HAPPY NEW YEAR

The New Year is about to begin, in just a few hours. If we are fortunate, we will ‘ring in the New Year’ with family and friends and no or few bad things will have happened to us during the last few months.

Very likely, however, some bad things will have happened, either to our family or to our friends, or to lots of folks in lots of places in the world.

And at the same time, very wise people, friends, family, Church, etc., urge us to wish our fellow and sister creatures well and to pray for all that is best for them. And we are assured that faith can move mountains; that if we have but the faith of a grain of mustard seed; that if we seek we shall find; etc., etc..

In a word, we are assured that it is most worthwhile to pray, to pray earnestly and diligently; that our petitions will be listened to and responded to by a loving and involved and Just Creator.

How is one to square all of this with the sure knowledge that crap happens to good people, that we are all going to, or indeed have, suffered great reverses, great losses at one time or another?

Or is it all a lot of …you know what?

Well, I have been doing a little thinking about this since…well, for awhile. And I came across a line or two which might be of help to anyone having trouble with believing in the usefulness, the efficacy, of prayer.

I found the following paragraph in Amazing Grace by Kathleen Norris. I pass it on in hopes that it may be of use to you.

Sometimes people will say things like, ‘Your prayers didn’t work, but thanks.’ as if a person could be praying for only one thing. A miracle. But in the hardest situations, all one can do is to ask for God’s mercy: Let my friend die at home, Lord, and not in the hospital. Let her go quickly, God, and with her loved ones present. One Benedictine friend, a gentle, thoughtful man who has been in constant physical pain for years and is now confined to a wheelchair, says of prayer, ‘Often, all I can do is ask God, Lord, what is it you want of me?’ From him I have learned that prayer is not asking for what you think you want but asking to be changed in ways you can’t imagine. To be made more grateful, more able to see the good in what you have been given instead of always grieving for what might have been. People who are in the habit of praying – and they include the mystics of the Christian tradition – know that when a prayer is answered, it is never in a way that you expect [emphasis mine].

We should wish family and friends all that is best in the forthcoming year. We should pray for an end to injustice and terror and for victory for the Good Guys.

But the best prayer probably remains what it always has been, even if it sometimes is a bitter pill: Let Thy will be done.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!

YouTube Site of British Monarchy

The link below will take you to an interesting site.

It is the new YouTube site ... The Royal Channel The Official Channel of the British Monarchy.

http://www.youtube.com/theroyalchannel

Check it out.

A new window on the most important monarchy on earth.

QUOTE(S) OF INTEREST

Abraham Lincoln on harry reid:

He can compress the most words into the smallest idea of any man I ever met.

A SHORT PRAYER RE WAR ON TERROR

We are half way in the week between Christmas Day and New Years Eve.

The bleatings of the majority leaders of the US House and Senate have ceased, temporarily, due either to the inanities of their pronouncements or to the time of year.

How will the Republic ever get along without reid and pelosi speaking to the nation on a daily basis?

Presidential candidates are either on holiday break or continuing to campaign. Most, I think, are on break.

The Bhutto assassination will probably bring some of them to a podium.

CNN has released an email re the killing. Don’t you just love it the way CNN attempts to influence international affairs and scoop the diplomats??

Thirteen of our family and friends have gathered repeatedly during this in-between week. There have been Church services and dinners and outings to malls and hitherings and thitherings [are those words?]. We have talked very little of terrorism and murders and the national democrat party. But we continue to watch and to think and to pray for success to the Good Guys.

For Good Guys read: the United States of America.

A good, short prayer re the War on Terror could sound something like:

Dear Lord, we pray for American and Allied victory over the barbarous enemy. We pray for a just end to terror. Protect all who work toward this end. Let our policies be Your Policies. Enlighten those of us who are ignorant. Amen.

Definition of ‘victory over a barbarous enemy’: suppression and destruction thereof.

Wouldn’t it be something to hear a prayer like that in church once in a while?? Why not say it like it is? We don’t just want peace. We want a win, a victorious peace. Why not say it out loud?

There was a time when nations at war did say it out loud.

But that’s a topic for another day.

BOOKS AND MOVIES

Two books were received as gifts this Christmas. And one movie is about to be seen.

Band of Brothers, Stephen Ambrose…….
I have watched the HBO series once a year for years now……and now I have the book.

I recommend it to all folks……for a testimonial of ….of a lot of things. It is possible to imagine that you know these young men, men who now are not so young.

Read about em and be proud. They are among America’s Finest.

The other book is theme-related: Selected Chaff, the Wartime Columns of Al McIntosh, part of the inspiration for the Ken Burns documentary The War.

