It's all America's fault.
First, America destroyed Earth's environment by causing global warming, then we got Mars to warm, and now Jupiter is warming!
Is there no end to the destructiveness of America?
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June 29, 2007
Star Wars Fans Hate Star Wars
Mayor Street Shows there really are two Americas
Philly's Mayor Street camps out in line to buy iPhone
Mayor John F. Street was among a handful of people sitting in lawn chairs and shielding themselves from the rain as they waited for the Apple iPhone to go on sale at an AT&T store today.
In this America, even Mayors of large cities have to wait in line like the rest of us.
In the other America, John Edwards' America, presidential candidates have aides try to get them PlayStations.
Giant microwave turns plastic back to oil
Giant microwave turns plastic back to oil - earth - 26 June 2007 - New Scientist Environment
A US company is taking plastics recycling to another level – turning them back into the oil they were made from, and gas.All that is needed, claims Global Resource Corporation (GRC), is a finely tuned microwave and – hey presto! – a mix of materials that were made from oil can be reduced back to oil and combustible gas (and a few leftovers).
Key to GRC’s process is a machine that uses 1200 different frequencies within the microwave range, which act on specific hydrocarbon materials. As the material is zapped at the appropriate wavelength, part of the hydrocarbons that make up the plastic and rubber in the material are broken down into diesel oil and combustible gas.
...
Gershow Recycling, a scrap metal company based in New York, US, has just said it will be the first to buy a Hawk-10. Gershow collects metal products, shreds them and turns them into usable pure metals. Most of its scrap comes from old cars, but for every ton of steel that the company recovers, between 226 kg and 318 kg of "autofluff" is produced.Autofluff is the stuff that is left over after a car has been shredded and the steel extracted. It contains plastics, rubber, wood, paper, fabrics, glass, sand, dirt, and various bits of metal. GRC says its Hawk-10 can extract enough oil and gas from the left-over fluff to run the Hawk-10 itself and a number of other machines used by Gershow.
Because it makes extracting reusable metal more efficient and evaporates water from autofluff, the Hawk-10 should also reduce the amount of end material that needs to be deposited in landfill sites.
Sounds excellent if it proves successful. It should reduce our waste and our demand for oil. Win-win-win.
Hat Tip: The Corner
June 28, 2007
Is everybody else having as good a day as I am?
We got a three-fer today
1. The Pope will liberalize use of the Tridentine Mass (Hat Tip: American Papist)
2. The immigration bill went down hard
3. The Supreme Court has rules "race cannot be used to decide where students go to school". In the decision, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote: "The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race." Makes sense to me. (Hat Tip: The Corner)
4. Plus, since I'm staying in Dover this evening for a meeting of the George Washington Society, I came into work late and had a nice relaxing morning.
I'm worried something bad will happen this afternoon, since things are going so well now.
It's official!
A meeting took place yesterday afternoon at the Vatican, presided by the Cardinal Secretary of State, in which the content and the spirit of the expected "Motu proprio" of the Holy Father on the use of the Missal promulgated by John XXIII in 1962 were explained to the representatives of several episcopal conferences. The Holy Father came to greet those who were present and maintained a profound discussion with them for about one hour. The publication of the document - which will be accompanied by a thorough personal letter of the Holy Father to the singular Bishops - is predicted for within a few days, when the document itself will be sent to all Bishops with the indication of its successive coming into effect.
To translate the bureaucratese: Wide Permission for use of the Tridentine Mass is about to be granted.
As intriguing as this may be, it's full effect won't be known for a while. Many parishes simply aren't set up for this mass any more. St Ann's in Wilmington (where I attend) doesn't have room on the other side of the altar for the priest to stand. Some sort of stand would have to be constructed for the priest to be ad orientem. (He's not facing away from the people, as such; he's joining the people in facing and praying to God.) Many parishes aren't set up for this, parishes that are may have pastors who have little interest in performing this liturgy, and many priests, unfortunately, don't know the Latin well enough to say it effectively anyway.
I'm not sure that I would attend a Tridentine Mass regularly anyway. I like the Mass in English. I like knowing what's going on. (I have been to a Tridentine Mass twice and was completely lost both times.) Hopefully, there will be catechetical efforts so that those us post-Vatican II Catholics can learn about the Tridentine Mass and how to appreciate it.
(Idle thought: would this make the Tridentine the "new" Mass?)
