In this video, Emily Morris and her colleague tell us what is new at Flemington in time for the Melbourne Cup Festival. The Emirates Melbourne Cup goes off at 3:00 PM Tuesday, November 6th Victoria time (= 11:00 PM Monday, November 5th, Wichita time.)
On the Feast of Pius X
The Collect from today's Mass:
O God, who to safeguard the Catholic faith
and to restore all things in Christ,
filled Pope saint Pius the Tenth
with heavenly wisdom and apostolic fortitude,
graciously grant
that, following his teaching and example,
we may gain an eternal prize.
Through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in unity of the Holy Spirit
one God, for ever and ever. (new corrected ICEL translation.)
A hundred and eight years ago on November 22nd, 1903, Pius X issued Tra le Sollecitudini which said:
"The ancient traditional Gregorian Chant must, therefore, in a large measure be restored to the functions of public worship, and the fact must be accepted by all that an ecclesiastical function loses none of its solemnity when accompanied by this music alone. [as opposed to polyphony, classical music, organ music etc. -MCH]
"Special efforts are to be made to restore the use of the Gregorian Chant by the people, so that the faithful may again take a more active part in the ecclesiastical offices, as was the case in ancient times."
You can find the whole document on the Adoremus website.
Sixty years later to the day (November 22nd, 1963) the Council voted adoption of Sacrosanctum Concilium which called for the more "active" (or "actual") participation of the people: "14. Mother Church earnestly desires that all the faithful should be led to that fully conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations which is demanded by the very nature of the Liturgy." In historical context, this means we the people should be chanting our parts of the mass as Pope Saint Pius X wanted. Too sadly we do this too infrequently in either the extraordinary form or in the Ordinary Form. I have known both traditionalists and progressives who have become upset by efforts to have the congregation chant the Kyrie, the Gloria, the Credo, the Sanctus, the Pater Noster, the Agnus Dei, and/or the responses.
Yet we should joint the martial voices of the angels and the saints:
"8. In the earthly Liturgy we take part in a foretaste of that Heavenly Liturgy which is celebrated in the holy city of Jerusalem toward which we journey as pilgrims, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God, a Minister of the Holies and of the true Tabernacle22; we sing a hymn to the Lord's glory with all the warriors of the heavenly army; venerating the memory of the saints, we hope for some part and fellowship with them; we eagerly await the Savior, Our Lord Jesus Christ, until He, our Life, shall appear and we too will appear with Him in glory23." [Sacrosanctum Concilium. Note the Book of Revelation (the Apocalypse of John.)]
Furthermore the Council called for neither blind following of the rubrics nor "doing your own thing:"
"11. But in order that the Liturgy may be able to produce its full effects, it is necessary that the faithful come to it with proper dispositions, that their minds should be attuned to their voices, and that they should cooperate with Divine Grace lest they receive it in vain28. Pastors of souls must therefore realize that, when the Liturgy is celebrated, something more is required than the mere observation of the laws governing valid and licit celebration; it is their duty also to insure that the faithful take part fully aware of what they are doing, actively engaged in the rite, and enriched by its effects." [Sacrosanctum Concilium.]
You can find the whole document the Adoremus website.
A prayerful reading of Sacrosanctum Concilium would be a very edifying spiritual work on this, Pius X's feast, for Catholics of all persuasions.
Sancte Pie X, Ora Pro Nobis et ecclesia Dei
Note in the Roman Missal of Pius XII, the feast is on September 3rd. In the Missal of Paul VI it was moved to August 21st. Pius X died on August 20th, the Feast of St. Bernard.
Erskine Bowles on Paul Ryan's Budget
A few days ago, the Washington Post's Ezra Klein speculated that Erskine might be Obama's next Treasury secretary. Given the politicized nature of the current White House, do not bet on his being Tim Geithner's replacement.
Benedict's Secret Plan is Working!
Cross-fertilization requires diversity. Pope Benedict's plan of letting the older forms of the Roman Rite as well as the rich liturgical patrimony of the West cross-fertilize the liturgy after Vatican II is progressing.
