That's the next headline I'm expecting. For now we just have an "expert" saying Jane Austen couldn't spell, used poor grammar, and had a great deal of "help" from her editor.
Sure. And Einstein failed grade school math, Shakespeare didn't write any of those plays, and see that box over there? It contains the bones of Jesus! Forgive me if I take this with a grain of salt - it is coming to us through journalists, after all.
You can go here to see the Austen manuscripts mentioned in the articles. I wonder how she did at math?
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
John Robson on the Russell Williams Case
I didn't seek out coverage of this story, but if you have been reading or watching any news in the past few days, it was impossible not to learn something about it. I actively avoided several stories about this man's crimes - the headlines alone told me that the story was going to reveal more than anyone needed to know. John Robson has some thoughts on this.
h/t Sobering Thoughts
h/t Sobering Thoughts
Thursday, October 21, 2010
I am so tired of the idea that motherhood is unworthy of intelligent women.
Via ProWomanProlife
Read the whole thing here. I agree with most of what Barbara Kay writes in this column, but I'm a little puzzled by the following paragraph:
What advice can I give her? Stop studying, find Mr. Right and start procreating? After all, Canada needs lots more loved children, and her children will be blessed. On the other hand this young woman is a winner and I want to see her succeed.
"On the other hand" is the part that puzzles me, appearing, as it does, in a column that talks about future demographic problems. Does being a wife and mother mean you cannot be a successful winner? If that's what is meant, then this is just a more polite way of saying, "You're smart - what are you doing at home with your children?" If a woman chooses to discontinue formal study and/or a full time profession to become a happy, beloved wife and mother to children she always dreamed of having, how is that by any definition unsuccessful? Perhaps the way we define success has more than a little to do with our looming population shortfalls.
If Ms Kay means "succeed in her chosen field of study", then yes, if you choose motherhood, you may well be hurting or even abandoning your prospects of being successful in some other profession. Many important choices require sacrifice; if you want to be a doctor, it likely means you can't pursue your dream of being a ballerina. (If a woman chose medicine over dance, I don't think many of us would describe her as unsuccessful.) We all narrow our lives somewhat by what we choose to do, but for some reason many people seem to feel that motherhood alone closes the door on every other aspiration and interest. Certainly there are times in a mother's life that are intensely demanding, and at those times she can find it difficult to expand her horizons beyond her day to day duties, but this is true for everyone. Every kind of work has its boring, unpleasant or aggravating aspects. That is simply the nature of our existence in an imperfect world.
It is a sad thing when a woman is thought to have wasted her talents on raising her own children. When my acquaintance asked me why I was at home with my kids, maybe I should have responded, "You seem pretty smart, too - what are you doing working for the government?" I wonder what she would have said?
Read the whole thing here. I agree with most of what Barbara Kay writes in this column, but I'm a little puzzled by the following paragraph:
What advice can I give her? Stop studying, find Mr. Right and start procreating? After all, Canada needs lots more loved children, and her children will be blessed. On the other hand this young woman is a winner and I want to see her succeed.
"On the other hand" is the part that puzzles me, appearing, as it does, in a column that talks about future demographic problems. Does being a wife and mother mean you cannot be a successful winner? If that's what is meant, then this is just a more polite way of saying, "You're smart - what are you doing at home with your children?" If a woman chooses to discontinue formal study and/or a full time profession to become a happy, beloved wife and mother to children she always dreamed of having, how is that by any definition unsuccessful? Perhaps the way we define success has more than a little to do with our looming population shortfalls.
If Ms Kay means "succeed in her chosen field of study", then yes, if you choose motherhood, you may well be hurting or even abandoning your prospects of being successful in some other profession. Many important choices require sacrifice; if you want to be a doctor, it likely means you can't pursue your dream of being a ballerina. (If a woman chose medicine over dance, I don't think many of us would describe her as unsuccessful.) We all narrow our lives somewhat by what we choose to do, but for some reason many people seem to feel that motherhood alone closes the door on every other aspiration and interest. Certainly there are times in a mother's life that are intensely demanding, and at those times she can find it difficult to expand her horizons beyond her day to day duties, but this is true for everyone. Every kind of work has its boring, unpleasant or aggravating aspects. That is simply the nature of our existence in an imperfect world.
It is a sad thing when a woman is thought to have wasted her talents on raising her own children. When my acquaintance asked me why I was at home with my kids, maybe I should have responded, "You seem pretty smart, too - what are you doing working for the government?" I wonder what she would have said?
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Happy World Statistics Day!
I was going to make a cake, but apparently that would be inappropriate - it's actually a day of mourning in this country.
Do watch the video at the end, if you have 8 minutes to spare. From the funereal rendition of "O Canada" to the quote by Pierre E. Trudeau, it's a real hoot.
Mrs. P's two cents:
Money quote from the CBC article:
Translation: 'It really burns my bureaucratic britches that Big Brother has decided it's unnecessary (if not unethical) to pry into every detail of the daily lives of its citizens. It's downright UNSOCIALIST!'
Actually, it's good governance. Hooray for Harper.
As for the video, WHO PAID FOR IT? Probably your tax dollars and mine. After watching it, I realized I have no choice but to burn my Satirist's Association membership card. That film was utterly, completely beyond parody.
As for the concluding PET quotation, I thougth they were going to use this one: "The state has no business in the er... business of the nation." Oh wait, never mind.
Do watch the video at the end, if you have 8 minutes to spare. From the funereal rendition of "O Canada" to the quote by Pierre E. Trudeau, it's a real hoot.
Mrs. P's two cents:
Money quote from the CBC article:
"It seems a bit ironic that within days of sponsoring this bill and the pronouncement of this, the government would turn around and cancel the one of the most fundamental sources of information we have," he said.
Translation: 'It really burns my bureaucratic britches that Big Brother has decided it's unnecessary (if not unethical) to pry into every detail of the daily lives of its citizens. It's downright UNSOCIALIST!'
Actually, it's good governance. Hooray for Harper.
As for the video, WHO PAID FOR IT? Probably your tax dollars and mine. After watching it, I realized I have no choice but to burn my Satirist's Association membership card. That film was utterly, completely beyond parody.
As for the concluding PET quotation, I thougth they were going to use this one: "The state has no business in the er... business of the nation." Oh wait, never mind.
I'm not wrong; you're just stupid
It will be interesting to see the results of the November elections down south. But the big O's reaction is likely to be as predicatable as the outcome:
If Dems lose, Obama will blame everyone but himself
Byron York, Washington Examiner
If Dems lose, Obama will blame everyone but himself
Byron York, Washington Examiner
I'm so glad that D & P has its priorities in order...
Avoiding the use of plastic bottles, AMEN!! Guarding the deposit of faith, not so much.
Now, I will probably buy more bottled water than ever before. (I'm glad the Cdn bishops' Winnipeg Statement allows me to follow my conscience no matter what!) It's so convenient. Just like bottled water.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
And while we're on the topic of banning foods...
...I think you actually have to stop flying Air Canada all together if you want to get away from the nuts.
The Information Free Press
Mr. Steyn links to a curious article about his upcoming Canadian tour. Or perhaps I should call that an incurious article, since, as Mark points out,
...this newspaper does not see fit to inform its readers that its principal interviewee, Faisal Joseph, was, in fact, the Canadian Islamic Congress' lawyer in the Maclean's/Steyn trial.
Indeed, that does seem like a fact the reader might want to know. I think it's great if Muslims devote themselves to acts of kindness and charity, but that doesn't really "show people how wrong" Mark Steyn is. As I recall, he contends that Islam is incompatible with liberal democracy, not that Muslims don't give enough to the food bank.
In all the time Steyn's work was being examined by various HRCs, I never heard any of the plaintiffs (or their spokesocks) explicitly refute his arguments, so I didn't expect to find that in this short article, either. But could we at least have one example of the "misinformation and misrepresentations of the history of Islam" which the BCHRC located in the Maclean's excerpt? And what are these controversial "views" of Coulter and Steyn? I guess it's like "Dune": you have to have read the book to know what's going on.
This part also struck me:
"Views such as those of Coulter — who was soundly booed during her Western appearance when she mocked a 17-year-old Muslim student — and Steyn, Joseph said, will have to be drowned out by the compassion of Islam."
"Will have to be drowned out"? Why not "answered" or "engaged" or "refuted"?
...this newspaper does not see fit to inform its readers that its principal interviewee, Faisal Joseph, was, in fact, the Canadian Islamic Congress' lawyer in the Maclean's/Steyn trial.
Indeed, that does seem like a fact the reader might want to know. I think it's great if Muslims devote themselves to acts of kindness and charity, but that doesn't really "show people how wrong" Mark Steyn is. As I recall, he contends that Islam is incompatible with liberal democracy, not that Muslims don't give enough to the food bank.
In all the time Steyn's work was being examined by various HRCs, I never heard any of the plaintiffs (or their spokesocks) explicitly refute his arguments, so I didn't expect to find that in this short article, either. But could we at least have one example of the "misinformation and misrepresentations of the history of Islam" which the BCHRC located in the Maclean's excerpt? And what are these controversial "views" of Coulter and Steyn? I guess it's like "Dune": you have to have read the book to know what's going on.
This part also struck me:
"Views such as those of Coulter — who was soundly booed during her Western appearance when she mocked a 17-year-old Muslim student — and Steyn, Joseph said, will have to be drowned out by the compassion of Islam."
"Will have to be drowned out"? Why not "answered" or "engaged" or "refuted"?
Sunday, October 17, 2010
You would almost swear this had come from "The Onion".
