Some Misc Obama Stuff

First, the picture:



And for all you prank-callers, the Obama Sound Board.

"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."

Andrew Klavan Explains the Perennial Argument of the Left: "Shut up"

Hat tip.

JLH with Clapton and Stones

Catholic League: Obama Appointee Harry Knox Unfit to Serve

From the press release:

Harry Knox, director of the religion and faith program at the Human Rights Campaign, a gay rights organization, has been appointed by the Obama administration to serve on the Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Catholic League president Bill Donohue explains why Knox is unfit to serve:

“On the home page of the Human Rights Campaign, it says that Knox was ‘denied ordination because he is gay.’ This is patently untrue. He was denied ordination in the United Methodist Church and the United Church of Christ because he is a sexually active homosexual. Regardless, it is his open disdain for Catholicism that makes him a bad choice to serve on the Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

“When Pope Benedict XVI recently said that condoms are not the answer to HIV/AIDS, he was simply voicing common sense: the promiscuous distribution of condoms has coincided with a precipitous increase in HIV/AIDS. But to gay activists like Knox, the pope is a liar. Indeed, he instructed the pope to ‘start telling the truth about condom use,’ holding the Holy Father accountable for ‘endangering people’s lives.’ He never explained how calls for abstinence could possibly jeopardize anyone’s life. Knox even went so far as to say that because the Knights of Columbus—like most Americans—oppose gay marriage, they are ‘foot soldiers of a discredited army of oppression.’

“Though Knox is not Catholic, he could not resist blasting the Catholic Church when it decided a few years back to ban homosexual candidates for the priesthood who ‘supported gay culture.’ He branded this commonsensical position ‘an attempt at mind control’ and a ‘dangerous and immoral’ stance. In other words, he wants the Catholic Church to accept candidates like himself, practicing homosexuals so radical that even liberal mainline Protestant seminaries turn them away.

“Catholics take note: the Obama administration would never appoint an anti-gay person to any post. But it has no problem appointing anti-Catholics.”

The "Fail Whale" Rocked

Twouble with Twitters from wolkanca on Vimeo.

Also loved it when that bird got killed.