The National Catholic Register puts forth an essay by a credentialed composer of music, a fellow named Webster Young.
He makes a number of solid observations, e.g.:
Today in America, up to 90 million people have muzak forced upon them daily — and it ranges from trivial pop music to the most debased forms of rap music. Musical ignorance is on the rise among the populace, and musical taste is in decline.
...Popular music is debased from a musical point of view. It is weak and unaccomplished when compared to finer music. Moreover, there are many forms of folk music in the world that are superior musically to pop and rock music.
In spite of this fact, every country in the world today has come under the dominance of rock and pop music and is arranging its ancestral folk music to the rock beat.
Today it is possible to hear a mild rock beat (such as might have been found in the Everly Brothers, for example) in almost every kind of music in the world — even in new church songs. Folk guitar players, too often, don’t know what to do but strum their guitars in mild rock rhythm.
Many new songs have the typical three- and four-chord harmonies of pop songs and melodies that do not reach the level of the mediocre when compared to disciplined music, the great hymns, Gregorian chant or classical melody.
In the following graf, Mr. Young says something which we will remark on shortly:
I am not an authority on Vatican II, but I do know — with the professional musician’s authority — that today music in the Church is mostly disordered. As a student in music school and conservatory, I found that the music of the current Catholic Church was considered laughable by my professors and fellow music students. And still today, most serious musicians consider it so.
Young's comments are unexceptionable; the "amateur hour" noises made during Masses these days are not only technically awful (the 'musicians' can't really play or sing very well)--but in addition, the music is generally dreck.
However, Young leads off his essay with a non-fact:
In the documents of the Second Vatican Council is a mandate for an encouragement of the popular in music — the “music of the people” at Mass.
Sorry, Mr. Webster, but that is simply untrue.
Read SC's "Music" section. (Paras. 112-121 of SC) Nowhere is "popular" music mentioned. And, in fact, when you read SC, note the following:
...Therefore sacred music is to be considered the more holy in proportion as it is more closely connected with the liturgical action, whether it adds delight to prayer, fosters unity of minds, or confers greater solemnity upon the sacred rites. But the Church approves of all forms of true art having the needed qualities, and admits them into Divine Worship.
Accordingly, the Sacred Council, keeping to the norms and precepts of ecclesiastical tradition and discipline, and having regard to the purpose of sacred music, which is the glory of God and the sanctification of the faithful, ...
It's possible that Mr. Young saw this and mis-under-interpreted it:
In certain parts of the world, especially mission lands, there are peoples who have their own musical traditions, and these play a great part in their religious and social life. For this reason due importance is to be attached to their music, and a suitable place is to be given to it, not only in forming their attitude toward religion, but also in adapting worship to their native genius, as indicated in Art. 39 and 40
Arts. 39 & 40 are excruciatingly clear about "mission land exceptions." While we suspect that NaPaLM and the Liturgeist Direktorat of USCC think that the USA is a "mission land," they should know better.
Even then, "fundamental norms" are referenced. And the term "adaptation" is not the same as "wholesale replacement." But never mind...
The point is this: SC did not change, NOT ONE BIT, the letter nor the intent of Pius X's Motu Proprio on Sacred Music. SC did not specifically mention Pius' writings on Form but it DID use the classical formulations in its language such as 'glorification of God and sanctification of the people.' What's missing is the term "edification" [of the people] which reinforces the art/form requirement.
But I don't see "popular music" in the document.
Right conclusions, shaky premise, Mr. Young. But thanks for an otherwise incisive and useful essay!
HT: City of Steeples
Friday, August 17, 2007
Fred Thompson Voices Familiar Theme: Try the National Interest for a Change!
David Broder interviewed Fred Thompson. Here's an interesting portion, referring to "the fiscal crisis of an aging society with runaway heath care."
"Nobody in Congress or on either side in the presidential race wants to deal with it," Thompson said. "So we just rock along and try to maintain the status quo. Republicans say keep the tax cuts; Democrats say keep the entitlements. And we become a less unified country in the process, with a tax code that has become an unholy mess, and all we do is tinker around the edges." Thompson readily concedes that he does not know "where all those chips are going to fall" when he starts challenging members of various interest groups to look beyond their individual agendas and weigh the sacrifices that could assure a better future for their children.
As you may have already inferred, Thompson has a different take on 'what a President should do:'
...he thinks that the public is looking for a different kind of leadership. "I think a president could go to the American people and say, 'Here's what we need to be doing. and I'm willing to go half-way.' Now you have to make them (the opposition) go half-way." The approach Thompson says he's contemplating is one that will step on many sensitive political toes.
A Presidency with the National Interest in mind? Heaven forfend!!
At any rate, P-Mac seems to have read the same material as did Fred.
So did we.
"Nobody in Congress or on either side in the presidential race wants to deal with it," Thompson said. "So we just rock along and try to maintain the status quo. Republicans say keep the tax cuts; Democrats say keep the entitlements. And we become a less unified country in the process, with a tax code that has become an unholy mess, and all we do is tinker around the edges." Thompson readily concedes that he does not know "where all those chips are going to fall" when he starts challenging members of various interest groups to look beyond their individual agendas and weigh the sacrifices that could assure a better future for their children.
As you may have already inferred, Thompson has a different take on 'what a President should do:'
...he thinks that the public is looking for a different kind of leadership. "I think a president could go to the American people and say, 'Here's what we need to be doing. and I'm willing to go half-way.' Now you have to make them (the opposition) go half-way." The approach Thompson says he's contemplating is one that will step on many sensitive political toes.
A Presidency with the National Interest in mind? Heaven forfend!!
At any rate, P-Mac seems to have read the same material as did Fred.
So did we.
Did GWB FooFooDust Us? "No-Match" a Sham
FooFooDust: (n), neuter: 1) Artful deceptive phrases or sentences; 2) Misleading or inaccurate information. See: "B.S.", "Partial Truth", "Clintonism"
GWB's announcement that DHS will start actions against employers which retain "no-match" workers has a couple of major flaws.
A "no-match" arises when a worker submits a Social Security number for tax records and the number does not exist, or does not match the worker's name. Simple, no?
No.
...when the Social Security Administration warns employers about bogus identification numbers, it remains barred from also alerting the Department of Homeland Security, the agency that's supposed to hand out penalties.
In addition, federal promises to hold companies responsible for hiring illegal immigrants could potentially be stymied by several other issues: Employers are still not required to check a new employee's Social Security number against a free federal database, there could be long gaps between when an employee is hired to when the warnings are issued each year, and there is no way to follow up on employees who have been fired. In many cases, illegal workers could still hop from job to job without being caught.
So while it sounded good, it doesn't really mean all that much. The Administration continues to disappoint.
HT: JunkYardBlog
GWB's announcement that DHS will start actions against employers which retain "no-match" workers has a couple of major flaws.
A "no-match" arises when a worker submits a Social Security number for tax records and the number does not exist, or does not match the worker's name. Simple, no?
No.
...when the Social Security Administration warns employers about bogus identification numbers, it remains barred from also alerting the Department of Homeland Security, the agency that's supposed to hand out penalties.
In addition, federal promises to hold companies responsible for hiring illegal immigrants could potentially be stymied by several other issues: Employers are still not required to check a new employee's Social Security number against a free federal database, there could be long gaps between when an employee is hired to when the warnings are issued each year, and there is no way to follow up on employees who have been fired. In many cases, illegal workers could still hop from job to job without being caught.
So while it sounded good, it doesn't really mean all that much. The Administration continues to disappoint.
HT: JunkYardBlog
Wisconsin Gummint Spending, Part 3
Just to re-inforce the item below:
Gummint spending dominates Wisconsin "job growth" according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and as noted by Americans for Prosperity.
The “Wisconsin Prosperity Report” analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that from June 2006 to June 2007 Wisconsin experienced an anemic 0.28 percent job growth and 58 percent of jobs created were government jobs.
The analysis also showed that government payrolls are growing more than eight times faster than private-sector payrolls.
What was the Assembly (Republican) budget offering? SPEND SPEND SPEND, and leave an $800++million hole in the wall at the end of the biennium.
HT Fred via Owen
Gummint spending dominates Wisconsin "job growth" according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and as noted by Americans for Prosperity.
The “Wisconsin Prosperity Report” analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that from June 2006 to June 2007 Wisconsin experienced an anemic 0.28 percent job growth and 58 percent of jobs created were government jobs.
The analysis also showed that government payrolls are growing more than eight times faster than private-sector payrolls.
What was the Assembly (Republican) budget offering? SPEND SPEND SPEND, and leave an $800++million hole in the wall at the end of the biennium.
HT Fred via Owen
Thursday, August 16, 2007
WI Ass'y Pubs: $877 Million In the Hole
Seems that the Radio Guys don't want to mention this, so we'll repeat.
The state 's non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau found the 2007-2009 budget proposal by Doyle, a Democrat, would leave a potential shortfall of $669 million that officials will have to deal with in the following two-year budget by raising taxes or cutting spending.
The budget passed by Senate Democrats will leave a shortfall of $728 million
Assembly Republicans would leave the largest such shortfall -- $877 million.
Yah, that's "fiscal responsibility."
The key word is "SPENDING."
The state 's non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau found the 2007-2009 budget proposal by Doyle, a Democrat, would leave a potential shortfall of $669 million that officials will have to deal with in the following two-year budget by raising taxes or cutting spending.
The budget passed by Senate Democrats will leave a shortfall of $728 million
Assembly Republicans would leave the largest such shortfall -- $877 million.
Yah, that's "fiscal responsibility."
The key word is "SPENDING."
If You Liked Chinese Lead, How About Chinese Chicken*&^%?
You can't make this stuff up.
The United States imports 80 percent of the seafood consumed by Americans, and China is the largest foreign source. The FDA says that a quarter of the shrimp coming from China contains antibiotics that are not allowed in U.S. food production and cannot be eliminated by cooking.
The FDA rejected 51 shipments of catfish, eel, shrimp, and tilapia because of contaminants such as salmonella, veterinary drugs, and a cancer-causing chemical called nitrofuran.
China raises most of its fish in water contaminated with raw sewage, and China compensates by using dangerous drugs and chemicals, many of which are banned in the United States. The Chinese try to control the spread of bacterial infections, disease and parasites by pumping the food with antibiotics and the waters with pesticides.
Chicken pens are often suspended over ponds where seafood is farmed, recycling chicken feces as fish food.
Some food retailer is going to make a FORTUNE by having a "US Grown" product-section in their store.
It was fun listening to FreeTradeFreddie (one of Fox's 'Beltway Farts') brush off all this "poisoned-products" news last night.
Maybe Freddie should demonstrate the right way to eat Chinese ChickenShit.
The United States imports 80 percent of the seafood consumed by Americans, and China is the largest foreign source. The FDA says that a quarter of the shrimp coming from China contains antibiotics that are not allowed in U.S. food production and cannot be eliminated by cooking.
The FDA rejected 51 shipments of catfish, eel, shrimp, and tilapia because of contaminants such as salmonella, veterinary drugs, and a cancer-causing chemical called nitrofuran.
China raises most of its fish in water contaminated with raw sewage, and China compensates by using dangerous drugs and chemicals, many of which are banned in the United States. The Chinese try to control the spread of bacterial infections, disease and parasites by pumping the food with antibiotics and the waters with pesticides.
Chicken pens are often suspended over ponds where seafood is farmed, recycling chicken feces as fish food.
Some food retailer is going to make a FORTUNE by having a "US Grown" product-section in their store.
It was fun listening to FreeTradeFreddie (one of Fox's 'Beltway Farts') brush off all this "poisoned-products" news last night.
Maybe Freddie should demonstrate the right way to eat Chinese ChickenShit.
One More Thing on the Old Rite
The inestimable Fr. Schall, SJ, makes a salient point.
The replacement of the sermon for the homily on scripture has yet to prove its superiority. The faithful are in dire need of systematic teaching on doctrine. The neglect of doctrine has left generations bereft of familiarity with orthodox teaching in the Church, this all in the name of Scripture. It is not that one cannot find "doctrine" in Scripture--that is its origin--but the discipline of clear teaching is not merely or fully satisfied by scriptural commentary or reading. Catholicism includes the direct addressing of reason.
Homiletics is nice, but its implied constraints hobble.
The replacement of the sermon for the homily on scripture has yet to prove its superiority. The faithful are in dire need of systematic teaching on doctrine. The neglect of doctrine has left generations bereft of familiarity with orthodox teaching in the Church, this all in the name of Scripture. It is not that one cannot find "doctrine" in Scripture--that is its origin--but the discipline of clear teaching is not merely or fully satisfied by scriptural commentary or reading. Catholicism includes the direct addressing of reason.
Homiletics is nice, but its implied constraints hobble.
Cdl. Newman on Rudy (and Some Other Catholics)
That 'some other Catholics' group is large, by the way.
Here's a clip from Newman's Grammar of Assent:
We cannot without absurdity call ourselves at once believers and inquirers also. Thus it is sometimes spoken of as a hardship that a Catholic is not allowed to inquire into the truth of his Creed;—of course he cannot, if he would retain the name of believer. He cannot be both inside and outside of the Church at once. It is merely common sense to tell him that, if he is seeking, he has not found. If seeking includes doubting, and doubting excludes believing, then the Catholic who sets about inquiring, thereby declares that he is not a Catholic. He has already lost faith. And this is his best defence to himself for inquiring, viz. that he is no longer a Catholic…
Some, like this guy, are honest about it.
