't know it to read the headlines, but Musharraf has not staged a military coup. In fact, he was re-elected – in a landslide – just weeks ago under Pakistan's own parliamentary system.
And as we mentioned earlier, Musharraf sicced the Army on Paki lawyers.
No wonder the election was a landslide.
See also: "Aunt Benazir's False Promises" written by Bhutto's niece--who thinks dear Auntie may have arranged for the execution of Bhutto's brother--the father of the author.
Helluvagal, that Benazir!
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
A Federal Judge Whose Footnotes are Delicious
The case is simple. Deutsche Bank acted to foreclose on a large number of properties on which they held mortgages. Nobody really questions whether the Bank actually was the holder of the paper.
However, the paperwork was not complete; the usual endorsement stamps were not up-to-date. Thus, technically, the Bank did NOT hold the paper.
So they get to court.
And the judge tells them to go pound sand.
Heh.
On October 10, 2007, this Court issued an Order requiring Plaintiff-Lenders in a number of pending foreclosure cases to file a copy of the executed Assignment demonstrating Plaintiff was the holder and owner of the Note and Mortgage as of the date the Complaint was filed, or the Court would enter a dismissal. After considering the submissions, along with all the documents filed of record, the Court dismisses the captioned cases without prejudice.
Yes, the bold and italics were in the original--plus underlines, which Blogger will not do.
But that's not the best part.
He also wrote a footnote which will give schadenfruede tingles to anyone who EVER was angry with a bank:
3 Plaintiff’s, “Judge, you just don’t understand how things work,” argument reveals a condescending mindset and quasi-monopolistic system where financial institutions have traditionally controlled, and still control, the foreclosure process. Typically, the homeowner who finds himself/herself in financial straits, fails to make the required mortgage payments and faces a foreclosure suit, is not interested in testing state or federal jurisdictional requirements, either pro se or through counsel. Their focus is either, “how do I save my home,” or “if I have to give it up, I’ll simply leave and find somewhere else to live.”
In the meantime, the financial institutions or successors/assignees rush to foreclose, obtain a default judgment and then sit on the deed, avoiding responsibility for maintaining the property while reaping the financial benefits of interest running on a judgment. The financial institutions know the law charges the one with title (still the homeowner) with maintaining the property.
There is no doubt every decision made by a financial institution in the foreclosure process is driven by money. And the legal work which flows from winning the financial institution’s favor is highly lucrative. There is nothing improper or wrong with financial institutions or law firms making a profit — to the contrary , they should be rewarded for sound business and legal practices. However, unchallenged by underfinanced opponents, the institutions worry less about jurisdictional requirements and more about maximizing returns.
Unlike the focus of financial institutions, the federal courts must act as gatekeepers, assuring that only those who meet diversity and standing requirements are allowed to pass through.
Counsel for the institutions are not without legal argument to support their position, but their arguments fall woefully short of justifying their premature filings, and utterly fail to satisfy their standing and jurisdictional burdens. The institutions seem to adopt the attitude that since they have been doing this for so long, unchallenged, this practice equates with legal compliance. Finally put to the test, their weak legal arguments compel the Court to stop them at the gate.
The Court will illustrate in simple terms its decision:
“Fluidity of the market” — “X” dollars,
“contractual arrangements between institutions and counsel” — “X” dollars,
“purchasing mortgages in bulk and securitizing” — “X” dollars,
“rush to file, slow to record after judgment” — “X” dollars,
“the jurisdictional integrity of United States District Court” —“Priceless.”
This is what's called a Can of Whoopass which has just been opened and liberally poured on the lawyers and Deutsche Bank.
HT: (and the long version of the story) Calculated Risk.
However, the paperwork was not complete; the usual endorsement stamps were not up-to-date. Thus, technically, the Bank did NOT hold the paper.
So they get to court.
And the judge tells them to go pound sand.
Heh.
On October 10, 2007, this Court issued an Order requiring Plaintiff-Lenders in a number of pending foreclosure cases to file a copy of the executed Assignment demonstrating Plaintiff was the holder and owner of the Note and Mortgage as of the date the Complaint was filed, or the Court would enter a dismissal. After considering the submissions, along with all the documents filed of record, the Court dismisses the captioned cases without prejudice.
Yes, the bold and italics were in the original--plus underlines, which Blogger will not do.
But that's not the best part.
He also wrote a footnote which will give schadenfruede tingles to anyone who EVER was angry with a bank:
3 Plaintiff’s, “Judge, you just don’t understand how things work,” argument reveals a condescending mindset and quasi-monopolistic system where financial institutions have traditionally controlled, and still control, the foreclosure process. Typically, the homeowner who finds himself/herself in financial straits, fails to make the required mortgage payments and faces a foreclosure suit, is not interested in testing state or federal jurisdictional requirements, either pro se or through counsel. Their focus is either, “how do I save my home,” or “if I have to give it up, I’ll simply leave and find somewhere else to live.”
In the meantime, the financial institutions or successors/assignees rush to foreclose, obtain a default judgment and then sit on the deed, avoiding responsibility for maintaining the property while reaping the financial benefits of interest running on a judgment. The financial institutions know the law charges the one with title (still the homeowner) with maintaining the property.
There is no doubt every decision made by a financial institution in the foreclosure process is driven by money. And the legal work which flows from winning the financial institution’s favor is highly lucrative. There is nothing improper or wrong with financial institutions or law firms making a profit — to the contrary , they should be rewarded for sound business and legal practices. However, unchallenged by underfinanced opponents, the institutions worry less about jurisdictional requirements and more about maximizing returns.
Unlike the focus of financial institutions, the federal courts must act as gatekeepers, assuring that only those who meet diversity and standing requirements are allowed to pass through.
Counsel for the institutions are not without legal argument to support their position, but their arguments fall woefully short of justifying their premature filings, and utterly fail to satisfy their standing and jurisdictional burdens. The institutions seem to adopt the attitude that since they have been doing this for so long, unchallenged, this practice equates with legal compliance. Finally put to the test, their weak legal arguments compel the Court to stop them at the gate.
The Court will illustrate in simple terms its decision:
“Fluidity of the market” — “X” dollars,
“contractual arrangements between institutions and counsel” — “X” dollars,
“purchasing mortgages in bulk and securitizing” — “X” dollars,
“rush to file, slow to record after judgment” — “X” dollars,
“the jurisdictional integrity of United States District Court” —“Priceless.”
This is what's called a Can of Whoopass which has just been opened and liberally poured on the lawyers and Deutsche Bank.
HT: (and the long version of the story) Calculated Risk.
State of Wisconsin Airlines...Buckle Your Seatbelt, Please
The Badger did a little spadework and came up with an interesting gem:
Nice to know our taxes dollars are being spent for important stuff….Like THREE! Pilatus aircraft going to Muncie, Indiana today.
Want to track the flights yourself? Take a look.
He goes on to show you how to ID planes, flight-plans, etc., etc., and then asks the question:
Why are the taxpayers paying for three of these? I thought Pol Pot Doyle was selling off the fleet.
Good question. And it turns out that there's an answer, of sorts, found in the combox:
...a quick email from the director of Wisconsin Air Services confirms: “The flights transported the UW Milwaukee Men’s Basketball team yesterday afternoon to a game in Muncie Indiana. The team will be returning this evening after the game.”
Of course, that brings up a couple more questions, courtesy of StevEgg:
- Could the UWM basketball team have found another way to Muncie? It is, according to Yahoo Maps, just over 5 hours by bus from Milwaukee.
- Considering the operating cost of one PC-12 is just over $500/hour, and the flight between Crites and Muncie is an hour, is UWM reimbursing the state the $3,000 or so?
- Given the cost versus time (don’t forget to add the buses to/from Crites and to/from the Muncie airport), was that a wise use of $3,000?
(scritch, scratch, scritch...)
A drive of ~600 miles at @.44/mile (standard Fed rate) would be about $265.00. Double that for a bus, then add $600. for the driver, you got about $1200.00.
So, arguably, the State expended $1800.00 more than they had to to get the UW-M team to Muncie, IN.
No client of mine would authorize an $1800.00 expense bulge for my convenience, by the way...
Nice to know our taxes dollars are being spent for important stuff….Like THREE! Pilatus aircraft going to Muncie, Indiana today.
Want to track the flights yourself? Take a look.
He goes on to show you how to ID planes, flight-plans, etc., etc., and then asks the question:
Why are the taxpayers paying for three of these? I thought Pol Pot Doyle was selling off the fleet.
Good question. And it turns out that there's an answer, of sorts, found in the combox:
...a quick email from the director of Wisconsin Air Services confirms: “The flights transported the UW Milwaukee Men’s Basketball team yesterday afternoon to a game in Muncie Indiana. The team will be returning this evening after the game.”
Of course, that brings up a couple more questions, courtesy of StevEgg:
- Could the UWM basketball team have found another way to Muncie? It is, according to Yahoo Maps, just over 5 hours by bus from Milwaukee.
- Considering the operating cost of one PC-12 is just over $500/hour, and the flight between Crites and Muncie is an hour, is UWM reimbursing the state the $3,000 or so?
- Given the cost versus time (don’t forget to add the buses to/from Crites and to/from the Muncie airport), was that a wise use of $3,000?
(scritch, scratch, scritch...)
A drive of ~600 miles at @.44/mile (standard Fed rate) would be about $265.00. Double that for a bus, then add $600. for the driver, you got about $1200.00.
So, arguably, the State expended $1800.00 more than they had to to get the UW-M team to Muncie, IN.
No client of mine would authorize an $1800.00 expense bulge for my convenience, by the way...
Catholic/Orthodox Statement--This Is News!
Yet to hit the secular press, but big news passed on by Rorate Coeli (his translation of the Italian newspaper original):
The Pope is the 'first among the Patriarchs', Rome is the 'first See', the Church of Rome 'presides in charity'. A joint document of the Catholic Church and of the Orthodox Churches explicitly acknowledges definitively and in an unequivocal way the primacy of the Roman Pontiff, easing the way for the reunification of Catholics and Orthodox, divided by the schism of 1054.
The reserved document is the result of the October meeting at Ravenna, where a Catholic delegation presided by Cardinal Kasper and a pan-Orthodox delegation, guided by Metropolitan Zizioulas, of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, established the bases for a deepening of the questions left to be resolved in order to reestablish unity.
Well, all the Orthodox except the Russians, who left the meeting in a huff.
More here at Fr Z's blog.
A joint commission working to heal the 1,000-year split between the Catholic and Orthodox churches has agreed the Pope has primacy over all bishops but disagrees over just what that authority permits him to do.
"While the fact of primacy at the universal level is accepted by both East and West, there are differences of understanding with regard to the manner in which it is to be exercised, and also with regard to its scriptural and theological foundations," the document continued.
Etc., etc.
The Pope is the 'first among the Patriarchs', Rome is the 'first See', the Church of Rome 'presides in charity'. A joint document of the Catholic Church and of the Orthodox Churches explicitly acknowledges definitively and in an unequivocal way the primacy of the Roman Pontiff, easing the way for the reunification of Catholics and Orthodox, divided by the schism of 1054.
The reserved document is the result of the October meeting at Ravenna, where a Catholic delegation presided by Cardinal Kasper and a pan-Orthodox delegation, guided by Metropolitan Zizioulas, of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, established the bases for a deepening of the questions left to be resolved in order to reestablish unity.
Well, all the Orthodox except the Russians, who left the meeting in a huff.
More here at Fr Z's blog.
A joint commission working to heal the 1,000-year split between the Catholic and Orthodox churches has agreed the Pope has primacy over all bishops but disagrees over just what that authority permits him to do.
"While the fact of primacy at the universal level is accepted by both East and West, there are differences of understanding with regard to the manner in which it is to be exercised, and also with regard to its scriptural and theological foundations," the document continued.
Etc., etc.
Typical Catholic Parish Music
Ah, the Brits. Ever ready with an outstanding turn of phrase, or two...
Damian Thompson:
Actually, I’d say that too much worship has been driven by guitar-strumming, Lib Dem-voting primary school teachers, and that this can have the effect of making you want to put your head in the oven.
Andrew continues: “It’s significant that many Roman Catholic colleagues call themselves ‘pastoral musicians’, which implies an understanding and empathy for real participation by all.”
No it doesn’t: it implies that, in addition to subjecting to the congregation to sub-Baez caterwauling, they also want to “pastor” their victims. My advice to the Mass-goers of Middlesbrough: keep those ear plugs in even after the music stops, just to be on the safe side.
The bad news is that we haven't begun to hear the efforts of the Britney Spears-inspired twitterers, who are still in their early-to-mid teen years. But in 10 years or so, they will obtain their "pastoral musician" positions and proceed to sound like disaffected lovelorn chipmunks who are under the influence of waterboarding--just like their 'model' singer--who by that time will have morphed into an alcohol-cum-coke cloud of disembodied disheveled hair.
Damian Thompson:
Actually, I’d say that too much worship has been driven by guitar-strumming, Lib Dem-voting primary school teachers, and that this can have the effect of making you want to put your head in the oven.
Andrew continues: “It’s significant that many Roman Catholic colleagues call themselves ‘pastoral musicians’, which implies an understanding and empathy for real participation by all.”
No it doesn’t: it implies that, in addition to subjecting to the congregation to sub-Baez caterwauling, they also want to “pastor” their victims. My advice to the Mass-goers of Middlesbrough: keep those ear plugs in even after the music stops, just to be on the safe side.
The bad news is that we haven't begun to hear the efforts of the Britney Spears-inspired twitterers, who are still in their early-to-mid teen years. But in 10 years or so, they will obtain their "pastoral musician" positions and proceed to sound like disaffected lovelorn chipmunks who are under the influence of waterboarding--just like their 'model' singer--who by that time will have morphed into an alcohol-cum-coke cloud of disembodied disheveled hair.
The Declaration of Independence--Re-Written by NeoCons
Heh.
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to impose its vision of freedom and democracy on all other peoples, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the supreme station of self-righteous scold and moral engineer to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a grudging respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the imposition.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all human beings are created with an equal desire in their hearts for freedom and democracy, and that they are therefore also endowed by their Creator with an equal entitlement to freedom and democracy; that, in order to secure this freedom and democracy, it is America's God-ordained mission to spread freedom and democracy to all men and women everywhere, regardless of whether they are currently able and willing to institute a government among themselves with its powers derived from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any country falls short of our notion of freedom and democracy, it is the right of the American people endlessly to lecture, chastise, blackmail, and cajole the leaders of that country, pushing them to institute new government, with its foundation laid on such principles and its powers organized in such form, as to us shall seem most likely to effect their freedom and democracy.
But when a long-established pattern of resistance to our counsels, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reject permanently the spread of freedom and democracy, it is our right, it is our duty, to take over such country, and to impose on it new guards for its future freedom and democracy.