Commentary on both of these excellent volumes will be forthcoming.
I recommend this book to all as well.

Read it and be proud.

The movie we are to see is Charlie Wilson’s Secret War. We go to few movies, but this one appears to be a winner, the story of an American who took care of business: his personal life and his patriotic duty.

The favourite way to watch movies at The Study is in the library with dog and drink close at hand. HSIT!!

I am hoping that this is the continuation of a response to lefty trash which has been and is so pervasive.

A review, comments will appear.

BENAZIR BHUTTO....R.I.P.

Score one for the barbarians.

The West, and more importantly, the United States, have lost a friend in a most dangerous region.

A reminder, a brutal reminder that our nation, our way of life is at war with a barbarous enemy.

And a significant portion of our leadership does not have a clue.

CHRISTMAS 2006

Christmas Eve, Morning, and Day are over.

We were a group of twelve: parents, children, grandchildren, in-laws, and friends gathered together in Church and in two homes.
Friends were in from Chicago.

First there was the Childrens’ Service at 5:00 on Christmas Eve Day. And then Christmas Eve Dinner.

And then Lessons and Carols and Mass at midnight.

And then Christmas Morning Breakfast followed by gift openings.

And then Christmas Dinner and more gift openings.

And all the blessed fellowship: twelve folks gathered together, laughing, reminiscing, remembering the good times, and looking forward to the future.
How sweet it was.

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW ON POLITICAL PORK AND EAR MARKS

A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on
the support of Paul.

IF THE dems WIN IN 2008

If a national democrat wins the White House in 2008, George Bernard Shaw will have been shown to have been right on the money:

Democracy substitutes election by the incompetent many for
appointment by the corrupt few.

SOME THINGS RARELY CHANGE

The link below will take you to a must read in Powerline which has a lot to say about Harry S. Truman and the national democrats in the contexts of the American Civil War, World War 2, and the War in Iraq.

My o my!!

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives2/2007/12/019319.php

HOW SWEET IT WAS

I visited a tobacconist’s shop today. An upscale shop. In an upscale city.

I had been there one year ago, almost to the day to buy a cigar humidor for my son.

I loved the visit then. I loved this one even more.

The street was festive. It was busy, crowded. Buildings were being remodeled; traffic was gridlock; foot traffic was heavy. Folks were hurrying this way and that.

It was like a scene out of a Christmas card.

Silver bells, silver bells, its Christmas time in the city.

The shop is tiny, tucked between somewhat larger establishments. Its window is small- paned, many of the panes painted, I think, in a soft green. The door is heavy, I think wood. I am not sure.

And I smelled the shop before I opened the door. Someone must have just left before I was on the stoop.

And it was not the smell of cigarette tobacco. No, it was premium cigar smoke, fresh cigar smoke, doubtless enhanced by fresh air circulating and also by years and years of soaking into the woods and fabrics of the shop.

And the pipes in boxes on the wall. And all the tobaccos. And the pouches. And the grand cigar humidor.

And the very congenial proprietor. Very helpful. Very professional. He was assisted by a most attractive young lady. And by a senior gentleman dusting shelves and arranging stock.

In the back of the shop was the humidor to one side. On the other side was a smoking lounge, very much in use. But the aromas were those of cigar leaf.

I was only there for half an hour, but it was long enough for the smoke to penetrate the clothes I was wearing. I could smell the shop all the way home.

Why is it that something as enjoyable as a good cigar is not good for us?

When I was younger and more ignorant and feeling invulnerable, I would go into such establishments, there were more of them then, buy my cigar or pipe tobacco, and happily go on my way, burning leaf as I went.

I thought how sweet it was.

When we were children, we thought as children.

I hope to return next year on a similar mission.

How sweet it was.

A PRESS CONFERENCE

There was a Presidential press conference this AM.

Mr. Bush is now in top form. He does not face reelection pressures. He is not endorsing any candidate at this time. He is enjoying a number of legislative successes, and military ones, and diplomatic ones, and various other ones.

The approval ratings, fickle nonsense as they are, show those of the Congress to be below his.

The press corps was polite. It was genial. The President was witty. He was funny. He was statesmanlike.

He sidestepped the traps. He aggressively promoted his agendas.

I think I was on the third cup of coffee when the thought occurred: Mr. Bush was not doing anything like an imitation, but I caught the sense of a previous President in his answers to the leading questions of the press.

Simply stated, the President refused to answer that which he did not want to answer, and the reporters didn’t press him. He refused to endorse; he refused to comment on investigations until they were completed; and he corrected press interpretations, allegations.