But unfortunately the squawking is all too real.
Consumer specialist Trevor Norris, a U of T professor who's written a forthcoming book on corporate social responsibility, said he believes it's time the government stopped leaving it up to the consumer entirely.
"We should be asking our government to protect us from corporations who are creating a major burden," Norris said.
Consumer specialist Trevor Norris, a U of T professor who's written a forthcoming book on corporate social responsibility, said he believes it's time the government stopped leaving it up to the consumer entirely.
"We should be asking our government to protect us from corporations who are creating a major burden," Norris said.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Mastering the Art of Instant Pudding
In case anyone has been wondering where we've been, a significant portion of DOH's loyal readers/contributors were, for ten wonderful days, encamped at my house for some sisterly good times. Blogging was virtually forgotten as chocolate and Victorian dramas flowed freely. Martin Chuzzlewit and Our Mutual Friend were both excellent, and we also viewed Julie & Julia and District 9, films which will make you hungry for Boeuf Bourguignon or cat food, depending on your preference. We usually try to take in an opera for SisCon, too, but there happened to be no free tinfoil night at the National Arts Center performance which suited our refined tastes during this year's visit.
I enjoyed Julie and Julia. I don't know much about Julia Child, but I thought Meryl Streep's portrayal was spot on John Candy's impersonation of her. The character was thoroughly likable, and I will soon be looking for a good biography of the real person. I was more interested in the plot line that followed Julia Child's life than in the parts about Julie Powell, but Julie's excitement at receiving a comment on her blog from someone she didn't know certainly did resonate with me and Mrs. P. I don't have any delusions about DOH leading to a book/movie deal, but I firmly believe that Julia Child could hate our blog, too, if she were still alive.
Of course all of this leads to the question, "How does one turn one's obscure blog into a book/movie deal?" The answer is to come up with something totally original which will instantly grab the interest of everyone who hears about it. For this reason I give you:
The Mrs. P./Mrs. B. Project
Mrs. P., who is an admirer of Jean Pare, has toyed with the idea of cooking her way through the entire "Company's Coming" 150 Delicious Squares cookbook and then writing a blog about it. (This in turn gave another of our sisters the idea of starting a blog called "Supersquares Me" - because, after all, someone has to eat all that baking.) I'm thinking of blogging about cooking (let's call it "bloogking") my way through one of the several high school/parish/workplace/service organization compilation cookbooks which I own. Not only are these chock full of great recipes for which you might actually have the ingredients, but it's also fun to guess at how much of those ingredients you should use when Mary Smith from Orono, Ontario submits recipes in which standard measurements are replaced with the phrase "enough for your family".
Sure, this project won't have the star power of Julia Child, but contemplate the element of human interest. What kind of character is Catholic Women's League President Mary Smith? What (besides bachelorhood) drove junior accountant Larry Sehn to develop and submit the recipe for instant pudding? What could have possibly motivated 11th grader Lisa K. and 12th grader Cory W. to jointly submit "Sex in a Pan" to their high school cookbook? And which faculty member didn't make them change their recipe's name to "Heavenly Chocolate Torte"? All these intriguing questions will be answered when I have completed my odyssey.
So, what do you say, Random House? I'll be waiting by the phone. And once the book is done, I hope we can get Justin Bieber to play Cory W.
I enjoyed Julie and Julia. I don't know much about Julia Child, but I thought Meryl Streep's portrayal was spot on John Candy's impersonation of her. The character was thoroughly likable, and I will soon be looking for a good biography of the real person. I was more interested in the plot line that followed Julia Child's life than in the parts about Julie Powell, but Julie's excitement at receiving a comment on her blog from someone she didn't know certainly did resonate with me and Mrs. P. I don't have any delusions about DOH leading to a book/movie deal, but I firmly believe that Julia Child could hate our blog, too, if she were still alive.
Of course all of this leads to the question, "How does one turn one's obscure blog into a book/movie deal?" The answer is to come up with something totally original which will instantly grab the interest of everyone who hears about it. For this reason I give you:
The Mrs. P./Mrs. B. Project
Mrs. P., who is an admirer of Jean Pare, has toyed with the idea of cooking her way through the entire "Company's Coming" 150 Delicious Squares cookbook and then writing a blog about it. (This in turn gave another of our sisters the idea of starting a blog called "Supersquares Me" - because, after all, someone has to eat all that baking.) I'm thinking of blogging about cooking (let's call it "bloogking") my way through one of the several high school/parish/workplace/service organization compilation cookbooks which I own. Not only are these chock full of great recipes for which you might actually have the ingredients, but it's also fun to guess at how much of those ingredients you should use when Mary Smith from Orono, Ontario submits recipes in which standard measurements are replaced with the phrase "enough for your family".
Sure, this project won't have the star power of Julia Child, but contemplate the element of human interest. What kind of character is Catholic Women's League President Mary Smith? What (besides bachelorhood) drove junior accountant Larry Sehn to develop and submit the recipe for instant pudding? What could have possibly motivated 11th grader Lisa K. and 12th grader Cory W. to jointly submit "Sex in a Pan" to their high school cookbook? And which faculty member didn't make them change their recipe's name to "Heavenly Chocolate Torte"? All these intriguing questions will be answered when I have completed my odyssey.
So, what do you say, Random House? I'll be waiting by the phone. And once the book is done, I hope we can get Justin Bieber to play Cory W.
Friday, October 15, 2010
A Good Time Was Had by All
With love and thanks to Mrs. P., Doris Rose Jones, Jacques, Soph and Sus.
Come again soon!!
It took me until this evening to realize that this is much more appropriate:
Come again soon!!
It took me until this evening to realize that this is much more appropriate:
Monday, October 11, 2010
Thank you, Mr. Warren.
Somehow he is always there with exactly what one needs to charge up for another week of home schooling.
"[W]e should never abandon the position that the education of our children is none of the state's (expletive) business."
"[W]e should never abandon the position that the education of our children is none of the state's (expletive) business."
Our institutions of higher learning keep getting wackier.
This just in....
STUDENT DEPLORES TWO-TIERED ACCESS TO MARK STEYN
OTTAWA - Self-described "leading hatemonger" Mark Steyn is slated to embark upon a rare Canadian speaking tour, and Ottawa student Baird Lutelisp is not impressed. The 37-year-old Cultural and Gender Conflict in Canadian Film Studies major is outraged by what he calls "two-tiered access" to the controversial author.
"If you're a student in London or Calgary, you can infiltrate and disrupt the event without it costing you a dime," Mr. Lutelisp says from his parents' home in west Ottawa. "Yet in this city you'll have to fork over $250 in order to shout your slogans at those who most need to hear them. Do you know how many weeks my mom would have to advance my beer allowance to pay for that?"
Mr. Lutelisp, who also acts as a Campus Organizer, is especially upset by the timing and location of the event. "Even if our principled stand for the freedom to choose what other people hear could outdraw the Engineering Halloween kegger, the fact that Steyn is speaking on so-called 'private property' is problematic," Lutelisp explains. "I need 60% of my mob physically on campus, or I'm not getting credit for those volunteer hours."
When asked about Mark Steyn's right to express his opinions, Baird Lutelisp quotes an oft-used but watertight rejoinder - with a modern twist: "You can't text 'FIRE!' to all your friends in a crowded nightclub," he states solemnly. "Unless you add, 'JK - LOL!! ;-)'. This is Canada," Lutelisp continues passionately. "We have one set of hate speech laws for everyone, one health care system for everyone, one diverse and tolerant way of seeing the world. The only way we can preserve the diversity we so treasure is if students of every socioeconomic background have the same opportunity to shut down the speakers they deem too hateful for anyone to hear!"
Mr. Lutelisp plans to pursue his complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Commission and is confident that it will be resolved before the October 30 event date.
STUDENT DEPLORES TWO-TIERED ACCESS TO MARK STEYN
OTTAWA - Self-described "leading hatemonger" Mark Steyn is slated to embark upon a rare Canadian speaking tour, and Ottawa student Baird Lutelisp is not impressed. The 37-year-old Cultural and Gender Conflict in Canadian Film Studies major is outraged by what he calls "two-tiered access" to the controversial author.
"If you're a student in London or Calgary, you can infiltrate and disrupt the event without it costing you a dime," Mr. Lutelisp says from his parents' home in west Ottawa. "Yet in this city you'll have to fork over $250 in order to shout your slogans at those who most need to hear them. Do you know how many weeks my mom would have to advance my beer allowance to pay for that?"
Mr. Lutelisp, who also acts as a Campus Organizer, is especially upset by the timing and location of the event. "Even if our principled stand for the freedom to choose what other people hear could outdraw the Engineering Halloween kegger, the fact that Steyn is speaking on so-called 'private property' is problematic," Lutelisp explains. "I need 60% of my mob physically on campus, or I'm not getting credit for those volunteer hours."
When asked about Mark Steyn's right to express his opinions, Baird Lutelisp quotes an oft-used but watertight rejoinder - with a modern twist: "You can't text 'FIRE!' to all your friends in a crowded nightclub," he states solemnly. "Unless you add, 'JK - LOL!! ;-)'. This is Canada," Lutelisp continues passionately. "We have one set of hate speech laws for everyone, one health care system for everyone, one diverse and tolerant way of seeing the world. The only way we can preserve the diversity we so treasure is if students of every socioeconomic background have the same opportunity to shut down the speakers they deem too hateful for anyone to hear!"
Mr. Lutelisp plans to pursue his complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Commission and is confident that it will be resolved before the October 30 event date.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Monday, October 4, 2010
We are outliers, hear us roar.