Others are not.
HT: Cosmos, Liturgy
Here's a clip from Newman's Grammar of Assent:
We cannot without absurdity call ourselves at once believers and inquirers also. Thus it is sometimes spoken of as a hardship that a Catholic is not allowed to inquire into the truth of his Creed;—of course he cannot, if he would retain the name of believer. He cannot be both inside and outside of the Church at once. It is merely common sense to tell him that, if he is seeking, he has not found. If seeking includes doubting, and doubting excludes believing, then the Catholic who sets about inquiring, thereby declares that he is not a Catholic. He has already lost faith. And this is his best defence to himself for inquiring, viz. that he is no longer a Catholic…
Some, like this guy, are honest about it.
Others are not.
HT: Cosmos, Liturgy
S-CHIP Loser: Wisconsin
Yah.
The Washington Dimowits have decided to increase tobacco taxes through their S-CHIP legislation. Naturally, that means that less tobacco will be consumed.
And naturally, that will have an impact on State tobacco-tax revenues.
And naturally, that will blow a hole in the Wisconsin budget--either $13 million or $18 million, depending on which version passes.
AND, under the re-allocation plans, Wisconsin will lose an ADDITIONAL $330 million or so over the first 5 years of the plan.
One possible solution: have Spencer Black play Joe Camel at county fairs--recruiting new smokers will help. Maybe NurseRobson Rached can be Josette Camel, too!
Another solution: veto the damn thing.
HT: Human Events
The Washington Dimowits have decided to increase tobacco taxes through their S-CHIP legislation. Naturally, that means that less tobacco will be consumed.
And naturally, that will have an impact on State tobacco-tax revenues.
And naturally, that will blow a hole in the Wisconsin budget--either $13 million or $18 million, depending on which version passes.
AND, under the re-allocation plans, Wisconsin will lose an ADDITIONAL $330 million or so over the first 5 years of the plan.
One possible solution: have Spencer Black play Joe Camel at county fairs--recruiting new smokers will help. Maybe Nurse
Another solution: veto the damn thing.
HT: Human Events
More Health Care Propaganda
You've heard about the horrible, slipshod, uncaring, and greed-driven US healthcare system and its awful, terrible, horrific impact on the mortality tables here, right? (Quoted by Balko:)
For decades, the United States has been slipping in international rankings of life expectancy, as other countries improve health care, nutrition and lifestyles.
Countries that surpass the U.S. include Japan and most of Europe, as well as Jordan, Guam and the Cayman Islands.
"Something's wrong here when one of the richest countries in the world, the one that spends the most on health care, is not able to keep up with other countries,'' said Dr. Christopher Murray, head of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.
A baby born in the United States in 2004 will live an average of 77.9 years. That life expectancy ranks 42nd, down from 11th two decades earlier, according to international numbers provided by the Census Bureau and domestic numbers from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Yah, well.
Then there's the reality check:
As the article itself notes, the U.S. has set life expectancy records in each of the last five years. And though the article quotes public health officials saying we need to do more to fight cancer and heart disease, deaths from both of those ailments have been in dramatic decline for 15 years. Whatever our ranking in comparison to other countries, the picture here is far from bleak. Deaths from cancer have actually declined overall the last two years, despite increases in population. In fact, overall deaths decreased in 2006, and by the largest margin in sixty years.
... don't know how much I'd trust the data coming from some parts of the world. Cuba, for example. Does anyone really think Cuba's putting out honest numbers about its health care system?
...infant mortality is measured pretty differently in different parts of the world. And in the U.S., we're more likely than most places to count a premature, sickly, or low-weight birth as a life lost if it doesn't survive:
The United States counts all births as live if they show any sign of life, regardless of prematurity or size. This includes what many other countries report as stillbirths. In Austria and Germany, fetal weight must be at least 500 grams (1 pound) to count as a live birth; in other parts of Europe, such as Switzerland, the fetus must be at least 30 centimeters (12 inches) long. In Belgium and France, births at less than 26 weeks of pregnancy are registered as lifeless. And some countries don't reliably register babies who die within the first 24 hours of birth. Thus, the United States is sure to report higher infant mortality rates.
Nationalized health care? Well in the U.S. the mortality rate for prostate cancer is less than 20 percent. In Canada it's 25 percent. In the UK, it's more than 50 percent. Breast cancer? A 20 percent mortality rate in the U.S., 33 percent in France in Germany, and nearly half in the U.K. I find it difficult to believe that the lack of socialized medicine is what's behind our lagging in life expectancy figures.
And as Esenberg discovered:
In The Business of Health, Robert Ohsfeldt and John Schneider factor out intentional and unintentional injuries from life-expectancy statistics and find that Americans who don’t die in car crashes or homicides outlive people in any other Western country
It's one thing to opine that the US healthcare system needs a few improvements. It's another thing entirely to present misleading (or inaccurate) stats to support one's thesis.
Next thing you know, some of us will be called "Health Crisis DENIERS."
For decades, the United States has been slipping in international rankings of life expectancy, as other countries improve health care, nutrition and lifestyles.
Countries that surpass the U.S. include Japan and most of Europe, as well as Jordan, Guam and the Cayman Islands.
"Something's wrong here when one of the richest countries in the world, the one that spends the most on health care, is not able to keep up with other countries,'' said Dr. Christopher Murray, head of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.
A baby born in the United States in 2004 will live an average of 77.9 years. That life expectancy ranks 42nd, down from 11th two decades earlier, according to international numbers provided by the Census Bureau and domestic numbers from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Yah, well.
Then there's the reality check:
As the article itself notes, the U.S. has set life expectancy records in each of the last five years. And though the article quotes public health officials saying we need to do more to fight cancer and heart disease, deaths from both of those ailments have been in dramatic decline for 15 years. Whatever our ranking in comparison to other countries, the picture here is far from bleak. Deaths from cancer have actually declined overall the last two years, despite increases in population. In fact, overall deaths decreased in 2006, and by the largest margin in sixty years.
... don't know how much I'd trust the data coming from some parts of the world. Cuba, for example. Does anyone really think Cuba's putting out honest numbers about its health care system?
...infant mortality is measured pretty differently in different parts of the world. And in the U.S., we're more likely than most places to count a premature, sickly, or low-weight birth as a life lost if it doesn't survive:
The United States counts all births as live if they show any sign of life, regardless of prematurity or size. This includes what many other countries report as stillbirths. In Austria and Germany, fetal weight must be at least 500 grams (1 pound) to count as a live birth; in other parts of Europe, such as Switzerland, the fetus must be at least 30 centimeters (12 inches) long. In Belgium and France, births at less than 26 weeks of pregnancy are registered as lifeless. And some countries don't reliably register babies who die within the first 24 hours of birth. Thus, the United States is sure to report higher infant mortality rates.
Nationalized health care? Well in the U.S. the mortality rate for prostate cancer is less than 20 percent. In Canada it's 25 percent. In the UK, it's more than 50 percent. Breast cancer? A 20 percent mortality rate in the U.S., 33 percent in France in Germany, and nearly half in the U.K. I find it difficult to believe that the lack of socialized medicine is what's behind our lagging in life expectancy figures.
And as Esenberg discovered:
In The Business of Health, Robert Ohsfeldt and John Schneider factor out intentional and unintentional injuries from life-expectancy statistics and find that Americans who don’t die in car crashes or homicides outlive people in any other Western country
It's one thing to opine that the US healthcare system needs a few improvements. It's another thing entirely to present misleading (or inaccurate) stats to support one's thesis.
Next thing you know, some of us will be called "Health Crisis DENIERS."
Back to the Beginning
Coalition forces have launched a large offensive in Tora Bora--arguably the place where it all began after 9/11.
US-led troops in eastern Afghanistan kicked off a major offensive Sunday designed to root out Taliban, al Qaeda, and Hizb-i-Islami-Gulbadin fighters hiding in southeastern Nangahar province. So far, the fighting has killed at least three American GIs, two of whom were Green Berets. Local government officials say up to 50 militants are dead with another 40 "under siege." The fighting has forced as many as 100 families in the area to flee. Early reports say at least seven civilians have been killed. The US troops, augmented by the Afghan National Army and close air support, are targeting "hundreds of foreign fighters" who are well-entrenched
It's an extemely difficult terrain and the last known home of BinLaden.
US-led troops in eastern Afghanistan kicked off a major offensive Sunday designed to root out Taliban, al Qaeda, and Hizb-i-Islami-Gulbadin fighters hiding in southeastern Nangahar province. So far, the fighting has killed at least three American GIs, two of whom were Green Berets. Local government officials say up to 50 militants are dead with another 40 "under siege." The fighting has forced as many as 100 families in the area to flee. Early reports say at least seven civilians have been killed. The US troops, augmented by the Afghan National Army and close air support, are targeting "hundreds of foreign fighters" who are well-entrenched
It's an extemely difficult terrain and the last known home of BinLaden.
Elmbrook Committee Finds the Brass Tacks and Carts for Teachers
A committee reviewing the renovation/expansion proposals for the Elmbrook high school buildings is finding all sorts of ways to reduce the costs.
Superintendent Matt Gibson argued in favor of keeping the district's plan to increase classroom sizes from about 750 square feet to 825 square feet. But he said the district may have planned for too many teacher and student support spaces - rooms for individualized instruction or planning - which could be reduced to save money.
Are there no unused classrooms available at any time during the day? Zero?
Brookfield Central would have had a 202,415-square-foot addition, and Brookfield East a 133,316-square-foot addition. Central's addition was larger because officials said it had less space suitable for remodeling and more area to be demolished.
Co-chairman Jerry Theder questioned the decision to demolish. The district's architect said that the razed area would have required keeping the existing inefficient, noisy mechanical systems and having inadequate natural lighting, among other problems.
Well, maybe not exactly 'replacement' of utterly awful ante-Deluvian systems:
The district wanted the remodeled areas to resemble the newly built areas as much as possible.
Uh huh. Sure wouldn't want to handicap the students by putting them in an OLD classroom.
A fellow with some common sense speaks up:
Resident Richard Boemer challenged that assumption, saying, "As a taxpayer, I'm satisfied with the Cadillac and the Chevy in the same garage."
Then there's this square-feet-per-student thing:
Team member Roger Johnson repeated his concern that the Elmbrook plan was over-sized, given existing enrollment of about 1,400 per high school.
He compared it to Fond du Lac High School, which the team toured. Fond du Lac is about 400,000 square feet for 2,400 students, compared to the approximately 360,000 square feet proposed by Elmbrook for 1,450 students.
Meaning that the Elmbrook proposal would be 50% more space/student than Fond du Lac. That's a lot of space to heat, cool, and light up, considering that energy ain't getting cheaper.
Finally, there's this peculiar item:
The team talked about whether Elmbrook needed to keep a plan to build the schools so that every teacher would have his or her own classroom rather than traveling between rooms on carts.
Why do the teachers 'travel on carts'? Can't they use their feet? Are these carts electric- or gas-fired? Why just the teachers? What about administrators? Students? Visiting parents?
Superintendent Matt Gibson argued in favor of keeping the district's plan to increase classroom sizes from about 750 square feet to 825 square feet. But he said the district may have planned for too many teacher and student support spaces - rooms for individualized instruction or planning - which could be reduced to save money.
Are there no unused classrooms available at any time during the day? Zero?
Brookfield Central would have had a 202,415-square-foot addition, and Brookfield East a 133,316-square-foot addition. Central's addition was larger because officials said it had less space suitable for remodeling and more area to be demolished.
Co-chairman Jerry Theder questioned the decision to demolish. The district's architect said that the razed area would have required keeping the existing inefficient, noisy mechanical systems and having inadequate natural lighting, among other problems.
Well, maybe not exactly 'replacement' of utterly awful ante-Deluvian systems:
The district wanted the remodeled areas to resemble the newly built areas as much as possible.
Uh huh. Sure wouldn't want to handicap the students by putting them in an OLD classroom.
A fellow with some common sense speaks up:
Resident Richard Boemer challenged that assumption, saying, "As a taxpayer, I'm satisfied with the Cadillac and the Chevy in the same garage."
Then there's this square-feet-per-student thing:
Team member Roger Johnson repeated his concern that the Elmbrook plan was over-sized, given existing enrollment of about 1,400 per high school.
He compared it to Fond du Lac High School, which the team toured. Fond du Lac is about 400,000 square feet for 2,400 students, compared to the approximately 360,000 square feet proposed by Elmbrook for 1,450 students.
Meaning that the Elmbrook proposal would be 50% more space/student than Fond du Lac. That's a lot of space to heat, cool, and light up, considering that energy ain't getting cheaper.
Finally, there's this peculiar item:
The team talked about whether Elmbrook needed to keep a plan to build the schools so that every teacher would have his or her own classroom rather than traveling between rooms on carts.
Why do the teachers 'travel on carts'? Can't they use their feet? Are these carts electric- or gas-fired? Why just the teachers? What about administrators? Students? Visiting parents?
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
DarthDoyle's "Business Climate"
Oh, yah.
Just jump right in here, folks, the water's fine.
Kathy Stepp points to a revoltin' development, however:
A couple of years ago- Abbott Labs bought some prime real estate on I-94. Since then, democrat politicians have been patting themselves on the back, talking about this wonderful deal with Abbott that will bring lots of jobs and tax revenue to Kenosha County. Even Governor Doyle was down here in early 2006 touting the 2500+ jobs he created in Kenosha County.
