Roman Catholic Blog

Video: Hillary Clinton Tries To Work The Coffee Machine

Source: Video: Smartest woman in the world tries to work the coffee machine

Quote:

The beauty of this footage? It was apparently taken during Her Majesty’s common-man joyride/photo op this morning, replete with choreographed pit stop for gas and java. I guarantee you, right now somewhere in Indiana, some poor lackey is being berated for failing to brief her on how to work the self-serve.

Thank goodness the working class has an alternative to this out-of-touch poseur, one who appreciates them for the xenophobic, Bible-thumping gun fetishists they are.

My thoughts:

Imagine if this were a clip of George W. Bush or Dan Quayle (back in the day). This footage would have been looped everywhere. I'm not sure how much airplay it's gotten now, but I'm confident the only reason we're seeing footage like this and seeing the media report on Hillary's Bosnia whoppers is that most of the mainstream media is in the tank for Obama.

Many politicians who claim to be "champions" of the common folk are actually multi-millionaires who don't have to do the things most people have to do every day, because they have staff to do those things for them. See: Jackpot: Billary scores $109 mil since leaving office; Update: $20.4 million in 2007

Often, when they try to look like "one of the people", it looks staged: Video: Defender of the common man knocks back a shot; Update: More Hillary: Have I mentioned that I know how to shoot?

To be fair, Trent Lott didn't come off much better here: Everything that’s wrong with the Beltway GOP elite in two words

See also:

Snobs here, snobs there, snobs everywhere

Getting fat off the American taxpayer

CBS reporter on Hillary’s Bosnia trip: Yes, I can confirm she’s a shameless liar

A Tuzla greeting exposes Hillary

Walking back the Tuzla sniper-fire run

Video: Hillary “misspeaks” about Tuzla again; Update: “I was sleep-deprived”

Hillary, Serial Fabulist?

Tuzla Girl haunts Hillary

Hitchens on the Tuzla Dash, and what Hillary hides

Hillary fired for lies, unethical behavior from Congressional job: former boss

Surprise: Hillary caught in another stump-speech lie

More thoughts:

Democrats (even "Catholic" ones) don't seem to care if their candidates are liars (see the links above), friends with murderous, far-left fringe America haters, friends with racists (and possibly closet racists, themselves, as seen here and here), or even that their candidates promote the killing of unborn babies and/or infanticide.

I don't understand it.

Any thoughts?

Audio: A Ron Paul Supporter Makes His Case

Click here to listen: A Ron Paul Supporter Makes His Case

Any thoughts?

The View Stays Classy [Content Warning]

See also: 'The View' Ladies Talk Monkeys

Source: HotAir.com

There’s A Huckabee Born Every Minute

Worth reading: There’s a Huckabee Born Every Minute

Any thoughts?

(Unfortunately...) A Satirical Zawahiri Christmas Greeting

Unfortunately in the sense that it's only satire.

Source: AnnCoulter.com

Above the link, Ann Coulter wrote:

"If only we had followed my post-9/11 plan..."

The YouTube description says: "A satirical new video from al Qaeda's second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri, about the true meaning of Christmas."

Bad Shepherds

In case anyone isn't aware of the assault against Cardinal Mahony or needs a reminder, the excellent cartoon above references this story: Mahony gives police details about assault

This post over at Charismatic Heresy blog is worth checking out: Bad Shepherds

Any thoughts?

Fred Ain't Dead

Who actually did raise their hands? See: Show of hands on the climate change question: Who was for it before they were against it?

Here's the story: Fred Ain't Dead

Quote:

With his superb performance in Wednesday's debate in Iowa, Fred Thompson has made a monkey out of me. By early afternoon on Tuesday, the column that appears below, one which posits that Thompson's presidential campaign might still find a way to win, was ready in exactly the form it appears here. But I thought the column would still remain exactly on target throughout the week, so (for various reasons) I aimed for a Friday release. At the time, I thought that until Thompson began his Iowa bus tour on Monday the 17th, my contention that he "ain't dead" yet would seem noteworthy for its boldness.

