Tom Faranda's Folly

The Resurrection: Four Artists

I like this posting so much, I've put it up for many (not all) Easter's since first posting it in 2009.

 

So again:

The original posting is one of the most visited on my blog.

What happens when an untalented barbarian like myself, is married to an artistic, creative,and talented person?

I post stuff like this for Easter:

Starting with Fra Angelica, around 1443. Oh, and it's now Blessed Fra Angelica

 

El Greco, 1577. One of my favorite painters, but what's with the Greek columns? Not one of his best -

 

Now, skipping a few centuries (past Rubens, YUK, etc) to some contemporary renderings

Arcabas (Jean Marie Pirot), 1998. Life not death, and a large painting. Compare the size with the altar and furniture.  Go here to learn about him:ARCABAS - Contemporary religious art museum

 

And the Chinese Christian painter He Qi  - Go here  - Art Works of He Qi .::About Artist::.

I love this. No banner; instead a lily. And check out the women.

 

Holy Saturday art: "He descended into hell..."

FULL DISCLOSURE: I cheated. This is the same posting I put up for Holy Saturday in March, 2016. But I love it. 

Yeah that's today. 

I love the story the Faranda family guru, the late Fr. Benedict Groeschel, liked to tell:

"No doubt the arrival of Jesus in Hell/Limbo was quite spectacular - The Harrowing of Hell - and quite terrifying for the inhabitants. Except for one man, who walks up to Jesus and says 'Tell me, how is your mother' ..."

By Tintoretto, "Descent into Hell" about 1580

Andrea Mantegna, 1470, "Jesus entering Limbo"

Not sure of the source, but I like it - carrying the cross

And this, from a Church in Istanbul

Good Friday

UPDATE: Pictures from the Stations, below as we walked across 42nd. St. There were more people this year than in the several past years - over 300. But still many less than the 800 or so when we started going in the 1990's.

I'll be doing the Pax Christi Stations of the Cross across Manhattan this morning. Good public event. Takes about three hours.

Mueller Time: Democrat media making chicken salad out of chicken shit...?

Amusing. Grasping at straws. Paper straws, not the plastic ones... And plenty more of their hysteria here.

 

Tim's javelin throw follow through; his last collegiate meet is Saturday

The East Coast Conference Championship when Tim will be throwing the javelin (his favorite) and the shot put.

Start of the Easter Triduum: Holy Thursday, The Last Supper

Leonardo Da Vinci - The Last Supper which he completed in the 1490's.

 

The Atlantic: "Is Dentistry a Science?" plus exposing a crooked dentist

FULL DISCLOSURE: I have a great dentist!

But this is some tale from The Atlantic Magazine.

Lund extracted the wisdom tooth with no complications, and Mitchell began seeing him regularly. He never had any pain or new complaints, but Lund encouraged many additional treatments nonetheless. A typical person might get one or two root canals in a lifetime. In the space of seven years, Lund gave Mitchell nine root canals and just as many crowns. Mitchell’s insurance covered only a small portion of each procedure, so he paid a total of about $50,000 out of pocket. The number and cost of the treatments did not trouble him. He had no idea that it was unusual to undergo so many root canals—he thought they were just as common as fillings. The payments were spread out over a relatively long period of time. And he trusted Lund completely. He figured that if he needed the treatments, then he might as well get them before things grew worse.

Washington Post: "Admit it: Fox News has been Right All Along"

It's an op ed. Nowadays you need a subscription to get on the Washington Post website for anything, so here is an article about the above article.

... once a letter from Attorney General Bill Barr revealed that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation found no evidence of this criminal conspiracy, reporters, editors and others at liberal news outlets should be forced to state that they were wrong on this issue even though it's safe to say many won't give up the ghost. That was the thrust of an op-ed from Washington Post contributing columnist ...  Gary Abernathy with the title “Admit It: Fox News Has been Right All Along.”

