Tom Faranda's Folly

Pope announces canonization for John XXIII and JP 2

He announced it in Latin - which doesn't help me much (two years of HS Latin leaves me with Amo, Amos, Amot, in Latin I'm not so hot").

Canonizations set for April, next year.

 

A reminder that officious predictions are of no use

With the UN global warming folks again telling us that we're going to melt if we keep pumping out carbon (without explaining why in the last 15 years carbon emissions have risen, but the temperature worldwide hasn't), here's a little look at another prediction stream from the UN -

This time about population. The link is from the website Demography is Destiny -

... it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population. There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago. In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling. Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100. Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100. -

Hit the link for a bit more as the UN explains away their changes.

it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100.  - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.bikSF8to.dpuf

it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100. - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.6jAgIjc0.dpuf

Having stated last week that there is no population explosion problem, it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100.  This variation was due to high fertility rates in Africa and Latin America: - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.6jAgIjc0.dpuf

Having stated last week that there is no population explosion problem, it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100.  This variation was due to high fertility rates in Africa and Latin America: - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.6jAgIjc0.dpuf

it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100.  - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.6jAgIjc0.dpuf

it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100.  - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.6jAgIjc0.dpuf

it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100.  - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.6jAgIjc0.dpuf

it might be useful to look at the various predictions that are being made about the world’s population.  There is a large variation between what the UN is predicting to be the world’s population in 2100 and what it was predicting only a few years ago.   In 2008, the UN set a global population peak at 2070 and then a falling population after that. It predicted that in 2100 the population of the world would be a touch over 9 billion and falling.  Then in 2010 the UN released new predictions, the population was not going to peak, but was going to be at around 10 billion in 2100.  Then in 2012, the UN revised its figures again, stating that the population of the world was going to be even higher, at 10.8 billion at 2100.  - See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/12847#sthash.6jAgIjc0.dpuf

NY Times Sunday editorial: "Dawn of a Revolution in Healthcare"

Having posted the reality here Rate increases for individual health plans under Obamacare are stunning  and here Small business owner: "Obama lied, My Health Plan Died." it's only fair (& balanced) to give the other side of the story, from the progressivist bible -

The insurers will offer four levels of plans that will basically have the same essential services, but differ in the premiums charged and the amount of the bill that the insurance will pay. “Bronze” plans will pay 60 percent of an enrollee’s covered medical expenses; “silver,” 70 percent; “gold,” 80 percent; and “platinum,” 90 percent.

Federal subsidies will help enrollees pay for the premiums based on their incomes. A family of four with income between $23,550 and $31,400, will pay only 2 percent of that income for coverage, while a family of four with income between $70,650 and $94,200, will pay 9.5 percent.

Under the program, the federal government pays for the full cost of the premium — beyond the enrollee’s contribution — for the second-lowest-cost silver plan in a specific area, considered the “benchmark” plan. If people want to sign up for a cheaper bronze plan, they would pay a smaller contribution. If they want to buy a gold or platinum plan, they would have to pay more from their own pockets.

Thanks to the subsidies, more than half of the uninsured Americans may pay less than $100 a month per person for coverage.

I believe this is a fantasy but we will know soon.

Nice review of "Sala on Hudson", Spanish tapas restaurant in Croton

Excellent write-up. We have never gone, but now it's a must try.

"Restaurants we love: Sala on Hudson in Croton-on-Hudson"

Sala on Hudson, just off Route 9A in Croton-on-Hudson, is a Spanish jewel with some of the best food around — and such an appealing menu, you’ll want to make every night tapas night.

Even if you’ve avoided the tapas experience for fear you’ll leave hungry — I confess this kept me away for years — Sala on Hudson illustrates just how spectacular a small-plates dinner can be, especially when the food is first-rate. Here, the portions allow for more than a few bites, and the wait staff is happy to suggest flavor combinations that pair well. Think of dinner at Sala on Hudson as a visit to Spain, but cheaper, with culinary tour guides eager to take you through the adventure dish by dish, with free translation.

hit the link for the last three paragrpahs of the review.

Kimmel: "If Jesus was on twitter"

Mariano Rivera exits the Yankee Stadium mound for the last time

Last night. Beautiful!

Watch below, or go here for a full screen - http://wapc.mlb.com/play?content_id=30974179&topic_id=11493214

Rate increases for individual health plans under Obamacare are stunning

It's really much worse then I'd imagined. Varies by state and in NY and NJ a 27 year old man with an individual policy (not a group plan through an employer) is looking at a 63% rate increase for the lowest cost (bronze) plan. And those are some of the least devastating increases. Other states are much worse - 77% in Texas, 177% in Michigan (!!). This is before the federal subsidies, but the subsidies are not that much.

If you are a 40 year old in NY, the rate increase is "only" 28% - but 62% in NJ. As the article states, "The data from New York and New Jersey should be taken with a grain of salt, as their individual insurance markets are not like those of other states.)" However, the grain of salt is that their rate increases are less than the rest of the country.

Again, this is the individual health market through the exchanges; not a plan through a group with a large employer.

Here's this very comprehensive analysis and an excerpt below the link. But hit the link; the graphs really tell the story.

Double Down: Obamacare Will Increase Avg. Individual-Market Insurance Premiums By 99% For Men, 62% For Women

If you click on the “Your Decision” tab on our interactive map, you will now find the results, as assembled by Yevgeniy, for the 13 states plus D.C. in our original database. Here’s the bottom line: most people with average incomes will pay more under Obamacare for individually-purchased insurance than they did before.