It wouldn't take all that much to transmogrify the above into a Democratic Party platform preface. Like this:
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one group of naturally-superior, highly-educated former dope-smoking people to impose its vision of freedom and democracy on all other peoples, accompanied by the necessary and extortionate tax, fee, and regulatory schemes, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the supreme station of self-righteous scold and moral engineer to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them (or at least which came as accompaniment to our degrees from the Seven Sisters), a grudging respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the imposition. Or not.
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to impose its vision of freedom and democracy on all other peoples, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the supreme station of self-righteous scold and moral engineer to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a grudging respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the imposition.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all human beings are created with an equal desire in their hearts for freedom and democracy, and that they are therefore also endowed by their Creator with an equal entitlement to freedom and democracy; that, in order to secure this freedom and democracy, it is America's God-ordained mission to spread freedom and democracy to all men and women everywhere, regardless of whether they are currently able and willing to institute a government among themselves with its powers derived from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any country falls short of our notion of freedom and democracy, it is the right of the American people endlessly to lecture, chastise, blackmail, and cajole the leaders of that country, pushing them to institute new government, with its foundation laid on such principles and its powers organized in such form, as to us shall seem most likely to effect their freedom and democracy.
But when a long-established pattern of resistance to our counsels, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reject permanently the spread of freedom and democracy, it is our right, it is our duty, to take over such country, and to impose on it new guards for its future freedom and democracy.
It wouldn't take all that much to transmogrify the above into a Democratic Party platform preface. Like this:
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one group of naturally-superior, highly-educated former dope-smoking people to impose its vision of freedom and democracy on all other peoples, accompanied by the necessary and extortionate tax, fee, and regulatory schemes, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the supreme station of self-righteous scold and moral engineer to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them (or at least which came as accompaniment to our degrees from the Seven Sisters), a grudging respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the imposition. Or not.
"Pull a Russert"?
Pete DeGaudio posts a piece of a story:
CNN’s Wolf Blitzer has been warned not to focus Thursday’s Dem debate on Hillary. ‘This campaign is about issues, not on who we can bring down and destroy,’ top Clinton insider explains. ‘Blitzer should not go down to the levels of character attack and pull ‘a Russert.” Blitzer is set to moderate debate from Vegas, with questions also being posed by Suzanne Malveaux...
That reference is to Russert's attempt to pin down the Hildebeeste on the question of whether New York State should issue driver's licences to illegals.
Natch, she gave two answers plus a couple of clarifications, none of which actually answered the question.
Oh, well.
In the meantime, Russert is maligned. If anything, he leans Left personally, but he's a damn sharp newsman with a good sense of "fair play."
One wonders why the Hildebeeste thinks she can insult and alienate Russert this early...
CNN’s Wolf Blitzer has been warned not to focus Thursday’s Dem debate on Hillary. ‘This campaign is about issues, not on who we can bring down and destroy,’ top Clinton insider explains. ‘Blitzer should not go down to the levels of character attack and pull ‘a Russert.” Blitzer is set to moderate debate from Vegas, with questions also being posed by Suzanne Malveaux...
That reference is to Russert's attempt to pin down the Hildebeeste on the question of whether New York State should issue driver's licences to illegals.
Natch, she gave two answers plus a couple of clarifications, none of which actually answered the question.
Oh, well.
In the meantime, Russert is maligned. If anything, he leans Left personally, but he's a damn sharp newsman with a good sense of "fair play."
One wonders why the Hildebeeste thinks she can insult and alienate Russert this early...
MPS' Problem: State-Aid "Projection" Dreamers
There's a lengthy article describing the angst of Milwaukee Public Schools Board members (except Blewett, who is clueless) and administrators for their 2009 budget.
But here's a clue to the problems with their 2008 budget:
$7.4 million: That's how much the state will pay MPS for this year under a new fund in the state budget to give additional money to high-poverty districts, particularly MPS. But that is quite a bit less than MPS would have received if ideas backed by either Gov. Jim Doyle or Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett for dealing with the so-called "voucher funding flaw" had been included in the final budget. And that amount covers less than a fifth of the $39.8 million difference in state revenue between what MPS budget-makers projected last spring and what the state budget actually ended up providing.
Thirty-nine point eight million vs. seven point four million.
BIG DIFFERENCE.
Exactly what smoke was filling the room the "projectionists" were working in?
But here's a clue to the problems with their 2008 budget:
$7.4 million: That's how much the state will pay MPS for this year under a new fund in the state budget to give additional money to high-poverty districts, particularly MPS. But that is quite a bit less than MPS would have received if ideas backed by either Gov. Jim Doyle or Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett for dealing with the so-called "voucher funding flaw" had been included in the final budget. And that amount covers less than a fifth of the $39.8 million difference in state revenue between what MPS budget-makers projected last spring and what the state budget actually ended up providing.
Thirty-nine point eight million vs. seven point four million.
BIG DIFFERENCE.
Exactly what smoke was filling the room the "projectionists" were working in?
Illegal Alien Mole in BOTH FBI and CIA
Demonstrating that Government healthcare may be worse than a bad dream, we now turn to the FBI and CIA for lessons in unbelievable moron-icity.
A former FBI special agent and CIA analyst pleaded guilty Tuesday to using her database access privileges to search for information on relatives suspected of having ties to a reputed terrorist group, and who fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship.
In federal court in Detroit Tuesday, Lebanese national Nada Nadim Prouty, 37, pleaded guilty to secretly obtaining information about ongoing FBI national security investigations. She is suspected of passing it on to relatives suspected of having ties to Hezbollah, a group that the U.S. government has classified as a foreign terrorist organization.
Oh...no...that's not all:
Prouty resigned from her job as a midlevel CIA operations officer last week, after working at the agency for three years. According to an official familiar with the investigation, she worked for the National Clandestine Service, which runs covert operations.
And it gets even better:
...the investigation has also uncovered that Prouty fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship, admitting in court documents that she paid a man to marry her in 1990 so she could obtain citizenship after her student visa expired
Just great.
A former FBI special agent and CIA analyst pleaded guilty Tuesday to using her database access privileges to search for information on relatives suspected of having ties to a reputed terrorist group, and who fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship.
In federal court in Detroit Tuesday, Lebanese national Nada Nadim Prouty, 37, pleaded guilty to secretly obtaining information about ongoing FBI national security investigations. She is suspected of passing it on to relatives suspected of having ties to Hezbollah, a group that the U.S. government has classified as a foreign terrorist organization.
Oh...no...that's not all:
Prouty resigned from her job as a midlevel CIA operations officer last week, after working at the agency for three years. According to an official familiar with the investigation, she worked for the National Clandestine Service, which runs covert operations.
And it gets even better:
...the investigation has also uncovered that Prouty fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship, admitting in court documents that she paid a man to marry her in 1990 so she could obtain citizenship after her student visa expired
Just great.
Colorado Moving to Eviscerate Roe
Colorado pro-lifers are moving to de-throne Roe v Wade in that state.
Pro-life activists in Colorado have cleared a major hurdle in preparing an initiative for the 2008 election that would grant personhood to the unborn and create a possible confrontation to the 1973 Roe vs. Wade ruling that created abortion rights.
The state Supreme Court has granted permission for supporters of Colorado for Equal Rights to move forward with collecting the estimated 76,000 signatures needed to put the issue on the state election ballot.
It would grant personhood to the unborn from the moment of fertilization, meaning state and local laws protecting any individual life would be applied to the unborn. It targets a loophole U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun created when he wrote the original abortion opinion.
He concluded: "(If the) suggestion of personhood [of the preborn] is established, the [abortion rights] case, of course, collapses, for the fetus' right to life is then guaranteed specifically by the [14th] Amendment."
Georgia is moving in a similar direction.
Pro-life activists in Colorado have cleared a major hurdle in preparing an initiative for the 2008 election that would grant personhood to the unborn and create a possible confrontation to the 1973 Roe vs. Wade ruling that created abortion rights.
The state Supreme Court has granted permission for supporters of Colorado for Equal Rights to move forward with collecting the estimated 76,000 signatures needed to put the issue on the state election ballot.
It would grant personhood to the unborn from the moment of fertilization, meaning state and local laws protecting any individual life would be applied to the unborn. It targets a loophole U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun created when he wrote the original abortion opinion.
He concluded: "(If the) suggestion of personhood [of the preborn] is established, the [abortion rights] case, of course, collapses, for the fetus' right to life is then guaranteed specifically by the [14th] Amendment."
Georgia is moving in a similar direction.
Monday, November 12, 2007
China Is Our Friend!! Part 49,531: Your Hard Drive!
This is cute.
Portable hard discs sold locally and produced by US disk-drive manufacturer Seagate Technology have been found to carry Trojan horse viruses that automatically upload to Beijing Web sites anything the computer user saves on the hard disc, the Investigation Bureau said.
Around 1,800 of the portable Maxtor hard discs, produced in Thailand, carried two Trojan horse viruses: autorun.inf and ghost.pif, the bureau under the Ministry of Justice said.
The tainted portable hard disc uploads any information saved on the computer automatically and without the owner’s knowledge to www.nice8.org and www.we168.org, the bureau said.
The affected hard discs are Maxtor Basics 500G discs.
So far, sold only in Taiwan.
Portable hard discs sold locally and produced by US disk-drive manufacturer Seagate Technology have been found to carry Trojan horse viruses that automatically upload to Beijing Web sites anything the computer user saves on the hard disc, the Investigation Bureau said.
Around 1,800 of the portable Maxtor hard discs, produced in Thailand, carried two Trojan horse viruses: autorun.inf and ghost.pif, the bureau under the Ministry of Justice said.
The tainted portable hard disc uploads any information saved on the computer automatically and without the owner’s knowledge to www.nice8.org and www.we168.org, the bureau said.
The affected hard discs are Maxtor Basics 500G discs.
So far, sold only in Taiwan.
News. Not Necessarily Good OR Bad. Just News
Mentioned by TNLM:
According to EWTN (I didn't watch the proceedings), there are two pieces of news on the the proposed music document that had been scheduled to be considered at the Fall USCCB meeting: 1) it has been downgraded from particular law to advisory, which means that it will not have the same binding status and will not require Rome's approval, and 2) it has been otherwise withdrawn because there were 100 pages of proposed changes and there was no way it could be tackled at the USCCB meeting.
The document's contents were not well-known outside USCC circles.
According to EWTN (I didn't watch the proceedings), there are two pieces of news on the the proposed music document that had been scheduled to be considered at the Fall USCCB meeting: 1) it has been downgraded from particular law to advisory, which means that it will not have the same binding status and will not require Rome's approval, and 2) it has been otherwise withdrawn because there were 100 pages of proposed changes and there was no way it could be tackled at the USCCB meeting.
The document's contents were not well-known outside USCC circles.
The Bologna School: So 1960's, Man...
Finally, it's in the open.
The secretary of the Pontifical Council for Migrant and Itinerant Ministries, Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, said Vatican Council II is a “synthesis between tradition and renewal” and is not open to free interpretations, such as the ones proposed by the Bologna School initiated by Giuseppe Alberigo.
“Vatican II was a great event, a synthesis between tradition and renewal that is not a break with the past in the creation of a new Church,” the archbishop said during a speech on the Catholic Church in the 20th century in the city of Ancona.
He said the members of the School of Bologna have been very successful in “monopolizing and imposing one interpretation” of Vatican II that goes beyond what John XXIII and Paul VI imagined, even so far as to propose “a Copernican revolution, the passing to…another Catholicism.”
About damn time.
HT: TNLM
The secretary of the Pontifical Council for Migrant and Itinerant Ministries, Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, said Vatican Council II is a “synthesis between tradition and renewal” and is not open to free interpretations, such as the ones proposed by the Bologna School initiated by Giuseppe Alberigo.
“Vatican II was a great event, a synthesis between tradition and renewal that is not a break with the past in the creation of a new Church,” the archbishop said during a speech on the Catholic Church in the 20th century in the city of Ancona.
He said the members of the School of Bologna have been very successful in “monopolizing and imposing one interpretation” of Vatican II that goes beyond what John XXIII and Paul VI imagined, even so far as to propose “a Copernican revolution, the passing to…another Catholicism.”
About damn time.
HT: TNLM
To Our Veterans
A quote:
‘Take what they have left and what they have taught you with their dying and keep it with your own. And take one moment to embrace those gentle heroes you left behind.’
That is all.
‘Take what they have left and what they have taught you with their dying and keep it with your own. And take one moment to embrace those gentle heroes you left behind.’
That is all.
"Cop-Killer" Assault Rifles?
Any time a police officer is killed in the line of duty it's a bad thing.
Making it worse are the vague claims that "assault rifles" are used for cop-killing. What's worse about that is that "assault rifles" are not really a factor.
In 2006, 46 police officers were killed in the line of duty. Thirty six of them were murdered with pistols. It’s interesting that the .40 S&W is the largest category. Are criminals carrying this more or do .40 S&W rounds have more likelihood to penetrate soft body armor?
The number of officers killed with a rifle were eight. Of those, four were with what would normally be classified as an “assault weapon” caliber. That’s about 8.6% of officer killings.
Four LEOs killed by "assault weapon"-caliber rifles. What does Brady Campaign (et al) claim?
We’ve all heard the VPC/Brady statistics that claimed 20% officers were killed with an assault weapon.
They lie because they thought nobody would look it up.
They were wrong.
HT: Of Arms and the Law
Making it worse are the vague claims that "assault rifles" are used for cop-killing. What's worse about that is that "assault rifles" are not really a factor.
In 2006, 46 police officers were killed in the line of duty. Thirty six of them were murdered with pistols. It’s interesting that the .40 S&W is the largest category. Are criminals carrying this more or do .40 S&W rounds have more likelihood to penetrate soft body armor?
The number of officers killed with a rifle were eight. Of those, four were with what would normally be classified as an “assault weapon” caliber. That’s about 8.6% of officer killings.
Four LEOs killed by "assault weapon"-caliber rifles. What does Brady Campaign (et al) claim?
We’ve all heard the VPC/Brady statistics that claimed 20% officers were killed with an assault weapon.
They lie because they thought nobody would look it up.
They were wrong.
HT: Of Arms and the Law
Repeal "Biofuels" Requirements
Jim Sensenbrenner should consider this carefully--it's pointed out by Nick and The Warrior, and it's of substantial interest.
Swaziland is in the grip of a famine and receiving emergency food aid. Forty per cent of its people are facing acute food shortages. So what has the government decided to export? Biofuel made from one of its staple crops, cassava. The government has allocated several thousand hectares of farmland to ethanol production in the district of Lavumisa, which happens to be the place worst hit by drought. It would surely be quicker and more humane to refine the Swazi people and put them in our tanks.
