The Priest on the Hoverboard Incident.

The headline on CNN read, Filipino priest reprimanded for Christmas Eve hoverboard stunt. At USA Today, it was Priest suspended for riding a hoverboard during Christmas Eve Mass.

The long and short of it is a priest in the Philippines was suspended for riding a hoverboard up an aisle during Christmas Eve Mass.

Comments on the Youtube video below argue that it was not a hoverboard. That's pretty much beside the point, however.


The Diocese of San Pablo, where the priest is located, has issued a statement, which said, in part:

The Eucharist demands utmost respect and reverence. It is the Memorial of the Lord’s Sacrifice. It is the source and summit of Christian life. It is the Church’s highest form of worship. Consequently, it is not a personal celebration where one can capriciously introduce something to get the attention of the people.

Three cheers for the Bishop in the Diocese of San Pablo. He were absolutely right in his suspension of the priest.

Thankfully, the priest has acknowledged that his action was wrong and has promised that it will not happen again.

Naturally, many people commenting on Facebook saw nothing wrong with the priest riding the hoverboard during Mass. As others have rightfully pointed out, anyone who does not have a problem with this does not have a proper understanding of the Catholic Mass and the Holy Eucharist.

Further "Early Thoughts on '2015 in Review' ".

Coming up on the new year, I suppose now's the time to take up new projects or renew the ones where I've backslid these past several months. Yesterday, I posted my first blog post in ages. While I'm on a roll, I may as well expand on some of what was written it that post.

First, the photograph. When I published what I had written, I had originally not included a photo. I didn't feel as if I had one that fit the mood of the post. However, when I attempted to put the link to the post onto Facebook, a really horrible and completely unrelated photo would show up to accompany the link. (it was the photo I used on the blog for a post about Sinead O'Conner's third wedding). I added the photo now on the blog post in the hope that it would show up on FB. No such luck.

The photo accompanying this post is one that I took just a few minutes ago to show the results of the current workout routine described in yesterday's blog post. Believe it or not, I actually felt that I was smiling during the taking of the photo.

I mentioned yesterday that I had read 37 books this year with the possibility of finishing number 38 before the New Year arrives. It's doubtful. I'm currently reading two books - both are books I've read before. Of the 37 books I've finished reading this year, all 37 are e-books, most freebies from Project Gutenberg or their Australian website for books out of copyright in Australia yet still under U.S. copyright.

Of the two I'm now reading, one is an ebook and one is a traditional hardcover book. I do have to keep some books around in case I want to read and my battery is low on my Android. The two books are:
Write Away, by Elizabeth George (the hard cover, which I read once before in 2013) and in e book,
Dracula by Bram Stoker.
I'm sure it's been thirty years since I last read Dracula and I've forgotten quite a lot of what's written. We know there aren't too many movies which accurately follow the novel to the letter.

I was motivated to read Dracula again after having just finished Sheridan Le Fanu's vampire story, Carmilla. I'd also downloaded other e books of Le Fanu's work, but none could hold my interest.

I'm not sure which direction my reading will take in 2016 once I've finished reading Dracula. I've downloaded Frankenstein, although I feel as if it hasn't been that long ago since I've reread that classic (can't find it listed in any of the book lists I've kept since 2012).

I'm thinking of rereading Sinclair Lewis.......it's been thirty years or longer since I read his work. I'm also thinking of The Memoirs of William T Sherman and The Narrative of William W. Brown, a Fugitive Slave.

One thing is certain, with Project Gutenberg, I'll never run out of reading material.

Early thoughts on "2015 in Review".

Before moving to Philippines, there were certain changes which I planned to make upon arriving here. These changes included a plan to get back into a daily exercise routine and a plan to write more often.

Anyone looking at this blog can see how well the latter worked out.

I have been, however, successful in making changes in my diet and my exercise habits.

I underwent a modest medical exam in June of this year when I received my Philippine driver's license so I know the weight given on the license was measured on that day.....88 kilos. Since that time, I have lost 11 kilos, due largely to a change of diet. I have developed a regular exercise routine, but I credit the loss to the diet, rather than the increased amount of daily exercise.

For what it's worth, here is a breakdown of my current exercise routine:

On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I walk 1 kilometer to a gym near the public market in Sibulan. At the gym, I've been doing weight training - hitting all the upper body muscle groups in one, hour long session. After the workout, I walk the 1 kilometer back home.

On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, I've taken off from the weight training and have instead, walked 3 kilometers each of those mornings.

It's my plan now to make adjustments in that routine. Rather than go to the gym three days a week, I'll be going four days a week, splitting the muscle groups worked on those days. Once I begin this new schedule, I will work legs, back and biceps on Mondays and Thursdays then working chest, shoulders and triceps on Tuesdays and Friday with Wednesday and the weekend as rest days.

Because there will be four "weight" days, my "walk-only" days will drop from three to two; I'll still observe Sunday as a day of rest. I don't want to decrease the number of kilometers (or miles) I walk every week, so I will increase the "walk-only" distance from 3 kilometers a day to 4 kilometers.

It really doesn't take too much time out of my day to get this exercise done. I'm always up with the sun - which comes mighty early in Philippines. I've still plenty of time left to spend on my writing. I don't know if I'd classify this as a New Year's resolution, but I really do need to take some time every day to work on that.

Although it's not a proper excuse, I could put this slackness in my writing down to the fact that I don't really have an office where I can work in seclusion. Space is limited in this two bedroom apartment.

I know, that's not a good reason.

On a more positive note, I have managed to set aside time to read; I've read 37 books this year, with the possibility of finishing number 38 before December 31st. This year, I'll continue my annual listing of the books I've read on the first day of the new year. Looking back at the list from  January 1, 2015, where I put down the 31 books I read in 2014, I see this year will top that number.