When asked what it was that would make a good candidate, or some question to that effect, he answered that it was that the individual would remain true to his or her principles and would not be as a reed in the wind, with an ear to the damned polls.

He was saying that with him, at least, the buck would stop. He would call the shots as he saw them. And that that was the only way it should be done.

It was sooooooooo Harry S. Trumanlike. Don't laugh.

We have a good man in the White House.

RE MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY

The bishops [Bishops of the American Roman Catholic Church] specifically criticized Phan for arguing that that non-Christian religions offer an "autonomous" path to salvation.

see http://www.ethicsdaily.com/article_detail.cfm?AID=9819

Joel mentions in his comment that he has …always admired their steadfastness to doctrine that is their hallmark.....

Now, with all respect, I need to point out that there is and always has been a fine line between well-founded firmness and delusionary [is that a word?] narrow mindedness.

The Roman Catholic Church appears to declare non-Roman denominations defective, unable to deliver the way to salvation. The Roman Church appears to criticize those who suggest that there are ‘autonomous’ paths to glory.

The Vatican is not speaking ecumenically when it claims uniqueness in the sense of exclusivity.

It is not admitting to the very arguable point that its claims to infallibility fail in that in matters of faith we believe on faith. We have faith. We believe. We have not been there. We can say we know. We do not. We are on safest ground when we admit that we believe what we believe for very good reasons…but we do not really know enough to say that the other guy is defective.

The Roman Church admits that even in the worldly realm we do not know all the answers. It likely admits that we do not even know all the questions.

But in the Heavenly Realm?????? Give me a break!!!!!!!

Over and over again we reinterpret; we revise our thinking; we adjust. We really do not know for sure.

So, when any belief system goes infallible, take what it says with a grain of salt.

Having said that, I must share concern with Joel regarding the American Episcopal Church as it …crumbles under popular opinion and the "Dogma DuJour" that has become the American Episcopal Church.

Again, here is the problem of the fine line between false claims of infallibility and excessive ‘flexibility’ of doctrine.

The Roman Church is suffering from the former.

The Episcopal Church is suffering in some respects from the latter.

IT IS A FACTOR, NOT THE FACTOR

Should a candidate for the Presidency of the United States ask for votes because of his or her membership in a religious organization or because of his or her beliefs about deity?

Should the well-intentioned voter seek out candidates for the Presidency of the United States primarily because of the religious beliefs those candidates hold??

Answers to questions like these are very, very simple.

Presidents of the United States are not chief ministers, rabbis, priests, or mullahs or whatever. They are secular leaders of what is admittedly a largely Christian country, but they are not religious leaders.

Whether they are theistic or atheistic should not be the main factor upon which a voter decides for whom to vote.

The proper formula goes something like this: If a voter finds that:

1 The candidate understands the problems facing the US and US society;
2 The candidate understands how to solve those problems;
3 The problems and solutions recognized by the candidate are the problems and solutions the voter agrees need to be addressed;

then the voter can and should vote for that candidate. If the candidate belongs to a religion or a belief system that the voter agrees with, then so much the better.

The US Presidential Election is electing the leader of the most powerful nation in history. His or her religion can be A factor. It must never be THE factor.

Finally, it is one thing for a candidate to mention that they belong to this or that belief system; that they attend this or that place of worship. Or, indeed, that they attend no place of worship.

It is quite another thing for them to try to attract voters on the basis of whether they attend this or that or nothing.

Beware the candidate who comes ‘bearing a cross’.

CHRISTMAS CARDS

The first big snow of the year arrived Saturday night, leaving 7+ inches on the ground Sunday morning.

All sorts of things were cancelled, including Sunday Church and Monday schools.
It was a window of opportunity for us to get the Christmas card ritual in full swing.

Cards and address books and stamps and address labels and the like were all assembled.
A Christmas newsletter was written, folded, and put in some of the cards.
A short handwritten note was included in most of the cards.

It is fun.
It is a lot of work.

It is a most worthwhile thing to do.

One of the reasons why it is important is that the ritual causes us to think about folks for a few minutes, to remember our relationships. The ritual is a reminder that we are not alone, that we share the world with a lot of really good people.

So, send out your cards. Be proud of yourself. Put a note in all of them and a newsletter in some of them.

Most recipients will thank you.

We read all cards and newsletters we get with great interest.
We know that a note and a newsletter take time to write.
We know that the writers care about us.

Merry Christmas to all who have sent them to us.

