What if it’s an ankle instead of an ovary?

Would you still be empowered to make your own health care choices?

James L. Payne turns the Lib abortion mantra back on them in his essay My Body, My Choice taking on Massachusetts’ mandatory health insurance law. (As of July 1, residents of Massachusetts are required by law to purchase health insurance)

Looks like reproductive health (sic) is the only domain where choice applies in the Bay State.

 

Speak English

As political Neanderthals go, I’m pretty enlightened on the subject of immigration. When America attracts smart, hard-working people who are committed to bettering themselves and raising their families’ standard of living, we all benefit. Open wide the gate and let them pass! But on the way in, please remind them to learn English.

Yesterday the mayor of Newark, New Jersey (Cory Booker, pictured at right) held a press conference to announce the arrest of a particularly vicious murderer. Good on the Newark police, kudos to the mayor, etc. but halfway through the appearance — in response to a question posed in English – His Honor responded in Spanish and it was all downhill from there.

I’m sure we were all very much impressed with the mayor’s language skills but I don’t understand Spanish – I had no idea what the man was saying and, to be frank, it pissed me off. The three victims of this horrible crime were black and their families (who are very much entitled to an explanation from city officials) speak ENGLISH. As should the mayor; as should everyone else who makes America his home either by birth or by choice.

Even though I worship at the altar of a Mexican-American, I’m sure I’ll be accused of racism but I’ll take that risk. For the moment, I’ll skip the language as unifier spiel and cut to the results of a new diversity study:

IT HAS BECOME increasingly popular to speak of racial and ethnic diversity as a civic strength. From multicultural festivals to pronouncements from political leaders, the message is the same: our differences make us stronger.

But a massive new study, based on detailed interviews of nearly 30,000 people across America, has concluded just the opposite. Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam — famous for “Bowling Alone,” his 2000 book on declining civic engagement — has found that the greater the diversity in a community, the fewer people vote and the less they volunteer, the less they give to charity and work on community projects. In the most diverse communities, neighbors trust one another about half as much as they do in the most homogenous settings. The study, the largest ever on civic engagement in America, found that virtually all measures of civic health are lower in more diverse settings.

[snip]

Putnam claims the US has experienced a pronounced decline in “social capital,” a term he helped popularize. Social capital refers to the social networks — whether friendships or religious congregations or neighborhood associations — that he says are key indicators of civic well-being. When social capital is high, says Putnam, communities are better places to live. Neighborhoods are safer; people are healthier; and more citizens vote.

The results of his new study come from a survey Putnam directed among residents in 41 US communities, including Boston. Residents were sorted into the four principal categories used by the US Census: black, white, Hispanic, and Asian. They were asked how much they trusted their neighbors and those of each racial category, and questioned about a long list of civic attitudes and practices, including their views on local government, their involvement in community projects, and their friendships. What emerged in more diverse communities was a bleak picture of civic desolation, affecting everything from political engagement to the state of social ties.

And it goes on from there…

I’m actually a big fan of ethnic diversity. I grew up with Lebanese-Americans and by the time I was ten I was familiar with a few common Arabic expressions. The Christmas celebrations of my childhood were enriched by exposure to Swedish customs and during young adulthood I supped with the Poles on December 24th. Ethnic diversity, properly understood, is a wonderful thing. The problem arises with the imposition of an exclusive (read: excluding) alien sub-culture that fails to engage the dominant culture by means of that great unifying force: a common language.

If the first generation of immigrants has a problem with the lingua franca, I can sympathize. The fact that Grandma speaks Russian, or French, or Spanish at home won’t toll the death knell of the Republic. But when the second — and even third and fourth — generations still need an interpreter to buy a loaf of bread then we run the risk of a devastating social fragmentation that could eventually destroy this country.

 

The Stealth Candidate

Here’s columnist Clarence Page on Ron Paul:

The Texas Republican, who embraces a libertarian point of view, has been riding an unimpressive 2 percent in the polls, but if the presidential election were held in cyberspace, Paul would probably win hands down.

Paul’s supporters flood online polls, such as the unscientific survey ABC News invited viewers to join after the Republican debate last Sunday. Yet, you could barely find the Texas doctor in the network’s after-debate coverage, despite the vigorous applause he ignited with his call for an immediate withdrawal from Iraq.

Which may be why John “Stay-the-Course-in-Iraq” McCain has utterly collapsed. I have no doubt that a majority of Republican voters still support the war but maybe — just maybe — some of the closeted party realists and civil libertarians find their scrotums when they hear a fellow Republican (Dr. Paul) say that we never should have gone in and that the time to leave was yesterday.

It may be a Nixon in China thing – when Republicans hear Hillary say “withdraw” it translates into “cut and run”. When a fellow Republican says “let’s get out”, maybe a portion of the base can get behind it without feeling like they’ve betrayed their honor, their patriotism, and their (very real) support of our soldiers.

Then again, they could just be applauding him because, despite the Bush-fog, he connects with a latent nostalgia of who they once were and what their party once believed.

