Pope Benedict XVI teaches at the University of Regensburg

The discussion is entitled: "Three Stages in the Program of De-Hellenization" and here are quotes (emphasis mine):

I was reminded of all this (reasonability to raise the question of God through the use of reason, and to do so in the context of the tradition of the Christian faith) recently, when I read the edition by professor Theodore Khoury (Muenster) of part of the dialogue carried on -- perhaps in 1391 in the winter barracks near Ankara -- by the erudite Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus and an educated Persian on the subject of Christianity and Islam, and the truth of both.

It was probably the emperor himself who set down this dialogue, during the siege of Constantinople between 1394 and 1402; and this would explain why his arguments are given in greater detail than the responses of the learned Persian. The dialogue ranges widely over the structures of faith contained in the Bible and in the Koran, and deals especially with the image of God and of man, while necessarily returning repeatedly to the relationship of the "three Laws": the Old Testament, the New Testament and the Koran.

In this lecture I would like to discuss only one point -- itself rather marginal to the dialogue itself -- which, in the context of the issue of "faith and reason," I found interesting and which can serve as the starting point for my reflections on this issue.

In the seventh conversation ("diálesis" -- controversy) edited by professor Khoury, the emperor touches on the theme of the jihad (holy war). The emperor must have known that sura 2:256 reads: "There is no compulsion in religion." It is one of the suras of the early period, when Mohammed was still powerless and under [threat]. But naturally the emperor also knew the instructions, developed later and recorded in the Koran, concerning holy war.

Without descending to details, such as the difference in treatment accorded to those who have the "Book" and the "infidels," he turns to his interlocutor somewhat brusquely with the central question on the relationship between religion and violence in general, in these words: "Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached."

The emperor goes on to explain in detail the reasons why spreading the faith through violence is something unreasonable. Violence is incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul. "God is not pleased by blood, and not acting reasonably ("syn logo") is contrary to God's nature. Faith is born of the soul, not the body. Whoever would lead someone to faith needs the ability to speak well and to reason properly, without violence and threats.... To convince a reasonable soul, one does not need a strong arm, or weapons of any kind, or any other means of threatening a person with death...."

The decisive statement in this argument against violent conversion is this: Not to act in accordance with reason is contrary to God's nature. The editor, Theodore Khoury, observes: For the emperor, as a Byzantine shaped by Greek philosophy, this statement is self-evident. But for Muslim teaching, God is absolutely transcendent. His will is not bound up with any of our categories, even that of rationality. Here Khoury quotes a work of the noted French Islamist R. Arnaldez, who points out that Ibn Hazn went so far as to state that God is not bound even by his own word, and that nothing would oblige him to reveal the truth to us. Were it God's will, we would even have to practice idolatry.

As far as understanding of God and thus the concrete practice of religion is concerned, we find ourselves faced with a dilemma which nowadays challenges us directly. Is the conviction that acting unreasonably contradicts God's nature merely a Greek idea, or is it always and intrinsically true?

[snip]

In all honesty, one must observe that in the late Middle Ages we find trends in theology which would sunder this synthesis between the Greek spirit and the Christian spirit. In contrast with the so-called intellectualism of Augustine and Thomas, there arose with Duns Scotus a voluntarism which ultimately led to the claim that we can only know God's "voluntas ordinata." Beyond this is the realm of God's freedom, in virtue of which he could have done the opposite of everything he has actually done.

This gives rise to positions which clearly approach those of Ibn Hazn and might even lead to the image of a capricious God, who is not even bound to truth and goodness. God's transcendence and otherness are so exalted that our reason, our sense of the true and good, are no longer an authentic mirror of God, whose deepest possibilities remain eternally unattainable and hidden behind his actual decisions.

As opposed to this, the faith of the Church has always insisted that between God and us, between his eternal Creator Spirit and our created reason there exists a real analogy, in which unlikeness remains infinitely greater than likeness, yet not to the point of abolishing analogy and its language (cf. Lateran IV).

God does not become more divine when we push him away from us in a sheer, impenetrable voluntarism; rather, the truly divine God is the God who has revealed himself as logos and, as logos, has acted and continues to act lovingly on our behalf. Certainly, love "transcends" knowledge and is thereby capable of perceiving more than thought alone (cf. Ephesians 3:19); nonetheless it continues to be love of the God who is logos. Consequently, Christian worship is "logic latreía" -- worship in harmony with the eternal Word and with our reason (cf. Romans 12:1).