In the 13 states plus D.C. (which I will abbreviate as 13+DC), a 27-year-old would have to make 59 percent of the median income of his peers, or less, to come out ahead with regard to Obamacare’s subsidies. A 40-year-old would have to make less than 57 percent of the median income for his peers. On the other hand, older people fare better; the average 64-year-old who makes less than 111 percent of the median income for 64-year-olds will spend less on premiums than he did before.

However, the overall results make clear that most people will not receive enough in subsidies to counteract the degree to which Obamacare drives premiums upward. Remember that nearly two-thirds of the uninsured are under the age of 40. And that young and healthy people are essential to Obamacare; unless these individuals are willing to pay more for health insurance to subsidize everyone else, the exchanges will not serve the goal of providing coverage to the uninsured.

Read the whole article. A coming train wreck.

Short video: Barcelona Cathedral, Started in 1882, scheduled for completion in 2026

A 90 second video. Not so sure I like the finished product; looks like a rocket launcher to me. This video was posted two days ago and already over 140,000 views.

 

the Washington shooter and his delusions

A sad and scary story in the Washington Post, along with the video of him in the building during his attack.

Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis driven by delusions

The government contractor who killed 12 people at the Washington Navy Yard last week was driven by delusions that he was being controlled by low-frequency radio waves and scratched the words “End the torment!” on the barrel of the shotgun he used, the FBI said Wednesday, offering new, chilling details of the attack.

Valerie Parlave, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, said that Aaron Alexis, 34, began the shooting knowing he would be killed. A search of Alexis’s electronic devices, she said, indicated that he was “prepared to die during the attack and that he accepted death as the inevitable consequence of his actions.”

My friend drops me a line re: Tom Friedman

UPDATE: This morning there was a similar - but more intelligent - column in the NYT by Nicholas Kristof: "The right wing bubble"

My hiking buddy Jeanne Marie's husband Damian is a devout Democrat. Devout to his party of course. Despite that, he is a good, well-intentioned, guy. Loyalty is sometimes to be admired.

Anyway, he sent me a Tom Friedman (NY Times columnist) recent column with a note to post it on my blog "if you dare." (Huh?) Years ago I used to post links to quite a few of his columns, but in the last several years he's become repetitive and boring.

Friedman, of course one of the NY Times big guns - three Pulitzer prizes, a wife worth $3 billion, is on Imus in the Morning, supported the invasion and overthrow of Saddam Hussein - definitely a big shot. Although he did Bomb on Jeopardy in 2012.

And in the recent article Friedman quotes one of my favorite scientists, Francis Collins, whose book I reviewed way back in December, 2006 -  Latest read: The Language of God .

The gist of the article is that Republicans, but especially Tea Party types, are bad people, unwilling to compromise and that the sequester is damaging scientific research into diseases like cancer.

Countries that don’t plan for the future tend not to do well there. When you watch the reckless behavior of the Tea Party-driven Republicans in Congress today, you can’t help but fear that we’ll be one of those. What makes it all the more frustrating is that in so many ways we have the wind at our back, if only we’d pull together to take advantage of it.

Because of the sequester and the fact that the N.I.H. budget has been losing ground to inflation for 10 years, “we will not be able to fund 640 research grants that were scored in the top 17 percent of the proposals we received,” said Collins. “They would have been funded without the sequester, but now they won’t. They include new ideas on cancer, diabetes, autism and heart disease — all the things that we as a country say are a high priority. I can’t say which of those grants would have led to the next breakthrough, or which investigator would be a Nobel Prize winner 20 years from now.”

Sooo the question is, why didn't Obama compromise? In the same way that he won't compromise on his idiotic Obamacare (which will really damage medical research!!!!), he simply refused to compromise with the Republicans. He'll talk to the Iranians, but not the Republicans. Ted Cruz needs to worry about a drone strike. ...

Amazing comeback by the USA to win America's Cup

The yacht race (The USA was down 8-1 in races and then rallied.). Although the catamarans no longer look anything like yachts. The catamaran is owned by the Oracle Corporation super-billionaire Larry Ellison. Some neat pictures and videos if you hit the link.

Oracle Team USA caps stunning comeback to win America's Cup

There were hugs and handshakes after he steered the cat across the finish line, 44 seconds ahead of Team New Zealand. Ellison, who has spent an estimated $500 million the last 11 years in pursuing, winning and now defending the silver trophy, hopped on board and the crew sprayed him with champagne.

It wasn't always so jubilant, of course, but Spithill refused to let his team fold after the penalties were announced four days before racing started.

How big was this win?

In sailing terms, it was the equivalent of the Boston Red Sox sweeping the final four games of the 2004 ALCS over the New York Yankees, the only 3-0 comeback in major league history. It's also comparable to the Philadelphia Flyers overcoming a 0-3 deficit to beat the Boston Bruins in the 2010 NHL playoffs.

Small business owner: "Obama lied, My Health Plan Died."

Michelle Malkin, the conservative commentator, who is a small business person. Family insurance cancelled. Happening all over the country, including the tri-state area.

Obamacare is delivering a death knell to insurance plans on the individual market.

Like an estimated 22 million other Americans, I am a self-employed small-business owner who buys health insurance for my family directly on the individual market. We have a high-deductible PPO plan that allows us to choose from a wide range of doctors.

Or rather, we had such a plan.

Last week, our family received notice from Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield of Colorado that we can no longer keep the plan we like because of “changes from health care reform (also called the Affordable Care Act or ACA).” The letter informed us that “to meet the requirements of the new laws, your current plan can no longer be continued beyond your 2014 renewal date.”

In short: Obama lied. My health plan died.

