Tom Faranda's Folly

Alan Dershowitz, famed liberal Democrat lawyer and scholar, leaves the Democrat Party

This should be big news - similar to Liz Cheney saying she's voting for Harris - but it will not make the headlines of the NY Times or really any of the major media - except FOX. Hit this link for Dershowitz bio.

Attorney Alan Dershowitz says he is leaving the Democratic Party after being “disgusted” by the recent Democratic National Convention, which he described as “anti-Zionist.”

During a recent radio interview with Zev Brenner, Dershowitz criticized the convention for giving legitimacy to anti-Israel speakers and anti-Israel protesters outside the convention in Chicago last month. 

“It was the most anti-Jewish, anti-Israel, anti-Zionist convention I’ve experienced,” he said. “I was disgusted at the Democratic National Convention. Absolutely disgusted.”

“I am no longer a Democrat. I am an Independent,” he said, though he wouldn’t say who he plans to vote for in the November matchup between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris. He said he might not reveal who he plans to vote for until after November 1.

“I want to see how they deal with Iran. I want to encourage the current administration to support Israel,” he said.

Saturday wordle - ugh - a miss

After 20 correct - word is OWNER and I should have gotten it straightaway rather than using up my turns with weird words. My very bad.

Amazing - Husband/wife; she wins Paris Olympic gold; he wins Paralympic gold

What a great story this is. She wins the Olympic long jump gold and he wins the Paralympic 400M gold as well as other medals.

Woodhall and Davis-Woodhall, who wed in 2022, went viral at the Paris Olympics thanks to their emotional celebration of Davis-Woodhall's win, her first Olympic medal.

The couple, who also competed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, met at a high school track meet when they were seniors.

Davis-Woodhall went onto join the track and field team at the University of Georgia and then transferred to the University of Texas at Austin, where she finished her college career in 2021.

Husband throws welcome home surprise for Olympic gold medal-winning wife

Woodhall competed in track at the University of Arkansas, where he made history as the first double-amputee to get a Division I track and field scholarship.

Olympic power couple Tara Davis-Woodhall and Hunter Woodhall celebrate gold medal win

Born with fibular hemimelia, in which the fibula, a bone in his lower legs, never formed, Woodhall had both legs amputated below the knee at 11 months old, according to his Paralympic bio.

Friday wordle

Took about six minutes

Friday cocktail - A dark daiquiri; veeery tasty!

As opposed to the standard and better known light daiquiri. The Farandaville recipe below the short video.

 

Farandaville two slightly different variations -

Myers Jamaican rum - 2oz.

Lime juice - 1 oz

Demerara syrup - 3/4 oz   

Shaken and poured as above; we cut the demerara back to 3/4 oz. from the video's 1 oz.

Second variation same our the first one, but only 3/4 oz of lime juice.

Both are delicious - will soon try with 1 oz. of lime and 1 oz. demerara. The demerara adds hint of carmel and molasses flavors. You can order demerara on amazon - have it the next day.  

Thursday wordle

Took six minutes

NY Times Dementia test - Brain - health - mind quiz - are you susceptible?

Ok very easy to do the 12 questions - then you get a number. Mine was 16 out of 21, indicating "low risk." Family and friends may disagree on that ...

Do You Have Healthy Brain Habits? These 12 questions can help assess your risk for dementia, stroke and depression, and identify ways to reduce it.

 

Wednesday wordle

Took one minute.

Bio of Fr. Tony, Holy Name's new pastor

I'm impressed. Fr Anthony Ekanem. Text is from the Holy Name of Mary bulletin

Get to Know Fr. Tony

Fr. Tony is the fourth of 8 children and the younger of a set of twins born to Columba L. Ekanem, a late Chief Inspection of Education and Brigid C. Ekanem, a schoolteacher. He was born on April 15 in Pennsylvania when his father was studying here.

His desire to become a Missionary priest after his Junior Seminary training was obvious when hedecided to forgo his admission to the University of Calabar, Nigeria to study medicine and instead continue his formation program at the National Missionary Seminary. He applied for admission into the Missionary Seminary of Saint Paul for priestly formation.

