Apparently a decision made by the California Supreme Court has brought the entire debate over Prop 8 back into the spotlight. I'm not a legal scholar, lawyer, or law professor. As a general rule, my eyes glaze over when folk begin discussing the fine details of this or that legal issue. I know we like the courts to say what we want them to say, but I'll guess most people aren't able to understand it any better than I can. And many who do, such as legal 'contributors' on various news outlets, are perhaps a bit slanted in how they report this or that decision or case.
So I don't know what all of this is about. Since folks opposed to legalizing gay marriage are throwing confetti and celebrating, I'll guess it's something that reaffirms the voter based ban on gay marriage in California. This take is further cemented by the assurances that gay marriage will nonetheless prevail against flagrant homophobic bigotry that I hear coming out of the pro-non-heterosexual normality crowd.
We'll have to see. I doubt it will be too many years before gay marriage is the law of the land. You can't have one state letting couples (or any particular number) get married, and others not recognizing it. I'm sure gay normality proponents are aware of this. And since the overall trajectory of America is to follow our post-Christian, secular, progressive, socialist friends over in Europe, I figure it's a matter of time.
Still, it's worth noting that a California Court did something that, from what I can tell, wasn't expected. So you never know.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Don't send your fresh idea to Hollywood
Or it will die of loneliness. Looks like the 1960s TV show The Munsters is going to be redone with the usual modern brooding and cynical 'everything sucks' spin. I realize that television has long been known for being formulaic. One need only watch sitcoms through the ages and see how often the same storyline comes through different shows. I mean, remember the anti-gun mold? Authority figure - usually a man, father, something - decides he wants to buy gun. Everyone else who is always smarter than the male authority figure begs him not to, since owning guns is dangerous. Something is delaying him doing so, and in the meantime, it comes about that the man gets up in the middle of the night for something. While out and about, he hears a noise. Since he doesn't have the gun yet, he improvises (frying pan, baseball bat, something), and waits to pounce on the unsuspecting burglar. Turns out that, just in the nick of time, he realizes the noise was from one of the regular cast members. It wasn't a burglar or home invader after all! He heaves a great sigh of relief, everyone is thankful he didn't have the gun instead, he realizes the error of his ways, and comes back to the Purer Faith of 70s and 80s style progressive values.
So yeah, television shows aren't always the most original. Usually one comes up and then everyone else copies until a new idea comes along. But theres' something about Hollywood constantly turning toward old shows, old movies, old new movies, anything that's already there, especially in proportion to the lack of original ideas, that suggests the old machine is beginning to wear out its creative bearings. Who knows? Maybe there will be some Desi and Lucy to think outside the box and revitalize things. It sure can't come too soon.
So yeah, television shows aren't always the most original. Usually one comes up and then everyone else copies until a new idea comes along. But theres' something about Hollywood constantly turning toward old shows, old movies, old new movies, anything that's already there, especially in proportion to the lack of original ideas, that suggests the old machine is beginning to wear out its creative bearings. Who knows? Maybe there will be some Desi and Lucy to think outside the box and revitalize things. It sure can't come too soon.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Nothing to worry about
Nope. It's just Russia saying they're starting to scratch that old nuclear war itch. You know, nuclear saber rattling. Hey, if it was Americans, American pols, then I'd worry. Turns out, it's just some non-American country, so I'm sure it will all be fine.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Why I love St. Mary Parish
Because of things like this:
I took this picture last night during the RCIA tour of the sanctuary. I'm part of the team, but we didn't have much to do since that was handled by a professional tour giver - our youth director. Some folks made their way up the winding stairs:
 |
| Stairs cool enough to deserve their own picture |
To see what the choir loft looked like. It didn't disappoint. Even though I was informed there are major renovations on the horizon, everyone seemed to think it will be to preserve the wonderful architectural and traditional feel of the place. I hope Catholics know that it's the link to the past, to the ancient, that gives Catholicism one of its biggest trump cards. Churches like this one are a small part in keeping that feel alive, and go a long way toward avoiding the tendency to build parishes that appear to say 'pssst, maybe they won't think we're Catholic.' Take a look at this parish. It says 'we're Catholic' loud and clear.
Remember when?
The religion of PETA continues to make a joke of itself
The Church of PETA has, once again, demanded conversion to its gospel of animal worship, and called for outrage against those who refuse to be proselytized. Of course the bulk of humanity laughs. But we laugh because we don't see it for what it is, a replacement faith for a faithless society.
You see, we Christians believe God exists. And with that comes certain natural ramifications, such as the human tendency to be drawn toward worshipping the Creator. When folks refuse to worship the creator, as often as not they will end up worshipping the created, one way or another. Even atheists can turn their own atheism into a religion to be worshipped, or so say modern atheists who explain away the atrocities committed by atheists by stating that those atheists treated atheism like a religion.
