I am less a fan or a foe of Sarah Palin than a sociology student. The responses to her public statements are in themselves lessons in cultural anthropology, and each side congratulates itself for being on the right side.
Kay Hymowitz discusses Governor Palin's effects on feminism:
'However excessive their frothing, feminists had good reason to be in panic mode. Palin may have lost her bid to become vice president; she may have failed to appeal to such prominent conservatives as Peggy Noonan, George Will, and Karl Rove, as well as to lesser right-of-center mortals like this writer; but by leading a wave of new conservative women into the fray, she has changed feminism forever. In fact, this new generation of conservative politicas—having caught, skinned, and gutted liberal feminism as if it were one of Palin’s Alaskan salmon—is transforming the very meaning of a women’s movement.'
I doubt that the former Governor of Alaska is going to foment a social revolution if not a coup d'etat through her Twitter and Facebook posts, so I am simply going to enjoy the next two years.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Fr. Robert Drinan, S.J.
A priest friend passed on to me Raymond Schroth's biography, Bob Drinan, The Controversial Life of the First Catholic Priest Elected to Congress. I read it because the giver is my pastor and friend and because I wanted to explore what in American Catholicism would create a political activist priest who could vote in favor of public funding for abortion.
The book did not really answer my question, but it did tell me much about the generation of Catholics that preceded my conversion in 1996. I have no desire to recreate the Jesuit education that Fr. Drinan received at Boston College, Weston College, Georgetown, and other places during the middle part of the 20th century, but what has replaced it is no better. Our Catholic identity and focus on the Eucharist has been replaced with banal modern reading lists, political correctness, and activism as substitutes for piety.
I did see much of what made Fr. Drinan what he was. Though he was from the "greatest generation" whose members mostly wore uniforms, he graduated from Boston College in 1942 and spent the entire war in seminary. After the war, instead of teaching at a Jesuit high school as was common, he attended Georgetown University Law School. Though born the same year as Karol Wojtyla, their experiences of fascism, communism, deprivation, suffering, and war could not have been more different. For Fr. Drinan, the Vietnam War was the worst event of his lifetime and the worst cause in American history. Something tells me that if he had participated in the American effort in the Second World War in any way and/or taught high school, his political certainties and abstractions would have been at least sanded down.
Pope John Paul II was right to demand that Fr. Drinan not seek reelection in 1980. Yes, Fr. Drinan was a whirlwind for peace, human rights, and justice. He called himself "a moral architect" and was proud of virtually everything he voted for. But he, a Catholic priest, could not get himself to vote against public funding for abortions, and he seemed blind to the scandal that his vote caused and snarly when asked about it. He seemed to believe that in a pluralistic society, people should accept the conscience of a priest and move on. Abortion, however, is too important a public and moral issue, then and now, to become secondary to a priest in public office.
Catholic laymen sometimes argue expediency and vote with the pro-choicers, e.g., Bart Stupak, but they do not hold sacramental office. A man in a collar's options are limited, not unlike a soldier or police officer in uniform. A priest should not be seen as a political partisan forming coalitions to defeat the dreaded other side, but as a sacramental agent of God that rises above party and temporal powers. John Paul knew that a priest in public office is a Cardinal Richelieu waiting to happen, and we are fortunate that Fr. Drinan did not do more damage than he did.
Fr. Drinan's abortion votes killed his own political career and seriously undermine his place in the history of the Church and the Society. It is to his credit that he did not leave the Society but spent the rest of his life living out his vocation as priest. Nonetheless, his moral architecture most copied is his insistence that a Catholic in public life can vote for abortion. His legacy is a Democratic Party that essentially purges pro-life Catholics out of it.
The book did not really answer my question, but it did tell me much about the generation of Catholics that preceded my conversion in 1996. I have no desire to recreate the Jesuit education that Fr. Drinan received at Boston College, Weston College, Georgetown, and other places during the middle part of the 20th century, but what has replaced it is no better. Our Catholic identity and focus on the Eucharist has been replaced with banal modern reading lists, political correctness, and activism as substitutes for piety.
I did see much of what made Fr. Drinan what he was. Though he was from the "greatest generation" whose members mostly wore uniforms, he graduated from Boston College in 1942 and spent the entire war in seminary. After the war, instead of teaching at a Jesuit high school as was common, he attended Georgetown University Law School. Though born the same year as Karol Wojtyla, their experiences of fascism, communism, deprivation, suffering, and war could not have been more different. For Fr. Drinan, the Vietnam War was the worst event of his lifetime and the worst cause in American history. Something tells me that if he had participated in the American effort in the Second World War in any way and/or taught high school, his political certainties and abstractions would have been at least sanded down.