[snip]

A reason which is deaf to the divine and which relegates religion into the realm of subcultures is incapable of entering into the dialogue of cultures.

[snip]

"Not to act reasonably (with logos) is contrary to the nature of God," said Manuel II, according to his Christian understanding of God, in response to his Persian interlocutor. It is to this great logos, to this breadth of reason, that we invite our partners in the dialogue of cultures. To rediscover it constantly is the great task of the university.

[Translation of German original issued by the Holy See; adapted]

© Copyright 2006 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Now, I ask you to read the entire lecture and you will see that the Main Stream Media have twisted the intent of the message. And I believe the real message is that last quote above . . . "Not to act reasonably is contrary to the nature of God."

If Islam and Mohammedanism cannot act reasonably, how can they dialogue their culture and religion with other religions? And as we see, with the assistance of the MSM, Mohammedans are willing to behead and kill those who would say that their religion is violent.

Does the word "reasonability" have no Arabic translation? Apparently so.

The Truths the Democrats Fear

The Democrats threatened ABC/Disney over "The Path to 9/11" - but what's so extraordinary that legislators in the federal government would use their power so...cravenly? Apparently, the truth hurts.

Click on the title or the lines above and when you get to the YouTube screens on the site, you may have to click on the arrow at the left side of the screen twice to get it to load and play (as I did).

If you haven't visited YouTube yet, I invite you to do so and to search for "WTC" or "World Trade Center" or "911" (in any configuration) to watch some lovely tributes as well as to see some footage you may not have seen before.

Support Traditional Values!

Urban Sprawl as Urban Myth

Read the article by Anne Casselman in DISCOVER Vol. 27 No. 09 | September 2006 | Environment

So click on the link and read the entire article. I so love it when I'm intuitively correct.

This made my weekend! But then, I'm easy to entertain. Auntie Coosa

Crock and The Croc

Scene: Heaven

From below, a tanned man wearing khaki short sleeve button down shirt, khaki shorts and hiking boots ascends.

From above, a buff colored Cocker Spaniel comes prancing over the clouds.

First to speak, the Cocker says, "Hey, I hear you're looking for me."

The man says, "G'day mate. Do I know you? Why do you think I'm looking for you?"

The Cocker says, "I heard that someone was hunting a Crock and that's my knickname."

The man laughs and says, "WhoooooHoooooo, they call me 'The Croc Hunter' as in Crocodile. I'm looking for me Mum and me best mate, Suey."

The Cocker smiles his clownish grin and says, "They're over here waiting on you. C'mon and I'll take you there."

Crock and The Croc walk side by side, ascending the clouds into the realm they'll call home until it's our turn to do the same.

(Now, do NOT tell me that dogs don't go to heaven or that Steve Irwin isn't there [yet], or any such foolishness. This is the scene in my heart, not actual fact. Just because no One lets me get there to check out this story doesn't mean I can't visualize it and enjoy it for what it is: a scene in my heart. As you read this, put aside all your negativity and just enjoy the tale. You too may have a "heart scene" that you've never shared with anyone because you're afraid of negative comments. Feel free to share in the comments. And if you don't want me to post the comment, let me know, as I moderate all comments.)

Pace e Bene,
Auntie Coosa

Crockett -- a year later

On the anniversary of Crockett's death (09/03), I was visiting my son and his family. The entire month of August, I have mourned his death. I have not made the pilgrimage to his burial site in about six months. He lives in my heart and only his bones and skin are there. I will go visit and put new flowers on his grave this month.

The defining moments in my life (so far): The birth of my children, their marriages and the birth of my grandchildren. The deaths of my grandparents. Easter Triiduum 1992 when I was confirmed into the Catholic Church. Being diagnosed with Fibromyalgia Syndrome. The day John Kennedy was killed. The terrorists planes ramming the Twin Towers on 09/11/2001. And the death of Crockett Nicholas on 09/03/2005.