The article mentions wheat, rice, cassava, and corn.
Even when the price of food was low, 850 million people went hungry because they could not afford to buy it. With every increment in the price of flour or grain, several million more are pushed below the breadline.
(An elegant turn of phrase, that.)
If you count only the immediate carbon costs of planting and processing biofuels, they appear to reduce greenhouse gases. When you look at the total impacts, you find they cause more warming than petroleum
A recent study by the Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen shows that the official estimates have ignored the contribution of nitrogen fertilisers. They generate a greenhouse gas - nitrous oxide - that is 296 times as powerful as CO2. These emissions alone ensure that ethanol from maize causes between 0.9 and 1.5 times as much warming as petrol, while rapeseed oil (the source of more than 80% of the world’s biodiesel) generates 1-1.7 times the impact of diesel. This is before you account for the changes in land use.
Last year the research group LMC International estimated that if the British and European target of a 5% contribution from biofuels were to be adopted by the rest of the world, the global acreage of cultivated land would expand by 15%.
...which increase would be a good thing, were the product to be used to alleviate hunger.
The cynic might congratulate the Population Control bunch (Rockefeller, et al) for their brilliant triumph--in order to "save the world," they have arranged for the starvation of a hundred million people (give or take a couple.)
All it took was three elements: the Big Lie that 'global warming' is caused largely by man burning petroleum; the Big Lie that burning food as fuel would cure this; and the Big Regulation preventing nuclear and drilling for petroleum reserves within/offshore the USA.
Swaziland is in the grip of a famine and receiving emergency food aid. Forty per cent of its people are facing acute food shortages. So what has the government decided to export? Biofuel made from one of its staple crops, cassava. The government has allocated several thousand hectares of farmland to ethanol production in the district of Lavumisa, which happens to be the place worst hit by drought. It would surely be quicker and more humane to refine the Swazi people and put them in our tanks.
The article mentions wheat, rice, cassava, and corn.
Even when the price of food was low, 850 million people went hungry because they could not afford to buy it. With every increment in the price of flour or grain, several million more are pushed below the breadline.
(An elegant turn of phrase, that.)
If you count only the immediate carbon costs of planting and processing biofuels, they appear to reduce greenhouse gases. When you look at the total impacts, you find they cause more warming than petroleum
A recent study by the Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen shows that the official estimates have ignored the contribution of nitrogen fertilisers. They generate a greenhouse gas - nitrous oxide - that is 296 times as powerful as CO2. These emissions alone ensure that ethanol from maize causes between 0.9 and 1.5 times as much warming as petrol, while rapeseed oil (the source of more than 80% of the world’s biodiesel) generates 1-1.7 times the impact of diesel. This is before you account for the changes in land use.
Last year the research group LMC International estimated that if the British and European target of a 5% contribution from biofuels were to be adopted by the rest of the world, the global acreage of cultivated land would expand by 15%.
...which increase would be a good thing, were the product to be used to alleviate hunger.
The cynic might congratulate the Population Control bunch (Rockefeller, et al) for their brilliant triumph--in order to "save the world," they have arranged for the starvation of a hundred million people (give or take a couple.)
All it took was three elements: the Big Lie that 'global warming' is caused largely by man burning petroleum; the Big Lie that burning food as fuel would cure this; and the Big Regulation preventing nuclear and drilling for petroleum reserves within/offshore the USA.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
A Flashback to PACKER Football
For about 15 minutes there, mid-1stQ to mid-2ndQ, it was NFL Packer football.
4 yards and a cloud of dust, 3 yards and a cloud of dust, short pass, 1st down.
Repeat.
Repeat.
Repeat.
Pound defenders into dust.
Repeat.
Repeat.
Never blogged this, but said it a few times last year. McCarthy is another Vince Lombardi.
4 yards and a cloud of dust, 3 yards and a cloud of dust, short pass, 1st down.
Repeat.
Repeat.
Repeat.
Pound defenders into dust.
Repeat.
Repeat.
Never blogged this, but said it a few times last year. McCarthy is another Vince Lombardi.
Elderly Drivers
Channel 6 (Fox) ran an item last night highlighting problems with older drivers.
And there ARE some problems.
Twice in the last 30 days, I've left rubber on the road braking to avoid T-boning older (and I MEAN "older") women drivers--both in Wauwatosa, by the way--who pulled out of a side street in front of me as I was cruising down North Ave., an arterial.
One of them would have paid a lot, because she was driving a late-model Mercedes Benz...
And there ARE some problems.
Twice in the last 30 days, I've left rubber on the road braking to avoid T-boning older (and I MEAN "older") women drivers--both in Wauwatosa, by the way--who pulled out of a side street in front of me as I was cruising down North Ave., an arterial.
One of them would have paid a lot, because she was driving a late-model Mercedes Benz...
Vitamin C: You Don't Know What You're Getting...China Is Our Friend!! #48,256
I didn't know this.
Most U.S. consumers are aware that Chinese products dominate the shelves of most retail stores, but few realize the dominance extends to vitamins and drugs. Fully 90 percent of all the vitamin C sold in America comes from the communist trade giant. This near-monopoly control of the vitamin-C market caused the Wall Street Journal to dub China the “OPEC of vitamin C,” and like the oil cartel it has been accused of price fixing. In 2001, China’s four largest producers met to form a consortium, and shortly thereafter began a series of price manipulations undercutting U.S. and European competitors. Volatile prices induced American companies, which were operating in a very different regulatory environment than that existing in Communist China, to file anti-trust suits. In the end the suits hardly mattered; the last U.S. vitamin-C plant closed in 2006.
China has since captured much of the world’s pharmaceutical market, producing 70 percent of the world’s penicillin, 50 percent of its aspirin, and most of its vitamins.
That's why there's such a variety of flavors: date-rape flavored, lead-flavored, diethylene glycol-flavored, melamine-flavored--the list is almost endless.
Didn't know that your "sunshine supplement" was coming from Red China?
...five years ago President Bush signed into law the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act, which included a provision establishing the requirement for country-of-origin labeling for beef, lamb, pork, seafood, perishable agricultural commodities, and peanuts. Republicans, prodded by retailers who claim the provision is burdensome, delayed implementation.
President Bush, supported by a Republican majority, effectively nullified the provision by delaying its implementation until September 2008.
Umnnnhhh...by the way, PRChina is not an "ally" of the USA; it has been very clear that we are an enemy. So what?
The ease with which the Chinese are now able to flood our market with substandard and highly dangerous consumer and food products gives rise to the question — how hard would it be to use the current import system to introduce harmful elements into the food supply as an asymmetrical warfare technique?
That answer is obvious.
Most U.S. consumers are aware that Chinese products dominate the shelves of most retail stores, but few realize the dominance extends to vitamins and drugs. Fully 90 percent of all the vitamin C sold in America comes from the communist trade giant. This near-monopoly control of the vitamin-C market caused the Wall Street Journal to dub China the “OPEC of vitamin C,” and like the oil cartel it has been accused of price fixing. In 2001, China’s four largest producers met to form a consortium, and shortly thereafter began a series of price manipulations undercutting U.S. and European competitors. Volatile prices induced American companies, which were operating in a very different regulatory environment than that existing in Communist China, to file anti-trust suits. In the end the suits hardly mattered; the last U.S. vitamin-C plant closed in 2006.
China has since captured much of the world’s pharmaceutical market, producing 70 percent of the world’s penicillin, 50 percent of its aspirin, and most of its vitamins.
That's why there's such a variety of flavors: date-rape flavored, lead-flavored, diethylene glycol-flavored, melamine-flavored--the list is almost endless.
Didn't know that your "sunshine supplement" was coming from Red China?
...five years ago President Bush signed into law the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act, which included a provision establishing the requirement for country-of-origin labeling for beef, lamb, pork, seafood, perishable agricultural commodities, and peanuts. Republicans, prodded by retailers who claim the provision is burdensome, delayed implementation.
President Bush, supported by a Republican majority, effectively nullified the provision by delaying its implementation until September 2008.
Umnnnhhh...by the way, PRChina is not an "ally" of the USA; it has been very clear that we are an enemy. So what?
The ease with which the Chinese are now able to flood our market with substandard and highly dangerous consumer and food products gives rise to the question — how hard would it be to use the current import system to introduce harmful elements into the food supply as an asymmetrical warfare technique?
That answer is obvious.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Don't Like the NeoCons? Here's Another Reason, Maybe
A bit paleo-libertarian for my tastes, but worth considering.
While discussing Atty-Gen'l Mukasey's nomination process, "Maximos" notes Mukasey's citation of Berns.
...the burden of the latter's [Walter Berns] scholarly efforts, as evidenced by his book,Making Patriots, is to demonstrate that the civic virtues are not natural, but inculcated positively by the integrative actions of political authority (government, in a sense, constitutes the nation; and the liberal anthropology of acquisitive instincts and affects is presupposed as a true description of human nature), and have as their object the temporal extension of a reign of propositionalist abstractions.
It is on behalf of these - liberty, equality, and probably the free movement of capital ("All to capital we surrender") instead of fraternity - that citizens are expected to sacrifice. In other words, Berns is a neoconservative extraordinaire, believing that the very nature of politics entails the conditioning of the populace to manifest fealty toward etiolated ideals, and a subsequent disciplining of that populace to accept and embrace sacrifice for the extension of those ideals and the institutions that embody them. Such sacrifices will be offered on behalf of both domestic and foreign endeavours, since propositionalism effaces the distinction between the two spheres; the neoconservative wars on behalf of democratic capitalism are the implementation of this ideology.
Of course, that would position Abraham Lincoln as a "NeoCon," which has implications for those who thought that the Podhoretz cohort was the most ancient of the group.
A similar argument has been made, by the way, about the nature of "public schools," --and is supportable when reviewing the writings of Dewey (et al) on that topic. That argument is that the "public schools" are instituted to homogenize and inculcate the little folks who may have immigrated recently, or may (even worse) be subject to such influences as the Pope.
At the same time, a counter-case can be made for simple patriotism in the case of both domestic and foreign endeavors (if one stipulates that the 'domestic' part of patriotism includes fraternitas but not necessarily 'capital.') Certainly, if the nation is subject to attack, 'patriotism' plays a far larger role than "conditioning the populace to manifest fealty..."
HT: What's Wrong With the World
While discussing Atty-Gen'l Mukasey's nomination process, "Maximos" notes Mukasey's citation of Berns.
...the burden of the latter's [Walter Berns] scholarly efforts, as evidenced by his book,Making Patriots, is to demonstrate that the civic virtues are not natural, but inculcated positively by the integrative actions of political authority (government, in a sense, constitutes the nation; and the liberal anthropology of acquisitive instincts and affects is presupposed as a true description of human nature), and have as their object the temporal extension of a reign of propositionalist abstractions.
It is on behalf of these - liberty, equality, and probably the free movement of capital ("All to capital we surrender") instead of fraternity - that citizens are expected to sacrifice. In other words, Berns is a neoconservative extraordinaire, believing that the very nature of politics entails the conditioning of the populace to manifest fealty toward etiolated ideals, and a subsequent disciplining of that populace to accept and embrace sacrifice for the extension of those ideals and the institutions that embody them. Such sacrifices will be offered on behalf of both domestic and foreign endeavours, since propositionalism effaces the distinction between the two spheres; the neoconservative wars on behalf of democratic capitalism are the implementation of this ideology.
Of course, that would position Abraham Lincoln as a "NeoCon," which has implications for those who thought that the Podhoretz cohort was the most ancient of the group.
A similar argument has been made, by the way, about the nature of "public schools," --and is supportable when reviewing the writings of Dewey (et al) on that topic. That argument is that the "public schools" are instituted to homogenize and inculcate the little folks who may have immigrated recently, or may (even worse) be subject to such influences as the Pope.
At the same time, a counter-case can be made for simple patriotism in the case of both domestic and foreign endeavors (if one stipulates that the 'domestic' part of patriotism includes fraternitas but not necessarily 'capital.') Certainly, if the nation is subject to attack, 'patriotism' plays a far larger role than "conditioning the populace to manifest fealty..."
HT: What's Wrong With the World
Bernanke: Shoveling Greenspan's ....Offal
HT Big Picture
"The Bernanke Economic Cycle" by Tim Iacono
1) Federal Reserve cuts interest rates
2) Equity markets surge
3) Dollar decline accelerates
4) The price of oil and gold soar
5) Treasury reiterates "strong dollar policy"
6) Housing market problems get worse
7) Credit market problems get worse
8) Dollar decline accelerates
9) The price of oil and gold soar
10) Federal Reserve talks tough on inflation <----- YESTERDAY
11) Treasury reiterates "strong dollar policy"<----- YESTERDAY
12) Equity markets plunge <------------ YOU ARE HERE
13) Go to step 1
Oh, by the way: the Dow dropped 600 points between Tuesday and Friday this week.
"The Bernanke Economic Cycle" by Tim Iacono
1) Federal Reserve cuts interest rates
2) Equity markets surge
3) Dollar decline accelerates
4) The price of oil and gold soar
5) Treasury reiterates "strong dollar policy"
6) Housing market problems get worse
7) Credit market problems get worse
8) Dollar decline accelerates
9) The price of oil and gold soar
10) Federal Reserve talks tough on inflation <----- YESTERDAY
11) Treasury reiterates "strong dollar policy"<----- YESTERDAY
12) Equity markets plunge <------------ YOU ARE HERE
13) Go to step 1
Oh, by the way: the Dow dropped 600 points between Tuesday and Friday this week.
The "Mandate" Democrat Congress?
Rove's political-wonk geekiness, but hey, this is interesting:
According to Rove, "They won the House by 85,961 votes out of over 80 million cast and the Senate by a mere 3,562 out of over 62 million cast." I did the math: That's six one-thousandths of one per cent.
Over-friggin'-whelming, no?
According to Rove, "They won the House by 85,961 votes out of over 80 million cast and the Senate by a mere 3,562 out of over 62 million cast." I did the math: That's six one-thousandths of one per cent.
Over-friggin'-whelming, no?
Ruuudeee!! Should Get the Illegal Alien Vote, Too!
Pat Robertson and the Illegal Aliens--not to mention the "Declare War on the Entire Middle East" gang.
Rudy-backers, all.
Given that, and Ruuuudeeee's statist attitude toward gun ownership, (the 2A should not be operative in "large cities...")--how the Hell is this guy given serious consideration?
As to the illegals:
New York City’s sanctuary policy was created in 1989 by Mayor Ed Koch and upheld by every mayor succeeding him.