As a statistical anomaly myself (married before 30, more than two kids, one parent at home, home schooler, never seen an episode of 'Lost'), I thought this article was kind of interesting.
Let's Pretend...
...that the following sentence appeared in this article:
"He is charged with five counts of giving religious offence to Christians...."
How long would that trial last?
"He is charged with five counts of giving religious offence to Christians...."
How long would that trial last?
My only question is, how is this the Pope's fault?
That piece of information is basic to every discussion like this one, yet here it seems to be missing.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
I have a great idea.
Why not have Mark Steyn talk to the DND now that they've canceled this guy?
Mark's coming to Ottawa soon, and I have a feeling he could speak very eloquently "on the evolution of Islam in the Canadian Forces and the positive contribution of Canada's Muslim community to our society."
Mark's coming to Ottawa soon, and I have a feeling he could speak very eloquently "on the evolution of Islam in the Canadian Forces and the positive contribution of Canada's Muslim community to our society."
Don't worry, Alberta!
I'm 100% sure that our fearless MPs (Media Policepersons) will fly to your rescue just like they did for Quebec.
To the MotionMobile, Profound Sadness Boy!
To the MotionMobile, Profound Sadness Boy!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Today is International Free Press Day
To celebrate, or just observe, as the case may be, go read this reprint of Steyn's about the Danish "Motoon" disaster.
Here's just a taste:
Here's just a taste:
This story meets all the clichés of journalistic self-aggrandizement: “Sunlight is the best disinfectant”, “News is what someone doesn’t want you to put in the paper”. But it seems it’s one thing to “speak truth to power” when the power’s George Bush or John Ashcroft, quite another when it’s an Islamist mob coming to burn your building down. Needless to say, reflex blowhardism is so ingrained in the media class they couldn’t resist passing off their prioritizing of self-preservation as a bold principled stand.
Or as Philip Lee, professor of journalism at St Thomas University in New Brunswick, put it:
Up to a point, Lord Jello."Freedom of the press means you can publish, or not. Not publishing is also an expression of freedom."
The "negatives" are currently in the lead
Just what the CBC was hoping and, I dare say, expecting--NOT. They're just asking for it with a title like this:
Pierre Trudeau: Did he have a positive or negative impact on Canada?
Go vote now.
Thanks to SDA for the heads up on this poll.
Indeed, I'm surprised the question was so unbiased. I would have expected something more along these lines:
Pierre Trudeau: how much do you adore him?
a.madly
b.profoundly
c.devotedly
d.not as much as I adore Tommy Douglas
Pierre Trudeau: Did he have a positive or negative impact on Canada?
Go vote now.
Thanks to SDA for the heads up on this poll.
Mrs. B. chimes in:
Indeed, I'm surprised the question was so unbiased. I would have expected something more along these lines:
Pierre Trudeau: how much do you adore him?
a.madly
b.profoundly
c.devotedly
d.not as much as I adore Tommy Douglas
This kind of foolishness is a disgrace to our country, to say the least.
"House censures Maclean's over Quebec article"
Like certain Muslim leaders who are more outraged over cartoons than over the deaths of human beings, these politicians seem more upset by a critical article than they are about the actual corruption in Quebec. Are they always this protective? I don't recall any parliamentary motions being passed to express "profound sadness" over criticism of Alberta's oil sands.
ONE MP objected to this and then left the chamber. Was he really the only one to realize that it's not the government's job to throw hissy fits over magazine articles?
Looking on the bright side, this does represent a slight improvement in government policy. If the MPs just want to get into their marabou-trimmed dressing gowns, open a box of truffles and have a bloody good cry over this Maclean's article, I guess that's better than what government bodies did to Steyn and Levant.
Now that our MPs have divined their real purpose in life, I eagerly await their opinion on other press(ing) matters:
"This House expresses total bum-outification over People's 'Top 100 Celebrity Breakups of 2010'...."
"This House reports rampant titillation in response to Cosmo's '25 Naughtiest First Date Stories'..."
"This House encourages Good Housekeeping to reprint 'Canada's Favorite Low-Fat Muffin Recipes'..."
Like certain Muslim leaders who are more outraged over cartoons than over the deaths of human beings, these politicians seem more upset by a critical article than they are about the actual corruption in Quebec. Are they always this protective? I don't recall any parliamentary motions being passed to express "profound sadness" over criticism of Alberta's oil sands.
ONE MP objected to this and then left the chamber. Was he really the only one to realize that it's not the government's job to throw hissy fits over magazine articles?
Looking on the bright side, this does represent a slight improvement in government policy. If the MPs just want to get into their marabou-trimmed dressing gowns, open a box of truffles and have a bloody good cry over this Maclean's article, I guess that's better than what government bodies did to Steyn and Levant.
Now that our MPs have divined their real purpose in life, I eagerly await their opinion on other press(ing) matters:
"This House expresses total bum-outification over People's 'Top 100 Celebrity Breakups of 2010'...."
"This House reports rampant titillation in response to Cosmo's '25 Naughtiest First Date Stories'..."
"This House encourages Good Housekeeping to reprint 'Canada's Favorite Low-Fat Muffin Recipes'..."
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
The Chesterton of our day
And I hope David Warren won't take offence at the notion. I'm slowly catching up on reading his essays and columns, from which I took a break over the summer.
We do need laws to be enforced against specific, definable evils. But insofar as we are adults, we have never required comprehensive daycare.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Only 90 Spiritual Preparation Days Until Christmas!
Make your list and check it twice. How can you be less naughty and a lot more nice? (I really mean, "How can you be more holy?" but obviously that doesn't rhyme with "twice".)
Make your list and check it wholly?
Make your list and check it wholly?
"It is easy enough to be against things, but in the end we should answer what we are for."
On the eve of another home schooling week, here is an energizer.
Mrs. P weighs in...
The entire piece is brilliant and bloody spot-on, but this made me chuckle (and of course, gave me hope at the same time):
Mrs. P weighs in...
The entire piece is brilliant and bloody spot-on, but this made me chuckle (and of course, gave me hope at the same time):
We could hardly do worse, than achieve this state in which a child home-schooled in the most derelict family may emerge into adulthood in better moral and intellectual condition than the child criminalized by his peers in the perpetual day care.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Maclean's has offended again.
Are they outraged because they've been accused of being corrupt or because they've been described as being "in Canada"?
Thursday, September 23, 2010
polite atheists vs. those nasty religious guys
Everywhere he spoke with courtesy and respect and without insolence or irony. But everywhere he sought out common ground for promoting human dignity and religious freedom.
More with deeds than with words he gave a memorable lesson in tolerance.
About whom is Michael Cook speaking in regards to the pope's recent visit to Britain? Richard Dawkins or Benedict XIV? Do read the whole thing on MercatorNet.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
You just can't win with this guy.
Follow the Canada Food Guide, and you'll get fat!
Touch a McDonald's coupon, and you'll get fat! (This is what prompted the column to which I linked previously.)
If only human beings could control the type and amount of food that went into their mouths, or have a say in what restaurants they go to and how often, instead of being slaves to the government pamphlets and corporate coupons which are thrust upon them. I hope someone finds a solution to this someday. The government should start working on that.
Touch a McDonald's coupon, and you'll get fat! (This is what prompted the column to which I linked previously.)
If only human beings could control the type and amount of food that went into their mouths, or have a say in what restaurants they go to and how often, instead of being slaves to the government pamphlets and corporate coupons which are thrust upon them. I hope someone finds a solution to this someday. The government should start working on that.
You're well rid of this "sport", my dear. Try football.
This team is really doing its best to live up to the popular image of cheerleaders as vain, cold-hearted airheads by voting this girl off the team rather than re-evaluating the wisdom of teaching six year old girls to call attention to their own rear ends. Just another reason why I hate to see little girls uselessly dolled up on the sidelines instead of playing out on the field (or court, diamond, et cetera).
h/t Mark Shea
h/t Mark Shea
Speaking of the well-turned phrase...
...check out this wonderfully titled post from Mark "OscarHammer" Steyn.
The Sound of Musicals
For the last few weeks I have been enjoying the soundtracks to "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers", "Meet Me in St. Louis" and "Carousel". I watched "Carousel" last week, for the first time in many years. The songs are nothing short of brilliant. Take these verses from "Soliloquy":
And I'm hanged if he'll marry his boss' daughter
A skinny-lipped lady with blood like water
Who'll give him a peck
And call it a kiss
And look in his eyes through a lorgnette...
Say, why am I takin' on like this?
My kid ain't even been born yet!
Lorgnette. Born yet. Oscar Hammerstein was a genius.
What I can't figure out are the parts in between the songs. It's not like there was no story to go on - Ferenc Molnar's Liliom sounds like an interesting play, but this big screen adaptation falls a little flat for me. And the dialogue about a slap from your man feeling like a kiss...Buh? Still, I'm glad "Carousel" was made, or Rodgers and Hammerstein might never have given this to the world:
And I'm hanged if he'll marry his boss' daughter
A skinny-lipped lady with blood like water
Who'll give him a peck
And call it a kiss
And look in his eyes through a lorgnette...
Say, why am I takin' on like this?
My kid ain't even been born yet!
Lorgnette. Born yet. Oscar Hammerstein was a genius.
What I can't figure out are the parts in between the songs. It's not like there was no story to go on - Ferenc Molnar's Liliom sounds like an interesting play, but this big screen adaptation falls a little flat for me. And the dialogue about a slap from your man feeling like a kiss...Buh? Still, I'm glad "Carousel" was made, or Rodgers and Hammerstein might never have given this to the world:
Why Beazly?