But I digress, Page continues:

Yet, like other mavericks as varied as John Anderson, Pat Buchanan, Ross Perot and Ralph Nader, Paul appears to be turning on a segment of the electorate that usually seems to lie dormant. In his case, a lot of them live online.

Judging by my contacts with Paul promoters — in person and through e-mails — they seem to be largely young, male, independent-minded, leave-us-alone libertarians who like Paul’s tiny-government agenda.

The very folks that Jesus loves most… Impact on the Independent Libertarian-leaning crowd aside, I wonder if Paul will be able to ignite the anti-government/pro civil liberties sentiments of the Republicans of yesteryear. Does he have a plan to do this? Are his media folks putting together “remember when” spots in Iowa and New Hampshire to urge the truly conservative Republicans back to their roots?

I’d bet that they’re not and we can blame that on (dis)organization:

Which leads to another reason why I think Paul faces trouble in moving his campaign to the next level of public attention: organization. You can’t win political campaigns without it, but organizing libertarians is about as easy as herding cats. Angry cats.

Amen.

Even when I’m at my most self-delusional, I don’t really believe that Ron Paul will be the next President of the United States – but I have not completely dismissed the possibility that his candidacy will have a significant impact on the campaign, the GOP, and the war in Iraq.

____________

Follow-up to an earlier post : Vatican’s No. 2 (sic) supports sainthood for Knights of Columbus founder. Speaking at the Knights of Columbus’ 125th annual convention, Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Bertone, has pledged to support the sainthood Cause of (Connecticut born priest and Knights founder) Michael J. McGivney.

 

What do women want?

Every guy asks himself this question at least half a million times before reaching the ripe old age of seventeen. Turns out what we thought they wanted — bad boy, bulging biceps, rippling abs — didn’t even come close.

What do women want? They want…women:

Two male faces, one more masculine and one more feminine, were presented side by side and the participants were asked to select the face they thought showed more of particular traits including dominance, ambition, wealth, faithfulness, commitment, parenting ability and warmth.

Faces with more masculine features (such as a square jaw, larger nose and smaller eyes), were judged to me more dominant, less faithful, worse parents and as having less warm personalities than those with more feminine features (such as fuller lips, wide eyes and thinner, more curved eyebrows).

Except, you know, for brief flings when the eggs are boiling:

Another recent study found that women who were in the fertile stage of their menstrual cycle preferred more masculine-looking males for short-term relationships, but more feminine-looking males while they were less fertile.

This just proves the hypothesis that guys tend to put forward by the age of twenty. No matter who you are or what you look like, you cannot win!

But the research does explain why chicks dig the New York Yankees:

(I’ll stretch any point to take a shot at the Yankees…)

 

Squirrel. “It’s what’s for dinner”

I admit that rodent eating has been a long time hang-up – even an obsession . That I share a country with squirrel eaters disturbs me; but personally knowing squirrel eaters fills me with a sense of unease too deep to quantify. But the plain fact is: Mizzur-uhns eat squirrels. (Which is all the more reason to never leave the safe boundaries of New England)

Eating squirrels is bad enough, but Mizzur-uhns live in a culture that accepts such behavior as normal and even encouraged! We should probably consider ceding the whole damned state back to France…

Here’s the Missouri Department of Conservation website on “ettin them thar varmints”: A Squirrel Cuisine:

People who frown on squirrels as food can be placed into two groups—those who can’t stomach the thought of eating an animal that’s furry and cute and those who have eaten squirrels but found them less than appetizing. The first group will probably never enjoy eating squirrels. The second can be won over if hunters avoid these mistakes.

[snip]

I have eaten squirrels that tasted gamy, though tasted bad is a more accurate description. The squirrels had been shot through the abdominal cavity and poorly cleaned. Any meat will taste bad if allowed to marinate in gut contents and urine, and that is exactly what happens when gut and bladder contents touch the meat, be it squirrel or any other game animal.

[snip: Don't forget that this website is run by the State of Missouri!]

More squirrels than not are placed on the dinner table with hair clinging to the meat, which is unappetizing to say the least. Skinning squirrels is difficult, regardless of how you go about it, and hair is easily transferred to the meat. My skinning method, however, handles the problem.

Ok, enough… This can go on all day and I want to cut to the most important part of the article – the recipes!

That particular section contains such delicacies as: Squirrel & Dumplings, Barbecued Squirrel (You knew that was coming…), Squirrel Spaghetti, Squirrel Italian, and, of course, Pan fried squirrel.

But here’s my fav:

Squirrel Salad

• Boil 6 squirrels until tender.
• The last five minutes of cooking time, add 3 eggs still in their shells.
• Remove squirrels and eggs from pot and let cool.
• De-bone squirrels. Peel eggs. In a food processor, grind meat and eggs separately. Place in a large bowl and with a spoon or fork, mix in mayonnaise or sandwich spread and pickle relish to desired consistency and taste.
• Serve on toast or crackers with your favorite garnish.

