Tom Faranda's Folly

Celtic Women: Shenandoah Violin Solo - Mairead Nesbitt

YIKES! Great stuff.

"Exodus: Gods and Kings"; 1st review is mixed

The Ridley Scott version/interpretation -

"Spectacularly filmed, intermittently well acted though not quite as much campy fun as the DeMille version..."

Here's the trailer - I expect I'll give this a pass, at least in the theatre.

 

President makes GQ's list of "least influential people"

"It’s a pretty sad state of affairs when the leader of the free world is considered one of the “least influential” people of the year along with the likes of U2, Donald Sterling and Shia LeBeouf."

Yes, it's sad allrighty. From Red State Politics (who I'd never heard of before this arrived in my email):

GQ listed President Barack Obama as the second least influential person — they argue it is in no particular order — Monday morning. This is Obama’s second year in a row on this list.

The magazine’s reasoning:

“Why are you still on Martha’s Vineyard?! Missouri is BURNING. Putin is conquering Europe. The CDC is playing nude Twister with Ebola patients. U2 is forcing bad songs on everyone. The NSA won’t stop watching me masturbate. I need you ON THIS. Are you even president anymore? When Obama got blasted for golfing shortly after ISIS beheaded journalist James Foley, he said, ‘I should’ve anticipated the optics.’ How do you win the presidency without knowing that golfing makes you look rich and indifferent?”

CFR Friars newsletter - tribute to Fr. Groeschel

Fr. Benedict, the late Faranda family guru.

Go here and follow the link for a pdf of the newsletter -

GrayFriar News Winter 2014 Tribute to Fr. Benedict Groeschel, CFR. May the Lord give you His peace!

"Moves in the right direction" on the culture of life.

This is from the weekly "Peace and Life Connections" email newsletter. Originally the group was "the Seamless Garment Network, promoting the consistent ethic of life.

Countries Move in the Right Direction
 
Countries that had used to have nuclear weapons but don’t any more:
Belarus, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Ukraine
 
Countries that had widespread legalized abortion but stopped:
Nicaragua & Poland (and they both had maternal mortality go down!)
 
Countries that have abolished the death penalty since 2000,
in rough order of having done so:
Cote D’Ivoire, Malta, Bosnia-Herzegovina Serbia, Montenegro, Bhutan, Samoa, Senegal, Turkey, Liberia, Mexico, the Philippines, Albania, Rwanda, Uzbekistan, Chile, Argentina, Burundi, Togo, Latvia, and Bolivia

 

 

Useful: WSJ's 2014 best smartphone awards

Goofy to start with, but then some useful information, especially since my verizon LG is getting cranky.

 

Nice work if you can get it: Hillary Clinton's speaking appearances

From the Washington Post. It's amazing. A short read to get all the details, restrictions and the opulent setup. As is pointed out in the article, these are basically campaign appearances.

When officials at the University of California at Los Angeles began negotiating a $300,000 speech appearance by Hillary Rodham Clinton, the school had one request: Could we get a reduced rate for public universities? The answer from Clinton’s representatives: $300,000 is the “special university rate.”

 

Chuck Schumer redux: despite election, people know big government is the only way

Wednesday I posted this - Amazing! Chuck Schumer admits Dems were wrong!

Same speech - NY's King of pomposity actually says this -

 

Nice Thanksgiving Prayer

Not written by me of course. (Here are my thanksgiving thoughts this year. My Thanksgiving )

We added a couple of lines at the beginning about the people who were no longer with us - had left us this year.

We Give Thanks

Our Father in Heaven,
We give thanks for the pleasure
Of gathering together for this occasion.
We give thanks for this food
Prepared by loving hands.
We give thanks for life,
The freedom to enjoy it all
And all other blessings.
As we partake of this food,
We pray for health and strength
To carry on and try to live as You would have us.
This we ask in the name of Christ,
Our Heavenly Father.

 

 

My Thanksgiving

I suppose, that in a certain way, with all the relations and friends who've died this year, a case could be made for "what's to give thanks for?"

But of course I don't see it that way.

My mother Jeanne died at the age of 88 after a long and productive life, and 21 years of widowhood. I am happy we had her for as long as we did, even with her disabilities and a certain level of dementia at the end. It is a great blessing that despite her disabilities, her cheerful and upbeat personality remained intact to the very end.

My sister-in-law Kate. Losing her suddenly - quite a blow. Staggering really. In my mind's eye, she will always be the pretty, cheerful, vivacious, personable 36 year old woman I met in the summer of '78. What a charmer.

And then Croton friends of mine ( and Knights of Columbus) - huge contributors to Croton and our parish Church - Jim Moore and Rich Fuerst.

The death of Fr. Benedict Groeschel - not unexpected but still saddening. The family guru - he had a big influence on Brigid and I, in so many ways. HA! Just remembered that Brigid and he were in jail together at the same time, for the same act of civil disobedience - must have been 22 or 23 years ago. Anyway, what a productive life he had - with a great legacy of books and videos, and a whole reformed religious community.