Hat Tip: Lair of the Catholic Cavemen
June 27, 2007
This should interest Duffy
Comment on the XM/Sirius merger
Here are the comments I submitted in favor of the merger:
This proposed merger should be allowed. I've been an XM subscriber for a few years now, and frankly I don't listen to it that much any more since I've gotten an iPod, where I can choose only the songs I want to listen to. Even with the variety of stations XM offers, it can't match the quality of music I can pick on my own.This is an indication that the market that XM and Sirius are operating in is not merely the narrowly defined "Satellite radio" market, but a much larger entertainment market. As we see in the example above, iPods compete with XM radio. XM radio and terrestrial radio are also obvious competitors. Music stations are also available over many digital cable networks, which creates even more competition for satellite radio. Defining XM and Sirius' market as satellite radio, rather than a broader entertainment based definition, is unnecessarily restrictive. Allowing this merger will not negatively impact competition and so it should be allowed.
Quote-a-palooza
"Happily for America, happily, we trust, for the whole human race, they pursued a new and more noble course. They accomplished a revolution which has no parallel in the annals of human society." - James Madison
"By liberty I mean the assurance that every man shall be protected in doing what he believes is his duty against the influence of authority and majorities, custom and opinion." - Lord Acton
"But to manipulate men, to propel them toward goals which you - the social reformers - see, but they may not, is to deny their human essence, to treat them as objects without wills of their own, and therefore to degrade them." - Isaiah Berlin
"Arms are the only true badges of liberty. The possession of arms is the distinction of a free man from a slave." - Andrew Fletcher
"Pick up a rifle and you change instantly from a subject to a citizen." - Jeff
"He is a man of sense who does not grieve for what he has not, but rejoices in what he has." - Epictetus
"The biggest battle since the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein's regime is under way in Iraq. Its outcome could determine whether the war is won or lost... The heart of the offensive is Operation Arrowhead Ripper, in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad, involving some 8,000 American and 2,000 Iraqi troops...[I]f Arrowhead Ripper succeeds, you may not hear much about it. A U.S. victory would be too embarrassing for those in the media who have staked their reputations on defeat." - Jack Kelly
"[Democrat presidential candidate John Edwards] has become nearly irrelevant. With the exception of Iowa, where he leads by a few points in the poll averages, Edwards is a non-story. He trails Hillary and her sky high unfavorables. He lags behind Obama and his ultra-thin resume. He's even finds himself looking up at Al Gore, a horse so stale he's been on the national stage since Britney was sober and in the mouseketeers." - Jason Wright
"[Dick Cheney] may be more popular than Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, but that's like saying, 'This head cheese is tastier than carpet mold'." - Jonah Goldberg
"According to a new poll, 15 percent of Americans say that Hillary Clinton gives them the creeps. The other 85 percent say she gives them the willies or the heebie jeebies." - Conan O'Brien
Jay Nordlinger on why he left the Left
The whole article is good, but this is the money quote:
And I am reminded of one of the reasons I fled the Left, many years ago: Personally, they were so mean — so nasty, so indecent. So full of mockery, ridicule, and scorn. I had to ask, “If the Left is the party of love and compassion, how come so many of them are such a**holes?”
June 26, 2007
Why didn't I think of this?
Did you hear the one about the programmer who outsourced his own job? I read about it on Slashdot.org, the "news for nerds" Web site. A pseudonymous poster wrote, "About a year ago I hired a developer in India to do my job. I pay him $12,000 to do the job I get paid $67,000 for. He's happy to have the work. I'm happy that I only have to work 90 minutes a day, talking code. My employer thinks I'm telecommuting. Now I'm considering getting a second job and doing the same thing."
“Why are you so into Mary?”
Decaf: We're crady about Our Lady
I had a good friend once ask me, “Why are you so into Mary?” My response was, “The real question is: Why is God so into Mary?” He chose her. I don't think any of us would have complained had Jesus just appeared at the age of 30 and began His public ministry. But He chose Mary to participate in His saving work, and He still does today. Since the time of Christ, she has appeared throughout history and proclaimed the need to repent and embrace God's love. I'm not talking about the ink stains on the sides of buildings, or her face in a potato chip- that's stuff for the tabloids. I'm talking Fatima, Lourdes, Guadalupe and many other approved apparitions that transformed cultures and brought about great conversions. God wants Mary to be a part of your life, and her mission hasn't changed since her first “yes” to the angel- she is the means by which God wants to bring Christ to the world.
Hat Tip: The Curt Jester
Quote of the Day
"On every question of construction carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text or invented against it, conform to the probable one in which it was passed."
-- Thomas Jefferson (letter to William Johnson, 12 June 1823)
Reference: Jefferson: Writings, Peterson ed., Library of America (1475)
June 25, 2007
Bobby Cutts Jr. Charged with Two Murders - Girlfriend and Unborn Child
Bobby Cutts Jr. Charged with Two Murders - Girlfriend and Unborn Child
A Canton policeman, 30-year old Bobby Cutts Jr., was charged today with the murder of his girlfriend, Jessie Davis. He was also separately charged with a second murder—that of Jessie’s unborn child. Davis was nearly nine months pregnant with a baby girl, due on July 3.
