Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Sinead O'Connor ends fourth marriage after 16 days.

Back in August, 2010, when I wrote of Sinead O'Conner's third marriage, I said,
"I guess I'm out of it. I'm not up on all the latest news of marriages of all the celebrities that inhabit this planet. I'm only just now learning of Sinead O'Connor's third marriage."

Further evidence of my being out of the loop is that it was only today, when I learned of her fourth divorce that I learned that she got her third divorce after an eight month "marriage" to Steve Cooney.

I don't think it's even necessary for me to comment on this.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

An Atheist Reacts to Nurses' Lawsuit Victory.


Like other pro-life advocates, I took the news that New Jersey Nurses Don’t Have to Assist in Abortions in a positive way. Nurses who object to abortion on religious grounds should not be forced or coerced into assisting in any part of the abortion procedure.

Some in the, so-called, "pro-choice" community weren't so pleased with the results of the court decision. Many commenting on the story as reported in the Washington Post spewed forth so much hatred toward the nurses that it's obvious that the issue is not simply about "choice".

One such commenter, calling herself galerouth19521 was especially vitriolic. She referred to the fetus as "a parasite because the classification of the biological relationship that is based on the behavior of one organism (the fetus) and how it relates to the woman's body". Her rationale for calling the pre-born child a parasite is because the fetus obtains it's nourishment from the "host" without providing any benefit. She goes on to say,"so i will kill any unwanted, parasitic life-form that needs my body to live---including your precious fetus...period, get over it."

According to galerouth19521, she should be allowed to kill a fetus because "pregnancy causes women harm". She linked to a website which gave a list of these "harmful effects". One such effect is the "curtailment of ability to participate in some sports and activities".

OK, let me get this straight; a woman can kill her unborn child if being pregnant interferes with the woman's ability to play in certain sports.

Not surprisingly, a later comment by galerouth19521 revealed her to be an atheist. So much for the idea that Atheists Aren't Assholes. She tells us that "the judeo-christian god is a myth and historical evidence proves it". Her proof ? A Youtube video, 3.3.3 Atheism: A History of God (Part 1) .

I suspect that galerouth19521 was an atheist before she ever came across this video "evidence". I watched the video and saw nothing in it that disproves the existence of God. (I even took a look at part 2 of the video and I find it hard to take seriously the arguments of an atheist who doesn't know how to pronounce the word "pantheism").

A Google search lead to more comments by the same person at Huffington Post.

A further search lead to a post by Gale Routh - "Is the human fetus a parasite?" . As I write this, the votes for the fetus NOT being a parasite hold a slim lead. I'd ask anyone reading this post to follow the link cast a vote.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Tornado Hits Near our Home.

Yesterday at around 5 PM, a tornado went through our area......actually less than 3/4 mile from our home. Two photos from from the Rome-News Tribune website show damage to buildings a couple of streets over from our house.
The screen shot from Mapquest shows how close it was to our home.

Thank God, as far as I know, no one living nearby was seriously injured. We were not at home when the storm hit. We learned of the tornado over the radio. We were uncertain what we'd find when we arrived home. Thankfully, there was absolutely no damage to our house and property. No trees were blown over.....it looked like it had only been a heavy rain.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy.

Being a parent of a six year old, I've been put in a position by "the culture" where I have to deal with three fantasy characters; the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus.

Even as a child, I could never quite understand the point of the Easter Bunny. The whole idea seemed too bizarre for me. I learned very early on that Easter was the celebration of Christ's resurrection and I couldn't figure out what bunnies and baskets and colored eggs had to do with the Holy Day. The "Easter Bunny" was certainly something I was not going to participate in.

Santa was a different matter. I didn't like the idea of tricking my son into believing something that was pure fantasy, but when he was in pre-K last year, all the children in his class were taught about Santa and he knew for a fact that Santa was real. He believes in Santa without my having told him so and there is no convincing him otherwise, so Santa leaves him gifts under the Christmas tree.

Now, in kindergarten, he has learned of the Tooth Fairy. How much of this he learned from classmates and how much from T.V. is anybody's guess.

His first baby tooth came out yesterday and naturally, he was very excited about leaving his tooth under his pillow. He carefully placed the tooth in a plastic sandwich bag so that the Tooth Fairy would have no problem finding it.