So in our post-modern, post-Christian society, did we really think religion would go away? No, it's still here. People will worship something: sex, football, money, themselves, animals, the environment, Mother Earth, whatever. They will cleave unto ancient heathen gods, make up their own religions, something. People will worship.
Since most of our legal definitions of religion were formed back when the Judeo-Christian faith was the default religious setting, we tend to imagine religion looking like a church with a Bible and people praying and singing hymns. And because we tend to see 'religion' in such a narrow way, proud, enlightened post-moderns are blind to the rise of religious alternative religions that are rising up. And they are rising up with a zeal and a fanaticism that could shame a medieval inquisitor.
And that's the funny thing. The reason why most Westerners tossed out the Christian heritage of our civilization was, let's face it, for a good lay, a good romp in the sack, a few drugs, some bathroom humor, parties, greed, and narcissism galore. The idea was that if we could just get rid of 'religion', we would be free, free, free! And yet, new religions are rising that should make it clear to thinking people what the Bible always taught, that we are never free. We simply trade servitude from one thing (the Creator of Heaven and Earth) for something else (animals, the state, government, baseball, you name it)*. And those neo-faiths appear to leap over any evangelistic zeal yet seen when it comes to converting society, or demanding conformity to their dogmas if conversion eludes them. Laugh all we want at PETA and their ilk, but be warned.
*See Paul's letter to the Romans for an excellent unpacking of worshipping created things, and being slaves to God as opposed to slaves to sinful ways.
You see, we Christians believe God exists. And with that comes certain natural ramifications, such as the human tendency to be drawn toward worshipping the Creator. When folks refuse to worship the creator, as often as not they will end up worshipping the created, one way or another. Even atheists can turn their own atheism into a religion to be worshipped, or so say modern atheists who explain away the atrocities committed by atheists by stating that those atheists treated atheism like a religion.
So in our post-modern, post-Christian society, did we really think religion would go away? No, it's still here. People will worship something: sex, football, money, themselves, animals, the environment, Mother Earth, whatever. They will cleave unto ancient heathen gods, make up their own religions, something. People will worship.
Since most of our legal definitions of religion were formed back when the Judeo-Christian faith was the default religious setting, we tend to imagine religion looking like a church with a Bible and people praying and singing hymns. And because we tend to see 'religion' in such a narrow way, proud, enlightened post-moderns are blind to the rise of religious alternative religions that are rising up. And they are rising up with a zeal and a fanaticism that could shame a medieval inquisitor.
And that's the funny thing. The reason why most Westerners tossed out the Christian heritage of our civilization was, let's face it, for a good lay, a good romp in the sack, a few drugs, some bathroom humor, parties, greed, and narcissism galore. The idea was that if we could just get rid of 'religion', we would be free, free, free! And yet, new religions are rising that should make it clear to thinking people what the Bible always taught, that we are never free. We simply trade servitude from one thing (the Creator of Heaven and Earth) for something else (animals, the state, government, baseball, you name it)*. And those neo-faiths appear to leap over any evangelistic zeal yet seen when it comes to converting society, or demanding conformity to their dogmas if conversion eludes them. Laugh all we want at PETA and their ilk, but be warned.
*See Paul's letter to the Romans for an excellent unpacking of worshipping created things, and being slaves to God as opposed to slaves to sinful ways.
I miss Thanksgiving for my boys, thank goodness for Martin Luther King
Today, it's not easy thinking Thanksgiving thoughts. Like most traditional holidays, it has a certain inertia, carried on by the tradition that we should all get together and hang out with family, eat, watch football games, and plan on traveling. Other than that, much of the traditional Thanksgiving paraphernalia is more or less just consumer goods with no real concern about its background. In the public schools, I see little brought home that commemorates any historic connections to the event. In my time, hand drawn turkeys that traced my fingers for the feathers, in-class pumpkin pie making, pictures of the Pilgrims trekking through the winter woods, lessons and stories and plays and even old projector movies relating the events of those early days of the Plymouth settlement all reminded us of what the holiday was about.
It wasn't unusual for us to have a band concert or similar production the day before our Thanksgiving break. Sure, for most of us kids, Thanksgiving break was that tiding over, that pregame festivity that heralded the mack daddy of all holidays, Christmas. Today, that's called Winter Break. Then, Christian or no, it was Christmas. And even for those of us not in church, we loved every minute of it. Thanksgiving, even more than Halloween, meant the most wonderful day of the year was coming soon.
Today, of course, due to multi-cultural education and PC sensitivities and censorship, we no longer have such easy recounting of the events of that first Thanksgiving so long ago. Instead, as is usual today, we are reminded of the meaner things, the 'genocide' that arguably didn't really happen but we learn it that way anyway, the imperialism, the racism, the ill treatment of the Native populations - all of these become the focus. In deference to any potentially offensive presentation, little to no focus on any traditional Thanksgiving trappings is done. There might be a turkey picture here, or a lesson if the student happens to be in a grade that teaches history there. But nothing major. There are certainly no big celebrations, pumpkin pie feasts, band concerts on Wednesday (or Tuesday), or any such thing. At best - and I admit I've become happy with the break-even point - we just stop hearing about the awful legacy of America's horrendous past for a couple days.