The younger Miss Pinkertons wanted to know. Because when she was a little girl, she got glasses, and her brothers nicknamed her so. The spelling, of course, is her own.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Some salty language from John Robson
goes well with this serving of common sense from David Warren...to which I will modestly add this torn packet of pepper from the bottom of the McDonald's bag.
(First link via Sobering Thoughts)
(First link via Sobering Thoughts)
Forfatter og journalist
Sounds like an insult, but it's actually the label applied to Mark Steyn in this video (via SteynOnline).
Maybe Mr. Steyn would consider it an insult to be called a journalist.
Anyway, only six more weeks until the DOHs' favorite forfatter comes to Ottawa!
Maybe Mr. Steyn would consider it an insult to be called a journalist.
Anyway, only six more weeks until the DOHs' favorite forfatter comes to Ottawa!
Back from the brink
Of Niagara Falls, that is. (That's the Maid of the Mist on the left.)
It was a great trip, other than a reservation mix-up which resulted in one night's stay at the worst motel in the world. But my only remark about staying there echoes what Annie Taylor reportedly said upon emerging from the barrel in which she'd taken her trip over the falls: "Nobody ought ever do that again."
I'm glad we took this chance to see the falls, because they won't be there forever. According to the evidence the falls are already seven miles back from where they were 12,500 years ago, and given current rates of erosion, it is estimated that in another 50,000 years they will have disappeared. I expect T-shirt sales will plummet correspondingly.
It was a great trip, other than a reservation mix-up which resulted in one night's stay at the worst motel in the world. But my only remark about staying there echoes what Annie Taylor reportedly said upon emerging from the barrel in which she'd taken her trip over the falls: "Nobody ought ever do that again."
I'm glad we took this chance to see the falls, because they won't be there forever. According to the evidence the falls are already seven miles back from where they were 12,500 years ago, and given current rates of erosion, it is estimated that in another 50,000 years they will have disappeared. I expect T-shirt sales will plummet correspondingly.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Sounds eerily familiar
I have just started reading The Abbess of Andalusia, a survey of Flannery O'Connor's spiritual life, by Lorraine V. Murray (review to come later). Ms Murray states that Flannery O'Connor had a special devotion to St. Therese of Lisieux and relates an anecdote about the saint:
"One example of a...sacrifice that Therese made...involved another nun in the convent whose personality clashed sharply with her own. Therese found everything about this nun disagreeable, but she swallowed her dislike and faithfully followed the "little way" by treating this woman with love. Remarkably, Therese's ability to hide her natural antipathy worked so well that the woman came to believe she was Therese's favorite."
Suddenly I'm getting a sinking feeling thinking of all the nice, holy people I know who seem to enjoy spending time with me.
"One example of a...sacrifice that Therese made...involved another nun in the convent whose personality clashed sharply with her own. Therese found everything about this nun disagreeable, but she swallowed her dislike and faithfully followed the "little way" by treating this woman with love. Remarkably, Therese's ability to hide her natural antipathy worked so well that the woman came to believe she was Therese's favorite."
Suddenly I'm getting a sinking feeling thinking of all the nice, holy people I know who seem to enjoy spending time with me.
Friday, September 10, 2010
If I loved Jane Austen adaptations less, I might be able to blog about them more.
I have just finished watching the latest adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma. I think I like it even better than the 1996 A&E production starring Kate Beckinsale, although I haven't seen that one in a few years so it's hard to judge.
As every woman who loves them knows, a period drama can be measured by the quality of its proposal scene (which you shouldn't watch if you haven't seen the film yet and don't want to spoil it):
Now, lovely as this is, I still got a little chuckle from Mr. Knightley's gentle heads up that he is going to be one of those less communicative husbands when it comes to relationship issues: "If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more." I can just see where this is going:
"If I didn't think you were so beautiful, I'd have to tell you so more."
"If your cooking wasn't so wonderful, I'd have to compliment it more."
"If you weren't such a great housekeeper, I'd have to drop my socks in the hamper more."
It's because he wants to watch period dramas with you so much that he can't bear to watch them with you more!
As every woman who loves them knows, a period drama can be measured by the quality of its proposal scene (which you shouldn't watch if you haven't seen the film yet and don't want to spoil it):
Now, lovely as this is, I still got a little chuckle from Mr. Knightley's gentle heads up that he is going to be one of those less communicative husbands when it comes to relationship issues: "If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more." I can just see where this is going:
"If I didn't think you were so beautiful, I'd have to tell you so more."
"If your cooking wasn't so wonderful, I'd have to compliment it more."
"If you weren't such a great housekeeper, I'd have to drop my socks in the hamper more."
It's because he wants to watch period dramas with you so much that he can't bear to watch them with you more!
I presume he'll be travelling to Alberta on a bicycle...
...whose chain is oil-free.
Cameron says he plans to fly north to Fort Chipewyan to meet with community leaders.
Must be bringing one of those fancy dragons along, too.
Cameron says he plans to fly north to Fort Chipewyan to meet with community leaders.
Must be bringing one of those fancy dragons along, too.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
The House in the Middle (cue ominous music)
Mark Shea with some pithy commentary (including a good Chesterton quote) on this strange little public service message:
Yeah, making sure your magazines are put in a rack is going to save you in the event that a nuclear bomb falls in your neighborhood. Why don't they tell you to do something useful, like get under a table?
I only wish they had fleshed this drama out a bit. Here's the pitch I'd write for The National Clean-Up Paint-Up Fix-Up Bureau:
In the moment after the atom bomb fell, Betty realized that her tidy white house with its pretty sidewalk border of pansies would be the only one left partially standing on her quiet, residential street long after the ramshackle eyesore belonging to the Hobarts, as well as the Jeffersons' unpainted, rotting hovel, had gone up in flames, their screaming inhabitants igniting as quickly as the bottles, trash and unsightly old newspapers which littered their yards and which had so vexed Betty every laundry day. As she fell back against her plastic-draped sofa, upsetting her spotlessly tidy coffee table, she recalled how the Hobarts' cat had always pooped in her azaleas and she felt a keen satisfaction at its annihilation - or was that just the sensation of being vaporized?
Yeah, making sure your magazines are put in a rack is going to save you in the event that a nuclear bomb falls in your neighborhood. Why don't they tell you to do something useful, like get under a table?
I only wish they had fleshed this drama out a bit. Here's the pitch I'd write for The National Clean-Up Paint-Up Fix-Up Bureau:
In the moment after the atom bomb fell, Betty realized that her tidy white house with its pretty sidewalk border of pansies would be the only one left partially standing on her quiet, residential street long after the ramshackle eyesore belonging to the Hobarts, as well as the Jeffersons' unpainted, rotting hovel, had gone up in flames, their screaming inhabitants igniting as quickly as the bottles, trash and unsightly old newspapers which littered their yards and which had so vexed Betty every laundry day. As she fell back against her plastic-draped sofa, upsetting her spotlessly tidy coffee table, she recalled how the Hobarts' cat had always pooped in her azaleas and she felt a keen satisfaction at its annihilation - or was that just the sensation of being vaporized?
Henry V and the Battle of Achin' Sore
As I mentioned in my previous post, work multiplies when the home school year begins. Meals, laundry and cleaning continue (sort of) and to those tasks we now add lesson planning, marking, and cultivating a 12-year-old's interest in Henry V. (I left out my hobbies of lion taming and performing home root canals because they are so relaxing and painless by comparison.) So you'll forgive me - you few, you marginally satisfied few - if new posts are scarce for the next little while.
The curriculum I have chosen lists King Harry's speech before the Battle of Agincourt, the St. Crispin's Day Speech, as the first selection for my seventh grader to memorize this year. I blanched a little when I read it today, wondering if we might be in slightly over our heads by trying to commit it to memory. As my soon-to-be-teenager lamented, "This doesn't even rhyme!"
I know there are gentler ways to introduce a child to Shakespeare - Lambs' Tales From Shakespeare is one that Mrs. P. recommended to me - but if one is attempting to memorize a passage from a play, obviously there's no point in translating that into more modern English. Anyway, who doesn't love to make Shakespeare's lexicon part of their everyday language? Phrases such as, "But soft - a telemarketer calls again, I trow. Bacon-fed knave! Fie on't!" or "An it were meet, I'd leave yon errant sock atop the TV for the nonce," can really bring high drama to the most ordinary day.
Perhaps a little analogy would help my seventh grader enter the Bard's world: "Imagine," I'd say to my son, "that your brother is France and you are England. France and England are out in the yard playing football, and England thinks he should gain a few extra yards. France doesn't like that idea and although he lets England move the line of scrimmage a few feet, eventually he thinks better of it and yanks on the back of England's shirt collar, strangling him for a few seconds. England falls down, hits his head, and is so angry he turns around and socks France on the jaw, whereupon France comes crying into the house. The speech you're going to memorize would fit in between hitting your head and socking your brother." Since this is exactly what happened during our lunch break today, this should really make Shakespeare come alive! "We few, we happy few, we banged-up brothers...."
This particular battle came after a couple of other school-related disagreements, but at least it was the only one that resulted in a sore jaw. After we finished our school work I decided we'd watch a little more of Kenneth Branagh's "Henry V", also recommended by our curriculum, but so far, not much favored by the student. "Ha, ha," France taunted, obviously not having learned his lesson, in any sense. "You have to watch that 'Henry the Eighth' movie."