The problem was, however, that I had no coins. When I was his age, my parents the Tooth Fairy would leave a quarter in place of the tooth; thinking about it, with the decreased value of coins since the time when I was six, it seemed like leaving a coin wouldn't be the same today anyway.

So, I replaced the tooth with a dollar bill. I know, that seems a bit extravagant, but when I was seven or eight. my dad would send me to the corner store to buy his cigarettes (this was a long time ago) and in those days cigarettes were 25 cents a pack. Looking at it that way, a dollar didn't seem so much.

When J.P. woke up this morning, he said, "The Tooth Fairy left a dollar instead of a penny".

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Hugo Chávez says Obama is 'a clown and an embarrassment'.



President Obama's former mentor, Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez now describes the US president as a "clown" and an "embarrassment".

I wonder where he could have gotten an idea like that.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Kim Jong Il looking at a Wreath.

Ever the humourist, the guy at Kim Jong Il Looking at Things has the now, late dictator, looking at a wreath.

I don't if it's his wreath, but it is a nice photo.

Monday, December 19, 2011

Cargo Vessel runs Aground in Dumaguete, Philippines.


My wife comes from Sibulan, Negros Oriental in Philiipines, not for from the city of Dumaguete. I have been to the city many times and consider it my "home away from home". My wife's family still lives there, as do many of our friends.

Yesterday, December, 17th a ".....cargo vessel anchored of off Dumaguete ran aground and capsized after it was battered by big waves spawned by Tropical Storm Sendong about 4 a.m., the Philippine Coast Guard said." Thankfully, all on board were rescued.

Hundreds of people died in Philippines.

Thank God, all of my wife's family is safe, though there was some property damage.

Friday, December 16, 2011

Let Them Eat Horse Meat.

On Nov. 10, 2005 President Bush signed the 2006 Agricultural Appropriations bill. Bush being an evil Republican who hates animals, the environment and anything having to do with "nature", this bill contained an amendment which prohibited the use of Federal funds for horse meat inspection. Because of this lack of funding, the availability of horse meat for human consumption in the United States vanished.

Now, thanks to President Obama - lover of the environment and friend to animals and animal lovers everywhere - anyone in the U.S. wishing to do so can soon eat horse meat to their heart's content.

A spending bill signed into law on Nov. 18 by President Obama will allow for USDA inspections of slaughterhouses which choose to slaughter horses for human food. Those supporting the change believe slaughterhouses could open before long and eventually slaughter as many as 200,000 horses a year. Most of the meat would be shipped to Asia and Europe where horse flesh is considered a delicacy.

Never having eaten horse meat, I don't have a dog in this fight. If someone wants to eat horse (or dog, for that matter) who am I to say they shouldn't? There are plenty of folks out there who say I shouldn't be eating beef, pork or poultry. One man's meat is another man's poison, as they say.

No, I don't have a problem with the USDA inspecting horse slaughterhouses. I just find it ironic that the U.S. President the animal rights folks detested most effectively banned the slaughter of horses for human consumption, while the Left's favorite President signed a bill that will bring it back.

I'm not sure how this fits with Mrs. Obama's effort to fight obesity. Horse meat is, reportedly low in fat and cholesterol. A recipe for Horse Roast can be found here.

Bon Appétit

2015 Update:Horsemeat Post Update.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

A Bit of Good News for a Change.

As chronicled in a post from this past October, 28 [Thanks, Mr. President.] the company I work for will be closing down the location where I've worked for nearly 17 years. The plant's last day of operation will be Dec.27.

At the time of that post, I was unsure as to what was going to happen. We were told that transfers were available, but at that time I didn't know where I stood. Now, today, I know for a fact where I'll be working after the current location shuts down. I've been transferred to the distribution center 30 minutes from my house. OK, the drive is a bit longer than the 6 minute drive I've been going, but I'm really happy about it. (I might even get an increase in pay).

We're winding things down at my present location. I don't know if I'll be making the transfer next Monday or if I'll have to wait until the final day here. I'm hoping it's Monday.

The only downside is that I'll have to go to night shift. I'll be on a probationary period for 90 days; after that, my seniority is reinstated and who knows how long before there's a first shift opening. We'll just have to wait and see.

All in all, good news.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Uncle Tom's Cabin.

Growing up - a child of the 1950's - I loved to watch The Twilight Zone. However, for reasons I never quite understood, we were never able to watch the program at home, but could watch it whenever we visited my cousins.