So I'm celebrating this weekend and giving thanks - a lot to be thankful for.

 

Yesterday's (11-25-14) spectacular sunset

As I was driving back to Croton from Mt. Kisco I was treated to an utterly fantastic sunset, with the light reflecting and shimmering off the reservoir system - utterly stunning. And I couldn't get a picture - no place to stop my car, and jump out! So I called Brigid - and she had already taken some pictures with her phone from our house.

Here's the best - nice but it doesn't really do it justice. Perhaps the atmospherics creating the spectacle last evening were a preliminary to the storm today?

Satellite imagery of today's storm

Coming up the east coast - from the NOAA.

 

Interesting: "Hatred of the Church in Ireland"

Here's an article in First Things that summarizes the Irish Times article linked below it.

Here in my email this morning is an unhappy note from a Carmelite priest serving in a suburb of Dublin. He is terse. “Hatred of the Church in Ireland” is his only comment. No more words are needed given the accompanying article by Tim O’Brien that appeared yesterday in The Irish Times. It reports on the recent cutting down of a high steel cross erected some four decades ago on Carrountoolhil, County Kerry’s highest mountain. It had taken some one hundred people to put it in place in 1976 and had been televised as a major event at the time. Razed with an angle grinder, it was discovered recently by mountain climbers.

And here is the Irish Times article.

Cross on summit of Carrauntoohil cut down

 

 

Amazing! Chuck Schumer admits Dems were wrong!

Which means - I was right. Six years too late Chuck - it was the economy, not healthcare.

 

Cable view #'s from Monday night Ferguson Grand Jury announcement

CNN wins the 25-54 demographic, but FOX narrowly wins (compared to their usual swamping of rivals) the total viewership. Megyn Kelly had a mammoth viewership by cable standards - 7.25 million. Interesting how when news is on forefront of people's minds the CNN numbers do go up. MSNBC #'s were relatively microscopic.

The Farandas channel surfed between CNN and FOX that night, although we tuned out early - around 10:45.

The Scoreboard: Monday, Nov. 24

 

 

CNN on Sunday night's "Greatest catch ever."

First here's the catch, which is amazing.

 

This commentary goes some way to explaining why CNN has no ratings.

The President on the Ferguson decision

Prosecutor Robert P. McCulloch full statement on Michael Brown death

Posted by PBS. Brigid and I watched this live.

Pope canonizes two Saints from India.

Here's a little video and the stories of the two below it.

A Look at the Lives ...

KURIAKOSE ELIAS CHAVARA, born Feb. 10, 1805, in Kainakary, India. Chavara was a priest who contributed to the growth of the Syro-Malabar Church, one of 22 Eastern rite churches that remain in full communion with Rome. As the first vicar general of the Syro-Malabar Church in the Verapoli diocese, he worked to prevent the threat of a schism, and was the author of numerous spiritual, liturgical and poetic works. He died in 1871, and was beatified by John Paul II on Feb. 8, 1986.

***

EUFRASIA ELUVATHINGAL, born Oct. 17, 1877 to an aristocratic family in India's Kerala state. Baptized Rose, she took her religious vows in the Congregation of the Sisters of the Mother of Carmel in 1900. She lived an austere life of prayer, becoming known as "the prayerful mother." She died in 1952 and was beatified on Dec. 3, 2006.

 

More - Stepinac over Iona Prep for championship

Here's msgvarsity coverage of the game including links to the highlight videos.

A dream realized: Stepinac wins the "AAA"

And here are a couple of stats, with the penalty #'s showing why Stepinac offense had trouble getting untracked, as well as their way below average passsing stats. the complete stats are in the article linked above.

Penalties - 14 for 111 yards

Passing  - 6 for 20, gaining 74 yards.

This was Stepinac's second win over Iona this year Stepinac 35, Iona Prep 19

Game Summary     Iona Prep      Stepinac First Downs 12     15   Rushes-Yards 29 35   46 212 Recep-Yards 13 184   6 74 Passing Yards 184     74   Comp-Attempts 13 27   6 20 TD-INT 2 3   0 0 Fumbles-Lost 0 0   2 0 Penalties-Yards 7 65   14 111 3rd Down Conv 4 13   3 17 4th Down Conv 0 1   2 4 FG Made-Att 0 0   0 0 Tackles for loss 4.0     9.0   Sacks-Yards 2.0 -8   3.0 -21 - See more at: http://www.msgvarsity.com/a-dream-realized-stepinac-wins-the-aaa-1.1658024#sthash.CIqeinCm.dpuf

Game Summary     Iona Prep      Stepinac First Downs 12     15   Rushes-Yards 29 35   46 212 Recep-Yards 13 184   6 74 Passing Yards 184     74   Comp-Attempts 13 27   6 20 TD-INT 2 3   0 0 Fumbles-Lost 0 0   2 0 Penalties-Yards 7 65   14 111 3rd Down Conv 4 13   3 17 4th Down Conv 0 1   2 4 FG Made-Att 0 0   0 0 Tackles for loss 4.0     9.0   Sacks-Yards 2.0 -8   3.0 -21 - See more at: http://www.msgvarsity.com/a-dream-realized-stepinac-wins-the-aaa-1.1658024#sthash.CIqeinCm.dpuf

