The Pope’s comments to the Irish people and the Irish Catholic Church was predictably ineffective in stemming the dismay over the increasingly broad scandal of pedophilic priests and their predatory habits with alter boys and parishioners. This is a good article on the breadth of the problem: Ireland: Why the Pope’s Apology May Not Be […]
Repeal What? Daily Kos by BarbinMD Mar 22, 2010 Death panels and dead grandmas didn’t work, so the Republican focus has shifted from "kill the bill" to repeal it: … some of the GOP’s top voices are calling for a repeal of President Barack Obama’s signature domestic achievement. And the Democrats’ response needs to be, […]
Defining Moment Huffington Post by Robert Kuttner Co-Founder and Co-Editor of The American Prospect March 21, 2010 We have just witnessed what could be a turning point in the Obama presidency. In many respects we can thank Scott Brown. For it took the humiliating loss of Ted Kennedy’s senate seat, and the even deeper incipient […]
Republican lawmakers stir up the ‘tea party’ crowd Washington Post By Dana Milbank March 22, 2010 The Democrats were blamed for many horrible things — tyranny! socialism! corruption! – as they marched toward Sunday night’s passage of health-care legislation, but nobody ever accused them of making health reform look easy… But rather than calm the […]
it passed! I’ve been so tense about health care passing that I couldn’t even watch until my wife absolutely assured me that they had the votes. It’s the "end of the beginning" and the "beginning of the end." But, speaking of poetry, it’s also "miles to go before we sleep." He’s pretty proud. He should […]
It isn’t over ’til it’s over, but it looks to me as if unemployment is falling as "usual" in a recession recovery. President Obama’s first year has been a lightening rod year. The Republican’s screamed that the Stimulus Bill was Socialism [way too high]. The Economists screamed that it was way too low [Krugman said […]
Anger and disappointment in Ireland as the Pope’s letter fails to heal telegraph.co.uk Victims of abuse at the hands of priests in Ireland are not satisfied by the Pope’s letter of apology By Carissa Casey in Dublin 21 Mar 2010 Marie Collins is still a practising Catholic despite years of pain and frustration fighting the […]
PASTORAL LETTER OF THE HOLY FATHER POPE BENEDICT XVI TO THE CATHOLICS OF IRELAND … In recent decades, however, the Church in your country has had to confront new and serious challenges to the faith arising from the rapid transformation and secularization of Irish society. Fast-paced social change has occurred, often adversely affecting people’s traditional […]
… Pope’s Irish letter faces critical Catholic world Washington Post By SHAWN POGATCHNIK The Associated Press March 20, 2010 DUBLIN — Pope Benedict XVI addresses Ireland on Saturday in a letter apologizing for the sex abuse scandal here – a message being watched closely by Catholics from Boston to Berlin to see if it also […]
So, I was looking at today’s mail and there was a book for me – The Man Who Pushed America to War – a biography of Ahmad Chalabi by Aram Roston. It was one of those ‘used books’ from Amazon.com that cost $0.15 to buy but $3.99 to ship. Then I came in and turned […]