That was then. This is now:
...the deal is on paper and is ready to be presented to the Village of Pleasant Prairie board. It was placed on the agenda for 4 straight meetings starting in May. Now, the whole thing is currently on hold.
No one, not the village administration or Abbott Labs can give an answer as to what the hold up is on this project. The village administrators are hoping the deal gets presented sometime soon, Abbott Labs is hoping by the end of the year.
Kathy fingers a likely culprit:
Governor Doyle released his budget several months ago that included massive tax increases on Wisconsin businesses. To make matters worse, the state senate democrats followed up the governor’s tax increases by not only passing the massive tax increases proposed by the governor, but they added an additional $90 million in taxes on businesses.
Frankly, Kathy, I think that the health-care deal is the holdup. Somebody would have to be NUTS to commit to a $100MM+ project without any idea of the variable costs.
Just jump right in here, folks, the water's fine.
Kathy Stepp points to a revoltin' development, however:
A couple of years ago- Abbott Labs bought some prime real estate on I-94. Since then, democrat politicians have been patting themselves on the back, talking about this wonderful deal with Abbott that will bring lots of jobs and tax revenue to Kenosha County. Even Governor Doyle was down here in early 2006 touting the 2500+ jobs he created in Kenosha County.
That was then. This is now:
...the deal is on paper and is ready to be presented to the Village of Pleasant Prairie board. It was placed on the agenda for 4 straight meetings starting in May. Now, the whole thing is currently on hold.
No one, not the village administration or Abbott Labs can give an answer as to what the hold up is on this project. The village administrators are hoping the deal gets presented sometime soon, Abbott Labs is hoping by the end of the year.
Kathy fingers a likely culprit:
Governor Doyle released his budget several months ago that included massive tax increases on Wisconsin businesses. To make matters worse, the state senate democrats followed up the governor’s tax increases by not only passing the massive tax increases proposed by the governor, but they added an additional $90 million in taxes on businesses.
Frankly, Kathy, I think that the health-care deal is the holdup. Somebody would have to be NUTS to commit to a $100MM+ project without any idea of the variable costs.
Countrywide's Paper is in Trouble; KKR Takes Hit
From CNBC:
dealers in the commercial paper market are currently quoting Countrywide Financial's
30-day commercial paper at a yield of 12.54%--this for a company that was borrowing in that same market at 15 basis points over the London interbank rate, currently around 6%.
From AP:
KKR Financial said it sold about $5.1 billion in residential mortgage loans in a move that will result in a $40 million loss for the specialty finance firm.
Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts taking a haircut? My, my.
dealers in the commercial paper market are currently quoting Countrywide Financial's
30-day commercial paper at a yield of 12.54%--this for a company that was borrowing in that same market at 15 basis points over the London interbank rate, currently around 6%.
From AP:
KKR Financial said it sold about $5.1 billion in residential mortgage loans in a move that will result in a $40 million loss for the specialty finance firm.
Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts taking a haircut? My, my.
Like Children? Tax Them Less
Another item that won't make it into the MSM:
...after two decades of neglect, the U.S. Congress in 1986 nearly doubled the value of the personal income tax exemption for children to $2,000 per child, and indexed its value to inflation. Repeated studies have found that European child allowances-where the state pays mothers a monthly stipend for each of their children-have little positive effect on fertility. However, in the U.S., there is strong evidence of a "robust" positive relationship between the real, after inflation value of the tax exemption for children and family size....
Why this difference? It appears that allowing families to keep more of what they earn while raising children-that is, turning children into little tax shelters-has a positive, even life-affirming psychological effect on parents that money coming from the state cannot replicate. In any case, the significant increase in overall American fertility coincides with the sharp increase in the exemption's value in 1986. More recently, the rise in marital fertility, starting in 1996, correlates precisely with the introduction of a new, additional Child Tax Credit that year. It seems that pro-family tax cuts work!"
Don't like children? Then don't ask them to pay your Social Security later on, jackass!
...after two decades of neglect, the U.S. Congress in 1986 nearly doubled the value of the personal income tax exemption for children to $2,000 per child, and indexed its value to inflation. Repeated studies have found that European child allowances-where the state pays mothers a monthly stipend for each of their children-have little positive effect on fertility. However, in the U.S., there is strong evidence of a "robust" positive relationship between the real, after inflation value of the tax exemption for children and family size....
Why this difference? It appears that allowing families to keep more of what they earn while raising children-that is, turning children into little tax shelters-has a positive, even life-affirming psychological effect on parents that money coming from the state cannot replicate. In any case, the significant increase in overall American fertility coincides with the sharp increase in the exemption's value in 1986. More recently, the rise in marital fertility, starting in 1996, correlates precisely with the introduction of a new, additional Child Tax Credit that year. It seems that pro-family tax cuts work!"
Don't like children? Then don't ask them to pay your Social Security later on, jackass!
Feast of the Assumption
Yup--today Catholics go to Mass.
Here's GKC's take on the Feast, with a surprise at the end:
THE ASSUMPTION
ONE instant in a still light
He saw Our Lady, then
Her dress was soft as western sky,
And she was a queen most womanly,
But she was a queen of men.
And over the iron forest
He saw Our Lady stand,
Her eyes were sad withouten art
And seven swords were in her heart,
But one was in her hand.
'Ballad of Alfred.'
HT: Chesterton Day by Day
Here's GKC's take on the Feast, with a surprise at the end:
THE ASSUMPTION
ONE instant in a still light
He saw Our Lady, then
Her dress was soft as western sky,
And she was a queen most womanly,
But she was a queen of men.
And over the iron forest
He saw Our Lady stand,
Her eyes were sad withouten art
And seven swords were in her heart,
But one was in her hand.
'Ballad of Alfred.'
HT: Chesterton Day by Day
Motu Proprio Celebration in Milwaukee
To commemorate the effective date of the Motu Proprio, a Pontifical Solemn High Mass will be offered on Friday, September 14th, 2007 at St. Stanislaus Church, NW corner of 5th and Mitchell Streets in Milwaukee.
Presiding celebrant will be H.E. Bp. Jos. Perry, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago (and Milwaukee native.) The sermon will be given by Fr. Anthony Cirignani, OFM, Pastor of St. Anthony's Parish, Milwaukee.
The Mass will begin at 7:00 PM. There will be candle-bearers, at least one incense-pot-bearer, a Cross-bearer, and the usual complement of Deacon and Sub-Deacon, plus an M.C. and a fleet of altarboys.
Presiding celebrant will be H.E. Bp. Jos. Perry, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago (and Milwaukee native.) The sermon will be given by Fr. Anthony Cirignani, OFM, Pastor of St. Anthony's Parish, Milwaukee.
The Mass will begin at 7:00 PM. There will be candle-bearers, at least one incense-pot-bearer, a Cross-bearer, and the usual complement of Deacon and Sub-Deacon, plus an M.C. and a fleet of altarboys.
Tom McMahon Hits Xoff Out of the Park
Worth every second of the 5 minutes it will take you.
Lame Lefty Bromides Refuted in 50 Easy Lessons.
Thanks, Tom!! (who is arguably the brightest bulb in the whole Blogosphere)
Lame Lefty Bromides Refuted in 50 Easy Lessons.
Thanks, Tom!! (who is arguably the brightest bulb in the whole Blogosphere)
Gun Control Works: Kids Now Have KNIFE-Proof Clothes
Ah, the civilization of Britain!
Parents are sending children to school in stab-proof uniforms to guard against knife crime, it has emerged.
They are paying a firm which makes body armour to line blazers and jumpers with a stab-resistant material called Kevlar.
The precautions are aimed at protecting pupils from knife attacks as street crime spills over into schools.
Apparently the teachers also want the outfits.
BTW, light Kevlar will also resist most handgun ammo, such as .22LR, .380, and 9mm.
Parents are sending children to school in stab-proof uniforms to guard against knife crime, it has emerged.
They are paying a firm which makes body armour to line blazers and jumpers with a stab-resistant material called Kevlar.
The precautions are aimed at protecting pupils from knife attacks as street crime spills over into schools.
Apparently the teachers also want the outfits.
BTW, light Kevlar will also resist most handgun ammo, such as .22LR, .380, and 9mm.
The Warrior and Frankovis Reflect on DarthDoyle's "Shammission"
The Warrior, vacationing but functioning, reflects a bit on his experience with DarthDoyle's "Crime Commission" testimony, and raises a question:
Why has this struck a chord, especially among conservatives? It really is hard to see how the Commission is important. It was created by the Governor as a sop to some black legislators, and what it says is unlikely to have any real effect on criminal justice in Wisconsin.
The Warrior also has an answer:
...people have simply become fed up with the dishonesty surrounding the issue. The naked contrast between the harsh reality of life in the black inner city and the cosy situation of race hustling black politicians is hard to stomach. While children are being shot the politicians are wringing their hands over the fact that a greater proportion of blacks than whites is being thrown in prison.
Cpt. (Ret'd) Glenn Frankovis also testified at the hearing, and relates his experience (and testimony) at his new blog-home. Glenn's later reflections contain some observations which present 'variations' on The Warrior's theme. (See comments section of the post)
...I looked around and didn’t see or hear any of those who I met with at the many Neighborhood Meetings I attended while C.O. of Districts #5 and #3. It would have been nice to hear elected officials such as Leon Young and others speak to the Commission on behalf of their constituents as they did at the meetings I attended ...
So even the RESIDENTS of the affected area(s) don't think too much of DarthDoyle's Shammission...
But there's more:
You know, for Milwaukee’s politicians - especially those politicians in whose Districts violent crime has escalated over the last 4 years - for those politicians not to show up and speak to this Commission on behalf of their many constituents and talk about the effects violent criminals have had on the neighborhoods they represent is absolutely an embarrassment to the City of Milwaukee.
And Glenn names names: Terrance Herron, Leon Young...
We should mention that the JS' reporter-ette failed to note Frankovis' testimony, too.
How much of a sham is it when residents and their "elected" officials fail to show?
Curious, is it not, that only Conservatives give a damn about the victims.
Why has this struck a chord, especially among conservatives? It really is hard to see how the Commission is important. It was created by the Governor as a sop to some black legislators, and what it says is unlikely to have any real effect on criminal justice in Wisconsin.
The Warrior also has an answer:
...people have simply become fed up with the dishonesty surrounding the issue. The naked contrast between the harsh reality of life in the black inner city and the cosy situation of race hustling black politicians is hard to stomach. While children are being shot the politicians are wringing their hands over the fact that a greater proportion of blacks than whites is being thrown in prison.
Cpt. (Ret'd) Glenn Frankovis also testified at the hearing, and relates his experience (and testimony) at his new blog-home. Glenn's later reflections contain some observations which present 'variations' on The Warrior's theme. (See comments section of the post)
...I looked around and didn’t see or hear any of those who I met with at the many Neighborhood Meetings I attended while C.O. of Districts #5 and #3. It would have been nice to hear elected officials such as Leon Young and others speak to the Commission on behalf of their constituents as they did at the meetings I attended ...
So even the RESIDENTS of the affected area(s) don't think too much of DarthDoyle's Shammission...
But there's more:
You know, for Milwaukee’s politicians - especially those politicians in whose Districts violent crime has escalated over the last 4 years - for those politicians not to show up and speak to this Commission on behalf of their many constituents and talk about the effects violent criminals have had on the neighborhoods they represent is absolutely an embarrassment to the City of Milwaukee.
And Glenn names names: Terrance Herron, Leon Young...
We should mention that the JS' reporter-ette failed to note Frankovis' testimony, too.
How much of a sham is it when residents and their "elected" officials fail to show?
Curious, is it not, that only Conservatives give a damn about the victims.
More MSM Moron-icity
OK, class. Here's the picture:
Now here's the caption accompanying that Agence France-Press (AFP) photo:
An elderly Iraqi woman shows two bullets which she says hit her house following an early coalition forces raid in the predominantly Shiite Baghdad suburb of Sadr City. At least 175 people were slaughtered on Tuesday and more than 200 wounded when four suicide truck bombs targeted people from an ancient religious sect in northern Iraq, officials said.(AFP/Wissam al-Okaili)
What's wrong with the pic/cap?
Hint for you Lefties: they appear to be .308s.
HT: Grim
Red's Trading Post
We've mentioned Red's before.
BATF/E is doing its damndest to put this guy out of business; apparently the country has far too many gun dealers, in the 'mind' of BATF/E.
So they find minor clerical errors and attempt to make the case that these are 'deliberate subversions of the US which will lead to Nuclear Armageddon and Mortgage Defaults,' or some such thing.
Screw BATF/E, anyway.
Red's has a blogsite, which is now going on my blogroll.
BATF/E is doing its damndest to put this guy out of business; apparently the country has far too many gun dealers, in the 'mind' of BATF/E.
So they find minor clerical errors and attempt to make the case that these are 'deliberate subversions of the US which will lead to Nuclear Armageddon and Mortgage Defaults,' or some such thing.
Screw BATF/E, anyway.
Red's has a blogsite, which is now going on my blogroll.
Hastert to Quit
As Tom Roeser predicted, Hastert's outta there. We mentioned it based on Roeser's smarts.
Roeser, however, predicted that Hastert would resign earlier, to take advantage of an enhanced pension.