His formation began in 1980, which was followed by his philosophy studies in Iperu – Remo, OgunState, Nigeria. In 1984, he moved to Abuja to continue his study of theology moderated by the Pontifical Urban University of Rome. Fr. Tony was ordained a priest in Gwagwalada in Abuja, Nigeria, July 1, 1989.

He was appointed a Seminary Bursar after his ordination in Abuja. During his free time, he was involved in pastoral work in the nearby parishes. In October 1990, his first mission took him as far as Sierra Leone in Makeni Diocese, where he taught in a Secondary School and served as an assistant pastor in Theresa’s Catholic Church, Yonibana.

In October 1992, he came to the United States Mission and began his Orientation Program in Washington, DC under the Supervision of the Josephites in Baltimore. Later he was assigned as an associate pastor to St. Peter the Apostle Church in Houston. Two years later, he was assigned pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Port Arthur, Texas in the Beaumont Diocese. During this time, he studied and obtained his master’s at St. Thomas University of Houston, Texas in Pastoral Studies. After 3 years at Sacred Heart Church, he was transferred to St. Martin de Porres Church in Barrett Station, Texas, and served as pastor for over 10 years. While he was there, he became a member of the Knights of St. Peter Clever, 4th degree.

Fr. Tony also took a Chaplain course on Clinical Pastoral Education for four years at Herman Memorial and Methodist Hospital at Medical Center in Houston and obtained his doctorate degree in Pastoral Care and Counseling in 2017 from the Graduate Theological Foundation in Indiana.

In 2004, he was appointed Local Superior to the United States Missions, and in September 2007, he was elected to the Missionary Society of Saint Paul General Council, Abuja, Nigeria. He served as a Counselor in charge of Mission and priests’ welfare for six years. Fr Tony was appointed as pastor of St. Philip Neri Church in Houston, Texas on November 15, 2013.

In early January 2015, he left that position and was assigned to the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in June 2015. There he worked for 3 years and became a member of the Knights of Columbus, 4^th degree.

In June 2018, he was transferred to The Church of Immaculate Conception – Saint Mary’s in Yonkers. On December 1, 2022, his religious group appointed him a Community Leader of Area Seven consisting of New York and Baltimore. On June 30, 2024, the 175-year-old Church was officially merged with Saint Denis–Saint Peters.

Finally, Fr. Tony was officially assigned on August 19, 2024, as administrator of the Church of the Holy Name of Mary, Croton on Hudson. On September 14, 2024, Fr. Tony will be installed as Pastor of this parish by the Most Reverend Bishop Edmund Whalen.

Tuesday wordle

Two minutes.

Looking back - our (only) camping trip this summer

Ahhh, yes only one. We did have our very nice trip to Jim Thorpe, PA and Brigid and myslef did some hiking - but no camping. So as we did last summer -  Last Week's Adirondack Adventure  - we met up with our good buddy Laurie Hurley from Vermont and went to a different campsite, Putnam Pond, about 15 minutes south west of Ticonderoga NY and about 15 minutes east of last year's campground. We arrived Thursday August 15th and left Sunday, August 18th - so three nights of camping. Happily with little rain or mosquitoes.

We quickly unloaded all the important items -

No mosquitoes, no rain, but we did meet the local camp resident who visited us the whole time we were there. Encouraged by Brigid who started putting nuts out for him/her.

So Thursday we ate dinner in our campsite, had a good bit of some wine and continued expanding the legends-in-our-own-mind we have of ourselves. Then earlish on Friday Laurie and I drove around the extensive campsite, scoping out the many hiking trails running through the site. In fact we came across a mixed group of students entering Cornell in September. They were offered some bonding (!?) opportunities by Cornell before they were scheduled to arrive at the College and this group decided on a four day hike that ended at the Putnam Pond site. We had an nice brief conversation with them - I told them my brother Paul had been a cox on their crew teams for the four years he was at Cornell - they were very mildly impressed...

Late in the morning we buzzed off for a hike that was almost 3 miles - in and out, had to retrace our steps -

Uh oh. Should have photoshopped this....

In the late afternoon Laurie and I took off for another what we thought would be quick one mile walk, but the sign threw us off and it was twice that. Brigid stayed behind to read and feed the chipmunk.