Over the years I have grown increasingly uneasy with the reductionist reforms of the Council of Trent. They reduced genuine, legitimate liturgical diversity in the West. In its true form as envisioned in the Liturgical Movement, that diversity is again flowering up amid the withering weeds of false diversity and the banal desert characterizing the forty years after Sacrosanctum Concilium. Consider these news items:
1) A Jesuit celebrated his first mass according to the Extaordinary Form of the Roman Rite in Massachusetss: "Fr. William V. Blazek, S.J., newly ordained for the Jesuit Chicago-Detroit province, celebrated his first Solemn High Mass (Extraordinary Form) on June 24 (Nativity of St. John the Baptist) at Mary Immaculate of Lourdes in Newton, MA." Father Jungmann must be smiling in heaven.
2) In Melbourne, the Australian Students Association celebrated the mass three times once according to the extraordinary Form, once chanted (apparently in Latin) according to the Ordinary Form ad orientem (the Proper was chanted), and once in the Ordinary Form versus populum. The New Liturgical Movement tells us that "The conference was entitled Defending Human Dignity and Fr Aidan Nichols OP was the invited international speaker.
'ACSA with an appreciation and understanding of the full worth of the Sacred liturgy as described by the Church, desires to have its liturgies celebrated with dignity and in accordance with the mind of the Church, particular under the light of the Second Vatican council’s document Sacrosanctum Concilium.' (ACSA Liturgical Guidelines)"
3) In my old diocese (Arlington) "former Anglican archbishop, Father Sly, 63" was ordained into the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter." It is the second such jurisdiction established under the provisions of Pope Benedict's 2009 apostolic constitution 'Anglicanorum coetibus,'" which created a structure united with Rome for former Anglicans ans Episcopalians who now use a form of the Latin Rite using a liturgy based on the Book of Common Prayer and presumably the Sarum Use.
4) And "the Dominican Friars at St. Patrick’s in Columbus, OH [have announced] the celebration of the Solemnity of Holy Father Dominic with a Missa Cantata, celebrated according to the Dominican Rite, on Saturday, August 4th at 10:30 AM. In the old calendar of the Mass, the Solemnity of Our Holy Father Dominic fell on August 4."
Over the years I have grown increasingly uneasy with the reductionist reforms of the Council of Trent. They reduced genuine, legitimate liturgical diversity in the West. In its true form as envisioned in the Liturgical Movement, that diversity is again flowering up amid the withering weeds of false diversity and the banal desert characterizing the forty years after Sacrosanctum Concilium. Consider these news items:
1) A Jesuit celebrated his first mass according to the Extaordinary Form of the Roman Rite in Massachusetss: "Fr. William V. Blazek, S.J., newly ordained for the Jesuit Chicago-Detroit province, celebrated his first Solemn High Mass (Extraordinary Form) on June 24 (Nativity of St. John the Baptist) at Mary Immaculate of Lourdes in Newton, MA." Father Jungmann must be smiling in heaven.
2) In Melbourne, the Australian Students Association celebrated the mass three times once according to the extraordinary Form, once chanted (apparently in Latin) according to the Ordinary Form ad orientem (the Proper was chanted), and once in the Ordinary Form versus populum. The New Liturgical Movement tells us that "The conference was entitled Defending Human Dignity and Fr Aidan Nichols OP was the invited international speaker.
'ACSA with an appreciation and understanding of the full worth of the Sacred liturgy as described by the Church, desires to have its liturgies celebrated with dignity and in accordance with the mind of the Church, particular under the light of the Second Vatican council’s document Sacrosanctum Concilium.' (ACSA Liturgical Guidelines)"
3) In my old diocese (Arlington) "former Anglican archbishop, Father Sly, 63" was ordained into the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter." It is the second such jurisdiction established under the provisions of Pope Benedict's 2009 apostolic constitution 'Anglicanorum coetibus,'" which created a structure united with Rome for former Anglicans ans Episcopalians who now use a form of the Latin Rite using a liturgy based on the Book of Common Prayer and presumably the Sarum Use.