Then Thompson ruined it all by so clearly running away with the laurels in Wednesday's debate -- and in particularly Reaganesque fashion. Just as Reagan did at the famous Nashua, N.H. debate in 1980, Thompson used the unfairness of the debate moderator as a foil in a way that justly earned the candidate plaudits as a no-nonsense kind of guy. Now everybody is taking a second look at Thompson's chances. Deservedly so.

But of course a debate performance like that should not have been a surprise. As my column reports, pollster Frank Luntz said even before Wednesday's debates that Thompson was hitting his stride and connecting with audiences at earlier debates.

...

Just as pundits, myself included, were having a high old time criticizing Sen. Thompson for the timing of his efforts in this campaign, he somehow succeeded in stealing a march on us. Maybe Good Ol' Fred knows what he is doing after all.

Here's another: Fred Thompson: The Comeback Kid?

Rush: Don't Write off Fred

See also: Fred Thompson Campaign Apologies

Quote:

We apologize for pointing out that in 2002 Huckabee wrote Pres. Bush a letter asking him to lift the Cuban embargo. It’s easy to see how Huckabee might have missed the finer points of a 40-year embargo. While he obviously knew enough about the embargo to ask that it be lifted, Huckabee clearly didn’t know enough to ask that it not be lifted. So for that, we’re sorry.

Audio: Fred Thompson on the Glenn Beck Show

As for Huckabee...

Ron Paul Supports "Freedom" For Brothels

Source: HotAir.com

Quote:

Freedom, baby. If not for his foreign policy and his kowtowing to conspiracy cretins and his indifference to support from Nazis and, well, pretty much everything else besides this, he could have been my guy. He could have been … the beta-male candidate. Alas.

More video here; note the tidbit about the brothel’s clientele and partisan spending habits.

My thoughts:

I am aware that St. Thomas Aquinas tolerated the evil of prostitution, but it must be stressed that his tolerance never involved intending the sin of prostitution.

See: A Thomistic Case for Tolerance by Maria Fontana Magee

Quote:

...those who are in authority, rightly tolerate certain evils, lest certain goods be lost, or certain greater evils be incurred: thus Augustine says (De Ordine ii.4): "If you do away with harlots, the world will be convulsed with lust." (ST II-II, q. 10, a. 11)

This passage occurs in response to the question of whether the rites of certain unbelievers (such as the Jews) should be tolerated, which Thomas answers in the affirmative:

"Hence, though unbelievers sin in their rites, they may be tolerated, either on account of some good that ensues therefrom, or because of some evil avoided." (Ibid.)

Even in this passage, however, Thomas has reservations about tolerating those rites of unbelievers which are neither true nor spiritually valuable. He only allows for such rites to be tolerated "in order to avoid an evil, for instance the scandal or disturbance that might ensue, or some hindrance to the salvation of those who if they were unmolested might gradually convert to the faith."(Ibid.) To return to the brief statement about prostitution, it is especially striking because it shows Thomas' willingness to tolerate a serious evil for the sake of civil order. Surely, this is a case of more than limited tolerance!

Thomas locates the need for tolerance in the eternal law itself. Advocating that human government should imitate the divine rule, Thomas reminds us:

"Now although God is all-powerful and supremely good, nevertheless He allows certain evils to take place in the universe, which He might prevent, lest, without them, greater goods might be forfeited, or greater evils ensue." (Ibid.)

This was the principle which Thomas invoked to justify the toleration of harlots. It shows that his belief in tolerance is not merely a pragmatic one, but is deeply embedded in his view of man as one who participates in the eternal law.

Interesting reading, no?

Bottom line: Listening to Ron Paul's response to an endorsement from sex trade "workers", it's clear that Ron Paul is no St. Thomas Aquinas. His principles are rooted in the desire to keep government (particularly federal government) from interfering in people's lives and keeping with federal powers in check (which are generally good policies), but going so far as endorsing prostitution as "freedom" in the name of libertarianism is not consistent with Catholic morality.

