Stephen Phelan, communications director at Human Life International, writes at Catholic Advocate about the alarming attempt of Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) to investigate pro-life efforts to protect the unborn in Kenya. Reading about Kennedy’s effort to mount a federal investigation of a perfectly legal lobbying effort, you have to wonder if he is coming unglued … Read more
Year: 2010
Patrick Kennedy Comes Unglued Over Abortion in Kenya
Stephen Phelan, communications director at Human Life International, writes at Catholic Advocate about the alarming attempt of Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) to investigate pro-life efforts to protect the unborn in Kenya. Reading about Kennedy’s effort to mount a federal investigation of a perfectly legal lobbying effort, you have to wonder if he is coming unglued … Read more
The loss of American creativity?
Newsweek recently published an interesting piece about the decline of creativity in America by authors Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman. In May, a professor at the College of William & Mary, Kyun Hee Kim, analyzed 300,000 Torrance scores of children and adults. Named for the psychologist who created it 50 years ago — E. Paul … Read more
A Strange Attack from the New York Times
Since at least last March, the New York Times has been obsessed with a question: “What did Joseph Ratzinger know, and when did he know it?” At issue, of course, is the role played by Cardinal Ratzinger — now Pope Benedict XVI — in relation to the scandal of clergy sex abuse. It’s a fair … Read more
Is the administration using federal money to expand abortion in Kenya?
From Amanda Carey at The Daily Caller: A new report by the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) shows that the Obama administration has indeed been using taxpayer dollars to fund a “yes” campaign in Kenya ahead of the August vote on the proposed new Kenyan constitution. One provision … Read more
In a State of Grace? Thank a Priest
Every time I go to confession, I am yet again grateful for the men who serve us as priests. Of course I am thankful for Mass, but it often seems that the priests are grateful, too. Confecting the sacrament, offering in persona Christi the perfect sacrifice, feeding Christ’s people the saving Food . . . … Read more
Political Commentary from Beyond the Grave
Yesterday’s Las Vegas Review-Journal featured an unusual obituary for Mrs. Charlotte M. Tidwell McCourt, a long-time Nevada resident who passed away at the age of 84 following a long illness. The obituary itself is fairly pro forma, describing Mrs. McCourt’s life in terms that reveal her time here to have been both full and happy. But the … Read more
Almost 1 billion in federal funds given to abortion groups during Bush administration
I missed this one: In June, Nancy Frazier O’Brien at Catholic News Service wrote about a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on the amount of federal funding given to organizations that perform or promote abortion. Between 2002 and 2009 — during the Bush administration, in other words — the number was a staggering $967 … Read more
Cycling and guts vs. glory
Now that the World Cup is over, I can finally turn my attention to that other international sporting event of the summer: the Tour de France. Even without the drama of Lance Armstrong’s record-breaking back-to-back wins, the Tour is endlessly compelling to watch. I’m hard-pressed to think of a sport that demands more from its … Read more
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), earlier this summer, issued a Notice of Inquiry on its new “Open Internet,” proposals. Better known as “net neutrality,” FCC leadership has made it clear they intend to use the power of the federal government to regulate broadband service on the Internet. To remind our readers, the policy of net … Read more
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), earlier this summer, issued a Notice of Inquiry on its new “Open Internet,” proposals. Better known as “net neutrality,” FCC leadership has made it clear they intend to use the power of the federal government to regulate broadband service on the Internet. To remind our readers, the policy of net … Read more
Net Neutrality and the Tip of the Iceberg
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), earlier this summer, issued a Notice of Inquiry on its new “Open Internet,” proposals. Better known as “net neutrality,” FCC leadership has made it clear they intend to use the power of the federal government to regulate broadband service on the Internet. To remind our readers, the policy of net … Read more
The Mystery of Israel
Years ago, I was sharing an office at Hunter College with a very observant Orthodox Jew, Michael Wyschogrod. He is a distinguished Jewish theologian — not only did he faithfully follow the Torah, but his religion was clearly at the very center of his life. This created a deep bond between us, finding ourselves in … Read more
Livin’ like a Liberal
Weekly Standard writer Matt Labash takes to heart the dictum that to understand a man you must first walk a mile in his Birkenstocks–converting to liberalism and putting into practice the good advices of one Justin Krebs, as detailed in his book 538 Ways to Live Work and Play Like a Liberal. Labash starts out … Read more
The Hook: A Week in the Life of a Catholic Preacher
It’s Thursday night, and Rev. Bill Parent, a Roman Catholic priest, is still struggling with the opening of his Sunday homily. His fingers sit unmoving on his computer keyboard. He has had several ideas, but none has taken hold. He writes two sentences, stops, and rubs his chin. Then he quickly highlights them and presses … Read more
Switzerland: It’s like Home Base for child rapists
As you’ve no doubt heard, yesterday, the government of Switzerland rejected a U.S. request to return fugitive child rapist/film director Roman Polanski to the states for prosecution. He is now, effectively, a free man. The Independent‘s Johann Hari has the best reaction: So now we know. If you are a 44-year-old man, you can drug … Read more
Male infertility: Blame mom?
Here’s an interesting — and alarming — article from The Independent. One third of healthy young men between 18 and 25 have abnormal sperm counts. And the sperm they do produce is often of poor quality. Studies show that “only between 5 and 15 per cent of their sperm is, on average, good enough to … Read more
Bear Wrongs Patiently
Me assuming the task of writing about “bearing wrongs patiently” is like asking the Incredible Hulk for anger management counseling or seeking out Britney Spears for tips on marriage and child-rearing. I don’t bear wrongs very patiently. Why should I? Those people are wrong! They need to be set right! I’m only doing my Christian … Read more
Run, Don’t Walk, to Hulu
I can still vividly recall the first time I sat somewhat flippantly down to watch Akira Kurosawa’s Ran, only to discover myself mesmerized from the film’s very first scene. Its extraordinary colors, amazing visual (and acting) discipline, and strong, unsettling foreshadowing of the film’s tragic story all combined to make me instantly aware that I was about to … Read more
Does crime go up during a full moon?
It’s a long-held belief that the phases of the moon affect people’s behaviors. That’s why it’s significant that a new study demonstrates that crime and violence do not go up during a full moon. According to USA Today‘s Dan Vergano, a research team studied the crime data of San Antonio, Texas, from 2001 to 2005, … Read more