We had a nice dinner (very nice) at a golf club that was open for dinner and with a nice, very nice view. Picture taken by the young waitress who was soon heading to college for a nursing degree.

Smoke from Canadian forest fires were effecting the atmosphere - the moon was red - in fact effected the entire sky.

So Saturday the 17th - a 5.4 mile and very scenic hike. From the campsite Laurie and I headed north (Brigid again passed - read her massive book, talked to the chipmunk and other Brigid things). the walk took us through rolling forest areas, not too many big hills and lots of ponds and lakes.

The path behind us over my shoulder went on beautifully for several hundred yards.

Here it is further along -

About to descend to a really gorgeous spot -

Yup, gorgeous. Laurie (math whizz) pointed out that the hills created an almost perfect sine curve!

If you look very carefully in the above picture you may barely make out an orange spot across the lake to the right of the large outcrop.

About 300 yards away; it's a tent. We saw surprisingly few people on this hike. As we walked up from the lake we spoke with three older hikers - maybe even older than myself, and they said very few people hike this trail, which is surprising.

Saturday evening we went to Mass in Schroon Lake and then found a really nice bar/restaurant in Schroon. Actually had a twenty minute discussion with a couple of people from NJ at the next table - they heard us talking about cocktails! Kindred souls. They suggested a cocktail called a Rhode Island Red - if you google it a rooster comes up - but the link will take you to the recipe. We haven't tried it yet but we will.

Next and last day we packed up and drove about thirty minutes to Hague, NY and the Swede Mountain Trail to a retired fire tower. Again just Laurie and myself with Brigid staying behind and reading. It's about a two mile round trip and while some websites rate the trail as "Easy" it was a bit more in the moderate area. But worth it to climb the tower.

These were all along the trail. Brought handfuls back for Brigid.

 

Swede Mountain tops out at 1904' and the tower is another 50'. But it was cloudy! Too bad.

We met a nice fellow at the top, in his 40's. Had recently come back to the area and was trying to get back to his roots. Wish I'd gotten his picture - so you're stuck with the two of us.

Got back down, Brigid got her blackberries and we hung out for awhile by the trailhead. Then it was adieu and Laurie headed back to Vermont and we went south. What a great holiday! Thinking of maybe doing two trips next year, one to Pennsylvania and again upstate to the Adirondacks. We will see if that can work out. Or some other plan - maybe New England...

Monday wordle

Took about four minutes

50 years ago today; Carson can't keep up with Rodney Dangerfield's one-liners

September 2, 1974 - the Tonight Show.

"When I was born the doctor smacked me -- I found out the nurse got a couple in too"

Sunday wordle

Took three minutes.

Leanne Morgan - one minute long; amusing

But you have to hit the link.

"For all my tired Mama's"

 

Saturday wordle

"Pro-Life Pregnancy Center Vandalized After Democrat Convention"

Not much damage - just spray painted the building and cemented the doors shut. What's the big deal? Meanwhile my friend Joan Andrews gets 27 month sentence "Pro-lifers imprisoned under FACE Act speak out" for walking into a clinic, sitting on the floor and saying the rosary.

After the conclusion of the Democratic National Convention, a pro-life pregnancy center in Chicago was vandalized. Aid to Women is a pro-life nonprofit that was started in 1978. It runs two maternity homes and five pregnancy centers in the Chicago area. Early Friday morning, red paint resembling blood was splattered on one of the Chicago locations. The doors were cemented shut and vandals spray painted the words “fake clinics” and “the dead babies are in Gaza” near the center’s entrance. Because of the vandalism, Aid to Women had to cancel Friday appointments with women seeking assistance.

Friday wordle - took a looong time

Very tough. But, my friend Laurie managed it quickly. Grrrr.

Friday cocktail - The Hunter!

So a very interesting bourbon cocktail. CAUTION! All the recipes I've seen for this cocktail are "alcohol forward" - they are using bourbons in the 100 to 110 proof range. At Farandaville we had two recipes. First good ol' Jim Beam which is 80 proof. The second with Knob Creek at 100 proof. Watch the video and then our two recipes are below.