4) And "the Dominican Friars at St. Patrick’s in Columbus, OH [have announced] the celebration of the Solemnity of Holy Father Dominic with a Missa Cantata, celebrated according to the Dominican Rite, on Saturday, August 4th at 10:30 AM. In the old calendar of the Mass, the Solemnity of Our Holy Father Dominic fell on August 4."
Inflaming your Chances of Heart Disease, Diabetes, Alzheimer', Stroke & cancer
Beyer rightly touts aspirin as "the miracle drug:" aspirin reduces inflammation. The reason why is becoming clearer as we learn how much damage inflammation does.
Kaua Landro asks in the Wall Street Journal, "What do heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's, stroke and cancer have in common?" It turns out that each is linked to chronic inflammation, and she tells us scientists "are studying how high-fat foods and excess body weight may increase the risk for fatal disorders."
Thus that beer belly is a worry. Arthur Agatston, the famed heart specialist tells us in the South Beach Heart Program that an extra pound of fat requires the heart to pump blood through an extra mile of arteries and veins. Now Laura Londo tells us those pounds around the waist also causes inflammation.
You can read her article, "The New Science Behind America's Deadliest Diseases." or watch her video interview: "How Inflammation Can Ravage the Body:"
Some good news: she tells us a new test helps detect that inflammation within us better:
Kaua Landro asks in the Wall Street Journal, "What do heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's, stroke and cancer have in common?" It turns out that each is linked to chronic inflammation, and she tells us scientists "are studying how high-fat foods and excess body weight may increase the risk for fatal disorders."
Thus that beer belly is a worry. Arthur Agatston, the famed heart specialist tells us in the South Beach Heart Program that an extra pound of fat requires the heart to pump blood through an extra mile of arteries and veins. Now Laura Londo tells us those pounds around the waist also causes inflammation.
You can read her article, "The New Science Behind America's Deadliest Diseases." or watch her video interview: "How Inflammation Can Ravage the Body:"
Some good news: she tells us a new test helps detect that inflammation within us better:
Fr. Barron and Dr. Scott Hahn discuss the New Atheism
Father Barron in some ways is the face of the New Evangelization in America. Scott Hahn, that turncoat Presbyterian, has so reinvigorated Catholic apologetic theology, he has filled the void left by Frank Sheed. Enjoy their discussion of the New Atheism:
"For the Greater Glory" Opens in Wichita
According to many who say it beforehand, the film benefits from repeat viewings.
Justin & the Church after Vatican II
June 1st: The Feast of Saint Justin.
One of the apostolic fathers, Justin was a philosopher trained in rhetoric and the first great Christian apologist. We have important writings from his hand and a detailed account of his trial and martyrdom. The Romans were fastidious in their legal proceedings and, by one estimate, employed 100,000 stenographers in the empire. Thus we know of his responses at his trial and those of his young followers. His students followed him to the arena: humbling for those of us who teach.
Justin Martyr pray for us!
Vatican II Fifty Years After
Given the initial whirlwind we reaped after the Council, it is easy to forget why it was called. Apologetics! John XXIII wanted to find a new way to explain the eternal truths to a world which had lost its way and had a tin ear to the traditional language of Christianity. In Europe the cultural disease was far more advanced than in America, but even in this New World the health of mother church was much more superficial than we realized.
The hour is late, but the Council is now finally bearing fruit with John Paul the Great's New Evangelism and a thousand flowers that are blooming. Benedict chose the name of the patron of Europe knowing the task facing us is much like that of Benedict of Nursia whose monasteries century by century turned the dark ages into the High Mediaeval splendor exemplified by Thomas Aquinas' Proper and Office for Corpus Christi. That great feast is celebrated June 13th or the Sunday before as in our diocese.
The Priestly Order of St. Peter is a fairly new order of priests trained to celebrate the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite (the traditional Latin mass.) In this interview with Catholic News Service, Father Joseph Kramer of the Order puts Vatican II into perspective and explains why young Catholics are turning to a more traditional Catholicism:
Thanks to Father Z for this!
