Tom Faranda's Folly

An email to me asking the obvious question about the White House intruder.

From Ray:

"When the Secret Service finally heard that an intruder infiltrated the White House, why didn't they arrest Obama?"

--

Pope Francis floats the not-progressive idea that we should pray to the angels for protection from Satan

Imagine that! He needs to check in with some American theologians to get straightened out on this medieval idea.

Here are some excerpts; hit the link for the whole short article.

“He presents things as if they were good, but his intention is destruction. And the angels defend us,” the Roman Pontiff told those gathered for his Sept. 29 Mass in the Vatican’s Saint Martha residence chapel.

Pope Francis then noted how “So many projects, except for one's own sins, but many, many projects for mankind's dehumanization, are his work, simply because he hates mankind.”

He continued by explaining that although the Bible tells us that the devil is astute and cunning in his attacks, we have the angels to defend us.

“They defend mankind and defend the God-man, the superior man, Jesus Christ who is the perfection of humanity, the most perfect."

“This is why the Church honors the angels, because they are the ones who will be in the glory of God – they are in the glory of God – because they defend the great hidden mystery of God – namely, that the Word was made flesh.”

It is therefore the responsibility of the People of God “to safeguard man, the man Jesus,” the Pope went on, because “he is the man who gives life to all men.”

However this is not easy because Satan has invented “humanistic explanations that go against man, against humanity and against God” in order to destroy us.

“This struggle is a daily reality in Christian life, in our hearts, in our lives, in our families, in our people, in our churches,” the Pope went on, adding that “if we do not struggle, we will be defeated.”

 

CNN: "ISIS blame game: U.S. intel vs President Obama"

"The buck stops here!" NOT.

 

If you live in Alpine, NJ you have $$$$

The wealthiest zip code in the Country. Not the first state you'd think of for having the most affluent town.

With houses well over the price point of $2.5 million, and celebrities living there like: Sean Combs, LL Cool J, and Jay Z, this area of New Jersey is shaping up to be the place to live for people with money.

Real Estate Agent Jessica Nelson says most of the celebrities who want their privacy aren't living in New York City anymore, but instead are moving to suburban towns like this in the Garden State.

“We're close to the city, we're close to the mountains, we're close to the shore,” Nelson said as to why people are moving there.

As I expected, the conspiracy theorists are out about Derek Jeter's game-winning hit on his last Yankee home game.

Yup. I predicted this to my friend Joe Friday night. I'm surprised they haven't yet gotten to the pat where Robertson "deliberately" gave up three runs in top of ninth to give Jeter his chance.

To quote my old Stepinac history teacher, Fr. Shelley, "Human nature, being what it is ..."

Hit the link and read the whole thing, it's quite amusing.

The definitive Derek Jeter conspiracy theory: a shot to grass past the knoll

By the bottom of the ninth, he faced the Baltimore relief pitcher Evan Meek. Meek threw what he later said was “a cutter away” (a type of winding fastball that should break away from the batter) but what also resembled a change-up (a ball that looks like a fastball but slows dramatically as it nears the plate). Meek’s cutters usually reach the plate at 90.2mph; his change-ups – which he rarely throws – at 85.2mph. The pitch to Jeter clocked in at 86mph, right where he could strike it.

For anyone outside a 50-mile radius of New York – or for Mets fans within it – this was all a bit much. The internet duly made its displeasure known.

One commenter boldly analysed: “The last pitch was a gift … it was too perfect.” Saturnalia93 agreed: “The walk-off was pre-planned and staged to make sure it went off without a hitch. Would shatter their fairytale if he, say, struck out the last time he played Yankee Stadium.” On Deadspin, the coincidentally named StupidJeterWins voiced relative skepticism: “I’m not saying orders were sent down from Obama, I’m saying the pitcher grooved it.” On Reddit, Zamboniman46 postulated and proclaimed: “Just let it be known he got that hit on a meatball.”