Remember? Our president looked America straight in the eye and promised: “If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor. Period. If you like your health-care plan, you will be able to keep your health-care plan. Period. No one will take it away. No matter what.”

House minority leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) also lied when she pledged: “Keep your doctor, and your current plan, if you like them.”

This isn’t just partisan business. It’s personal. Our cancellation letter states that Anthem is “not going to be selling new individual PPO plans.” When we asked whether we could keep our children’s doctors, an agent for Anthem told my husband and me that she didn’t know. The insurer has no details available yet on what exactly they’ll be offering. We either will be herded into the Obamacare federal health-insurance-exchange regime (launching October 1), a severely limited HMO plan, or we’ll be presented with costlier alternatives from another insurer. If they even exist.

Hit the link for the whole, sorry story. This is happening around the USA.

 

Ted Cruz mammoth speech: sparring with Senator Dick Durbin

Draw your own conclusions.

 

My friend Judy's newspaper interview regarding Pope Francis' interview

Excellent! I love it. A short video of Judy and then she's quoted in the article.

Local Catholics rejoice at pope's 'beautiful tone' for church. Many say pontiff seeks compassion, not new teachings

Gallup poll: Record # of Americans say Gov't. has too much power

Count me in the 60%.

Six in 10 Americans (60%) believe the federal government has too much power, one percentage point above the previous high recorded in September 2010. At least half of Americans since 2005 have said the government has too much power. Thirty-two percent now say the government has the right amount of power. Few say it has too little power.

Remember how you could keep your doctor under Obamacare?

The fine print - unless you are poor or in the middle class.

From the NY Times yesterday -

When insurance marketplaces open on Oct. 1, most of those shopping for coverage will be low- and moderate-income people for whom price is paramount. To hold down costs, insurers say, they have created smaller networks of doctors and hospitals than are typically found in commercial insurance. And those health care providers will, in many cases, be paid less than what they have been receiving from commercial insurers.

Insurers say that with a smaller array of doctors and hospitals, they can offer lower-cost policies and have more control over the quality of health care providers. They also say that having insurance with a limited network of providers is better than having no coverage at all.

Cigna illustrates the strategy of many insurers. It intends to participate next year in the insurance marketplaces, or exchanges, in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Tennessee and Texas.

“The networks will be narrower than the networks typically offered to large groups of employees in the commercial market,” said Joseph Mondy, a spokesman for Cigna.

The current concerns echo some of the criticism that sank the Clinton administration’s plan for universal coverage in 1993-94. Republicans said the Clinton proposals threatened to limit patients’ options, their access to care and their choice of doctors.

As one of my physician's (a woman) said a year ago "The drive is to have a VA (Veterans Administration) standard of care for all." Not exactly cutting edge stuff.

Charles Rangel: You're going to hell if you don't vote to expand food stamps and social security

On MSNBC. the Democrat Preferential Option for the Government

How the mighty have fallen: Offer to take Blackberry private for $4.7 billion

Blackberry has a lot of cash on hand (not sure of the exact number) so the price really isn't $4.7 billion.

Here's a discussion on CNN if you're interested. Deal for $4.7 billion

Stepinac loses to St. Anthony's

The score was 14-14 at halftime, but St. Anthony's took over the second half and won 31-14. This was despite St. Anthony's turning the ball over 4 times. But we couldn't take advantage. Stepinac record now 2-1.

From the Journal News/Lohud

Game story: Stepinac fails to capitalize in loss to St. Anthony’s

Here are the highlights.

http://www.msgvarsity.com/s/6JpL

Pope Francis interview and the media spin

The Jesuit interview with the Pope (who is a Jesuit) was pretty big news last Thursday. The interview is about 12,000 word long and was published in the US in the Jesuit publication America. We've been  subscribers to America for probably 25 years; much of it is junk, some of it is brilliant. I haven't received my hard copy yet, but I understand the interview took up the entire magazine.

The interview is available without logging in, on the America website here -

A Big Heart Open to God

It's long! I went through it completely, reading about half while skimming the stuff I wasn't particularly interested in (like his discussion of the curia, what artwork he likes, etc). I may go back and read the whole thing; but maybe not.

Much of it is wonderful; he starts (he seems to be a bit taken aback with the question) by answering the question of who he is by stating he is a sinner. He joined the Jesuits (after considering the Dominicans) because he felt he needed a community. He talks about discernment, the fact that he became a Provincial at "too young an age" (36), his image of the Church ("The image of the church I like is that of the holy, faithful people of God.")

This is the kind of stuff that the media really couldn't care less about.

What got the headlines (I got an email from one of my "devout Democrat" frinds saying "Yay" with a link to the NY Times article) was his brief pastoral points on abortion, homosexuality, and contraception. It is contained in the section of the talk that America labelled "The Church as Field Hospital" (a great analogy!)

“I see clearly,” the pope continues, “that the thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle. It is useless to ask a seriously injured person if he has high cholesterol and about the level of his blood sugars! You have to heal his wounds. Then we can talk about everything else. Heal the wounds, heal the wounds.... And you have to start from the ground up.

“The church sometimes has locked itself up in small things, in small-minded rules. The most important thing is the first proclamation: Jesus Christ has saved you. And the ministers of the church must be ministers of mercy above all. The confessor, for example, is always in danger of being either too much of a rigorist or too lax. Neither is merciful, because neither of them really takes responsibility for the person. The rigorist washes his hands so that he leaves it to the commandment. The loose minister washes his hands by simply saying, ‘This is not a sin’ or something like that. In pastoral ministry we must accompany people, and we must heal their wounds.