Pope John Paul II was right to demand that Fr. Drinan not seek reelection in 1980. Yes, Fr. Drinan was a whirlwind for peace, human rights, and justice. He called himself "a moral architect" and was proud of virtually everything he voted for. But he, a Catholic priest, could not get himself to vote against public funding for abortions, and he seemed blind to the scandal that his vote caused and snarly when asked about it. He seemed to believe that in a pluralistic society, people should accept the conscience of a priest and move on. Abortion, however, is too important a public and moral issue, then and now, to become secondary to a priest in public office.
Catholic laymen sometimes argue expediency and vote with the pro-choicers, e.g., Bart Stupak, but they do not hold sacramental office. A man in a collar's options are limited, not unlike a soldier or police officer in uniform. A priest should not be seen as a political partisan forming coalitions to defeat the dreaded other side, but as a sacramental agent of God that rises above party and temporal powers. John Paul knew that a priest in public office is a Cardinal Richelieu waiting to happen, and we are fortunate that Fr. Drinan did not do more damage than he did.
Fr. Drinan's abortion votes killed his own political career and seriously undermine his place in the history of the Church and the Society. It is to his credit that he did not leave the Society but spent the rest of his life living out his vocation as priest. Nonetheless, his moral architecture most copied is his insistence that a Catholic in public life can vote for abortion. His legacy is a Democratic Party that essentially purges pro-life Catholics out of it.
My friend has cancer...
His wife keeps a blog.
John Paul II is there, carrying his cross, and teaching us how to suffer and to love.
A rhetorical opportunity wasted...
Peggy Noonan's take on the State of the Union Address:
'[T]here is often about the president an air of delivering a sincere lecture in which he informs us of things that seem new to him but are old to everyone else. He has a tendency to present banalities as if they were discoveries. “American innovation” is important. As many as “a quarter of our students aren’t even finishing high school.” We’re falling behind in math and science: “Think about it.”
'“I’ve seen it in the shuttered windows of once booming factories. . . . I’ve heard it in the frustrations of Americans.” But our deterioration isn’t new information, it’s a shared predicate of at least 20 years’ standing, it’s what we all know. When you talk this way, as if the audience is uninformed, they think you are uninformed.'
If George W. Bush had given the same speech, nobody at The Washington Post would be nodding his head.
'[T]here is often about the president an air of delivering a sincere lecture in which he informs us of things that seem new to him but are old to everyone else. He has a tendency to present banalities as if they were discoveries. “American innovation” is important. As many as “a quarter of our students aren’t even finishing high school.” We’re falling behind in math and science: “Think about it.”
'“I’ve seen it in the shuttered windows of once booming factories. . . . I’ve heard it in the frustrations of Americans.” But our deterioration isn’t new information, it’s a shared predicate of at least 20 years’ standing, it’s what we all know. When you talk this way, as if the audience is uninformed, they think you are uninformed.'
If George W. Bush had given the same speech, nobody at The Washington Post would be nodding his head.
"How to Write a (Good) Sentence"
It's harder than it looks. What is needed for most is a critic and editor whose good taste and intolerance for rubbish cause the writer to aspire rather than to quit trying. Someone like E.B. White.
Hosni Mubarek, dead or alive, is on his way out.
Foud Ajami:
'A deceased friend of mine, an army general of Mr. Mubarak's class and generation, spoke of the man with familiarity: He was a civil servant with the rank of president, he said of his fellow officer. Mr. Mubarak put the word out that he would serve two six-year terms and be gone. But the appetite grew with the eating. The humble officer would undergo a transformation. A presidency-for-life announced itself. And in an astounding change, where Nasser and Sadat feared the will and the changing moods of their countrymen, Mr. Mubarak grew imperious and dismissive.
'Egypt bent to his will. A country with a vibrant parliamentary tradition in the 1920s and 1930s became a sterile tyranny. A land that had opened onto Europe in the course of the 19th century, that had given rise to professional syndicates and associations, to an independent judiciary, was brought low.'
Is anyone else embarrassed that we have given Egypt more foreign aid than any country other than Israel? Your tax dollars at work.
'A deceased friend of mine, an army general of Mr. Mubarak's class and generation, spoke of the man with familiarity: He was a civil servant with the rank of president, he said of his fellow officer. Mr. Mubarak put the word out that he would serve two six-year terms and be gone. But the appetite grew with the eating. The humble officer would undergo a transformation. A presidency-for-life announced itself. And in an astounding change, where Nasser and Sadat feared the will and the changing moods of their countrymen, Mr. Mubarak grew imperious and dismissive.
'Egypt bent to his will. A country with a vibrant parliamentary tradition in the 1920s and 1930s became a sterile tyranny. A land that had opened onto Europe in the course of the 19th century, that had given rise to professional syndicates and associations, to an independent judiciary, was brought low.'