Indeed, why didn’t the Orioles intentionally walk “Captain Clutch” as they – as Meek – had a few days before? Brian “couldn’t be given away for free” McCann was next up at bat for the Yankees, with a batting average lower than Jeter’s and a notorious reputation for grounding out. Why taunt “Mr November” with the fact that he would never play in the postseason again?

Why were the Orioles’ first- and second-basemen so close to their bags, rather than in position to intercept a signature slash into right field by Jeter? Was it to keep the runner at the base, or to let the ball pass between the fielders?

And so it goes on. Lots of fun.

The President defends his record

I report you decide.

 

Youtube Beer Review : Yuengling "Black & Tan" (one of my favorite brews!)

Ha! I like Yuengling, both their lager and the black and tan. One of the resolutions I made while having chemotherapy was to not drink lousy beer, especially light beer. "If you're drinking budweiser or coors you owe it to yourself to try this one."

He's really finished the review after 8 minutes.

 

Tim football: Stepinac goes 4-0, winning 56-0.

The score was 49-0 at halftime as Friday night they overwhelmed St. Francis Prep at Mitchel Field next tothe Nassau Coliseum. 

No video to show, but Tim is very comfortable and confident as the team's fullback. He is a crunching blocker.

Suddenly, I see him on the sideline - #40 - with a new look. my friend Joe who lives nearr the Coliseum and had come to the game said "Is Tim becoming Islamic?" Kind of looks like it.

Tim tells me it's actually a kind of head wrap for keeping sweat out of his eyes. It was the first time he'd worn it, and I think he just thinks it looks cool.

The man.

 

The "Dark" Ages vs. Modern "Progress"

HA! My friend Joe sent me this picture - pretty good!

Bill Gross leaves Pimco: Wall St. Journal and NY Times comments

The most famous bond investor; out at the Firm he created.

The Journal editorial:

The Gross Clinic. The equity market offers a verdict on the bond king's exit from Pimco.

We have no particular brief for Bill Gross, the bond guru who announced on Friday that he is leaving Pacific Investment Management, the firm he co-founded 43 years ago, to join smaller rival Janus Capital. Mr. Gross is a Keynesian who supports tax increases and talks his bond book. ...

The Journal has been reporting for months about the tensions inside Pimco and Mr. Gross's unhappy, to put it gently, interactions with co-workers. His flagship Total Return fund had suffered 16 straight months of net investor redemptions as returns have lagged in recent years. Let's just say he's not leaving Pimco like Derek Jeter is leaving the Yankees.

... on Friday financial markets sent a message that merely because a fund manager feuds with co-workers doesn't mean he can't run money. In Friday trading, shares in Mr. Gross's new employer, Janus Capital, surged 43% on news of his imminent arrival. Meanwhile, shares of German insurance giant Allianz, which has owned Pimco since 2000, slumped more than 5% in an otherwise rising European market.

Question: Hasn't anyone at Allianz ever heard of a non-compete agreement?

HA!

Now here's the NY Times more straightforward news article (balanced) about the departure and Gross's history with his Pimco. Good article if you hit the link for the whole thing.

Wall Street’s Bond King Makes Abrupt Departure From Pimco

The surprising exit came after Mr. Gross learned in recent weeks that top executives at Pimco and Allianz, the German insurer that owns it, had grown tired of his leadership and were weighing a change.

Some executives were pushing for him to be removed as chief investment officer, said two people briefed on the matter. There was concern about his management style and that his increasingly erratic behavior — he appeared at a conference to give a speech wearing sunglasses and wrote an investor letter that was largely an elegy to his cat — was becoming a distraction.

 

"Clinton should debate Little Sisters of the Poor & Defend Obamacare to their face"

Ted Cruz. Love it! Wouldn't it be nice if just one of the Catholic Bishops said this, instead of a politician ...

 

Super-famous (even I've heard of him) chef Emeril Lagasse blasts Obama

Well, what does a chef know?

Famed chef Emeril Lagasse says that it’s becoming all but impossible to be a successful restaurateur in America today. The government just gets in the way too much.