Former House Speaker Denney Hastert is expected to announce on Friday that he will not seek reelection.
Nobody will notice a difference.
Roeser, however, predicted that Hastert would resign earlier, to take advantage of an enhanced pension.
Former House Speaker Denney Hastert is expected to announce on Friday that he will not seek reelection.
Nobody will notice a difference.
The Hildebeeste: "I've Got a Secret (or Two, or Two Thousand)"
Hillary! has her own concept of "open records."
They are NOT open.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton cites her experience as a compelling reason voters should make her president, but nearly 2 million pages of documents covering her White House years are locked up in a building here, obscuring a large swath of her record as first lady.
Clinton's calendars, appointment logs and memos are stored at her husband's presidential library, in the custody of federal archivists who do not expect them to be released until after the 2008 presidential election.
National security, or Executive Privilege, or something like that.
They are NOT open.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton cites her experience as a compelling reason voters should make her president, but nearly 2 million pages of documents covering her White House years are locked up in a building here, obscuring a large swath of her record as first lady.
Clinton's calendars, appointment logs and memos are stored at her husband's presidential library, in the custody of federal archivists who do not expect them to be released until after the 2008 presidential election.
National security, or Executive Privilege, or something like that.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Where's Milwaukee in This List?
In the past, Milwaukee's Archdiocese was a center of liturgical music. Abp. Henni imported John Singenberger to serve as the Director of Music at the Seminary--Singenberger was trained in Regensburg, the home of the Liturgical Music reform movement, and that movement was the major force behind the reforms instituted by Pius X and Pius XII. Singenberger was a very influential guy across the USA through his writings, and by establishing the Caecelian Society of church musicians.
Of course, things went a bit wonzo since (say, for fun) 1976.
But now, with a Regensburg-area native as Pope, and with his 'reform of the reform' underway, Milwaukee (and Wisconsin) does not appear on this list:
Take a look at these upcoming events:
Introduction to Parish Chant, Salinas, California, September 14-15, 2007, led by Kathy Reinheimer, at Madonna del Sasso Parish, 320 E Laurel Dr, Salinas, CA 93906.
Missa in Cantu: Priest Training in the Sung Mass, October 17-19, 2007, sponsored by the Church Music Association and St. John Cantius, Chicago, Illinois, held at the parish in Chicago.
Sacred Music: A Workshop in Gregorian Chant, November 9-10, 2007, St. John Beloved Parish, McLean, Virginia, led by Scott Turkington
Sacred Music Workshop, November 9-10, 2007, St. Michael’s Catholic Church, Woodstock, Georgia, led by Arlene Oost-Zinner and Jeffrey Tucker
Sacred Music Shreveport, November 30-December 1, 2007, Cathedral of St. John Berchmans, Shreveport, Louisiana, led by Kurt Poterack.
Rocky Mountain Region Sacred Music Workshop, St. Mary’s Cathedral, January 18-19, 2008, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Sacred Music Workshop, Sponsored by the St. Cecilia Schola and led by Wilko Brouwers, February 1-2, 2008, St. Michael’s Catholic Church, Auburn, Alabama.
Sacred Music Colloquium, Sponsored by the Church Music Association of America, June 15-21, 2008, Loyola University, Chicago.
Alabama? Georgia? Louisiana? Are you KIDDING?
The closest we get is that a Diocesan priest/scholar, now retired, leads a tour AWAY from Milwaukee:
Chant Study Tour, Sponsored by Fr. Robert Skeris, July 21-August 1, 2008, Switzerland, Italy, Germany
Is the Direktoriat of Liturgy/Milwaukee so impoverished? Or is it a case of "lousy tree, no fruit"?
The "FAQ" page of the Direktoriat is an omen, I guess.
Of course, things went a bit wonzo since (say, for fun) 1976.
But now, with a Regensburg-area native as Pope, and with his 'reform of the reform' underway, Milwaukee (and Wisconsin) does not appear on this list:
Take a look at these upcoming events:
Introduction to Parish Chant, Salinas, California, September 14-15, 2007, led by Kathy Reinheimer, at Madonna del Sasso Parish, 320 E Laurel Dr, Salinas, CA 93906.
Missa in Cantu: Priest Training in the Sung Mass, October 17-19, 2007, sponsored by the Church Music Association and St. John Cantius, Chicago, Illinois, held at the parish in Chicago.
Sacred Music: A Workshop in Gregorian Chant, November 9-10, 2007, St. John Beloved Parish, McLean, Virginia, led by Scott Turkington
Sacred Music Workshop, November 9-10, 2007, St. Michael’s Catholic Church, Woodstock, Georgia, led by Arlene Oost-Zinner and Jeffrey Tucker
Sacred Music Shreveport, November 30-December 1, 2007, Cathedral of St. John Berchmans, Shreveport, Louisiana, led by Kurt Poterack.
Rocky Mountain Region Sacred Music Workshop, St. Mary’s Cathedral, January 18-19, 2008, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Sacred Music Workshop, Sponsored by the St. Cecilia Schola and led by Wilko Brouwers, February 1-2, 2008, St. Michael’s Catholic Church, Auburn, Alabama.
Sacred Music Colloquium, Sponsored by the Church Music Association of America, June 15-21, 2008, Loyola University, Chicago.
Alabama? Georgia? Louisiana? Are you KIDDING?
The closest we get is that a Diocesan priest/scholar, now retired, leads a tour AWAY from Milwaukee:
Chant Study Tour, Sponsored by Fr. Robert Skeris, July 21-August 1, 2008, Switzerland, Italy, Germany
Is the Direktoriat of Liturgy/Milwaukee so impoverished? Or is it a case of "lousy tree, no fruit"?
The "FAQ" page of the Direktoriat is an omen, I guess.
Architectural Relativism
That particular form shows up in churches.
Ordinary Catholics must already be aware of the changes that have taken place in church architecture over recent decades. The architecture of Relativist space, like the universal model it embodies, is homogenous, directionless and value-free. A Relativist church building downplays or even denies the concept of sacred space, rejects linear forms, and is designed so that every part of it appears to be of equal importance. Outside it will resemble the local library or sports stadium, thereby proclaiming 'nothing special here'. Inside the people 'gather round' the plain and unadorned altar, having hardly noticed as they passed the Tabernacle, and the message is the same.
Once gathered, there is apparently nowhere 'beyond' to aim for because the circular or semi-circular liturgical space cannot suggest this possibility. The subjectivism of the Modern Age favours circular forms because in a Relativist universe there is no truth 'out there'. The denial of the transcendent vision is inherent in the form of the contemporary church building and the space it creates. This same blocking of the route to the transcendent is also the result of sanctuary re-orderings in traditional churches.
Can't quite envision that? Then visit Good Shepherd parish in Menomonee Falls, WI.
You don't even have to worry about seeing a tabernacle, or passing one!
HT: Rich Leonardi
Ordinary Catholics must already be aware of the changes that have taken place in church architecture over recent decades. The architecture of Relativist space, like the universal model it embodies, is homogenous, directionless and value-free. A Relativist church building downplays or even denies the concept of sacred space, rejects linear forms, and is designed so that every part of it appears to be of equal importance. Outside it will resemble the local library or sports stadium, thereby proclaiming 'nothing special here'. Inside the people 'gather round' the plain and unadorned altar, having hardly noticed as they passed the Tabernacle, and the message is the same.
Once gathered, there is apparently nowhere 'beyond' to aim for because the circular or semi-circular liturgical space cannot suggest this possibility. The subjectivism of the Modern Age favours circular forms because in a Relativist universe there is no truth 'out there'. The denial of the transcendent vision is inherent in the form of the contemporary church building and the space it creates. This same blocking of the route to the transcendent is also the result of sanctuary re-orderings in traditional churches.
Can't quite envision that? Then visit Good Shepherd parish in Menomonee Falls, WI.
You don't even have to worry about seeing a tabernacle, or passing one!
HT: Rich Leonardi
Don't Know Much About....Latin Translations?
Well, the Spirit of Vatican 2 church has a Latin translation machine. I think it's already in use in the offices of NaPalM.
See what you think.
I never knew that Art. 30 of SC included this text, for example:
A proper and reverent approach to liturgical music requires that churches hire music ministers who sound like Steve Perry with his nuts in a vise.
See what you think.
I never knew that Art. 30 of SC included this text, for example:
A proper and reverent approach to liturgical music requires that churches hire music ministers who sound like Steve Perry with his nuts in a vise.
Otranto, and Why You Should Know of It
We look today at an invasion of a different sort, but with the same actors: the Mohammedans are the aggressors today, too.
In 1453, at the head of an army of 260,000 Turks, Mohammed II had conquered Byzantium, the “second Rome,” and from that moment he developed the plan of wiping out the “first Rome,” Rome true and proper, and of turning Saint Peter’s basilica into a stall for his horses. In June of 1480, he judged the time was right to go into action: he lifted the siege from Rhodes, which was defended courageously by its knights, and directed his fleet toward the Adriatic Sea. His intention was to land at Brindisi, which had an excellent, spacious harbor: from Brindisi, he planned to move northward up Italy until he reached the see of the papacy. But a strong contrary wind forced the ships to touch ground fifty miles to the south, and to disembark in a place called Roca, a few kilometers from Otranto.
Otranto's citizens resisted. It took two weeks to breach the walls and sack the town.
Ahmed condemned all the eight hundred [all civilians] prisoners to death. The following morning, they were led with ropes tied around their necks and their hands bound behind their backs to the Hill of Minerva, a few hundred meters outside of the city. De Marco writes: “All of them repeated their profession of the faith and the generous response they had given at first, so the tyrant commanded that the decapitation should proceed, and, before the others, the head of the elderly Primaldo should be cut off. Primaldo was hateful to him, because he never stopped acting as an apostle toward his fellows. And before placing his head upon the stone, he told his companions that he saw heaven opened and the comforting angels; that they should be strong in the faith and look to heaven, already open to receive them. He bowed his head and it was cut off, but his corpse stood back up on its feet, and despite the efforts of the butchers, it remained erect and unmoving, until all were decapitated. The marvelous and astonishing event would have been a lesson of salvation for those infidels, if they had not been rebels against the light that enlightens every man who lives in the world.
Because of the two-week delay, reinforcements from Calabria arrived and staved off the Turkish Mohammedans. Eventually, in 1481, they returned to Turkey, having been expelled from Otranto by the Calabrese.
In 1453, at the head of an army of 260,000 Turks, Mohammed II had conquered Byzantium, the “second Rome,” and from that moment he developed the plan of wiping out the “first Rome,” Rome true and proper, and of turning Saint Peter’s basilica into a stall for his horses. In June of 1480, he judged the time was right to go into action: he lifted the siege from Rhodes, which was defended courageously by its knights, and directed his fleet toward the Adriatic Sea. His intention was to land at Brindisi, which had an excellent, spacious harbor: from Brindisi, he planned to move northward up Italy until he reached the see of the papacy. But a strong contrary wind forced the ships to touch ground fifty miles to the south, and to disembark in a place called Roca, a few kilometers from Otranto.
Otranto's citizens resisted. It took two weeks to breach the walls and sack the town.
Ahmed condemned all the eight hundred [all civilians] prisoners to death. The following morning, they were led with ropes tied around their necks and their hands bound behind their backs to the Hill of Minerva, a few hundred meters outside of the city. De Marco writes: “All of them repeated their profession of the faith and the generous response they had given at first, so the tyrant commanded that the decapitation should proceed, and, before the others, the head of the elderly Primaldo should be cut off. Primaldo was hateful to him, because he never stopped acting as an apostle toward his fellows. And before placing his head upon the stone, he told his companions that he saw heaven opened and the comforting angels; that they should be strong in the faith and look to heaven, already open to receive them. He bowed his head and it was cut off, but his corpse stood back up on its feet, and despite the efforts of the butchers, it remained erect and unmoving, until all were decapitated. The marvelous and astonishing event would have been a lesson of salvation for those infidels, if they had not been rebels against the light that enlightens every man who lives in the world.
Because of the two-week delay, reinforcements from Calabria arrived and staved off the Turkish Mohammedans. Eventually, in 1481, they returned to Turkey, having been expelled from Otranto by the Calabrese.
Another Look at Rove: Policy? or GOTV? Croc and GOP3 Rants, Too!
Dreher points to an (subscriber firewall) article in Atlantic Monthly which, while written before Rove's departure, almost foretells it.
But Dreher's quick-take of the contents is most interesting:
Short version: because he was given massive power by President Bush to run policy, but had no idea how to do it, relying instead on tactics that worked well in campaigns, but not in governing.
Dreher goes from there to some yappaflappa about Rove's ego--which was not helpful to GWB (nor to Rove) during his time in the White House. But that's not the point.
There has been some blogchatter which concentrates on the policy/tactics thing. Rove was an excellent tactician; the Dems have to hate Rove, not because he was a policy wonk, but because, while handicapped with a dearth of imaginative and captivating campaign policies, he STILL managed to win two Presidential elections and a by-election in '02. In other words, he out-Clintoned the Democrats; he took a 'nothing' campaign (just like what Clinton used in both his runs) and managed it to victory--but Rove got better numbers than Clinton ever got. Of course the Dems hate him; he out-machined them.
Heh.
The problem, however, is precisely that: he ran campaigns focusing on process, rather than on content.