This only makes sense; after all, two people did die as a result of this violence. In the past, abortion supporters have objected to this formulation, denying that the death of the unborn child was a murder. (Apparently, "Every child a wanted child" really is just a slogan, since this wanted child doesn't count as a life in some eyes.)
This incident brings to life another factor: abortion may help create an environment what encourages violence against pregnant women. With Bobby Cutts, Jessie Davis' boyfriend and rpesumed father of the child, being charged with the murders, it's not unreasonable to speculate that Cutts didn't want this child and when she refused to have an abortion, perhaps he ought to induce an abortion on his own. (Obviously, should Cutts turn out to be not guilty this speculative motive does not apply in this case, but there have been a number of cases where boyfriends attacked the mothers of their unborn children hoping to induce an abortion.) When the child is seen as disposable, men might seek to dispose of the child on their own.
Abortion doesn't just hurt the child, it hurts their mothers. Women deserve better.
The Downsize of the Fairness Doctrine (for the liberal point of view)
It really does appear that liberal Democrats are planning an attempt to revive the Fairness Doctrine as a way of curbing conservative talk radio. They may even have some quiet Republican allies in their effort.
Twenty years ago, the Reagan Administration scrapped the Federal Communications Commission rule that mandated broadcast licensees "afford reasonable opportunity for discussion of conflicting views on matters of public importance." Last week, Oklahoma GOP Senator Jim Inhofe reported that both Senators Hillary Clinton and Barbara Boxer had talked of the need for a "legislative fix" to rein in talk radio hosts, although he acknowledged the conversation he had overheard was three years old. But when Senator Dianne Feinstein, Ms. Boxer's Senate colleague, was asked by Fox News yesterday if she wanted the Fairness Doctrine restored, she acknowledged she was "looking at it" and asserted that in the halcyon days when the Doctrine was in force there was "much more careful and correct reporting to people."In reality, the Fairness Doctrine stifled discussion of controversial issues and was used as a political billy club by both parties against critics. Bill Ruder, an assistant secretary of commerce under John F. Kennedy, admitted to CBS News producer Fred Friendly that "our massive strategy was to use the Fairness Doctrine to challenge and harass right-wing broadcasters and hope the challenges would be so costly to them that they would be inhibited and decide it was too expensive to continue."
Richard Nixon didn't require much incentive to follow in those footsteps. Jesse Walker of Reason magazine reports that the Republican National Committee routinely filed challenges against stations whose reporting upset the White House. During the antiwar demonstrations of October 1969, a paranoid Mr. Nixon issued orders 21 times to aides to take "specific action relating to what he considered unfair network news coverage." Luckily, most of his rantings were ignored by aides who believed he was just blowing off steam. But other efforts at intimidation of journalists -- including the famous "enemies list" -- proceeded.
Even without overt government hostility, the Fairness Doctrine proved a nightmare of compliance. Liberal journalist Nat Hentoff recalls that when he worked at a Boston radio station, "the front office panicked" whenever a complaint was filed. "The brass summoned all of us and commanded that from then on, we ourselves would engage in no controversy at the station."
Given that the Democratic Congress now boasts approval ratings even below those of President Bush, I can understand the interest of some of its leaders to quell controversy. But for the rest of us, a return to the Fairness Doctrine would lead to a more homogenous and timid media culture. In other words, exactly the kind of climate that incumbents of both parties find congenial and easy to live with.
The restoration of the Fairness Doctrine, despite its blatant disregard for free speech, might make some political sense for liberals in the short run. In the longer term, though, stories like those above show how it could be used to shut down their point of view as well. They should err on the side of freedom. After all, do they want every broadcast of a Michael Moore propaganda film balanced by a pro-conservative film? Do they want every Keith Olbermann diatribe responded to on MSNBC by a conservative? They might find they like the situation they've created even less than the current environment. If they believe so much in "choice," as they often tell us, why must they take away our choice when it comes to the airwaves?