“How are we treating the people of God? I dream of a church that is a mother and shepherdess. The church’s ministers must be merciful, take responsibility for the people and accompany them like the good Samaritan, who washes, cleans and raises up his neighbor. This is pure Gospel. God is greater than sin. The structural and organizational reforms are secondary—that is, they come afterward. The first reform must be the attitude. ...

“Instead of being just a church that welcomes and receives by keeping the doors open, let us try also to be a church that finds new roads, that is able to step outside itself and go to those who do not attend Mass, to those who have quit or are indifferent. The ones who quit sometimes do it for reasons that, if properly understood and assessed, can lead to a return. But that takes audacity and courage.”

I mention to Pope Francis that there are Christians who live in situations that are irregular for the church or in complex situations that represent open wounds. I mention the divorced and remarried, same-sex couples and other difficult situations. ...

“We need to proclaim the Gospel on every street corner,” the pope says, “preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing, even with our preaching, every kind of disease and wound. In Buenos Aires I used to receive letters from homosexual persons who are ‘socially wounded’ because they tell me that they feel like the church has always condemned them. But the church does not want to do this. During the return flight from Rio de Janeiro I said that if a homosexual person is of good will and is in search of God, I am no one to judge. By saying this, I said what the catechism says. Religion has the right to express its opinion in the service of the people, but God in creation has set us free: it is not possible to interfere spiritually in the life of a person.

“A person once asked me, in a provocative manner, if I approved of homosexuality. I replied with another question: ‘Tell me: when God looks at a gay person, does he endorse the existence of this person with love, or reject and condemn this person?’ We must always consider the person. Here we enter into the mystery of the human being. In life, God accompanies persons, and we must accompany them, starting from their situation. It is necessary to accompany them with mercy. When that happens, the Holy Spirit inspires the priest to say the right thing.

“This is also the great benefit of confession as a sacrament: evaluating case by case and discerning what is the best thing to do for a person who seeks God and grace. The confessional is not a torture chamber, but the place in which the Lord’s mercy motivates us to do better. I also consider the situation of a woman with a failed marriage in her past and who also had an abortion. Then this woman remarries, and she is now happy and has five children. That abortion in her past weighs heavily on her conscience and she sincerely regrets it. She would like to move forward in her Christian life. What is the confessor to do?

“We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods. This is not possible. I have not spoken much about these things, and I was reprimanded for that. But when we speak about these issues, we have to talk about them in a context. The teaching of the church, for that matter, is clear and I am a son of the church, but it is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time.

“The dogmatic and moral teachings of the church are not all equivalent. The church’s pastoral ministry cannot be obsessed with the transmission of a disjointed multitude of doctrines to be imposed insistently. Proclamation in a missionary style focuses on the essentials, on the necessary things: this is also what fascinates and attracts more, what makes the heart burn, as it did for the disciples at Emmaus. We have to find a new balance; otherwise even the moral edifice of the church is likely to fall like a house of cards, losing the freshness and fragrance of the Gospel. The proposal of the Gospel must be more simple, profound, radiant. It is from this proposition that the moral consequences then flow.

“I say this also thinking about the preaching and content of our preaching. A beautiful homily, a genuine sermon must begin with the first proclamation, with the proclamation of salvation. There is nothing more solid, deep and sure than this proclamation. Then you have to do catechesis. Then you can draw even a moral consequence. But the proclamation of the saving love of God comes before moral and religious imperatives. ...

So, the conclusion of the NY Times, the PBS Newshour, and other media outlets, was that the Pope was saying the Church has to stop being obsessed with abortion, same sex attraction, or contraception. No, he said the Church "cannot be obsessed with the transmission of a disjointed multitude of doctrines to be imposed insistently" and that "We have to find a new balance". That's a long, long, way from the gleeful and politically inspired interpretation of the NY Times, et al. For example, The PBS Newshour on their youtube channel gave this interpretation of the above section: "Pope Francis said the Catholic Church must find a balance between "small-minded rules," like doctrines against abortion and homosexuality, and the need to be more merciful." To call the Church teaching on sexuality and abortion a set of "small-minded rules" just shows how ignorant PBS Newhour is of Catholicism and the entire Chrisitan tradition.

 Anyway, it is an enriching experience to go through the interview, even if (like me) you don't read in detail every section. It's always better to read the stuff yourself, then depend on small-minded spinmeisters with an agenda.

 

Pope Francis on the global economy and the "God called money"

As he puts an emphasis on the dignity of work!

Francis, at the start of a day-long trip to the Sardinian capital, Cagliari, put aside his prepared text at a meeting with unemployed workers, including miners in hard hats who told him of their situation, and improvised for nearly 20 minutes.

"I find suffering here ... It weakens you and robs you of hope," he said. "Excuse me if I use strong words, but where there is no work there is no dignity."

Interesting that the politically conservative Andrea Merkel crushed the opposition in German elections today

Angela Merkel won an overwhelming endorsement from German voters, putting the country’s first female chancellor on course for the biggest election tally since Helmut Kohl’s post-reunification victory of 1990.

She's won a third term.

WSJ editorial on food stamps debate

13 paragraphs - takes less than five minutes to read -

John Lewis was furious. "They're coming for the children. They're coming for the poor. They're coming for the sick, the elderly and the disabled," said the Georgia Democrat. He was speaking in 1996 during the debate over welfare reform that he predicted would "put one million more children into poverty."

The reform passed but none of that happened. The law was an historic success, shrinking the welfare rolls even as its work requirement put more Americans on the road to self-sufficiency. Ron Haskins of the Brooking Institution found that, a decade after the changes, 60% of the adults leaving welfare were employed and child poverty rates fell.