Lagasse specifically singled out the current president’s policies.

“It’s becoming a very challenging industry to become a very successful average restaurateur,” continued Lagasse. “I can’t charge $300 a person in my restaurant or I would not be in business. Am I using any different ingredients? Not really. Am I using any caliber of service staff? I don’t think so. I think our service is as good or better than most places.”

 

“And then you add all the Obama nonsense to what it’s become in the last several years. I don’t have anything against Mr. Obama. I’m just saying the way that, you know… the government should stay out of things. [...] Pretty soon, they’re going to wipe a lot of the middle restaurateurs and restaurant cooks. [...] If it continues, then watch: you’re going to have high-end, and you’re going to have fast food, and you’re going to have chain restaurants.”

Lagasse shared his thoughts on TNT’s On the Menu.

Federal Reserve kowtowing to Goldman Sachs - or - “The Ray Rice video for the financial sector has arrived.”

This is a big deal. My son Joe actually heard about this and sent me the  link to the tapes, which he was listening to.

It's pretty damning, but no surprise. Everyone knows there was/is an incestuous relationship between Goldman and Fed Board members and staff.

Tapes showing meek oversight of Goldman are about to rock Wall Street

Wall Street is about to be rocked by secretly recorded audio tapes that purport to show a too-cozy relationship between the New York Federal Reserve Bank and the financial institutions it is supposed to regulate.

The 45 hours of tapes, made by Carmen Segarra, a former NY Fed worker, capture former co-workers, whose job was to keep banks like Goldman Sachs in line, instead deferring to the banks, being unwilling to take action and being extremely passive, according to public radio’s “This American Life,” and ProPublica which obtained the tapes and is scheduled to air a program about the matter Friday night.

Segarra, ironically, was hired by the NY Fed in October 2011 to help toughen up their oversight. She was fired in 2013 after, she claims in a lawsuit, she tried to get Goldman to toe the line on regulations.

The NY Fed has regulators embedded at each of the large banks it oversees. On her first day on the job, Segarra was assigned to Goldman.

The pushback from Goldman started right away. At one of her first meetings, a senior compliance officer at Goldman said certain consumer laws didn’t apply to the bank’s wealthier clients.

Brigid, heading back to York for two weeks

Left Thursday evening for maybe the last - but probably the next to last - trip over to settle her sister Kate's estate and house.

At JFK - the smile as she excapes her three men?

John Chapman AKA Johnny Appleseed's birthday today!

Johnny Appleseed was not just a figment of Disney's imagination - he really existed.

From wikipedia:

John Chapman (September 26, 1774 – March 11, 1845 although his death date is disputed) ... is often called Johnny Appleseed, was an American pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to large parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, as well as the northern counties of present day West Virginia. He became an American legend while still alive, due to his kind, generous ways, his leadership in conservation, and the symbolic importance he attributed to apples. He was also a missionary for The New Church (Swedenborgian)[1] and the inspiration for many museums and historical sites such as the Johnny Appleseed Museum[2] in Urbana, Ohio and the Johnny Appleseed Heritage Center[3] in between Lucas, Ohio and Mifflin, Ohio.

And here's a bit more from biography.com

Among Chapman's eccentricities was a threadbare wardrobe, which often did not include shoes and often did include a tin hat. He was a staunch believer in animal rights and denounced cruelty towards all living things, including insects. He was a practicing vegetarian in his later years. Chapman did not believe in marriage and expected to be rewarded in heaven for his abstinence.

The legend of Johnny Appleseed differs from the life of the historical John Chapman in several key respects. While Chapman planted strategically, for profit, the Johnny Appleseed character sowed seeds at random and without commercial interest. The fact that Chapman's crops were typically used to make alcohol was also excluded from the Appleseed legend. Despite these discrepancies from the historical record, the Johnny Appleseed character reflects an interest in frontier settlement during a period of expansion in the far western portion of the continent.