Game Summary     Iona Prep      Stepinac First Downs 12     15   Rushes-Yards 29 35   46 212 Recep-Yards 13 184   6 74 Passing Yards 184     74   Comp-Attempts 13 27   6 20 TD-INT 2 3   0 0 Fumbles-Lost 0 0   2 0 Penalties-Yards 7 65   14 111 3rd Down Conv 4 13   3 17 4th Down Conv 0 1   2 4 FG Made-Att 0 0   0 0 Tackles for loss 4.0     9.0   Sacks-Yards 2.0 -8   3.0 -21 - See more at: http://www.msgvarsity.com/a-dream-realized-stepinac-wins-the-aaa-1.1658024#sthash.CIqeinCm.dpuf

The President says future Presidents cannot use his line of reasoning

Huh? What, only he can be a King? Listen to this scrambled reasoning. No teleprompter either.

 

Relics of St. Francis Xavier, once-a-decade exposition

Here's an interesting story. Francis Xavier, now the Patron Saint of the Missions, was a co-founder of the Jesuits and worked through Asia. I didn't know he had an incorrupt body which is now in Goa, India. He died on a beach in China in 1552.

"Exposition of the Sacred Relics of St. Francis Xavier, 2014"

Here's a brief video from the Telegraph (UK).

 

Jimmy Fallon: Obama immigration speech translated

Another version.

 

Tim football: Stepinac wins the CHSFL Championship

It wasn't pretty, but Stepinac defeated Iona, 16-14, the two points difference coming on the first snap of the game when Iona made a mess of things and gave up a safety. Stepinac had a 16-0 lead after eight minutes, but Iona sure made it interesting. And Stepinac helped them with a continuous stream of penalties.

Here's the msg varsity article - with a nice post-game picture -

Stepinac wins first CHSFL “AAA” title since 1955

The final scoreboard view! The funny line down the middle is a goal post in the foreground.

Here's a look at the crowd - had to be over 5,000.

 

Croton Landing, this morning

We decided to do a walk before heading to Fordham for Tim's football game. Cold! headgear accordingly!

The photos - as Brigid said "This may be the best we can do..."

Oh well ...

 

Tim football - the big one today!

Further UPDATE:

From Lohud sports - Iona Prep preparing for Stepinac's big-play potential

They predict Stepinac, 28-13.

UPDATE: 

Stepinac Alumni ‏@StepinacAlumni 19h19 hours ago

Over 2,400 tickets sold in advance for the game tomorrow! Absolutely awesome.Get your red out @lohudinsider @MSGVarsityKDJ #Stepinac

 

Here it is -

Here he is!

WSJ: "The Next Prez and the Obama Way. Prosecutorial discretion? OK, how about not enforcing the 73,954 pages of tax code?"

Wall Street Journal columnist Kim Strassel asks the obvious question: What happens when a Republican President decides to adopt the Obama rule-by-executive-order style of governing?

Prosecutorial discretion? OK, how about not enforcing the 73,954 pages of tax code?

... Yes, the Constitution matters—Article I, Article II, blah, blah—though let’s be honest: What really counts in this town is precedent. And the ace news is that your predecessor blew up about 230 years of it. We’ve attached an 87-page list (check your spam box) of President Obama ’s unilateral actions: altering the ObamaCare statute; refusing to enforce federal drug laws; granting waivers to education reforms; using Justice Department suits to impose new industry rules; drafting agency regulations to go around Congress. Don’t forget 2014, when he rewrote federal immigration law. Like, all of it. By himself.

And here’s where it gets sweet. We’ve been analyzing the Obama team’s justifications. Some are p-r-e-t-t-y creative, but they boil down to this: Whenever a law is “unworkable,” or inadequately “funded”—and Congress won’t do anything—the president gets to act! How is that for new precedent? Think about it. This city has yet to produce a single statute or reg that is “workable” or that has, according to Democrats, enough money. Not a one. ...

Prosecutorial discretion: Love this. Your top item? Cutting taxes. We have two words and one number for you: Tax Code, 73,954 pages. Is there a more unworkable law? ROFL! We’ve got an executive order ready instructing IRS agents not to enforce the code on any person or company who refuses to pay more than our new rates. Goodbye Alternative Minimum Tax, death tax, capital gains, restrictions on nonprofits. Hello, flat tax on a postcard.

Speaking of taxes, do remember to thank Chief Justice John Roberts for declaring the ObamaCare individual mandate a tax. Not enforcing that one, either! That’s O-Care repealed. Check. You ran on reducing the regulatory burden. We’re sending a list of rules under major laws that you can instruct agencies and the Justice Department to no longer uphold. You know, the damaging stuff buried in the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, the National Labor Relations Act, Dodd-Frank, McCain-Feingold. All unworkable!