And here is a link to the full WaPo op ed in case you are a subscriber.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/04/15/admit-it-fox-news-has-been-right-all-along/

Rolling Stone Mag offers it's wisdom on rebuilding Notre Dame

It's Rolling Stone. It's predictable. They are lightweights.

But for some people in France, Notre Dame has also served as a deep-seated symbol of resentment, a monument to a deeply flawed institution and an idealized Christian European France that arguably never existed in the first place. “The building was so overburdened with meaning that its burning feels like an act of liberation,” says Patricio del Real, an architecture historian at Harvard University.

Despite politicians on both sides of the French political spectrum discouraging people from trying to politicize the Notre Dame fire, it would be a mistake to view the building as little more than a Paris tourist attraction, says John Harwood, an architectural historian and associate professor at the University of Toronto.

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What it means to be “French,” however, has obviously changed a great deal over the past few centuries. While France is still predominantly Christian, the number of practicing Catholics has fallen year after year, from 64% in 2010 to 56% in 2012, according to one census figure.

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Despite the lip service many French people and politicians have given to the symbolic significance of Notre Dame in the hours following the fire, Birignani says that as France has changed, so too has Notre Dame lost some of its weight as a totem of national identity, and is skeptical of some of the effusive rhetoric that has been borne from the flames. Now that the world has rallied in support of the rebuilding of the cathedral, however, and donations have started pouring in from all over the world, there’s likely to be renewed interest around the cathedral as an emblem of French history and culture. For some, this is deeply concerning. “One of the things that worries me about this event is that in a country that is deeply divided right now like France is and having this assumption of [Notre Dame] serving as a bedrock institution, it creates a hole and you have to imagine what it has to become again and who does the imagining, and that is a really loaded question,” says Harwood.

 

 

 

 

 

Inside Notre Dame - a message - if we look for it

UPDATE: The news media has already picked up on this. CNN called it "Redemptive."

This is a television image from last night.

Bernie Sanders: generous with everyone else's $$$, not so much with his own.

Sanders is not much for charitable giving - in fact he's a cheap SOB. From the Daily Beast, a rather "progressive" online magazine.

The documents show that over the years, Sanders’ income ranged from $205,617 to $1.1 million, while his charitable giving ranged from less than 1 percent to just over 4 percent depending on the year.

Last year, Sanders’ total income was $566, 421 and he donated $18,950 or 3.35 percent. In 2017, his income was $1.1 million and he gave away $36,300 or 3.15 percent. The year before that he also made more than $1 million but donated $10,600 or less than 1 percent.

1%? Of course that's five times more than Joe Biden gave on many of his returns. Shameful.

 

 

Pigs fly - Cher agrees with Trump

A Cher tweet -

BB: Ocasio-Cortez on "The Price is Right" guesses that everything is "free"

HOLLYWOOD, CA—Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was pumped to attend a taping of The Price Is Right in Hollywood this week. The special guest introduced herself as a U.S. representative and rising star of the Democratic Party. Things got interesting when the game began and every time it was her turn to estimate the price of an item her answer was "free."

Items included a set of Italian leather handbags, an all expenses paid trip to the Bahamas, and a brand new 2019 BMW 330i, at all of which Ocasio-Cortez shouted, "FREE!"

When host Drew Carey asked if Ocasio-Cortez understood the game's rules, she told Carey not to cat-call her and then responded, "Don't hate me cause you ain't me."

... Carey unveiled a package containing world-class healthcare and she said, "Definitely free." She was at one point puzzled by a stack of croissants but eventually guessed that they also were free.

Cortez was never able to advance to the game proper, and as the credits rolled she appeared visibly upset. A hot mic picked up comments she made in frustration, claiming that the game was rigged by capitalism and that "everybody knows giant piles of money are free, that's like basic economics 101".

My friend, Lewis Montana honored by the K of C (Knights of Columbus)

Lew was honored three weeks ago at the always nice Westchester-Putnam Chapter luncheon. he was the Advocate (keeps the Council going by the K of C rules) since before I was a member - over thirty years. The luncheon always honors a number of people from various Councils.

It's a big deal!