See also:

Ron Paul Supports Medical Marijuana

Ron Paul's Dirty Money

Ron Paul's Jewish Problem

Meet the Paulnuts

Ron Paul on Iranian nukes: “I wouldn’t do that much about it”

Wired writer who exposed Ron Paul spam now being smeared on YouTube

Before anyone makes another ridiculous attempt at claiming that I haven't been critical of Giuliani, Huckabee, Romney, or Thompson: do a little research. Scroll down on this page. Look through the archives. I've criticized them all.

Whining that I'm unfair to a candidate you like and claiming that I'm giving other candidates a pass is untrue and gives evidence of an indifference to truth (i.e., a willingness to lie to further your agenda), because the claim implies that you read the blog regularly, but have never seen me criticize those other candidates, which is impossible, because I have. So, either those making the claims are lying about their readership, or they are out of touch with reality, and maybe a little of both.

Any thoughts?

Bishop Brown's Lawyers Continue Evasion Tactics & An Article On Msgr. Urell In The Toronto Sun

While Bishop Tod Brown has been reported as spending time at Muldoon's "to relax at a meeting of the Celtic Bar Association", his attorneys have been working to salvage his image in the courtroom.

Gustavo Arellano has the details: Statutory Rapist Andrade And Pals Seek To Block Many Things

Meanwhile, back at the ranch: He fled a child sex-abuse case involving the Catholic Church in California. Now he's holed-up in Aurora. What is Msgr. Urell hiding?

And: Bakersfield police have no record of any investigation of Tod Brown.

Any thoughts?

Bishop Tod Brown Says He And Father Michael McKiernan Were "Together" For Seven Years + More On Urell's Trip To Canada

Bishop Tod Brown's deposition is an eye-opening read. The section below caught my attention. It's about Bishop Brown's former secretary, Father Michael McKiernan. Brown and McKiernan lived together at Brown's renovated home on Darmel Place in Santa Ana.

According to the public records, Tod Brown purchased this property back in August of 1998 for $388,000 – all cash. The additions and the whole remodeling that county records indicate Brown made to the property since the purchase indicate that he could have easily sold this property for at least $1,500,000. That is a profit of $1,112,000.

I believe Brown did sell Darmel Place, though he may not have made as much money on the sale.

The following section of Bishop Tod Brown's deposition is taken from the bottom of page 140 and continues until the top of page 142:

Question: And how about [name redacted]. Which of the two committees was he on?

Bishop Brown: [Name redacted] was on that same committee. I believe that’s correct.

Question: And why did he resign?

Bishop Brown: My recollection is when he came to see me, that he felt being on the committee was a great emotional strain for him, that he was -- it just making everything -- it was making him relive his whole -- make him relive his abuse experience.

Question: Did he ever tell you that one of the reasons he was resigning is because Monsignor McKiernan would show -- or Father Mckiernan would show at the meetings drunk?

Bishop Brown: No, he did not.

Question: Your sworn testimony is that never occurred?

Bishop Brown: He never told me that, and I was not aware of that.

Question: I don’t mean whether or not Monsignor McKiernan was drunk. I mean -- is it Father or Monsignor, Bishop?

Bishop Brown: Father. Father. Father.

Question: Okay. My question, and I apologize because it was confusing. My question -- I want to be very clear about this. Did Mr. [name redacted] ever tell you that he felt that Monsignor -- sorry -- that Father McKiernan was coming to the sexual review meetings in a -- in an intoxicated state?

Bishop Brown: I don’t recall that.

Question: Does that mean it didn’t happen or you just forgot?

Bishop Brown: I don’t -- I don’t think it happened.

Question: Was Father McKiernan living with you at that time?

Bishop Brown: Yes, he was.

Question: Did you ever discuss the sexual abuse cases with him?

Bishop Brown: Yes, we did discuss them sometimes.

Question: And do you recall anything you said?

Bishop Brown: No, I do not.

Question: How long did you live with Father McKiernan?

Bishop Brown: We were together about -- about roughly seven years.

Together? I've had roommates before, and I have one now. I've never described sharing a house or an apartment with a roommate as being "together" with anyone.

Why would Bishop Brown set himself up by saying something like that? What was he thinking?

Bonus: More On Urell's Trip To Canada

More videos after the jump...