******

Is any of this constitutional? Meh. (Shred this memo.) We suppose you could ask legal advice, but Obama was certainly never that dumb. Here was his epiphany: Nobody can really stop a president. Congress can only complain. The judiciary moves too slowly to make a difference (look at Obama’s illegal recess appointments). Turns out the only thing that ever really restrained the chief executive was that oath he took. Our side has always taken that seriously. Hmmm.

We know you ran on restoring the Constitution, and the other side is counting on your base holding you to that. What they don’t understand is plenty of our people would be equally happy to see you stick it to them. We could do the right thing; arguably should.

Then again, who will they be to complain if we don’t?

Oakland Raiders locker room after they broke their 2 season, 16 game losing streak.

Beating Kansas City Thursday night, 24-20.

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-fan-pass/0ap3000000431748/Sparano-celebrates-first-win

 

 

Baby Okapi!

Why in the world would I post something about a baby Okapi? Because Brigid and I "discovered" this strange relative of the giraffe while in the Madrid Zoo, long ago. Summer of '79, I think. We couldn't figure out the animal but loved it!

Very sadly, there are only about 10,000 left in the wild, down from 40,000 not too long ago, and it was classified as an endangered species in 2013. Locally, they are in the Bronx Zoo.

Your speakers are fine, the video has no sound.

 

WSJ: "Obama: The Hangover. The Gruber technocracy is a green sludge consuming the Democratic Party."

Another excellent Dan Henninger Thursday column.

Jon Gruber is the now-famous ObamaCare designer and explainer-for-hire who said the Affordable Care Act became law because the American people were too stupid to understand what was in it.

Jon Gruber’s remarks matter not for what they say about the Democratic Party’s modus operandi but because of the truths he revealed about the Democratic Party’s reason for being. The Gruber threat to the Democrats isn’t reputational; it’s existential.

The Democrats have believed for decades that if they build it—a health-care entitlement or any other federal bestowment—the voters will come. That political model is cracking.

For some, the Gruber videos proved that the Obama administration had duped a gullible American public into ObamaCare. But who was fooled by these gambits?

Congressional Republicans knew exactly what the act’s tax provisions were, and not one of them voted for it in 2010. Today, with the Gruberized PG-version of the ACA entering its second round of sign-ups and its defenders claiming the law is “working as planned,” the most recent Gallup Poll reports approval for ObamaCare at 37%. ... Who looks stupid now?

On the left, writers are saying the worst thing about the Gruber filmography is that it gives credibility to conservative stereotypes about the “arrogance” of the technocracy.

That’s close but not on target. The problem is not one MIT economist’s arrogance. The problem is that the technocracy itself has become a political problem for the Democratic Party.

For some 80 years, that technocracy has been the life force of the Democratic Party. Now it’s a kind of noxious green sludge consuming the party.

Calling itself “the administrative state,” a technocratic army of social scientists, lawyers and bureaucrats has kept the Democratic Party supplied for decades with the policy details behind its promises to the electorate. ObamaCare was going to be one more victory march into the end zone of federal entitlements with a playbook designed by Jon Gruber and the other grandchildren of the original administrative elites.

But no one’s popping champagne for this one. When 50 years from now historians search for evidence of when the Democratic Party’s decline began, they’ll fix on this famous blurting of the truth about ObamaCare by House Speaker Pelosi: “We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what’s in it.”

******

Now, with his words alone, the Technocrat-in-Chief will redesign the U.S. immigration system.

******

The original Democratic idea was at least benign. In the hands of the Obama-Gruber coalition, it has finally degraded into something else. It has become malign, a politics that has to be faked or crammed down.

The best and brightest of the Democratic left will now fashion legal arguments defending national government by executive order. Too late. It looks like the stupid people are wising up.

We can only hope.

 

 

Rugby: England vs. South Africa

Played at Twickenham, part of the Autumn International Series.

 

CNN: One video to explain Gruber/Obamacare

"Who is he and why should you care."

Report: "Cuomo drew less support than any other Governor in the Country"

Yes Cuomo got 54% of the vote. Here's an interesting stat: outside of the five buroughs of NY, Astorino won, 49-46%.

He was re-elected comfortably, but Governor Andrew Cuomo won his second term with the support of a smaller percentage of his state’s residents than any other governor in the country.

A Capital analysis shows that just over an eighth of adult New Yorkers came to the polls for Cuomo, a Democrat who defeated Republican Rob Astorino by a 13-point margin. That means Cuomo drew a smaller percentage of his constituents than New York City mayor Bill de Blasio in 2013, less than his three victorious ticket-mates and less than 35 other American governors and governors-elect.

And on a night when a Republican wave swept the G.O.P. into control of the U.S. Senate and helped the party gain three House seats in New York, returns show Cuomo performed worse than Democratic congressional candidates around the state.