SUPERB ADVICE AT CHRISTMAS

CHRISTMAS 2007
Ah Friends, dear friends, as years go on
And heads get gray
Touch hands, touch hands, with those that stay.

The verse above is the letterhead of our annual Christmas letter which is sent to family and friends.

The verses below end our Christmas letter.

Together, they urge us to express our love to our loved ones. Let them know how we feel, and, in the words of the Elizebethan prayer, know with all your heart that God is in His Heaven; that He is just; and that whatever is happening, for better or worse, that

This is the day the Lord hath made,

Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Heap on more wood! The wind is chill;
But let it whistle as it will. We’ll keep our Christmas merry still.

ILLIBERAL LIBERALS - A PROBLEM IN RELIGION AS WELL AS IN POLITICS

Sadly, as we have seen in the U.S.A. and are beginning to see in Britain, ecclesiastical "liberals" (particularly those who were influenced by the ideological trends of the 1960s) when in positions of authority tend to behave in an extraordinarily illiberal way. They are proving themselves to be the theological cuckoo in the Anglican nest.

Liberals of the 1960's did not limit themselves to the profession of politics. They also became clergypersons.

They are in positions of power and responsibilities as of 2007.

And the Episcopal Church of the United States is currently experiencing a negative result of their ... dare I say...passions??

The quote above is from a posting by Alan Marsh in the Ruth Gledhill blog in the TimesOnline.

MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY - THE VATICAN

(RNS) U.S. Catholic bishops, acting at the direction of the Vatican, have rebuked a theologian at Georgetown University for writings that they say conflict with church doctrine on the uniqueness of Christianity and Catholicism....
The bishops specifically criticized Phan for arguing that that non-Christian religions offer an "autonomous" path to salvation.

The link below will take you to the full article.

Imagine, the thought of it, that a priest of the Roman Church might go so far as to think that there might be some validity to the ministsrations of non-Roman authority; that maybe, just maybe, the sum of all truth just might not reside entirely within the Holy See.

http://www.ethicsdaily.com/article_detail.cfm?AID=9819

One is tempted to think, indeed, to say, so much for ecumenism.

PIRACY SUPPRESSION - A LETTER OF MARQUE

A letter of marque and reprisal is an official warrant or commission from a government authorizing the designated agent to search, seize, or destroy specified assets or personnel belonging to a party which has committed some offense under the laws of nations against the assets or citizens of the issuing nation....

It goes without saying that piracy is an offense against the laws of of nations.
If navies cannot suppress this sort of maritime felony, perhaps it is time to consider reviving the practice of issuing the letter of marque.

The link below will take you to an item in the NYT which suggests this very course of action:

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/16/after-a-dip-in-attacks-pirates-mount-a-comeback/

Apparently, the United States, though it has not issued such warrants lately, has never ratified the protocols prohibiting them.

Wouldn't doing so just drive the lefties wild?

And it just might be possible that a serious problem would be at least significantly dealt with.

The Blackwater reference in the above link is interesting.

That is another group that drives lefties wild.

THE POLLS AGAIN

Check out the coverage.
The media is full of who is where in the poll numbers.
Really, no analysis of positions.
Now, this is because all candidates have decided that policy positions cannot be put forth until after the election in order to avoid alienating any groups of voters.
That is the state of things.
Positons cannot be made clear because there is more fear of alienation than of attraction.

It is a very strange and sad situation.

Imagine, running campaigns based on minimal offense giving rather than on arguing the benefits of policy.

My o my!

THE POPE AND GLOBAL WARMING

The Pope gets it right on the issue of global warming, not because he is Pope, but because he is talking sense.
Check it out.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=501316&in_page_id=1811&ito=1490

QUOTE(S) OF INTEREST

It is easy to pontificate in small group settings.

It is easy to pontificate when you have no responsibility or power to cause immediate change.

I am reminded of a quote of George Burns:

Too bad the only people who know how to run the country
are busy driving cabs and cutting hair.

ON MY MIND ON TUESDAY

Item:

Wife and I attended a social function last Saturday night in a fairly large home. About fifty people were there. There were a small number of smokers present. Just a few. There was a smoking room, a designated space.
It was not enough.
The fumes got out.
These few inconsiderate souls, for the sake of their dirty habit, caused the house to fill with fumes.
Resultant second-hand smoke drifted over the buffet table; into the kitchen; into the various sitting areas.
At least some eyes began smarting; coughing started; and in at least one case, headaches began which lasted into the next day.
And all because of a noxious habit of a few inconsiderate individuals.
There is a saying to the effect that one's freedom of expression/action in our Republic ends at hte tip of my nose.....that is, do not practice/do intrusion into my space.
I would never go to a group gathering, especially of people I did not despise, and deliberately do anything to make any number of them uncomfortable.
Smokers who do this are either: ignorant fools; malicious; or thoughtless.
A pox on them all.