England bargained movie time down to thirty minutes, and France went off to play with a friend who had come over. Even I was not paying full attention, having stayed up too late last night, and I started to nod off in my chair as Henry made the rounds of his camp. However, when I heard those first lines which England had been working on a few hours earlier, I was alert again, and indeed we were transfixed during the speech - even France, who had crept back into the room, stood motionless, watching the whole scene:
After a discouraging day of home school I would not have expected to get a boost from plowing into a sometimes dry film that no one seemed very inclined to watch. But that's the power of Shakespeare for you. And so...once more unto the speech, dear friends, once more!
The curriculum I have chosen lists King Harry's speech before the Battle of Agincourt, the St. Crispin's Day Speech, as the first selection for my seventh grader to memorize this year. I blanched a little when I read it today, wondering if we might be in slightly over our heads by trying to commit it to memory. As my soon-to-be-teenager lamented, "This doesn't even rhyme!"
I know there are gentler ways to introduce a child to Shakespeare - Lambs' Tales From Shakespeare is one that Mrs. P. recommended to me - but if one is attempting to memorize a passage from a play, obviously there's no point in translating that into more modern English. Anyway, who doesn't love to make Shakespeare's lexicon part of their everyday language? Phrases such as, "But soft - a telemarketer calls again, I trow. Bacon-fed knave! Fie on't!" or "An it were meet, I'd leave yon errant sock atop the TV for the nonce," can really bring high drama to the most ordinary day.
Perhaps a little analogy would help my seventh grader enter the Bard's world: "Imagine," I'd say to my son, "that your brother is France and you are England. France and England are out in the yard playing football, and England thinks he should gain a few extra yards. France doesn't like that idea and although he lets England move the line of scrimmage a few feet, eventually he thinks better of it and yanks on the back of England's shirt collar, strangling him for a few seconds. England falls down, hits his head, and is so angry he turns around and socks France on the jaw, whereupon France comes crying into the house. The speech you're going to memorize would fit in between hitting your head and socking your brother." Since this is exactly what happened during our lunch break today, this should really make Shakespeare come alive! "We few, we happy few, we banged-up brothers...."
This particular battle came after a couple of other school-related disagreements, but at least it was the only one that resulted in a sore jaw. After we finished our school work I decided we'd watch a little more of Kenneth Branagh's "Henry V", also recommended by our curriculum, but so far, not much favored by the student. "Ha, ha," France taunted, obviously not having learned his lesson, in any sense. "You have to watch that 'Henry the Eighth' movie."
England bargained movie time down to thirty minutes, and France went off to play with a friend who had come over. Even I was not paying full attention, having stayed up too late last night, and I started to nod off in my chair as Henry made the rounds of his camp. However, when I heard those first lines which England had been working on a few hours earlier, I was alert again, and indeed we were transfixed during the speech - even France, who had crept back into the room, stood motionless, watching the whole scene:
After a discouraging day of home school I would not have expected to get a boost from plowing into a sometimes dry film that no one seemed very inclined to watch. But that's the power of Shakespeare for you. And so...once more unto the speech, dear friends, once more!
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
As that guy said...
"...summer's lease hath all too short a date". And as that other guy said, "Work is not rabbit"... except for in the way it multiplies when the home school year starts.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Your Duh-ly Newsflash: Conservatives have no use for conservatives
Andrea at PWPL muses upon that persona non grata, the "social conservative", and a couple of journalists who seem to think they have provided some kind of revelation to pro-life voters. Sorry, guys, we've known for a long time that there is no mainstream political party that is friendly to conservatives. All we try to do is, as Andrea says, "go where you get the better hearing". In ridings where I've lived that has sometimes meant voting Conservative, but that doesn't mean I'm under any illusion that the Conservatives are our saviors and that they will always do what is right. I don't believe that about any party or politician.
I think the only people who are continually "being had" are the ones who trust government to rid our society of its ills, whatever they perceive those to be. It's not social conservatives who are putting their faith in the idea that overeating, smoking, or hateful thoughts can be legislated out of existence by various levels of government. Government can't even bring my mail to the right address, so I think the profound change of heart required to make abortion unthinkable is a bit beyond them.
That's not to say that it doesn't matter one way or another whether Canada funds abortions in foreign lands. It matters very much, and I'm sorry to see my tax dollars helping to spread the scourge of abortion to other nations. But I'm not surprised. We won't have good policies or just laws when the people who are making them care more about being in power than they care about anything else.
I think the only people who are continually "being had" are the ones who trust government to rid our society of its ills, whatever they perceive those to be. It's not social conservatives who are putting their faith in the idea that overeating, smoking, or hateful thoughts can be legislated out of existence by various levels of government. Government can't even bring my mail to the right address, so I think the profound change of heart required to make abortion unthinkable is a bit beyond them.
That's not to say that it doesn't matter one way or another whether Canada funds abortions in foreign lands. It matters very much, and I'm sorry to see my tax dollars helping to spread the scourge of abortion to other nations. But I'm not surprised. We won't have good policies or just laws when the people who are making them care more about being in power than they care about anything else.
0 and 3
My son's football team has gone to 0 and 3. This after a spring baseball season for my older son that went 2-11 and a summer season that went 1-11-1. I wouldn't say that members of our family are doomed to go down as Bad News Bears types...maybe Unfortunate Tidings Ursi?
Sunday, September 5, 2010
I'm glad I didn't spend the $20.38
(no, don't click to look inside. The photo was copped from Amazon.ca)
Meanwhile, on a slightly related note, here's a worthwhile read. Not written by a Baby Boomer. John Paul II's Letter to Artists. Yes, he wrote one.
And more traffic
Next month's headline: "Child run over as motorist distracted by hologram in middle of street."
"I swear, officer, it was Princess Leia - and I was her only hope!"
"...[P]arents are often the worst offenders, speeding, pulling u-turns and talking on cellphones...."
I don't see the point of this. Do adults really need to be tricked into obeying traffic laws? Why would jackasses pay any more attention to an optical illusion than they would to the live children they already know are really there? Maybe a 3-D image showing them what jerks they are would be more helpful.
"I swear, officer, it was Princess Leia - and I was her only hope!"
"...[P]arents are often the worst offenders, speeding, pulling u-turns and talking on cellphones...."
I don't see the point of this. Do adults really need to be tricked into obeying traffic laws? Why would jackasses pay any more attention to an optical illusion than they would to the live children they already know are really there? Maybe a 3-D image showing them what jerks they are would be more helpful.
Traffic
For those of you just joining us with your morning coffee, excitement levels at DOH have skyrocketed with the appearance of a "Reader of the Day" link from SteynOnline. It's cool when you get more hits in a few hours than you usually get in a week, especially when some of those visitors are actually staying to read other posts! Despite the subtle aroma of "online stalker" which hangs about the name, I'm starting to wish we had called our blog "TwoGalsWhoLoveMarkSteynOnline" after all.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
MARK STEYN IS COMING TO OTTAWA!
I know this will be difficult, but please remain calm...especially if you don't have the $250 it will cost to hear him. Say, kids - you didn't really need groceries for those last couple of weeks of October, did you? You can make up those calories with your Halloween candy.
Can't you just see us there, Mrs. P.? It would eclipse even the time we got free tinfoil after that Alcan opera night!
And another thing...Ezra Levant will be there, too, so that means you're paying $125 for Mark and $125 for Ezra. Think of all the great stuff they've written! Think of how you're supporting free speech in Canada! Think of how transfixed you were hearing Mark Steyn talk about pie for an hour on his 2009 Christmas podcast, and know that it will be even more edifying to hear him talk about something meatier!
Can't you just see us there, Mrs. P.? It would eclipse even the time we got free tinfoil after that Alcan opera night!
And another thing...Ezra Levant will be there, too, so that means you're paying $125 for Mark and $125 for Ezra. Think of all the great stuff they've written! Think of how you're supporting free speech in Canada! Think of how transfixed you were hearing Mark Steyn talk about pie for an hour on his 2009 Christmas podcast, and know that it will be even more edifying to hear him talk about something meatier!
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Tell it like it is.
Yesterday, I made a delicious bison/vegetable stew for supper (dinner). As I was serving the youngest Miss Pinkerton, I said, "You don't like beets, do you?"
"I like them," she assured me. So I placed one on her plate.
"I just don't eat them," she added.
"I like them," she assured me. So I placed one on her plate.
"I just don't eat them," she added.
Really, the jelly ones are the best.
Invest seven minutes of your time only if you are a diehard SCTV fan and/or have fond memories of "The Martin Short Comedy Special" from 1986. (Bonus impersonation of Doug Henning.)
Hope you enjoyed those, Cob. Looks like YouTube has other segments from the show.
Okay, CBC, I grudgingly admit that this was worth one billion dollars. One billion 1986 dollars.
Hope you enjoyed those, Cob. Looks like YouTube has other segments from the show.
Okay, CBC, I grudgingly admit that this was worth one billion dollars. One billion 1986 dollars.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Q: What are you doing at home?
A: What many women only wish they were doing.
Having never been to a cocktail party in my life, I can't say I've witnessed the scenario which Kathryn Jean Lopez describes in the opening paragraphs of this article. However, I have been asked why I'm home with my kids when I seem to be so intelligent! I have heard women apologize for publicly expressing the wish to stay at home and raise their children. I have been asked, by a slightly confused bank employee from whom I was buying an RRSP, whether I was a homemaker in my own home, or in someone else's - as though he could not fathom the former. (I couldn't quite fathom the latter - I always thought they were called "housekeepers", but I wasn't about to further crease his brow by asking for an explanation.) The message I'm hearing loud and clear is that you can be anything you want, girls, except a Dumb Old Housewife/Mother - that alone is not a valid choice. (Hence our satirically named blog. You did realize it was satirical, right?)