M ssing Lett rs.

It's been a m nth since I la t posted anything on this blog, and w at motivates me to post so mething today? Drudge Rep rt posts it's ed tion today and several lett rs are missing from the he dlines. Not sure why that sho ld push me to post.......but I took a screen sh t of the web page to show ex ctly what I mean. Clicking on the ph to will give one a better view.

Even Further Delays in the Case of the "Meditating Monk".

As I first noted in a blog post from February of this year, the followers of Ashutosh Maharaj, a religious leader who had been declared clinically dead in January 2014, have kept his body in a deep freezer, claiming that their leader is not deceased but in a samadhi - a deep state of meditation.

The disposal of Ashutosh Maharaj's body has been before the Indian courts for quite some time - it was reported in March that a final decision by the court would be on April 28.

April has come and gone with the cult leader's body still in deep freeze.

The only update I've been able to locate was an article from Sept. 30 reporting that the court has given the cult until November 30 to decide on it's own what will be the fate of their guru's frozen body.

I'll try to get further news on the monk around December 1. I can hardly wait.

Gideons Bible - Cebu City.

Finding a Gideons Bible in a motel or hotel room in the U.S. is so common that, to me, they are practically invisible - I just never give them much thought.

It was, however, a bit strange finding a Gideons Bible at the Express Inn in Cebu city, Philippines. Seeing one there really brought home to me just how widespread the practice of placing Bibles in motel/hotel rooms is for the organization.

I took a photo of the Bible placed in room 306, because I found something especially odd about it.

Someone had taken a marker and wrote the name of the hotel across the pages of the Bible. I have no way of knowing if this was done by a Gideon or someone working for the Express Inn. The question in my mind is, "Why?".

Usually, I'd say writing the hotel name that way is to prevent stealing. But, the hotel doesn't really own the Gideon Bible, so they wouldn't be losing anything. If it was written by a Gideon, it seems to be a misplaced gesture.

Surely, if anyone is in need of a Bible, it would be someone who steals a Bible.

Obama/Trump. Two Sides of the Same Coin.

In 2008, during U.S. Presidential campaign, I was shaking my head in disbelieve as Americans became enamored with Barack Obama. He was - and still is - the ultimate "empty suit". It was obvious to any clear thinker that Obama did not have the expertise to run the country; the American people were in love with Obama's charismatic personality.

Americans had fallen victim to the cult of personality.

Now, as Obama is winding up his 2nd and final term, Americans appear to have taken the bait again and are falling for Donald Trump.

The Establishment politicians and media are now the ones shaking their heads.

How could the American people support Trump in such vast numbers?

They voted for Obama - twice. Do you really need any further explanation?

Woman Calls 911 After Finding Spider.

A woman in Michigan found a black widow spider in a package of grapes which she had purchased in a Walmart Super-center.

The oddest thing in this story, is that the young lady called 911.

"I told them that 'this isn't really an emergency, but I have a Black Widow spider in my grapes and I don't really know what to do," the woman's boyfriend told local TV. "He kind of just paused and was like, 'kill it' and I was like 'you want me to kill it? You're not going to send anyone over?' This is a poisonous spider and he's like, 'yeah, just kill it and throw it away.' "

The boyfriend also said it took "quite a few sprays" of insect killer to kill the spider.

First, it's amazing to me that anyone would feel the need to call 911 because she found a spider in her produce. Secondly, who needs to be told to kill a Black Widow spider, and why would you even bother to hunt up the bug spray? Kill the thing with you @#$#@^ shoe.

Finally, the woman and her boyfriend would "still really appreciate an apology from Walmart."

Really?

It shouldn't be all that surprising to find a spider or insect crawling around a fruit or vegetable. That should be common sense. Walmart cannot possibly be held responsible for anything such as this.

Banned by Mark Shea.

As I mentioned in a blog post from June, one of the blogs that I frequented at that time was Mark Shea's Catholic and Enjoying It!. As I said at that time, I don't always agree with Mark - we definitely part ways over the minimum wage - but I find, for the most part, we agree on issues more often than we disagree.

It appears now, though, that I'll have to stop reading his blog. I've found myself blocked from commenting on his blog, and I see little reason to continue reading what he writes if I'm not allowed to comment.

Mr. Shea's blocking me took me by surprise.

It began with a recent post of his, "He’s just saying what we’re all thinking" where he was critical of the GOP base and their love of Donald Trump. No, I did not defend Trump. I don't support Donald Trump, and I seriously doubt that I ever could.

The conflict I had with Shea came after someone asked Shea who he would pick in a Trump vs Hillary match-up. Shea replied, "Neither".

Of course, I wouldn't vote for either one......that's not where the disagreement lay. I wrote,
"Mark has given up on voting for less than perfect candidates. The person must be pure."

Mr Shea took offense to that statement, whereupon he called me a liar, and left this link - http://www.ncregister.com/blog/mark-shea/wanting-to-attain-heaven-and-avoid-hell-is-normal-catholic-faith and blocked me from leaving further comments.

Having read the article to which he linked, I stand by my observation. I am willing to admit that my assessment of Mr. Shea's view may not be 100% accurate, but even if I'm in error, I believe Shea's reaction is over-kill.

It's not unusual for Mr. Shea to throw a tantrum when a reader disagrees with him.

As I said, I see no reason to continue following Catholic and Enjoying It! if I cannot leave the occasional comment. I'll send a link to this post to Mr. Shea via his email - that's the only way I can let him know of my thoughts on his blocking me.