I've had other 'moments' but I've chosen these at this time to define me.
1- I'm a mother and a grandmother.
2- I lost my grandparents, moving me up one rung on the forebear ladder from 'grandchild' to 'parent.'
3- Becoming a Catholic is indescribable: it was the culmination of my spiritual search for "place."
4- Having FMS has been a challenge. I was able to hold the disability at bay with vitamin supplements, but it finally wore me down and I am on prescriptions which allow me to function more or less 'normally' (depending on your definition of 'normal' of course).
5- The day JFK was shot, I was a freshman at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. On my way back to my dorm (the old "Auburn Hall" which is now apartments), someone walked past me and told me JFK had been shot. Now, I was a Goldwater Girl, but I knew enough to say "don't joke about such things" not knowing that it wasn't just 'idle talk' but reality. I remember standing in the doorway to the dorm room of the only girl in Auburn Hall with a television set (black and white) and watching the replay of the event. It was not something I assimilated easily. We don't (the USA doesn't) kill its Presidents, we just vote them out of office (at least every 8 years if not every 4). But JFK was shot and killed. And for what? Did the USA go into a hidey-hole? No, we are (the USA is) too diverse to do that. We get up and continue to live our lives.
6- On September 11, 2001, I had a dental appointment in a town south of where I live and was on the highway driving there when the terrorists used our own airplanes to strike a blow at the USA. I arrived and was ushered into the area where the staff and dentist were watching the replays. I was the only patient they'd not been able to contact to change my dentist appointment. We talked and then I got my teeth cleaned and we watched more news. My comment was "This is the USA, this doesn't happen in the USA!" Well, of course, it did. We know the hows and whys now, five years later. The 9/11 Commission Report is being made into a docudrama by ABC News and Disney (edited due to threats by the Democrat Party who do not like to see the truth show up on everyone's television screens) this Sept 10 and 11. The 5 hour docudrama is reportedly taken directly from the 9/11 Commission Report.
7- Crockett was run over at 12:15 AM on 09/03/05. His death was devastating to me. The only parallel is the death of both grandmothers. My one grandmother decided she was going to die and two weeks later she did. She was my anchor to my genealogy. The other grandmother's death cost me my "grandchild" status. I was a traumatized zombie for two weeks after that. But with Crockie, I've never quite gotten over his untimely death. Partly out of guilt for not leashing him, partly out of anger that the truck (pulling a double wheeled open trailer) could have slowed, honked, and missed him. Instead the driver hit him, got him caught in the double wheels of the trailer, zig-zagged along the road to release his trapped body, and turned off his running lights so that no one could read his tag number. He sped up once the body was left lying in the middle of the roadway. It was dark, I didn't even think that the "thud" I heard was Crockett's death, and it took me 10 to 15 minutes to locate his body. Crockett "always" went to the back yard. He had been beside me and then when I took something from the car into the house, I noticed he was gone. I never for once thought that he'd crossed the highway (he'd never done that before). Now, I'm fairly sure that he had seen deer eating fruit in the yard and they'd run across the street instead of back into the woods behind my house as they usually did. He followed and was prancing back home when he was hit.

Maybe because Crockett's death is the most recent "defining event" of my life, it's still the one which affects me the most. There was an indefinable specialness about Crockett. I miss him terribly. Crockett and Casey tolerated each other, but I know she missed him after he died.

(The date on the photo is not correct.)

Crocodile Hunter

One thing Steve and Terri Irwin did for the world is to give us a wealth of information about Australia. Suddenly everyone wanted to go to Australia to see their Zoo. Another thing they did was educate a generation of children and adults about wildlife. Steve's enthusiasm was contagious -- even through a television screen. He LIVED his life. And we who watched The Crocodile Hunter television programs are richer for it.

Terri, we will always hold you and Steve and your family in high regard.


Your family has been a part of our extended family for a long time. I pray that GOD will give you grace in this time of loss. You will always be dear to our hearts. There just are no adequate words to express our deep sympathy for you. We love you, Terri, Bindi and Bob. We love you.

Pace e Bene, Auntie Coosa

Can you translate these?

Arabic


Persian Farsi


Kurdish


Urdu


Hebrew


Latin
sic enim dilexit Deus mundum ut Filium suum unigenitum daret ut omnis qui credit in eum non pereat sed habeat vitam aeternam

Yes, they all say the same thing. Can you figure it out without searching Google?

"Useful Idiots"

Amil Imani:

Islam enjoys a large and influential ally among the non-Muslims: A new generation of “Useful Idiots,” the sort of people Lenin identified living in liberal democracies who furthered the work of communism. This new generation of Useful Idiots also lives in liberal democracies, but serves the cause of Islamofascism—another virulent form of totalitarian ideology.