An interview with Derek Jeter's parents

Dem. Congressman on how "progressive policies" (!?) are helping African-Americans in Detroit and Chicago !?

You just have to shake your head ...

 

Amazing: In Derek Jeter's last Yankee Stadium game, he wins it with ninth inning walk off hit.

Yanks won 5-2, after their three run lead was blown by David Robertson in the top of the ninth.

See it here -

Derek Jeter hero in Bronx finale

He also drove in two other runs earlier in the game.

More stuff here -

Captain Clutch! Jeter scripts walk-off After the Orioles tied it with homers in the ninth inning, Derek Jeter, who had three RBIs in his final Bronx game, won it with a walk-off single.

German ethics committee: Incest is "a fundamental right"

Whatever floats your boat as Choice wins again.

Coming next - multiple wives (why not if it's their choice?) and human-animal relationships.

“Criminal law is not the appropriate means to preserve a social taboo,” the German Ethics Council said in a statement. “The fundamental right of adult siblings to sexual self-determination is to be weighed more heavily than the abstract idea of protection of the family.”

 

FBI study: mass shoootings - how often do unarmed citizens stop them?

Interesting brief video.

 

Very, very funny - little girl throws Derek Jeter foul ball back onto the field!

Leonardo DeCaprio (five homes, gigantic yacht) marches to save climate - + Bernie Sanders!

The pompous blowharding of Senator Bernie Sanders (VT) is just classic.

The NY Times explains where Jesus is buried

It's in the Times so it must be true.

A hint that’s good for journalists confused on the matter is to consider the church also goes by the name “The Church of the Resurrection.”

"... the site where many Christians believe that Jesus is buried ..."

 

Exercise study: Sitting vs. standing

The NY Times health section - interesting study in favor of standing -

If people need motivation to get up from their office chairs or couches and become less sedentary, two useful new studies could provide the impetus. One found that sitting less can slow the aging process within cells, and the other helpfully underscores that standing up — even if you are standing still — can be good for you as well.

RFK loses his cool at the Climate March - 3 minute video

It's the Koch brothers fault? We need to change politicians, not behavior ... And people buy into this stuff.

 

Census bureau: More businesses have shut than started under the current Administration

A short video with the Maria Bartiromo speaking with the founder of paypal.

 

Tim football: Stepinac goes 3-0 + Stepinac Mom

Stepinac over Holy Cross, 49-7 - but first... Brigid in her new hoodie - front and back.

There you go. Usually the name goes over the #, but since the hood might cover it, it's under ...

For sure, Stepinac is good. Besides excellent defense, if you go here you'll see the eye-popping stats for the two QB's and the running backs on Saturday. Just a huge amount of weapons on offense. Tim is strictly - so far anyway - a blocking back, playing fullback, Hback and tight end. And he's not on the field for every offensive play. Stepinac frequently lines up with four or even five wide receivers.

Anyway, here's a video I took with Tim at tight end, against #53, the Holy Cross linebacker. All the Stepinac receivers were on the other side of the field and the Cross defensive backs were there; so once Gavin Heslop (who already has division 1 college football offers at cornerback) got around the corner it was goodbye for a 70 yard score. Nice block Tim!

 

Next game, against St. Francis Prep at Mitchell Field on long Island, Friday night. It's the top teams in the NY Catholic HS league, so all of these team will be good.

Can a uterine fibroid procedure spread cancer?

Here's an interesting short video - off the Wall Street Journal website.

Great Noonan column: "Don't Overthink the President"

This is oh so right.  Hit the link for the whole great column.

His essential problem is that he has very poor judgment.

And we don't say this because he's so famously bright—academically credentialed, smooth, facile with words, quick with concepts. (That's the sort of intelligence the press and popular historians most prize and celebrate, because it's exactly the sort they possess.) But brightness is not the same as judgment, which has to do with discernment, instinct, the ability to see the big picture, wisdom that is earned or natural.