I can't be certain that Shea will read this post, or if he does read it whether he will condescend to comment on it here. One thing I am certain of, however; I would not block whatever comment he might choose to leave.

Does America Need Gender-Neutral Pronouns?

Thanks to an an opinion piece by Todd Starnes on FoxNews.com, I learned that the University of Tennessee – Knoxville’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion is worried that certain traditional English personal pronouns might be offensive.

According to Donna Braquet, Director of the University of Tennessee Pride Center, rather than assume that the person we are addressing is a he or a she , we should use a singular gender-neutral pronoun such as ze , hir , hirs , and xe , xem or, xyr .

Braquet writes

"How do you know what pronoun someone uses? If you cannot use the methods mentioned above, you can always politely ask. 'Oh, nice to meet you, [insert name]. What pronouns should I use?' is a perfectly fine question to ask".

This is not a new argument. Every few years, I come across some opinion piece telling me that the English personal pronouns that have been in use for centuries are either sexist or homophobic. The claim is that our society will be much more enlightened and inclusive if we would only eliminate the words he or she .

People on both sides of the cultural divide believe that the change in personal pronouns will bring about a change in our society - some believe for the better - some believe for the worse.

After becoming familiar with Filipino culture and three of the more than a dozen regional languages spoken here, I no longer buy into the idea than a change in English personal pronouns will have much affect on American culture.

I can't say anything about the personal pronouns in many of the Filipino languages,but I can comment on three - Cebuano, Ilocano, and Tagalog. In each of these three, there is no separate word for he or she. In all three, the word for he or she is siya. Just as English makes no gender distinction with the word they -meaning "those people", Cebuano, Ilocano, and Tagalog do the same with sila ("those people") as well as siya for "that person".

Having singular gender-neutral pronouns hasn't caused Philippines to become a Feminist and/or LGBTQ Utopia. Same-sex "marriage" is not on the horizon, in spite of the fact that Tagalog doesn't have separate words for "husband" or "wife" - the Tagalog word is "asawa" for either spouse.

Contrary to what Donna Braquet might believe, gender-neutral pronouns in English won't bring about the world she might want. Neither will the change in pronouns destroy the United States.

The U.S. has bigger problems.

Caitlyn Jenner Halloween Costume Has Progressive's Knickers in Twist.

The Caitlyn Jenner Halloween Costume Has Progressive's Knickers in Twist.

Everyone on the Internet seems to think this Halloween costume is a bad idea. some even wanting to leave the planet because of it.

I think it's a great idea......though I wouldn't personally wear one.

I Saw This Photo and Thought of LarryD.

I came across this photo on the National Catholic Distorter website and immediately thought of LarryD and his Acts of the Apostasy blog. Those familiar with Larry and his work will understand why.

If you read this post, Larry, you're welcome to it.

Rick Perlstein - Idiote Extraordinaire.

Behold the photo of Rick Perlstein - a complete idiot.

In a piece written for The Washington Spectator, Perlstein calls the POW/MIA flag a racist flag.

"The one that supposedly honors history but actually spreads a pernicious myth? And is useful only to venal right-wing politicians who wish to exploit hatred by calling it heritage? It’s past time to pull it down."

Bernie Sanders Versus Black Lives Matter.

I am certainly no fan of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, and it isn't really my place to speak in his defense, but I see something a bit out of kilter with his being attacked by members of Black Lives Matters.

On Saturday, Black Lives Matters activists disrupted an event in Seattle where Sanders was scheduled, prompting Sanders to leave without giving his speech.

This wasn't the first time Sanders has had a run in with protesters from the movement.

Last month in Phoenix, protesters affiliated with the Black Lives Matters movement took over the stage and disrupted an interview with Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley.

Do these protesters actually believe that the Vermont senator doesn't agree that Black Lives Matters? That they would attack someone who makes President Obama look like the Chairman of the local Tea Party group, strikes me as completely absurd.

The only explanation that makes any sense to me is the very real possibility that these Black Lives Matters activists are in the payroll of the Clinton camp.

Bernie Sanders is riding pretty high among Democrat Progressives. An attack by a race based group might be Clinton's only way of pushing Sanders downward in the polls.

The First GOP Debates.

It was 5AM Friday here in Philippines when the, so-called 2nd tier, or "happy hour" Republican debate was broadcast live via Fox News. I didn't awake until after 6 AM, so I did not watch the entire debate between the seven candidates who had not made it to the top ten in time to make the Big League debate at 9 0'clock.

Like everyone one else on the planet, I was most impressed by the performance of Carly Fiorina. She has, without question, catapulted onto the top tier. The question,now is who of the top ten candidates will now sink lower in the polls? As much as I hate to say this, I suspect that candidate will be Dr. Ben Carson.

I like Dr. Carson, actually a good deal more than some of the leading candidates. Unfortunately, while he might be the most intelligent and capable of the candidates, he is also the most soft-spoken. That does not bode well in this age of media bluster. There's no question that he would serve the U.S. much better than, say Donald Trump, but Trump is the showman while Carson isn't.

It's difficult for me to judge which of the top ten did the best in the 9 o'clock debate. I would prefer any of them to any of the candidates being put for by the Democrats. Which one is my current favorite? That's difficult to say as well. If I could narrow it down to maybe three or four, I'd say my top favorites - in no particular order - are Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush and Carly Fiorina.

I doubt if enough voters will agree with me on Rand Paul. He's too far behind.

Fiorina deserves to be higher in the polls although I'm not sure she'll get enough votes to win the nomination. I would support her as the Presidential candidate, but at this point, I'd say she should at the very least, be on the ticket as Vice President candidate.

Voodoo Chile.