I feel really lucky to be home with my children. So many people fret about not having enough time to spend with family, but it's my job to spend time with mine. I wish that every woman who wanted to do the same could have the luxury of making that choice. Of course, to say that one has that "luxury" isn't to say that every family living on one income can only do so because that income is of a size that allows them to live in luxury. For most of us it is a choice that requires certain sacrifices. Every day we are harangued about what we should give up in order to "save the earth": incandescent bulbs, bottled water, air conditioning, that third -or second, or first! - child. But to suggest that we might give up that yearly vacation, that second car, that flat-screen TV, so that one parent can stay home to raise their children - well, it's not something you hear much about from our secular society. Human beings aren't worth that kind of sacrifice.
h/t PWPL
Having never been to a cocktail party in my life, I can't say I've witnessed the scenario which Kathryn Jean Lopez describes in the opening paragraphs of this article. However, I have been asked why I'm home with my kids when I seem to be so intelligent! I have heard women apologize for publicly expressing the wish to stay at home and raise their children. I have been asked, by a slightly confused bank employee from whom I was buying an RRSP, whether I was a homemaker in my own home, or in someone else's - as though he could not fathom the former. (I couldn't quite fathom the latter - I always thought they were called "housekeepers", but I wasn't about to further crease his brow by asking for an explanation.) The message I'm hearing loud and clear is that you can be anything you want, girls, except a Dumb Old Housewife/Mother - that alone is not a valid choice. (Hence our satirically named blog. You did realize it was satirical, right?)
I feel really lucky to be home with my children. So many people fret about not having enough time to spend with family, but it's my job to spend time with mine. I wish that every woman who wanted to do the same could have the luxury of making that choice. Of course, to say that one has that "luxury" isn't to say that every family living on one income can only do so because that income is of a size that allows them to live in luxury. For most of us it is a choice that requires certain sacrifices. Every day we are harangued about what we should give up in order to "save the earth": incandescent bulbs, bottled water, air conditioning, that third -or second, or first! - child. But to suggest that we might give up that yearly vacation, that second car, that flat-screen TV, so that one parent can stay home to raise their children - well, it's not something you hear much about from our secular society. Human beings aren't worth that kind of sacrifice.
h/t PWPL
Not everything about summer ending is bad.
Mark's back.
It was recently reported that in one children’s soccer league in Ottawa any team that racked up a five-goal lead would be deemed to have lost, and the losing team declared the winners, to spare their feelings.
I always feel special when Ottawa makes headlines like this. Fortunately this idiotic policy has now been reversed, reportedly due to many complaints.
It was recently reported that in one children’s soccer league in Ottawa any team that racked up a five-goal lead would be deemed to have lost, and the losing team declared the winners, to spare their feelings.
I always feel special when Ottawa makes headlines like this. Fortunately this idiotic policy has now been reversed, reportedly due to many complaints.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Pink, swallow your coffee and put the cup down before you watch this.
Update: It only took me about seven hours to clue in to "Stanford Nutting" being a play on "Stand for nothing". D'OH!
h/t Mark Shea
Mark Shea quoted me! Whooo-hoooo!
I am jolly proud to say that the highlighted portion was the comment I left at his blog after the first of his "Jolly Pride" articles:
The Church needs to get with the times: the New York Times, to be precise. We're out and we're stout! Deal with it! Or, as one of our LGBT sisters says: Keep your rosaries off our XXXL hosiery! Down with Weighcism!
Do partake of this latest serving.
A link from Steyn and a quote by Shea, all in the same year! DOH is on a roll!!
The Church needs to get with the times: the New York Times, to be precise. We're out and we're stout! Deal with it! Or, as one of our LGBT sisters says: Keep your rosaries off our XXXL hosiery! Down with Weighcism!
Do partake of this latest serving.
A link from Steyn and a quote by Shea, all in the same year! DOH is on a roll!!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Speaking of CBC themes, this one actually gave me nightmares.
That anyone at the CBC thought this counted as "music" speaks volumes about our national broadcaster. I wonder if it has lyrics?
Sing it with me!
"Now your mind belongs to us,
-leftward lurch, leftward lurch-
Don't think, don't speak, don't make a fuss,
-leftward lurch, leftward lurch-"
Sing it with me!
"Now your mind belongs to us,
-leftward lurch, leftward lurch-
Don't think, don't speak, don't make a fuss,
-leftward lurch, leftward lurch-"
What to do with "OUR CBC"
Kate at SDA alerts her readers to a neon "Kick Me" sign which Friends of Canadian Broadcasting have unwittingly Scotch-taped to the CBC's back. Complaints from the SDA comments section mention the CBC's left-wing bias, the use of tax money to fund the corporation, and its general irrelevance in a society where information is readily available from many other (non-state-funded) sources. All very good points.
When I was growing up in Saskatchewan, we had two channels: CBC from Medicine Hat, and CBC from Swift Current. For part of the year they were broadcasting from different time zones, so whatever you missed on channel 2 you could watch an hour later on channel 4. Looking at it now from my Ontario vantage point, I think this provides an excellent example of what the CBC is all about: geographically or ideologically, you get a view from the left at 6 p.m. and a view from the farther left at 7 p.m., and it all amounts to the same thing. CBC dominated the radio at our house, too - A.M. 540 was the station that came in the most clearly, so that was where my Dad's set was tuned all the time. I don't think CBC radio was as intolerable as CBC TV - I don't know how he could have stood it otherwise. (The "As It Happens" theme song never fails to make me think of suppertime at home, so that's one of a few non-soul-destroying effects the CBC has had on my life, along with the joy derived from Hockey Night in Canada and Wayne and Shuster.) Gee, maybe I'll go to the CBC website and link to the beloved and familiar HNIC theme song...oh, wait....
If my childhood memories serve me correctly, the only other shows that the CBC ever aired were Hymn Sing and Front Page Challenge, and each episode lasted approximately one thousand hours, especially if you had been hoping Disney was on. The upside to two CBC channels was that we had the chance to catch The Wonderful World of Disney twice every Sunday. It was just like today's TV on demand...except for that a state broadcaster chose what you were going to watch and you always had to be ready to start watching it exactly one hour after it was first broadcast. Still, two hours of Sport Goofy was pretty entertaining. Of course, that was back in the bad old days when the CBC wasn't as fully engaged in telling us what it meant to be authentically Canadian, as they have done recently by broadcasting Dr. Who and as they continue to do by scheduling three hour blocks of Coronation Street. Funny how almost everything I ever wanted to watch on the CBC wasn't made by the CBC.
In grade school I entered several creative writing contests held by CBC radio, and I took away my share of loot, including a tiny portable Sony radio. Obviously I won the prize because I was able to keep my conservative views out of my poem about the sun coming up. I now consider these items a 0.00000000000000000000001% return on the taxes I pay to keep the CBC churning out its dreck. I know that doesn't make the rest of you feel any better, but you can borrow my radio (and my CBC toque) when you come to visit. I promise that by then I will have embroidered "PRIVATIZE THE" in big red letters in front of the CBC logo.
My little radio still works 24 years later, but I don't use its radio function much anymore. I mostly plug my iPod into it and use it for a speaker... so that I never have to listen to or watch what I'm paying for the CBC to produce. These days it's easy for most people to plug into something more useful than a biased, state-funded dinosaur for their information, and as for isolated places where it isn't easy - well, is spending a billion dollars a year to funnel crap to them really worth it? I'd be surprised if many Canadians feel like the CBC is telling their story, as it has claimed. Corner Gas comes a heck of a lot closer to telling my story, at least all the funny parts of it where I imagine I'm friends with Brent Butt. I think we're done with "our" CBC. Can we have OUR money back now?
When I was growing up in Saskatchewan, we had two channels: CBC from Medicine Hat, and CBC from Swift Current. For part of the year they were broadcasting from different time zones, so whatever you missed on channel 2 you could watch an hour later on channel 4. Looking at it now from my Ontario vantage point, I think this provides an excellent example of what the CBC is all about: geographically or ideologically, you get a view from the left at 6 p.m. and a view from the farther left at 7 p.m., and it all amounts to the same thing. CBC dominated the radio at our house, too - A.M. 540 was the station that came in the most clearly, so that was where my Dad's set was tuned all the time. I don't think CBC radio was as intolerable as CBC TV - I don't know how he could have stood it otherwise. (The "As It Happens" theme song never fails to make me think of suppertime at home, so that's one of a few non-soul-destroying effects the CBC has had on my life, along with the joy derived from Hockey Night in Canada and Wayne and Shuster.) Gee, maybe I'll go to the CBC website and link to the beloved and familiar HNIC theme song...oh, wait....
If my childhood memories serve me correctly, the only other shows that the CBC ever aired were Hymn Sing and Front Page Challenge, and each episode lasted approximately one thousand hours, especially if you had been hoping Disney was on. The upside to two CBC channels was that we had the chance to catch The Wonderful World of Disney twice every Sunday. It was just like today's TV on demand...except for that a state broadcaster chose what you were going to watch and you always had to be ready to start watching it exactly one hour after it was first broadcast. Still, two hours of Sport Goofy was pretty entertaining. Of course, that was back in the bad old days when the CBC wasn't as fully engaged in telling us what it meant to be authentically Canadian, as they have done recently by broadcasting Dr. Who and as they continue to do by scheduling three hour blocks of Coronation Street. Funny how almost everything I ever wanted to watch on the CBC wasn't made by the CBC.