Mr. Obama can see the trees, name their genus and species, judge their age and describe their color. He absorbs data. But he consistently misses the shape, size and density of the forest. His recitations of data are really a faux sophistication that suggests command of the subject but misses the heart of the matter.

 

 

Kurtz on culture issues and the NY Times

Howard Kurtz, who used to be on CNN. I think this is pretty accurate.

 

NY Post favorable editorial on NY Governor candidate Astorino's economic policy

From a couple of weeks ago. Just getting around to posting.

Rob Astorino’s remedy for New York’s economic woes

Face it: New York’s economy has stagnated, particularly outside the city. Year after year, rating groups list us as one of the worst states in which to do business and place our economic prospects at the bottom. For much of Upstate, conditions long ago became desperate.

Ask just about any New Yorker outside of a few neighborhoods, says Astorino, and they’ll tell you about someone close who’s under- or unemployed — and about their own anxiety over the future here.

Hit the link for Astorino's approach which is just common sense really.

Great photo of two brainiacs: Wasserman and Biden

The picture is in this story - worth hitting for the picture - & skimming through the story if you're a politics junkie.

"Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s awkward day with party leaders."

Losing leader of Scotland independence movement to step down; then bans certain reporters from his press conference

Well, what about freedom of the press if the independence movement had succeeded and Alex Salmond was their leader?

Anyway, it was a graceful resignation speech (he will still remain in the British parliament).

 

Here's the press barred from this press conference. It included three different newspapers and the Guardian UK refused to attend when they were not allowed to choose which of their own reporters would attend.

 

WSJ editorial "Honesty and Ground Troops"

Spot on -

A President at war can survive a military setback, but lost credibility is fatal. So President Obama ought to be worried that his promise never to put ground troops into Iraq or Syria is already undermining the campaign before serious fighting begins against the Islamic State. Few believe him, and they shouldn't if Mr. Obama wants to defeat the jihadists.

Two minute vid on the Scotland vote to remain in UK.

First, a slight pat on my back - I'd predicted the No's would win 53-47; the actual vote was 55.3 to 44.7. Still (and this is good) power will "devolve' from the central British government to local regions; not just in Scotland but in Wales, N. Ireland and England. Limited central government, and more regional power - exactly the reverse of what we've seen in the USA as our federal system has given way to more power to the brainiacs in Washington. Maybe the trend in the UK will help us wake up.

 

Tim football: Stepinac ranked #1 in Hudson Valley, #2 in NY State.

UPDATE: Forgot to mention! This Saturday home against Holy Cross.

Decent article here - of course it's early yet and the big games against Iona Prep, St. Anthony's and Chaminade are all coming up - and all on the road.

Stepinac Football #1 in this weeks Lohud Poll

And

NY Sports writers have Crusaders at #2 in NY State

Sleazeball responsible for ridiculous anti-Astorino ads gets indicted by the Feds

More proof there is a God. This from Lohud/Journal News

Westchester businessman Selim "Sam" Zherka was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday on allegations he falsified loan applications and committed tax fraud, wire fraud and witness tampering.

Zherka, 46 and a father of eight, publishes the weekly Westchester Guardian, owns two strip clubs and is active in the Tea Party and the county Independence Party. He could face more than 300 years in prison if he is convicted on all the charges and their multiple counts, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

In court documents, prosecutors paint a frightening picture as to why he should stay behind bars while awaiting a trial.

A prosecution memo quotes a Sing Sing inmate as saying Zherka was tied to the Albanian drug crew operating out Queens and relates other dark stories, including one about Zherka supposedly finding a dead man duct-taped to a chair in one of his strip clubs.

Here's the Astorino campaign had to say in a PR yesterday:

SHADY CHARACTER BEHIND CUOMO'S ANTI-ASTORINO SMEAR ADS INDICTED FOR FEDERAL FRAUD
 "Mr. Cuomo's deceitful ads must be pulled down."

New York--Sept. 18...The man behind the ridiculous civil RICO suit filed against Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino -- the suit is the basis for Andrew Cuomo's multi-million-dollar TV smear campaign against Mr. Astorino -- has just been indicted on federal fraud and other charges, the Astorino campaign today announced.