On another of my blogs, [dumaguetewebsite,] I wrote of my discovery of a little cafe in Dumaguete - The Rollin' Pin. This post is not a retelling of that story; one can click on the link to read it.

No, this post is about the music mentioned in that post - Jimi Hendrix' Voodoo Chile from his Electric Ladyland  LP. This is not to be confused with Voodoo Child - Slight Return from the same LP.

I wanted to post a link to a video and/or recording of the song for those readers unfamiliar with the song. Unfortunately, while there are a number of Youtube videos of The Jimi Hendrix Experience playing versions of Voodoo Child - Slight Return , I was unable to find any video of Hendrix doing the original jam, Voodoo Chile . I was tempted to pay a dollar and download the mp3 from Amazon, but lo and behold, although Amazon has Electric Ladyland in a number of formats, the mp3 format does not include Voodoo Chile .

So now, anyone who has had their interest piqued by this post and would like to hear Voodoo Chile , you'll have to go to your Spotify app and locate Electric Ladyland .

No 'gay emojis' For Me, Either.

The BBC and other fine news organizations are reporting that Russia 'may ban gay emojis' under 'propaganda' law.

Seeing the direction that Europe and the United States are taking regarding same sex "marriage", Russia has outlawed the distribution of "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations".

Mikhail Marchenko, a Russian senator, pointed out that gay emojis, from social media, promote non-traditional sexual relationships and disrespect for parents and other family members.

According to a Time.com article on the same subject,

Though the Russian probe into emojis will focus specifically on Facebook, users of Twitter and Apple’s new operating system for the iPhone are also able to include rainbow flags and other gay-themed icons in their posts and messages.
Davydov, the Young Guard chairman, said that these services could also become the target of investigations if Russian citizens begin to complain about them.

Just as I posted Russia's heterosexual flag in show of support, I've taken the original image of the gay emojis from the BBC article, and transformed the emojis into heterosexuals.

You're welcome.

POTUS Contradicts NY Times Poll on Race Relations.

In a recent interview with BBC, President Obama said race relations in the United States had improved during his presidency. His opinion flies in the face of a New York Times/CBS News poll conducted last week that reveals that nearly six in 10 Americans, including heavy majorities of both whites and blacks, think race relations are generally bad, and that nearly four in 10 think the situation is getting worse.

By comparison, two-thirds of Americans surveyed shortly after President Obama took office said they believed that race relations were generally good.

Thailand Fights to Prevent First World Exploitation of Third World Women.

In 2013, a gay "married" couple contracted with a surrogate mother in India in order to purchase their own baby. Gordon "Bud" Lake and his "husband", Manuel Santos Valero bought their son, Alvero, just months before the Indian government moved to shut down the commercial surrogacy industry.

About one and a half years ago, the two husbands wanted to buy yet another baby in order to fulfill their narcissistic world view, but no longer being allowed to exploit third world women in India, they choose Thailand as the next best place.

Not long after renting the womb of surrogate Patidta Kusongsaang, the couple found themselves in a legal quagmire in Thailand; the government has banned commercial surrogacy for international couples.

The now six month old girl, Carmen, has no passport or papers required to leave Thailand. Kusongsaang had signed the consent form that allowed Lake and Santos to take Carmen from the hospital and they put Lake’s name on the birth certificate. But then Kusongsaang failed to show up for the last meeting at the U.S. embassy to sign the final document.

After learning that the man who had contracted with her was in a homosexual "marriage", the surrogate changed her mind on allowing the sperm donor to have the child. It should be noted that the egg used was donated by a women other than Kusongsaang, and while she carried and delivered the baby, Kusongsaang and Carmen share no DNA. Never the less, as the birth mother, Kusongsaang has full legal custody of the child.

Kusongsaang has filed charges against Lake and Valero for child abduction. The two men are stranded in Thailand - changing apartments regularly in order to keep the baby hidden.

Kusongsaang's legal advisor, Verutai Maneenuchanert, says the commercial surrogacy business was wrong from the very beginning. Maneenuchanert calls commercial surrogacy human trafficking and says Kusongsaang is the victim.

Fortunately, Lake and Santos have very little chance of winning their case in Thai court. Dr. Arkom Pradidsuwan, who is with the Thai Medical Council in the Ministry of Public Health, said,

"Thai law does not endorse same sex pair. And Thai law, legal couple is husband and wife, man and woman".

Pradidsuwan says baby Carmen’s legal status belongs to Patidta Kusongsaang.

Three cheers for the Thai government. What gives the right to these affluent, narcissistic First Worlders - either Gay or Straight - to exploit these impoverished women in Third World countries? The idea of surrogacy is immoral; add to that, the exploitation and the issue of human trafficking and the immorality is compounded.

Not only should the Thai government take this child away from these two men, but I think a bit of jail time might be in order.
Sources:
infiniteguest.org
npr.org
thinkprogress.org
bangkokpost.com

Pope Francis' Popularity in U.S. Drops.

According to a recent Gallup poll, Pope Francis' favorable rating drops in U.S..

The New York Post is reporting that US support for Pope Francis plummets. Politico says Pope Francis' approval rating nosedives among conservatives, while one news site reports that Pope Francis' approval rating dips in U.S..

At The Washington Post, religion reporter, Michelle Boorstein makes an attempt at explaining why Pope Francis is actually becoming less popular in the U.S.. She gets it partly right.

The answer is pretty simple and straight forward. Pope Francis is being viewed less favorably because the folks in the U.S. - both Liberal and Conservative - are finally realizing that the Pope really is Catholic.

The Liberals looked highly on Pope Francis in the beginning, because for some insane reason, they expected him to abandon Church teachings on married priests, same sex "marriage", and women in the priesthood. I'm sure some even believed he would eventually allow "married" gay and lesbian and transgender priests.

