Toad

We were working in the garden last night with our two youngest Granddaughters, when I saw a toad.  I like to see toads in our garden, as they eat bugs, which I don't like to see in our garden.  I pointed him out to the kids, who had never seen a toad before, to the best of my knowledge. 

Now Gael, was a bit startled, as Brother Toad blended in quite well, until he jumped.  Then she thought he was kinda ugly and creepy, but did look with a slightly revolted curiosity at him.  She kept asking "What is He?" as simply saying he was a toad didn't mean a lot to her.  But Rosie, her cousin who is just a few weeks different in age (Their moms are twins too) had a different approach.  She got as close to Brother toad as she could, and when he hid, she picked the cover he was under off.  She also wanted to pet him, which we forbade on the grounds that we don't want Brother Toad to run away.

A little later she saw him again, and the behavior was explained:  I told her mom that she had found the toad again and was looking at him.  Her mom jumped up and said "There's a Toad? I want to see him too!" and went running off to look at the toad with her kid.

My family is a bit weird.

BTW--for those who an interest is such things, the toad was not a common toad, the grayish lump we see so often.  He was reddish, with a longer body and a more "frog like" physiognomy.  I am unsure of the species, and may try to look him up, as I am a redneck, but a nerdly redneck.

That Arizona Law

Justice Department figures:

3 border Patrol Agents assaulted per day.

One kidnapping in Phoenix Az every 35 hours--related to cross border drug traffic.

1 in 5 American teens between 15 and 17 have used drugs supplied by Mexican drug smugglers.

And,  looking at Pima county, something more that 70% of crimes ov violence or against property have involved illegal border crossers.

If I lived in AZ I'd cheer that horrible law, that tried to protect me from all this crap.

How Many?

How many creditable accusations of Clerical Sexual Abuse were made agianst the Catholic clergy in 2009?

As reported in the New York Times, SIX.

Compare with the numbers of teachers accused in any given week.  Hmmm.....

Well, Gee Whiz....

New York State is fixing to rescind the statute of limitations in sexual abuse cases of minors.  Not just clerical abuse, but all abuse, including schools, hospitals etc.

There is a lot of lobbying activity against this law, with the lobbyists for educators, physicians etc complaining that it is difficult to ascertain the facts of something that happened 40 or 50 years ago, and it would be unfair, and that it would cost lots and lots of money.

No one raised these objections when the law was aimed solely at the Catholic Church, but now that it might apply to everyone, it's a bad idea.

No, there's no anti catholic prejudice in the US.  And seeing as how the Justice department has long maintained that the most likely place for a child to be sexually abused outside the home is school, the schools are upset.

A Death in Italy

Zenit is reporting that there was an abortion in Italy, of an unborn boy.  The boy had "two deformations", one of the palate one of the lip.  In plain language, the parents opted to kill their child rather than deal with the correctable problem of a hare lip.

The child survived the abortion, and was placed on a sheet in a container to die.  The child lived for two days.

Consider the selfishness and hate, that would lead not just to the murder by abortion of this boy, but to the neglect that would let this child die, in agony, unloved and uncomforted because his murderously selfish parents couldn't deal with a correctable defect!

More Moral Courage

There are now 10 Diocese in the US that do not support the CCHD. 

Bishop Joseph Adamec of Altoona-Johnstown is instead having a collection for Catholic Charities.

And Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Harrisburg also stopped collecting for the CCHD.  Bishop Rhoades is now the Bishop for Fort Wayne-Southbend, but the change is remaining in place.

Little by little, this misguided effort, that actually works against the Church, is being challenged by the Bishops, the ones who should be watching this sort of thing.

Death to the Derby!

Derby week is a monumental pain.  In fact, the second half of April is a pain, because of the hullaballoo about the derby and related events.

I say--kill the Derby.  I'm sick of it.  And I noticed something, the whole area revolves around an event that most of us can't go to, simply because of cost:  The cheepest seats aren't seats, theyre a place to stand at $40 a head.  And since the 70s, the working class and lower middle class has been frozen out of it.  You used to be able to get a mint julep for about $2.50--try that now!

In fact, if you do get into the cheep "seats", you can't watch the race, you gotta watch a screen that televises it.

I gotta ask myself, why all the hype for something that most of us are unwelcome at?

And besides, I'd like to be able to move around town, etc without being bombarded by weeks of hype for a race that lasts two minutes, and is damned near impossible to handicap!

Scumbag.

No other word for him.  A Guy named Peter Melzer lives in Yonkers New York.  He used to be a teacher of high school science.  He was then and still is a member of NAMBLA.  he has never been convicted of a sex crime.  He maintains that he has never violeated US law.  He admits to traveling to forign countries to have sex with boys.

About two years ago he moved into a neighborhood filled with young children, and the folks are nervous.

Read about him at:  http://wcbstv.com/seenat11/peter.melzer.nambla.2.1658182.html .

Brandt's Got Balls

Bishop Lawrence Brandt, of Greensburg, PA has severed all ties between his diocese and CCHD, citing their support of anti-catholic groups, and programs that violate Catolic teaching.

He has also refused to let any Diocesan or Parish assets, venues or resources be used by the Sisters of St. Joseph in Baden, PA for the purpose of recruiting or expansion, in light of the Sisters defying the USCCBs position on the health care bill.  The siters were signatories of the NETWORK document promoting the passage of the health care bill, and subverting the teaching authority of the bishops.  They then started a program called "Explore" aimed at recruiting high school girls.

His Excellency displays that which has been needed from the American Heirarchy for years:  moral courage.

It's Been a Weird April

We had about a week and a half of unseasonably warm--some said hot--weather this month, and now we're having a period of unseasonably cool weather.  When it was warm we were coming close to records set in the 1880s-90s, and now for close to a week we've been about 15 degrees below normal.

It was very dry, about 6 1/2 inches down for the year, and it's rained for four days, and will pick up agin Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

I guess though, if one just looked at the monthly average, it would seem unexceptional.

I Got Groped

No kidding.  I was walking down 4th street in Louisville, when a female beggar came up to ask for money.  It was sad.  her mouth bore the marks of a savage punching at some point in her past, she couldn't talk clearly.  Her hair was beggining to grey.  Her clothes were rather dirty.

I didn't have any money to give her. 

She asked again and fondled my "package", while saying something unintelligble.

It's sad, that a woman could be reduced, by whatever circumstances, to groping strangers on the street in the hopes that it will provide her with money, supposedly for lunch.  In a town that sponsers an event as pricey and upscale as the Derby, that this is on one of the main "public face" streets of Louisville is awful.

Guess What!

Three years ago, the Archdiocese of Louisville had three seminarians.  The class slated for entry into seminary this fall numbers Twenty!

Apb. Kurtz was sent in part because he has a good record of promoting vocations. And, you can see the difference.