Useful Idiots are naïve, foolish, ignorant of facts, unrealistically idealistic, dreamers, willfully in denial or deceptive. They hail from the ranks of the chronically unhappy, the anarchists, the aspiring revolutionaries, the neurotics who are at war with life, the disaffected alienated from government, corporations, and just about any and all institutions of society. The Useful Idiot can be a billionaire, a movie star, an academe of renown, a politician, or from any other segment of the population. Arguably, the most dangerous variant of the Useful Idiot is the “Politically Correct.” He is the master practitioner of euphemism, hedging, doubletalk, and outright deception.

/snip

The Useful Idiot may even engage in willful misinformation and deception when it suits him. Terms such as “Political Islam,” or “Radical Islam,” for instance, are contributions of the Useful Idiot. These terms do not even exist in the native parlance of Islam, simply because they are redundant. Islam, by its very nature and according to its charter—the Quran—is a radical political movement. It is the Useful Idiot who sanitizes Islam and misguides the populace by saying that the “real Islam” constitutes the main body of the religion; and, that this main body is non-political and moderate.

/snip

The lesson is clear. Beware of the Useful Idiots who live in liberal democracies. Knowingly or unknowingly, they serve as the greatest volunteer and effective soldiers of Islam. They pave the way for the advancement of Islam and they will assuredly be among the very first victims of Islam as soon as it assumes power.

Freedom of Iran

Mohammedan Converts

Not just one Mohammedan, but three! Watch and listen to the interview.

"No one (Arab or Jew) has a "right of return". Jews who fled Arab persecution from 1948 to 1956 should have no right of return to Arab lands, and Arabs who ran away in 1948 and 1967 should have no right of return either. This should end all argument. Yet the Jews accept this judgment, while the Arabs reject EVERYTHING."

A dissenting voice

If you're age 50 or older, there's an alternative to AARP. It's NASCON. What's unusual about NASCON is that you don't have to be age 50 to join. NASCON believes that Senior Issues are Everyone's Issues.

NASCON believes that people are best served by less government, not more, and by policies that promote individual responsibility and autonomy. We believe the tax code is too complicated and lawsuits are out of control. We also believe that tough choices are needed to strengthen Social Security for our children and grandchildren.

NASCON: supporting issues which do and which will relate to Seniors.

Thanks for the favor!

The person who had me tossed off a certain backpacking related website may have done me a great favor.

I've been googling and have found a plethora of backpacking related websites I never knew existed.

So to you "T" -- your intolerance has blossomed into a wonderful website adventure.

Twisted?

I received a reply to a post I'd made on a backpacking forum which threw me for a loop. The person called my post twisted, sick and sad. He said it was propaganda and told me I'd hate the {Appalachian} Trail because it was full of "tolerance,compassion and empathy of peoples rights and the environment." Which I can quickly assume this person had none of for me but expected me to offer to him and others. The response was mean-spirited and crucially intolerant.

Someone explain to me why the "progressive socialists" insist that others be tolerant but that they don't have to show the same tolerance toward those with whom they disagree.

No one who is honest can claim to be tolerant in every situation. Unless that person is dead. Everyone has issues which he is willing to tolerate and those which he refuses to tolerate.

Personally, I really can't tolerate people who litter and toss garbage and broken appliances on back roads or leave old cars to rust and leach chemicals into the ground water. But then, that's just me.

I can't tolerate people who can't discuss a topic without bringing up their political agenda. I'm not talking about personal posting on a blog, I'm talking about a public or private forum not remotely connected to politics. But again, that's just me.

I can't tolerate people who disparage religion and faith. If a person has no basis for his morality, then how does he choose what is right and what is wrong? I don't tolerate situational ethics, either. Again, that's just me.

Add to that: I can't tolerate people who insist that it's their 'god-given' right to kill those who refuse to convert to their 'religion' {of peace}. I tolerate freedom of religion. If you want to believe one way and you can live in peace and harmony with others who believe differently, I can tolerate that. But my tolerance stops where you start demanding that your religion is the original religion and I have no choice but to believe as you do . . . or you'll kill me. But then, that's me.