In fact, with our modern sensitivities, most schools have little to do with this or that holiday formerly known as Christmas. There will be some winter decorations, and of course the break that happens to fall over the last couple weeks of December. But our schools have become wastelands of doldrums and yawns, daring not to celebrate anything traditional lest someone be offended by the references.
But come January, they will begin winding up for America's new Holy Day: The Feast of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. They will spend weeks watching films, reading books, drawing pictures, attending assemblies. The hallways will be adorned with his pictures, with quotes, with references to the moments of his life. They will see clips from his March on Washington. They will be told to make the day special, to take in its meaning, to apply themselves to making our world a better place. It will be all the things that the holiday formerly known as Christmas and that other one that is still somewhat special because of family but not because of the horrible legacy it represents, used to be.
Which goes to show you. Every culture, every generation, every ideological revolution, every nation has its heroes, its holy days, it absolute values that it demands everyone conform to absolutely. Ours today is no different. Having dispensed with the old guard under the auspices of tolerance and sensitivity toward all people, beliefs and demographic groups, we now fill the void with new absolute value systems with their teachings and heroes, and bid a gradual farewell to the celebrations of yore that no longer have a place in the post-modern, post American nation in which we live. Happy Thanksgiving.
It wasn't unusual for us to have a band concert or similar production the day before our Thanksgiving break. Sure, for most of us kids, Thanksgiving break was that tiding over, that pregame festivity that heralded the mack daddy of all holidays, Christmas. Today, that's called Winter Break. Then, Christian or no, it was Christmas. And even for those of us not in church, we loved every minute of it. Thanksgiving, even more than Halloween, meant the most wonderful day of the year was coming soon.
Today, of course, due to multi-cultural education and PC sensitivities and censorship, we no longer have such easy recounting of the events of that first Thanksgiving so long ago. Instead, as is usual today, we are reminded of the meaner things, the 'genocide' that arguably didn't really happen but we learn it that way anyway, the imperialism, the racism, the ill treatment of the Native populations - all of these become the focus. In deference to any potentially offensive presentation, little to no focus on any traditional Thanksgiving trappings is done. There might be a turkey picture here, or a lesson if the student happens to be in a grade that teaches history there. But nothing major. There are certainly no big celebrations, pumpkin pie feasts, band concerts on Wednesday (or Tuesday), or any such thing. At best - and I admit I've become happy with the break-even point - we just stop hearing about the awful legacy of America's horrendous past for a couple days.
In fact, with our modern sensitivities, most schools have little to do with this or that holiday formerly known as Christmas. There will be some winter decorations, and of course the break that happens to fall over the last couple weeks of December. But our schools have become wastelands of doldrums and yawns, daring not to celebrate anything traditional lest someone be offended by the references.
But come January, they will begin winding up for America's new Holy Day: The Feast of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. They will spend weeks watching films, reading books, drawing pictures, attending assemblies. The hallways will be adorned with his pictures, with quotes, with references to the moments of his life. They will see clips from his March on Washington. They will be told to make the day special, to take in its meaning, to apply themselves to making our world a better place. It will be all the things that the holiday formerly known as Christmas and that other one that is still somewhat special because of family but not because of the horrible legacy it represents, used to be.
Which goes to show you. Every culture, every generation, every ideological revolution, every nation has its heroes, its holy days, it absolute values that it demands everyone conform to absolutely. Ours today is no different. Having dispensed with the old guard under the auspices of tolerance and sensitivity toward all people, beliefs and demographic groups, we now fill the void with new absolute value systems with their teachings and heroes, and bid a gradual farewell to the celebrations of yore that no longer have a place in the post-modern, post American nation in which we live. Happy Thanksgiving.
Monday, November 14, 2011
You know the GOP has done something screwy
When their stance on torture has made the fact that President Obama calls water boarding 'torture' news. Twenty years ago, would anyone have said differently? I can't figure out why, why, why so many in the conservative/GOP movement have hitched their wagons to defending torture. No, strike that. Not just defending, but proudly advocating and celebrating it. I mean, geeesh. If I was going to condone it, defend it, say it was needed since terrorists basically throw the rules of war out the window and base their entire grand strategic overviews on things condemned by every modern civilized state, I would like to think I'd hang my head in shame. I'd do it in behind closed doors, in whispered tones and hushed voices. In candlelight. Behind the crates in the corner.
But no. Hell no. The only party with a chance for stopping Obama's disastrously inept presidency has decided it will grab the pompoms and give a shout of joy for what we used to associate with the Vietcong, the Gestapo, the KGB, the Chinese Communists. This is stuff that American Indians did that used to be a blight on their claim to the moral high ground (at least for non-multiculturalists). So why do they have to cheer? Why do Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Bachmann, Cain and others have to act as if it's a badge of honor that they want this to be our policy? It does make voting for a third party candidate seem more appealing by the hour.