When Congress enacted immigration reform laws that forbade local governments from barring employees from cooperating with the INS, Mayor Rudy Giuliani filed suit against the feds in 1997. He was rebuffed by two lower courts, which ruled that the sanctuary order amounted to special treatment for illegal aliens and were nothing more than an unlawful effort to flaunt federal enforcement efforts against illegal aliens. In January 2000, the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, but Giuliani vowed to ignore the law.
So let's make it clear: Ruuuudeeee! has a "selective obedience" policy toward Federal immigration laws.
THIS is the guy being boomed by a local RadioGuy for the (R) nomination?
Rudy-backers, all.
Given that, and Ruuuudeeee's statist attitude toward gun ownership, (the 2A should not be operative in "large cities...")--how the Hell is this guy given serious consideration?
As to the illegals:
New York City’s sanctuary policy was created in 1989 by Mayor Ed Koch and upheld by every mayor succeeding him.
When Congress enacted immigration reform laws that forbade local governments from barring employees from cooperating with the INS, Mayor Rudy Giuliani filed suit against the feds in 1997. He was rebuffed by two lower courts, which ruled that the sanctuary order amounted to special treatment for illegal aliens and were nothing more than an unlawful effort to flaunt federal enforcement efforts against illegal aliens. In January 2000, the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, but Giuliani vowed to ignore the law.
So let's make it clear: Ruuuudeeee! has a "selective obedience" policy toward Federal immigration laws.
THIS is the guy being boomed by a local RadioGuy for the (R) nomination?
The REAL Story of the LA "Counterfieit" Raids
While CAIR manipulates the MSM into running stories about "discrimination," the real story on the Los Angeles counterfeit-clothing raids is found at CounterTerrorism Blog.
...While on the surface it doesn't appear to be terrorism-related, our sources say Operation Bell Bottoms targeted a "classic case of terrorism financing," with the defendants smuggling profits from selling dope and counterfeit goods in L.A. back to Iran-backed Shiite terror group Hezbollah in Syria and Lebanon.
Appearances make it seem different:
Because information linking the gang to Hezbollah came from classified intelligence, the alleged ringleader and "his siblings and associates" face criminal charges instead of a terror rap
The story also mentions the Mexican Mafia involvement.
...While on the surface it doesn't appear to be terrorism-related, our sources say Operation Bell Bottoms targeted a "classic case of terrorism financing," with the defendants smuggling profits from selling dope and counterfeit goods in L.A. back to Iran-backed Shiite terror group Hezbollah in Syria and Lebanon.
Appearances make it seem different:
Because information linking the gang to Hezbollah came from classified intelligence, the alleged ringleader and "his siblings and associates" face criminal charges instead of a terror rap
The story also mentions the Mexican Mafia involvement.
Levitt Files Chapter XI--Historical Name in Homebuilding
It's a Chapter XI reorganization, meaning that the firm may emerge, but...
Levitt Corp (NYSE:LEV - News) home-building unit Levitt & Sons said on Friday that it had filed for bankruptcy protection, reflecting the badly battered Florida market.
...Levitt & Sons is ranked as the 50th-largest U.S. home builder by trade publication BuilderOnline.
Levitt first made its mark in Long Island, New York, where after World War II, Abraham Levitt and his company built huge tracts of affordable homes for returning veterans ready to start families. Levittowns in Long Island and Pennsylvania are named after him
With 60 or so years in biz and what amounts to a 'historical monument' in Long Island, it would be sad to see them disappear entirely.
Levitt Corp (NYSE:LEV - News) home-building unit Levitt & Sons said on Friday that it had filed for bankruptcy protection, reflecting the badly battered Florida market.
...Levitt & Sons is ranked as the 50th-largest U.S. home builder by trade publication BuilderOnline.
Levitt first made its mark in Long Island, New York, where after World War II, Abraham Levitt and his company built huge tracts of affordable homes for returning veterans ready to start families. Levittowns in Long Island and Pennsylvania are named after him
With 60 or so years in biz and what amounts to a 'historical monument' in Long Island, it would be sad to see them disappear entirely.
Party In Government: More Theft in Wisconsin
To refresh your memories:
The "Party In Government" (PIG party) includes Democrats and Republicans who vote for the interests of Large Government--that is, not for the Common Good, nor for the interests of taxpayers.
Not only did the PIG steal $200 million from the MD's of Wisconsin (and, indirectly, sick people who visit those MD's); they are also stealing from municipalities (and, indirectly, taxpayers) by raiding the Recycling Fund.
According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, the Recycling Fund was established in 1989 specifically to pay for grants to municipal and county recycling programs, help administer those programs and enforce the state's recycling regulations.
Pretty clear language, no?
The fund's revenue comes from a recycling surcharge and a recycling tipping fee charged for each ton of trash dumped in a Wisconsin landfill.
If you put trash or recycling at the curb, YOU are paying for this.
...While the total amount of recycling grants has been frozen at $24.5 million since the 1999-2000 fiscal year, the fund has built up a surplus that has drawn the attention of legislative budget writers.
In the last state budget bill, $33 million was transferred out of the Recycling Fund to the general fund and the Conservation Fund for other uses over a two-year period.
The current biennial budget bill, signed by Doyle last month, makes allocations from the Recycling Fund of $4 million for a soybean crushing facility in Evansville, $22 million for renewable energy grants and loans to be distributed through the Department of Commerce and $4.5 million to pay for shipping to other states PCB-contaminated sediment resulting from a cleanup of the Fox River.
PIG STINK ALERT: Evansville is represented by Brett Davis (R) and J Erpenbach (D).
You'd think that the PIGS had enough with that.
Think again!!
PIG TAX INCREASE ALERT: The budget bill also increased the revenue flowing into the fund by $9 million with an increase from $3 to $4 per ton in the state-imposed tipping fee on garbage placed in landfills in Wisconsin.
Not only do the PIGs steal the money, they then raise the taxes so they can steal MORE money in future budgets.
It's becoming more and more tempting to reach out and slap Legislators when they're lurking near our children, isn't it? They're not the sort one wants around to warp our childrens' minds.
The "Party In Government" (PIG party) includes Democrats and Republicans who vote for the interests of Large Government--that is, not for the Common Good, nor for the interests of taxpayers.
Not only did the PIG steal $200 million from the MD's of Wisconsin (and, indirectly, sick people who visit those MD's); they are also stealing from municipalities (and, indirectly, taxpayers) by raiding the Recycling Fund.
According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, the Recycling Fund was established in 1989 specifically to pay for grants to municipal and county recycling programs, help administer those programs and enforce the state's recycling regulations.
Pretty clear language, no?
The fund's revenue comes from a recycling surcharge and a recycling tipping fee charged for each ton of trash dumped in a Wisconsin landfill.
If you put trash or recycling at the curb, YOU are paying for this.
...While the total amount of recycling grants has been frozen at $24.5 million since the 1999-2000 fiscal year, the fund has built up a surplus that has drawn the attention of legislative budget writers.
In the last state budget bill, $33 million was transferred out of the Recycling Fund to the general fund and the Conservation Fund for other uses over a two-year period.
The current biennial budget bill, signed by Doyle last month, makes allocations from the Recycling Fund of $4 million for a soybean crushing facility in Evansville, $22 million for renewable energy grants and loans to be distributed through the Department of Commerce and $4.5 million to pay for shipping to other states PCB-contaminated sediment resulting from a cleanup of the Fox River.
PIG STINK ALERT: Evansville is represented by Brett Davis (R) and J Erpenbach (D).
You'd think that the PIGS had enough with that.
Think again!!
PIG TAX INCREASE ALERT: The budget bill also increased the revenue flowing into the fund by $9 million with an increase from $3 to $4 per ton in the state-imposed tipping fee on garbage placed in landfills in Wisconsin.
Not only do the PIGs steal the money, they then raise the taxes so they can steal MORE money in future budgets.
It's becoming more and more tempting to reach out and slap Legislators when they're lurking near our children, isn't it? They're not the sort one wants around to warp our childrens' minds.
Friday, November 09, 2007
Kudos to Abp O'Brien of Baltimore
Only a few weeks into office, and the Archbishop starts zapping the termites:
Baltimore's new Roman Catholic archbishop removed a priest who was pastor of three South Baltimore parishes for offenses that include officiating at a funeral Mass with an Episcopal priest, which violates canon law.
Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien personally ordered the Rev. Ray Martin, who has led the Catholic Community of South Baltimore for five years, to resign from the three churches and sign a statement yesterday apologizing for "bringing scandal to the church."
Martin led the funeral Mass on Oct. 15 for Locust Point activist Ann Shirley Doda at Our Lady of Good Counsel with several clergy, including the Rev. Annette Chappell, the pastor of the Episcopal Church of the Redemption in Locust Point, Martin said.
Sean Caine, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Baltimore, said this was one example of repeated administrative and liturgical offenses Martin had committed in more than a year."
An exemplary move, as it were...
Baltimore's new Roman Catholic archbishop removed a priest who was pastor of three South Baltimore parishes for offenses that include officiating at a funeral Mass with an Episcopal priest, which violates canon law.
Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien personally ordered the Rev. Ray Martin, who has led the Catholic Community of South Baltimore for five years, to resign from the three churches and sign a statement yesterday apologizing for "bringing scandal to the church."
Martin led the funeral Mass on Oct. 15 for Locust Point activist Ann Shirley Doda at Our Lady of Good Counsel with several clergy, including the Rev. Annette Chappell, the pastor of the Episcopal Church of the Redemption in Locust Point, Martin said.
Sean Caine, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Baltimore, said this was one example of repeated administrative and liturgical offenses Martin had committed in more than a year."
An exemplary move, as it were...
Tennessee: The Regime Cracks Down
See, once you spend a lotta money you HAVE to get the revenues.
Not only does the State of Tennessee intend to spy on folks shopping for cigarettes in neighboring States (to avoid the confiscatory new cig-tax)--
the State now sees a revenue-threat in the Grandpa Crowd.
Police in Tennessee broke up a local poker came they say was run by 82-year-old World Series of Poker vet Paul McKinney. McKinney and 15 others were arrested (one on a charge of possessing moonshine). Scary photo of police-seized contraband poker chips here.
Paul McKinney and the others were sitting around a table playing poker Friday night when the raid occurred, police said. Authorities said they seized cash, playing cards and poker chips, as well as betting slips for the weekend's sporting events.
Not all that different from the Wisconsin Revenooers' decision to collect income tax from Green Bay folks who rented parking spaces on their lawns for Packer games (later rescinded...)
Not only does the State of Tennessee intend to spy on folks shopping for cigarettes in neighboring States (to avoid the confiscatory new cig-tax)--
the State now sees a revenue-threat in the Grandpa Crowd.
Police in Tennessee broke up a local poker came they say was run by 82-year-old World Series of Poker vet Paul McKinney. McKinney and 15 others were arrested (one on a charge of possessing moonshine). Scary photo of police-seized contraband poker chips here.
Paul McKinney and the others were sitting around a table playing poker Friday night when the raid occurred, police said. Authorities said they seized cash, playing cards and poker chips, as well as betting slips for the weekend's sporting events.
Not all that different from the Wisconsin Revenooers' decision to collect income tax from Green Bay folks who rented parking spaces on their lawns for Packer games (later rescinded...)
"Big Ten" Network Mimics NFL Network Greed
It's not enough for the Big Ten that their States' taxpayers send tens of millions of tax dollars to the schools every year at the point of a gun. Whatever millions they're getting is just not enough for them.
So they, mimicing the NFL, have decided that they are going to get more, and are selling their TV rights to the "Big 10" Network--which will give them more money than they're getting from other sports-casting or commercial networks.
Well, at least the NFL isn't taking the money at the point of a gun, in most cases.
But let there be no doubt about this: it's all about the money, and all about getting more money.
But then there are the laughable spinners:
Time Warner Cable and Charter Communications, two major cable carriers in Wisconsin, are reporting they have lost thousands of cable subscribers, a development some tie to consumers upset that they can't get the Big Ten Network and the NFL Network
Really?
"The impact of not having the NFL Network or the Big Ten Network has been non-existent," said Alex Dudley, a Time Warner spokesman in New York.
Anita Lamont, a Charter Communications spokesman, echoed that comment, saying her firm had not seen a loss of customers due solely to people unhappy about not being able to purchase the two sports networks.
Eventually, the JS report gets to the facts:
Time Warner Cable said Wednesday it had lost 83,000 subscribers in the three months ended Sept. 30, and another 57,000 in the three months prior. Time Warner has about 600,000 households in eastern Wisconsin
So the "Big Ten" and "NFL" channels, which only had an impact on televised Wisconsin and Packers games in the last 2 weeks, have caused 83K losses in the last FISCAL QUARTER?
What a crock.
Richard Greenfield, a cable television analyst with Pali Research, said this week that "while the pain inflicted on the cable industry for not carrying the Big Ten Network during college football season has been moderate, we believe the pain is set to reach a whole new level as college basketball season tips off in November."
Unfortunately, Mr. Greenfield could not be reached for further comment on this utterly inane pronouncement.
One more thing: competition is good. Time Warner has had a virtual monopoly, and it's nice to see them getting stung.
Charter is a whole different story; they are known for absolutely horrible customer "service" and absolutely clueless field installations teams.
So they, mimicing the NFL, have decided that they are going to get more, and are selling their TV rights to the "Big 10" Network--which will give them more money than they're getting from other sports-casting or commercial networks.
Well, at least the NFL isn't taking the money at the point of a gun, in most cases.
But let there be no doubt about this: it's all about the money, and all about getting more money.
But then there are the laughable spinners:
Time Warner Cable and Charter Communications, two major cable carriers in Wisconsin, are reporting they have lost thousands of cable subscribers, a development some tie to consumers upset that they can't get the Big Ten Network and the NFL Network
Really?
"The impact of not having the NFL Network or the Big Ten Network has been non-existent," said Alex Dudley, a Time Warner spokesman in New York.
Anita Lamont, a Charter Communications spokesman, echoed that comment, saying her firm had not seen a loss of customers due solely to people unhappy about not being able to purchase the two sports networks.
Eventually, the JS report gets to the facts:
Time Warner Cable said Wednesday it had lost 83,000 subscribers in the three months ended Sept. 30, and another 57,000 in the three months prior. Time Warner has about 600,000 households in eastern Wisconsin
So the "Big Ten" and "NFL" channels, which only had an impact on televised Wisconsin and Packers games in the last 2 weeks, have caused 83K losses in the last FISCAL QUARTER?
What a crock.
Richard Greenfield, a cable television analyst with Pali Research, said this week that "while the pain inflicted on the cable industry for not carrying the Big Ten Network during college football season has been moderate, we believe the pain is set to reach a whole new level as college basketball season tips off in November."
Unfortunately, Mr. Greenfield could not be reached for further comment on this utterly inane pronouncement.
One more thing: competition is good. Time Warner has had a virtual monopoly, and it's nice to see them getting stung.