Yup, I'm intolerant and that short list doesn't begin to list the issues of my intolerance. Read the blog and you'll quickly see where my tolerance crosses the line into intolerance.

And I guess the coup d'etat is that I have been removed as a member of the very backpacking forum where this mean-spirited response was made.

What did I do? I don't have a copy of my original post. I recall being excited about Thru Hiking the Appalachian Trail when I wrote it. And I wrote about hiking an innovative way -- by time and not distance. Maybe that was it -- I thought outside the box and the other person wasn't capable of a paradigm shift.

Global Population doesn't determine who gets the prize

Global Islamic population is approximately 1,200,000,000, or 20% of the
world population...

They have received the following Nobel Prizes:

Literature:
1988 - Najib Mahfooz.

Peace:
1978 - Mohamed Anwar El-Sadat
1994 - Yaser Arafat

Physics:
1990 - Elias James Corey
1999 - Ahmed Zewail

Medicine:
1960 - Peter Brian Medawar
1998 - Ferid Mourad


Global Jewish population is approximately 14,000,000, or about 00.02% of the
world population...

They have received the following Nobel Prizes:

Literature:
1910 - Paul Heyse
1927 - Henri Bergson
1958 - Boris Pasternak
1966 - Shmuel Yosef Agnon
1966 - Nelly Sachs
1976 - Saul Bellow
1978 - Isaac Bashevis Singer
1981 - Elias Canetti
1987 - Joseph Brodsky
1991 - Nadine Gordimer World

Peace:
1911 - Alfred Fried
1911 - Tobias Michael Carel Asser
1968 - Rene Cassin
1973 - Henry Kissinger
1978 - Menachem Begin
1986 - Elie Wiesel
1994 - Shimon Peres
1994 - Yitzhak Rabin

Physics:
1905 - Adolph Von Baeyer
1906 - Henri Moissan
1907 - Albert Abraham Michelson
1908 - Gabriel Lippmann
1910 - Otto Wallach
1915 - Richard Willstaetter
1918 - Fritz Haber
1921 - Albert Einstein
1922 - Niels Bohr
1925 - James Franck
1925 - Gustav Hertz
1943 - Gustav Stern
1943 - George Charles de Hevesy
1944 - Isidor Issac Rabi
1952 - Felix Bloch
1954 - Max Born
1958 - Igor Tamm
1959 - Emilio Segre
1960 - Donald A. Glaser
1961 - Robert Hofstadter
1961 - Melvin Calvin
1962 - Lev Davidovich Landau
1962 - Max Ferdinand Perutz
1965 - Richard Phillips Feynman
1965 - Julian Schwinger
1969 - Murray Gell-Mann
1971 - Dennis Gabor
1972 - William Howard Stein
1973 - Brian David Josephson
1975 - Benjamin Mottleson
1976 - Burton Richter
1977 - Ilya Prigogine
1978 - Arno Allan Penzias
1978 - Peter L Kapitza
1979 - Stephen Weinberg
1979 - Sheldon Glashow
1979 - Herbert Charles Brown
1980 - Paul Berg
1980 - Walter Gilbert
1981 - Roald Hoffmann
1982 - Aaron Klug
1985 - Albert A. Hauptman
1985 - Jerome Karle
1986 - Dudley R. Herschbach
1988 - Robert Huber
1988 - Leon Lederman
1988 - Melvin Schwartz
1988 - Jack Steinberger
1989 - Sidney Altman
1990 - Jerome Friedman
1992 - Rudolph Marcus
1995 - Martin Perl
2000 - Alan J. Heeger

Economics:
1970 - Paul Anthony Samuelson
1971 - Simon Kuznets
1972 - Kenneth Joseph Arrow
1975 - Leonid Kantorovich
1976 - Milton Friedman
1978 - Herbert A. Simon
1980 - Lawrence Robert Klein
1985 - Franco Modigliani
1987 - Robert M. Solow
1990 - Harry Markowitz
1990 - Merton Miller
1992 - Gary Becker
1993 - Robert Fogel

