Power, Like Nature, Abhors a Vacuum

Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney, warns against secular democracy and that if the West isn't careful, Islam could very well be the communism of the 21st century.

Update:Arrrgh! Registration is required to read the article linked above. Here's a summary from Catholic News.

Chairman of SF Abuse Panel Resigns

And while going out the door accuses the archdiocese of obfuscating and engaging in a public relations scheme. (link via Amy Welborn)

Sad Local Note

Acclaimed author and Bay Area resident Iris Chang has apparently committed suicide, leaving behind a husband and 2 year old son. If you ever get the chance, read Ms. Chang's book The Rape of Nanking, a very haunting and controversial chronicle of the atrocities committed by the Japanese in China during WWII.

Not Sure I Like This

According to Al Reuteera, President Bush will be nominating White House Legal Counsel Alberto Gonzales to be the next U.S. Attorney General. In light of the reports that Gonzales has squishy positions on affirmative action and life issues, conservatives should definitely be concerned about this apparent nomination.

State Rankings on the Greatest Virtue

Not a blue (Kerry) state among the top 25.

The Anti-Janet Reno Resigns

And I mean that as a complement. Nice job Mr. Ashcroft, and thank you for your service.

Kill the Sick and Useless Among Us!!

Such effectively is the calling cry of two California state legislators who plan on introducing a bill that would legalize physician assisted suicide. Ahnuld, having made one too many Terminator movies, is apparently undecided on the matter.

A Real Choice

Some Federal employees in Illinois now have the option of choosing a Catholic-run health insurance plan that doesn't cover abortions or contraception. Predictably, Planned Parenthood opposes the providing of such a choice by disingenuously confusing reasonable accommodation for religious indoctrination. Plus, I'm sure those baby butchers don't like the fact that they'll be losing money from this.

Aiming for Arlen

Folks at The Corner think that pressure should be applied to deny Arlen Specter the Chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee for his warning remarks to President Bush about nominating judges who are openly critical of Roe v. Wade, while conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt thinks pro-life efforts should be focused on changing the Senate rules that have allowed pro-abortion Democrats to obstruct Bush's judicial nominees. Frankly, I don't really know who's right on this, but I will say it's a most unfortunate situation that probably could have been altogether avoided had Bush shown a little bit of courage and not endorsed Specter over Pat Toomey in the Pennsylvania GOP primary.

Come to think of it, Hewitt did support Bush's move to endorse Specter in the primaries, so perhaps his argument for restraint and analysis isn't as dispassionate as it should be. But he does nevertheless raise some good points, and I'm going to have to mull them over for a bit to see if I should jump on the "Axe Arlen from the Judiciary Chairmanship" bandwagon.

Update: I'm now leaning toward denying Specter the chairmanship.

Chief Justice Thomas?

All the scuttlebut surrounding William Rehnquist's health and who might succeed him as the next Chief Justice of the Supreme Court kind of reminds me of the all the mostly media speculation that's been going on the last several years about who the next pope is going to be. In any event, Drudge is flashing a news report about how President Bush is supposedly looking into the possibility of elevating Clarence Thomas to the position of Chief Justice if and when Rehnquist resigns. A bold move to be sure, and one that I would wholeheartedly support. Between Thomas and Antonin Scalia, I personally think Thomas is the better jurist mostly because he appears to view the Ninth Amendment as a vehicle for Natural Law principles. The same can't be really said about Scalia who doesn't really seem to see the Ninth Amendment as anything more than an ink blot that conveys a nice sentiment.

Good Question

Howard Bashman at How Appealing asks what the election results of this past Tuesday mean if, as some people would have you believe, that it is impossible to fill a probable opening on the Supreme Court with a nominee who is a known opponent of Roe v. Wade.

California is a Weapon of Mass Destruction

In a state where abortion has been expressly proclaimed to be a fundamental right, it really isn't suprising that a ballot initiative which allows human beings to be created in a petrie dish and destroyed for purposes of "scientific research" passed with flying colors. Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy.

My Sentiments Exactly

Addressed to the incredibly deep blue MSM.

Lefty Dem Dilemmas

First, they make vacuous promises to leave the U.S. and move to Canada if George Bush wins reelection, then comes news that they'd have to wait up to a year before Canada allows them to become citizens of the Great White North.

Wonder if some of these 'Rats have ever thought of Cuba? I'm sure Fidel would fast track their citizenship applications in no time.

I am Alone in an Ocean of Loony Lefties

The final tally on the presidential race here in San Francisco is Kerry 83% and Bush 15%. A local initiative that would actually have allowed non-U.S. citizens to vote in San Francisco school board elections barely lost 51% to 49%, while an initiative condemning President Bush as a liar and demanding U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq easily passed by a 63% to 37% margin.

Should I Feel Disenfranchised?

The type of voting ballot being used in San Francisco requires a person to fill in a broken arrow to a candidate of choice. At the polling place that I was at, a felt-tip pen was provided inside each voting stall. As most people might be aware, anything that is written with a felt-tip pen can be easily smudged, which is exactly what happened to a few of the markings I made on my ballot. When I asked the kid (he looked college-aged) who was running the ballot reading machine if this was a problem, he said "no." I remain skeptical.

Also, the voting for San Francisco Supervisors employed something called "ranked choice voting," which basically asks people to selct their first, second and third choices for a particular District Supervisor seat. The claimed purpose of this crazy voting method is to avoid prolonged and costly runoffs in case there is either a tie among two candidates or no candidate is able to garner more than 50% of the vote (I can't remember which one it is). Since there was only one supervisorial candidate in my district who I could vote for in good conscience, I didn't make a second and third choice. This seems to have been the reason for why the ballot reading machine didn't initially scan my ballot. After asking me if I had failed to fill in a couple of things on the Supervisor ballot, the kid running the ballot reading machine punched in a couple of buttons, and voila, my ballot got scanned. At least I think it did. Now I'm kicking myself for not asking.

Update: I noticed this guy's name among the candidates running for San Francisco School Board, and I just thought to myself, "This city is loony bin."

No Camelot for Kerry

At least as far as getting the Catholic Vote [tm] is concerned.

Several things of note in the linked article: 1). Apparently, the Daily Herald is amazed that any Catholic will not be voting for someone who claims (repeatedly) to have once been an altar boy; 2).The liberal/heretical Pax Christi is laughingly referred to as a "social justice group"; 3). Catholic concern about abortion is described as an "ideological shift" that occurred in the last 30 years; 4). Life related issues are qualified as "so-called"; 5). "Anti-abortion rights?"; and 6). Catholic Answers is described as being partisan and of the position that Catholics are required to "vote for a candidate who supports any one of five 'non-negotiable issues'"

If it wasn't for the fact that this article is being passed off as news, all of the blatant distortions and misleading comments that are made would be hilarious.

I Kind of Like My Car

Thus, my hesitancy to slap a Bush/Cheney sticker on it out here in the Bay Area. (link via Drudge)

This Guy Needs to be Dropped Like a Bad Habit

A pro-abortion lawyer (he's given lots of money to pro-abortion candidates) retained by a Wisconsin diocese advises said diocese against distributing a Catholic pro-life voter guide.

Government May Discriminate Against Private Religious Schools

So, in effect, decrees the U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals. From just the article itself, it looks as though this might have been a case involving a challenge to a "Blaine Amendment", which from a historical standpoint, has its roots in anti-Catholicism.