Corpus Christi
http://supremacyandsurvival.blogspot.com/2011/06/corpus-christi-in-pre-reformation.html
The War Mexican History Books Censor
What is is the the number one movie in Mexico? Would you believe it was made in Hollywood and this part drama, part western, part war movie has as its battle cry "Viva Cristo Rey!" (Long Live Christ the King!) More mind boggling, it is about religious freedom and portrays the Catholic Church in a favorable light. At its core it is about courage and the fight for freedom during what we could call the Mexican Spring during the 1920s.
Director David Wright, previously known more for his special effects, demonstrates his great talent on a huge dramatic canvas. He told the Mexican press conference (below), "And when we show it to the world, I think everyone will be amazed at this story of passion [and] the struggle for freedom that will touch everyone and inspire the world."
"For the Greater Glory" (the Spanish version is called "Christiada") stars Academy Award® nominees Andy Garcia and Catalina Sandino Moreno, TV star Eva Longoria, and Peter O'Toole, although early viewers say young Mauricio Kuri, playing 13 year old Jose Sanchez del Rio, steals the show.
Here's its promoters' description: "What price would you pay for Freedom? In the exhilarating action epic FOR GREATER GLORY an impassioned group of men and women each make the decision to risk it all for family, faith and the very future of their country, as the film's adventure unfolds against the long-hidden, true story of the 1920s Cristero War, the daring people's revolt that rocked 20th Century North America."
Watch the trailer:
If you want to practice your Spanish, enjoy the press conference in Mexico:
I look forward to a review of "For the Greater Glory" by Steven D. Greydanus on his DecentFilms.com.
Director David Wright, previously known more for his special effects, demonstrates his great talent on a huge dramatic canvas. He told the Mexican press conference (below), "And when we show it to the world, I think everyone will be amazed at this story of passion [and] the struggle for freedom that will touch everyone and inspire the world."
"For the Greater Glory" (the Spanish version is called "Christiada") stars Academy Award® nominees Andy Garcia and Catalina Sandino Moreno, TV star Eva Longoria, and Peter O'Toole, although early viewers say young Mauricio Kuri, playing 13 year old Jose Sanchez del Rio, steals the show.
Here's its promoters' description: "What price would you pay for Freedom? In the exhilarating action epic FOR GREATER GLORY an impassioned group of men and women each make the decision to risk it all for family, faith and the very future of their country, as the film's adventure unfolds against the long-hidden, true story of the 1920s Cristero War, the daring people's revolt that rocked 20th Century North America."
Watch the trailer:
If you want to practice your Spanish, enjoy the press conference in Mexico:
I look forward to a review of "For the Greater Glory" by Steven D. Greydanus on his DecentFilms.com.
Oops, 007, the mike was on. Eh, sorry.
Guess what has been made into an YouTube video? Our current Commander-in-Chief's confidential remarks to Russian President Dimitry Medvedev (on Vladimir Putin's left) at that Moscow nuclear summit, the remarks a still open microphone picked up:
Wow!
Should you laugh or just tremble in fear? I laughed having already had my angst attack earlier in the week when the news itself first broke.
Alana Goodman gave me this lead in her Commentary blog post: "Hot Mic Attack Ad: You Only Run Twice" If you were unaware of the incident she provides some background.
Is there an Upside to Higher Gasoline Prices?
SmartMoney's Quentin Fottrell argues higher gasoline prices are not all that bad on the Wall Street Journal's Mean Street (2/24/2012) to make his case:
Young Nippers on the Wane?
Life guards at public beaches are generally paid by the local government here in the U.S. In Australian, through surf life saving clubs Aussie "surf life savers provide the community with voluntary service rescuing swimmers in distress at surf beaches." Young nippers form "the junior stage of surf life saving, open to children from the age of 5 through to 13 years old." As befits Aussie's love of sport and the public display of community spirit, the young nippers' training involves long traditions and pageantry.