But no. Hell no. The only party with a chance for stopping Obama's disastrously inept presidency has decided it will grab the pompoms and give a shout of joy for what we used to associate with the Vietcong, the Gestapo, the KGB, the Chinese Communists. This is stuff that American Indians did that used to be a blight on their claim to the moral high ground (at least for non-multiculturalists). So why do they have to cheer? Why do Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Bachmann, Cain and others have to act as if it's a badge of honor that they want this to be our policy? It does make voting for a third party candidate seem more appealing by the hour.
Thank goodness for the Russians
Where would America's space program be without them? Of course we could always go to the Chinese. It's not easy being in a second rate has-been society, but I think we Americans are beginning to warm up to the idea.
The award for best assessment of the Penn State scandal goes to
Mark Shea, over at Catholic and Enjoying It. I won't add anything. Just go there and read it, take it in, and think of how it applies to so many areas of modern life. Well said Mark.
Friday, November 11, 2011
They're back
I've decided to reinstate the Comments Section of the posts...for the time being. We'll see. It's been so long since they've been up, and I have no clue who is and isn't stopping by. If nobody comments, or if they start out nasty, off they go. But for now, I'm willing to give folks the chance to opine, and even call me on things. So here goes nothing.
Catholic Social Services of Southern Illinois to Leftist Juggernaut
You win. That's just what the post-moder secular left wants, and homosexuality is the hammer with which it hopes to bludgeon the Christian witness out of our society. Note to the Left: Continue holding a gun to the heads of our widows and orphans, and I'm sure more Christian groups will cave. Yes, I applaud the organization's commitment to the children, as opposed to the gay rights disregard for the same, but it is still a resounding victory for the anti-Christian/anti-Catholic salivating on the Left.
Retailers pine for the elimination of Thanksgiving
Walmart, not to be outdone by Target, has said it will screw its employee's families open up at 10:00 on Thanksgiving. I know, as a Catholic, Thanksgiving is an overblown relic of our puritanical past, where anal retentive puritans who alone brought intolerance and religious persecution to the world, came to push aside the Catholic elements of our heritage.
Meanwhile, for most post-moderns, American Indians are able to have carte blanche when it comes to portraying their ancestors as the pure, sinless, perfect bearers of love and peace, and the pilgrims as racist, imperialist, Nazi genocidal murderers. That the pilgrims actually established a peace treaty that lasted almost 50 years (not a bad record for a peace treaty), and should be used as an example of what could have, or should have, happened between the Indians and settlers is ignored. Nope. They were white, European, Christians and that's as guilty as it gets.
So we have a day thatmany some Catholics appear to sneer at, and post-moderns, secularists, and American Indians condemn as the beginning of the 'American Holocaust'. So why still have the day? I don't know. I like it, so I'm glad it's around. And while I like to point folks to the Catholic presence in our country's past, I don't mind including the bravery, courage, and devotion to God that exemplified what the Pilgrims were all about.
But like everything else in our country now, it's not sex rights, abortion rights, or equality. It's money. Money, plain and simple, that drives us. And Walmart, Target, and any other consumerist juggernaut doesn't give one rip about families, traditions, meaning, nothing. They serve one god, and I'll let you guess which one it is. Those who take advantage of it for cheap prices? Welcome to the society you are building.
Meanwhile, for most post-moderns, American Indians are able to have carte blanche when it comes to portraying their ancestors as the pure, sinless, perfect bearers of love and peace, and the pilgrims as racist, imperialist, Nazi genocidal murderers. That the pilgrims actually established a peace treaty that lasted almost 50 years (not a bad record for a peace treaty), and should be used as an example of what could have, or should have, happened between the Indians and settlers is ignored. Nope. They were white, European, Christians and that's as guilty as it gets.
So we have a day that
But like everything else in our country now, it's not sex rights, abortion rights, or equality. It's money. Money, plain and simple, that drives us. And Walmart, Target, and any other consumerist juggernaut doesn't give one rip about families, traditions, meaning, nothing. They serve one god, and I'll let you guess which one it is. Those who take advantage of it for cheap prices? Welcome to the society you are building.
A blast from the past for all of the media pundits pouncing on Cain
Remember this classic?
Followed, of course, by that all time favorite:
None of this matters. That's what they said back in the day. Please ignore what they are saying today.
Followed, of course, by that all time favorite:
None of this matters. That's what they said back in the day. Please ignore what they are saying today.
The best take on the whole Herman Cain accusations so far
Over at Mark Shea's Catholic and Enjoying It, I found a link to this article by Elizabeth Scalia. She pretty much says all there is to say. If you're like me, and a growing number of folks, you'll admit there's something fishy about the way the media is handling Cain's crisis. Yes, if he's guilty I think he should be punished, legally and politically. It appears most in the media do as well. In fact, it appears some are wondering if the very presence of the accusations don't preclude him from office. Just because he's been accused. And that's the problem.