Item:

During coffee hour last Sunday, a former Naval person and I were discussing piracy, 2007 style.
It is common these days. It is significant. It is malignant.

Definition:Piracy is defined as …a robbery committed at sea, or sometimes on the shore, by an agent without a commission from a sovereign nation. Seaborne piracy against transport vessels remains a significant issue (with estimated worldwide losses of $13 to $16 billion per year.... From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pirates kidnap; rob; murder; rape; and generally cause all sorts of problems for maritime commerce.

We decided that two actions could go far toward suppressing these cretins and we are wondering why they are not being done:

1) Arm merchant vessels in threatened waters with gun and gun crew.
2) If it has not already been done, issue that traditional order to the US and British Navies:

You are hereby requested and required to take, sink, or burn
all vessels found to be engaged in piracy.

Now, that is a lovely imperative.
As the old saying goes, Do unto others before they do unto you.

Item:

Formerly upset about the 'outing' of a non-covert agent at the CIA, the national dems are now attempting to 'out' a number of truly covert operatives in this matter of interrogation tapes.
national dems apparently do not know that intelligence procedures need to be clandestine. Secrets need to be secret. The enemy should not be told what to expect.
national dems are a disgrace.

Item:

Debating whether or not the climate of the earth is warming up or not is not the real issue any more.
Folks who do this are blowing smoke. Pardon if that is a pun.
The real issues, the real questions are:

A) Is the the warming tendency cyclical, that is, not really a result of human activity?
B) Would heroic efforts to reduce emissions by the advanced nations be of any significance in light of the garbage being spewed into the atmosphere by the backward nations of the world?

Ignore folks who blather on about temperatures going up a milli-degree (I made that term up). Only listen to the ones who hold forth on the whether or not the changes are cyclical and on the efficacy of remedies in light of the horrors being practiced by the backward folks.

Item:

The devils besetting the Episcopal Church of the USA are to be found in many aspects of our lives.
Folks have created their own agendas and to hell with the good of others. Minorities decide that their desires, their points of view, their supposed imperatives must be the driving determiners of group concern, of group policies.
The majoity is in for a tough time, a tough time on many fronts indeed.

DECEMBER 7TH AND THE SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP

Friday, 7 December 2007, is another anniversary of “…December 7, 1941, the day that will live in infamy….” Or words to that effect.

Fewer and fewer of us here today were around on that day, so very long ago.

The date is significant. Well, the event is significant, hence the date is also.

The event was the Japanese attack on the US Naval Base at Pearl Harbor.

It is significant because it brought about US entry into WW2.

The US was participating in the War before that date, but on a relatively small scale.

The attack made US entry a foregone conclusion. And that entry made Allied success in the War very likely indeed.

It is said that Churchill, when informed of the strike, allowed that victory was now assured, tho the road would still be long and hard.

But there is another reason to note the anniversary.

For 7 December 1941 marked the beginning of the war that would make manifest to all the world a sea change that had already occurred in international affairs.

That sea change was the reversal of the Special Relationship, that intimate diplomatic connection existing between the US and the United Kingdom.

Traditionally, historically, the UK carried the mantle of international peacemaker, guarantor of international law and the status quo. The US generally benefited from this largesse and worked to support it.

Though not always acting in concert, the two powers found themselves more in agreement than in disagreement.

Hence, the Special Relationship.

And the senior partner in the relationship was the UK, the imperial center of the British Empire, the greatest empire the world has ever seen.

World War 2 demonstrated that the two powers were still operating within a special relationship, but by the end of the War, even before the end, it was clear that while the US had helped the Allies win WW1, during the 1940’s, the Allies had begun to help the US win WW2.

We did not help Britain and the world defeat the Axis. The Free World, the British Empire, helped the United States win the War.

The Relationship reversed. The Senior Member was now the United States.

It still is.

And 7 December will forever be a most important anniversary indeed.

QUOTE(S) OF INTEREST

I do not think that Harry S. Truman ever put a lot of stock in polls. To be fair, the ‘science’ of polling probably was snot, pardon, was not as well-developed in his day as it is now.

But anyway, a line of his that reflects well on him and badly on many of our candidates today is:

I never did give anybody hell. I just told the truth and they thought it was hell.

I have the distinct impression that candidates and officeholders today try to figure out what their constituencies want to hear and then deliver those messages.