Quote-a-palooza
"Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases, it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will then be powerless to vex your mind." - Leonardo Da Vinci
"There was a time when American military leaders worried about whether wobbly allies would rally to us when it came time to stand up to the Soviets. Now it's our allies who worry about us. After a month in the Western Pacific- most of it spent in Korea and the Philippines...- it appears that some of our closest allies are increasingly anxious about American resolve. While in Manila, an old comrade in arms- we both served in Vietnam- put it succinctly: 'To your best friends in this part of the world, it looks as though you are tearing yourselves to pieces, repeating what we watched you do over Vietnam. It hurt all of us for 30 years.' Echoes of this concern were heard repeatedly in off-the-record conversations with active and retired military officers and senior government officials... Here in the Philippines, where U.S. Special Operations troops have been quietly helping the government wage a successful campaign against the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist organizations, there should be no doubt about U.S. resolve. However, as so often happens with sophisticated allies, leaders here are looking beyond the immediate situation- and hedging their bets... [The] concerns of steadfast allies in the global war on terror need to be heeded at home. Since Sept. 11, 2001, U.S. aid, both civil and military, has helped the Filipinos prevent Islamic radicals from turning the southern islands of their archipelago into another Afghanistan. Yet, despite the successes here, many in Asia are worried about waning U.S. resolve." - Oliver North
"[E]very lesson in history tells us that the greater risk lies in appeasement, and this is the specter our well-meaning liberal friends refuse to face- that their policy of accommodation is appeasement, and it gives no choice between peace and war, only between fight and surrender. If we continue to accommodate, continue to back and retreat, eventually we have to face the final demand- the ultimatum. And what then?" - Ronald Reagan
"Liberals love to talk about this or that human right, such as a right to health care, food or housing. That's a perverse usage of the term 'right.' A right, such as a right to free speech, imposes no obligation on another, except that of non-interference. The so-called right to health care, food or housing, whether a person can afford it or not, is something entirely different. It does impose an obligation on another. If one person has a right to something he didn't produce, simultaneously and of necessity it means that some other person does not have right to something he did produce. That's because, since there's no Santa Claus or Tooth Fairy, in order for government to give one American a dollar, it must, through intimidation, threats and coercion, confiscate that dollar from some other American. I'd like to hear the moral argument for taking what belongs to one person to give to another person." - Walter Williams
"There's another, perhaps more important, lesson to be drawn from the Hamas ascendancy. The Bush administration pushed for democracy in the Palestinian territories and got what it wished for- in spades. The assumption behind the push for democracy in Gaza and in Iraq is that Arabs can be trusted to handle political freedom. Even the Democrats demanding an immediate pullout from Iraq hope that with democracy, the Iraqis will be able to sort out their problems themselves via some euphemistic 'political solution.' That is unless the antiwar Democrats are really advocating turning all of Mesopotamia into one giant Gaza Strip- the far more likely result of U.S. withdrawal. For many disciples of the 'international peace process,' it's a matter of faith that the Palestinians just have to want peace, because how else can you have a peace process? For many supporters of the Bush Doctrine, Iraqis have to want democracy, because if they don't, what's the point of having a freedom agenda? But what if these are just beloved Western fictions? We see a well-lighted path to the good life: democracy, tolerance, rule of law, markets. But what if the Arab world just isn't interested in our path? As a believer in the freedom agenda, that's what scares me most." - Jonah Goldberg
Satan Worshipping Baseball Player Retires
BBTF's Newsblog Discussion :: Honolulu Star-Bulletin: After 15 seasons, 263 games, Truby done
The origins of the joke about Chris Truby being a Satan worshipper:
Chris Truby really refers to two separate running gags -- the Chris Truby Joke, and the Albert Belle Joke -- and is one of the Internet baseball community's longest-lived in-jokes.
The Chris Truby Joke is generally an allusion to Truby being a devil-worshipper, and usually comes up whenever Truby's name is mentioned.1. The Albert Belle Joke is a joke of the form: "I'm so sick of people like ________ and Albert Belle who ____________________." Posters fill in the blanks with whatever ballplayer and subject are at hand.
2. The whole thing originated on April 13, 2001 in the Usenet newsgroup rec.sport.baseball, when poster "Deckard" wrote:Baseball is losing fans because of players like Sheffield, Belle, and Thomas. And not because of their hitting...
They can no longer relate to assholes who bitch about their $10,000,000 paychecks.To which r.s.b regular Tom Nawrocki replied:
When did Albert Belle ever complain about how much he was getting paid? Talk about a lightning rod for fans' complaints.
If somebody like Chris Truby was accused of satanic dismemberment, it would take about a week before people started saying, "I'm so sick of all these ballplayers like Chris Truby and Albert Belle with all their satanic rituals and the dismemberment and everything."Nawrocki later maintained he didn't mean to single out Truby as an example, but rather that he wanted to illustrate his point about Belle by using a generic ballplayer to pair with him. But by then it was too late.
The details of Truby's background (starred at Damien HS in Honolulu), and the progression of "cursed" teams he has joined since Nawrocki's post -- 2002 Expos, 2002 Tigers, 2003 Devil Rays, 2004 Pirates, 2005 Royals, 2006 Pirates, 2007 Pirates -- superficially suggest satanic influence, or at least a propensity to descend into successively lower circles of hell. However, there is no evidence to indicate Truby is anything but a generic journeyman ballplayer.