Both of our renditions were mixed in an Old Fashioned glass (see image below) on the rocks; we did not mix it in one glass and then pour it into another. Too much trouble. ...

Lower alcohol version:

Jim Beam - 2 oz.

Bak's Cherry liqueur  - 3/4 oz.

Luxardo maraschino liqueur (sweet; almost a simple syrup)  1/4 oz.

2 dashes orange bitters

Full octane version:

Knob Creek - 2 1/2 oz.

Heering cherry liqueur - 3/4 oz.

Luxardo maraschino liqueur  - 1/4 oz

2 dashes orange bitters

I preferred the Knob Creek version (delicious!); I think the bourbon and the Heering liqueur were superior. Brigid was undecided; kept wanting additional samples ...

If you're not familiar this is an old fashioned glass -

 

 

Thursday wordle

"Sarah Palin May Finally Bring Justice to the New York Times"

From yesterday's Wall Street Journal - The judge may have been biased against Ms. Palin (my conclusion from the column)? Not exactly a surprise.

Maybe the “oops defense” really can’t protect the New York Times from the consequences of its editorial decisions. News consumers may have concluded that anything goes when media organizations employ unfair and false claims to smear conservative politicians. But accountability just might be staging a comeback. The Journal’s Erin Mulvaney reports:

A federal appeals court on Wednesday revived Sarah Palin’s defamation suit against the New York Times, ruling a trial judge committed a series of errors in managing the former Republican vice-presidential candidate’s case.

Palin’s lawsuit, filed in 2017, alleged the newspaper defamed her in an editorial about gun violence. The article incorrectly suggested that an ad circulated by Palin’s political-action committee inspired a 2011 shooting in Tucson, Ariz., where six people died, and then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was wounded. The Times issued two corrections. 

Palin, who sued the Times and former editorial page editor James Bennet, said those corrective efforts were insufficient.

Yes they were, even if it’s taking a while for her rights to be vindicated. Ms. Mulvaney reports:

Palin’s case went to trial in 2022 and a jury sided with the Times. In an unusual move, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff announced during jury deliberations that he planned to dismiss the case after the verdict, concluding that Palin hadn’t met the demanding legal standard of proof.

The Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday said Rakoff’s move was improper and ordered a new trial… The panel said Rakoff also made other missteps, including the erroneous exclusion of certain evidence, that impugned the reliability of the verdict. 

In 2022, this column noted that if Mr. Bennet’s defense was successful, victims of journalistic malpractice might find it nearly impossible to win libel cases against media organizations. That’s because he went well beyond claiming that errors happen in the rush to publish a daily newspaper. He essentially argued that he didn’t intend to write what his editorial clearly stated.

In 2022 Jonathan Stempel and Jody Godoy reported on the trial for Reuters:

The former New York Times editor who oversaw the 2017 editorial underlying Sarah Palin’s defamation lawsuit against the newspaper on Wednesday denied trying to blame the prominent Republican for the 2011 mass shooting that seriously wounded former U.S. congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

James Bennet testified that changes he made to a draft of the editorial, which the Times later corrected, were not intended to hold either the former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican U.S. vice presidential candidate or her political action committee responsible for the shooting.

Here’s the original false paragraph Mr. Bennet and the Times published before correction:

In 2011, when Jared Lee Loughner opened fire in a supermarket parking lot, grievously wounding Representative Gabby Giffords and killing six people, including a 9-year-old girl, the link to political incitement was clear. Before the shooting, Sarah Palin’s political action committee circulated a map of targeted electoral districts that put Ms. Giffords and 19 other Democrats under stylized cross hairs.

Is there any rational person who read this and did not think the Times was blaming Ms. Palin and the political action committee?

In a 2017 filing the Palin legal team cited various precedents in suggesting that such a defense, if successful, would make a mockery of libel law:

If a defendant could avoid liability simply by claiming the equivalent of “oops … that’s not what I meant,” it would “erect a logically impossible test which by its practical application would inevitably result in no defamation case ever qualifying for jury resolution.”