Here's Brigid, then Regina, who is Lew's best feature, Lew, then Maggie DePass and Joe Costanzo

Earl DePass, Pat Delasho, and half of Dave Lally who is the current Grand Knight of the Council.

And stalwarts - Dan and Kathy Daudier - others from our Council were out smoking cigars

and chatting to this young lady, who I believe was discussing her roller derby career (really)

Here's Lew and Regina as he is honored -

Well deserved.

 

 

YIKES! Deer invasion

Long ago in Westchester deer lost their Bambi image and have been viewed as pests. They eat your plants and leave behind ticks carrying Lyme. So yesterday Brigid spotted a deer lolling around in our backyard. Here are a few pictures.

Can you spot her?

I zoomed in. Twice.

Semi-tame - I got within about 20 feet before she stood up and looked nervous.

And headed off behind our pool ... because - she had a yearling there who suddenly popped up ...

I hadn't seen the yearling - she (he?) was behind the pool and got up - surprised me -

the mother was now perturbed - annoyed with me?

yearling hiding -

Later in the early afternoon I took a few more pictures from the upstairs bathroom - the birds won't be happy. Brigid not sure what to do. First it's the squirrels raiding the bird feed, now it's deer...

Another First World problem.

 

Bill & Hillary conversation tour: "Only a heckler can improve an evening with the money-grabbing Clintons"

People go to these things and pay money? The Clintons don't have enough already?

Thursday night marked the kickoff, in New York City, of their national speaking tour. Billed as “a one-of-a-kind conversation with two individuals who have helped shape our world … [and who offer] remarkable insight into where we go from here,” the event simply underscored why Hillary lost: Over-promise, under-deliver, avoid accountability, and expect the masses to nonetheless be satisfied.

Coverage of this snoozefest was typically respectful and anodyne, yet the most exciting moment of the night made little if any news. Not quite halfway through the event, a man in the front row stood up and interrupted.

“Bill, this is boring!” he yelled. As he tried asking his question — “Why don’t you talk about — ” Hillary immediately began talking over him, saying that the “important political conversations” they were trying to have could be difficult, especially when interrupted by such “agent provocateurs.”

“Jeffrey Epstein!” shouted the man.

Oh, the irony.

Today - Off to Tim's next to last college track meet

Wow. Hard to believe that Tim's eight years of high school and college sports are soon to end. I think we could count on one hand the number of football games (Stepinac) or track meets (Stepinac and St. Thomas Aquinas College) we missed. Here are a few shots of Tim two weeks ago at a meet at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania. Today we are in New Jersey at a meet at Rider College.

First the shot put -

And the event he really loves, the javelin -

As you can tell in this picture, javelin throwers come in all sizes

Heheh. Gotta love this one. Tim needs to do more arm work in the gym...

"Hillary Clinton reacts to the arrest of Julian Assange"

One minute long. Pretty much what you'd expect her to say, with an amusing one-liner at the end. She is speaking to a NY City group.

# of jobless claims lowest in 50 years

And of course there were fewer people in the job force 50 years ago.

The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits dropped to a 49-1/2-year low last week, pointing to sustained labor market strength that could temper expectations of a sharp slowdown in economic growth.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 196,000 for the week ended April 6, the lowest level since early October 1969. Claims have now declined for four straight weeks. Data for the prior week was revised to show 2,000 more applications received than previously reported.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims would rise to 211,000 in the latest week. The Labor Department said no states were estimated last week.

No surprise - NY Governor Cuomo endorses suicide

Says it's a "difficult" decision. State sponsored killing. Cuomo is a true proponent of the culture of death.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says he would sign legislation allowing people with a terminal illness to seek life-ending medication from a physician. The Democrat said Tuesday on public radio's WAMC that he knows the topic is "difficult" for many people and that his support would depend on the details of the legislation.

 

C-Span: Black activist Candace Owens crushes 2 Democrats on the Judiciary Committee

Wow. She owned them as they tried to trap her with suggestions she was sympathetic to Hitler. And the Chairman Nadler wasn't even paying attention to what she'd said. This under 4 minute clip has almost 5 million views on twitter.