Anecdotally, I know that many of the people who voted for him, did it while holding their nose. He ran a despicable, cheap shot campaign.

Two Democrat Senators: excellent op ed in the WSJ

The Senators are the "moderate" Joe Manchin from West Virginia and the leftist whacko liberal Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts.

The topic: who should be on the Federal Reserve Board - I agree with this completely.

The Fed Needs Governors Who Aren’t Wall Street Insiders. With two vacancies to fill, Obama should pick nominees who will look out for Main Street, not the big banks.

We joined the Senate Banking Committee to try to make the banking system work better for American families. That’s why we’re concerned that the Federal Reserve—our first line of defense against another financial crisis—seems more worried about protecting Wall Street than protecting Main Street. ...

******

Two recent reports highlight that the Fed isn’t very good at supervising certain banks. In September, Carmen Segarra, a former bank examiner at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, released secret recordings she had made of meetings at the New York Fed in 2012. The recordings revealed that New York Fed employees had identified concerns with a proposed Goldman Sachs deal with Banco Santander , calling it “legal but shady.” The New York Fed didn’t attempt to make Goldman address these concerns. The recordings also showed Ms. Segarra’s superiors pressuring her to soften her finding that Goldman did not comply with federal regulations on conflicts of interest. ...

An October report from the Fed’s Office of Inspector General provided additional confirmation that the Fed is failing to oversee the big banks. The report found that the New York Fed had failed to examine J.P. Morgan Chase ’s Chief Investment Office—the office that incurred over $6 billion in losses in the infamous 2012 “London Whale” incident—despite a recommendation to do so in 2009 from another Federal Reserve System team.

******

The president should use that opportunity to address the Fed’s supervisory problem. The five sitting governors have a variety of academic and industry experience, but not one came to the Fed with a meaningful background in overseeing or investigating big banks or any experience distinguishing between the greater risks posed by the biggest banks relative to community banks. By nominating people who have a strong track record in these areas and who have a demonstrated commitment to not backing down when they find problems, the administration can show that it is taking the Fed’s supervision problem seriously. Nominating Wall Street insiders for the Board of Governors would send the opposite message.

They're right, they are totally right!

 

 

 

Health insurance: feathers hitting the fan

Saw this video a couple of days ago. I just have worked with three clients - one in CT, two in NY - who are losing their individual health insurance on the first of January. All three of them had their insurance for years and are quite happy with it. Will we be able to get new coverage? Yes. But that's not the point.

I thought of them - here's the President a few days ago, and then awhile back ...

 

Al Sharpton, $4.5 million in the hole (can't miss reading)

Normally that would get you in lots of hot water, but then that would be racist. And anyway, the IRS is busy harassing the Tea Party.  Meanwhile, Tawana Brawley ...

Some excerpts below, but the whole article is, well, amazing and worth the time to read. You end up shaking your head.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo hailed him as a civil rights icon. President Obama sent an aide to read a message commending Mr. Sharpton’s “dedication to the righteous cause of perfecting our union.” Major corporations sponsored the lavish affair.

It was billed as a “party for a cause,” in honor of Mr. Sharpton’s 60th birthday. But more than a birthday celebration, or a fund-raiser for his nonprofit advocacy group National Action Network, the event in Manhattan seemed to mark the completion of Mr. Sharpton’s decades of transition from consummate outsider to improbable insider.

“I’ve been able to reach from the streets to the suites,” he said that night.

Indeed, Mr. Sharpton’s influence and visibility have reached new heights this year, fueled by his close relationships with the mayor and the president.

******

Mr. Sharpton has regularly sidestepped the sorts of obligations most people see as inevitable, like taxes, rent and other bills. Records reviewed by The New York Times show more than $4.5 million in current state and federal tax liens against him and his for-profit businesses.

And though he said in recent interviews that he was paying both down, his balance with the state, at least, has actually grown in recent years. His National Action Network appears to have been sustained for years by not paying federal payroll taxes on its employees.

With the tax liability outstanding, Mr. Sharpton traveled first class and collected a sizable salary, the kind of practice by nonprofit groups that the United States Treasury’s inspector general for tax administration recently characterized as “abusive,” or “potentially criminal” if the failure to turn over or collect taxes is willful.

Mr. Sharpton and the National Action Network have repeatedly failed to pay travel agencies, hotels and landlords. He has leaned on the generosity of friends and sometimes even the organization, intermingling its finances with his own to cover his daughters’ private school tuition.

 

 

Republican "Rainbow Coalition"!?

Posting as a non-member of any political party, I do enjoy listening to absurd Democrat propaganda about "War on Women", etc, when their presidential aspirants will be Hillary Clinton and a bunch of old white guys.

This is from "The Daily Beast", a decidedly left wing publication.

"No, seriously. The Republicans now have more top-flight minority candidates than the Democrats. How did this happen?"

Picture the first Democratic presidential debate next year: presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton, surrounded by a group of white men hoping to play spoiler.