All along, the New York Times and its former editor have tried to present themselves as well-meaning and fair people who made sloppy mistakes. But to this day, even after corrections, the editorial on the Times website continues to mention Ms. Palin in a negative light in a story about shootings to which she had absolutely no connection. The smearing of Sarah Palin by the New York Times still hasn’t ended.

Wednesday wordle

"Tom Wright answers Old Testament Questions about the historicity of Exodus"

NT Wright is an Anglican Bishop and very respected New Testament scholar, famous for his historical study of the Resurrection. So this question is not directly in his wheelhouse, but he gives a good general answer. Wikipedia has a good discussion of this also. Origins and Historicity. I think Wright's view of Exodus is very much a mainstream view.

 

Tuesday wordle

Bob Ferguson

A Croton resident and parishioner of our Church, Holy Name of Mary. He and his lovely wife Dorothy were very active in our community and church for decades.

Bob had 66 years of service with the Knights of Columbus.

A wonderful man. Here is his obituary, "highlighting the man he was"

Robert E. Ferguson,  August 11, 1940 – August 24, 2024

 

Sunday's Half Moon Bay accident

A residential complex in Croton on the river. There was a big commotion Sunday morning with fire whistles, emergency vehicles, etc. Thankfully no injuries but hit the link for the pictures!

Medical Emergency Caused Driver To Slam Into Half Moon Bay Clubhouse

Around 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, a Croton-on-Hudson Fire Department car was flagged down moments after the motor vehicle accident at the entrance to Half Moon Bay, where a vehicle struck a clubhouse building.

Short read: "New ‘Doomsday Glacier’ study offers a bit of hope"

If you hit the link it's a five minute read. No pay wall.

Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier got its nickname the “Doomsday Glacier” for its potential to flood coastlines around the world if it collapsed. It is already contributing about 4% of annual sea-level rise as it loses ice, and one theory suggests the glacier could soon begin to collapse into the ocean like a row of dominoes. But is that kind of rapid collapse really as likely as feared? A new study of Thwaites Glacier’s susceptibility to what’s known as marine ice cliff instability offers some hope. But the findings don’t mean Thwaites is stable.

Thwaites Glacier drains a huge area of Antarctica’s ice sheet—about 74,000 square miles (192,000 square kilometers), an expanse bigger than Florida. If a snowflake falls within that drainage system, it will eventually end up as part of an iceberg in the ocean off Thwaites.

****************

Thwaites Glacier holds enough ice to raise global sea level by more than 2 feet (0.65 meters). Once Thwaites starts to destabilize, it also will destabilize neighboring glaciers. So, what happens to Thwaites affects all of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, and that affects sea-level rise along coastlines everywhere.

***********

We found that Thwaites would remain fairly stable at least through 2100. We also simulated an ice shelf collapse in 50 years, when the glacier’s grounding line—where its grounded ice meets the ocean—would have retreated deeper inland. Even then, we found that marine ice cliff instability alone would not cause a rapid retreat.

The results call into question some recent estimates of just how fast Thwaites might collapse. That includes a worst-case scenario that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change mentioned in its latest assessment report but labeled as “low likelihood.”

Thwaites is the glacier everyone is worried about. If you model the entire ice sheet, this is where marine ice cliff instability starts and where it propagates far inland. So, if Thwaites isn’t as vulnerable to ice cliff failure as we thought, that’s a good sign for the entire ice sheet.

 

Monday wordle - another ace - two in a row.

Funny - almost identical to this word - only a couple of letters transposed. Sunday wordle - another ace! They must be getting lazy ...

Love it! "This is the best time to be a Christian"

Awhile ago I posted another video by this priest - Casey Cole a Franciscan who is about 32 years old. He was ordained in 2019. On the same subject here is an excellent short (94 pages) book to read From Christendom to Apostolic Mission. I read it on my kindle. The author is Father James Shea, President of the University of Mary a Benedictine school in North Dakota.  He was named President in 2008 and at the time was the youngest college president in the Country.

Here's Father Cole - his youtube channel has 378,000 subscribers. Eat your heart out mainstream Catholic press, who struggle to make an online impact.

 

Sunday wordle - another ace!

And had one last Thursday. Luck trumps skill.