Is anyone else embarrassed that we have given Egypt more foreign aid than any country other than Israel? Your tax dollars at work.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Three Common Positions of Mary's Hands in Art
They reflect what she does and teaches us to do: Pray with humility and faith.
Embrace Christ in His humility.
Extend our hands in welcome and love to those in need. [Middle above: Sanzio Raffaello, Madonna and Child, 1503, Norton Simon Museum.]
"Obama Rises to the Challenge"
Peggy Noonan on President Barack Obama's speech:
'Throughout Mr. Obama's career, he has critiqued America and its leadership from an outsider's stance, from that of an intellectual relatively new to public life. His sound was all faculty lounge. In this speech he celebrated America, and in celebrating it, he aligned himself more closely with the values the American people most justly celebrate in themselves—instinctive courage, idealism, willingness to take the initiative.'
'Throughout Mr. Obama's career, he has critiqued America and its leadership from an outsider's stance, from that of an intellectual relatively new to public life. His sound was all faculty lounge. In this speech he celebrated America, and in celebrating it, he aligned himself more closely with the values the American people most justly celebrate in themselves—instinctive courage, idealism, willingness to take the initiative.'
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Presidents should act...
Presidential. There will be time later to be an activist, organizer, culture critic, apologizer, partisan, progressive icon, and opposition leader. Thank you President Obama for performing your proper role as head of state yesterday in Arizona.
Lots of commentary at Ann Althouse's blog.
Lots of commentary at Ann Althouse's blog.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari calls the murderer of a Christian and his supporters in Pakistan "the real blasphemers."
He spoke in English from London, and when he can say the same in Urdu in his homeland, we will have a better world.
One of the problems stemming back to WWII is that we did not take seriously the ideas of the Fascists once they were defeated. Instead we imputed Fascism upon right-of-center voters in Western countries. Now we do not recognize Fascists when they spit in our faces... and blow up the World Trade Center.
One of the problems stemming back to WWII is that we did not take seriously the ideas of the Fascists once they were defeated. Instead we imputed Fascism upon right-of-center voters in Western countries. Now we do not recognize Fascists when they spit in our faces... and blow up the World Trade Center.
Mental illness and public safety
If you ignore the mentally ill or treat them like criminals, violence against innocents is inevitable.
We used to lock up the mentally ill in cages. Now we let them walk the streets until they get arrested... and put in cages.
Among my relatives and in-laws we have had a variety of mental illnesses from obsessive-compulsive behavior to schizophrenia. No violence, just the need to watch and support one's own and that horrible feeling of helplessness and loss that mental illness inflames.
The linked article is written by Dr. E. Fuller Torrey.
We used to lock up the mentally ill in cages. Now we let them walk the streets until they get arrested... and put in cages.
Among my relatives and in-laws we have had a variety of mental illnesses from obsessive-compulsive behavior to schizophrenia. No violence, just the need to watch and support one's own and that horrible feeling of helplessness and loss that mental illness inflames.
The linked article is written by Dr. E. Fuller Torrey.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Major Richard Winters, U.S. Army, requiescat in pace.
I never tire of watching Band of Brothers, and I read the book too. The modest and reluctant hero was Dick Winters, who requested that his family not announce his death until he was buried.
The video at the link is worth the click. Speaking for my generation to his: "O Captain! my Captain!"
"The Captain and the King"
Peggy Noonan's latest column is about the the officer who lost his command of the U.S.S. Enterprise this month. We baby-boomers are our faux egalitarians who mask condescension for anything venerable; we have earned more than one scolding:
'But the videos were a shock in that this was a captain of the U.S. Navy, commanding a nuclear-powered ship, and acting in a way that was without dignity, stature or apartness. He was acting as if it was important to him to be seen as one of the guys, with regular standards, like everyone else.
'But it's a great mistake when you are in a leadership position to want to be like everyone else. Because that, actually, is not your job. Your job is to be better, and to set standards that those below you have to reach to meet. And you have to do this even when it's hard, even when you know you yourself don't quite meet the standards you represent.'
As Glenn Reynolds likes to say, read the whole thing.
'But the videos were a shock in that this was a captain of the U.S. Navy, commanding a nuclear-powered ship, and acting in a way that was without dignity, stature or apartness. He was acting as if it was important to him to be seen as one of the guys, with regular standards, like everyone else.
'But it's a great mistake when you are in a leadership position to want to be like everyone else. Because that, actually, is not your job. Your job is to be better, and to set standards that those below you have to reach to meet. And you have to do this even when it's hard, even when you know you yourself don't quite meet the standards you represent.'