Neither Rove nor GWB captured the imagination of voters with policy master-strokes. They did not attract the "Reagan Democrats," and barely managed to grind out victories, after flogging (and flogging, and flogging) Republicans and "lean-toward" Republican voters. It was called GOTV, (get out the vote) and it was excruciating for the volunteers and for the Party as a whole.
If Republicans wish to win going forward, however, they should not count on GOTV as the end-all/be-all of campaigns. It's about time that Republicans come up with real policy that 'gets out the vote' on its merits. That policy does not have to be "anti-the-Dems," nor should it focus on tax-tax-tax-tax-tax-tax-tax. You can hear that on the radio any day.
Maybe "Don't Spend Don't Spend Don't Spend Don't Spend" would be a sensible alternative.
UPDATE: If you think I'm not kind to Karl, then see this rant from Brian at GOP3. Not to mention the State angle from The Crocodile.
But Dreher's quick-take of the contents is most interesting:
Short version: because he was given massive power by President Bush to run policy, but had no idea how to do it, relying instead on tactics that worked well in campaigns, but not in governing.
Dreher goes from there to some yappaflappa about Rove's ego--which was not helpful to GWB (nor to Rove) during his time in the White House. But that's not the point.
There has been some blogchatter which concentrates on the policy/tactics thing. Rove was an excellent tactician; the Dems have to hate Rove, not because he was a policy wonk, but because, while handicapped with a dearth of imaginative and captivating campaign policies, he STILL managed to win two Presidential elections and a by-election in '02. In other words, he out-Clintoned the Democrats; he took a 'nothing' campaign (just like what Clinton used in both his runs) and managed it to victory--but Rove got better numbers than Clinton ever got. Of course the Dems hate him; he out-machined them.
Heh.
The problem, however, is precisely that: he ran campaigns focusing on process, rather than on content.
Neither Rove nor GWB captured the imagination of voters with policy master-strokes. They did not attract the "Reagan Democrats," and barely managed to grind out victories, after flogging (and flogging, and flogging) Republicans and "lean-toward" Republican voters. It was called GOTV, (get out the vote) and it was excruciating for the volunteers and for the Party as a whole.
If Republicans wish to win going forward, however, they should not count on GOTV as the end-all/be-all of campaigns. It's about time that Republicans come up with real policy that 'gets out the vote' on its merits. That policy does not have to be "anti-the-Dems," nor should it focus on tax-tax-tax-tax-tax-tax-tax. You can hear that on the radio any day.
Maybe "Don't Spend Don't Spend Don't Spend Don't Spend" would be a sensible alternative.
UPDATE: If you think I'm not kind to Karl, then see this rant from Brian at GOP3. Not to mention the State angle from The Crocodile.
China Is Our Friend, Part 57,258--More Poisoned Toys
Yah, more poison shipped to the USA by that wonderful "trading partner" favored by GWBush and the Adam Smith-ites.
Of course, poisoning US children is a minor annoyance, except to Mattel.
Less than two weeks after Mattel Inc. recalled 1.5 million Chinese-made toys because of lead paint, the toy industry is bracing for another blow that could give parents more reason to rethink their purchases just before the critical holiday shopping season.
Mattel is set to announce the recall of another toy involving a different Chinese supplier as early as Tuesday, according to three people close to the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.
Details of the latest recall were not immediately available, but one of the three people confirmed early Tuesday that Mattel plans to recall several hundred thousand die cast cars because their paint may contain excessive amounts of lead.
"Oh--waiter!! Another round of Adam Smith!! Yes--I'll take the lead-lined bottle."
Of course, poisoning US children is a minor annoyance, except to Mattel.
Less than two weeks after Mattel Inc. recalled 1.5 million Chinese-made toys because of lead paint, the toy industry is bracing for another blow that could give parents more reason to rethink their purchases just before the critical holiday shopping season.
Mattel is set to announce the recall of another toy involving a different Chinese supplier as early as Tuesday, according to three people close to the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.
Details of the latest recall were not immediately available, but one of the three people confirmed early Tuesday that Mattel plans to recall several hundred thousand die cast cars because their paint may contain excessive amounts of lead.
"Oh--waiter!! Another round of Adam Smith!! Yes--I'll take the lead-lined bottle."
State Budget Proposals: Bad, Worse, and Worst
Yah, there's a lot of yappaflappa goin' on out there about how 'the Democrats do this' and 'the Republicans do that.'
But what they ALL do is overspend. Big time. There are three different proposals: Doyle's, the Dems', and the Pubbies'.
And there's a resulting problem: the State's balance sheet continues to deteriorate. And by "deteriorate" we mean that Wisconsin's 'structural deficit' places it at 48th in the country for prudence.
48th!! in a contest where 50th is the Grand Booby Prize Winner.
The state 's non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau found the 2007-2009 budget proposal by Doyle, a Democrat, would leave a potential shortfall of $669 million that officials will have to deal with in the following two-year budget by raising taxes or cutting spending. The budget passed by Senate Democrats will leave a shortfall of $728 million while Assembly Republicans would leave the largest such shortfall -- $877 million.
Sounds vaguely familiar? McIlheran pointed to an article which (in effect) says the same thing; we summarized it here.
"Here's a "DOH" for you: in general terms, the "Supply-Side/Republican" people don't care about deficits--they reduce taxes because it's politically popular. This is called "starve the beast" rhetoric. Conversely, the Democrats care about deficits--and figure that the "right thing to do" is to increase taxes. But when they increase taxes, they ALSO increase program expenditures, continuing the deficits. Sometimes (Clinton is an example) they actually reduce the deficits, but leave massive downstream minefields."
The current State budget proposals, thus, fit the model quite well. The only difference is the level of financial drunkenness.
Sadly, the Pubbies manage to be the worst of all.
And that's saying a lot.
But what they ALL do is overspend. Big time. There are three different proposals: Doyle's, the Dems', and the Pubbies'.
And there's a resulting problem: the State's balance sheet continues to deteriorate. And by "deteriorate" we mean that Wisconsin's 'structural deficit' places it at 48th in the country for prudence.
48th!! in a contest where 50th is the Grand Booby Prize Winner.
The state 's non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau found the 2007-2009 budget proposal by Doyle, a Democrat, would leave a potential shortfall of $669 million that officials will have to deal with in the following two-year budget by raising taxes or cutting spending. The budget passed by Senate Democrats will leave a shortfall of $728 million while Assembly Republicans would leave the largest such shortfall -- $877 million.
Sounds vaguely familiar? McIlheran pointed to an article which (in effect) says the same thing; we summarized it here.
"Here's a "DOH" for you: in general terms, the "Supply-Side/Republican" people don't care about deficits--they reduce taxes because it's politically popular. This is called "starve the beast" rhetoric. Conversely, the Democrats care about deficits--and figure that the "right thing to do" is to increase taxes. But when they increase taxes, they ALSO increase program expenditures, continuing the deficits. Sometimes (Clinton is an example) they actually reduce the deficits, but leave massive downstream minefields."
The current State budget proposals, thus, fit the model quite well. The only difference is the level of financial drunkenness.
Sadly, the Pubbies manage to be the worst of all.
And that's saying a lot.
McAdams Promises More; JS Doesn't Bother with Prof
The Perfessor and I share the cynicism, but he actually DID something about it.
Public hearings are usually a sham. So when the Governor’s Commission on Reducing Racial Disparities in the Wisconsin Justice System held a hearing in Milwaukee this afternoon, we weren’t expecting anything great.
The Commission, it seems, has an odd charge. They have been told by Governor Doyle to “(a.) Determine whether discrimination is built into the criminal justice system at each stage of the criminal justice continuum of arrest through parole; and (b.) Recommend strategies and solutions to reduce the racial disparity in the Wisconsin criminal justice system. . . .”
But the second task assumes a particular outcome of the first.
Doh. Yah.
Nonetheless, the Prof presented his stuff:
We rattled off various analyses we have done, all of which show that the “disproportionate” incarceration of blacks in Wisconsin is the result of the fact that blacks disproportionately commit crimes.
And, of course, the response from the Elected Ignoramus was predictable.
Spencer Coggs asked us “are you saying that blacks commit crimes at a greater rate than whites, as opposed to being stopped more often by police?”
We responded “yes, that’s exactly what I’m are saying.”
Coggs then responded that “that’s not what the studies show.”
The Prof says that Coggs' response was "stupefying." There may be better words for it, but you get the general idea.
1) The Prof cites a dozen studies saying that 'Gravity Exerts Force.'
2) The Elected Ignoramus says that 'the studies' do NOT say that 'Gravity Exerts Force.'
Well, here's the good news:
...since we have just finished an article on the subject which will appear in the Fall issue of The Wisconsin Interest,
So we have something worth reading, which will appear soon.
Speaking of "worth reading," why doesn't the JSOnline report mention McAdams' presentation?
From what the JS DOES say, McAdams' remarks would at least serve as "the other guys said..." kinda material. Looks as though the JS' mind is made up.
No facts need interfere here, folks. Move along now...
Public hearings are usually a sham. So when the Governor’s Commission on Reducing Racial Disparities in the Wisconsin Justice System held a hearing in Milwaukee this afternoon, we weren’t expecting anything great.
The Commission, it seems, has an odd charge. They have been told by Governor Doyle to “(a.) Determine whether discrimination is built into the criminal justice system at each stage of the criminal justice continuum of arrest through parole; and (b.) Recommend strategies and solutions to reduce the racial disparity in the Wisconsin criminal justice system. . . .”
But the second task assumes a particular outcome of the first.
Doh. Yah.
Nonetheless, the Prof presented his stuff:
We rattled off various analyses we have done, all of which show that the “disproportionate” incarceration of blacks in Wisconsin is the result of the fact that blacks disproportionately commit crimes.
And, of course, the response from the Elected Ignoramus was predictable.
Spencer Coggs asked us “are you saying that blacks commit crimes at a greater rate than whites, as opposed to being stopped more often by police?”
We responded “yes, that’s exactly what I’m are saying.”
Coggs then responded that “that’s not what the studies show.”
The Prof says that Coggs' response was "stupefying." There may be better words for it, but you get the general idea.
1) The Prof cites a dozen studies saying that 'Gravity Exerts Force.'
2) The Elected Ignoramus says that 'the studies' do NOT say that 'Gravity Exerts Force.'
Well, here's the good news:
...since we have just finished an article on the subject which will appear in the Fall issue of The Wisconsin Interest,
So we have something worth reading, which will appear soon.
Speaking of "worth reading," why doesn't the JSOnline report mention McAdams' presentation?
From what the JS DOES say, McAdams' remarks would at least serve as "the other guys said..." kinda material. Looks as though the JS' mind is made up.
No facts need interfere here, folks. Move along now...
Data Arcana on Election Donations: "Big Education"
Here's an interesting bunch of factoids:
Nearly four years after academia donated almost $30 million to unseat George W. Bush and Republicans, college professors and others in the education field have contributed more money to federal politics than the oil industry and drugmakers, with a nearly unanimous goal of putting a Democrat in the White House.
So far in the '08 election cycle, people who work for institutions of higher education have given more than $7 million to federal candidates, parties and committees, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. Nearly 60 percent of that money has gone to presidential candidates. The industry's favorite, Barack Obama, has raked in nearly $1.5 million in the campaign's first six months, followed by Hillary Clinton with almost $940,000.
Seventy-six percent of the education industry's total federal contributions for '08 has gone to Democrats, on par with the industry's partisanship in the last two election cycles. Perhaps more surprising than the industry’s party split is its sheer size: Education was the eighth-largest industry in terms of all federal campaign contributions in 2004 and the 13th largest in 2006, meaning that in the last two election cycles, college employees contributed more to politicians than the oil and gas industry, which ranked 16th in both cycles. For 2008, CRP ranks the education industry as No. 14, still ahead of big-givers such as oil and gas, general contractors, the computer and Internet industry, electric utilities and the pharmaceutical industry.
So much for "Big Pharma" and "Big Oil." They're just wimpy, wimpy, wimpy, compared to the Leftoid Juggernaut in education.
Now, class, start thinking about the policy implications here. Think that perhaps the Democrat Party's position(s) on "higher education" has something to do with their source-of-funding?
HT: John Lott
Nearly four years after academia donated almost $30 million to unseat George W. Bush and Republicans, college professors and others in the education field have contributed more money to federal politics than the oil industry and drugmakers, with a nearly unanimous goal of putting a Democrat in the White House.
So far in the '08 election cycle, people who work for institutions of higher education have given more than $7 million to federal candidates, parties and committees, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. Nearly 60 percent of that money has gone to presidential candidates. The industry's favorite, Barack Obama, has raked in nearly $1.5 million in the campaign's first six months, followed by Hillary Clinton with almost $940,000.
Seventy-six percent of the education industry's total federal contributions for '08 has gone to Democrats, on par with the industry's partisanship in the last two election cycles. Perhaps more surprising than the industry’s party split is its sheer size: Education was the eighth-largest industry in terms of all federal campaign contributions in 2004 and the 13th largest in 2006, meaning that in the last two election cycles, college employees contributed more to politicians than the oil and gas industry, which ranked 16th in both cycles. For 2008, CRP ranks the education industry as No. 14, still ahead of big-givers such as oil and gas, general contractors, the computer and Internet industry, electric utilities and the pharmaceutical industry.
So much for "Big Pharma" and "Big Oil." They're just wimpy, wimpy, wimpy, compared to the Leftoid Juggernaut in education.