Then picture the Republican presidential debate stage: two Hispanic Americans, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio; an African-American, Ben Carson; and an Indian-American, Bobby Jindal. Add to that Jeb Bush, a Spanish-speaking former governor with a Mexican-born wife; and Rand Paul, a senator who has made appealing to Black voters a central part of his political identity.

It's true! Ha, ha ha.

Today, the Republicans can call upon an array of minority senators, governors, and congressmen. African-American Sen. Tim Scott was elected to fill out Jim DeMint’s senate term. Black Republican members-elect include Mia Love of Utah and Will Hurd of Texas. Minority governors Susana Martinez, Nikki Haley and Brian Sandoval all won reelection. Along with Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal, that gives the GOP four people of color in charge of state houses. The Democrats have just one, the governor-elect of Hawaii.

Having lost (so far) in Court, Priests for Life will not obey the Obamacare contraception/abortion mandate

You can read about it here. The DC Federal Appeals Court said TS to Priests for Life and several other plaintiffs, including the Catholic University of America.

 Priests for Life will not obey the Obamacare contraception/abortion mandate

"As we have said from the beginning, Priests for Life will not obey the HHS mandate. To ask a group of priests to cooperate in the government's plan to expand access to birth control and abortion-inducing drugs is about as contrary to religious freedom as you can get."

The election: why the polls were wrong

Interesting Michael Barone column.

Where the polls were wrong --- and, maybe, why

“The polls were skewed toward the Democrats,” writes Nate Silver, who as proprietor of FiveThirtyEight has earned the distinction of being the nation’s most assiduous polling analyst.

Silver gives short shrift to partisans — Democrats this year, Republicans in 2012 — who complained that polls were systematically biased against their side. The skew varies unpredictably, he says, perhaps because pollsters overcompensate in response to previous mistakes. He finds polls skewed against Democrats in 2006 and 2012 and against Republicans in 2002 and 2014 — all winning years for those parties.

******

All this suggests that pollsters did a better job of finding Democratic voters than they did of finding Republican voters. That accounts for the Democratic tilt in polling Silver finds when looking at candidates’ percentage margins rather than percentage totals.

One possible reason is that Republican-leaning voters were more hesitant than Democratic-leaning voters about committing to vote for their party’s candidates. The bulk of those undecided in polls in Kansas, Kentucky and most of the states with Republican governors were Mitt Romney voters in 2012.

There has been a similar phenomenon when pollsters ask people to rate the two parties’ members of Congress. During most of this campaign cycle (but less so toward the end), Republicans in Congress were getting lower ratings than Democrats in Congress because more Republican voters gave their own party’s members negative ratings.

Another possible reason, advanced by Henry Olsen of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, is that pollsters are doing a poorer job of sampling opinion in rural areas than in large metropolitan areas. Outside their states’ three major metropolitan areas, Roberts won 63 percent of the vote and McConnell won 61 percent. Polls seem to have missed this.

Tim football: More on Stepinac's big win on Saturday

I already posted a little bit here - Stepinac into the Finals with huge win

Here's the article up on MSGvarsity -

Stepinac storms past St. Peter's into CHSFL final

And here are some video highlights.

Highlights: Stepinac 56, St. Peter's 0

Stepinac took the initial lead on its second possession when Coleman took the first play through the line for a 45-yard touchdown run. The game started to turn on the ensuining possession when Daniel Negron picked off a pass in the flats and took it 45 yards for another touchdown. In the blink of an eye, it was 14-0 Crusaders. - See more at: http://www.msgvarsity.com/hudson-valley/stepinac-storms-past-st-peter-s-into-chsfl-final-1.1654665#sthash.mPvsjopz.dpuf

And here's an article about the other semi-final, where Iona Prep beat St. Anthony's, 28-10.

Friars fall to Iona Prep in CHSFL semifinal

Today: 25th anniversary of the murder in El Salvador of six Jesuits, their housekeeper, and her daughter

The priests were known for speaking out for peaceful negotiations in the nation’s brutal civil war between FMLN rebels and the government. The university had become known for its opposition to human rights abuses committed by the U.S.-backed military, and some in the armed forces thought the priests were tied to the rebels out of their concern for the poor, who suffered the brunt of the effects of the war.

One of the most notorious and heinous crimes of Salvador’s 12-year-long civil war, a conflict that left some 75,000 people dead, the Nov. 16, 1989 massacre rocked the public consciousness, provoking worldwide outrage and marking a turning point in the war, which would end in 1992. The dead became known as “The Martyrs.”

The Rector of the university was the Jesuit philosopher and theologian Ignacio Ellacuria. After he and the seven others were murdered - they were all shot in the back of the head - their skulls were crushed and brain matter scattered.

Ellacuría was born in 1930 in the Spanish Basque country. After a Jesuit high school education, he entered the novitiate of the Society of Jesus at the age of 17. Soon after taking his vows, he was missioned to El Salvador where, apart from studies, he lived and worked for the next 42 years.