You just gotta wonder what squirrel eaters would choose as a favorite garnish. Anyway, if you have no plans this weekend, why not pot up a batch of Squirrel Salad and invite your first cousins over for a rodent feast that’s guaranteed to please! (That is, as long as you have a tall stack of country music CDs and plenty of Pabst Blue Ribbon on tap)

 

[fill in the blank] Americans are uninsured!!

I left a portion of the title field blank because the number of uninsured Americans that gets bandied about seems to rise and fall according to election cycle and party affiliation but I’ll stipulate that millions of Americans are, indeed, uninsured.

Which reminds me of a story. A long story, but if you’ll stick with me, I’ll eventually get to my Libertarian point. I usually try to blog about religious themes on Sunday and, while this would certainly qualify, I have to admit that furthering a political message is my primary motivation in this case.

In the 19th century, death benefits and sick pay were practically unheard of and public assistance meant shipping the new widow’s underage children off to a state funded institution. To provide for their families in the event of their deaths, men joined fraternal organizations and burial societies. More often than not, these organizations were Masonic, pseudo-Masonic, or just plain old secret societies – which meant, of course, that they were off limits to the wave of Catholic immigrants then flooding America’s shores.

Enter Father McGivney (†1890). Michael J. McGivney was born in Waterbury, Connecticut in 1852. After Seminary he was assigned to a debt-ridden parish in New Haven where, through his pastoral work, he regularly encountered poor and immigrant families who were left penniless when their breadwinner died at an obscenely early age. The widows of these common laborers were usually left with a houseful of children and absolutely no means of financial support.

Lacking a 21st century mentality, Father didn’t jump in his carriage and ride to Hartford or petition his local congressman for federal poor relief – he rolled up the sleeves of his cassock and went to work. Knowing that recourse to membership in the existing fraternal organizations was not an option for his parishioners, Father McGivney called a meeting of twelve men in his church basement and proposed the establishment of a mutual aid society for Catholics in the State of Connecticut.

That small group could not have known that they were about to form the largest fraternal organization in history. On that winter afternoon in New Haven, Connecticut the Knights of Columbus was born.

 

Niche blogging

This one takes the prize. Can you imagine a more obscure niche than:

Cats that look like Hitler?

ht: Dylan

Slightly less niche but almost as funny:

The first IT support call

ht: Julie

 

Something’s wrong with Cheney

Yeah, I know that’s a little too easy, but seriously…

I saw about 2 minutes of Larry King’s interview with the VP the other night and I was really surprised by how bad he looks and sounds. I know he’s never been a well man but he seems to have aged ten years and his features are ashen and drawn.

The pic at right is from this morning.

That, my friends, is a very sick man.

 

It gets no better than this

It’s Christmas, your birthday, the World Series, your Summer Vacation, and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition all rolled into one: It’s SHARK WEEK on the Discovery Channel !

At the risk of going completely over the top, it’s the best television EVER!

I think I’ve watched every show at least twice, but it’s like Family Guy you can watch the same episode over and over and never get bored. The best by far is Air Jaws (see pic above) – it’s about Great Whites in South Africa that breach the surface of the water at amazing speeds to gobble up little fur seals.

Shark Week wraps up tomorrow night but there’s still plenty of time to catch an episode or two. (Schedule here) Unfortunately, Air Jaws isn’t scheduled to run again but, brace yourselves, Air Jaws II – Even Higher is running a few more times before, alas, the best week in television history comes to an end. (Until next year!)

_________________________________________________

Update 8/4/07: What kind of shark are you? Take the Shark Quiz

Unfortunately, I’m a bottom feeding White Spotted Bamboo Shark which is disappointing. But, hey, they’re capable of asexual reproduction and that’s always handy!

 

So who beat up the bishop?

Bishop Donald Pelotte, 62, insists that his massive head and bodily injuries are the results of a fall but doctors and the police think His Excellency was worked over:

[The bishop's assistant, Timoteo] Lujan told police he went to check on Pelotte after the bishop didn’t report for work, missed an appointment and didn’t answer his telephone. Lujan let himself into the locked home and saw blood on the tile floor below a carpeted stairway.

“I was very alarmed,” Lujan recalled. “I didn’t know what to expect.”

The police report says Lujan found Pelotte in his bedroom upstairs. The report says the bishop was “heavily bruised across the face, along the chest area, both arms, the knuckles, the legs and the feet.”

Lujan expressed concern that someone may have assaulted the bishop, but Pelotte told him he had fallen down the stairs.

Here’s the police report — which reveals yet another mystery: How can someone who writes at a 4th grade level become a Phoenix cop? — you can decide for yourself.

So what was it? Did he fall? Was he pushed? Jilted lover? Home invasion? Satan? Well, we’ll probably never know because the police are no longer investigating because of the bishop’s absolute insistence that the injuries were caused by a fall.

But the diocese is giving itself an out should the speculation continue:

The Rev. James Walker [Dy-no-MITE!!], vicar general, urged caution in speculating about what occurred. He said he believes Pelotte will tell as much as he can remember about the incident after he is fully recovered.

MmmHmm