"Westchester businessman Selim "Sam" Zherka was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday on allegations he falsified loan applications and committed tax fraud, wire fraud, and witness tampering," Westchester's Journal News writes in a breaking news story. Full story link below.

http://www.lohud.com/story/news/crime/2014/09/18/sam-zherka-indicted-federal-fraud-charges/15832679/
 
The second person behind the civil RICO suit is New York State Independence Party Vice Chairman Giulio "Doc" Cavallo, who was under investigation by the Moreland Commission for a no-show job and pension swindling scheme. Governor Cuomo abruptly shut down the Moreland Commission before the investigation on Mr. Cavallo was concluded. Mr. Cavallo was refused a job by County Executive in 2010 because of Cavallo's reputation of accepting no-show jobs. Story links below.
 
http://nypost.com/2014/07/24/political-dissident-says-cuomo-got-endorsement-after-moreland-disbanded/

http://nypost.com/2014/07/26/astorino-independence-party-leader-tried-to-shake-me-down-for-job/
 
"Andrew Cuomo has run the most negative TV ad campaign in state history based on a lawsuit filed by two highly dubious individuals," said Astorino spokeswoman Jessica Proud.  "Now, the first of them has been indicted for federal fraud, while the other one was let off by the governor personally when he abruptly shut Moreland. Here again we see why New York State government is ranked the most corrupt in America. Mr. Cuomo's deceitful ads must be pulled down."

 

Scotland Secession vote today: my prediction is

That the no vote will win, by 53-47. Note that I am notoriously bad at predicting elections so no reason to think I'll be any better at referendums.

I kind of agree with Krauthammer here -

 

In 60 seconds: What big business says about Scottish independence

The vote is tomorrow! Plenty of countries wil be closely looking at the results. It has implications beyond Great Britain.

From the Telegraph (UK). See also, this Scottish Referendum: What Is the United Kingdom?

 

Majority of adult population in the United States is single

An article from the Australian/New Zealand website mercatornet.

... according to Bloomberg, the next person you meet in the USA over the age of 16 is more likely than not to be single. This is the first time that the proportion of the US population over the age of 16 is single since such records have been kept (beginning in 1976).

“Some 124.6 million Americans were single in August, 50.2 percent of those who were 16 years or older, according to data used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in its monthly job-market report. That percentage had been hovering just below 50 percent since about the beginning of 2013 before edging above it in July and August. In 1976, it was 37.4 percent and has been trending upward since.”

How is this majority of the adult population who are single broken down? Well, about 3 out of 10 of the adult population has never been married (30.4%) while 19.8% are divorced, separated or widowed. This latter figure is up from 15.3% in 1976, while those that have never been married has risen from 22.1% in 1976.

This growth in both the never-married and also the once-married singles has an impact on all manner of things. The biggest impact is surely the number of those children born out of wedlock: around 40% of all children in 2013, while 72.2% of all non-Hispanic black children were born without their parents being married. An unbelievably high figure that would have Martin Luther King Jr rolling in his grave.

More stuff if you hit the link.

“Some 124.6 million Americans were single in August, 50.2 percent of those who were 16 years or older, according to data used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in its monthly job-market report. That percentage had been hovering just below 50 percent since about the beginning of 2013 before edging above it in July and August. In 1976, it was 37.4 percent and has been trending upward since.”

How is this majority of the adult population who are single broken down? Well, about 3 out of 10 of the adult population has never been married (30.4%) while 19.8% are divorced, separated or widowed. This latter figure is up from 15.3% in 1976, while those that have never been married has risen from 22.1% in 1976.

This growth in both the never-married and also the once-married singles has an impact on all manner of things. The biggest impact is surely the number of those children born out of wedlock: around 40% of all children in 2013, while 72.2% of all non-Hispanic black children were born without their parents being married. An unbelievably high figure that would have Martin Luther King Jr rolling in his grave.