We are not better off as a result.

KNOW THEM BY WHAT THEY DO

As you listen to the various pundits and candidates pontificating about the most recent NIA report, keep in mind that all thinking men and women would do well to judge people or nations not by what they say but rather by what they do.

Iran was a rogue, dangerous nation before the NIA report; during the making of the report; and now, after the report has been released, it is still a rogue, dangerous nation.

The actions of that government speak for themselves.

Below is a partial list of said actions, off the top of my head:

Iran has worked against and will continue to work against US policies.
Iran illegally acquired nuclear technology.
Iran has never admitted having done so.
Iran illegally operated a nuclear weapons program.
Iran has never admitted having done so.
Iran is running the centrifuges, in spite of the fact that Iran has lots and lots and lots of oil.
Iran w/o doubt runs weapons into Iraq which are killing US/Coalition forces.
Iran illegally threatens to close international shipping lanes.
Iran illegally seized a US citizen visiting Iran.
Iran illegally seized the US Embassy and held personnel in captivity.
Iran threatens Israel with obliteration.
Iran consults with terrorist nations.
Having obtained nuclear technology illegally, Iran will very likely share it illegally.
Iran has demonstrated that it intends to destabilize the Middle East.
Iran has seized Royal Naval personnel at sea.

It is late and I am tired and I hope the above is coherent. If it is not, please let me know.

This list is very incomplete.

Please feel free to point out errors or to add missing illegal acts.

WHICH WILL IT BE?

Wannabees register as candidates.

They give speeches.

Media reports sound bites (bytes?) of the speeches.
Pollsters survey voters.
Money and influence flows to the most popular candidates.
Handlers write and adjust the contents of future speeches.
Media reports those speeches.

And so the process proceeds and builds towards the primaries, those arenas which have replaced the evil smoke-filled rooms which were so destructive to our…democracy.

Say what????

As Granddaughter would say, “Whatever.”

The news departments in our local newspaper shrinks just as the adverts and classified sections grow.

Local broadcast media devotes more and more time to crime news and weather reporting.

Economics is an important determining factor.

It is hard, really hard, for the average voter to get beyond candidate sound bites.

Is there really an average voter? Or is this term a euphemism, as in the case of developing nation instead of undeveloped?

Accusations are made, as are claims and jillions of assertions. Media reports them and usually finds that the problems being addressed are so complex that few voters would want to take the time to digest a really detailed analysis.

And so there is no real analysis. We are left with shallow barrages of propaganda designed to sound good, regardless of the merits of their arguments.

And then the candidates are finally chosen and the process is rehearsed again.

And the nation elects a President.

Sometimes we get a winner. We have had them.

Sometimes we get a loser.

In the long run, we will get what we deserve.

Which will it be this time?

A TEDDY BEAR - REALITY CHECK

Khartoum rioters called for her execution.
Sudanese law allowed for lashes, prison, and a fine.

Rioters were foiled.
The teacher was pardoned.
She was ordered out of the country.

Deportation! Such a deal!!!!

Consider for a moment.

In our country, authorities wring their hands over whether or not to execute serial killers, folks guilty of rape and torture and mutilation and whatever.

They anguish over American versions of torture: the playing of loud music; water boarding and the like.

Folks in Sudan wanted, no doubt still want, to dismember a teacher for allowing students to name a teddy bear in a manner offensive to them.

Maybe we have caught a glimpse of just who the enemy is out there.

Maybe this incident can serve as a reality check for folks trying to make sense out of how best to deal with threats to the world as we know it.

QUOTE(S) OF INTEREST

W. Somerset Maugham:

There is only one thing about which I am certain, and that
is that there is very little about which one can be certain.

BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS NEW COOK BOOK – A PRIMARY SOURCE

In 1965, 42 years ago, Dear Wife and I received, as a wedding gift, a copy of Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, 1962, newly revised and in third edition.
We have used this book at least weekly ever since, used it and used it until it is literally falling apart. But we love it and continue to use it.

There are recipes in there that we will never tire of.

This is a book which says a lot about things we have done together for over four decades, and about things which we have done with friends and relatives.

A month or two ago we were in the checkout line in Border’s [I hope the apostrophe is in the right place].

I looked down and lo and behold, now there is a phrase, what did I see but a stack of Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, 1930-2005, 75th Anniversary Edition Limited.

On sale!!!!!!!!!

Well, I have wanted an updated version for some time now, if for no other reason than to compare the two books and to see what changes have occurred in the culinary habits of our Dear Republic.

Well, I had no idea.