Now, class, start thinking about the policy implications here. Think that perhaps the Democrat Party's position(s) on "higher education" has something to do with their source-of-funding?
HT: John Lott
Monday, August 13, 2007
Let's Analyze the Texts!
Chironomo does a very nice job of shredding Fr. R. ("Roc" to his pals) O'Connor's "argumentation" in a recent edition of the NAPM/NAPalM mag-a-rag.
O'Connor first obfuscates, then creates straw-men and red herrings.
Then, of course, he comes to the wrong conclusion, defending the indefensible.
The tactic being taken by Fr. O’Connor is more than slightly transparent but much less than even slightly effective. First, group the clearly horizontal lyrics in with other non-horizontal lyrics in first person, and reclassify them all as self-referential. Then create an argument comparing all of these self-referential lyrics to liturgical texts in the first person, and claim that if first person liturgical texts are acceptable, then all first-person song lyrics must also be acceptable, including those that are also specifically horizontal.
In the old days, Jesuitical arguments were worth some time and analysis; they were decent arguments. Things have changed; it takes about 5 minutes to realize O'Connor's error and demonstrate how utterly devoid of substance his thesis really is.
...few would claim to have any problem with many of the hymns cited in the article as being “self-referential”: We gather Together, Ubi Caritas, The Magnificat, I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say, Lift High The Cross… the list goes on. These are among the hymns that he groups into the “Self-referential” category. Also placed in this category though, are the actual few texts deserving of being criticized as horizontal: Gather Us In, Here We Are, Anthem and Sing A New Church.
Lotsa good stuff at the link.
O'Connor first obfuscates, then creates straw-men and red herrings.
Then, of course, he comes to the wrong conclusion, defending the indefensible.
The tactic being taken by Fr. O’Connor is more than slightly transparent but much less than even slightly effective. First, group the clearly horizontal lyrics in with other non-horizontal lyrics in first person, and reclassify them all as self-referential. Then create an argument comparing all of these self-referential lyrics to liturgical texts in the first person, and claim that if first person liturgical texts are acceptable, then all first-person song lyrics must also be acceptable, including those that are also specifically horizontal.
In the old days, Jesuitical arguments were worth some time and analysis; they were decent arguments. Things have changed; it takes about 5 minutes to realize O'Connor's error and demonstrate how utterly devoid of substance his thesis really is.
...few would claim to have any problem with many of the hymns cited in the article as being “self-referential”: We gather Together, Ubi Caritas, The Magnificat, I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say, Lift High The Cross… the list goes on. These are among the hymns that he groups into the “Self-referential” category. Also placed in this category though, are the actual few texts deserving of being criticized as horizontal: Gather Us In, Here We Are, Anthem and Sing A New Church.
Lotsa good stuff at the link.
Things You Thought You'd NEVER See
Here's one that you woulda never, EVER, dreamed of.
The Red Army Choir singing backup on Sweet Home Alabama.
Not too bad, either...
HT: A Little Light from the East.
The Red Army Choir singing backup on Sweet Home Alabama.
Not too bad, either...
HT: A Little Light from the East.
Liturgeists In All Stripes
A large percentage of the Liturgeist Establishment are priests. Despite the pre-eminence achieved by laity-with-fancy-sounding-degrees in the field of Liturgical Asinine Tricks, the majority of Asinine Tricks are invented by priests.
And it's not just the "LeftoWacky" priests.
A West Suburban parish now is subject to a new Pastor who casually eliminates recitation of the "Glory to God" whenever he feels like it, and other, less noticeable wordplays during the Mass, topped off with endless 'homilies' which he decorates with singing (!!)
It's good preparation for concentration camp residency.
But the "Right-o-Wackies" are just as, ah, comical.
A Diocese in Illinois has an established (and Bishop-approved) Tridentine group; the pastor is a member of an Order which celebrates the Old Rite. That Order is approved by the Bishop, and is headquartered in Wisconsin.
The pastor recently pronounced that a Christmas-eve "Festival of Lessons and Carols" will be verboten because it is "too Anglican." I don't think that the Pastor is Irish enough to get away with that on purely ethnic grounds--which might be forgiveable.
So much for that damnfool 'ecumenism' stuff! No "Anglican art" shall pass these portals!!
Dunno what the Hell he thinks about the "Hallelujah" Chorus, written by an Anglican (or maybe Lut'ran) guy for an Anglican King, using the Anglican King James Bible's text.
For that matter, what about all those Anglican and Methodist Christmas carols? Shall we dump O Little Town of Bethlehem and Hark, the Herald Angels Sing into the "Heretic-Hole"?
You laugh, because crying is too.....humanist.
And it's not just the "LeftoWacky" priests.
A West Suburban parish now is subject to a new Pastor who casually eliminates recitation of the "Glory to God" whenever he feels like it, and other, less noticeable wordplays during the Mass, topped off with endless 'homilies' which he decorates with singing (!!)
It's good preparation for concentration camp residency.
But the "Right-o-Wackies" are just as, ah, comical.
A Diocese in Illinois has an established (and Bishop-approved) Tridentine group; the pastor is a member of an Order which celebrates the Old Rite. That Order is approved by the Bishop, and is headquartered in Wisconsin.
The pastor recently pronounced that a Christmas-eve "Festival of Lessons and Carols" will be verboten because it is "too Anglican." I don't think that the Pastor is Irish enough to get away with that on purely ethnic grounds--which might be forgiveable.
So much for that damnfool 'ecumenism' stuff! No "Anglican art" shall pass these portals!!
Dunno what the Hell he thinks about the "Hallelujah" Chorus, written by an Anglican (or maybe Lut'ran) guy for an Anglican King, using the Anglican King James Bible's text.
For that matter, what about all those Anglican and Methodist Christmas carols? Shall we dump O Little Town of Bethlehem and Hark, the Herald Angels Sing into the "Heretic-Hole"?
You laugh, because crying is too.....humanist.
The WSJ Shows Its Colors--Again
Not that there was ever a doubt...
In this opinion piece, the "no borders" (that's cheap-labor) crowd reveals its fear:
The new no-match program may not catch everybody, but it has the potential to impact the employment of three to four million undocumented workers. With such workers concentrated in just a few big states -- California, Texas, Florida, New York, Arizona and Illinois -- the regional impact of the program could be substantial.
Border enforcement keeps some immigrants out, but since it does nothing to remove the jobs magnet pulling workers here, it actually raises the rewards for those who make it in, encouraging more illegal immigration. Fears of no-match letters reflect a simple reality -- this could work. --Federal Reserve economist Pia Orennius
After all, the price of lettuce will have a substantial debilitating effect on COLA, right?
The justification for the WSJ's horror?
The main effects will be to drive undocumented workers underground where they will work off the books for lower wages, under worse conditions and subject to more abuses.
Yup. Of course, such arrangements are ALSO illegal. And the 'employers' who use such practices vaguely resemble the Cotton Kings. But that's not very polite, is it?
JunkYardBlog observes:
Illegals are already nearly in indentured servitude, subject to extortion by the threat of informing La Migra about them. But this unsavory status quo doesn't seem to be a big concern to the amnesty advocates. Given that, they need to explain why these lower wages (which would increase overall efficiency, fight inflation, and lower the price of those all-important heads of lettuce we keep hearing about) would be such a bad thing. If cheap labor is OK, why isn't even cheaper labor better?
In other words, if going "off-books" is cheaper, then what's the WSJ's complaint?
She's also concerned that as they get fired, illegals will default on their mortgages. I can only conclude that any bank that lends money to an illegal alien to buy a house was either abysmally incompetent in its due diligence background check, or just plain knew it was loaning money to an illegal. And I say, that sucks to be that bank.
And you thought that the Sub-Prime problem was a big deal?
In this opinion piece, the "no borders" (that's cheap-labor) crowd reveals its fear:
The new no-match program may not catch everybody, but it has the potential to impact the employment of three to four million undocumented workers. With such workers concentrated in just a few big states -- California, Texas, Florida, New York, Arizona and Illinois -- the regional impact of the program could be substantial.
Border enforcement keeps some immigrants out, but since it does nothing to remove the jobs magnet pulling workers here, it actually raises the rewards for those who make it in, encouraging more illegal immigration. Fears of no-match letters reflect a simple reality -- this could work. --Federal Reserve economist Pia Orennius
After all, the price of lettuce will have a substantial debilitating effect on COLA, right?
The justification for the WSJ's horror?
The main effects will be to drive undocumented workers underground where they will work off the books for lower wages, under worse conditions and subject to more abuses.
Yup. Of course, such arrangements are ALSO illegal. And the 'employers' who use such practices vaguely resemble the Cotton Kings. But that's not very polite, is it?
JunkYardBlog observes:
Illegals are already nearly in indentured servitude, subject to extortion by the threat of informing La Migra about them. But this unsavory status quo doesn't seem to be a big concern to the amnesty advocates. Given that, they need to explain why these lower wages (which would increase overall efficiency, fight inflation, and lower the price of those all-important heads of lettuce we keep hearing about) would be such a bad thing. If cheap labor is OK, why isn't even cheaper labor better?
In other words, if going "off-books" is cheaper, then what's the WSJ's complaint?
She's also concerned that as they get fired, illegals will default on their mortgages. I can only conclude that any bank that lends money to an illegal alien to buy a house was either abysmally incompetent in its due diligence background check, or just plain knew it was loaning money to an illegal. And I say, that sucks to be that bank.
And you thought that the Sub-Prime problem was a big deal?
Vacancy in the "Target" Department
Here's the news:
Karl Rove, the controversial adviser credited with guiding George W. Bush’s political rise from Texas to the White House, has told the Wall Street Journal that he will resign his post as a presidential adviser at the end of the month.
Caramba! Now the WackoLefties have to agree on the Alternative Target.
HT: Ankle-Biting Pundits
Karl Rove, the controversial adviser credited with guiding George W. Bush’s political rise from Texas to the White House, has told the Wall Street Journal that he will resign his post as a presidential adviser at the end of the month.
Caramba! Now the WackoLefties have to agree on the Alternative Target.
HT: Ankle-Biting Pundits
The Giant Sucking Sound, CMCCL and "Cooperation"
That sucking sound you hear is faint, for the present.
But Milwaukee, currently the recipient of 30% of State taxpayers' largesse while having only 10% of the State's residents, is now angling for more.
Of course, we use "largesse" advisedly. The State's method of spending begins with taking money at the point of a gun, then spending it where State politicians get votes. Both the City and the County of Milwaukee have been very big players in voting Democrats into office.
You can figure this out, no?
At any rate, Milwaukee County's bus system is in deep doodoo. Scott Walker, no fool, would like to dump the bus system.
And the target for that "dump" will include Washington, Ozaukee, Waukesha, Racine, Kenosha, and Milwaukee Counties.
Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker has asked other top officials to meet to discuss whether the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Transit Authority should be restructured to oversee public buses as well as commuter trains. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said he will join the talks, to which Walker already had invited Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas, Waukesha Mayor Larry Nelson, Racine Mayor Gary Becker and Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian.
Barrett invited himself. He could smell the money and he's not stupid, either.
Setting up a regional transit system involves politically sensitive decisions on how to run it and how to pay for it. Also looming over the debate are the future of the financially troubled Milwaukee County Transit System; rival plans to spend $91.5 million in long-idle federal transit aid on express buses or streetcars; and efforts to start the KRM Commuter Link, a rail line connecting Milwaukee, the southern suburbs, Racine and Kenosha.
KRM should really be called the CMCCL--"Chicago to Milwaukee Club Car Line." It's put together for the benefit of members of the Milwaukee and Chicago Athletic Clubs who desperately need taxpayer subsidization of their travels.
Of course, the Old Plan will be discussed:
In the early 1990s, the state set up a temporary regional transit authority to plan for a permanent body. The group recommended a seven-county agency to take over not only public transit but also highways and carpooling, funded by a 0.4% local sales tax and a 5-cent-a-gallon local gas tax.
See anything in that 'graf which mentions "elected body"? I didn't think so.
All of the rhetoric will be keyed off the term "cooperative."
All of the money will be taken from "cooperative" Wisconsin taxpayers.
Most people "cooperate" with Armed Thieves, right?
But Milwaukee, currently the recipient of 30% of State taxpayers' largesse while having only 10% of the State's residents, is now angling for more.
Of course, we use "largesse" advisedly. The State's method of spending begins with taking money at the point of a gun, then spending it where State politicians get votes. Both the City and the County of Milwaukee have been very big players in voting Democrats into office.
You can figure this out, no?
At any rate, Milwaukee County's bus system is in deep doodoo. Scott Walker, no fool, would like to dump the bus system.
And the target for that "dump" will include Washington, Ozaukee, Waukesha, Racine, Kenosha, and Milwaukee Counties.
Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker has asked other top officials to meet to discuss whether the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Transit Authority should be restructured to oversee public buses as well as commuter trains. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said he will join the talks, to which Walker already had invited Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas, Waukesha Mayor Larry Nelson, Racine Mayor Gary Becker and Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian.
Barrett invited himself. He could smell the money and he's not stupid, either.
Setting up a regional transit system involves politically sensitive decisions on how to run it and how to pay for it. Also looming over the debate are the future of the financially troubled Milwaukee County Transit System; rival plans to spend $91.5 million in long-idle federal transit aid on express buses or streetcars; and efforts to start the KRM Commuter Link, a rail line connecting Milwaukee, the southern suburbs, Racine and Kenosha.