(Almost no evidence, that is. "Chris Truby" is of course an anagram for "Bury Christ.")
The Damien High is no doubt a reference to Blessed Damien of Molokai, a Catholic priest who ministered to the residents of a leper colony, ultimately contracting and dying of the disease himself.
June 24, 2007
Fred Thompson's Exes all Still Adore Him
Old girlfriends cast their vote for Thompson - Times Online
Fred Thompson's opponents won't get any dirt on him from his ex-girlfriends:
In the battle for the women’s vote, Fred Thompson has a secret weapon against Hillary Clinton - the legions of former girlfriends who still adore him and who want him to be president.The Hollywood actor and former Tennessee senator racked up an impressive list of conquests during his swinging bachelor days in the 1990s, but he appears to have achieved the impossible and kept their friendship and respect.
Lorrie Morgan, a country singer who dated Thompson and considered marrying him in the mid1990s, told The Sunday Times: “I couldn’t think of a bad word to say about Fred if somebody put a gun to my head.
“Fred is a perfect example of chivalry. He’s the kind of man little girls dream about marrying, who opens doors for you, lights your cigarettes, helps you on with your coat, buys wonderful gifts. It’s every woman’s fantasy.”
...
Morgan remembers encouraging Thompson to run for president when they were together. “I think he has a great chance of capturing the women’s vote. He’s majestic. He’s a soft, safe place to be and that could be Fred’s ticket. Women love a soft place to lay and a strong pair of hands to hold us,” she said.Georgette Mosbacher, a leading Republican fundraiser who dated Thompson after Morgan and remains a good friend, said he would defeat Clinton because of his appeal to “traditional women who will like the Southern gentleman in him”.
He is just as able to charm professional women, she added: “Another thing that is extremely attractive about Fred is that he is a really good listener. As a woman you can talk to Fred about any subject and know that you’re getting someone who respects your opinion and isn’t just being polite.”
...
However, he was also able to reassure them that he was on excellent terms with his first wife and home-town sweetheart Sarah Knestrick, whom he married in Tennessee at 17 and divorced 26 years later. Thompson said he had just spoken to her and she was intending to campaign for him.“It says a lot about his character that his ex-wife and ex-girlfriends think he is fabulous,” said Mosbacher. “Character is important in a president.”
...
When she was dating Thompson, Kehn complained that she had to chase other women away. “They just won’t leave him alone,” she told a gossip columnist. “I can’t get up to get a cocktail at a party without coming back and finding some girl sitting in my chair.”One of her rivals for his affection was Margaret Carlson, now a columnist for Bloomberg News, but she has also joined in the praise for Thompson. “He’s handsome, he’s charming, he sounds like a president,” Carlson gushed recently. “He’s smart, he’s articulate, he knows his line, he can hit his mark.”
Morgan blames herself rather than Thompson for the break-up of their “serious” relationship. Although she is a Republican, the country singer believes that she was too politically incorrect to suit the role of senator’s wife. “Country music is all about glamour and shine and politics is a little more reserved,” she said. “I felt I had to change my whole wardrobe.”
Thompson not only charmed her but also the women in her family. At the time, she had two young daughters who are now in their twenties. “My children thought the world of Fred and my mother thinks he’s the greatest thing since sliced bread,” Morgan said. “He has such charisma. He can go to a down-home Southern-fried chicken dinner and later that evening eat the best caviar and drink wine with an ambassador.”
But this quote in the comments section is more than just a little creepy:
I would love to have Fred Thompson for a son or a husband, preferably both!
Hat Tip: InstaPundit
June 23, 2007
Tony Blair to become Catholic?
It's been rumored (or should that be rumoured?) for while now that British Prime Minister Tony Blair would like to become Catholic. There's a few problems with that:
- "Friends say that he studies both the Bible and the Koran daily, and much of his political philosophy has been influenced by the social teachings of the Catholic Church." - The Koran? He needs to remember that it's the bible that's the inspired Word of God. The Koran was at best written by Muhammad. Worst case: written by the Devil.
- He is a particular admirer of the maverick German theologian Hans Kung. - The Hans Kung who's not allowed to teach as a Catholic theologian because his writings are not in union with Catholic belief?
- Father Russ [who has spoken to Blair about converting] added that Mr. Blair, whose views on a range of issues from abortion to stem-cell research are at odds with traditional church teaching, had "some way to go" on important moral issues. - 'Nuff said.
(Quotes from article linked above.)
As further evidence that crossing the Tiber is not going to be smooth sailing for Mr. Blair, see this article:
Tony Blair's eagerly awaited meeting with the Pope resulted in discomfort for the Prime Minister when he found himself on the receiving end of a stern lecture over his record in office.During a 25-minute face-to-face audience in the Pontiff's private apartments, Pope Benedict XVI tackled Mr Blair on the continuing crisis in Iraq and the Middle East.