As Glenn Reynolds likes to say, read the whole thing.
The victims in Tucson
They were all patriotic Americans. I am proud to live in a country with such people. More here about Gabrielle Giffords.
The shooter is a mentally ill young man who had shown evidence of derangement, but apparently had not met the standards under the law to have had his freedom and rights restricted.
Today I feel the way I felt after the Virginia Tech shootings and the Columbine murders.
The shooter is a mentally ill young man who had shown evidence of derangement, but apparently had not met the standards under the law to have had his freedom and rights restricted.
Today I feel the way I felt after the Virginia Tech shootings and the Columbine murders.
Why do we need to be governed so much?
A better way to phrase the question: Why would you not worry about your daughter who lives alone in an apartment in Tokyo but you would worry about her in any American city?
Tony Blankley discusses the need for virtue in a civil society. If we all need to be watched, we will have a police state, and there is nothing we can do about it.
Tony Blankley discusses the need for virtue in a civil society. If we all need to be watched, we will have a police state, and there is nothing we can do about it.
At this point, don't go to law school unless you could not be happy doing anything else.
If you want a "credential," get a commission in the armed services, volunteer to serve with foreign missionaries, work for a start-up, teach a few years, or do anything that shows you have maturity and initiative. Right now, a law degree simply means you will have a debt-to-equity ratio that can strangle your freedom and initiative for a decade or more.
Saturday, January 08, 2011
Do you want a "Chinese mother"?
I can see how Amy Chua became a high-achiever and professor at Yale Law School, but I am sure I could not imitate her parenting and not sure I want to. The comments are coming in fast, and you can see why.
39% of pregnancies in NYC terminated.
The 800-lb gorilla lurking all over the Western world: abortion on demand has consequences:
In one borough, 46% of pregnancies end with abortion.
In Australia, a couple has three boys and has aborted two more in their desperate attempt to conceive a daughter. They are now applying for IVF so they can have a daughter. It is just as outrageous that millions of infant girls are aborted for the opposite preference.
See the comments at Ann Althouse's blog. The emperor not only has no clothes, he will soon have no children, heirs, patrimony, or compass.
I am afraid that King Herod runs the West, no matter who wins any election:
'Then Herod perceiving that he was deluded by the wise men, was exceeding angry; and sending killed all the male children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: "A voice in Ramah was heard, lamentation and great mourning; Rachel bewailing her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not."' (Matt. 2:16-18)
In one borough, 46% of pregnancies end with abortion.
In Australia, a couple has three boys and has aborted two more in their desperate attempt to conceive a daughter. They are now applying for IVF so they can have a daughter. It is just as outrageous that millions of infant girls are aborted for the opposite preference.
See the comments at Ann Althouse's blog. The emperor not only has no clothes, he will soon have no children, heirs, patrimony, or compass.
I am afraid that King Herod runs the West, no matter who wins any election:
'Then Herod perceiving that he was deluded by the wise men, was exceeding angry; and sending killed all the male children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: "A voice in Ramah was heard, lamentation and great mourning; Rachel bewailing her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not."' (Matt. 2:16-18)
The challenge and hazards of writing about religion...
Walter Russell Mead:
'Your jittery blogger, no freer from the Seven Deadly Sins than your average aging American Baby Boomer, can’t help but feel a bit nervous stepping into this dangerous space. What gives me the right to tell others what is true, or beautiful, or good?
'... All this can only happen if a lot of people who are still fighting their own private moral battles stand up on their hind legs in public and praise those virtues that they have not fully attained. The recovering alcoholic has to tell the newcomer that there is hope for a better future — even if nobody knows better than a recovering alcoholic how easy it is to take that beckoning drink.'
'Your jittery blogger, no freer from the Seven Deadly Sins than your average aging American Baby Boomer, can’t help but feel a bit nervous stepping into this dangerous space. What gives me the right to tell others what is true, or beautiful, or good?
'... All this can only happen if a lot of people who are still fighting their own private moral battles stand up on their hind legs in public and praise those virtues that they have not fully attained. The recovering alcoholic has to tell the newcomer that there is hope for a better future — even if nobody knows better than a recovering alcoholic how easy it is to take that beckoning drink.'
Thursday, January 06, 2011
Happy New Year!
I blog as a Scotsman plays golf. A hiatus is sometimes necessary.
Russell Kirk's essay is a good first post for 2011. He reminds us:
'Men and women are not perfectible, conservatives know; and neither are political institutions. We cannot make a heaven on earth, though we may make a hell.'
Russell Kirk's essay is a good first post for 2011. He reminds us:
'Men and women are not perfectible, conservatives know; and neither are political institutions. We cannot make a heaven on earth, though we may make a hell.'
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