I bought the book, took it home, and opened up a window on American culture and civilization.

For here are two books which set forth a detailed picture of how the American family dines and entertains and watches calories and carbs and exchanges. Here is a thorough documentation of customs and diet and protocols and so on which are practiced by millions of American households.

In other words, for a few dollars, those interested in the American way of life can equip themselves with a two-volume library which documents nearly a half-century of important aspects of the lives of themselves, of their parents, and even of their grandparents.

These books are in every sense primary sources.

As an old teacher of history, I know the value of the primary source over the secondary.

Primary sources: “…primary sources are…documents created during the period that is being studied…” by the people who were living and doing what they are documenting, coming down to us unfiltered by the passage of time.

Look up a recipe in the old edition and remember a sweet moment or two when you were young.

Look up the same recipe in the new edition and note how our culture has, in many instances, matured and become more sophisticated and nuanced.

Maybe we have too.

How sweet it is!

RESPONSE TO UPNORFJOEL 'PREDICTIONS' COMMENT

The national dems have a double-edged problem with their political base. That base is extreme left-wing. That is, it is way to the left of the American people, thank the Good Lord, as least for the present, at least for the time being.

On the one hand, that base is solid. It can be depended on. But it can be depended on to be radical, extreme, wrong, and even dangerous at times.

It would be, no, it must be, very difficult to be a national democrat leader these days. That party is so given over to so many special interests, many of which conflict with the good of the nation.

I can only imagine the frustration of having as your only hope of election victory being the failure of US policies at home and throughout the world.

Bill Clinton is a piece of work. He is popular with folks who do not know any better. He is a disgrace. But he is popular. What does that say about a problem with our body politic?

Hillary is a woman. It is too bad that that might still be a handicap. But it may well be. It may not be.

Barrack is young. He says unwise things. He is black. This last quality should not be a problem for him, but it might be. His youth and unwise sayings are legitimate targets for his opponents.

Regarding Huckabee, a pundit said it the other night:

Huckabee might be the only candidate participating in these early silly debates who realizes that they are indeed silly and is willing to treat them as such.

He is witty. He is funny.

He will not be the final candidate.

Rudi still looks good to me.

THE ARCHBISHOP AND THE PROFESSOR JUST DON’T GET IT

The Archbishop of Canterbury and a professor of theology at a prestigious university have seen fit recently to criticize the United States for a host of failures on domestic and international fronts.

To read their comments, you would think that the US is anything but a success in areas that count the most.

I suggest it is just possible that these folks make the mistake of thinking that expertise in one area makes for expertise in a lot of other areas.

It just ain’t so.

Diplomacy, geopolitics, military science, and foreign policy of all sorts are all disciplines in their own rights.

Doctorates in theology just do not cut it in military or political science, regardless of what the good doctors think.

For the good professor to say that the nation state system and its dynamic is in itself inimical to a Christian way of dealing with the world is nonsense.

For the Archbishop to condemn the US as an imperialistic menace is nonsense as well. He condemns the British Empire as well, but says the US is even worse.

Poppycock!

Both men, Archbishop and professor, credentialed in their in their own spheres of interest, have looked and they have not seen.

They have failed to do what Kipling says he and his brothers and sisters have done:

If England was what England seems,
‘N not the England of our dreams,
But only putty, brass ‘n paint,
How quick we’d drop ‘er.
But she ain’t.

The US is not England, but the US has accepted the mantle formerly carried by that little Island off the coast of Western Europe.

It is operating within a framework of law and order that has endured for centuries and which is now under attack.

The US is not a force of evil, preying on the helpless of the world.

On the contrary, the US is very likely the last real hope for justice and order in this increasingly anarchical world.

Isn't it nice to be on the right side of things?

The formers guardians of the gates have either been incapacitated or have given up the effort.

US outreach of all sorts deploys to the far corners of the earth: medical; military; economic; technological; charitable;, etc., etc., and on and on. And I could go on with specificity.

I say to the listeners and readers of the Archbishop and the professor and to others of their type, take what they say on matters foreign to their training and profession with a grain of salt.

They do not know what they are talking about.

They just don’t get it.

WEBSITES OF INTEREST...ESPECIALLY TO EPISCOPALIANS

Below are four websites of interest, especially to Christian readers, especially to Episcopalian Christian readers.
There is a world of conversation going on out there.
So much to read and think about and so little time.

http://www.northernplainsanglicans.blogspot.com/

http://www.kendallharmon.net/t19/


http://episcopalchurch.typepad.com/episcope/

http://www.frjakestopstheworld.blogspot.com/

PREVIOUS ADDRESS/NAME OF BLOG

The link below will or should take you to Two Flags, the predecessor of this blog which lived for about two years.