Now, to the Wayback machine, and we visit that little time in America's recent past (or ancient history based on the historical awareness that seems to be fostered by the Internet Age). It was a time when our own president, Bill Clinton, had been accused repeatedly of sexually harassing a string of women. During the course of investigating this, and looking to provide evidence that Clinton may not be the most reliable source when it comes to his honesty about sexual behavior, Ken Starr (remember him? Four Years and Forty Million Dollars Starr?) found that Clinton had lied under oath when asked about a sexual encounter in the White House. This revelation came by way of a taped confession by a young intern named Monica Lewinsky.
I feel the need to write all of this because to hear the media go after Cain, you'd think this never happened. Anyway, when the news broke that Clinton was caught in a lie about an affair in the Oval Office, and one that he had lied about under oath in order to cover up allegations of sexual harassment, everything hit the fan. The coverage, which has been debated and discussed somewhat in recent days across the blogosphere and in some Right Wing media outlets, happened in four basic phases:
Phase 1: The first hours after the story broke. Almost everyone assumed that if it was true, Clinton was gone. Not just because he had the affair, not just because he had the affair as president IN THE WHITE HOUSE, but because he had lied under oath. When the late Peter Jennings dropped the I-word, most thought the jig was up.
Phase 2: Hillary Clinton appeared on the Today Show, and gave the press their marching orders. It was all part of a Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy. Granted, the Right had accused Clinton of everything under the sun, from being a Communist to being a Martian, so it wasn't hard to believe this was just one more accusation (even if some of the accusations appeared to have a grain of truth to them). But either way, from this point on the MSM covered the story as if it were the Right's to prove. More than that, they went after the Right, the Conservative Movement, and the Republicans with a vengeance. We were also given story after story, interview after interview, in which architects, ex-Secret Service members, presidential staffers, former Intern, scholars, scientists, janitors, delivery truck drivers, and anyone under the sun assured us that it was physically impossible for a president to have done what he was accused of doing. At the same time, suspicions fell upon Miss Lewinsky, encouraged by Clinton's Hunter-Killer team whose job it was to take out any who stood in Clinton's way. Suggestions that she was just some crazed women like Paula Jones and all the others, began to emerge.
Phase 3: The Dress. Perhaps because she didn't want to go down the road of others who got in Clinton's way, Lewinsky's mother presents to the world The Dress. At that point, you would have thought it was over. Realizing that Clinton had 1) lied under oath, 2) lied to the American public repeatedly, 3) falsely accused his accusers (both Lewinsky and the Republicans), and 4) had the affair during work hours while supposedly worrying about pesky fellows with weird names like Osama bin Laden, most assumed this was it. Because the MSM realized they had been played like fools, their outrage was deafening. For days and weeks, they went after Clinton. Further anger arose at Clinton's elusive lawyering, his appeals to defining complex terms like 'is', and his general assumption that ignoring job duties, lying, committing perjury, and slandering honest accusers was no big deal. What mattered was that he had given America the greatest economy in the history of the universe, and we needed to focus on what really mattered. After all, his campaign was the one that first told us there are no morals, just money (as in 'It's the economy, stupid!)
Phase 4: The MSM realizes what this means. The media had been under scrutiny for some time regarding our friend Mr. Clinton. Going into the 90s, most Americans still believed the media was a source of relatively unbiased truth finding. The 1992 election, in which the MSM showed a disproportionate amount of positive attention to the Clinton campaign, even though he was not the incumbent, suggested some bias was afoot. Later, in the mid-90s during the Government Shutdown, it was hard not to see that the media was quick to blame only the Republicans for the failure of both they and Clinton to come to an agreement. Their tendency to accept the Clinton Administration's narrative was beginning to suggest that the media felt it was their job to get Clinton elected, and keep him there. And why not? Most media folk by that time were liberal Baby Boomers, and Clinton appeared to be everything they espoused. Gone was that crusty old WWII generation. In was the newer, hipper, joint-smoking, sax-playing generation that would set it right.
So it wasn't really that much of a shock when the tides of the media narrative began to change. As movement toward impeachment began to pick up steam, folks in the media - perhaps because they realized what was at stake - changed how everything was being discussed. For some reason, the Republicans continued to be portrayed as the bad guys. Ken Starr, Linda Tripp, and others associated with the accusations were all but mauled by the media, popular culture, Saturday Night Live, you name it.
But that still left us with a president who had done everything mentioned. A president who was still accused of sexual harassment - the worst charge imaginable through the 80s and 90s, one that almost destroyed a Supreme Court Justice's nomination. What to do?
