"A place of honor with all that is good."

A few of George Washington's quotes on the place of guns in our society:

The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference -- they deserve a place of honor with all that's good.

Firearms are second only to the Constitution in importance; they are the peoples' liberty's teeth.

At least they don't say "Mistake on the Lake"

Thanks to reader Kathleen for this one.



Really, Kathleen, this is my adopted city, OK? I could pretend to be offended if I weren't laughing so hard.

Clarity on Catholics United

Don't you love clarity? I do. That's why I love this take-down of the group Catholics United. Money quote: "Catholics United is a clearly partisan organization that heavily supports the Democratic Party." Then of course the evidence of this is provided:

Second, this specific organization – Catholics United – is a clearly partisan organization that heavily supports the Democratic Party. A glance on their website shows endorsements for President Obama, his selection of Kathleen Sebelius as director of Health and Human Services, and support for the University of Notre Dame in its decision to honor the president with an honorary doctorate at its commencement ceremony. While every Catholic has the right to join whatever political party they choose (cf. Compendium of Social Doctrine #573), a person does not have the right to equate their own personal opinion as the official position of the Catholic Church (cf. Compendium of Social Doctrine #574 ). The Church cannot endorse particular candidates for public office, nor can she align itself with one particular political party over another. The Gospel transcends the political order while at the same time intersecting with it along the way.

There is so much here in such a succinct form. Kudos to Jude Huntz for wielding our language like a sharpened blade. I like the next paragraph, too:

Finally, while there are some aspects of the economic recovery package in the budget that are in accord with Catholic social teaching, notably the preferential option for the poor and the concern for the common good, there are also troubling aspects of the stimulus package that do not reflect Catholic social teaching. While the Church acknowledges the rightful role of the state in the life of society and the economy, there is also a concern for the principle of subsidiarity that becomes threatened with excessive government intervention. What is more, there are family planning provisions within the stimulus package that promote abortion and contraception, which clearly violate the inviolable life and dignity of the human person, which is the foundation of all Catholic social teaching.

Damn subsidiarity! It's always getting in the way of the leftist claim that centralized social engineering equals Catholic social teaching, isn't it? Not to mention a little thing called abortion which kills people or artificial contraception which mechanizes people.

The conclusion is perfect; the whole piece is representative of the kind of clear thinking that led me to join the Catholic Church fifteen years plus eighteen days ago. Huntz's first two sentences in the concluding paragraph remind me of a quote from Pope Saint Gregory VII: "It is the custom of the Roman Church which I unworthily serve with the help of God, to tolerate some things, to turn a blind eye to some, following the spirit of discretion rather than the rigid letter of the law."