- See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/14796#sthash.fb2iAi1l.dpuf

“Some 124.6 million Americans were single in August, 50.2 percent of those who were 16 years or older, according to data used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in its monthly job-market report. That percentage had been hovering just below 50 percent since about the beginning of 2013 before edging above it in July and August. In 1976, it was 37.4 percent and has been trending upward since.”

How is this majority of the adult population who are single broken down? Well, about 3 out of 10 of the adult population has never been married (30.4%) while 19.8% are divorced, separated or widowed. This latter figure is up from 15.3% in 1976, while those that have never been married has risen from 22.1% in 1976.

This growth in both the never-married and also the once-married singles has an impact on all manner of things. The biggest impact is surely the number of those children born out of wedlock: around 40% of all children in 2013, while 72.2% of all non-Hispanic black children were born without their parents being married. An unbelievably high figure that would have Martin Luther King Jr rolling in his grave.

- See more at: http://www.mercatornet.com/demography/view/14796#sthash.fb2iAi1l.dpuf

Gun Control! & I don't even own a gun

But love this -

Pope Francis makes an action statement on marriage

Two and a half minutes.

 

Meniscus knee surgery: of little help?

I had meniscus arthroscopic surgery almost ten years ago. I really have done no running since the surgery; figure fast walking, the ellyptical machine and the rower make more sense.

The surgery helped for about five years but that's about it. Mind you, the surgeon said the likelihood was that it was not a long term answer. The ONLY long term answer is to avoid aging, butthe alternative to aging is not so good either.

Middle-aged and older patients are unlikely to benefit in the long term from surgery to repair tears in the meniscus, pads of cartilage in the knee, a new review of studies has found.

Researchers at McMaster University combined data from seven randomized, placebo-controlled trials involving more than 800 subjects treated for meniscal tears with surgery, sham surgery or nonoperative care. The subjects’ average age was 56.

In six of the trials, the surgery provided a significant improvement in short-term functioning. But the pooled data showed no significant difference in long-term functioning among patients in the three groups. Nor did surgery provide either short- or long-term pain relief.

Well, I definitely had pain relief after my surgery. More info if you hit the link.

"Pope Francis Warns of World War III"

I posted about this yesterday, here - "Pope says world's many conflicts amount to piecemeal World War Three"

 

Tim Football: Stepinac 28, Monroe-Woodbury 10

UPDATE: Stepinac now ranked #2 in State, behind Canisius of Buffalo.

Another big win.

You can read about it here and the whole game is on video.

MSG Varsity - Stepinac steamrolls Monroe-Woodbury

The Crusaders (2-0), who lost a lopsided game to the Section 9 powerhouse two years ago, turned the tables around in a thoroughly impressive 28-10 victory.

"All week in practice (coach Mike O'Donnell) was telling us this was kind of like our revenge tour," senior quarterback Brandon Coleman said. "This was a big game we had lost on this same field in the same conditions. We wanted to come out and make a statement."

Monroe-Woodbury (1-1) received it loud and clear.

Stepinac — which jumped out to a commanding 21-3 halftime lead — limited Monroe-Woodbury to a measly 3 rushing yards and 107 yards of total offense.

"It wouldn't have mattered if we had Jim Brown back there," Monroe-Woodbury coach Bernie Connolly said. "They were better than us on both sides of the ball up front. Actually, pretty much they were better than us all over from top to bottom."

- See more at: http://www.msgvarsity.com/stepinac-steamrolls-monroe-woodbury-1.1627304#sthash.Oz91An9L.dpuf

The Crusaders (2-0), who lost a lopsided game to the Section 9 powerhouse two years ago, turned the tables around in a thoroughly impressive 28-10 victory.

"All week in practice (coach Mike O'Donnell) was telling us this was kind of like our revenge tour," senior quarterback Brandon Coleman said. "This was a big game we had lost on this same field in the same conditions. We wanted to come out and make a statement."

Monroe-Woodbury (1-1) received it loud and clear.