KRM should really be called the CMCCL--"Chicago to Milwaukee Club Car Line." It's put together for the benefit of members of the Milwaukee and Chicago Athletic Clubs who desperately need taxpayer subsidization of their travels.
Of course, the Old Plan will be discussed:
In the early 1990s, the state set up a temporary regional transit authority to plan for a permanent body. The group recommended a seven-county agency to take over not only public transit but also highways and carpooling, funded by a 0.4% local sales tax and a 5-cent-a-gallon local gas tax.
See anything in that 'graf which mentions "elected body"? I didn't think so.
All of the rhetoric will be keyed off the term "cooperative."
All of the money will be taken from "cooperative" Wisconsin taxpayers.
Most people "cooperate" with Armed Thieves, right?
DNR: Big Budget, Low Output, Breaks Law
The Milwaukee JS has helped Wisconsin taxpayers understand that DNR has a propensity to do only what DNR wants to do with the money they're given--State law be damned.
This will not come as a surprise to people subject to DNR wardens' home-invasions and entrapment techniques--but might surprise those who thought that DNR consisted of "good guys" taking care of Wisconsin's environment.
Wisconsin officials have fallen behind in their oversight of the state's dams, failing over the past decade to inspect dozens that would pose the greatest risk to life and property in the event of a dam break
In all, the state Department of Natural Resources has not inspected at least 230 state-regulated dams - including 67 that are considered a "high or significant hazard" - since August 1997, despite a state law that requires inspections at least once every 10 years.
Oh, it gets worse.
Nearly 80% of all state-regulated dams have no emergency action plans in case the dams fail, as required by law, a Journal Sentinel analysis of state data shows. About half of the 205 high-hazard dams and 84% of the 135 significant-hazard dams have no emergency plans, according to the records.
Obviously, DNR folks have more important things to do, like making certain that no one uses an ATV on roads, or feeds deer in their own yards.
This will not come as a surprise to people subject to DNR wardens' home-invasions and entrapment techniques--but might surprise those who thought that DNR consisted of "good guys" taking care of Wisconsin's environment.
Wisconsin officials have fallen behind in their oversight of the state's dams, failing over the past decade to inspect dozens that would pose the greatest risk to life and property in the event of a dam break
In all, the state Department of Natural Resources has not inspected at least 230 state-regulated dams - including 67 that are considered a "high or significant hazard" - since August 1997, despite a state law that requires inspections at least once every 10 years.
Oh, it gets worse.
Nearly 80% of all state-regulated dams have no emergency action plans in case the dams fail, as required by law, a Journal Sentinel analysis of state data shows. About half of the 205 high-hazard dams and 84% of the 135 significant-hazard dams have no emergency plans, according to the records.
Obviously, DNR folks have more important things to do, like making certain that no one uses an ATV on roads, or feeds deer in their own yards.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
P-Mac Goes Big Time
Pat McIlheran gets nominated for the Bastiat Prize for Journalism.
A few of you may be familiar with Bastiat's "The Law," which is short and rather sour. It's the kind of thing you read and recall, but not the sort of pamphlet which Big Gummint sorts want laying about.
Anyhoo, McIlheran gets nominated for a prize which:
...celebrates writers whose work cleverly and wittily promotes the institutions of the free society.
(It's that cleverness which drives the Moonbat Lefties bonkers. They don't bother with stomp/screech people like ....Dad29.)
But get a load of the competitors!
Clive Crook
Jonah Goldberg
A. Barton Hinkle
Classy. Like being nominated for a composition prize when the 'other guys' are Rachmaninoff, Mahler, and Debussy.
Maybe Pat will still talk to normal people.
HT: Boots and Sabers
A few of you may be familiar with Bastiat's "The Law," which is short and rather sour. It's the kind of thing you read and recall, but not the sort of pamphlet which Big Gummint sorts want laying about.
Anyhoo, McIlheran gets nominated for a prize which:
...celebrates writers whose work cleverly and wittily promotes the institutions of the free society.
(It's that cleverness which drives the Moonbat Lefties bonkers. They don't bother with stomp/screech people like ....Dad29.)
But get a load of the competitors!
Clive Crook
Jonah Goldberg
A. Barton Hinkle
Classy. Like being nominated for a composition prize when the 'other guys' are Rachmaninoff, Mahler, and Debussy.
Maybe Pat will still talk to normal people.
HT: Boots and Sabers
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Poncho Lady Alert in West Bend, WI Updated w/Hymn!
(Picture of OTHER Poncho Ladies courtesy of Christus Vincit Blog.)
The 'tell' in this article is in the last graf. (Scroll down a bit.)
Alice M. Iaquinta of West Bend is one of two women who will seek the Catholic priesthood through unsanctioned ordinations Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis, Minn., according to Roman Catholic Womenpriests, a group that has organized similar ordinations in Europe, Canada and Pittsburgh. Three women will seek ordination as deacons at the same service.
All of the ordinations will be performed by Patricia Fresen of Germany, one of the women the group says were secretly ordained as bishops by anonymous male bishops in apostolic succession and good standing with the Roman Catholic Church. Milwaukee Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan has termed such ordinations "simulated and invalid."
Iaquinta issued a statement saying she discerned a call to the priesthood after serving as a pastoral associate and graduating with honors from St. Francis Seminary in St. Francis with a master of divinity degree in May 2006.
Poncho Ladies can be identified because they wear ponchos (pretending that they are chasubles, which are worn by priests.)
There is also a typo in the article. Ms. Iaquinta did not "discern a call." In reality, she suffers from "delusions of a call."
Clearly, her M. Div. coursework did not prepare her for service to the Roman Catholic Church, which brings up the question 'exactly what course-requirements exist?' in the M.Div. program at St. Francis Major Seminary...
As a child, she was a member of Trinity Lutheran Evangelical Church in Kenosha, where she was baptized and confirmed. She converted to Catholicism in 1964.
...Iaquinta is single and has three children and four grandchildren. She holds a masters degree in education, and will return this fall to the Wisconsin Technical College system, where she has taught for 35 years. Graduating with honors from St. Francis Seminary in St. Francis, Wis., with a master of divinity degree in 2006, Iaquinta is pursuing her doctorate of divinity degree. She was ordained a deacon through Roman Catholic Womenpriests on May 27 in Toronto.
It is fair to state that Ms. Iaquinta is another example of one who is 'educated beyond her intelligence', an honorific bestowed on Abp. Rembert Weakland by Mike Schwartz of the Catholic League.
Christus Vincit offers a hymn for this poor woman:
Faith of the grannies, priest-wannabes,
Faux ordinations on the high seas,
In the procession, three gifts are seen:
Bread and wine, and, thank God!... Dramamine.
Their day's long gone, they grasp at straws
Strive to make sense of menopause.
Faith of the Dinosaurs, double-knit clad,
Dreaming of whate'er "edge" they once had,
And of their glory days, now long gone.
Would they let go, the Church could move on.
Lumb'ring and desp'rate, it is plain
Soon naught but fossils will remain.
Professional Policemen's Union Acts...Like A UNION!
Shock!
The state's largest law enforcement association will air its first-ever TV ad this weekend, blasting Rep. Eugene Hahn, R-Cambria, for voting for a state budget it claims would hurt cops on the beat.
...Republicans "want to make significant cuts to law enforcement, but they'll filter their cuts through local governments so they can say, 'We didn't do it.' They think they can play games with police officers and no one will hold them accountable."
We'll give you all time to recover. Count on this: the WPPA's solution will NOT include concealed-carry for law-abiding citizens.
That just might put them out of business entirely.
The state's largest law enforcement association will air its first-ever TV ad this weekend, blasting Rep. Eugene Hahn, R-Cambria, for voting for a state budget it claims would hurt cops on the beat.
...Republicans "want to make significant cuts to law enforcement, but they'll filter their cuts through local governments so they can say, 'We didn't do it.' They think they can play games with police officers and no one will hold them accountable."
We'll give you all time to recover. Count on this: the WPPA's solution will NOT include concealed-carry for law-abiding citizens.
That just might put them out of business entirely.
The Donkey Gets His Tail
Big Picture quotes Al Abelson, who names the name.
...we couldn't help but think of the acute discomfort being felt by that outstanding public servant Alan Greenspan, who, during his celebrated tenure as head of the Federal Reserve, more than anyone deserves credit for nurturing the ownership society. Mr. Greenspan, lest we forget, went far beyond the call to entice people, no matter what their circumstances, into buying a home by whacking the cost of credit to as near zero as you can get and still lay claim to being somewhat rational, and urging them to go for those new-fangled adjustable mortgages with deceptively low initial interest rates.
Beyond even his cleverness at blowing successive "smart bubbles," so that the newest one (for example, housing) was nicely calculated to offset the fallout from its burst predecessor (the stock market), and his adroit ability to please his political masters (his overriding passion has always been to be liked), nothing more distinguished Mr. Greenspan's long stint at the Fed than his timing in departing from that august body.
As his successor, gentle Ben Bernanke, is no doubt becoming ruefully aware, creating a mess is easy. The trick is in knowing when to slip out, leaving someone else with the job of cleaning it up. And here Mr. G has proved himself an undisputed master.
Financial mischief on such a grand scale is not a one-man job, and Mr. Greenspan, needless to say, had a lot of help from Wall Street, Washington and points north, south and west. But there's no diminishing the singular part he played.
And just as the contempt for risk that made possible the gross extravagances in housing and the financial markets was sustained by confidence that Mr. G would always bail out the participants -- the so-called Greenspan put -- so the current collapse in housing and the financial markets merits a special designation, one that similarly recognizes his critical role. How about the Greenspan Kaput?"
It remains to be seen just how much trouble "Easy Al" has actually caused. But the indicators are there to be read--look, e.g., at the relative value of the USD to other currencies (Euro, Yen) or the relative value of the USD to "real" stuff like petroleum, steel, and copper.
Oscar Wilde's aphorism defines the cynics. They reside on Wall Street and at the Fed.
...we couldn't help but think of the acute discomfort being felt by that outstanding public servant Alan Greenspan, who, during his celebrated tenure as head of the Federal Reserve, more than anyone deserves credit for nurturing the ownership society. Mr. Greenspan, lest we forget, went far beyond the call to entice people, no matter what their circumstances, into buying a home by whacking the cost of credit to as near zero as you can get and still lay claim to being somewhat rational, and urging them to go for those new-fangled adjustable mortgages with deceptively low initial interest rates.
Beyond even his cleverness at blowing successive "smart bubbles," so that the newest one (for example, housing) was nicely calculated to offset the fallout from its burst predecessor (the stock market), and his adroit ability to please his political masters (his overriding passion has always been to be liked), nothing more distinguished Mr. Greenspan's long stint at the Fed than his timing in departing from that august body.
As his successor, gentle Ben Bernanke, is no doubt becoming ruefully aware, creating a mess is easy. The trick is in knowing when to slip out, leaving someone else with the job of cleaning it up. And here Mr. G has proved himself an undisputed master.
Financial mischief on such a grand scale is not a one-man job, and Mr. Greenspan, needless to say, had a lot of help from Wall Street, Washington and points north, south and west. But there's no diminishing the singular part he played.
And just as the contempt for risk that made possible the gross extravagances in housing and the financial markets was sustained by confidence that Mr. G would always bail out the participants -- the so-called Greenspan put -- so the current collapse in housing and the financial markets merits a special designation, one that similarly recognizes his critical role. How about the Greenspan Kaput?"
It remains to be seen just how much trouble "Easy Al" has actually caused. But the indicators are there to be read--look, e.g., at the relative value of the USD to other currencies (Euro, Yen) or the relative value of the USD to "real" stuff like petroleum, steel, and copper.
Oscar Wilde's aphorism defines the cynics. They reside on Wall Street and at the Fed.
It's the SPENDING, Stupid!
Only yesterday (or so it seems) the Republican-dominated Wisconsin Legislature utterly failed to pass TABOR.
As it happens, I am not comfortable with the State's arrogance in making spend/tax decisions on behalf of local Gummints. It's a clear violation of the Principle of Subsidiarity, and that Principle is implicitly endorsed in the text of the 9th/10th Amendments to the Constitution.
That doesn't make the supporters of TABOR (or like legislation) evil; but it does emphatically undermine their position.
Another part of the problem for the Leggies was the question: exactly what do we restrain? Taxes? or Spending?
My answer (when asked by a legislator) was Spending!! By all means, Spending!!
Always nice to know that I'm right, even though it was the Clinton Administration which proved it.
Federal spending declined as a share of national income during President Clinton's two terms in the 1990s. Fiscal responsibility -- the need to curb the budget deficit -- was a consistent theme. The deficits that Clinton inherited, which put the squeeze on spending, were bequeathed by the earlier large tax cuts (and increases in defense spending) of the Reagan administration.
There is NO argument that the Reagan tax cuts were "bad." In fact, we all know that Fed revenues hockey-sticked UP following the tax cuts. The problem was that Fed spending (not only on defense, by the way) ALSO hockey-sticked up--at a rate greater than revenue increases.
A new study [PDF] by Richard Vedder and Jonathan Leirer for the congressional Joint Economic Committee, for instance, found that over the past 60 years every dollar raised in extra taxes has given rise to more than a dollar in extra spending.