Charter is a whole different story; they are known for absolutely horrible customer "service" and absolutely clueless field installations teams.
Recycled Neocons Find Home with Rudy
While Rudy Giuliani may be just dandy for some, he has collected an interesting bunch as "foreign policy advisers." And their writings are....ah....aggressive....to say the least.
Team leader is Charles Hill, a co-signer of the Sept. 20, 2001, neocon ultimatum to Bush, nine days after 9/11, warning the president if he did not attack Iraq, his failure to do so "will constitute an early and perhaps decisive surrender to the war on international terrorism."
Well, I've never thought that the Iraq move was malum in se; it served a few good purposes.
But there's more:
According to the New York Times, another key Rudy adviser is Daniel Pipes, "who has called for profiling Muslims at airports and scrutinizing American Muslims in law enforcement, the military and the diplomatic corps." Another is AEI's Michael Rubin, "who has written in favor of revoking the United States' ban on assassinations."
And then there's the Tin God of the neocon movement:
Norman Podhoretz [who has written that] [t]he "regimes that richly deserve to be overthrown ... should extend to Syria and Lebanon and Libya, as well as 'friends' of America like the Saudi royal family and Egypt's Hosni Mubarak, along with the Palestinian Authority." After toppling them all, wrote Podhoretz, as he mocked the "timorous ... incorrigibly cautious Colin Powell," let's find "the stomach to impose a new political culture on the defeated."
Well, that ought to keep the US Armed Forces busy for a while, no? First, knock off virtually every regime in the Middle East; then "impose a new political culture" on them.
This 'EastAsia' campaign may be charming to Podhoretz.
He should conduct it in person.
Team leader is Charles Hill, a co-signer of the Sept. 20, 2001, neocon ultimatum to Bush, nine days after 9/11, warning the president if he did not attack Iraq, his failure to do so "will constitute an early and perhaps decisive surrender to the war on international terrorism."
Well, I've never thought that the Iraq move was malum in se; it served a few good purposes.
But there's more:
According to the New York Times, another key Rudy adviser is Daniel Pipes, "who has called for profiling Muslims at airports and scrutinizing American Muslims in law enforcement, the military and the diplomatic corps." Another is AEI's Michael Rubin, "who has written in favor of revoking the United States' ban on assassinations."
And then there's the Tin God of the neocon movement:
Norman Podhoretz [who has written that] [t]he "regimes that richly deserve to be overthrown ... should extend to Syria and Lebanon and Libya, as well as 'friends' of America like the Saudi royal family and Egypt's Hosni Mubarak, along with the Palestinian Authority." After toppling them all, wrote Podhoretz, as he mocked the "timorous ... incorrigibly cautious Colin Powell," let's find "the stomach to impose a new political culture on the defeated."
Well, that ought to keep the US Armed Forces busy for a while, no? First, knock off virtually every regime in the Middle East; then "impose a new political culture" on them.
This 'EastAsia' campaign may be charming to Podhoretz.
He should conduct it in person.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
For You Who Sell to WallyWorld
Heh.
Sitting in a windowless conference room surrounded by the remote-control toy Ferraris and Mercedes he sells the world over, factory owner Kuma Gu summed up what it's like to manufacture products for American consumers these days.
"A lot of Chinese companies have a saying," he said between drags on a cigarette. "Do you want to kill yourself? Then do business with Wal-Mart."
Depending on timing, WallyWorld may not have even paid the invoice before you hang yourself.
Sitting in a windowless conference room surrounded by the remote-control toy Ferraris and Mercedes he sells the world over, factory owner Kuma Gu summed up what it's like to manufacture products for American consumers these days.
"A lot of Chinese companies have a saying," he said between drags on a cigarette. "Do you want to kill yourself? Then do business with Wal-Mart."
Depending on timing, WallyWorld may not have even paid the invoice before you hang yourself.
Dallas, Milwaukee, and the Care Bear Stare
Dreher, bedeviled with an Editorial Board position in Dallas, connects those dots for us.
He quotes from Julian Sanchez:
For those of you who didn't grow up (or have small children) in the 80s, the reference at the close of the previous post is to the cartoon Care Bears. The Care Bear Stare was a sort of deus ex machina the magical furballs could employ when faced with some insuperable obstacle: They'd line up together and emit a glowing manifestation of their boundless caring, which seemed capable of solving just about any problem.
Got it?
Good. Now to Dreher:
Examples of The Care Bear Stare, anybody? I'll give you a recurrent one from my line of work. On our editorial board, we are often meditating on the woebegone condition of the local, state and national public schools. It falls to Your Curmudgeonly Working Boy to point out that what ails the schools chiefly are problems not fixable by the spending of more money or the devising of new schemes, programs or initiatives. Nobody wants to hear this, and I don't really blame them. Who wants to be told over and over again, "That won't work"? And it's true that I don't have a clear idea of what would work, at least not within the law (e.g., if teens are troublemakers and don't want to be at school, why should the good kids and their teachers be held hostage by the bad kids? Kick them out, I say. But you can't do that legally. See what I mean?). Anyway, this is unacceptable because it entails the dispiriting idea that some problems can't be fixed, at least not without a radical change. So we go forward putting our hope in this new tax, or new administrator, or new program that won't leave any children behind, confident that if we only apply sufficient caring to the problem of failing public schools, we can turn them around. The failure of this strategy is taken by many as evidence that society didn't care enough.
Sadly, the practical equivalent of 'the Care Bear Stare' happens to be money.
Dreher doesn't really have a resolution, but he can define the problem, to an extent:
Admittedly, it's hard to find a sensible middle ground between Care Bear-ism and Cynicism. It's the space between the kind of optimism that refuses to deal with reality of limits, and the kind of pessimism that refuses to deal with the reality of possibility -- that is, the fact that positive change can happen, that nothing is fated. Between Care Bear-ism and Cynicism lies Realism. I think American culture and politics are far more subject to rampant Care Bear-ism than Cynicism. It's what happens when idealism is not tempered by a tragic sensibility.
He's right, of course. Care Bear-ism is part of The Myth of Progress which is part-and-parcel of the entrails of Social Darwinism; the "redemption myth" which forgets that the first requirement for redemption is ASKING for redemption, rather than shunning it.
He quotes from Julian Sanchez:
For those of you who didn't grow up (or have small children) in the 80s, the reference at the close of the previous post is to the cartoon Care Bears. The Care Bear Stare was a sort of deus ex machina the magical furballs could employ when faced with some insuperable obstacle: They'd line up together and emit a glowing manifestation of their boundless caring, which seemed capable of solving just about any problem.
Got it?
Good. Now to Dreher:
Examples of The Care Bear Stare, anybody? I'll give you a recurrent one from my line of work. On our editorial board, we are often meditating on the woebegone condition of the local, state and national public schools. It falls to Your Curmudgeonly Working Boy to point out that what ails the schools chiefly are problems not fixable by the spending of more money or the devising of new schemes, programs or initiatives. Nobody wants to hear this, and I don't really blame them. Who wants to be told over and over again, "That won't work"? And it's true that I don't have a clear idea of what would work, at least not within the law (e.g., if teens are troublemakers and don't want to be at school, why should the good kids and their teachers be held hostage by the bad kids? Kick them out, I say. But you can't do that legally. See what I mean?). Anyway, this is unacceptable because it entails the dispiriting idea that some problems can't be fixed, at least not without a radical change. So we go forward putting our hope in this new tax, or new administrator, or new program that won't leave any children behind, confident that if we only apply sufficient caring to the problem of failing public schools, we can turn them around. The failure of this strategy is taken by many as evidence that society didn't care enough.
Sadly, the practical equivalent of 'the Care Bear Stare' happens to be money.
Dreher doesn't really have a resolution, but he can define the problem, to an extent:
Admittedly, it's hard to find a sensible middle ground between Care Bear-ism and Cynicism. It's the space between the kind of optimism that refuses to deal with reality of limits, and the kind of pessimism that refuses to deal with the reality of possibility -- that is, the fact that positive change can happen, that nothing is fated. Between Care Bear-ism and Cynicism lies Realism. I think American culture and politics are far more subject to rampant Care Bear-ism than Cynicism. It's what happens when idealism is not tempered by a tragic sensibility.
He's right, of course. Care Bear-ism is part of The Myth of Progress which is part-and-parcel of the entrails of Social Darwinism; the "redemption myth" which forgets that the first requirement for redemption is ASKING for redemption, rather than shunning it.
Another Pic the MSM Has Not Run
Yup. Those are Muslims assisting the Catholic who is putting the cross back on the cupola of St. James' church in Baghdad.
May as well see it here (or other blogsites.) It won't run in the MSM.
Tom Barrett: Lost in Space
You might have heard that there were two shooting incidents on the near south side of Milwaukee a couple of nights ago.
Two police officers were hurt; one is still hospitalized.
Naturally, Milwaukee's Mayor raised an issue of major importance:
The mayor said he hoped Tuesday's shootings might spur debate at both the state and national level about the availability and legality of large-capacity magazines.
It was that "availability" which caused ....exactly ....what, Tommy? Did it cause the shootings? Did it cause the drug-dealing? Did it cause the gangs?
Tell us, Tommy!
Two police officers were hurt; one is still hospitalized.
Naturally, Milwaukee's Mayor raised an issue of major importance:
The mayor said he hoped Tuesday's shootings might spur debate at both the state and national level about the availability and legality of large-capacity magazines.
It was that "availability" which caused ....exactly ....what, Tommy? Did it cause the shootings? Did it cause the drug-dealing? Did it cause the gangs?
Tell us, Tommy!
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
What IS 'the Holy Grail'?
From First Things, a very interesting thought.
Fr. Sergius Bulgakov, an émigré from Soviet Russia who became dean of the Russian Orthodox seminary in Paris [speculates, with foundation] ...that the myth of the Grail is nevertheless trying to tell us something. It “expresses precisely the idea that, even though the Lord ascended in His honorable flesh to heaven, the world received His holy relic in the blood and water flowed out of His side.”
The vessel which caught the blood of Christ, Bulgakov proposes, was not a cup. It was that span of weary earth lying at the foot of the cross. “The life of the flesh is in the blood” (Lev. 17:11), and our Lord’s lifeblood soaked into the dry and rocky soil of that graveyard outside the city gates. His blood was hidden there in the ground, and, in Bulgakov’s lovely image, thereby consecrated that ground, all ground, the entirety of material creation.
“The whole world is the chalice of the Holy Grail,” Bulgakov writes. “The Holy Grail is inaccessible to veneration; in its holiness it is hidden in the world from the world. However, it exists in the world as an invisible power. . . . [It] is not offered for communion but abides in the world as the mysterious holiness of the world, as the power of life, as the fire in which the world will be transfigured into a new heaven and new earth.”
Fits with Cdl. Ratzinger's contention that at the moment of Christ's death on the cross, when the veil of the Temple was ripped, that worship became cosmic--not confined to the Temple.
Fr. Sergius Bulgakov, an émigré from Soviet Russia who became dean of the Russian Orthodox seminary in Paris [speculates, with foundation] ...that the myth of the Grail is nevertheless trying to tell us something. It “expresses precisely the idea that, even though the Lord ascended in His honorable flesh to heaven, the world received His holy relic in the blood and water flowed out of His side.”
The vessel which caught the blood of Christ, Bulgakov proposes, was not a cup. It was that span of weary earth lying at the foot of the cross. “The life of the flesh is in the blood” (Lev. 17:11), and our Lord’s lifeblood soaked into the dry and rocky soil of that graveyard outside the city gates. His blood was hidden there in the ground, and, in Bulgakov’s lovely image, thereby consecrated that ground, all ground, the entirety of material creation.
“The whole world is the chalice of the Holy Grail,” Bulgakov writes. “The Holy Grail is inaccessible to veneration; in its holiness it is hidden in the world from the world. However, it exists in the world as an invisible power. . . . [It] is not offered for communion but abides in the world as the mysterious holiness of the world, as the power of life, as the fire in which the world will be transfigured into a new heaven and new earth.”
Fits with Cdl. Ratzinger's contention that at the moment of Christ's death on the cross, when the veil of the Temple was ripped, that worship became cosmic--not confined to the Temple.
St. Stanislaus to Become Oratory
Another brief note on the Old Rite (Extraordinary Use) community in Milwaukee.
The Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest announced that H.E. Timothy Dolan intends to create St. Stan's as an oratory staffed by ICK priests in the future.
Beginning the 2nd Sunday of Advent, ICK priests will be offering the Mass regularly (every two weeks) until roughly June of 2008. After the ordination of a number of new ICK priests occurs in June, the Order will anounce permanent cadre for the Oratory.
The Oratory will remain a canonical part of St. Anthony's Parish.
The Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest announced that H.E. Timothy Dolan intends to create St. Stan's as an oratory staffed by ICK priests in the future.
Beginning the 2nd Sunday of Advent, ICK priests will be offering the Mass regularly (every two weeks) until roughly June of 2008. After the ordination of a number of new ICK priests occurs in June, the Order will anounce permanent cadre for the Oratory.
The Oratory will remain a canonical part of St. Anthony's Parish.
Impeach Cheney? Yes, No: Baldwin
Gotta hand it to Tammy Baldwin (D-LaLaLand), who follows the great Democrat tradition of voting FOR something before voting AGAINST it.
When it was politically convenient (that is, when the resolution to impeach the Vice-President was apparently failing,) Baldwin voted FOR the impeachment.
However, when it became apparent that the resolution could pass, Baldwin voted AGAINST the impeachment.
This is what we call a 'switch.'
HT: Malkin
When it was politically convenient (that is, when the resolution to impeach the Vice-President was apparently failing,) Baldwin voted FOR the impeachment.
However, when it became apparent that the resolution could pass, Baldwin voted AGAINST the impeachment.
This is what we call a 'switch.'
HT: Malkin
On Thompson's Federalism
Clay Cramer and I agree on this--but he wrote it first.
...Thompson, of course, wants judges to do their job--which isn't finding a right to same-sex marriage or abortion hiding inside the Fourteenth Amendment.
I know that there are religious conservatives who aren't happy with Thompson for these reasons. But my view on this very simple. Freedom of state governments to make their own decisions (unless clearly contrary to the state or federal constitution) is a fundamental conservative principle. Sometimes the results are unfortunate (Oregon's euthanasia law, California's medical marijuana law). But I would rather have 50 states making their own decisions, even if the results are sometimes flawed or stupid, than have the federal government impose its will. A government strong enough to impose one morality is strong enough to impose one immorality.
Or to put in more direct terms: a federal government with authority to prohibit the state legislatures from recognizing same-sex marriage also has authority to require state legislatures to recognize same-sex marriage. A federal government with authority to ban abortion in every state also has authority to require every state to allow and fund abortion.