Medicine:
1908 - Elie Metchnikoff
1908 - Paul Erlich
1914 - Robert Barany
1922 - Otto Meyerhof
1930 - Karl Landsteiner
1931 - Otto Warburg
1936 - Otto Loewi
1944 - Joseph Erlanger
1944 - Herbert Spencer Gasser
1945 - Ernst Boris Chain
1946 - Hermann Joseph Muller
1950 - Tadeus Reichstein
1952 - Selman Abraham Waksman
1953 - Hans Krebs
1953 - Fritz Albert Lipmann
1958 - Joshua Lederberg
1959 - Art hur Kornberg
1964 - Konrad Bloch
1965 - Francois Jacob
1965 - Andre Lwoff
1967 - George Wald
1968 - Marshall W. Nirenberg
1969 - Salvador Luria
1970 - Julius Axelrod
1970 - Sir Bernard Katz
1972 - Gerald Maurice Edelman
1975 - Howard Martin Temin
1976 - Baruch S. Blumberg
1977 - Roselyn Sussman Yalow
1978 - Daniel Nathans
1980 - Baruj Benacerraf
1984 - Cesar Milstein
1985 - Michael Stuart Brown
1985 - Joseph L. Goldstein
1986 - Stanley Cohen (& Rita Levi-Montalcini)
1988 - Gertrude Elion
1989 - Harold Varmus
1991 - Erwin Neher
1991 - Bert Sakmann
1993 - Richard J. Roberts
1993 - Phillip Sharp
1994 - Alfred Gilman
1995 - Edward B. Lewis


The Jews are not demonstrating with their dead on the streets, yelling and
chanting and asking for revenge.

The Jews are not promoting brainwashing their children in military training
camps.

The Jews are not teaching their children how to blow themselves up and cause maximum deaths of Jews and other non Muslims.

The Jews don't hijack planes, nor kill athletes at the Olympics.

The Jews don't traffic slaves, nor have leaders calling for Jihad and death
to all the Infidels.

The Jews don't have the economic strength of petroleum, nor the possibilities to force the world's media to see "their side" of the question.

Perhaps the world's Muslims should consider investing more in standard
education and less in blaming the Jews for all their problems.

Secular Sacraments of the Democrat Party

Bishop Thomas Doran, writing on the diocesan (Diocese of Rockford) Web site, has issued a withering indictment of Democrat Party leaders.

The seven “sacraments” of their secular culture are abortion, buggery, contraception, divorce, euthanasia, feminism of the radical type, and genetic experimentation and mutilation. These things they unabashedly espouse, profess and promote. Their continuance in public office is a clear and present danger to our survival as a nation.

These unholy sacraments of our secular culture are the seeds of the destruction of our nation.

Only One Morality

In his State of the Union address in 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt stated:

"There are those who believe that a new modernity demands a new morality. What they fail to consider is the harsh reality that there is no such thing as a new morality.There is only one morality. All else is immorality.There is only true Christian ethics over against which stands the whole of paganism.If we are to fulfill our great destiny as a people, then we must return to the old morality, the sole morality....All these blatant sham reformers, in the name of a new morality, preach the old vice of self-indulgence which rotted out first the moral fiber and then even the external greatness of Greece and Rome."

Vermin Mohammedans and the Supremes

In an article entitled Moral equivalency dooms civilization, Craige McMillan makes the following statement:

The Islamic terrorist vermin plotting mass murder to impose an Islamic theocracy that will consume the entire world need to be removed from the nation's criminal justice system, interred in prisoner of war camps for the duration of the conflict, and when the conflict is over tried, found guilty and executed for their "crimes against the peace of the world." Any pronouncements issued by the U.S. Supreme Court may be safely ignored, inasmuch as the Constitution gives them no authority to issue any decisions or pronouncements affecting the president's conduct of a war. Congress can stop such pronouncements and power grabs by forcing the court to adhere to its constitutional mandate; surely separation-of-powers raids into the executive's turf is bad judicial behavior and as such warrant impeachment.

Write your Congressperson and ask for impeachment of any Supreme Court Judge who tries to create laws from the bench. The Constitution gives them no authority to create mandates. They're there to see that the Constitution is not compromised.

One of My Soapboxes

One of my Soapboxes is Domestic Abuse/Violence. I hate it. I hate to hear about or read about a woman whose personality has been changed by it. The saddest thing is that the woman often doesn't even realize how subtly her very identity has been overshadowed by the other's controlling personality. It often starts with what appears to be "jealousy" and "protectiveness" but quickly escalates from that into controlling every minute of the day. And it continues to escalate.