It's worth recalling Mr. Lewis's fear and loathing amid this week's debate over a GOP attempt to impose a few modest reforms on America's exploding food-stamp entitlement. Democrats and the media are predicting a moral catastrophe, with the same over-the-top rhetoric, and they are as wrong now as they were then.

How our Air Force (accidentally) almost detonated a nuke over North Carolina

From The guardian (UK) -

The document, obtained by the investigative journalist Eric Schlosser under the Freedom of Information Act, gives the first conclusive evidence that the US was narrowly spared a disaster of monumental proportions when two Mark 39 hydrogen bombs were accidentally dropped over Goldsboro, North Carolina on 23 January 1961. The bombs fell to earth after a B-52 bomber broke up in mid-air, and one of the devices behaved precisely as a nuclear weapon was designed to behave in warfare: its parachute opened, its trigger mechanisms engaged, and only one low-voltage switch prevented untold carnage.

Each bomb carried a payload of 4 megatons – the equivalent of 4 million tons of TNT explosive. Had the device detonated, lethal fallout could have been deposited over Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and as far north as New York city – putting millions of lives at risk.

Though there has been persistent speculation about how narrow the Goldsboro escape was, the US government has repeatedly publicly denied that its nuclear arsenal has ever put Americans' lives in jeopardy through safety flaws. But in the newly-published document, a senior engineer in the Sandia national laboratories responsible for the mechanical safety of nuclear weapons concludes that "one simple, dynamo-technology, low voltage switch stood between the United States and a major catastrophe".

Writing eight years after the accident, Parker F Jones found that the bombs that dropped over North Carolina, just three days after John F Kennedy made his inaugural address as president, were inadequate in their safety controls and that the final switch that prevented disaster could easily have been shorted by an electrical jolt, leading to a nuclear burst. "It would have been bad news – in spades," he wrote.

My opinion - eventually, by accident or willful terror, a nuclear weapon will be detonated in the USA. It's just about inevitable.

Dang! Even though it's just down the road, I wasn't invited to George Soros' wedding

Billionaire investor George Soros, 83, will marry 42-year-old Tamiko Bolton today, followed by a huge party at his Caramoor Estate in Bedford, with 500 guests.

USA one of four countries worldwide that allows abortion post- viability

... the United States is joined only by Canada, North Korea, and China

And one of only ten countires (out of 176) that allow abortion after 14 weeks.

The others are: Canada, China, Great Britain, North Korea, the Netherlands, Singapore, Sweden, Western Australia, and Vietnam.

Democratic Party whacko functionary wishes death to Ted Cruz' speechwriter's children

Jerk. Works for the California Democrats.

@amandacarpenter May your children all die from debilitating, painful and incurable diseases.

Here's another of his tweets.

    Busy blocking the tapeworms that have slithered out of hellspawn @amandacarpenter's asshole. How's     your day so far?

Overweight people undertreated for their cancers

From the AP -

 

Obamanomics - how's it going?

NOTE: I sometimes get asked how long it takes to do a posting like this. It took me 18 minutes.

It's going totally predictably.

Headlines and articles, just two days ago.

NY Times, Sept. 17th - Household Incomes Remain Flat Despite Improving Economy

Despite the addition of more than two million jobs last year, soaring corporate profits and continuing economic growth, income for the typical American household did not rise in 2012 and poverty failed to fall, new data from the Census Bureau show.

“The poverty and income numbers are a metaphor for the entire economy,” said Ron Haskins of the Brookings Institution. “Everything’s on hold, but at a bad level.”

 Washington Post, Sept. 17th - The typical American family makes less than it did in 1989

In 1989, the median American household made $51,681 in current dollars (the 2012 number, again, was $51,017). That means that 24 years ago, a middle class American family was making more than the a middle class family was making one year ago.

This isn't a lost decade for economic gains for Americans. It is a lost generation.

CNS News, Sept. 17 - Census on Obama’s 1st Term: Real Median Income Down $2,627; People in Poverty Up 6,667,000; Record 46,496,000 Now Poor

In 2008, the year Obama was elected, real median household income in the United States was $53,644 according to the Census Bureau. In 2012, the last full year of Obama’s first term, median household income was $51,017. Thus, real median household income dropped $2,627—or 4.89 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

In fact, real median household income dropped in every year of Obama's first term. In 2008, when he was elected, it was $53,644. In 2009, the year he was inaugurated, it dropped to 53,285. In 2010, his second year in office, it dropped to $51,892. In 2011, his third year in office, it dropped to $51,100. And, in 2012, his fourth year in office, it dropped to $51,017.

At the same time the number of people living in poverty in the United States increased. In 2008, according to the Census Bureau, there were approximately 39,829,000 people living in poverty in this country. In 2012, there were 46,496,000. That is an increase of approximately 6,667,000—of 16.73 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

- See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/census-obama-s-1st-term-real-median-income-down-2627-people-poverty#sthash.kuZhrSU7.dpuf

In 2008, the year Obama was elected, real median household income in the United States was $53,644 according to the Census Bureau. In 2012, the last full year of Obama’s first term, median household income was $51,017. Thus, real median household income dropped $2,627—or 4.89 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

In fact, real median household income dropped in every year of Obama's first term. In 2008, when he was elected, it was $53,644. In 2009, the year he was inaugurated, it dropped to 53,285. In 2010, his second year in office, it dropped to $51,892. In 2011, his third year in office, it dropped to $51,100. And, in 2012, his fourth year in office, it dropped to $51,017.