Conservatives are unhappy with the Pope because he expresses Catholic views on the environment, materialism and greed.

The Pope speaks the truth and this makes people on the Left and the Right uncomfortable. It's really no more complicated than that.

Pope Francis and the "Hammer and Sickle Crucifix" Update.

It looks as if, no matter what he does - or does not do - Pope Francis will continue to receive grief from the political Right wing.

In a comment left on one of my most recent posts concerning Pope Francis and the hammer and sickle crucifix presented to him by Bolivia dictator, Evo Morales, it was claimed that the Pope actually appreciated the gift,but was leaving the crucifix in Bolivia and presenting it "to a statue of the Our Lady of Copacabana, patron saint of Bolivia".

"Francis accompanied this gesture with the following words: 'The President of the nation was kind enough to offer me two decorative honours on behalf of the Bolivian people. I thank the Bolivian people for their affection and the President for this courteous gesture. I would like to dedicate these two decorations to the patron saint of Bolivia, the Mother of this noble nation, so that she may always remember her people and from Bolivia, from the shrine where I would like them to be, that she may remember the Successor of Peter and the whole Church and look after them from Bolivia.'"

Now, in an editorial piece, Dennis Prager claims the pope himself announced that he was "keeping the hammer and sickle crucifix and taking it home".

We have different sources telling us contradictory stories as to the final home of the hammer and sickle crucifix. They can't agree on it's location, but they agree that Pope Francis really loves the ugly thing because, deep down, he's really a dyed in the wool Marxist.

Our Pope is not a Marxist.

Pope Francis speaks out against "the relentless pursuit of profit" and human lives being sacrificed on the "altar of money."

It doesn't take a communist to see that the world's wealth is not distributed fairly among the people of this planet. The solution to this problem is neither Capitalism nor Socialism. The Church does not endorse either economic system. The Church has no quarrel with the private ownership of property or ethically run businesses.

The economy should be for the benefit of the people, not using people for the benefit of the economy.

No More 'Creative Minority Report' for Me.

There was a time when I considered myself a huge fan of the Brothers Archbold and their blog, Creative Minority Report (CMR). Not so long ago, I became a bit leery of Patrick Archbold's writing, though his brother, Matthew didn't appear as.....how should I put this?........crazy. At one time, both brothers wrote for National Catholic Register in addition to their blog. Patrick has since been fired from the Register.

From how I see it, Pat Archbold began to come off the rails about the time Pope Benedict XVI resigned and Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected - taking the name Pope Francis. I doubt Pope Francis can do anything right in Pat Archbold's eyes.

Archbold's hatred of the current Pope has finally forced me to remove the link to CMR from this blog.

While visiting Bolivia, left-wing Bolivian President Evo Morales attempted to present the Pope with a crucifix sculpted in the shape of a hammer and sickle. Naturally, the crucifix has caused an uproar.

CNN, BBC, catholicnewsagency.com, Fr. Z's Blog,newsbusters.org, and telegraph.co.uk are reporting that Francis "rejected", "rebuked", and "condemned" Morales' gift. Most are reporting that Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi had the final word: "Certainly," he told reporters, "it will not be put in a church."

Creatively Minority Report, however, posted an inflammatory post, rejecting, rebuking and condemning Pope Francis for accepting the crucifix. In his hatred for Pope Francis, Pat Archbold refuses to give the Pope the benefit of any doubt. To Archbold, Francis is a Marxist.......and probably an illegitimate Pope to boot.

This is the last straw. I'm finished with Creative Minority Report.

Update - Jan. 11, 2017:
I've begun reading CMR again. For more on this, read this post.

Russians Unveil Heterosexual Flag.

Anybody seen holding this flag in the U.S. would probably be called a "hater".

From UPI: Russia's ruling party fights 'gay fever' with 'Heterosexual Flag'

MOSCOW, July 9 (UPI) -- The ruling party of Russia has unveiled a "heterosexual flag" designed to represent "a real family" and "traditional values" in response to same-sex marriage.

United Russia, the party of President Vladimir Putin, introduced Moscow residents to the "heterosexual flag," which depicts the silhouettes of a man, a woman and three children along with a Russian hashtag that translates to, "A Real Family."

In stark contrast to the rainbow flag used to represent lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender pride and rights movements, the United Russia straight flag bears only two colors, but is available in a number of different schemes .

The party said the flag's release was timed to coincide with the Day of Family, Love and Fidelity, an annual Russian celebration that was marked in the country Wednesday.

Andrei Lisovenko, deputy head of the United Russia branch in Moscow, said the flag was inspired by the U.S. Supreme Court's June 26 decision to strike down the country's remaining bans on same-sex marriage.

"This is our response to same-sex marriage, to this mockery of the concept of the family. We have to warn against gay fever at home and support traditional values in our country," Lisovenko told newspaper Izvestia.

Jimmy Carter - The Perfect Protestant.

While promoting his latest memoir, A Wasted Life: Reflections of an Old Coot, former worst U.S. President, Jimmy Carter told Huffington Post that Jesus would approve of gay marriage. Carter goes on to say that he has no verse in scripture to back up his claim, even admitting that it is just his own personal belief.

Overlooked in Carter's asinine same sex "marriage" comments is Carter's statement on Jesus and abortion.

Carter said that Jesus did not approve of abortion, except in the case of rape, incest and to protect the life of the mother. Carter and the interviewer just slid past that little tidbit. He didn't say so, but I suspect Carter would have a difficult time finding verse in scripture to support his claim that Jesus would approve of the "rape, incest and to protect the life of the mother" argument so often put forward by Progressive Christians.