In grade school I entered several creative writing contests held by CBC radio, and I took away my share of loot, including a tiny portable Sony radio. Obviously I won the prize because I was able to keep my conservative views out of my poem about the sun coming up. I now consider these items a 0.00000000000000000000001% return on the taxes I pay to keep the CBC churning out its dreck. I know that doesn't make the rest of you feel any better, but you can borrow my radio (and my CBC toque) when you come to visit. I promise that by then I will have embroidered "PRIVATIZE THE" in big red letters in front of the CBC logo.
My little radio still works 24 years later, but I don't use its radio function much anymore. I mostly plug my iPod into it and use it for a speaker... so that I never have to listen to or watch what I'm paying for the CBC to produce. These days it's easy for most people to plug into something more useful than a biased, state-funded dinosaur for their information, and as for isolated places where it isn't easy - well, is spending a billion dollars a year to funnel crap to them really worth it? I'd be surprised if many Canadians feel like the CBC is telling their story, as it has claimed. Corner Gas comes a heck of a lot closer to telling my story, at least all the funny parts of it where I imagine I'm friends with Brent Butt. I think we're done with "our" CBC. Can we have OUR money back now?
Saturday, August 28, 2010
EXTRA - Super Lib Saves Our Country From Shane Doan!
What worries me is, who will police hockey players' speech when the Liberals finally return to power and are too busy wrecking Canada to tend to these kinds of important matters?
I'm shocked - shocked, I tell you - to learn that rude and sometimes even hurtful speech is bandied about on this nation's ice hockey surfaces. Hockey sounds almost as non-warm and fuzzy as politics. They should get a third guy - er, person - in the broadcasting booth to provide "off-color commentary" so that this kind of deplorable thing can be denounced even as it is happening!
I'm shocked - shocked, I tell you - to learn that rude and sometimes even hurtful speech is bandied about on this nation's ice hockey surfaces. Hockey sounds almost as non-warm and fuzzy as politics. They should get a third guy - er, person - in the broadcasting booth to provide "off-color commentary" so that this kind of deplorable thing can be denounced even as it is happening!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Written With a Keyboard Upon a Luminous Screen, 2010
O ephem'ral Summer,
green and fleet,
do not look back-
Unless thou canst endure
Fall's misplaced cleat,
bone-crushing sack.
green and fleet,
do not look back-
Unless thou canst endure
Fall's misplaced cleat,
bone-crushing sack.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Ruffled Fur
The more hysterical critics of this stupid and cruel prank are threatening the perpetrator with death and saying she should be "dismembered". She might well wonder what the big deal is, since humans the world over regularly dispose of their "unwanted" offspring by dumping them in the trash, and many people don't seem to mind at all.
This morning Google news boasts over 1200 articles related to the story. I can't decide if people are really this deranged or if, as Kate McMillan would say, "The world still has too many reporters."
This morning Google news boasts over 1200 articles related to the story. I can't decide if people are really this deranged or if, as Kate McMillan would say, "The world still has too many reporters."
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
The blog you plug may be your own.
Bad Catholic. Sounds like it's right up my alley. I thought I'd give them some publicity 'cause, you know, we have so many readers here.
Anyway, a friend of Flannery is a friend of mine.
(h/t Mark Shea)
Anyway, a friend of Flannery is a friend of mine.
(h/t Mark Shea)
Sweet!
Best birthday greeting of 2010 (next to the flowers--thanks, Mo; the case of Mike's--thanks Jo; Amazon gift certificate--thanks, Mr. P and assorted kinder; and fully awesome chocolate cheesecake, that is.)
Cyber cards from Puckety:
Mrs. Jones made this for me:
Cyber cards from Puckety:
Mrs. Jones made this for me:
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Calling all cars
Andrea at PWPL is embarking on an interesting project. This is the comment I left there:
Here’s my Feminine Myth Pique, which not only tells the world everything it thinks it needs to know about pro-lifers who happen to be Catholic, but is also a great showcase for culture-of-death logic at its finest:
Catholics are anti-choice because the Church “sees women as baby machines”. (Direct quote from my grade 11 English teacher.) (That’s why it also holds that renting someone else’s womb, for instance, is contrary to human dignity and the natural law.) Also, Catholics are touchy about issues surrounding abortion because they hate and fear sex so much… which is obvious from the large families they are routinely ridiculed for having.
Here’s my Feminine Myth Pique, which not only tells the world everything it thinks it needs to know about pro-lifers who happen to be Catholic, but is also a great showcase for culture-of-death logic at its finest:
Catholics are anti-choice because the Church “sees women as baby machines”. (Direct quote from my grade 11 English teacher.) (That’s why it also holds that renting someone else’s womb, for instance, is contrary to human dignity and the natural law.) Also, Catholics are touchy about issues surrounding abortion because they hate and fear sex so much… which is obvious from the large families they are routinely ridiculed for having.
The World According to Dr. Seuss
I'm shocked - shocked, I tell you!
I took a trip to my local Chapters today and saw a wall display which was entitled, "The World Needs More Canada". There were some books about Trudeau, and some about canoeing, and some about Trudeau canoeing, but not a single volume by Mark Steyn.
I know! I can't believe it either.
UPDATE: Welcome Steyn readers! And thanks for the link, Mr. Steyn.
I know! I can't believe it either.
UPDATE: Welcome Steyn readers! And thanks for the link, Mr. Steyn.
That's the ticket.
Someone around here is very lucky.
I had to chuckle at this:
At a five-per-cent rate of return on interest and investments, when you factor in tax, the winner could make $625,000 a year off $25 million in winnings, she said. That’s a lot of money, but not enough to live a truly lavish lifestyle forever.
I had to chuckle at this:
At a five-per-cent rate of return on interest and investments, when you factor in tax, the winner could make $625,000 a year off $25 million in winnings, she said. That’s a lot of money, but not enough to live a truly lavish lifestyle forever.
Monday, August 16, 2010
The Albums We Never Listen To
For the estimated 33-67% of DOH's readers who are Blue Rodeo fans, I have made a brief survey of their latest album, The Things We Left Behind. Aside from "Sheba" and "One Light Left in Heaven", first results are not encouraging.
Come on, guys! I've been sticking with you for a good 20 years. Are you really offering me another album composed mostly of Greg Keelor singing in successively tighter pairs of underpants while a cello plays soulfully in the background? Thank goodness for Jim Cuddy.
I hope this album can grow on me. Meanwhile, give this a try.
Come on, guys! I've been sticking with you for a good 20 years. Are you really offering me another album composed mostly of Greg Keelor singing in successively tighter pairs of underpants while a cello plays soulfully in the background? Thank goodness for Jim Cuddy.
I hope this album can grow on me. Meanwhile, give this a try.
Can't they both lose?
Government educational bureaucracy vs. teachers' union.
I love this quote from a related article:
Union locals around the province have also proposed that the federation endorse a call for more mandatory physical activity each day, voice-care workshops for teachers in music, gym and language, and that the curriculum include information about the labour movement.
Less time on math and literacy, more time singing "There is Power in a Union".
There seems to be an abundance of time for taking field trips to the ice slides during Winterlude and demonstrating how to put condoms on bananas, but apparently when they have to prepare for some math and literacy tests, the cry goes up that "It's taking away from precious teaching time!!"
What are they doing (or not doing) every day in school that necessitates this arduous, extra-special time of preparation for basic skill testing?
I love this quote from a related article:
Union locals around the province have also proposed that the federation endorse a call for more mandatory physical activity each day, voice-care workshops for teachers in music, gym and language, and that the curriculum include information about the labour movement.
Less time on math and literacy, more time singing "There is Power in a Union".
There seems to be an abundance of time for taking field trips to the ice slides during Winterlude and demonstrating how to put condoms on bananas, but apparently when they have to prepare for some math and literacy tests, the cry goes up that "It's taking away from precious teaching time!!"
What are they doing (or not doing) every day in school that necessitates this arduous, extra-special time of preparation for basic skill testing?
Throw some cold water on this idea.
This could really alter the way we think about the universal solvent...not to mention how it would change the meaning of many common idioms:
"He's dead in the water!"
"Jack's life is water under the bridge."
"Come hell or high water...depending on whether or not you believe in the afterlife."
"Who was that blond drink of water?"
"She is now as dull as dishwater."
"Don't throw out Bob with the bathwater."
"Blood is precisely the same thickness as water."
You get the pitcher.
h/t SDA
"He's dead in the water!"
"Jack's life is water under the bridge."
"Come hell or high water...depending on whether or not you believe in the afterlife."
"Who was that blond drink of water?"
"She is now as dull as dishwater."
"Don't throw out Bob with the bathwater."
"Blood is precisely the same thickness as water."
You get the pitcher.
h/t SDA
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Dan and Anna, this one's for you, with all our love and prayers.
Here's hoping your life-long duet will be as sweet as this one!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Your irony supplement of the day.
I dropped my car at the dealership today because of a tire problem. During the complementary shuttle ride back to my home, we had to return to the dealership...because of a tire problem.
Water is also leaking into my car's hatch and out of my washing machine. And it's not even Friday the 13th yet.
Time to go and wait for the repairman.
Water is also leaking into my car's hatch and out of my washing machine. And it's not even Friday the 13th yet.
Time to go and wait for the repairman.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Is that all there is?
Andrea Mrozek at PWPL:
Certainly, it was never a critical goal of feminism to teach girls to be bubble-brained sex objects. I get that. But it seems logical that in forcing all of us to consider sexuality as the main driver of who we are (and in part, that’s what “feminism” does) then a natural response is to let sexuality drive who you are. (Modern feminism included teaching girls they have sex drives, sex lives and sexual desires that are exactly the same as a man’s.) So really, is it so surprising our world is very sexual today?