I make it accessible for whatever insight it may provide.

http://journals.aol.com/alsrgarnie/TwoFlags/

A longer version of the same address may be helpful if the above address does not serve:

http://journals.aol.com/alsrgarnie/TwoFlags/;jsessionid=EEAAE9284F634E6BB809069A95921B12

Two Flags is now inactive.

PREDICTIONS

It looks like Rudi v. Hillary in 2008. Both have baggage. She has more.

A lot more.

The Iraq War will continue to be won. Yes, the word is won. Casualties will continue to decline. National democrats will grow progressively quiet on their calls for an idiotic early withdrawal.

Iran will either abort the nuclear weapons program in a manner acceptable to US and the West or suffer more than it wants to. This will happen sooner rather than later.

US airpower has begun practicing the dropping of the bunker busters. Iran should take notice.

If it is true that the United States Army and Marine Corps are stressed by their current responsibilities, it is also true that the United States Navy and Air Force are totally unstressed. We are talking naval battle groups and squadrons.

The American public will become educated about the importance of private security forces in war zones. They will be seen to be essential and not out of control in any sense of the word. If this is not seen to be the case, it will be a blow to public understanding of what is necessary in this new world of ours.

The most dire predictions of global warming will be seen to be nonsense.

Algore will be seen to have played fast and loose with reality. The awarding of his prize is a disgrace to the process.

The faithful who believed the above two apocalyptic sources of ignorance will be embarrassed if they have the sense to be aware of reality.

The Presidential Election of 2008 will prove to be a fascinating one.

Not long ago, it could be argued that to some degree at least, the two national parties were tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum.

Believe me, this is not the case today.

THANKSGIVING 2007

Thanksgiving Weekend has come and gone and it went well, as expected and as hoped for, thank the Lord.

Cousins, children, grandchildren, significant others, and spouses thereof gathered at the family seat, as it were, the home of Grandma and Grandpa.

There was turkey and taters and the whole traditional lot and folks all brought their individual specialties.

We enjoyed cocktails and main course and dessert.

We looked out the windows at the frozen koi pond and the bird feeders and the Two Flags.

We thanked God for our blessings and lamented and tried to understand the reverses to friends and family and the world.

We talked of family gatherings of the past.

On Friday we breakfasted and shopped and dined and enjoyed fellowship till late hours.

On Saturday we withdrew to the 19th Century by means of a short drive to a small town and did lunch; a walkabout amidst Victorian trappings; and returned home for leftovers.

On Sunday we enjoyed fine dining and a superb professional stage production of Christmas Carol.

How sweet it is/was!

Thank the Good Lord.

And the national and international news was upbeat.

The Democrat leadership in the Congress was absent from the headlines.

Casualties were down in the war zones.

Shopping in the nation’s malls was proceeding at a brisker-than-expected pace.

Oil prices appeared to be leveling off .

All the old problems were still out there, but the family gathered and for a moment at least, a lot seemed right with the world.

We prayed for those in need and thanked God for His blessings.

It seemed that we could utter the Elizabethan prayer with some confidence:

These are the days that the Lord hath made.
Let us rejoice and be glad in them.
... paraphrased

BUMPER STICKER OF THE DAY

TO ERR IS HUMAN

TO FORGIVE DIVINE

THE UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS DOES NEITHER

NEVER TRUER WORDS

During the Second World War, the President of the United States sent the following to the British Prime Minister:

Sail on, O Ship of State!
Sail on, O Union, strong and great!
Humanity with all its fears,
With all the hopes of future years,
Is hanging breathless on thy fate!

Of course, FDR was using the verse to acknowledge the importance of Britain to the war effort and to encourage continued heroic efforts.

The Longfellow verse was accurate with regard to Britain in 1941.

It is at least as accurate with regard to the United States in 2007.

It is a no-brainer that there is only one force on the planet with the ability and the determination to suppress world anarchy.

The US did not help the allies defeat the Axis in WW2. The Allies helped the United States do so.

The same is true today.

We do need the help of allies. But they will be helping us.

The US has to do the heavy lifting.

That part of Humanity which knows the score is, or should be, hanging breathless on thy fate!

GREETINGS

Welcome to The Study.

The Study is a blog I have created for my purposes.

Main areas of interest, prejudices, point of view, etc., will quickly become self-evident and will not be discussed at this time.

All visitors to this site are welcome and all are encouraged to comment on any postings in an appropriate manner.