Definition of Domestic Violence:

Victims of abuse may experience punched walls, control of finances, lying, using children to manipulate a parent's emotions, intimidation, isolation from family and friends, fear, shame, criticism, cuts, crying and afraid children, broken bones, confusion, forced sexual contact, manipulation, sexist comments, yelling, rages, craziness, harassment, neglect, shoving, screaming, jealousy and possessiveness, loss of self esteem, coercion, slammed doors, abandonment, silent treatment, rape, destruction of personal property, unwanted touching, name calling, strangling, ripping, slapping, biting, kicking, bruises, punching, stalking, scrapes, depression, sabotaging attendance at job or school, brainwashing, violence to pets, pinching, deprivation of physical and economic resources, public humiliation, broken promises, prevention of seeking medical and dental care, ridicule, restraining, self-medication, forced tickling, threats to harm family and friends, threats to take away the children, threats to harm animals, threats of being kicked out, threats of weapons, threats of being killed.

The President must not like Domestic Violence, either.

REAUTHORIZATION OF THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT

On January 5, 2006, President Bush signed into law the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. For text of VAWA (HR3402) visit http://thomas.loc.gov and in the search box write HR 3402. It is the #5 option (there are several versions). This legislation supports and expands continued nationwide efforts to combat domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence and stalking. Passing with overwhelming support in the House and Senate, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) of 2005 reauthorizes existing programs and creates new ones to meet emerging needs of communities working to prevent the violence.

Also, there is an Office on Violence Against Women in the US Dept. of Justice.

To learn more: DV Online Resources If you have questions about your personal situation call: 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE)

Even if think you're safe from DV, please educate yourself. You never know when you might be able to help another person. And occasionally, that other person could be . . . you.

Auntie Coosa

"Bill of No Rights"

Mitchell Kaye, a Georgia state representative from Marietta, is not the originator of the piece. The famed "Bill of No Rights" was written in 1993 by Lewis Napper, a self-described amateur philosopher and from Mississippi who ran for a U.S. Senate seat in 2000 as a Libertarian.

"We the sensible people of the United States, in an
attempt to help everyone get along, restore some
semblance of justice, avoid more riots, keep our
nation safe, promote positive behavior, and secure the
blessings of debt-free liberty to ourselves and our
great-great-great-grandchildren, hereby try one more
time to ordain and establish some common sense
guidelines for the terminally whiny, guilt ridden,
delusional, and other liberal bed-wetters. We hold
these truths to be self evident: that a whole lot of
people are confused by the Bill of Rights and are so
dim they require a Bill of NON-Rights."


ARTICLE I: You do not have the right to a new car, big
screen TV, or any other form of wealth. More power to
you if you can legally acquire them, but no one is guaranteeing
anything.

ARTICLE II: You do not have the right to never be
offended. This country is based on freedom, and that
means freedom for everyone -- not just you! You may
leave the room, turn the channel, express a different
opinion, etc.; but the world is full of idiots, and
probably always will be.

ARTICLE III: You do not have the right to be free from
harm. If you stick a screwdriver in your eye, learn to
be more careful, do not expect the tool manufacturer
to make you and all your relatives independently wealthy.

ARTICLE IV: You do not have the right to free food and
housing. Americans are the most charitable people to
be found, and will gladly help anyone in need, but we
are quickly growing weary of subsidizing generation
after generation of professional couch potatoes who
achieve nothing more than the creation of another
generation of professional couch potatoes. (This one
is my pet peeve...get an education and go
to work....don't expect everyone else to take care of you!)

ARTICLE V: You do not have the right to free health
care. That would be nice, but from the looks of public
housing, we're just not interested in public health care.

ARTICLE VI: You do not have the right to physically
harm other people. If you kidnap, rape, intentionally
maim, or kill someone, don't be surprised if the rest
of us want to see you fry in the electric chair.

ARTICLE VII: You do not have the right to the
possessions of others. If you rob, cheat, or coerce
away the goods or services of other citizens, don't be
surprised if the rest of us get together and lock you
away in a place where you still won't have the right
to a big screen color TV or a life of leisure.

ARTICLE VIII: You do not have the right to a job. All
of us sure want you to have a job, and will gladly
help you along in hard times, but we expect you to
take advantage of the opportunities of education and
vocational training laid before you to make yourself
useful. (AMEN!) (AMEN, AGAIN)

ARTICLE IX: You do not have the right to happiness.
Being an American means that you have the right to
PURSUE happiness, which by the way, is a lot easier if
you are unencumbered by an over abundance of idiotic
laws created by those of you who were confused by the
Bill of Rights.