Which is another way of saying that it's a helluvalot easier to influence your legislator in Madistan than the one you sent to DC.
Or, as I've said before, if you want to elect a "savior-President," you're in the wrong country.
And, by the way, that particular theory-of-Presidents (saviors) has been pimped by both the Republicans and the Democrats, albeit more by the Dems (since Roosevelt or so...)
...Thompson, of course, wants judges to do their job--which isn't finding a right to same-sex marriage or abortion hiding inside the Fourteenth Amendment.
I know that there are religious conservatives who aren't happy with Thompson for these reasons. But my view on this very simple. Freedom of state governments to make their own decisions (unless clearly contrary to the state or federal constitution) is a fundamental conservative principle. Sometimes the results are unfortunate (Oregon's euthanasia law, California's medical marijuana law). But I would rather have 50 states making their own decisions, even if the results are sometimes flawed or stupid, than have the federal government impose its will. A government strong enough to impose one morality is strong enough to impose one immorality.
Or to put in more direct terms: a federal government with authority to prohibit the state legislatures from recognizing same-sex marriage also has authority to require state legislatures to recognize same-sex marriage. A federal government with authority to ban abortion in every state also has authority to require every state to allow and fund abortion.
Which is another way of saying that it's a helluvalot easier to influence your legislator in Madistan than the one you sent to DC.
Or, as I've said before, if you want to elect a "savior-President," you're in the wrong country.
And, by the way, that particular theory-of-Presidents (saviors) has been pimped by both the Republicans and the Democrats, albeit more by the Dems (since Roosevelt or so...)
Radio Mouth Wrong
A certain Milwaukee-area radio commentator has blown another "prediction"--big-time.
He was wrong about the Elmbrook school referendum, which lost by a large margin.
And wrong, wrong, wrong, about the West Bend referendum, which ALSO lost by a large margin.
Get new sources.
He was wrong about the Elmbrook school referendum, which lost by a large margin.
And wrong, wrong, wrong, about the West Bend referendum, which ALSO lost by a large margin.
Get new sources.
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Live by the Mortgage, Die...
Holy smoke.
General Motors Corp. said late Tuesday it will record a third-quarter non-cash charge of $39 billion because of accounting standards related to its deferred tax assets in the U.S., Canada and Germany. The company said the money is needed to establish a valuation allowance in part to compansate for unanticipated losses at GMAC Financial Services.
GMAC does two things: it finances new cars, and it writes home mortgages.
You know them as DiTech.com...
General Motors Corp. said late Tuesday it will record a third-quarter non-cash charge of $39 billion because of accounting standards related to its deferred tax assets in the U.S., Canada and Germany. The company said the money is needed to establish a valuation allowance in part to compansate for unanticipated losses at GMAC Financial Services.
GMAC does two things: it finances new cars, and it writes home mortgages.
You know them as DiTech.com...
Notice Anything Here?
I'll give you a hint: this is the first Papal Mass celebrated with the service of the NEW Papal M.C., Mgr. GUIDO Marini.
Note 6 candles breadth-wise across the altar, and a substantial crucifix right where the celebrant can see it at all times. The candlesticks are pretty substantial too, but proportionate to the altar and crucifix.
Obviously, "seeing the people" is derogated...
HT: New Lit Movement
Music for the Mass; a More Sophisticated Take
As you might expect from a Stanford professor and long-time practitioner of sacred music, this requires a bit more sophistication to understand.
Asking the question "What music [not text] is right for the Mass?", Professor Mahrt first sets the table with what we've learned from the Chant.
A second level of speaking of liturgical action is to speak of the discrete liturgical actions—each individual part of the liturgy is an action: a procession, a reading, a litany, etc. In the high Mass sung in Gregorian chant—sanctioned by the council as the “normative” liturgy—each of these actions has its own musical shape. It is not just that each is accompanied by its own music, but the music is an integral part of each action and serves to differentiate that action from the others.
Therefore, the “choice” of the music which sets these actions is crucial.
That should awaken an "A-HA" reaction from most people.
A fundamental difficulty in Musicam Sacram is that it allowed alius cantus aptus, other suitable music, to replace the proper chants of the Mass, and in practice, this has driven out the propers of the Mass. It must be acknowledged that this kind of substitution had been prepared by a common practice before the council—the requirement of singing the texts proper to the Mass was minimally fulfilled by singing each proper part to psalm tones.
While this is a pragmatic solution, especially with "parking-lot" considerations,
...something essential is missing—they are all the same; an introit is sung in exactly the same way as an alleluia, despite the remarkable difference in liturgical function, a difference which the music of Gregorian melodies makes clear.
A similar argument applies even more emphatically in the case of “songs” sung at Mass from the common hymnals currently in use. Take a specific case in point. A question and answer column in a national Catholic weekly recently addressed a question: is it suitable to sing “Let There Be Peace on Earth” at Mass?
The answer from the columnist was 'yes,' it's just fine. The sentiment in the text is nice.
No mention of its music. In fact, the melody is not in the style of a patriotic song, but rather of a Broadway musical—a show tune! There is nothing wrong with it in its own place, but it is sheer entertainment music, participating in stereotyped and clichéd formulae, representing limited emotions suited to limited dramatic situations, stroking the listener with a tune that does little more than confirm his own unreflective response to that part of the show.
Thus, not exactly a fulfillment of Pius X's mandate that the music should "sanctify and edify the people...and...lift their minds and hearts to God."
...this is functional music, but the function does not transcend the limits of the genre, does not lift the listener’s awareness to any higher purpose. I am saying this about the music and not the text, and this is precisely my point; even when music sets a significant text, the music itself carries particular meaning and value. In the case of a song for Mass in the style of a Broadway tune, and in the case of setting all the propers of the Mass to the same psalm tone or a brief office chant, the music has contributed only a modicum of real value.
Mahrt's point is that the Mass is a 'unity,' and that all its elements must contribute to the whole.
...a higher purpose should be the goal—to sing the Mass in in a way that makes it unambiguous that each of its parts serves its own distinct role, and contributes to a multi-layered sacred action, an integral part of the transcendent action of Christ himself.
Examine again the Chant's lessons. Apply them.
Asking the question "What music [not text] is right for the Mass?", Professor Mahrt first sets the table with what we've learned from the Chant.
A second level of speaking of liturgical action is to speak of the discrete liturgical actions—each individual part of the liturgy is an action: a procession, a reading, a litany, etc. In the high Mass sung in Gregorian chant—sanctioned by the council as the “normative” liturgy—each of these actions has its own musical shape. It is not just that each is accompanied by its own music, but the music is an integral part of each action and serves to differentiate that action from the others.
Therefore, the “choice” of the music which sets these actions is crucial.
That should awaken an "A-HA" reaction from most people.
A fundamental difficulty in Musicam Sacram is that it allowed alius cantus aptus, other suitable music, to replace the proper chants of the Mass, and in practice, this has driven out the propers of the Mass. It must be acknowledged that this kind of substitution had been prepared by a common practice before the council—the requirement of singing the texts proper to the Mass was minimally fulfilled by singing each proper part to psalm tones.
While this is a pragmatic solution, especially with "parking-lot" considerations,
...something essential is missing—they are all the same; an introit is sung in exactly the same way as an alleluia, despite the remarkable difference in liturgical function, a difference which the music of Gregorian melodies makes clear.
A similar argument applies even more emphatically in the case of “songs” sung at Mass from the common hymnals currently in use. Take a specific case in point. A question and answer column in a national Catholic weekly recently addressed a question: is it suitable to sing “Let There Be Peace on Earth” at Mass?
The answer from the columnist was 'yes,' it's just fine. The sentiment in the text is nice.
No mention of its music. In fact, the melody is not in the style of a patriotic song, but rather of a Broadway musical—a show tune! There is nothing wrong with it in its own place, but it is sheer entertainment music, participating in stereotyped and clichéd formulae, representing limited emotions suited to limited dramatic situations, stroking the listener with a tune that does little more than confirm his own unreflective response to that part of the show.
Thus, not exactly a fulfillment of Pius X's mandate that the music should "sanctify and edify the people...and...lift their minds and hearts to God."
...this is functional music, but the function does not transcend the limits of the genre, does not lift the listener’s awareness to any higher purpose. I am saying this about the music and not the text, and this is precisely my point; even when music sets a significant text, the music itself carries particular meaning and value. In the case of a song for Mass in the style of a Broadway tune, and in the case of setting all the propers of the Mass to the same psalm tone or a brief office chant, the music has contributed only a modicum of real value.
Mahrt's point is that the Mass is a 'unity,' and that all its elements must contribute to the whole.
...a higher purpose should be the goal—to sing the Mass in in a way that makes it unambiguous that each of its parts serves its own distinct role, and contributes to a multi-layered sacred action, an integral part of the transcendent action of Christ himself.
Examine again the Chant's lessons. Apply them.
Choir Rehearsal: SATB, and Take-Downs
Miscellaneous choir functions in Palmdale, CA.
A 65-year-old man armed with a gun terrorized a Catholic church before Sunday evening services, shouting profanities, assaulting a priest who tried to calm him and making threats as choir members held him down.
"OK, choir, on three....!!
HT: Cosmos
A 65-year-old man armed with a gun terrorized a Catholic church before Sunday evening services, shouting profanities, assaulting a priest who tried to calm him and making threats as choir members held him down.
"OK, choir, on three....!!
HT: Cosmos
On Modernity
From G K Chesterton, of course:
WHAT we are looking at is not the boyhood of free thought: it is the old age and ultimate dissolution of free thought.
It is vain for bishops and pious big wigs to discuss what things will happen if wild scepticism runs its course. It has run its course. It is vain for eloquent atheists to talk of the great truths that will be revealed if once we see free thought begin. We have seen it end. It has no more questions to ask; it has questioned itself.
You cannot call up any wilder vision than a city in which men ask themselves if they have any selves. You cannot fancy a more sceptical world than that in which men doubt if there is a world.
WHAT we are looking at is not the boyhood of free thought: it is the old age and ultimate dissolution of free thought.
It is vain for bishops and pious big wigs to discuss what things will happen if wild scepticism runs its course. It has run its course. It is vain for eloquent atheists to talk of the great truths that will be revealed if once we see free thought begin. We have seen it end. It has no more questions to ask; it has questioned itself.
You cannot call up any wilder vision than a city in which men ask themselves if they have any selves. You cannot fancy a more sceptical world than that in which men doubt if there is a world.
Fred Thompson's Principles
The link is now at the top of the "blogroll" pile, titled "Fred's Principles."
Here's the text:
Individual Liberty . As Jefferson spelled out in the Declaration of Independence, our basic rights come from God, not from government, and that among these inalienable rights is the right to liberty. We must allow individuals to lead their lives with minimal government interference.
Personal Responsibility . The corollary to liberty is responsibility. No society can succeed and thrive for any duration unless free people act in a responsible way. All of us must take responsibility for our actions and strive to improve our own lives and to contribute to building a better society.
Free Markets . Free people are best equipped to order their own affairs, and the common interest benefits from and is improved by the aggregate success of all. We must reform our tax system, encourage investment, support entrepreneurial spirit, open markets abroad to American goods, and minimize burdensome government regulations to continue to expand the economy and bring increased wealth to all Americans.
Limited Government . Government must be strong enough to protect us, competent enough to provide basic government services, but limited by the delineated powers in the Constitution.
Federalism . Our Constitution innovatively guarantees our liberties by spreading power among the three branches of the federal government, and between the federal government and the states. In considering any action by the government, we must always ask two questions: is the government better equipped than the private sector to perform the task and, if so, what level of government (federal or state) ought to do it. Washington is not the seat of all wisdom. (More on Federalism)
Protecting our Country . The first responsibility of the federal government is to protect the nation and the American people. There is no more important task. We must have a strong and effective military, capable intelligence services, and a vigorous law enforcement and homeland security capacity.
Traditional American Values . A healthy society is predicated on belief in God; respect for all life; strong families centered on the institution of marriage—the union of a man and a woman; and self-respect and tolerance of others. While we are all free to live our lives in the pursuit of our own happiness, the government has a responsibility to respect the right of parents to raise their children and to promote the values that produce the strongest society.
The Rule of Law . We protect our liberty, secure our rights, and promote a just and stable society through the rule of law. We owe to ourselves and our fellow citizens our own adherence to the rules, but tough law enforcement and punishment for those who do not. A free and independent judiciary that interprets the law by adhering strictly to legal text and respects its limited role in our system of government is essential to our security and freedom, and we need judges who understand that role if we are to preserve our republic and freedom.
Conserving Our Nation’s Resources . Each of us is put on Earth for a limited period of time. We must always strive to ensure that the resources we use to lead our lives are here for future generations to enjoy and use as well.
The key graf is entitled "Federalism" and conveniently was highlighted in red.
Here's the text:
Individual Liberty . As Jefferson spelled out in the Declaration of Independence, our basic rights come from God, not from government, and that among these inalienable rights is the right to liberty. We must allow individuals to lead their lives with minimal government interference.
Personal Responsibility . The corollary to liberty is responsibility. No society can succeed and thrive for any duration unless free people act in a responsible way. All of us must take responsibility for our actions and strive to improve our own lives and to contribute to building a better society.
Free Markets . Free people are best equipped to order their own affairs, and the common interest benefits from and is improved by the aggregate success of all. We must reform our tax system, encourage investment, support entrepreneurial spirit, open markets abroad to American goods, and minimize burdensome government regulations to continue to expand the economy and bring increased wealth to all Americans.
Limited Government . Government must be strong enough to protect us, competent enough to provide basic government services, but limited by the delineated powers in the Constitution.
Federalism . Our Constitution innovatively guarantees our liberties by spreading power among the three branches of the federal government, and between the federal government and the states. In considering any action by the government, we must always ask two questions: is the government better equipped than the private sector to perform the task and, if so, what level of government (federal or state) ought to do it. Washington is not the seat of all wisdom. (More on Federalism)
Protecting our Country . The first responsibility of the federal government is to protect the nation and the American people. There is no more important task. We must have a strong and effective military, capable intelligence services, and a vigorous law enforcement and homeland security capacity.
Traditional American Values . A healthy society is predicated on belief in God; respect for all life; strong families centered on the institution of marriage—the union of a man and a woman; and self-respect and tolerance of others. While we are all free to live our lives in the pursuit of our own happiness, the government has a responsibility to respect the right of parents to raise their children and to promote the values that produce the strongest society.
The Rule of Law . We protect our liberty, secure our rights, and promote a just and stable society through the rule of law. We owe to ourselves and our fellow citizens our own adherence to the rules, but tough law enforcement and punishment for those who do not. A free and independent judiciary that interprets the law by adhering strictly to legal text and respects its limited role in our system of government is essential to our security and freedom, and we need judges who understand that role if we are to preserve our republic and freedom.