WSJ's Geoffrey Rogow reports from Manly Beach (north Sydney) that these being eroded:
WSJ's Geoffrey Rogow reports from Manly Beach (north Sydney) that these being eroded:
The Anglican Use in America gets an Ordinary.
More on the Anglican Use in the U.S.: The New Liturgical Movement reports Monsignor Jeffrey Steenson's consecration in Houston as the Ordinary of the American Ordinariate. This is the special structure Benedict XVI created to allow the union of Anglican communities with Rome.
Music by Byrd, Tallis, and Newman. Wow!
Rick Santorum's surprising victories in Colorado, Minnesota, and Missouri have upset the pundits' calculations and have had an impact on the polls. Romney is no longer an unambiguous frontrunner.
Real Clear Politics monitors more polls than you can imagine are taken. The latest poll in Ohio, a crucial battle ground state, shows Romney losing to Obama 45%-41%, while Santorum is tied at 44%-44%. In the national Gallup tracking poll, Romney is ahead with 36%, while both Gingrich and Santorum are now tied at 20%. It has become a three way race.
Santorum has won as many states as his two main opponents have together with only 1-5% of their money. With financial backers now sending Santorum money, the race is becoming interesting.
Walter Shapiro is a special correspondent for The New Republic. He also writes the “Character Sketch” column for Yahoo News.
"But now Santorum has the campaign schedule on his side. A three-week pause until the February 28 Michigan and Arizona primaries gives Republicans plenty of time to wonder about nominating Mitt Romney, a candidate who arouses all the passions of a dead flashlight battery."
"The man from Bain Capital has always been vulnerable to what Tim Pawlenty long ago called a “Sam’s Club Republican.” What is fascinating is that Rick Santorum, the candidate who may well prove to be Romney’s most lasting foe, has been hiding in plain sight all along."
Update: Obama has moved ahead in the polls while Santorum has clearly taken the nation lead in polls for the Republican nomination (2/19/2012.)
Real Clear Politics monitors more polls than you can imagine are taken. The latest poll in Ohio, a crucial battle ground state, shows Romney losing to Obama 45%-41%, while Santorum is tied at 44%-44%. In the national Gallup tracking poll, Romney is ahead with 36%, while both Gingrich and Santorum are now tied at 20%. It has become a three way race.
Santorum has won as many states as his two main opponents have together with only 1-5% of their money. With financial backers now sending Santorum money, the race is becoming interesting.
Walter Shapiro is a special correspondent for The New Republic. He also writes the “Character Sketch” column for Yahoo News.
"But now Santorum has the campaign schedule on his side. A three-week pause until the February 28 Michigan and Arizona primaries gives Republicans plenty of time to wonder about nominating Mitt Romney, a candidate who arouses all the passions of a dead flashlight battery."
"The man from Bain Capital has always been vulnerable to what Tim Pawlenty long ago called a “Sam’s Club Republican.” What is fascinating is that Rick Santorum, the candidate who may well prove to be Romney’s most lasting foe, has been hiding in plain sight all along."
Update: Obama has moved ahead in the polls while Santorum has clearly taken the nation lead in polls for the Republican nomination (2/19/2012.)
The Lutherans Know It Is Our Religious Freedom at Stake!
I watched and heard Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison's testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform yesterday morning at our First Things together.
Wow!
Wow!
Dr. Harrison is the President of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. He testified on Thursday, Feb. 16., to discuss the recent U. S. Health and Human Services ruling mandating that all organizations no matter what their moral beliefs must provide an insurance mechanism that funds, without deductibles, abortion inducing drugs, sterilization, and contraception. On behalf of the LCMS, Harrison spoke to the issue and how it violates our freedoms of religion and conscience.
The Synod President also issued a statement on February 3rd, 2012 about religious freedom in response to U.S. Department's of Health and Human Services requiring religious employers to cover contraceptives, even those that can kill unborn children.
Nor are these solid Lutherans sucked in by the President's supposed "compromise:" Dr. Harrison said his church remains ‘deeply concerned’ about health plan mandate despite the White House statement.