Stepinac — which jumped out to a commanding 21-3 halftime lead — limited Monroe-Woodbury to a measly 3 rushing yards and 107 yards of total offense.

"It wouldn't have mattered if we had Jim Brown back there," Monroe-Woodbury coach Bernie Connolly said. "They were better than us on both sides of the ball up front. Actually, pretty much they were better than us all over from top to bottom."

- See more at: http://www.msgvarsity.com/stepinac-steamrolls-monroe-woodbury-1.1627304#sthash.Oz91An9L.dpuf

The Crusaders (2-0), who lost a lopsided game to the Section 9 powerhouse two years ago, turned the tables around in a thoroughly impressive 28-10 victory.

"All week in practice (coach Mike O'Donnell) was telling us this was kind of like our revenge tour," senior quarterback Brandon Coleman said. "This was a big game we had lost on this same field in the same conditions. We wanted to come out and make a statement."

Monroe-Woodbury (1-1) received it loud and clear.

Stepinac — which jumped out to a commanding 21-3 halftime lead — limited Monroe-Woodbury to a measly 3 rushing yards and 107 yards of total offense.

"It wouldn't have mattered if we had Jim Brown back there," Monroe-Woodbury coach Bernie Connolly said. "They were better than us on both sides of the ball up front. Actually, pretty much they were better than us all over from top to bottom."

- See more at: http://www.msgvarsity.com/stepinac-steamrolls-monroe-woodbury-1.1627304#sthash.Oz91An9L.dpuf

Nancy Pelosi: Civilization in jeopardy ... if Republicans win Senate"

Bizarro World. And she was once the Speaker of the House, has a safe Congressional seat (San Fran) for as long as she pleases, and is one of the wealthiest members of the Congress.

“It would be very important for the Democrats to retain control of the Senate,” Pelosi told Maher. “Civilization as we know it today would be in jeopardy if the Republicans win the Senate.”

Here's the video:

 

Sec'y of State Kerry explains the action against ISIS

Or tries to anyway. This morning on Face the Nation.

Please explain what his plan is ...

 

Another beheading: to quote James Carville, "This is war with no end"

Carville said this while talking to O"Reilly - "The no spin zone" or whatever O'Reilly calls his show - this past Thursday. His point being that the Administration better explain this to people. I think the prior Administration tried to explain it, but the majority of Americans don't want to face it. 

Here's the Daily Mail (UK) on the beheading victim -

Islamic State extremists have released a video showing the beheading of British captive David Haines. The father-of-two, an aid worker ...

Got that - an aid worker with ACTED.

"Pope says world's many conflicts amount to piecemeal World War Three"

True. A headline on Yahoo! News.

"Even today, after the second failure of another world war, perhaps one can speak of a third war, one fought piecemeal, with crimes, massacres, destruction," he said.

"Humanity needs to weep and this is the time to weep," Francis said in the homily of a Mass during a visit to Italy's largest war memorial, a large, Fascist-era monument where more than 100,000 soldiers who died in World War One are buried.

The pope began his brief visit to northern Italy by first praying in a nearby, separate cemetery for some 15,000 soldiers from five nations of the Austro-Hungarian empire which were on the losing side of the Great War that broke out 100 years ago.

"War is madness," he said in his homily before the massive, sloping granite memorial, made of 22 steps on the side of hill with three crosses at the top.

"Even today, after the second failure of another world war, perhaps one can speak of a third war, one fought piecemeal, with crimes, massacres, destruction," he said.

In the past few months, Francis has made repeated appeals for an end to conflicts in Ukraine, Iraq, Syria, Gaza and parts of Africa.

 

Tim football: Stepinac (#6 in NYS) v. Monroe-Woodbury (#5 in NYS)

UPDATE: Stepinac Rules, 28-10! It was 21-3 at halftime. Game played in a moderate rain for most of the time. Nothing like the picture below form last week.

Game at 3 o'clock. Farandas will be there! This picture from the week before