Conserving Our Nation’s Resources . Each of us is put on Earth for a limited period of time. We must always strive to ensure that the resources we use to lead our lives are here for future generations to enjoy and use as well.
The key graf is entitled "Federalism" and conveniently was highlighted in red.
McIlheran Just Following Eichmann's Lead
This will call for a full-scale 'Whitney Gould-ing' at 4th and State...
In a typical "truthiness"-filled post, Mathias of Pundit Nation shows us how people like P-Mac are really just....
The insight made by Hannah Arendt in her book Eichmann in Jerusalem was not only that Adolf Eichmann’s own evil seemed to come from a person who seemed so banal. It was also that Eichmann represented the sort of everyman that had to exist for the Nazis to exercise total control over German life. Hitler didn’t owe his power to the loyalty of his fanatics, but to the acquiescence of the regular German citizen—the ordinary citizens who were only too happy to turn away from the truth, even as greater and greater evils were perpetrated against his neighbors.
The predicate?
As one of only a couple hundred individuals around the country who makes a living as a newspaper columnist, McIlheran’s views are given wide distribution. When he responds to news that his government tortures individuals who are being detained without trial with a joke and folksy shrug, it has an impact. From his perch, he has the opportunity to make torture seem, well, just kind of a normal part of everyday American life, while those who are opposed to it might just be, well, un-American
Go that? Since P-Mac is 'widely distributed' and shrugs off "torture" (really, water-boarding, which is NOT 'torture,') he is comparable to Eichmann, who as we all know, was a close friend of you-know-who.
The requisite disclaimer:
Am I saying that McIlheran is Eichmann? No, but I think he needs to examine which other countries have allowed torture and determine if they have governments he thinks the US wants to be associated with historically.
Shall we believe Mathias, or our lying eyes?
Here's a question for Mikie:
Let's grant ad arguendam that waterboarding is torture. Since we know that Constitutional rights actually do NOT apply to non-citizens or illegal combatants, you obviously rest your case on the proposition that the Natural Law militates against torture--a position which is eminently defensible, by the way.
So, Mikey, now that you've agreed that the Natural Law is so important, when are you going to apply the Natural Law's principles in the case of....oh, say....abortion?
Hmmmmmm?
In a typical "truthiness"-filled post, Mathias of Pundit Nation shows us how people like P-Mac are really just....
The insight made by Hannah Arendt in her book Eichmann in Jerusalem was not only that Adolf Eichmann’s own evil seemed to come from a person who seemed so banal. It was also that Eichmann represented the sort of everyman that had to exist for the Nazis to exercise total control over German life. Hitler didn’t owe his power to the loyalty of his fanatics, but to the acquiescence of the regular German citizen—the ordinary citizens who were only too happy to turn away from the truth, even as greater and greater evils were perpetrated against his neighbors.
The predicate?
As one of only a couple hundred individuals around the country who makes a living as a newspaper columnist, McIlheran’s views are given wide distribution. When he responds to news that his government tortures individuals who are being detained without trial with a joke and folksy shrug, it has an impact. From his perch, he has the opportunity to make torture seem, well, just kind of a normal part of everyday American life, while those who are opposed to it might just be, well, un-American
Go that? Since P-Mac is 'widely distributed' and shrugs off "torture" (really, water-boarding, which is NOT 'torture,') he is comparable to Eichmann, who as we all know, was a close friend of you-know-who.
The requisite disclaimer:
Am I saying that McIlheran is Eichmann? No, but I think he needs to examine which other countries have allowed torture and determine if they have governments he thinks the US wants to be associated with historically.
Shall we believe Mathias, or our lying eyes?
Here's a question for Mikie:
Let's grant ad arguendam that waterboarding is torture. Since we know that Constitutional rights actually do NOT apply to non-citizens or illegal combatants, you obviously rest your case on the proposition that the Natural Law militates against torture--a position which is eminently defensible, by the way.
So, Mikey, now that you've agreed that the Natural Law is so important, when are you going to apply the Natural Law's principles in the case of....oh, say....abortion?
Hmmmmmm?
Public Mood Over Armed Robberies Souring?
This from Richmond, VA.:
An ice cream parlor manager who pursued and fatally shot a man who robbed his store Sept. 6 will not stand trial.
A Richmond grand jury today declined to indict 21-year-old David Fielding in connection with the shooting of Jerome Davis at the Baskin Robbins ice cream store in the 6900 block of Forest Hill Avenue in South Richmond.
Fielding, 21, a VCU art student, fired 11 shots at Davis, who had entered the store waving a weapon and demanded money. Two of the shots struck Davis, 43, one of them in the back, fatally wounding him.
The Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney's office this morning presented evidence for a charge of reckless discharge of a firearm. The five-member panel could have indicted Fielding on either a felony or misdemeanor category of the offense, but instead returned no true bill. At least four grand jurors most vote for indictment for a true bill to be returned.
Notice that the armed robber was leaving the scene when he was killed.
The action of Fielding is a big-time "no-no"--shooting someone who is no longer a clear and present danger to one's life is not condoned by any responsible gun-owner.
But the grand jury thought otherwise.
Is it anecdotal, or a sign that the times are changing?
HT: Of Arms and the Law
An ice cream parlor manager who pursued and fatally shot a man who robbed his store Sept. 6 will not stand trial.
A Richmond grand jury today declined to indict 21-year-old David Fielding in connection with the shooting of Jerome Davis at the Baskin Robbins ice cream store in the 6900 block of Forest Hill Avenue in South Richmond.
Fielding, 21, a VCU art student, fired 11 shots at Davis, who had entered the store waving a weapon and demanded money. Two of the shots struck Davis, 43, one of them in the back, fatally wounding him.
The Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney's office this morning presented evidence for a charge of reckless discharge of a firearm. The five-member panel could have indicted Fielding on either a felony or misdemeanor category of the offense, but instead returned no true bill. At least four grand jurors most vote for indictment for a true bill to be returned.
Notice that the armed robber was leaving the scene when he was killed.
The action of Fielding is a big-time "no-no"--shooting someone who is no longer a clear and present danger to one's life is not condoned by any responsible gun-owner.
But the grand jury thought otherwise.
Is it anecdotal, or a sign that the times are changing?
HT: Of Arms and the Law
Diamant, Clarke: Get a Clue
Last night's "I-Team" brief was inspired by the Sheriffs Deputies' Union.
Surprise!! The 911 switchboard operators are overworked!!
Sheriff Clarke simply denied it, and a 911 operator stood there and chatted with Channel 4's Diamant about the situation (not answering calls, was she...?)
Sadly, neither Diamant nor Clarke brought up 'best practices' or 'standards.'
How many calls is "too many calls"?
You'll never know if you watch this.
Surprise!! The 911 switchboard operators are overworked!!
Sheriff Clarke simply denied it, and a 911 operator stood there and chatted with Channel 4's Diamant about the situation (not answering calls, was she...?)
Sadly, neither Diamant nor Clarke brought up 'best practices' or 'standards.'
How many calls is "too many calls"?
You'll never know if you watch this.
Learning from Pakistan
Ol' Musharraf may be a bad guy, but not ALL bad:
Legions of baton-wielding police clashed with lawyers to squash protests against President Gen. Pervez Musharraf on Monday.
Lawyers attempted to stage rallies in major cities on Monday, but were beaten and arrested.
Let's order the popcorn to go with the video.
Legions of baton-wielding police clashed with lawyers to squash protests against President Gen. Pervez Musharraf on Monday.
Lawyers attempted to stage rallies in major cities on Monday, but were beaten and arrested.
Let's order the popcorn to go with the video.
Vinehout: Gimme DSL, Cable AND Healthcare
Ms. Vinehout, a Wisconsin State senator with a serious FIB complex, not only wants state-run healthcare; she also wants subsidies to obtain cable service or DSL (maybe T-1???) for her area.
"We have a huge difference between access to technology in rural areas and urban areas," said Vinehout, who said the only options available to her Alma farm are dial-up service or installing a satellite dish.
So she wants "Big Telecomm" (actually, RATEPAYERS) to pop for $75 million in subsidies.
And she wants even MORE money sent to the local gummints: 6% instead of the current 5%.
Jeff Plale doesn't like her ideas.
"We have a huge difference between access to technology in rural areas and urban areas," said Vinehout, who said the only options available to her Alma farm are dial-up service or installing a satellite dish.
So she wants "Big Telecomm" (actually, RATEPAYERS) to pop for $75 million in subsidies.
And she wants even MORE money sent to the local gummints: 6% instead of the current 5%.
Jeff Plale doesn't like her ideas.
Monday, November 05, 2007
On the Old Rite, Its Opponents, and Circuses
Cdl. Ranjith of the Congregation for Divine Worship, speaking about the Motu Proprio:
"There have been positive reactions and, it’s pointless to deny it, criticisms and oppositing positions, also on the part of theologians, liturgists, priests, Bishops, and even Cardinals. Frankly, I don’t understand this distancing from, and, let’s just say it, rebellion against the Pope. I invite all, above all shepherds, to obey the Pope, who is the Successor of Peter. Bishops, in particular, swore loyaly to the Pontiff: they must be consistent and faithful to their commitment."
Opposition is strong in Europe, and exists in the USA.
...on the part of some dioceses, even interpretative documents which inexplicably aim at putting limits on the Pope’s Motu Proprio. Behind these actions there are hidden, on one hand, prejudices of an ideological kind and, on the other hand, pride, one of the gravest sins. I repeat: I call on everyone to obey the Pope. If the Holy father decided he had to issue the Motu Proprio, he had his reasons which I share entirely."
It constantly amazes me that Bishops and priests thumb their nose at the Pope and then expect the laity to jump at their own commands or suggestions. As though your basic church-goer doesn't see right through that ...
On some of the usual made-for-TV Masses in parishes:
Holy Mass is sacrifice, gift, mystery, independently of the priest celebrating it. It is important, nay rather, fundamental that the priest step aside: the protagonist of the Mass is Christ. So I really don’t understand these Eucharistic celebrations turned into shows with dances, songs or applause, as frequently happens with the Novus Ordo. ...I’m against dances and applause during Masses, which aren’t a circus or stadium.
But, but, but.....that's what they do at ELMBROOK Church!!!
And as to Latin:
As for Latin, I would underscore that it was never been abolished and, what is more, that it secures the universality of the Church.
Yup.
HT: Fr. Z.
"There have been positive reactions and, it’s pointless to deny it, criticisms and oppositing positions, also on the part of theologians, liturgists, priests, Bishops, and even Cardinals. Frankly, I don’t understand this distancing from, and, let’s just say it, rebellion against the Pope. I invite all, above all shepherds, to obey the Pope, who is the Successor of Peter. Bishops, in particular, swore loyaly to the Pontiff: they must be consistent and faithful to their commitment."
Opposition is strong in Europe, and exists in the USA.
...on the part of some dioceses, even interpretative documents which inexplicably aim at putting limits on the Pope’s Motu Proprio. Behind these actions there are hidden, on one hand, prejudices of an ideological kind and, on the other hand, pride, one of the gravest sins. I repeat: I call on everyone to obey the Pope. If the Holy father decided he had to issue the Motu Proprio, he had his reasons which I share entirely."
It constantly amazes me that Bishops and priests thumb their nose at the Pope and then expect the laity to jump at their own commands or suggestions. As though your basic church-goer doesn't see right through that ...
On some of the usual made-for-TV Masses in parishes:
Holy Mass is sacrifice, gift, mystery, independently of the priest celebrating it. It is important, nay rather, fundamental that the priest step aside: the protagonist of the Mass is Christ. So I really don’t understand these Eucharistic celebrations turned into shows with dances, songs or applause, as frequently happens with the Novus Ordo. ...I’m against dances and applause during Masses, which aren’t a circus or stadium.
But, but, but.....that's what they do at ELMBROOK Church!!!
And as to Latin:
As for Latin, I would underscore that it was never been abolished and, what is more, that it secures the universality of the Church.
Yup.
HT: Fr. Z.
Inflation? WHAT Inflation?
This chart excludes food and energy. Perhaps you notice a spike on the right-hand side?
The Federal inflation-watchers don't see it. Some Big Name Radio Guys don't see it.
So it is not there!
HT: The Big Picture
Silly, Sillier, and the Stupid Public
Ms. Gould, the local dilettante, returns.
Let's stipulate that Eckhart G. Grohmann is a generous man. The Milwaukee industrialist has given millions of dollars to the Milwaukee School of Engineering and donated his vast "Man at Work" collection of artwork to the school, along with a building to house it.
Damn nice of you to stipulate that, Whitney.
It's that largess, and MSOE's vital role in the community, that make it awkward to criticize the museum.
Awkward, yes.
Daunting? Hell, no!
Those shortcomings start with the building itself: a remade garage and former check-processing facility now capped with a heavy, Kaiserkopf dome and a ring of monumental bronze statuary perched along the roofline. The effect is rather like Old World Berlin as reinterpreted by Walt Disney
Really!!! Who cares, aside from Ms. Gould? Did she prefer the "Cadillac-dealer-garage" look which was near the original, or the "check-processing" look overlaid by the Federal Reserve? And is Ms. Gould going to engage a battle against ALL the 'kaiserkopf' domes in the entire City of Milwaukee?
That's the "silly" part of her non-apology.
Then we have the Reprise of Part One:
...one of the artists most heavily represented in the collection, with 81 works, is Erich Mercker (1891-1973), who was commissioned by the Third Reich to record its muscular infrastructure
...At least two other artists in the collection also had Nazi ties
In fact, almost every ethnic German living in Germany during the Third Reich had "Nazi ties," willingly or not. Does Ms. Gould want Bayer Aspirin to print notices of their cooperation with Hitler on all their aspirin tablets? Or just the bottles? Should Volkswagen Beetles have swastikas painted over their hoods? What about all those ex-Nazi engineers, like Werner Von Braun, who created and managed US rocketry and ballistic-missile programs?
You'd never know any of this from visiting the museum.
Maybe because Grohmann did NOT want a memorial to Hitler?
Well, yes, in fact. It was NOT a memorial to Hitler nor any other politician, good or evil:
The new Grohmann Museum, at 1000 N. Broadway, is home to some 700 paintings, sculptures and other art objects celebrating physical labor from the 16th century onward.
Ms. Gould's monomaniacal fixation continues:
There are no swastikas, no storm troopers in these paintings. But very little supporting information, either. The label for a 1940 Mercker painting of quarry workers, for example, alludes to the Chancellery connection without even mentioning Hitler; many of Mercker's other works are undated and also lack context...
...some of the figures portrayed in paintings from the war years likely were slave laborers.