Similar thoughts cross my mind whenever I have to run the gauntlet of sex-obsessed "women's" magazines at my local Loblaws checkout. You would think women were good for (and solely interested in the 25 naughtiest ways to do) one thing only.
This is from the Maclean's article upon which Andrea comments, and to which she links in the above post:
Vonk recalls wearing satin hot pants when she was 15. “But it was a different time,” she says. “Back then there was at least equal premium put on intellect and what was in your head. It was the opposite of ‘Go out and please men.’ ”
I haven't done all the research, but I think wearing satin hot pants may not fall into the "opposite of pleasing men" category. And I doubt that boys who were impressed by her satin hot pants were thinking, "She sure looks like an intellectual." Is it okay to become a sex object as long as your user knows you're smart, too? What level of self-degradation is acceptable for a young woman?
If you're going to extend to an entire generation the license to do whatever they want, don't wonder why they act with complete and selfish abandon.
Certainly, it was never a critical goal of feminism to teach girls to be bubble-brained sex objects. I get that. But it seems logical that in forcing all of us to consider sexuality as the main driver of who we are (and in part, that’s what “feminism” does) then a natural response is to let sexuality drive who you are. (Modern feminism included teaching girls they have sex drives, sex lives and sexual desires that are exactly the same as a man’s.) So really, is it so surprising our world is very sexual today?
Similar thoughts cross my mind whenever I have to run the gauntlet of sex-obsessed "women's" magazines at my local Loblaws checkout. You would think women were good for (and solely interested in the 25 naughtiest ways to do) one thing only.
This is from the Maclean's article upon which Andrea comments, and to which she links in the above post:
Vonk recalls wearing satin hot pants when she was 15. “But it was a different time,” she says. “Back then there was at least equal premium put on intellect and what was in your head. It was the opposite of ‘Go out and please men.’ ”
I haven't done all the research, but I think wearing satin hot pants may not fall into the "opposite of pleasing men" category. And I doubt that boys who were impressed by her satin hot pants were thinking, "She sure looks like an intellectual." Is it okay to become a sex object as long as your user knows you're smart, too? What level of self-degradation is acceptable for a young woman?
If you're going to extend to an entire generation the license to do whatever they want, don't wonder why they act with complete and selfish abandon.
Because you can't spell 'arses' wihtout the letters S-E-A-R-S
I haven't seen these posters Sears is supposed to be selling, but considering that they have been hawking items stamped with the Playboy logo for several years (nothing says 'Merry Christmas' like a blanket that reminds you of pornography, right?) I don't think actual porn would be much of a stretch for them. I was also unimpressed by their use of a Rosary to adorn some model's cleavage in their fall catalog a couple of years back. Given the quality of much of their non-brand name merchandise and the level of service we encountered before we gave up shopping there, I'd say this is just one more piece of crap on the pile.
Chivalry
Brigitte Pellerin at ProWomanProLife asks and answers an important question.
I don't think chivalry is dead. Even in that state, chivalry would not be caught wearing its hat like this:
When all this transpired, chivalry was most likely waiting in line at the concession to get a beer...for a lady friend, of course.
I don't think chivalry is dead. Even in that state, chivalry would not be caught wearing its hat like this:
When all this transpired, chivalry was most likely waiting in line at the concession to get a beer...for a lady friend, of course.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Why yes, I DO want my man to smell like he could bake me a gourmet cake in the dream kitchen he built for me with his own hands!
I would also like him to do all those things, but (to paraphrase Monty Burns) alas, it is beyond the powers of a mere body wash.
I heard about the Old Spice Man Twitter phenomenon from my brother-in-law about a month ago so I am commenting on it in timely fashion. Here's my in-depth assessment of this completely original ad campaign: it's FUNNY! But the concept will only grow stale as other lame-oes try to pile on the bandwagon. So enjoy this advertising innovation before the wheels come right off.
Yes, I am on the cutting edge of social media! What can I say? I am just one ridiculously lazy person. I can't blog about everything.
If they don't think God exists, why do they seem to hate Him so much?
Read this:
I have been a Catholic for a long time and I have never heard the words "atheism" or "atheist" ever mentioned in church. An atheist prior to converting to Catholicism, I can assure you that that community is obsessed with the Church and incapable of discussing anything but the most recent reason for hating us. They never talk about the wonders and glories of atheism. They never raise virtuous atheists as models for themselves and their children. They never organize themselves to help the unfortunate. Frankly, after a couple of years, I simply couldn't take it anymore. I left atheism behind because it was snarky, sniping and moribund, revelling in its bitterness and denial. It is amazing that anyone survives the wholesale rejection of logic and reality, never mind hope, as they cherrypick data to uphold their opinions.
Then look back at this. (It's the atheism your atheism could smell like.)
I have been a Catholic for a long time and I have never heard the words "atheism" or "atheist" ever mentioned in church. An atheist prior to converting to Catholicism, I can assure you that that community is obsessed with the Church and incapable of discussing anything but the most recent reason for hating us. They never talk about the wonders and glories of atheism. They never raise virtuous atheists as models for themselves and their children. They never organize themselves to help the unfortunate. Frankly, after a couple of years, I simply couldn't take it anymore. I left atheism behind because it was snarky, sniping and moribund, revelling in its bitterness and denial. It is amazing that anyone survives the wholesale rejection of logic and reality, never mind hope, as they cherrypick data to uphold their opinions.
Then look back at this. (It's the atheism your atheism could smell like.)
Monday, August 9, 2010
In a word, "No. GOshshshsh!!"
This gave me a good laugh. I think it's both interesting and quite telling that an atheist is included in a discussion of different religious viewpoints.
I'm glad he doesn't feel like he has to recruit. His Napoleon-Dynamite-with-a mean-streak method of irrelevant pokes at Christianity isn't all that convincing.
I'm glad he doesn't feel like he has to recruit. His Napoleon-Dynamite-with-a mean-streak method of irrelevant pokes at Christianity isn't all that convincing.
The legacy continues.
Breaking News for the Ontario Human Rights Commission...
... involving a public personality named "Mark" and hurtful statements concerning a certain religious group and mosquitoes!!
(Scroll down to #8.)
Oh, wait...it's just someone slagging Christians. Never mind, OHRC. You've got better things to do.
P.S. Googling for news about the OHRC opens up this rich vein of comedy:
Chief Commissioner Barbara Hall today released the Ontario Human Rights Commission's 2009-2010 Annual Report. In issuing this year's report, Ms. Hall stated, "Our work can be summed up in three words: educate, empower and act..."
I think three better words would be, "Fire. Them. All."
(Scroll down to #8.)
Oh, wait...it's just someone slagging Christians. Never mind, OHRC. You've got better things to do.
P.S. Googling for news about the OHRC opens up this rich vein of comedy:
Chief Commissioner Barbara Hall today released the Ontario Human Rights Commission's 2009-2010 Annual Report. In issuing this year's report, Ms. Hall stated, "Our work can be summed up in three words: educate, empower and act..."
I think three better words would be, "Fire. Them. All."
A Story About Courage
Life Site News features a story about a Lutheran pastor who
"has been outspoken in his defense of traditional marriage and who has criticized the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America for allowing individuals in active homosexual relationships to serve as clergy."
He also deals with his own feelings of same-sex attraction by devoting himself to prayer and striving to live a life of chastity. That these entirely consistent actions were viewed as hypocritical and in need of exposure highlights the profound misunderstanding many people have regarding orthodox Christian teaching about homosexuality - and about sexuality in general. Christianity says to people who experience same-sex attraction just what it says to the single man attracted to a married woman, to the man who is tempted to drink too much, to the woman who is tempted to spend too much, and to all of us sinners: choose the freedom of life in Christ instead of being enslaved by your passions.
"has been outspoken in his defense of traditional marriage and who has criticized the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America for allowing individuals in active homosexual relationships to serve as clergy."
He also deals with his own feelings of same-sex attraction by devoting himself to prayer and striving to live a life of chastity. That these entirely consistent actions were viewed as hypocritical and in need of exposure highlights the profound misunderstanding many people have regarding orthodox Christian teaching about homosexuality - and about sexuality in general. Christianity says to people who experience same-sex attraction just what it says to the single man attracted to a married woman, to the man who is tempted to drink too much, to the woman who is tempted to spend too much, and to all of us sinners: choose the freedom of life in Christ instead of being enslaved by your passions.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
That pretty well sums it up.
Mr. Greydanus posts an amusing and informative illustration contrasting the creative processes at Pixar and Dreamworks.
Competite Your Level!!
This toy my son received at a local restaurant is even more fun when you flip it over and read the instructions:
(Click on image for a larger view.)
For more such fun, see Engrish.com.
(Click on image for a larger view.)
For more such fun, see Engrish.com.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Dear Mr. Butt, I am writing this to you....
Now that our Saskatchewan vacation is over, I am treating my homesickness with regular doses of Corner Gas. I love the shots that feature one of my favorite CG characters: the vast and beautiful prairie.
Nothing to get in the way and spoil your view, indeed. Thank you to loyal reader Doris Rose Jones for this lovely photo.
And thank you, Brent Butt. I love you like the ninth brother I never had. (Yes, Jeffy, you are still #8. You did give us the Corner Gas DVDs for Christmas, after all.)
And thank you, Brent Butt. I love you like the ninth brother I never had. (Yes, Jeffy, you are still #8. You did give us the Corner Gas DVDs for Christmas, after all.)
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