At the same time the number of people living in poverty in the United States increased. In 2008, according to the Census Bureau, there were approximately 39,829,000 people living in poverty in this country. In 2012, there were 46,496,000. That is an increase of approximately 6,667,000—of 16.73 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

- See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/census-obama-s-1st-term-real-median-income-down-2627-people-poverty#sthash.kuZhrSU7.dpuf

In fact, real median household income dropped in every year of Obama's first term. In 2008, when he was elected, it was $53,644. In 2009, the year he was inaugurated, it dropped to 53,285. In 2010, his second year in office, it dropped to $51,892. In 2011, his third year in office, it dropped to $51,100. And, in 2012, his fourth year in office, it dropped to $51,017.

At the same time the number of people living in poverty in the United States increased. In 2008, according to the Census Bureau, there were approximately 39,829,000 people living in poverty in this country. In 2012, there were 46,496,000. That is an increase of approximately 6,667,000—of 16.73 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

- See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/census-obama-s-1st-term-real-median-income-down-2627-people-poverty#sthash.kuZhrSU7.dpuf

Wall Street Journal, Sept. 17 - Asian Households Have Highest Income, Blacks the Lowest

From the Census Bureau’s income and poverty report:

  Among the race groups, Asian households had the highest median income in 2012 ($68,636). The median income for non-Hispanic White households was $57,009, and it was $33,321 for Black households. For Hispanic households the median income was $39,005. The real median incomes in 2012 of non-Hispanic White households, Black households, Asian households, and Hispanic-origin households were not statistically different from their respective 2011 medians.

The whole thing is shameful. The NY Times has a funny definition of "improving economy" doesn't it?

Meanwhile, the Administration says we're all better off. Go here and just read page three (The Executive Summary) of their 49 page report.Thanks to my friend Bob W. for sending me this link.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/20130915-financial-crisis-five-years-later.pdf

On the other hand, where's the opposition party (Repubs) on all this? Sleeping... at best, complicit at worse.

 

In 2008, the year Obama was elected, real median household income in the United States was $53,644 according to the Census Bureau. In 2012, the last full year of Obama’s first term, median household income was $51,017. Thus, real median household income dropped $2,627—or 4.89 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

In fact, real median household income dropped in every year of Obama's first term. In 2008, when he was elected, it was $53,644. In 2009, the year he was inaugurated, it dropped to 53,285. In 2010, his second year in office, it dropped to $51,892. In 2011, his third year in office, it dropped to $51,100. And, in 2012, his fourth year in office, it dropped to $51,017.

At the same time the number of people living in poverty in the United States increased. In 2008, according to the Census Bureau, there were approximately 39,829,000 people living in poverty in this country. In 2012, there were 46,496,000. That is an increase of approximately 6,667,000—of 16.73 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

- See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/census-obama-s-1st-term-real-median-income-down-2627-people-poverty#sthash.kuZhrSU7.dpuf

 

In fact, real median household income dropped in every year of Obama's first term. In 2008, when he was elected, it was $53,644. In 2009, the year he was inaugurated, it dropped to 53,285. In 2010, his second year in office, it dropped to $51,892. In 2011, his third year in office, it dropped to $51,100. And, in 2012, his fourth year in office, it dropped to $51,017.

At the same time the number of people living in poverty in the United States increased. In 2008, according to the Census Bureau, there were approximately 39,829,000 people living in poverty in this country. In 2012, there were 46,496,000. That is an increase of approximately 6,667,000—of 16.73 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

- See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/census-obama-s-1st-term-real-median-income-down-2627-people-poverty#sthash.kuZhrSU7.dpuf

 

In 2008, the year Obama was elected, real median household income in the United States was $53,644 according to the Census Bureau. In 2012, the last full year of Obama’s first term, median household income was $51,017. Thus, real median household income dropped $2,627—or 4.89 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

In fact, real median household income dropped in every year of Obama's first term. In 2008, when he was elected, it was $53,644. In 2009, the year he was inaugurated, it dropped to 53,285. In 2010, his second year in office, it dropped to $51,892. In 2011, his third year in office, it dropped to $51,100. And, in 2012, his fourth year in office, it dropped to $51,017.

At the same time the number of people living in poverty in the United States increased. In 2008, according to the Census Bureau, there were approximately 39,829,000 people living in poverty in this country. In 2012, there were 46,496,000. That is an increase of approximately 6,667,000—of 16.73 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

- See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/census-obama-s-1st-term-real-median-income-down-2627-people-poverty#sthash.kuZhrSU7.dpuf

In 2008, the year Obama was elected, real median household income in the United States was $53,644 according to the Census Bureau. In 2012, the last full year of Obama’s first term, median household income was $51,017. Thus, real median household income dropped $2,627—or 4.89 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

In fact, real median household income dropped in every year of Obama's first term. In 2008, when he was elected, it was $53,644. In 2009, the year he was inaugurated, it dropped to 53,285. In 2010, his second year in office, it dropped to $51,892. In 2011, his third year in office, it dropped to $51,100. And, in 2012, his fourth year in office, it dropped to $51,017.

At the same time the number of people living in poverty in the United States increased. In 2008, according to the Census Bureau, there were approximately 39,829,000 people living in poverty in this country. In 2012, there were 46,496,000. That is an increase of approximately 6,667,000—of 16.73 percent—from 2008 to 2012.

- See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/terence-p-jeffrey/census-obama-s-1st-term-real-median-income-down-2627-people-poverty#sthash.kuZhrSU7.dpuf

Kimmel: On college grads bringing their parents to their job interview

I actually heard about this "trend" a couple of days ago. Google encourages it with their prospective employees!?

 

CNN: Navy Yard survivor tells his story

And there's more.