Italian news agency reports said Pope Benedict also made direct criticism of New Labour laws allowing greater stem cell research on human embryos, easy access to abortion, same-sex marriages, and adoption by gay couples.
...
Friction even seemed to emerge as the Pope and Prime Minister appeared in public for the cameras. Mr Blair, joined by his wife Cherie, presented Benedict with a framed set of three antique pictures of Cardinal Newman, who converted in 1845 after more than 20 years in the Church of England clergy and is now a candidate for sainthood.Mrs Blair said: "I believe you are very familiar with him and he is on the journey to sainthood."
To which the Pope responded: "Yes, yes, although it is taking some time - miracles are hard to come by in Britain."
...
After the meeting, the Pope's office issued a strongly worded statement, saying the two men had a 'frank discussion on the international situation, in particular the delicate question of the Middle East conflict'.The actual wording of the communique contained the Italian phrase 'franco confronto', literally translated as 'frank confrontation' - inflammatory language seen as highly unusual in Rome.
...
But the statement was seen as indicating the Vatican's continuing unease with the Iraq conflict, and also recent domestic legislation in Britain. In the language of diplomatic communiques, 'frank discussion' is customarily seen as code for an argument.The statement was all the more surprising because the Vatican always uses carefully controlled language.
A conversion of this magnitude will draw a lot publicity. The Church will likely make sure that Mr. Blair makes some sort of public correction of his earlier erroneous views on issues where he taken a public stand against settled Church teaching. He's welcome to come to the Catholic Church (as is everyone....), but he'll likely have to make some accounting for his past errors before he can welcomed fully.
Hat Tips: The Corner for the first article, Amy Welborn for the second.
June 22, 2007
Blog Nekkid Day
Miriam informs us that today is Blog Nekkid Day. I am currently trying, but apparently failing, to convince her of the wisdom of me keeping my clothes on at all time in a discussion about this topic. I wish she'd take my word for this one...
Quote of the Day
"[T]he only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty, and liberty is the object and life of all republican governments."
-- Benjamin Rush (On the Mode of Education Proper in a Republic, 1806)
June 21, 2007
Can ya blame him?
ESPN - Not for the Birds: Girardi turns down Orioles job - MLB
Joe Girardi declined an offer Thursday to become the new manager of the Baltimore Orioles, saying the timing wasn't right "for the Girardi family." ... The discussions with Girardi began quickly after Baltimore fired Sam Perlozzo early Monday after his two-plus seasons as manager, and there were indications over the last 48 hours that Girardi was poised to take the job. He interviewed with the Orioles on Tuesday and offered the job the same day, ESPN's Peter Gammons reported.By Wednesday night, the Orioles and Girardi had agreed to work on an agreement, ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney reported. But by early Thursday, Girardi's agent, Steve Mandel, said a marriage wasn't going to happen.
Girardi reiterated Thursday that he intends to manage in the majors again.
"I've made my feelings pretty known that I want to manage again," he said. "I absolutely love what I did last year. I think I'll know when [the right opportunity] comes and I'll say, 'This is the right time for the Girardi family.' "
The last quote is interesting. When he finds the opportunity that's right for him, he'll say it's right for the Girardi family. So does this mean that this opportunity isn't right for him and he's using his family as an excuse?
And who can blame him for feeling this opportunity isn't right. (The Orioles are, so far, denying this report.) You've got a team that is:
- working on its 10th straight losing season
- a farm system that seems bare
- doesn't do a good job developing the prospects that do come up
- a meddling owner
- an owner who likes to sign past their prime players for undue amounts of money
- and scapegoats your predecessor for their inability to build a team
The Orioles have a long way to go before they're competitive, even setting aside the fact they play in the same division as the Yankees and Red Sox. A hot managerial prospect like Girardi would be foolish to take this job. he can have his pick of teams; a better opportunity will come.
This, if true, is especially embarrassing for the Orioles, as it just highlights their reactive nature reminding their fanbase that, once again, they don't work from a plan. They fired Sam Perlozzo, their Plan A, without having lined up Plan B. A smarter team would have had their Plan B waiting in the wings, much like the Phillies do with Jimy Williams and Davey Lopes currently coaching for the team. If they decide to fire Charlie Manuel, they announce his permanent replacement at the same press conference instead of twisting in the wind the way the Orioles are. (It's sad when the Phillies are a better run organization than you are....)