ARTICLE X: This is an English speaking country. We
don't care where you are from, English is our
language. Learn it or go back to wherever you came
from! (lastly....)

ARTICLE XI: You do not have the right to change our
country's history or heritage. This country was
founded on the belief in one true God. And yet, you
are given the freedom to believe in any religion, any
faith, or no faith at all; with no fear of persecution.
The phrase IN GOD WE TRUST is part of our
heritage and history, and if you are uncomfortable with it,
TOUGH!!!!

The "Bill" resonates with folks because it addresses a number of issues that have often led many of us to shake our heads in disbelief. This Bill of Rights parody strikes straight at the heart of the sense of entitlement so often displayed by those who feel the world owes them a living.

Feel Free to Share, Giving Credit Where Credit is Due.

Auntie Coosa

More on the AlGore Hoax

Scientists Debunk 'Fairy Tale' of 'Global Warming'

Here We Go Again: It's Not Global Warming

Gore Slams Global Warming Critics

Writing in Britain's Daily Mail last July 9, Dr. Bellamy charged that "the world's politicians and policy makers ... have an unshakeable faith in what has, unfortunately, become one of the central credo of the environmental movement. Humans burn fossil fuels, which release increased levels of carbon dioxide – the principal so-called greenhouse gas – into the atmosphere, causing the atmosphere to heat up.

"They say this is global warming: I say this is poppycock. Unfortunately, for the time being, it is their view that prevails.

"As a result of their ignorance, the world's economy may be about to divert billions, nay trillions of pounds, dollars and rubles into solving a problem that actually doesn't exist. The waste of economic resources is incalculable and tragic."

I told you it was all politics! This is nothing but a way for AlGore to get 'name recognition' again.

I know two overt, in-your-face lefties -- one had half a brain removed due to cancer (which is no excuse for being a leftie) and the other fried his brain with marijuana (which may be an excuse for being a leftie). Both are overly emotional and become sarcastically condescending toward those who do not share their left-sided opinions. They are also 'users' of the system and the good nature of most other people. All the other lefties I know hold their political opinions and don't shove them at others. Conversations with the other lefties are interesting and undramatic.

"AlGore and facts" is an oxymoron.

A Certain Fondness

Do you have a fond memory of an event or a person from your past?

True Story: A long time ago. Maybe fifteen or sixteen lives ago, I attended a Community College near where I lived with my parents. I was just 20 years old. I was engaged at the time, but in hindsight, realize I was not nearly mature enough to get married. The C.C. held classes in the High School building. I attended the C.C. for my sophomore year and made fairly good grades, as I recall. (Remember that I sometimes have poor recall.) Between classes, a few of us would sit around a table in the "break room" and play cards. One game was entitled "high, low, jack and the game" -- I guess it was similar to "hearts" except that you had partners and verbally announced what "tricks" your team would win when you played the game. If you didn't win those specific tricks, you lost the game.

Anyway, one of the card players was a male student with whom I developed a friendship. We'd drive to McDonald's in his Austin Healey for a Big Mac & Fries (back when a 'Big Mac' was much smaller than it is today and actually tasted like food instead of cardboard). I remember that it was definitely a "cool" car and I enjoyed riding around in it.

Well, I recently reconnected with the Austin Healey owner. My recall was fond memories. He couldn't place me.

I don't know what that means exactly. After all, I got married in June and he went on to a 4-year college and a career and marriage. We didn't even exchange addresses or connect in any other way than the C.C. What was I expecting?

What was I expecting? Now that I think of it, name recognition at least. "Oh yeah, I remember you. We used to drive to McDonalds for Big Macs." Or something.

Back then, I was a bit shy (really) and unsure of myself. If I had it to do over again, I'd have attended the C.C. for the first two years of college and then gone on to a 4-year college, gotten a degree, worked for a couple years and then thought about marriage.

So, I can understand why someone would not remember another student who was 'just' a card-playing, Big-Mac-eating friend for 2 semesters of college education.

It was interesting to read about his accomplishments and to see that politically we're in the same neighborhood.

(Otherwise, he'd have hated this blog.)
Later . . . Auntie Coosa