Mr. X Speaks His, huh.....Mind.

In the original Dragnet television series, we were told that the stories were true, but the names had been changed to protect the innocent.

In this little story, I won't be identifying the other person because I really don't want the hassle that naming names would produce. Fortunately, it isn't very likely that he's going to be reading this post, so I'm safe, as far as that goes. Let's just call him Mr. X , for the sake of convenience.

Yesterday, Mr. X attempted to engage me in a political conversation. I really was in no mood for that. When he asked which Republican candidate I preferred, I told him I had not decided. He went on to explain to me why he couldn't vote for any of the three. ( there was no mention of Ron Paul - perhaps he's never heard of him ).

Mr. X told me he could not support Mitt Romney because Romney had too much money. He said he didn't care if Romney inherited the money or if he made it himself; someone that rich, Mr. X told me, would be unaware of the problems we common folk experience.

He reasoning for not liking Gingrich or Santorum was based on the fact that he didn't want to have a President name Newt.....he just didn't like the name; and he thinks Santorum sounds too much like sanatorium.

Fortunately for us, he doesn't vote all that often. He's certainly not going to vote in the upcoming Republican primary in Georgia. There's also a even money possibility that he won't be voting in the Presidential election this fall.

Thank Heaven for small favors.

3 1/2 Time-Outs Tuesday - Part 3 or 4 , I Forget.

Tuesday is nearly over - yet, I'll try to get a 3½ Time-Outs Tuesday out today.(Third shift really bites)



1) I came across a blog with a link to the White House website that gives "We the People" an opportunity to petition the White House. This link was to a petition to "Rescind the HHS Dept. Mandate Requiring Catholic Employers to Provide Contraceptives/Abortifacients to Their Employees" (this isn't the same petion as the one linked to on the right).

It was very difficult signing in....I very nearly gave up. Coincidence?



2) Visiting the White House website, I was greeted with a photo of Obama in all his smugness ...... not only is he the lamest POTUS evah, he's a pretty sorry excuse for a human being in general.



3) I was listening to Sean Hannity's radio program while picking up my son at school today. Naturally, Hannity is upset over Obama's recent decision on employers' birth control coverage. This must be difficult for Hannity, as someone who objects to the Catholic Church's teaching on birth control. I'm sure Obama is depending on CINOs who want birth control covered by everyone's health insurance to cover his butt, politically.



3 1/2) I'm considering making some minor changes in my blog's template. If and when I decide to do this, it'll cause a few problems with my blog links on the right. I apologize for this, in advance.

Adios, Mr.Shea.

Not that he would even care if he knew, but Mark Shea's blog has been on the "un-link-to- list" for quite some time.

For starters, I'm amazed at his dislike.....might I even say, hatred ...... for Michael Voris and RealCatholicTV. Shea is, of course, entitled to his opinion of Voris, but most of what he's written about Voris seems a bit petty.

Shea's comments to some folks leaving comments on his blog can come across as petty as well. In a recent post [Question] Shea put forth an argument which quite a few of his readers had, what I'd say were legitimate reservations with his proposition; Shea's responses could be called snotty.

He posted a jpg -which I've included below - which has the following stats:
1 in 7 American Houses are Empty -
1 in 402 Americans are Homeless -
24 Houses are available for each Homeless American.

Shea's post:
What would a civilization do about something like this if it really and truly believed, rather than reluctantly and tepidly grunts at the fact, that “Inasmuch as you did it to the least of these, you did it to me”? What would a civilization look like if it marshalled as much energy and creativity to deal with this as it does to prepare for war and amass mammon? What if it was as afraid of hell and as eager for heaven as it is afraid of discomfort and eager for power?

When many of his readers pointed out that the idea of giving the vacant house to the homeless was simplistic and/or impractical, Shea could not answer their concerns; he could only give a simplistic and/or impractical comment - such as;

"Yes. Always look first for reason why it *can’t* be done. Counsels of defeat are the best initial prophylactic against any incipient works of mercy.
Your affectionate Uncle,
Screwtape."
or
"Yes. Something could go wrong. So it’s pointless to even try. Don’t even attempt safeguards against such obvious possibilities. instead, just ignore the entire problem because it’s hopeless and besides, it’s just worthless homeless people we are talking about. So no big deal. Give up. There’s no point in even trying."

and
"Yes. And if I am not personally prepared to drop everything and adopt a dozen children, I have absolutely no right to express the view that abortion is wrong or to suggest any changes to the system. Any discussion of change to an inhuman system is just foolish talk and we should give up now because it will never work so there’s no point. Give up. Don’t try. Don’t even think about it. Abandon hope.
It’s amazing how much I’ve heard that today. On this thread."

Readers had pointed out to Mr. Shea that the vacant homes, obviously, were owned by someone.
How could we give vacant houses to the homeless without violating someone's property rights?
The vacant homes might be located in Location A while the homeless were in Location B; how do you give a house in, say, San Francisco to a homeless person in Atlanta?
The house in Location A might be empty because there are no jobs there; how would the recipient survive without income?

I'm OK with Mr.Shea and I having different opinions. I'm a bit turned off by his "superior" attitude towards readers who disagree. I'm not saying I'll never return to his blog, but I am removing the link from my "Places of Interest" on the right.

Atlanta Archbishop asks Catholics to Speak Out Against Birth Control Regulations.

Atlanta archbishop asks Catholics to speak out against birth control regulations -

Two news videos of interviews with Atlanta archbishop Wilton Gregory concerning the new federal rule requiring faith-based employers to include birth control in their health care plans.

Richard Cohen's Science Class.

Not surprisingly, Richard Cohen slams the Republican Party in his recent piece in the Washington Post. A party of nitwits (in Cohen's estimation) the party has "turned hostile to thought, reason and the two most important words in the English language: It depends."

In Cohen's world, the Republicans are anti-intellectuals par excellence because the dolts in the party cannot appreciate nuance, subtlety and relativism.

Regarding abortion, Cohen writes, 
"If you ask me what I think of abortion, I’d say, 'It depends.' It depends on whether you’re talking about the ninth month of pregnancy, the first, the health of the mother, the fetus — or, even, the morning-after pill. But in the Republican contest, the answer to the question is always the same: no, no and no again. Thanks for giving the matter such careful thought."

Evidently, Cohen hasn't given the matter such careful thought either.

I've addressed Cohen's lack of understanding of basic biology before regarding so called, same sex marriage [It's the Biology, Stupid.]. I suppose Cohen was asleep during whatever science classes he was required to take in school. The human fetus is human "whether you’re talking about the ninth month of pregnancy, the first, the health of the mother, the fetus — or, even, the morning-after pill." Cohen doesn't grasp this basic, scientifically verified fact.

Cohen goes on to claim the Republican's opposition to his view on global warming isn't based on their having studied the science.....you know, the way he's studied the science regarding human reproduction. (Cohen might want to read this from the Wall Street Journal).

I'm looking forward to Cohen's column this coming November, when he calls the United States a country of nitwits for having thrown Barack Obama out of office.