Washington Post, minute by minute on the Navy Yard massacre

Actually scary to read.

Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis carved an indiscriminate path through Building 197

From the backpack, Alexis pulled a Remington 870 shotgun. He purchased it Saturday, along with a couple dozen shells, from a gun shop in Lorton, where he took some time to fire a few practice rounds on the shop’s range. He emerged from the men’s room Monday prepared to use it.

Global Warming update: Climate scientists refute their own past projections

In the Daily Mail (UK) which has the leaked document from the IPPC (UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) which will soon be officially made public.

Read the whole Daily Mail article here:

A leaked copy of the world’s most authoritative climate study reveals scientific forecasts of imminent doom were drastically wrong.

The Mail on Sunday has obtained the final draft of a report to be published later this month by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the ultimate watchdog whose massive, six-yearly ‘assessments’ are accepted by environmentalists, politicians and experts as the gospel of climate science. 

They are cited worldwide to justify swingeing fossil fuel taxes and subsidies for ‘renewable’ energy.

Yet the leaked report makes the extraordinary concession that over the past 15 years, recorded world temperatures have increased at only a quarter of the rate of IPCC claimed when it published its last assessment in 2007.

Back then, it said observed warming over the 15 years from 1990-2005 had taken place at a rate of 0.2C per decade, and it predicted this would continue for the following 20 years, on the basis of forecasts made by computer climate models.

But the new report says the observed warming over the more recent 15 years to 2012 was just 0.05C per decade - below almost all computer predictions.

Hit the link for a graphic display of the error!

Last night Professor Judith Curry, head of climate science at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, said the leaked summary showed that ‘the science is clearly not settled, and  is in a state of flux’. 

She said  it therefore made no sense that the IPCC was claiming that its confidence in its forecasts and conclusions has increased.

For example, in the new report, the IPCC says it is ‘extremely likely’ – 95 per cent certain – that human  influence caused more than half  the temperature rises from 1951 to 2010, up from ‘very confident’ –  90 per cent certain – in 2007.

Prof Curry said: ‘This is incomprehensible to me’ – adding that the IPCC projections are ‘overconfident’, especially given the report’s admitted areas of doubt.

 

FOX News announces their new nightly lineup

The big gun of Cable News, with their veiwership higher than CNN and MSNBC combined. Megyn Kelly gets her own show at 9PM. Greta Van Susteren and Sean Hannity profess happiness with their moves.

Greta Van Susteren will officially kick-off the new line-up with her signature On the Record with Greta Van Susteren at 7PM/ET. From there, Bill O’Reilly will continue hosting the most-watched cable news program The O’Reilly Factor at 8PM/ET. At 9PM/ET, Megyn Kelly will debut The Kelly File while Sean Hannity will take over the 10PM/ET timeslot with Hannity for his solo hour. Chief News Anchor and Managing Editor Shepard Smith will be available throughout to insert the latest breaking news into the new programming schedule via the FOX News Deck.

Democrat candidate for Virginia governorship vows to keep open abortion clinics that do not meet state board of health criteria.

Terry McAuliffe, a graduate of Catholic grammar nan high schools, a graduate of Catholic University, and Georgetown Law School.

What are the chances any of the Catholic bishops will speak out? Unfortunately, just about zero.

There's a video at the link where he is making promises to his supporters (the pro-abortion lobby, of course a key component of the Democratic Party) and below the link I've put the text.

Virginia Democrat gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe has been caught on tape saying that, if elected, he will issue a directive to unilaterally allow abortion clinics that do not meet state health standards to remain open.

In the video, McAuliffe, who is running against pro-life candidate Ken Cuccinelli, reviewed the status of abortion clinics in Virginia:

I can do what I talked about, issue a guidance opinion by March to keep the remaining health centers open. I can do that myself as Governor. That's why I said I'll do that by March to keep the remaining, uh, Norfolk is closed. Fairfax is closed, or closing, so there will be 18 left. Only one of those 18 actually meet the, the requirements so they'll all close if I don't do that. But I will issue what's called a guidance opinion by mid-March which will say that these regulations, I have, the General Assembly wasn't definitive with the Board of Health as to the rules, I can give a guidance opinion to the Board of Health to grandfather in those remaining clinics to keep them open. That's why this election is so important, and I will do that.

According to Women Speak Out, a political action committee dedicated to exposing President Obama’s radical support of abortion, “the Virginia Health Commissioner reported to the Board of Health that more than 80 violations were discovered in abortion centers.”

 

CNN's 50 second time lapse of raising the Concordia

Pretty cool. There is no audio.

 

The Congressional exemption from Obamacare - hardball!

The Senate may still have a reputation as a genteel club, but lawmakers seemed to abandon rules of decorum completely last week in arguments about whether Congress should be treated like the rest of the country when it comes to Obamacare.

Senator David Vitter, a Louisiana Republican, has demanded a floor vote on his bill to end an exemption that members of Congress and their staffs are slated to get that will make them the only participants in the new Obamacare exchanges to receive generous subsidies from their employer to pay for their health insurance. Angry Senate Democrats have drafted legislation that dredges up a 2007 prostitution scandal involving Vitter. The confrontation is a perfect illustration of just how wide the gulf in attitudes is between the Beltway and the rest of the country — and how viciously Capitol Hill denizens will fight for their privileges.

 

HIghlights from Stepinac 42-3 win over Xavier

Check out the first catch. If the video "sticks" just hit the play button again.

Xavier was on a 12 game winning streak.

Speed kills.

Stepinac 42, Xavier 3

Awesome! Guinness beer ad ... and with lovely surprise ending.