Andy MacPhail, the team's newly hired President of Baseball Operations, is supposed to have total control, being able to shut Angelos out beyond budget discussions. This is hopeful, as he does have a history of success with the Twins (not so much with the Cubs), but given Angelos' past record, I'll believe it when I see it. I can only hope Angelos sticks to that commitment. his way hasn't worked in a decade. It's time for him to step aside and try try another way. Until it's proven that a new way has taken effect in Baltimore, no sought-after managerial prospect would step foot in the home dugout in Camden Yards.
UPDATE: Right after I posted this, it was confirmed that Girardi did, in fact, turn the Orioles down.
June 20, 2007
Nope, no media bias here.
New York Daily News Promotes Pro-Abortion Language in Writers Guidelines
The New York Daily News (NYDN), the sixth largest newspaper in the United States, uses a set of writer guidelines that promote abortion through their choice of language.
The NYDN writing requirements promote an anti-life mindset by instructing writers to avoid certain words when dealing with the abortion issue. The words "pro-life" and "pro-lifers", for example, must be replaced with "abortion foes", "abortion opponents" or in the case of constricted title space, "abort foes".The pro-abortion bias is even more evident in the fact that NYDN writers may only include the positive terms "pro-life" and "pro-lifers" in direct quotations.
On the other hand, when describing someone who supports abortion as a woman's right, writers must choose positive terms, such as "abortion rights activist", "pro-abortion rights" or "pro-choice". The term "pro-abortion" must be avoided.
This biased position is even clearer in the guidelines that council writers how to speak about a pregnant woman. According to the NYDN guidelines, a writer must omit "when the life of the mother is at stake". The word "mother" instantly implies that she has an actual child even before it is born-exactly what those who promote abortion hate to admit and wish to hide. In such phrases, NYDN writers must replace "mother" with "woman".
Similarly, an anti-life prejudice is evident in the fact that "unborn child" should never appear. Rather, it must always be referred to as a "fetus".
"Abortion clinic", however, is acceptable.
UPDATE (6/21/2007): To show how extreme the bias can be, I just remembered hearing about a music review of a performance that was meant to celebrate life, as in "life's great and fun". Rather than let it be described "pro-life," what I can only assume to be software changed the description of it from "pro-life" to "anti-abortion." Logic apparently stops at the door in many newsrooms.
Bush Rightly Vetos Bill to fund Embryo-Destructive Research
Bush vetoes bill aimed at promoting stem cell research - CNN.com
Pushing back against the Democratic-led Congress, President Bush vetoed a bill Wednesday that would have eased restraints on federally funded embryonic stem cell research.
"Our innovative spirit is making possible incredible advances in medicine that can save lives and cure diseases," the president told an invited audience in the East Room."America is also a nation founded on the principle that all human life is sacred. And our conscience calls us to pursue the possibilities of science in a manner that respects human dignity and upholds our moral values," he said.
One of the concepts agreed upon after the end of World War II and the discoveries of the extent of Nazi cruelties to their prisoners was that human beings were not to be used for scientific experimentation. It is wrong to use human beings merely as a means to an end, no matter how noble that end might be.
It turns out to be especially unnecessary to engage in this research as science has discovered how to create pluripotent stem cells from adult stem cells, removing the need to destroy human life. This discovery was made prior to the Senate sending this bill to the president. In addition to vetoing this bill, President Bush issued an executive order directing the Department of Health and human Services to fund such research in the hopes of finding the promised cures without any ethical issues. (See the full text of the order.)
Given that we can now do the research without any ethical quandaries, why the rush to engage in unethical research? Unless there's another motive, there's no reason any longer to support embryo-destructive research, even for those who believe embryonic stem cell research will be more efficacious than adult stem cell research (which is doubtful, given the higher potential for rejection by the body and the increased risk of tumors).
Why it's OK for Catholics to have images
Exodus 20:4You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
One of the things that puzzles many people about the Catholic faith is how we can have statues or icons in our Church while retaining this commandment in our Bible. The answer is found in the mystery of the Incarnation. The constant temptation of paganism was to confuse things which remind us of God with God Himself. And so a whole host of creatures was worshiped by pagan antiquity (and by modern post-Christian paganism). But, as C.S. Lewis remarks of Israel, it was the destiny of that nation to be turned from the likeness to the Reality. And so, all short cuts (like physical images) were denied them by this commandment, because they were being prepared not for the revelation of a God without an image, but for the revelation of Jesus, who is the true "image of the invisible God" (Col 1:15). When that image came and God stamped His likeness on the human face of Jesus, the prohibition was transfigured. It is still true that no image can be worshiped. But it is even truer that images are now a participation in the light of God, shining through the Incarnate God who is Jesus Christ. Saints, who are members of His body, are now windows into God, not barriers to His light or cheap Brand X substitutes for His glory. Therefore, in honoring their images (not worshipping them), we honor (not worship) the saints they represent and in honoring the saints, we honor their Lord, who is the True Image of God.