The answer was simple. It. Didn't. Matter. It was all about sex, so who cared. Most presidents had affairs we were told. In fact, most men have affairs. It didn't matter. It was just about sex. The word 'Sex' had been used, so that made it personal, private, irrelevant. Let Clinton and his ever present family whenever he was seen in public, work things out. It didn't matter. Character? Morals? Values? Bah. Look at France. Look at England. They think we're nuts (even if the English were trying to use Prince Charles's dalliances as a reason to eliminate the Royal Family). It didn't matter. We needed to get to reality. He had given us the greatest economy in the world (with critics concerned about the growing level of debt behind it all relegated to the VRWC), so we needed to grow up. Who cares about such relative things? Who cares about old puritanical values? What president is perfect anyway? Who cares? The media said it. Experts interviewed assured us it didn't matter. Feminist leaders conveniently moved on and suggested Clinton's stances on unlimited pro-abortion rights were what counted. And America, apparently, bought it.
That was the bargain that 66% of Americans accepted in order to keep the status quo. A status quo that wasn't true. Troubles were already brewing. A subversive plot to hijack jet airliners and fly them into key structures and kill thousands was already underway, and undetected. Signs that the economy was weaker than presented were beginning to show. Our place in the post-Cold War had not been adequately established, as other competing powers were beginning to sit up and take notice. And yet, we were told that everything was fine. Things like sexual harassment apparently weren't that big after all. Morals, character, values, truth, perjury didn't matter. As long as we thought everything was fine, just look the other way, insist the emperor's clothes look quite nice, and all will be well.
The results have, of course, been devastating on so many levels I can't get into them all. It should be obvious to anyone with a brain. But beyond all this is the blatant joke of the media's objectivity. Anyone who can come out of watching their shock, their righteous indignation, their obsession with the gravity of the charges against Cain after having lived through the late 90s, and still think that the Media is all about Truth, is a person most apt to believe that babies are delivered by storks and the moon is made of cheese. It is a person quite willing to live in a world of unreality for the sake of immediate and personal gain. And I hope and pray a growing number of people realize this, since a country filled with 66% of that type of a person, doesn't stand much of a chance in the 21st century, or any century for that matter.
Now, to the Wayback machine, and we visit that little time in America's recent past (or ancient history based on the historical awareness that seems to be fostered by the Internet Age). It was a time when our own president, Bill Clinton, had been accused repeatedly of sexually harassing a string of women. During the course of investigating this, and looking to provide evidence that Clinton may not be the most reliable source when it comes to his honesty about sexual behavior, Ken Starr (remember him? Four Years and Forty Million Dollars Starr?) found that Clinton had lied under oath when asked about a sexual encounter in the White House. This revelation came by way of a taped confession by a young intern named Monica Lewinsky.
I feel the need to write all of this because to hear the media go after Cain, you'd think this never happened. Anyway, when the news broke that Clinton was caught in a lie about an affair in the Oval Office, and one that he had lied about under oath in order to cover up allegations of sexual harassment, everything hit the fan. The coverage, which has been debated and discussed somewhat in recent days across the blogosphere and in some Right Wing media outlets, happened in four basic phases:
Phase 1: The first hours after the story broke. Almost everyone assumed that if it was true, Clinton was gone. Not just because he had the affair, not just because he had the affair as president IN THE WHITE HOUSE, but because he had lied under oath. When the late Peter Jennings dropped the I-word, most thought the jig was up.
Phase 2: Hillary Clinton appeared on the Today Show, and gave the press their marching orders. It was all part of a Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy. Granted, the Right had accused Clinton of everything under the sun, from being a Communist to being a Martian, so it wasn't hard to believe this was just one more accusation (even if some of the accusations appeared to have a grain of truth to them). But either way, from this point on the MSM covered the story as if it were the Right's to prove. More than that, they went after the Right, the Conservative Movement, and the Republicans with a vengeance. We were also given story after story, interview after interview, in which architects, ex-Secret Service members, presidential staffers, former Intern, scholars, scientists, janitors, delivery truck drivers, and anyone under the sun assured us that it was physically impossible for a president to have done what he was accused of doing. At the same time, suspicions fell upon Miss Lewinsky, encouraged by Clinton's Hunter-Killer team whose job it was to take out any who stood in Clinton's way. Suggestions that she was just some crazed women like Paula Jones and all the others, began to emerge.
Phase 3: The Dress. Perhaps because she didn't want to go down the road of others who got in Clinton's way, Lewinsky's mother presents to the world The Dress. At that point, you would have thought it was over. Realizing that Clinton had 1) lied under oath, 2) lied to the American public repeatedly, 3) falsely accused his accusers (both Lewinsky and the Republicans), and 4) had the affair during work hours while supposedly worrying about pesky fellows with weird names like Osama bin Laden, most assumed this was it. Because the MSM realized they had been played like fools, their outrage was deafening. For days and weeks, they went after Clinton. Further anger arose at Clinton's elusive lawyering, his appeals to defining complex terms like 'is', and his general assumption that ignoring job duties, lying, committing perjury, and slandering honest accusers was no big deal. What mattered was that he had given America the greatest economy in the history of the universe, and we needed to focus on what really mattered. After all, his campaign was the one that first told us there are no morals, just money (as in 'It's the economy, stupid!)