This ad just came out September 3rd, and has already been viewed over 6 million times on youtube. I knew there was a reason I love Guinness.

 

Save $$$$$: Be buried in a pet cemetery

You have to share the gravesite with you pet.

The new rules resolve a two-year-old dispute that began when the state refused to allow the Hartsdale Pet Cemetery in Westchester to accept the ashes of a former NYPD officer who wanted to spend his afterlife with his three Maltese pups.

 

Good Washington Post article: "10 ways to revitalize the Catholic Church"

By a Jesuit priest, Father I. Michael Bellafiore, who teaches at the University of Scranton. It's excellent and takes about three minutes to read.

The new pope’s agenda is simple: spread the good news of Jesus Christ in a freer and more convincing way. Christ stated the church’s mission very plainly: “Go out and make disciples of all the nations.”

 

 

Stepinac says goodbye to textbooks - now all digital

Good article. Lower cost and more convenient.

Tim has an iPad, in addition to a laptop, which he rarely uses.

this is an excellent article about where education (and everything else!) is going -

No more books: Archbishop Stepinac High goes all digital

"Out of curiosity, Nicholas Dadario weighed his backpack last year when it was filled with textbooks for his freshman honors classes at Archbishop Stepinac High School.

It was 35 pounds, he said.

But that pack is going to be much lighter this year. Stepinac has become one of the first high schools in the country to drop all textbooks like dead weight and replace them with a “digital library.” When students started classes Monday, they were zipping to an app or website on their tablet or laptop and had instant access to all 40 texts in the Stepinac curriculum, not to mention all sorts of note-taking, highlighting and interactive features."

Rugby: Southern Hemisphere Championship, New Zealand vs. Argentina

Pretty good game, played in bad weather in New Zealand

HA! (it's a spoof) Rally to Support Obama on WW 3

What a great take-off - close to 2 milion views in five days. This ohh so mimics the emails I get from groups like move-on.org,the DNC, etc, etc.

 

Marathon swimmer Diana Nyad answers her critics

I've already posted a couple of times about Nyad's epic swim from Cuba to the Florida Keys - her fifth attempt, going all the way back to when she was in her late 20's - here Awesome! 64 year old Diana Nyad finishes her Cuba to Florida Keys swim   and here Diana Nyad's Skeptics Question Integrity Of Swim, Use Of Mask, Possible Assistance By Boat.

Nyad responds:

 

Great article on a Boston parish priest - a former cop - ministering after the marathon bombing

In the Boston Globe. Fr. Sean Connor's gutting out the death of a child parishioner in the bombing, the loss of a young priest frined to cancer; and other burdens. 

A fine article about a dedicated man.

For Marathon victims’ family, priest a consoling presence

Connor had been a police officer like his father and his older brother, Jamie, a state trooper. He was 29 when, kneeling on the floor of an empty chapel during a Catholic retreat, he heard God call him to the priesthood. In time, he sheepishly confessed his new vocation to his co-workers and broke the news to his girlfriend.

A few years ago, he officiated at a wedding on the Cape. The groom’s uncle, a policeman, had known Connor’s father. At the reception, over drinks and a smoke, he pulled Connor aside.

“You know,” he told the priest, “you weren’t that good of a cop.”

“Thanks!”

“You tried really hard . . . But it’s not what you were meant to be.”

Rugby: Southern Hemisphere Championship Series, South Africa vs Australia

Played in Australia -

 

Kimmel: "Anthony Weiner's Concession Speech"

I'm sure he's not the only late night host who's sorry Weiner is out ofthe spotlight (for the moment... you never know when he's going to re-appear).

 

How did major newspapers cover the Pope's call for Prayer and Fasting for peace?

Mostly, they didn't. Especially the major newspapers. Here is my posting about the local effort in my parish, Holy Name of Mary in Croton. Peace Vigil, at the Vatican; and in Croton

And here's the bigger story:

Is a global fast for Syria a local news story?

The New York Times didn’t consider it a story. Period. If you run a query for “Francis” and “fast” for the last seven days, nothing comes up. Rod Dreher has an absolutely fascinating commentary on what the New York Times decides from its perch is newsworthy and what it doesn’t, using just this week’s coverage as an illustration. Let’s just say that nothing about Christians and Syria registers. But, you know, if you want a touching story about an elderly gay couple reminiscing about lots of public sex or a lengthy look at an all-nude gay resort in the Ozarks — two stories that were featured prominently — that is definitely your paper of record.

What’s particularly odd about the New York Times‘ inability to mention Pope Francis’ call for a day of fasting and prayer against war in Syria is that the paper ran a big story headlined, “Obama Falls Short on Wider Backing for Syria Attack.” I don’t know if the reporters and editors attempted to leave religion angles out of the story but when even a world leader like the Pope doesn’t make the cut, you have to wonder what is going on.

The Washington Post didn’t have anything in the Sunday paper, but it did have an Associated Press report online. Not about the global fast so much as Francis and some pilgrims to St. Peter’s Square. Nothing at all about local Catholics or other religious adherents who joined in.

But, some of the local press did cover the story - for example News 12 Westchester - the local cable news.

Catholics unite in prayer before Syria vote
News 12 Westchester – 10 hours ago
Pope Francis asked Catholics to fast and pray for the refugees in the civil war-torn nation,and for a quick and peaceful resolution to the ongoing conflict. (6:17 PM). WESTCHESTER – Catholics across the Hudson Valley united in prayer during Sunday Masses …

 

30 second video; Rubio urges HHS Secretary Sebelius to visit Obamacare victims

This is the point - People respond to incentives and small business owners have an option of cutting workers completely, or reducing their hours, or going broke.