It is difficult to know how to react to the "compromise." Is the White House completely ignorant of economics or is it just blatantly cynical? The compromise allows organizations and companies(?) who morally object to exclude the mandated coverage from their plan, but then must direct their employees to riders which the insurer must provide free of charge. The first law of economics is TANSTAAFL: "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." As Robert Heinlein portrayed so well in The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, somebody pays. The insurance company, forbidden to charge directly for sterilization, abortion inducing drugs, and contraception, will smear the costs into its rates.
The Synod President also issued a statement on February 3rd, 2012 about religious freedom in response to U.S. Department's of Health and Human Services requiring religious employers to cover contraceptives, even those that can kill unborn children.
Nor are these solid Lutherans sucked in by the President's supposed "compromise:" Dr. Harrison said his church remains ‘deeply concerned’ about health plan mandate despite the White House statement.
It is difficult to know how to react to the "compromise." Is the White House completely ignorant of economics or is it just blatantly cynical? The compromise allows organizations and companies(?) who morally object to exclude the mandated coverage from their plan, but then must direct their employees to riders which the insurer must provide free of charge. The first law of economics is TANSTAAFL: "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." As Robert Heinlein portrayed so well in The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, somebody pays. The insurance company, forbidden to charge directly for sterilization, abortion inducing drugs, and contraception, will smear the costs into its rates.
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress (1964) is my favorite science fiction book. In it Robert Heinlein portrays a society then a century into the future. On the earth's moon exists a colony initially established as a penal colony. While new prisoners are deported to the moon, most of the inhabitants are the descendants of former deportees. Much like the exiles on the First Fleet, the criminals are as likely to be political prisoners as ordinary law breakers. (Colleen McCollough portrays British justice and horror of the process in Morgan's Run.)
The language spoken by the "Loonies" is a dialect of English with Russian and other words mixed in. I suspect that Heinlein, an Annapolis graduate, spent time in Australia either while in the Navy or subsequently. There is a sprinkling of Aussie in the Loonies' vocabulary; the speech patterns remind me of Sydney; and many of the social mores are understandable in terms of Sydney's history. I tried to reread the book when I was in Australia (1991-3), but found that the publisher had Anglicized the language, i.e., translated American English into British English. For an hilarious introduction to Aussie English, read John O'Grady's book.
Libertarian Heinlein teaches a fundamental lesson: TANSTAAFL or "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." This is a fundamental principle of economics and democracy, as the Revolutionary War proved to our Founding Fathers.
When I taught Economics 20 at St. Peters College (Jersey City), I would assign it as a reading. The story allowed students to imagine an economy without the state. The plot is great. Because it is science fiction, readers do not notice how seditious it is.
Buy it at Abe Books or on Amazon.
Beware: 2076 is coming fast!
The language spoken by the "Loonies" is a dialect of English with Russian and other words mixed in. I suspect that Heinlein, an Annapolis graduate, spent time in Australia either while in the Navy or subsequently. There is a sprinkling of Aussie in the Loonies' vocabulary; the speech patterns remind me of Sydney; and many of the social mores are understandable in terms of Sydney's history. I tried to reread the book when I was in Australia (1991-3), but found that the publisher had Anglicized the language, i.e., translated American English into British English. For an hilarious introduction to Aussie English, read John O'Grady's book.
Libertarian Heinlein teaches a fundamental lesson: TANSTAAFL or "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." This is a fundamental principle of economics and democracy, as the Revolutionary War proved to our Founding Fathers.
When I taught Economics 20 at St. Peters College (Jersey City), I would assign it as a reading. The story allowed students to imagine an economy without the state. The plot is great. Because it is science fiction, readers do not notice how seditious it is.
Buy it at Abe Books or on Amazon.
Beware: 2076 is coming fast!
Michael Novak on Joe Paterno
In National Review Online, Michael Novak decries the shoddy "Injustice Done to Joe Paterno."
Read and weep.
Read and weep.
Should We Sing "The Streets of Wichita?"
Jasmine Bonnin - Strassen unserer Stadt 1975
Deutsche Version von Ralph McTell's Hit 'Streets of London' (1969)
Siehst du dort den alten Mann?