Phase 4: The MSM realizes what this means. The media had been under scrutiny for some time regarding our friend Mr. Clinton. Going into the 90s, most Americans still believed the media was a source of relatively unbiased truth finding. The 1992 election, in which the MSM showed a disproportionate amount of positive attention to the Clinton campaign, even though he was not the incumbent, suggested some bias was afoot. Later, in the mid-90s during the Government Shutdown, it was hard not to see that the media was quick to blame only the Republicans for the failure of both they and Clinton to come to an agreement. Their tendency to accept the Clinton Administration's narrative was beginning to suggest that the media felt it was their job to get Clinton elected, and keep him there. And why not? Most media folk by that time were liberal Baby Boomers, and Clinton appeared to be everything they espoused. Gone was that crusty old WWII generation. In was the newer, hipper, joint-smoking, sax-playing generation that would set it right.
So it wasn't really that much of a shock when the tides of the media narrative began to change. As movement toward impeachment began to pick up steam, folks in the media - perhaps because they realized what was at stake - changed how everything was being discussed. For some reason, the Republicans continued to be portrayed as the bad guys. Ken Starr, Linda Tripp, and others associated with the accusations were all but mauled by the media, popular culture, Saturday Night Live, you name it.
But that still left us with a president who had done everything mentioned. A president who was still accused of sexual harassment - the worst charge imaginable through the 80s and 90s, one that almost destroyed a Supreme Court Justice's nomination. What to do?
The answer was simple. It. Didn't. Matter. It was all about sex, so who cared. Most presidents had affairs we were told. In fact, most men have affairs. It didn't matter. It was just about sex. The word 'Sex' had been used, so that made it personal, private, irrelevant. Let Clinton and his ever present family whenever he was seen in public, work things out. It didn't matter. Character? Morals? Values? Bah. Look at France. Look at England. They think we're nuts (even if the English were trying to use Prince Charles's dalliances as a reason to eliminate the Royal Family). It didn't matter. We needed to get to reality. He had given us the greatest economy in the world (with critics concerned about the growing level of debt behind it all relegated to the VRWC), so we needed to grow up. Who cares about such relative things? Who cares about old puritanical values? What president is perfect anyway? Who cares? The media said it. Experts interviewed assured us it didn't matter. Feminist leaders conveniently moved on and suggested Clinton's stances on unlimited pro-abortion rights were what counted. And America, apparently, bought it.
That was the bargain that 66% of Americans accepted in order to keep the status quo. A status quo that wasn't true. Troubles were already brewing. A subversive plot to hijack jet airliners and fly them into key structures and kill thousands was already underway, and undetected. Signs that the economy was weaker than presented were beginning to show. Our place in the post-Cold War had not been adequately established, as other competing powers were beginning to sit up and take notice. And yet, we were told that everything was fine. Things like sexual harassment apparently weren't that big after all. Morals, character, values, truth, perjury didn't matter. As long as we thought everything was fine, just look the other way, insist the emperor's clothes look quite nice, and all will be well.
The results have, of course, been devastating on so many levels I can't get into them all. It should be obvious to anyone with a brain. But beyond all this is the blatant joke of the media's objectivity. Anyone who can come out of watching their shock, their righteous indignation, their obsession with the gravity of the charges against Cain after having lived through the late 90s, and still think that the Media is all about Truth, is a person most apt to believe that babies are delivered by storks and the moon is made of cheese. It is a person quite willing to live in a world of unreality for the sake of immediate and personal gain. And I hope and pray a growing number of people realize this, since a country filled with 66% of that type of a person, doesn't stand much of a chance in the 21st century, or any century for that matter.
It's Martinmas!
Martinmas? What's Martinmas? I know it's Veterans Day, and it's a time I always take to thank those who served in our armed forces for giving me this freedom I hope never to take for granted. But Martinmas? What is that? I don't remember any school assemblies proclaiming that when I was growing up. But then, I am only old enough to vaguely remember mentioning He whose name can not be mentioned in schools anyway. So, what could it be?
Turns out, Martinmas was quite the holiday back in the Old Country. For St. Martin of Tours, it was often seen as the 'official' beginning of winter. Just on a causal note, we had our first snowflakes fall last night, so it isn't difficult for me to believe. It also marks the end to the Octave of All Souls.
There is a lot of custom here, and it's been a bit of a disappointment how many of these little special moments in the Catholic calendar didn't make there way to the New World. That probably comes with our Protestant heritage. I don't look for the emerging secular dominion to look back lovingly toward reinstating any of these customs. Still, it's nice to know. It's nice to think of a time when the Catholic calendar was a daily event, and many special times came by for the average peasant to celebrate.