Outspoken in his criticism of El Salvador’s military and the ongoing civil war, Ellacuría was viewed by some as dangerous to social cohesion. On November 16, 1989, he was gunned down by U.S.-trained members of the Salvadoran army at his residence at the university, along with five other Jesuits with whom he lived, their housekeeper, and her daughter. - See more at: http://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-voices/20th-century-ignatian-voices/ignacio-ellacuria-sj-1930-1989/#sthash.s99mDGOY.dpuf

Outspoken in his criticism of El Salvador’s military and the ongoing civil war, Ellacuría was viewed by some as dangerous to social cohesion. On November 16, 1989, he was gunned down by U.S.-trained members of the Salvadoran army at his residence at the university, along with five other Jesuits with whom he lived, their housekeeper, and her daughter. - See more at: http://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-voices/20th-century-ignatian-voices/ignacio-ellacuria-sj-1930-1989/#sthash.s99mDGOY.dpuf

Outspoken in his criticism of El Salvador’s military and the ongoing civil war, Ellacuría was viewed by some as dangerous to social cohesion. On November 16, 1989, he was gunned down by U.S.-trained members of the Salvadoran army at his residence at the university, along with five other Jesuits with whom he lived, their housekeeper, and her daughter. - See more at: http://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-voices/20th-century-ignatian-voices/ignacio-ellacuria-sj-1930-1989/#sthash.s99mDGOY.dpuf

NY Times: Cost of coverage under Obamacare to increase in 2015; up to 20%

Remember that promise about cutting the cost of a family's health insurance by $2,500 a year?

Yeah. All BS. Right up there with "You can keep your health plan..."

NYT: The Obama administration on Friday unveiled data showing that many Americans with health insurance bought under the Affordable Care Act could face substantial price increases next year — in some cases as much as 20 percent — unless they switch plans.

Tim football: Stepinac into the finals with huge win

Wow. What a display by Stepinac as they defeat the previously undefeated St. Peter's of Staten Island.

Here's the score with a few minutes left in the second quarter.

And the final score.

The crowd - here's part of it - easily over 1,000 - was loving it. Except the several hundred St. Peter's supporters who'd come up from Staten Island.

More to follow when I have the time.

Next week - the championship vs. Iona Prep, who beat St. Anthony's in the other semi-final.

 

 

WSJ: "The Loneliest President Since Nixon. Facing adversity, Obama has no idea how to respond".

Just a spot-on column by Peggy Noonan, the great wordsmith.

Excerpts below, but hit the link and read the whole thing.

I have never seen a president in exactly the position Mr. Obama is, which is essentially alone. He’s got no one with him now. The Republicans don’t like him, for reasons both usual and particular: They have had no good experiences with him. The Democrats don’t like him, for their own reasons plus the election loss. Before his post-election lunch with congressional leaders, he told the press that he will judiciously consider any legislation, whoever sends it to him, Republicans or Democrats. His words implied that in this he was less partisan and more public-spirited than the hacks arrayed around him. It is for these grace notes that he is loved. No one at the table looked at him with colder, beadier eyes than outgoing Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid , who clearly doesn’t like him at all. The press doesn’t especially like the president; in conversation they evince no residual warmth. This week at the Beijing summit there was no sign the leaders of the world had any particular regard for him. They can read election returns. They respect power and see it leaking out of him. If Mr. Obama had won the election they would have faked respect and affection.

I mentioned last week that the president has taken to filibustering, to long, rambling answers in planned sit-down settings—no questions on the fly walking from here to there, as other presidents have always faced. The press generally allows him to ramble on, rarely fighting back as they did with Nixon. But I have noticed Mr. Obama uses a lot of words as padding. He always has, but now he does it more. There’s a sense of indirection and obfuscation. You can say, “I love you,” or you can say, “You know, feelings will develop, that happens among humans and it’s good it happens, and I have always said, and I said it again just last week, that you are a good friend, I care about you, and it’s fair to say in terms of emotional responses that mine has escalated or increased somewhat, and ‘love’ would not be a wholly inappropriate word to use to describe where I’m coming from.”

When politicians do this they’re trying to mush words up so nothing breaks through. They’re leaving you dazed and trying to make it harder for you to understand what’s truly being said.

******

A few weeks ago a conservative intellectual asked me: “How are we going to get through the next two years?” It was a rhetorical question; he was just sharing his anxiety. We have a president who actually can’t work with Congress, operating in a capital in which he is resented and disliked and a world increasingly unimpressed by him, and so increasingly predatory.

Anyway, for those who are young and not sure if what they are seeing is wholly unusual: Yes, it is wholly unusual.

How a Republican won in Maryland

Democrats have a two to one registration advantage. But ...

For instance, Mr. Hogan’s team uncovered 40 tax, fee and toll increases. These included a “rain tax” on homeowners and businesses based on the square footage of surfaces that cannot absorb stormwater; a “Flush Tax” on water customers; and an electric rate surcharge to finance offshore wind projects. State spending has increased by about a third over the past eight years.