Mit ausgetret'nen Schuh'n schlurft er über's Pflaster
und er sieht so müde aus.
Hin und wieder hält er an,
nicht nur um sich auszuruh'n,
denn er hat kein Ziel und auch kein zu Haus'.
Doch du redest nur von Einsamkeit
und dass die Sonne für dich nicht scheint.
Komm und gib mir deine Hand,
ich führe dich durch uns're Straßen,
ich zeig' dir Menschen,
die wirklich einsam sind.
Kennst du die alte Frau,
die auf dem Marktplatz steht mit schneeweißem Haar,
welken Blumen in der Hand?
Die Leute geh'n vorbei,
sie merkt nicht, wie die Zeit vergeht,
so steht sie jeden Tag und niemand stört sich dran.
Siehst du dort den alten Mann?
Mit ausgetret'nen Schuh'n schlurft er über's Pflaster
und er sieht so müde aus.
Denn in einer Welt,
in der nur noch Jugend zählt,
ist für ihn kein Platz mehr und auch kein zu Haus.
Doch du redest nur von Einsamkeit
und dass die Sonne für dich nicht scheint.
Komm und gib mir deine Hand,
ich führe dich durch uns're Straßen,
ich zeig' dir Menschen,
die wirklich einsam sind.
Here is the composer himself singing it in English, Ralph McTell, singing "The Streets of London:"
The Centrality of Faith to our Founding and Our Human Rights
Much commentary is being written about the last debate of the Florida Republican primary.
Rick Santorum was asked last night what role faith would play in his decisions as president. Commentary's Peter Wehner is right when he calls former senator Santorum's reply,"[t]he best answer of the night in terms of political philosophy":
"Faith is a very, very important part of my life, but it’s a very, very important part of this country. The foundational documents of our country — everybody talks about the Constitution, very, very important. But the Constitution is the “how” of America. It’s the operator’s manual. The “why” of America, who we are as a people, is in the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights.” The Constitution is there to do one thing: protect God-given rights. That’s what makes America different than every other country in the world. No other country in the world has its rights — rights based in God-given rights, not government-given rights. And so when you say, well, faith has nothing to do with it, faith has everything to do with it. If rights come… (applause) if our president believes that rights come to us from the state, everything government gives you, it can take away. The role of the government is to protect rights that cannot be taken away. And so the answer to that question is, I believe in faith and reason and approaching the problems of this country but understand where those rights come from, who we are as Americans and the foundational principles by which we have changed the world."
The father of our constitution, James Madison, advised that the only real guarantee of our liberty is that there is a Higher Authority than the state.
Rick Santorum was asked last night what role faith would play in his decisions as president. Commentary's Peter Wehner is right when he calls former senator Santorum's reply,"[t]he best answer of the night in terms of political philosophy":
"Faith is a very, very important part of my life, but it’s a very, very important part of this country. The foundational documents of our country — everybody talks about the Constitution, very, very important. But the Constitution is the “how” of America. It’s the operator’s manual. The “why” of America, who we are as a people, is in the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights.” The Constitution is there to do one thing: protect God-given rights. That’s what makes America different than every other country in the world. No other country in the world has its rights — rights based in God-given rights, not government-given rights. And so when you say, well, faith has nothing to do with it, faith has everything to do with it. If rights come… (applause) if our president believes that rights come to us from the state, everything government gives you, it can take away. The role of the government is to protect rights that cannot be taken away. And so the answer to that question is, I believe in faith and reason and approaching the problems of this country but understand where those rights come from, who we are as Americans and the foundational principles by which we have changed the world."
The father of our constitution, James Madison, advised that the only real guarantee of our liberty is that there is a Higher Authority than the state.
Sag Mir Wo Die Blumen Sind
My favorite anti-war song. Marline Dietriech singing "Sag Mir Wo Die Blumen Sind." There is quite a shift in the English ("Where Have All the Flowers Gone?") in tense and action. As for the English, think Peter, Paul, and Mary.