 

My Congresswoman, Nita Lowey, embarasses herself (again)

As she goes after Attorney General William Barr yesterday. Unfortunately this tape doesn't show Barr's response, as he patiently explains that he was in close contact with Robert Mueller, knew what his conclusions were, and didn't rush his memo.  The whole video is enlightening - and amusing.

Another study says vitamin supplementation is not helpful

I think there are mixed results from various studies; I'll keep taking my vitamins...

Getting the right amount of vitamins and minerals can lower your risk of an early death, but they should come from food instead of supplements, a study published Tuesday suggests. Researchers from Tufts University say they found no association between the use of dietary supplements and a lower risk of death.

Ocasio-Cortez changes accent; sounding like Jar Jar Binks to appeal to Gungans.

Thanks to the BB for uncovering this.

NABOO—Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has come under fire after giving a speech to a crowd of Gungan supporters on the planet of Naboo. Critics claim Ocasio-Cortez clearly shifted her speaking style to try to emulate the Gungans' speech patterns, changing her speech to sound exactly like that of Jar Jar Binks.

"Meesa Ocasio-Cortez. Meesa gonna seize the means of production big-big," she said as the Gungan crowd cheered. "Meesa your humble servant who's in charge." The congresswoman unveiled a plan to save Naboo, one which would coincidentally require giving her all the power and money. "Yousa planet gonna die big, icky icky goo goo if yousa don't change your habits." She pointed out that the ecosystem of the planet's core was already changing, and the giant monsters which live down there will likely die within 12 Coruscant solar cycles.

"Yousa all gonna do whatever I say now, okeeday?" she added.

Some Gungans were offended by her remarks. "Ex-squeeze me, but wesa the ones who say 'mesa,' not yousa!" cried one Gungan in protest. Ocasio-Cortez ignored his comments, as he was sitting in the cheap seats.

Critics quickly called the obvious shift in speech patterns "pandering," but Ocasio-Cortez immediately fired back on her Comlink, saying, "How wude."

Getting unmarried from the world's richest man is very lucrative

MacKenzie Bezos - Jeff Bezos now or soon-to-be ex. $35 billion.

Here's her story in two minutes.

45th anniversary - Vince Scully calls Hank Aaron home run breaking Ruth's record -

Scully references the racial animosity felt by a few as he says "A black man is getting a standing ovation in the deep south." It is a dramatic four minute video. He did it at the age of 40, off the LA Dodgers - Al Downing (former Yankee!) was the pitcher.

 

YIKES! South African Rhino poacher trampled to death by elephant; then eaten by lions

Poaching is terrible. But many of the poachers are poor and just trying to support their families.

Four other poachers who fled the game reserve in South Africa in terror were picked up by police and explained how a member of their gang had been killed.

Not much left of him.

They found what was left of the poacher on Thursday but it appeared he had been eaten by a lion pride.

All that was left to bring back to the camp was the poacher's bloodied head some clothes.

KNP managing executive Glenn Phillips said: “Entering the Kruger illegally and on foot is not wise as it holds very many dangers and this incident is clear evidence of that.

“It was very sad to see the daughters of the deceased man mourning the loss of their father, and worse still, only being able to recover very little of his remains.”

Mr Phillips commended the search party for finding what was left of the poacher to give the family “some closure” and extended the parks’ condolences to his relatives.

 

Top websites by visits

No real surprise - google is #1, youtube #2, facebook #3. BUT - lots of pornography sites highly ranked.

Top sites ranking for all categories in United States

 

 

LA Times: "Bernie Sanders ... Start thinking of him as Frontrunner"

The columnist is right. I think Sanders will win the Democratic Nomination. I posted this back on February 20th Democrat strategist says it will be Sanders v. Trump in 2020 and I think it's very likely.

“Bernie could certainly win,” said Tad Devine, who was Sanders’ chief strategist in 2016 but isn’t working for him this time. (They had a falling-out at the end of the last campaign.) “His base of support is solid. He’s raising substantial resources.”