Here's a "DOH" for you: in general terms, the "Supply-Side/Republican" people don't care about deficits--they reduce taxes because it's politically popular. This is called "starve the beast" rhetoric. Conversely, the Democrats care about deficits--and figure that the "right thing to do" is to increase taxes. But when they increase taxes, they ALSO increase program expenditures, continuing the deficits. Sometimes (Clinton is an example) they actually reduce the deficits, but leave massive downstream minefields.
"Starve the beast" exponents are not demanding packages of lower taxes and lower spending. They are saying that lower taxes will sooner or later wear spending down anyway. When you look at those cases -- instances where taxes have been cut independently, with no connection to new spending plans -- spending does not fall, say the Romers. In fact, it rises a bit. "Starve the beast" does not work.
The commonality between the "starve/supply-side" gang and the Democrats is easy to spot: they BOTH spend money as though it were going out of style.
And therein, my friends, lies the answer.
No PIG (Party-In-Government) member in his right mind will act on that, of course.
HT: McIlheran
As it happens, I am not comfortable with the State's arrogance in making spend/tax decisions on behalf of local Gummints. It's a clear violation of the Principle of Subsidiarity, and that Principle is implicitly endorsed in the text of the 9th/10th Amendments to the Constitution.
That doesn't make the supporters of TABOR (or like legislation) evil; but it does emphatically undermine their position.
Another part of the problem for the Leggies was the question: exactly what do we restrain? Taxes? or Spending?
My answer (when asked by a legislator) was Spending!! By all means, Spending!!
Always nice to know that I'm right, even though it was the Clinton Administration which proved it.
Federal spending declined as a share of national income during President Clinton's two terms in the 1990s. Fiscal responsibility -- the need to curb the budget deficit -- was a consistent theme. The deficits that Clinton inherited, which put the squeeze on spending, were bequeathed by the earlier large tax cuts (and increases in defense spending) of the Reagan administration.
There is NO argument that the Reagan tax cuts were "bad." In fact, we all know that Fed revenues hockey-sticked UP following the tax cuts. The problem was that Fed spending (not only on defense, by the way) ALSO hockey-sticked up--at a rate greater than revenue increases.
A new study [PDF] by Richard Vedder and Jonathan Leirer for the congressional Joint Economic Committee, for instance, found that over the past 60 years every dollar raised in extra taxes has given rise to more than a dollar in extra spending.
Here's a "DOH" for you: in general terms, the "Supply-Side/Republican" people don't care about deficits--they reduce taxes because it's politically popular. This is called "starve the beast" rhetoric. Conversely, the Democrats care about deficits--and figure that the "right thing to do" is to increase taxes. But when they increase taxes, they ALSO increase program expenditures, continuing the deficits. Sometimes (Clinton is an example) they actually reduce the deficits, but leave massive downstream minefields.
"Starve the beast" exponents are not demanding packages of lower taxes and lower spending. They are saying that lower taxes will sooner or later wear spending down anyway. When you look at those cases -- instances where taxes have been cut independently, with no connection to new spending plans -- spending does not fall, say the Romers. In fact, it rises a bit. "Starve the beast" does not work.
The commonality between the "starve/supply-side" gang and the Democrats is easy to spot: they BOTH spend money as though it were going out of style.
And therein, my friends, lies the answer.
No PIG (Party-In-Government) member in his right mind will act on that, of course.
HT: McIlheran
Y2K's Last Gift and FUD Fertilizer
Many of us recall the "Y2K Crisis" and the enormous computer-programming expenditures made at that time. Cynics knew that a good deal of that money was wasted--Big Consulting did a fine job of spreading FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) Fertilizer (TM) throughout boardrooms, making calendar-year 2000 bonuses the last good thing to happen to the economy before the 2001 recession took hold.
Anyhoo.
Seems as though NASA also had a Y2K crisis and reprogrammed its weather-recording stations.
Inaccurately.
Thus, the AlGore "hockey stick" of temp spikes, and the Industry of Global Warming blossomed.
Naturally, it is also fed by FUD Fertilizer.
Steve McIntyre, of Toronto operates www.climateaudit.org and began to investigate the data and the methods used to arrive at the results that were graphed by NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS).
What he discovered was truly amazing. Since NASA does not fully publish the computer source code and formulae used to calculate the trends in the graph, nor the correction used to arrive at the "corrected" data. He had to reverse engineer the process by comparing the raw data and the processed data..
Here is one of his first posts where he begins to understand what is happening. "This imparts an upward discontinuity of a deg C in wintertime and 0.8 deg C annually. I checked the monthly data and determined that the discontinuity occurred on January 2000 - and, to that extent, appears to be a Y2K problem. I presume that this is a programming error."
He further refines his argument showing the distribution of the error, and the problems with the USHCN temperature data. He also sends an email to NASA GISS advising of the problem.
He finally publishes it here, stating that NASA made a correction not only on their own web page, attributing the discovery to McIntyre, but NASA also issued a corrected set of temperature anomaly data which you can see here:
http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs/Fig.D.txt
Steve McIntyre posted this data from NASA's newly published data set from Goddard Institute of Space Studies (GISS) These numbers represent deviation from the mean temperature calculated from temperature measurement stations throughout the USA.
According to the new data published by NASA, 1998 is no longer the hottest year ever. 1934 is.
The presence of FUD Fertilizer has always resulted in abandonment of Common Sense, going back to the first recorded instance (see Genesis, the Garden Story.)
HT: Clayton Cramer
Anyhoo.
Seems as though NASA also had a Y2K crisis and reprogrammed its weather-recording stations.
Inaccurately.
Thus, the AlGore "hockey stick" of temp spikes, and the Industry of Global Warming blossomed.
Naturally, it is also fed by FUD Fertilizer.
Steve McIntyre, of Toronto operates www.climateaudit.org and began to investigate the data and the methods used to arrive at the results that were graphed by NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS).
What he discovered was truly amazing. Since NASA does not fully publish the computer source code and formulae used to calculate the trends in the graph, nor the correction used to arrive at the "corrected" data. He had to reverse engineer the process by comparing the raw data and the processed data..
Here is one of his first posts where he begins to understand what is happening. "This imparts an upward discontinuity of a deg C in wintertime and 0.8 deg C annually. I checked the monthly data and determined that the discontinuity occurred on January 2000 - and, to that extent, appears to be a Y2K problem. I presume that this is a programming error."
He further refines his argument showing the distribution of the error, and the problems with the USHCN temperature data. He also sends an email to NASA GISS advising of the problem.
He finally publishes it here, stating that NASA made a correction not only on their own web page, attributing the discovery to McIntyre, but NASA also issued a corrected set of temperature anomaly data which you can see here:
http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs/Fig.D.txt
Steve McIntyre posted this data from NASA's newly published data set from Goddard Institute of Space Studies (GISS) These numbers represent deviation from the mean temperature calculated from temperature measurement stations throughout the USA.
According to the new data published by NASA, 1998 is no longer the hottest year ever. 1934 is.
The presence of FUD Fertilizer has always resulted in abandonment of Common Sense, going back to the first recorded instance (see Genesis, the Garden Story.)
HT: Clayton Cramer
Friday, August 10, 2007
GWB Reluctantly Gets It
It appears that the BushBoyzzz have decided to reflect the will of the People in the future.
The Bush administration announced plans Friday to enlist state and local law enforcement in cracking down on illegal immigrants, which previously was largely a federal function.
The administration unveiled a series of tough border control and employer enforcement measures designed to make up for security provisions that failed when Congress rejected a broad rewrite of the nation’s immigration laws in June.
...In one of the most interesting revelations, the plans call for the administration to “train growing numbers of state and local law enforcement officers to identify and detain immigration offenders whom they encounter in the course of daily law enforcement.”
“By this fall, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will have quintupled the number of enforcement teams devoted to removing fugitive aliens (from 15 to 75 in less than three years),” a summary of the plan states.
This "late conversion" did not go un-noticed by cynics in the Senate.
“The biggest message that emerged from this failed immigration bill is that if immigration reform is to happen in the future, they must first restore the American people's confidence that the federal government is serious about securing our borders and enforcing our immigration laws,” said a Senate Republican leadership official. “Frankly, this should have been addressed several years ago.”
Under "Things That WILL Make a Difference" we find
Employers will face tough new scrutiny and requirements. “There are now 29 categories of documents that employers must accept to establish identity and work eligibility among their workers,” the summary says. “The Department of Homeland Security will reduce that number and weed out the most insecure.”
“The Department of Homeland Security will raise the civil fines imposed on employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants by approximately 25 percent,” the summary continues. “The administration will continue its aggressive expansion of criminal investigations against employers who knowingly hire large numbers of illegal aliens.”
There will also be some revisions to H2A and H2B (ag worker) permits which will make them much more flexible and "ag-industry" friendly.
We'll see how long this actually lasts. As mentioned before in this blog (and as reported in Human Events,) there are a few major employers who accumulate hundreds of thousands of false Social Security number reports every year.
Nailing THEM would be a very good start.
HT: The Cafeteria Is Closed
The Bush administration announced plans Friday to enlist state and local law enforcement in cracking down on illegal immigrants, which previously was largely a federal function.
The administration unveiled a series of tough border control and employer enforcement measures designed to make up for security provisions that failed when Congress rejected a broad rewrite of the nation’s immigration laws in June.
...In one of the most interesting revelations, the plans call for the administration to “train growing numbers of state and local law enforcement officers to identify and detain immigration offenders whom they encounter in the course of daily law enforcement.”
“By this fall, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will have quintupled the number of enforcement teams devoted to removing fugitive aliens (from 15 to 75 in less than three years),” a summary of the plan states.
This "late conversion" did not go un-noticed by cynics in the Senate.
“The biggest message that emerged from this failed immigration bill is that if immigration reform is to happen in the future, they must first restore the American people's confidence that the federal government is serious about securing our borders and enforcing our immigration laws,” said a Senate Republican leadership official. “Frankly, this should have been addressed several years ago.”
Under "Things That WILL Make a Difference" we find
Employers will face tough new scrutiny and requirements. “There are now 29 categories of documents that employers must accept to establish identity and work eligibility among their workers,” the summary says. “The Department of Homeland Security will reduce that number and weed out the most insecure.”
“The Department of Homeland Security will raise the civil fines imposed on employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants by approximately 25 percent,” the summary continues. “The administration will continue its aggressive expansion of criminal investigations against employers who knowingly hire large numbers of illegal aliens.”
There will also be some revisions to H2A and H2B (ag worker) permits which will make them much more flexible and "ag-industry" friendly.
We'll see how long this actually lasts. As mentioned before in this blog (and as reported in Human Events,) there are a few major employers who accumulate hundreds of thousands of false Social Security number reports every year.
Nailing THEM would be a very good start.
HT: The Cafeteria Is Closed
Silence at Mass
In the middle of a very nice essay on the Joannine Rite, we find this:
And this is, perhaps, the crux of the issue about the problem of silence at Mass. It is difficult
for modern man to endure silence because we are surrounded by noise that is ever louder and louder. We fear silence because it may force us in unguarded moments to introspection and self–
examination. The noise with which we have surrounded ourselves hides us from ourselves. Silence in the Mass is perhaps the greatest need of modern man because we so desperately need to peer into our souls, to enter into our own hearts, and to see there what God himself sees. In the silence of the Traditional Latin Mass we can listen to God’s voice within us.
The silence of the Traditional Latin Mass reveals so clearly that the Mass is NOT the work of the congregation, a performance which we manufacture in order to make God happy with us. Rather, the Mass is the work of God—it is Christ’s Own work of redemption carried out in our midst, on our altar. The Mass is not fabricated by man, it must be received in faith, and silence enables us to do just that: just as we do not “take” Holy Communion, but rather “receive” the Lord in the Sacrament, so do we receive Christ’s redemption in the Mass.
Fr. Meyers' analogy/juxtaposition of "take" and "receive" is very significant. It has become more common to use the phrase "to take Communion," which happens to be a Protestant formulation. It is not a co-incidence; it fits in quite well with the 'de-priesting' of Catholic liturgeists over the last 20+ years in their false interpretation of SC, the Liturgy document of the Second Vatican Council.
HT: L A Catholic
And this is, perhaps, the crux of the issue about the problem of silence at Mass. It is difficult
for modern man to endure silence because we are surrounded by noise that is ever louder and louder. We fear silence because it may force us in unguarded moments to introspection and self–
examination. The noise with which we have surrounded ourselves hides us from ourselves. Silence in the Mass is perhaps the greatest need of modern man because we so desperately need to peer into our souls, to enter into our own hearts, and to see there what God himself sees. In the silence of the Traditional Latin Mass we can listen to God’s voice within us.
The silence of the Traditional Latin Mass reveals so clearly that the Mass is NOT the work of the congregation, a performance which we manufacture in order to make God happy with us. Rather, the Mass is the work of God—it is Christ’s Own work of redemption carried out in our midst, on our altar. The Mass is not fabricated by man, it must be received in faith, and silence enables us to do just that: just as we do not “take” Holy Communion, but rather “receive” the Lord in the Sacrament, so do we receive Christ’s redemption in the Mass.
Fr. Meyers' analogy/juxtaposition of "take" and "receive" is very significant. It has become more common to use the phrase "to take Communion," which happens to be a Protestant formulation. It is not a co-incidence; it fits in quite well with the 'de-priesting' of Catholic liturgeists over the last 20+ years in their false interpretation of SC, the Liturgy document of the Second Vatican Council.
HT: L A Catholic
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