And more stuff like that. So the republican won by four points. people are wising up to tax and spend? Maybe?

Tim football: Stepinac semi-final tomorrow vs. St Peter's + short video

So we'll be at Stepinac tomorrow as Stepinac tries to get to the finals. Both teams are 10-0, although Stepinac had a harder schedule and should be favored. St. Peter's beat Msgr. Farrell 28-7 to get to the semis, but Stepinac beat Farrell 49-0 a few weeks ago.

But you never know. Stepinac didn't play up to their standards in their game last week, when they beat Cardinal Hayes, 36-22. Stepinac wins first playoff game ugly; but still wins

Here are four plays with Tim at fullback (#40, the blocking back) against Hayes. At 200 lbs. he is a tough blocker, often against bigger dudes.

 

Short article on SEAL who (says he) killed Bin Laden

Interesting and not the same as what was written in No Easy Day, which I read and reviewed on Amazon  but never did post here.

This is from the Telegraph (UK) and the link includes a one minute video.

Mr O’Neill told Fox News that it was "just luck" that he ended up as the man to pull the trigger when fellow commandos peeled off to search other rooms during the raid on bin Laden’s Pakistani compound.

In accounts given to other US media outlets, fellow Seals on the raid have said that the fatal shot was fired by an unidentified “point man” up the stairs from the second floor when bin Laden peeked out of his bedroom.

But the Montana native insisted that there was no doubt about his recollections. “Absolutely, 100 per cent,” he told interviewer Peter Doocy when asked whether he was the last person to see the terror leader alive.

He also dismissed the contradictory claim in a book by another Seal, Mark Bissonette, that he finished off the injured bin Laden. “War is foggy,” Mr O’Neill said. “The author is telling the story as he saw it, and based on the debrief that he heard. The debrief was cleaned up, but missing a few details. I can just speak on what I saw.”

******

On the second floor, the other Seals were clearing the rooms, leaving just the point-man and Mr O’Neill to head up to the third floor, he said.

After they climbed the stairs, his comrade rushed two women behind a curtain, throwing himself on top of them, believing that he would be sacrificing his own life as they were presumed, wrongly, to be wearing suicide bomb jackets.

That left Mr O’Neill alone to face and kill bin Laden, according to his account. He said that he acted within military rules as the al-Qaeda chief was also presumed – and also wrongly - to be wearing a suicide vest and had not surrendered. “It was a kill-capture,” he said. “I think everyone wanted that.”

******

They also had the body of bin Laden to take with them. Mr O’Neill said he was one of the four men who carried the corpse out in a body bag to the grounds where one of them jabbed a syringe into his leg to collect his DNA for proof that the dead man was indeed the al-Qaeda chief.

******

"To be part of something so historic, you can't ask for more...we wanted it bad," he said. "It doesn’t get any better. This is it this is why we're here. We are at war because of this guy and now we are going to go get him."

 ******

His decision to reveal his role was taken after he spoke with relatives of victims of the Sept 11, 2001, terror attacks at the new 9/11 museum in New York. He said that he saw their relief and “closure” at learning the details of bin Laden’s demise.

The show finished with Mr O’Neill receiving a tearful embrace from one of those family members. “You killed the devil,” the man said, “and I salute you.”

 

St. Rose of Lima quote

I know quite a few Rose and Rosemarie's. I'm sure this can be interpreted a number of ways.

'Apart from the cross there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven.'

St. Rose of Lima

YIKES! Wine ordering mistake "big time"

Proof positive - It pays to know your wines

Joe Lentini discovered that "thirty-seven fifty" for wine meant $3,750 – rather than anticipated bill for $37.50

"I asked the waitress if she could recommend something decent because I don't have experience with wine," Mr Lentini told local news website NJ.com. "She pointed to a bottle on the menu. I didn't have my glasses. I asked how much and she said, 'Thirty-seven fifty.'"

The bottle – Screaming Eagle, Oakville 2011 – was duly presented to the diners by the sommelier, sampled and approved. "It wasn't great. It wasn't terrible. It was fine," said Mr Lentini.

******

But the bill came as something of a shock. The total was $4,700.61 (£2,965.61), including tax.

After a certain amount of haggling, the restaurant cut the price to a still eye-watering $2,200 (£1,388).

The Borgata Casino, which houses the Bobby Flay steakhouse, insisted that there had been neither sharp practice nor a misunderstanding.

Joseph Lupo, the company's executive vice president and spokesman, told NJ.com that the waitress and sommelier had verified the choice of wine with Mr Lentini.

"As the leading culinary destination in this region, we consistently serve as many, if not more high-end wine and spirits without incident," he said. "We simply will not allow the threat of a negative story that includes so many unaccounted and questionable statements to disparage our integrity and standards, which Borgata takes great pride in practicing every day."

CNN: Reagan's apology to Margaret Thatcher about Grenada

Kind of Interesting.