Judge Wears Ten Commandments on Robe

A nice idea, although I personally find it a bit aesthetically awkward (I would have put a discrete, but noticeable, "PX" symbol).

Another Example of How Barbara Boxer is a Freakin' Nut

Images of a raging magalomaniac arise, as the left wing senator from California not so subtly threatens to put the Federal government hammer on college football if the private consortium that oversees the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) doesn't adopt some kind of a playoff system (as it currently stands, the top Division I-A football teams are more or less determined by some mysterious mathmatical formula that, of course, takes into account wins and losses). And oh yeah, Boxer's son is a graduate of Cal, whose football team this year got numerically squeezed out of a BCS bowl game that would have netted the school several million dollars. Quite a coincidence, eh?

Doing God's Work

A woman who has dedicated her life to saving babies from infanticide wins $27 million in the California lottery.

All too often, the ring of Debi Faris-Cifelli's cell phone means there is another abandoned newborn at the morgue, another forsaken child for her to name and bury in a shoebox-size coffin under a white cross in the California desert.

"Maybe it's the children saying, 'Thank you' for taking care of them when nobody else would," Faris-Cifelli said, bubbling with laughter. "It's a gift and one for which we feel an awesome responsibility."

It's what they did next that sets the Cifellis apart.

"That's a lot of money to be responsible for. We want to be really good stewards of that money. We feel like it's a gift," said Debi.

"And the first thing we thought of was a scholarship fund," said Steve.

The Power of Ordination Belongs to State and Federal Judges

So effectively suggests a Connecticut defense attorney who believes that Catholic priests should unionize in order to protect their "careers" from "baseless allegations" of criminal misconduct.

Wonder where this yayhoo was on the day they taught the First Amendment in law school.

That Would Be "Aiya!"

Michelle Malkin posts a story about how Nike is apologizing for running an "offensive" commercial that has since been banned in China, and what China does to folks who dare to exhibit courage.

"Christophobia"

It appears the Vatican is pushing for an adoption of the term by the U.N.

Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, the Vatican's foreign minister, said anti-Christian feeling had increased, exacerbated by the war on terrorism.

He said Christianity was often mistakenly seen as being inextricably linked with Western political policy, and had suffered as a result in the backlash against the West.

His comments, at a conference in Rome, were primarily aimed at Middle Eastern countries such as Iraq, where insurgents have bombed a number of churches.

But he also echoed Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, a leading contender to be the next Pope, who said last month that parts of Europe were so now secular that Christianity was being pushed into the margins.

A stupendously bad idea if you ask me. For one thing, a phobia is an irrational psychiactric fear, not an overt expression of ignorant hostility or hatred. Second, adopting this made up term only lends further credibility to ridiculous political words like "homophobia." Seems to me that if you want a word that adequately describes anti-Christianity, the word "anti-Christianity" should be used.

Maybe Target Did A Good Thing

In an unintentional fashion, the controversial decision by the Target Corporation to prohibit the Salvation Army from ringing bells (i.e., soliciting charitable donations) in front of their stores may very well be in the best interest for Catholics. (link via Amy Welborn)

73*



The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

By and Large, AIDS is a Homosexual Disease

This is certifiably confirmed by the fact that over 40 percent of those in America who are afflicted with the disease are homosexual males. Sure would be nice if the "gay community" would fess up to this and admit that their chosen lifestyle is inherently dangerous.

Unhinged

If the Democrat Party doesn't disassociate itself from folks like these, it can forget about ever winning back Congress and the presidency. (link via Michelle Malkin)

Detroit Not Only Has Basketbrawl

They also have Boy Scout troops that throw dinner parties for anti-Boy Scout congressmen. Huh.

SCOTUS Won't Review Mass. Case

The SCOTUS declines to review the blatantly activist decision by the Mass. high court legalizing "gay marriage." Since the rejection was made without comment, one can only speculate that it might be based on the proposed amendment to the Mass. constitution that would define marriage as being between a man and a woman.

Blackballed

For daring to blow the whistle on John Kerry, 'Rat mafiosos (can there be any other way to describe them?) have apparently succeeded in getting Swift Boat vet Steve Gardner fired from his job. (link via Powerline)

On Vacation

And I have an annoying cold, so I won't be blogging for the rest of this week. Have a happy Turkey Day!

Thought Exercise

Primary Mission of the Catholic Laity: Apply Principles Taught by the Church to the Secular World. That, to me at least, was the general underlying theme of the insightful lecture I attended last night given by Fr. Michael Sweeney, O.P. at St. Dominic's church. Within the realm of American politics, this is an incredibly challenging goal, especially when one considers the inherent conflict between the traditional emphasis that our culture places on individualism (which all too often has lead to destructive self-centeredness -- see, e.g., the Sexual Revolution) and the prime importance that the Church gives to self-sacrifice and doing things for the common good.

It is, of course, important to make a distinction between principle and doctrine. Although both are taught by the Church and can be upheld by Her as infallible truths, it seems to me that principle tends to transcend religion. As such, even an atheist can embrace and believe in a principle that the Church recognizes as being from God. The most obvious example would be the prohibition against murder (which, legally defined, is the intentional killing of another person with malice).

Because of the failure of many American Catholics to make a distinction between principle and doctrine, self-identified and elected Catholic politicians like Mario Cuomo, John Kerry and presumably Gavin Newsome have pretty much "gotten away" with making convoluted public statements about personally being against something that the Church also opposes (e.g., abortion) but nevertheless supporting its legality. In the view of these politicians, the use of their public authority to apply a transcending principle that is dogmatically upheld by the Church equates to an impermissible imposition of religious doctrine. This is plainly untrue, and it’s also scandalous to the extent that many other Catholics have been persuaded into embracing the same false belief. That being said, while no one of us in the Catholic laity can claim perfection in carrying out the primary mission we have been given by the Church, those Catholics who refuse to even engage in the mission by raising the false legal pretense of "separation of church and state" would seem to be especially culpable.

If Only They Weren't Required to be Celibate and Allowed to Marry

A California DMV employee is arrested and charged with sexually molesting seven teenaged girls during driving tests.

Living The Faith After The Election

That's the title of a speaking event tonight at St. Dominic's church is San Francisco. Probably won't be nearly as unintentionally humorous as the upcoming Gavin Newsome Show on Nov. 22 at St. Vincent de Paul's (which I sadly won't be able to make, because I'll be in L.A.), but it should be interesting.

Only in Berserkeley

Despite running a $7.5 million defecit, the city of Berkeley spends in excess of $70,000/year storing shopping carts that were stolen and abandoned by homeless people.

Meanwhile, the chancellor of UC Berkeley was named yesterday to oversee the implementation of California's "loan for clones" pogrom scam program.

This Oughtta be a Hoot

Mayor Gavin Newsome, the man who violated state law by issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples and who probably supports legalized abortion, will be giving his "perspective" on being a Catholic politician at an upcoming Young Adult Group meeting at St. Vincent de Paul church in San Francisco. Given the certain predictability of his comments, and my thin skin for outright stupidity, I'm going to need some other incentive to show up for this meeting.

Support Ahnuld for Prez TV Ads

My fellow Cahleefonians, starting this Monday there will be a series of television ads running encouraging the adoption of a constitutional amendment that will allow naturalized citizens, like Ahnuld, to run for President. You have been warned girly-men!!