Jimmy Carter's foul pronouncements are a perfect example how Protestantism has corrupted the teaching of Jesus Christ. At one time, Protestants would pick and choose random scriptural texts to support whatever wild beliefs their heretical hearts desired. Now, they don't even do that. It's all about their own personal opinions.

Cop Fired for Wearing Confederate Flag Underwear.

Look, I know how kids are. Kids can be cruel; they can say ugly things and make fun of someone by mocking his or her name. And while I have no actual proof, I think it's reasonable to assume that, at some point during his childhood, some of the kids that knew the now former North Charleston police officer, Sgt. Shannon Dildine, called him Shannon Dildo. It has to be.......it's too easy.

After reading reports of Dildine's dismissal from the North Charleston Police Department for posting, on Facebook, a photo of himself wearing Confederate flag boxer shorts, I'm inclined to think that having Dildo as a nickname might not have been inappropriate.

Chief Eddie Driggers said Dildine could not have continued as an officer because any arrest of a minority could be challenged on the basis of possible racial bias.

"In light of current events, posting an inflammatory photograph in a way that permitted it to become widely distributed shows a lack of judgment that is unacceptable," Driggers said in a letter to Dildine.

Dildine has 10 days from the date of his Wednesday firing to appeal.

Although I recognize that Dildine did indeed show a lack of judgement, I hate to see anyone lose his or her job over this. Therefore, in a spirit of tolerance, I'm offering Dildine a possible defense for his actions. Dildine can swear that this photo is only part of the story. He should claim that he had gone on to, huh, "soil" his boxers, thereby showing contempt and disrespect for the Confederate flag.

Who knows? They might just buy that story.

Walmart ISIS Cake Causes Major Butt Hurt.

In Slidell, Louisiana a good ol' boy peckerwood redneck gentlemen went in his local Walmart and attempted to purchase a cake decorated with a replica of the Confederate battle flag with the words "Heritage, not Hate" spelled out atop the flag.

When Walmart refused to decorate the cake according to his instructions, the good ol' boy peckerwood redneck gentlemen underwent a major butt hurt.

As explained in in his Youtube video, the good ol' boy peckerwood redneck gentlemen printed a copy of an ISIS flag and took that design to another Walmart location in order to have a cake decorated with it.

The good ol' boy peckerwood redneck gentlemen does not explain why he took the ISIS design to a different Walmart. I suspect the good ol' boy peckerwood redneck gentlemen created a scene at the first location and was either too embarrased to return or else was banned from that particular Walmart for acting out.

The good ol' boy peckerwood redneck gentlemen goes on to vent his outrage toward Walmart, saying the company had some 'splainin' to do.

Knowing Walmart associates as I do, I'm reasonably sure that the cake decorator at the second Walmart had no idea the image was that of the ISIS flag. It's also quite possible that the cake decorator believed the flag to be a 'sex toy flag' like the one flown in a London gay pride parade.

Farrakhan Confirms Limbaugh's Flag Prediction

When the brouhaha over the Confederate flag erupted recently, Rush Limbaugh told his radio audience that  the American flag would be next.

"Can you just hear it now? I can hear it now: ‘The United States flag has flown over slavery and symbolized racism, discrimination, bigotry, homophobia for hundreds of years; the Confederate flag flew only four years, and we’re getting rid of the Confederate flag.’ Mark my words."

Hearing Limbaugh's comments, Fox News reporter, Ed Henry said that Limbaugh Is "Engaging In Hyperbole ... The American Flag Is Not Next"

Now, just days later, Louis Farrakhan proved Rush right with his remarks before the Metropolitan AME Church in Washington, DC:

"I don’t know what the hell the fight is about over the Confederate flag. We need to put the American flag down. Because we’ve caught as much hell under that as the Confederate flag," comments that were met with cheers and applause. He added, "Who are we fighting today? It’s the people that carry the American flag."

The Atheist and The Confederate Flag.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote how I had found myself in agreement with "a guy that sports a tattoo on his neck" in our mutual dislike of Pat Robertson. As I wrote then, atheist Dan Arel isn't a fan of the televangelist and founder of the Christian Broadcasting Network and neither am I - albeit for different reasons.

After coming upon a post Arel had published on patheos.com, I learned that he and I share a similar disgust for the Confederate flag currently flying in South Carolina's capital. Although his post contained a bit of snark, we both agree that the flag is a symbol of racism and does not deserve our respect.

However, I don't understand why he is opposed to the Confederate flag. As a Christian, I know why I oppose it and I have no trouble explaining my opposition.

Christianity teachings us that we are all children of God, that we are all created in His image. I listen when Christ says, "Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me". I believe when we mistreat our brothers and sisters we are mistreating Jesus as well.

I realize that some will counter that some Christians have used their misunderstanding of the faith to justify their racist beliefs. That does not, however, address the question I have for the atheist.

If one does not believe in any God - whether we're talking about the Christian deity, or Allah or even Vishnu, for that matter - if you do not believe in the existence of any Supreme Being or Creator, the only alternative is the belief that we are the product of a random collection of material "stuff" that accidentally came together without any "purpose" behind it all. If we were not created by a "creative intelligence" then we are the end result of a cosmic mishmash.

If the atheist view is the correct one, why does it matter in the least how we treat other human beings?

I know why I believe racism is sinful. I just don't understand why the atheist thinks so.

Progressives Attempt to Divide Conservatives With Laudato Si.

There is no lack of "news" headlines on the Internet attempting to spin the Pope's "climate change" encyclical into a political groove.

From USA Today - Pope's climate change statement a challenge for Republicans.