Quote-a-palooza
"Without liberty, law loses its nature and its name, and becomes oppression. Without law, liberty also loses its nature and its name, and becomes licentiousness." - James Wilson
"The little unremembered acts of kindness and love are the best parts of a person's life." - William Wordsworth
"The influence of each human being on others in this life is a kind of immortality." - John Quincy Adams
"We are face to face with our destiny and we must meet it with a high and resolute courage." - Theodore Roosevelt
"The American people are not racists. They don't hate immigrants. They believe in the rule of law..." - Maggie Gallagher
"Why am I so suspicious about the fealty of the reformers to real border control? In part because of the ridiculous debate over the building of a fence. Despite the success of the border barrier in the San Diego area, it appears to be very important that this success not be repeated." - Charles Krauthammer
"What is at risk is not the climate but freedom. I see the biggest threat to freedom, democracy, the market economy and prosperity now in ambitious environmentalism, not in communism. This ideology wants to replace the free and spontaneous evolution of mankind by a sort of central (now global) planning." - Czech president Vaclav Klaus
"The Democrats, flush from their 2006 election gains, took over Congress in January, promising to end the legislative stalemate and pass a sweeping agenda for reform. Nearly six months later, they have backpedaled on their promises of reform; they've made little progress on major legislation; their job-approval ratings have taken a nosedive; and there's talk for the first time that House Democrats could lose seats to the Republicans in 2008." - Donald Lambro
"If you are looking for a true political leader, you can just pass right over Harry Reid. He is perfectly willing to give aid and comfort to the enemy- likely putting American soldiers at greater risk by his comments- for political gain." - Rich Galen
"The same people who say that government is a mighty power for good that can extinguish every cigarette butt and detoxify every cheeseburger and even change the very climate of the planet back to some Edenic state so that the water that falleth from heaven will land as ice and snow, and polar bears on distant continents will frolic as they did in days of yore, the very same people say: Building a border fence? Enforcing deportation orders? Can't be done, old boy. Pie-in-the-sky." - Mark Steyn
"I often say after eight years in Washington, I longed for the realism and sincerity of Hollywood." - Fred Thompson
"Hillary Clinton has launched a new website where people can get all the latest Hillary news. In a related story, John Edwards has launched a new website where people can order his secret blend of shampoos and conditioners." - Conan O'Brien
Jay Leno: All of the candidates have released their financial statements. Turns out Bill Clinton made $10 million from speaking engagements last year. See that sounds glamorous, but imagine all those nights in a hotel room, Hillary half-way across the country, him sitting there by himself all lonely. ... According to a new poll, Hillary's lead in the polls is due to her support by women. She's bringing in the female vote. And Bill is attracting "the other woman" vote. ... Here's the latest in the John Edwards campaign. It turns out, yes, there are two Americas and neither one of them is voting for him. ... A judge has turned down Scooter Libby's request to delay his prison term. In fact, the judge gave him an extra three months just for having that stupid name, Scooter. ... There's a huge problem with the Russian space station. The computers failed. The whole computer system went down. Pretty scary. But they're hoping they can fix the problem and call tech support when they fly over India. ... Actually, two thirds of it has been fixed, although the system that controls oxygen manufacture had been down for two days. And you know what happens when astronauts don't get enough oxygen? They drive 900 miles in a diaper to kidnap other astronauts. ... According to a new study 30 percent of Cubans are overweight. The other 70 percent are still in Cuba.... Dan Rather came out swinging this week. He said that CBS and Katie Couric are tarting up the news. Tarting up the news? As opposed to Dan, who just made up the news.
Man Law: No Talking in Public Bathrooms
I would think it was an already accepted Man Law that there should be no talking in public men's rooms. (There can be an exception for a father with a young child with him, or when friends are alone.) I just started a new assignment and apparently men at this location don't know the rules.
My girlfriend will mock me because I sometimes absentmindedly start singing while washing my hands in her bathroom. This is weird enough, but just now at work, while I was using the facilities, another guy came in, singing quite loud. Sees me, asks how I was doing, and continues singing. He then turns on the faucet on one of the sinks, walks over to the urinal next to me (there are only two urinals in this bathroom), flushes it, unzips, puts his hands behind his back, and starts a conversation about the weather. (I can't escape because I'm in midstream.) I try to answer him curtly, but he keeps going with the conversation, flushing the urinal every few seconds. I finish as quickly as I can, and go to wash my hands. I notice that he's placed a cup under the running faucet which is now overflowing into the sink. I get out and shudder at the experience.
So, when I'm absolute dictator, talking to strangers in a men's room, in non-emergency cases, will punished by application of duct tape to the mouth on future bathroom visits.