"Slave labor," yes. Like the Pyramids, the cotton fields of the South, and a good deal of current output from Communist China. (For that matter, a lot of Roman (now Italian) infrastructure, and infrastructure of the Middle East.)
But again, the POINT was to highlight labor, thus indirectly showcasing the value of MSOE and other colleges of engineering which have endeavored to reduce labor-input through invention. Is this so hard to understand?
But let's move on to "sillier:"
But the lack of documentation for a great many works there is troubling. And the museum's failure to rectify this situation, by adding professional curators or art historians to its staff, is astonishing.
...I'm not urging that the Nazi-era works be censored, rather that the museum acquire the expertise to research and disclose the lineage of all its holdings, so that viewers can judge them intelligently.
...which remark leaves little doubt about Ms. Gould's statist mindset. Oh, yes, Mr. Grohmann, you are generous. It is your museum. It is, in fact, in private hands, and managed accordingly.
But how DARE you not hire "professional curators or art historians" (at your expense, of course) for this project?
After all, the public is (how shall we put this delicately)....pretty damn stupid, and without professional curators or art historians, they'll view this collection as if it were some 700 paintings, sculptures and other art objects celebrating physical labor from the 16th century onward.
It goes without saying that Ms. Gould's next remark has no relationship whatsoever to all the foregoing:
I love music, but that doesn't qualify me to be a symphony conductor.
And when was the last time that the conductor of the MSO condescendingly told the audience the politics of Lizst? Beethoven? Mozart? Wagner? Bach? And which member of that audience stood up and DEMANDED to KNOW those inclinations?
Pish-posh.
Go back to flogging Blue Shirts.
P.S.: The Shark agrees with Ms. Gould in one small regard. I don't concur, but hey--the Shark's a good read no matter.
Let's stipulate that Eckhart G. Grohmann is a generous man. The Milwaukee industrialist has given millions of dollars to the Milwaukee School of Engineering and donated his vast "Man at Work" collection of artwork to the school, along with a building to house it.
Damn nice of you to stipulate that, Whitney.
It's that largess, and MSOE's vital role in the community, that make it awkward to criticize the museum.
Awkward, yes.
Daunting? Hell, no!
Those shortcomings start with the building itself: a remade garage and former check-processing facility now capped with a heavy, Kaiserkopf dome and a ring of monumental bronze statuary perched along the roofline. The effect is rather like Old World Berlin as reinterpreted by Walt Disney
Really!!! Who cares, aside from Ms. Gould? Did she prefer the "Cadillac-dealer-garage" look which was near the original, or the "check-processing" look overlaid by the Federal Reserve? And is Ms. Gould going to engage a battle against ALL the 'kaiserkopf' domes in the entire City of Milwaukee?
That's the "silly" part of her non-apology.
Then we have the Reprise of Part One:
...one of the artists most heavily represented in the collection, with 81 works, is Erich Mercker (1891-1973), who was commissioned by the Third Reich to record its muscular infrastructure
...At least two other artists in the collection also had Nazi ties
In fact, almost every ethnic German living in Germany during the Third Reich had "Nazi ties," willingly or not. Does Ms. Gould want Bayer Aspirin to print notices of their cooperation with Hitler on all their aspirin tablets? Or just the bottles? Should Volkswagen Beetles have swastikas painted over their hoods? What about all those ex-Nazi engineers, like Werner Von Braun, who created and managed US rocketry and ballistic-missile programs?
You'd never know any of this from visiting the museum.
Maybe because Grohmann did NOT want a memorial to Hitler?
Well, yes, in fact. It was NOT a memorial to Hitler nor any other politician, good or evil:
The new Grohmann Museum, at 1000 N. Broadway, is home to some 700 paintings, sculptures and other art objects celebrating physical labor from the 16th century onward.
Ms. Gould's monomaniacal fixation continues:
There are no swastikas, no storm troopers in these paintings. But very little supporting information, either. The label for a 1940 Mercker painting of quarry workers, for example, alludes to the Chancellery connection without even mentioning Hitler; many of Mercker's other works are undated and also lack context...
...some of the figures portrayed in paintings from the war years likely were slave laborers.
"Slave labor," yes. Like the Pyramids, the cotton fields of the South, and a good deal of current output from Communist China. (For that matter, a lot of Roman (now Italian) infrastructure, and infrastructure of the Middle East.)
But again, the POINT was to highlight labor, thus indirectly showcasing the value of MSOE and other colleges of engineering which have endeavored to reduce labor-input through invention. Is this so hard to understand?
But let's move on to "sillier:"
But the lack of documentation for a great many works there is troubling. And the museum's failure to rectify this situation, by adding professional curators or art historians to its staff, is astonishing.
...I'm not urging that the Nazi-era works be censored, rather that the museum acquire the expertise to research and disclose the lineage of all its holdings, so that viewers can judge them intelligently.
...which remark leaves little doubt about Ms. Gould's statist mindset. Oh, yes, Mr. Grohmann, you are generous. It is your museum. It is, in fact, in private hands, and managed accordingly.
But how DARE you not hire "professional curators or art historians" (at your expense, of course) for this project?
After all, the public is (how shall we put this delicately)....pretty damn stupid, and without professional curators or art historians, they'll view this collection as if it were some 700 paintings, sculptures and other art objects celebrating physical labor from the 16th century onward.
It goes without saying that Ms. Gould's next remark has no relationship whatsoever to all the foregoing:
I love music, but that doesn't qualify me to be a symphony conductor.
And when was the last time that the conductor of the MSO condescendingly told the audience the politics of Lizst? Beethoven? Mozart? Wagner? Bach? And which member of that audience stood up and DEMANDED to KNOW those inclinations?
Pish-posh.
Go back to flogging Blue Shirts.
P.S.: The Shark agrees with Ms. Gould in one small regard. I don't concur, but hey--the Shark's a good read no matter.
Saturday, November 03, 2007
The Smell in Sheboygan is NOT a Paper-Plant
No, folks, it just gets more and more interesting, as Alan Eisenberg seems to be a good pal of Mayor (Sieg!! Heil!!) Perez.
Texasholdem brings us more:
...although Mayor Perez’s official city biography has erased his existence prior to coming to Sheboygan, we here at THEB have learned that Perez was at one time the City Manager of Crystal City, Tex., before being fired for reasons that are unknown … yet
Perez, a Crystal City native, may also have connections to Jose Angel Gutierrez , the founder of the racist La Raza Unida Party, the Hispanic separatist/superiority group working to establish the Aztalan state out of the current southwestern United States. Gutierrez founded La Raza — which translates to “The Race” — while Perez was still in high school in Crystal City and there may be connections between the two men.
Seems that LaRaza virtually RAN Crystal City until the late 1980's, according to Wikipedia.
Who'd-a-thunk it? Sheboygan, for crying out loud...
Texasholdem brings us more:
...although Mayor Perez’s official city biography has erased his existence prior to coming to Sheboygan, we here at THEB have learned that Perez was at one time the City Manager of Crystal City, Tex., before being fired for reasons that are unknown … yet
Perez, a Crystal City native, may also have connections to Jose Angel Gutierrez , the founder of the racist La Raza Unida Party, the Hispanic separatist/superiority group working to establish the Aztalan state out of the current southwestern United States. Gutierrez founded La Raza — which translates to “The Race” — while Perez was still in high school in Crystal City and there may be connections between the two men.
Seems that LaRaza virtually RAN Crystal City until the late 1980's, according to Wikipedia.
Who'd-a-thunk it? Sheboygan, for crying out loud...
Lies, Damn Lies, and the Associated Press
You've heard the AP company line:
People decisively favor letting their public schools provide birth control to students, but they also voice misgivings that divide them along generational, income and racial lines, a poll showed.
Sixty-seven percent support giving contraceptives to students, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll.
About as many — 62 percent — said they believe providing birth control reduces the number of teenage pregnancies
Uh-huh.
So here are some ACTUAL poll results from that very poll AP celebrates (heavy lifting from Sweetness and Light blog):
Q: Which would you prefer for the public schools in your community:
Provide birth control only to the students who have the consent of their parents: 37%
Provide birth control to all students who want it: 30%
Not provide to any student: 30%
So 67% of the respondents would NOT provide 'the Pill' or provide it ONLY if PARENTS consented.
Hmmmmmm.
Now here's an interesting co-incidence:
Q: Are you a parent of a school-age child, or not?
Yes: 37%
No: 63%
Well, well, well. By the way, the poll over-sampled Democrats, too.
HT: Malkin
People decisively favor letting their public schools provide birth control to students, but they also voice misgivings that divide them along generational, income and racial lines, a poll showed.
Sixty-seven percent support giving contraceptives to students, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll.
About as many — 62 percent — said they believe providing birth control reduces the number of teenage pregnancies
Uh-huh.
So here are some ACTUAL poll results from that very poll AP celebrates (heavy lifting from Sweetness and Light blog):
Q: Which would you prefer for the public schools in your community:
Provide birth control only to the students who have the consent of their parents: 37%
Provide birth control to all students who want it: 30%
Not provide to any student: 30%
So 67% of the respondents would NOT provide 'the Pill' or provide it ONLY if PARENTS consented.
Hmmmmmm.
Now here's an interesting co-incidence:
Q: Are you a parent of a school-age child, or not?
Yes: 37%
No: 63%
Well, well, well. By the way, the poll over-sampled Democrats, too.
HT: Malkin
The Riposte for Jay, or G K Chesterton's Wisdom
Folkie's managed to gin up a lengthy comment column on a post wherein he declines to answer the question "how much is TOO much" taxation.
We found a riposte today at Just One Minute:
"Give a man a fish, get his vote today; legislate his entitlement to fish hand-outs, get his vote forever"
...which cuts both ways--at both the nanny-State and its corollary, the "entitled" corporations (see: "licensing." "regulation" and other such rent-seeking masquerades.)
Of course, G K Chesterton already knew about both those evils and called them "Hudge" and "Gudge"--the Nanny State and the Big Corporation, respectively.
We found a riposte today at Just One Minute:
"Give a man a fish, get his vote today; legislate his entitlement to fish hand-outs, get his vote forever"
...which cuts both ways--at both the nanny-State and its corollary, the "entitled" corporations (see: "licensing." "regulation" and other such rent-seeking masquerades.)
Of course, G K Chesterton already knew about both those evils and called them "Hudge" and "Gudge"--the Nanny State and the Big Corporation, respectively.
Hildebeeste's Straw Donors and Human Trafficking
Of course, HRC has no knowledge of all this.
The three tenement addresses of missing donors highlighted by the L.A. Times fit in a box roughly 100 by 200 yards within a neighborhood, inside Manhattan’s Chinatown, heavily populated by immigrants from the Fujian Province of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). Fuzhou is the province’s main city.
The “International Crime Threat Assessment” (Dec. 2000), generated by a U.S. Government interagency working group made up of several federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies, stated that, “Fujian Province is a major base for operations for criminal brokers known as ’snakeheads’ who, using contacts around the world, orchestrate the movement of illegal Chinese immigrants to the United States, Canada, Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Australia.” A map of Fujian Province is featured on the cover of an August 2004 report entitled “Characteristics of Chinese Human Smugglers” issued by the U.S. Department of Justice.
"Snakeheads." Illegal immigraion. Human trafficking. Big money. PRC.
Gotta love those Clinton Campaign donors.
The three tenement addresses of missing donors highlighted by the L.A. Times fit in a box roughly 100 by 200 yards within a neighborhood, inside Manhattan’s Chinatown, heavily populated by immigrants from the Fujian Province of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). Fuzhou is the province’s main city.
The “International Crime Threat Assessment” (Dec. 2000), generated by a U.S. Government interagency working group made up of several federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies, stated that, “Fujian Province is a major base for operations for criminal brokers known as ’snakeheads’ who, using contacts around the world, orchestrate the movement of illegal Chinese immigrants to the United States, Canada, Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Australia.” A map of Fujian Province is featured on the cover of an August 2004 report entitled “Characteristics of Chinese Human Smugglers” issued by the U.S. Department of Justice.
"Snakeheads." Illegal immigraion. Human trafficking. Big money. PRC.
Gotta love those Clinton Campaign donors.
Barbaric School System
Easily the most perverse comment of the week...
Jennifer Morales, MPS Board member, after voting to screw City of Milwaukee residents through accounting gimmickry:
"My overriding sense tonight is just anger. We live in a society that is so barbaric that it says you have to choose between the needs of your children and the needs of your senior citizens."
Umnnhhh....Jennifer....the tax-takers have the guns. Grannies don't.
Jennifer Morales, MPS Board member, after voting to screw City of Milwaukee residents through accounting gimmickry:
"My overriding sense tonight is just anger. We live in a society that is so barbaric that it says you have to choose between the needs of your children and the needs of your senior citizens."
Umnnhhh....Jennifer....the tax-takers have the guns. Grannies don't.
Friday, November 02, 2007
DPI Tries to Out-Do MPS Board; May Succeed (in Court)
McIlheran points to a jaw-dropping news report written by an incompetent adult.
On Tuesday of this week, in a Waukesha courtroom, the state governmental agency responsible for our public schools and a labor union came before the Wisconsin Court of Appeals and pleaded with the judges to keep parents out of public schools.
According to the Department of Public Instruction and the state teachers' union, parents are the problem. And these bureaucracies know just how to fix it. They want to keep parents, and indeed anyone without a teaching license, out of Wisconsin public schools. Of course WEAC, the state teachers' union, likes that idea. Licenses mean dues. Dues mean power.
DPI likes it because ........well, could it be just because WEAC does?
Maybe the author is merely an 'incompetent, unlicensed adult,' but she is certainly perceptive, eh?
DPI alleges that parents are too involved in their own children's education.
That's right.
They argue parents are too involved.
I've always thought parental involvement in a child's education was agood thing. What do I know? I don't have a teacher's license.
Neither did Socrates. Maybe it was a DPI fore-runner who
On Tuesday of this week, in a Waukesha courtroom, the state governmental agency responsible for our public schools and a labor union came before the Wisconsin Court of Appeals and pleaded with the judges to keep parents out of public schools.
According to the Department of Public Instruction and the state teachers' union, parents are the problem. And these bureaucracies know just how to fix it. They want to keep parents, and indeed anyone without a teaching license, out of Wisconsin public schools. Of course WEAC, the state teachers' union, likes that idea. Licenses mean dues. Dues mean power.
DPI likes it because ........well, could it be just because WEAC does?
Maybe the author is merely an 'incompetent, unlicensed adult,' but she is certainly perceptive, eh?
DPI alleges that parents are too involved in their own children's education.
That's right.
They argue parents are too involved.
I've always thought parental involvement in a child's education was agood thing. What do I know? I don't have a teacher's license.
Neither did Socrates. Maybe it was a DPI fore-runner who