Desmogblog writes - Republican Presidential Candidates Attack Pope’s Climate Change Encyclical

And from Huffington Post - Right Wing Steamed Over Pope's Climate Change Encyclical

Hoping to divide Republicans, Democrats are overjoyed that GOP Catholics more convinced about climate change than other Republicans.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has even gone so far as to say, "We really must listen to his Holiness as we go forward.".

Are the Democrats ready to embrace Pope Francis and his encyclical, Laudato si completely?

Is Pelosi, fellow CINO John Kerry, and Democrat Presidential favorite, Hillary Clinton ready to accept what is written concerning abortion in Laudato si ?

nationaljournal.com quotes the papal encyclical:

"Since everything is interrelated, concern for the protection of nature is also incompatible with the justification of abortion. How can we genuinely teach the importance of concern for other vulnerable beings, however troublesome or inconvenient they may be, if we fail to protect a human embryo, even when its presence is uncomfortable and creates difficulties?"

Another bothersome quote for Democrats:

Instead of resolving the problems of the poor and thinking of how the world can be different, some can only propose a reduction in the birth rate. At times, developing countries face forms of international pressure which make economic assistance contingent on certain policies of "reproductive health". Yet "while it is true that an unequal distribution of the population and of available resources creates obstacles to development and a sustainable use of the environment, it must nonetheless be recognized that demographic growth is fully compatible with an integral and shared development." To blame population growth instead of extreme and selective consumerism on the part of some, is one way of refusing to face the issues.

I've read Pope Francis' latest encyclical and I've found nothing in it that I can object to. I'm not a scientist by any stretch of the imagination, so my thoughts on whether the planet is experiencing anthropogenic climate change involves a certain amount of trust in "authorities". I trust Al Gore, Nancy Pelosi, President Obama and their ilk about as far as I can hurl the planet Earth, but I don't put much faith in the scientific views of Rush Limbaugh or Oklahoma Senator James Inhofe either.

Is the Earth warming? If so, is that warming due, in large part to human activity? I have absolutely no proof one way or the other, but I trust Pope Francis more than anyone else speaking on the issue.

Papal Encyclical, 'Laudato si' Available For Download.

Yesterday, Thursday, June 18, 2015 at noon Central European Summer Time (Daylight Saving Time) the Vatican released Pope Francis' second encyclical, Laudato si - On the care for our common home. Translations of the encyclical are available in Arabic, English, French, German,Italian,Polish, Portuguese and Spanish.

Criticism of the encyclical have already appeared on the Internet.

I've begun reading the encyclical, although as I write this, I haven't finished it. Therefore, I will not offer any detailed thoughts on it in this post. I'll only say that, at this point, I haven't come across anything that I would call unreasonable or "disgraceful" or "unjust", as some are referring to it. I have this crazy idea that one should read, study and seriously contemplate Laudato si before evaluating it.

Those interested in reading the encyclical can find it online at the Vatican's website. It can also be read and downloaded as a pdf by going here.

My personal preference is to read books and documents as mobi using, either a Kindle, or a similar app for my android. After downloading the pdf, I went to online-convert.com for the conversion. For those too lazy to go to all the work of converting the pdf to mobi, I've made my copy of the mobi available for download at my website.

I'll finish reading the document and will eventually post further thoughts on the encyclical. Don't expect that post today.

Disgraceful Video Attacks Papal Encyclical.

I almost missed this video; the link to it arrived in an email that was automatically sent to spam.

It's come to the point now that both sides of the climate change issue are making use of scare tactics, relying less on the science and more on whatever it might take to frighten folks.

It this video, the Energy and Environment Legal Institute (ELII) has begun to criticize the Pope's encyclical and the Pope's advisers before the actual release of Laudato si, claiming the encyclical will lead to "European style" energy restrictions which will actually harm the most vulnerable among us. The encyclical is being called "unjust" and  "disgraceful".

The creators of the video steer away from criticizing Pope Francis directly, rather they attack his advisers. Not having read the encyclical - which is due for release later today - I can't comment on the actual substance of the encyclical. I can say, however, that the video is, itself disgraceful and insulting.

Italian Magazine Leaks Papal Encyclical

As I write this, Pope Francis' encyclical on climate change, Laudato Sii has not yet been officially released and an embargo on it's publication remains in effect until Thursday, June 18.

Never the less, an Italian magazine, L’Espresso has posted a leaked draft of the encyclical on line.

Vatican spokesman, Federico Lombardi has stated that the version posted by L’Espresso is not the final version of the text. The copy is in Italian. So far, no reliable English translation has been published. Of course that hasn't stopped The Wall Street Journal or The New York Times from commenting.

It also hasn't stopped the anti-Catholic and anti-Pope folks from leaving comments on the WSJ website. Many are calling Pope Francis "a socialist and a total leftie".

From one -
"Well. . .this is one Catholic who will embrace this encyclical with the same fervor as modern Catholics have for the past 50 years when it comes to practicing artificial means of birth control.
And if this leftist claptrap gets preached in the Homily, watch the flight of American Catholic dollars from the Dioceses."

Or-
"It must be divine knowledge from god since this liberation theory catholic has joined with the left on more issues than this one. What does any of this have to do with saving souls? It certainly gives him street cred with all the other fools out there."

Finally-
"The Vatican is calling the 3 day early release a 'heinous act'. As Catholics, what difference does it make whether we're humiliated by the arrogance and ignorance of this Pope now or three days from now? "

I'm reasonably certain that quite a few Catholics will loudly object to the Pope's encyclical. The majority of American Catholics have ignored infallible Church teaching on artificial birth control; they aren't going to heed this statement, which is not being delivered ex cathedra.