One of the scarier episodes, from my perspective, was the one entitled Time Enough at Last, starring Burgess Meredith as a bookworm who finally has the time to read all the books he wants after an "H-Bomb Capable of Total Destruction" leaves him the sole survivor of a nuclear war.

His character,Henry Bemis winds up at a public library with enough books to last a life time. While sorting the books, his glasses fall from his face, completely shattering, and leaving him virtually blind and unable to read.

I suppose, if I were to find myself the sole survivor after an Apocalypse, I'd make make my home in a public library......so I understand the frustration of Henry Bemis.

For me, the closest think to living in a public library is my being able to access more than 36,000 free ebooks from Project Gutenberg. The ebooks are available as mobi, so I can download them to my PC and transfer the books to my Kindle at my convenience.


I've just finished reading Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe; I'm currently reading Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass.

Next on the list is The Narrative of William W. Brown, a Fugitive Slave by William Wells Brown .


I can see why Uncle Tom's Cabin was the best-selling novel of the 19th century. It's an extremely powerful work - a bit "sentimental" in sections, but it's theme extolling the power of Christian love brought tears to my eyes.

The book is one that I've known about nearly my entire life but was never encouraged to read.
Why?
Perhaps the answer to that question has something to do with my having grown up in the southern United States - an area of the country that didn't take kindly to the novel when it was published in 1852. The novel gives an accurate portrait of slave owners in the antebellum South, and we all know that the truth very often hurts.

Today, being called an "Uncle Tom" is considered an insult to most in the black community. It wasn't always that way. Frederick Douglas was a friend of Stowe's and spoke highly of the book.

From Slave narratives and Uncle Tom's Cabin :

"It is ironic that the book which contributed most to the anti-slavery cause should have gained the reputation it has today as a racist work. Uncle Tom, though he defies white authority to save his fellow slaves, is the model of Christian humility. He is forgiving in the face of absolute brutality and suffers countless indignities with patience. Though this endeared him to whites and helped them see the evils of slavery, it also encouraged the image of the submissive, childlike black man -- an idea exaggerated in theatrical productions of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Many of these showed Uncle Tom as a groveling, subservient character, and included blackface mistrel shows between scenes.

Like most white writers of her day, Harriet Beecher Stowe could not escape the racism of the time. Because of this, her work has some serious flaws, which in turn have helped perpetuate damaging images of African Americans. However, the book, within its genre of romance, was enormously complex in character and in its plots. The book outraged the South, and in the long run, that is its significance."

Many credit Uncle Tom's Cabin with fueling the abolitionist cause and help bring about the Civil War. Perhaps the pro-life movement today could use our own Harriet Beecher Stowe and our own Uncle Tom's Cabin.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Smoking Santas

In a recent post [3½ Time-Outs Tuesday (Vol. 2)] LarryD posted an old ad showing Santa Claus selling Pall Mall cigarettes.

I did a little web search and found a few more......not only Pall Mall but, Lucky Strike, Chesterfield and Camel as well.






Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Vive la Différence.

An article on CatholicHerald.co.uk [In 1960 Cardinal Siri urged women not to wear trousers. I think he may have had a point] does not seem to have sit well with "Puff the Magic Dragon" from over at Puff's Blog About Stuff ....... One might even go so far as to say she has her knickers in a twist over the article.

I can't say I blame her.

In the CatholicHerald piece, writer Francis Phillips makes reference to a document written in 1960 by the late Cardinal Giuseppe Siri of Genoa entitled “Notification Concerning Men’s Dress Worn by Women” wherein the Cardinal condemned the "wearing of men's dress by women". Cardinal Siri put forward a number of arguments, but he considered the gravest of all to be that "male dress changes the psychology of women". When women wear trousers, he argued, it "flattens out the natural distinction between the sexes".

My comment on Puff's blog was, "The Cardinal may have had a point in the 1960's but the idea that 'women wearing trousers flattens the difference between men and women' in this day and age is ridiculous."

After leaving that comment, it struck me that I may have given the Cardinal too much benefit of the doubt. His document was dated June 12, 1960; looking at a photo of 1960's movie star, Bridgett Bardot, it's difficult to put forth the argument that Bardot was flattening the natural distinction between the sexes by wearing slacks.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Christmas Wreath.

I had never noticed, until yesterday, when my six year old son pointed it out to me, just how much a Christmas wreath resembles a crown of thorns.