We - stupidly - think of the pre-moder peasant as some slave to labor and boredom and endless work and toil. Us. People who work now for less than anyone in recent memory whose main triumph is the ability to purchase a Smart Phone that's now 1/2 mm. smaller than the last one. Oh, we have our vacation time, where we bring our phones, pads, and laptops and work most of it for fear of losing out to the one willing to labor day and night without ceasing.
But there was a time when the average peasant worked, toiled, and then celebrated. And the Catholic calendar seemed to give no end to the days and seasons they had to celebrate. One Medieval scholar I remember reading quipped that it was hard to imagine that they got any work done, when the number of days set aside to celebrate and feast and frolic, both by liturgy and by custom, are tallied. Thank goodness we aren't dumb like those people!
Anyway, it was a special day. It still is by way of Veterans Day. But it can also be special for other reasons. Click here,* here,** and here just for a little background.
*I know it's Wikipedia. Typically I never reference that out of pride. But since it's more or less for fun and frivolity, I figured what the heck.
**Fisheaters is a website I found on my way into the Catholic Church. I appreciated it because it set out many 'what in the world is that all about' details regarding the Catholic Church. It is from a pre-Vatican II outlook, however, and can have some pretty strong ideas about the non-Catholic world around us. Just saying. Still worth a look.
Turns out, Martinmas was quite the holiday back in the Old Country. For St. Martin of Tours, it was often seen as the 'official' beginning of winter. Just on a causal note, we had our first snowflakes fall last night, so it isn't difficult for me to believe. It also marks the end to the Octave of All Souls.
There is a lot of custom here, and it's been a bit of a disappointment how many of these little special moments in the Catholic calendar didn't make there way to the New World. That probably comes with our Protestant heritage. I don't look for the emerging secular dominion to look back lovingly toward reinstating any of these customs. Still, it's nice to know. It's nice to think of a time when the Catholic calendar was a daily event, and many special times came by for the average peasant to celebrate.
We - stupidly - think of the pre-moder peasant as some slave to labor and boredom and endless work and toil. Us. People who work now for less than anyone in recent memory whose main triumph is the ability to purchase a Smart Phone that's now 1/2 mm. smaller than the last one. Oh, we have our vacation time, where we bring our phones, pads, and laptops and work most of it for fear of losing out to the one willing to labor day and night without ceasing.
But there was a time when the average peasant worked, toiled, and then celebrated. And the Catholic calendar seemed to give no end to the days and seasons they had to celebrate. One Medieval scholar I remember reading quipped that it was hard to imagine that they got any work done, when the number of days set aside to celebrate and feast and frolic, both by liturgy and by custom, are tallied. Thank goodness we aren't dumb like those people!
Anyway, it was a special day. It still is by way of Veterans Day. But it can also be special for other reasons. Click here,* here,** and here just for a little background.
*I know it's Wikipedia. Typically I never reference that out of pride. But since it's more or less for fun and frivolity, I figured what the heck.
**Fisheaters is a website I found on my way into the Catholic Church. I appreciated it because it set out many 'what in the world is that all about' details regarding the Catholic Church. It is from a pre-Vatican II outlook, however, and can have some pretty strong ideas about the non-Catholic world around us. Just saying. Still worth a look.
Thank you Veterans
 |
| No other words needed. |
For me, I try - I try really hard - to avoid such grand cynicism. Yes, there's a healthy skepticism that comes from the Christian understanding of sin and living in a fallen world. In an age where, as a Catholic, I must hang my head in shame for the catastrophic lack of oversight that occurred when it came to protecting the most innocent of our own for endless decades, I'm inclined to be forgiving toward other institutions that are not so endowed with the grace of God when they fail.
Sure, America, like any human endeavor, has failed. Sure it's in major turmoil now as ideals hostile toward God, Christianity, and human life itself struggle to assume control of our county. And we live in a time where worn out and threadbare citizens are simply loping along waiting for the next Smart Phone release, oblivious to the threats that lurk on the horizon. And yet, when I think of the alternative, I am still quite proud of this country. When I realize that the Church actually encourages me to take part in our civil discourse, including the importance of voting (and that means for more than Billy Bob down the street just to make it official), then I realize just how precious was the price paid by those who gave their last measure of devotion for this special and unique experiment that is the American nation. May we live up to the promise for which they fought, sacrificed, and died.
"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."
Abraham Lincoln.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Bil Keane has died
Sad to hear. His Family Circus cartoons were a staple of the funny pages when I was growing up. Were they the funniest, blow beer out your nose and fall off the chair in laughter comics? No. They didn't have to be. They didn't have to be profound, or deep, or ironic, or witty, or anything. We had other strips, like Calvin and Hobbes, Peanuts, and Bloom County, for that. But Family Circus filled in that little void, just right for childhood nostalgia. Funny thing was, it filled me with a sense of nostalgia when I was a child! Don't know why, but it seemed to be childhood the way I both experienced it and wanted to experience it. I have no clue if it was intentional or not, but that's how I experienced the strips. So thanks for the memories both then and now Mr. Keane, may you rest in peace.
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