Senator James Inhofe Wants Pope to Stay Out of Climate Debate.

Oklahoma senator James Inhofe, who calls global warming "the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people" has taken issue with Pope Francis and the Pope's upcoming encyclical on climate change.

In a report from theguardian.com Inhofe was quoted, as saying,

"Everyone is going to ride the pope now. Isn’t that wonderful," he said. "The pope ought to stay with his job, and we’ll stay with ours."
A few moments later, Inhofe said: "I am not going to talk about the pope. Let him run his shop, and we’ll run ours."

"The pope ought to stay with his job, and we’ll stay with ours."? As far back as two years ago, Senator Inhofe said the Bible refutes climate change.

Eliason: Senator, we’re going to talk about your book for a minute, you state in your book which by the way is called The Greatest Hoax, you state in your book that one of your favorite Bible verses, Genesis 8:22, ‘while the earth remaineth seed time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease,’ what is the significance of these verses to this issue?

Inhofe: Well actually the Genesis 8:22 that I use in there is that ‘as long as the earth remains there will be seed time and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, day and night,’ my point is, God’s still up there. The arrogance of people to think that we, human beings, would be able to change what He is doing in the climate is to me outrageous.



All I can say is, Senator, if you demand that Pope ought to stay with his job, while you stay with yours, shouldn't you stay out of his job?

Purple is the New Orange.

The BBC has announced that the network will begin production soon on a semi-reality program based on the adventures of the western tourists arrested in Malaysia on charges of stripping naked atop Mount Kinabalu.

Reliable sources inform us that the program is tentatively titled, "Purple is the New Orange".

I, for one, am looking forward to watching the program whenever it becomes available in my area.

Philippine Independence Day

In celebration of Philippine Independence Day (June 12), Google has incorporated the Filipino flag onto the search page for google.com/ph.

For today, at least, you should be able to see it by clicking on https://g.co/doodle/zhqyeg.

Altai Throat Singing Video.

Found this video at the Siberian Times website.

It's called Altai throat singing.

To Liberals, Being Called Racist is Worse than Being Called Murderer: Part Two.

This photo provided by New York State Governor's office shows the note left by two convicted murderers who used power tools to cut through steel pipes at a maximum-security prison in Dannemora, NY, near the Canadian border and escaped through a manhole, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Saturday, June 6, 2015. He said Richard Matt, 48, and David Sweat, 34, "are two dangerous individuals."

In another example of how To Liberals, Being Called Racist is Worse than Being Called Murderer, Huffington Post is reporting that Escaped Murderers Left Behind Racist 'Have A Nice Day' Note.

According to the story,

"Richard Matt and David Sweat, the two men who were discovered this weekend to have escaped a maximum security prison in upstate New York, left a parting message: 'Have a nice day!' But they certainly didn't mean it in a nice way."

"The note also includes a racist image -- a 'yellow square of paper with a smiling, bucktoothed face,' as the Associated Press describes it."

One person commenting on the story summed it up rather well;

"This article reminds me of something I once heard a comedian say about Jeffery Dahmer - the murder and cannibal. Someone in the news complained that he was a racist because he killed fewer whites. The comedian pointed out, maybe so, but isn't his racism way down on the list of things that are wrong with this guy?"

Obama: US Misjudged ISIL Threat

In what was obviously a slip of the tongue, Obama stated in a "60 Minutes" interview that "US misjudged ISIL threat".

Surely, he does not mean "US", but "I".

Pat Robertson:Baby Who Died Could've Been Another Hitler

It isn't often that I can say I find agreement with a guy that sports a tattoo on his neck, but I can say that this time, I do agree with atheist Dan Arel's dislike of televangelist and founder of the Christian Broadcasting Network, Pat Robertson.......just not necessarily for the same reasons.

As reported on more than one website, when a woman wrote in to The 700 Club asking what she should tell a grieving co-worker whose three-year old baby had died and who had asked her (the letter writer) how she can believe in a god who would take her child from her, Robertson replied,

"As far as God’s concerned, he knows the end from the beginning and He sees a little baby and that little baby could grow up to be Adolf Hitler, he could grow up to be Joseph Stalin, he could grow up to be some serial killer, or he could grow up to die of a hideous disease. God sees all of that, and for that life to be terminated while he’s a baby, he’s going to be with God forever in Heaven so it isn’t a bad thing".

Not believing in God, Arel questions why any God would create a child who would grow up to be any of those things, and comes to the further conclusion that Robertson is an "insensitive dickhead".

I can't argue with his assessment of Robertson, but my main problem with the televangelist is his corruption of Christian teaching. I don't believe Robertson will ever have much success winning over atheists with his particular brand of lunacy.

Taking Robertson's comments to their "logical" conclusion, one could even believe that God supports abortion........after all, the aborted fetus could have become an Adolf Hitler as well.

Greater men than Robertson (or Arel) have struggled with the problem of evil in this world and why the innocent must suffer. I'm afraid I'm not going to be able to satisfy either one with my answer. Unlike Robertson, I don't believe I can read God's thoughts, but unlike Arel, I believe God has the answer.

The Problem With Internet Quotes..........

In a recent post [Trust thou not in fake memes – Not William Shakespeare] Mark Shea was expressing his frustration over people who generate fake memes by taking a phony quote, pasting the quote onto a photo of Pope Francis, and attributing the phony quote to the Pope.

Someone left the following in the comment box:

"The problem with Internet quotes is that you can't always depend on their accuracy." - Abraham Lincoln, 1864

I remembered seeing that quote before. I was reasonably certain that I had also seen the joke used as a quote from other famous (and infamous) pre-Internet folk.

I've gathered a few of the memes from Google Images and added a few of my own.