The biggest difference between 2016 and 2020 is that this time will likely see more than a dozen candidates vying for votes in Iowa and New Hampshire — which means a candidate could win there with no more than 30 percent of the vote.

There’s precedent for that. Jimmy Carter won Iowa with only 28 percent in 1976 and went on to win the nomination and the presidency. Twenty years later, Bob Dole won Iowa with 26 percent and won the Republican nomination.

If Sanders can win Iowa and New Hampshire, even with narrow pluralities, he’ll be the odds-on favorite for the Democratic nomination. Since 1972, five of six candidates who won both states in contested races went on to become their party’s nominee.

The reason? Winning attracts more supporters, a bandwagon effect. To stop Sanders at that point, another candidate would need to win several other contests quickly to become a clear alternative. Harris could do that by winning in South Carolina and California, which has moved its primary date to March 3.

A second factor that helps Sanders: The Democratic Party no longer allows “superdelegates,” hundreds of elected officials and other party elders, to vote on the first ballot at the convention.

That would make it harder for the party’s establishment (or what remains of it) to block a candidate who arrived with a majority or even a plurality of delegates.

A third factor is experience: candidates often perform better in a second presidential campaign than their first.

Selfie - My friend, Sister Mary Clare - plus The 4 Horsewomen of the Apocalypse!

Sister Mary Clare, OFM a Franciscan sister for 70 years!

Bonus! Four Women of the Apocalypse!

At the 19th annual N. Westchester and Putnam Center for Life breakfast yesterday.

WSJ: "‘Where’s the Recession?’ The challenge of selling socialism in a thriving economy."

Pretty good article from the Best of the Web column on the Journal.

Despite concerns about slowing economic growth, U.S. firms keep on hiring. The resilient American jobs machine also poses a political question: If the economy doesn’t fall into recession, will Democrats need a new message for 2020?

To this point, when the party’s presidential candidates have talked about economics they have largely been running against the Obama economy of 2016. Candidates typically rail against an allegedly rigged system generating higher profits for wealthy holders of financial assets, but diminished opportunities for those less fortunate, and job losses tied to technology and trade.

Whether they call themselves democratic socialists or Democrats, almost all the leading candidates are proposing to treat an allegedly broken economic system with a revolutionary increase in federal power, the socialization of health care and the end of traditional U.S. energy production, among other changes.

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Ms. Bartiromo observes that despite the volume of rhetoric demanding a Sanders-sizing of government, socialist policies are still failing legislatively. Meanwhile she notes that this year’s expected burst of initial public offerings for innovative companies could serve as a billboard for market vitality.

So who is going to buy the message that the United States needs much more government management of the economy and much less market competition? The American Enterprise Institute’s Karlyn Bowman writes in Forbes this week that although socialism has lately become a popular topic for pollsters, only a few sources can measure whether socialism is gaining popularity among survey participants:

The scattershot surveys have made headlines, but they don’t tell us how views of socialism have changed over time or whether support for it is growing. Trends with identically worded questions are few and far between. Only two that I’m aware of take us back even a decade. In Gallup’s question, first asked in 2010, 36% had a positive view and 58% a negative one. In their 2018 poll, a virtually identical 37% had a positive view and 58% a negative one. Socialism was as popular as the federal government, which as most Americans know, has not been very popular for a long time. In Fox News’ trend, 23% in 2009 said moving away from capitalism and more toward socialism would be a good thing and 65% a bad thing. In 2019, those responses were 24% and 54%, respectively.

... Polling on socialism is clearly popular right now, and it will be so until another issue catches fire and pollsters’ attention. But socialism itself is not becoming more popular among most Americans.

The positive results of President Trump’s tax cuts and deregulation are challenging Democratic candidates to update their 2016 talking points. If Mr. Trump can now resolve his trade disputes and reduce tariffs, the resulting boom could force 2020 contenders to start calling themselves democratic capitalists.