CHURCH MOUSE 'SPLAINS IT ALL AND ADVISES

If any of you in the Episcopal Church are confused about the societies popping up here and there and everywhere in the mother church, the Church of England (although some might say that the mother church is the Scottish Episcopal Church), read Church Mouse.

Rowan tells us that the Anglican Communion is doing just fine. Yet Mouse is somewhat concerned.

And aren't we all!

Of the many societies and alphabet soup of groups, Church Mouse says:

What a dreadful mess. Factions within the church are not happy just being factions, they intend to build bigger walls around themselves so they are not contaminated by others from within their own church. And they have the nerve to say this is being done in the interest of mission. Please try explaining all this to someone of Generation Y for whom Christianity is "a distant cultural memory" and then tell me that these groupings help mission.

And might we not apply the words to the alphabet soup mix of groups in the US? The breakaways? Those who stay, but who are ever at the ready to flee, with bags packed and one foot in and one foot out? And all for the sake of mission?

Mouse says further:

Mouse has a word of advice to those looking to establish walls around their factions. Stop. Stop now. Please.

Ah, but who will heed Mouse's advice?

Thanks to Cathy for the link.

BECKY SAID IT WAS TIME - GOOD-BYE SWEET GIRL

From Roger:

Becky was put down late this morning. She regained her appetite somewhat yesterday, eating 3/4 lb of raw hamburger meat late morning and about 1/2 lb of sliced "Tavern" ham last night. She spent a good night and was eager to go the the Doggie Park this morning, but weakened fast once we got there and after a time stood by the gate, wanting to leave. By the time we were home, she was quite shaky on her feet and was misjudging distances and locations, walking into things, so I called the vet's to see if there was an opening this morning, which there was, and I took her in right in. She seemed ready to go, though it was four or five minutes before the anaesthetic sent her to sleep, so there was still some strength left.

Pray for Becky and Roger.

O Lord our God, we come before You this day in sadness. Becky, who brought Roger so much joy in life, has now died. Her happy times in Roger’s embrace have come to an end. He misses Becky already.

Help him, O God, to remember the good times with Becky. Remind him to rejoice in the happy times she brought to his home. Let him be thankful for the good life he was blessed to give to her.

We are grateful to You, God, for creating Becky, for entrusting her to Roger's care, and for sustaining her in his love for a measure of time. We understand that all that lives must die. We knew that this day would come. And yet, O God, Roger would have wanted one more day of play, one more evening of love with Becky.

O God, as he has taken care of Becky in life, we ask that You watch over her in death. You entrusted Becky to Roger's care; now, we give her back to You. May Becky find a happy new home in Your loving embrace.

As we remember Becky, may we love each other more dearly. May we care for all Your creatures, for every living thing, as Roger protected the blessed life of Becky. May her memory bless our lives with love and caring forever. Amen.

By Rabbi Barry H. Block.

(Slightly edited)

IMAGE OF THE DAY - ANGLICAN COVENANT

The Anglican Covenant as a turkey (a bad play)

With proper foresight, the producers would realize that the play should never get as far as rehearsals, much less ever be staged.

H/T to Bishop Alan, who inspired the image.

BABY PORCUPINE - RELATIONSHIPS

Have you ever seen a baby porcupine?

Fable of the porcupine

It was the coldest winter ever and many animals died because of the cold.

Some porcupines, realizing the gravity of the situation, decided to group together to share warmth.

This way they were better covered and protected ; however - the quills of each one wounded their closest companions.

After a while they decided to distance themselves one from the other and soon after they began to die, alone and frozen.

So they had to make a choice: either accept the quills of their companions or disappear from the Earth.

Wisely, they decided to go back to being together.

They learned to accept the little wounds that were caused by these close relationships, in order to benefit from what their companions offered.

It was this way that they were able to survive and thrive.

Moral of the story:

The best relationships are not ones that bring together perfect beings, but are instead ones where individuals learn to live with the imperfections of others and can still accept the gifts they have to offer.

Thanks to Doug.

UPDATE CORRECTION: According to HelloAdorable, the pictures above are baby hedgehogs and not porcupines. Further, according to HelloAdorable:

You'll be happy to know that their spines are not barbed and do not come off in self-defense like porcupines.

Oh dear! What to do about my post?

I couldn't bear to remove the pictures of the adorable baby hedgehogs, but below is a picture of a baby porcupine, which is also cute, but not, I think, as adorable as the baby hedgehogs.



Thanks to Susan S.

IT GET'S BETTER

Jonathan Smith

Song is "There Will be a Way" by Bad Religion from their album New America.

DAVID@MONTREAL'S MILD (?) RANT

Our sweet friend David@Montreal posted what I can only describe as a mild (?) rant at his website, LGTB Vocation, in response to the article in the Mangalorean on the Archbishop of Canterbury's visit to India, which states:

Bangalore, October 21: As Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the head of the worldwide Anglican Communion entered the confines of the Bishop Cotton Boys’ School in the City on Thursday evening, hundreds of faithful Christians greeted him with prayers that reverberated throughout the atmosphere.

And later, when a programme in his honour commenced with a prayer and was punctuated by greetings from heads of various Christian Dioceses of Karnataka for over two hours, the Archbishop remained patiently attentive.

The audience were more than awed by his persona. Every time, his name was read out, it evoked a huge round of applause. Predictably, he received the most passionate ovation when he was called to address the gathering. Although he spoke briefly, the Archbishop of Canterbury sought to delve on a crucial aspect of our civilisation - human rights.

He emphasised that human rights should be seen in the context of human dignity. The Archbishop said the values of unity must be upheld for peaceful co-existence.

“Human dignity ought to be protected at any cost. It’s important that the critical issue of human rights is viewed in terms of its relation with the right to self-respect,” the Archbishop of Canterbury, who leads the third largest group of Christians in the world, said.

Viva il Papa! Whoops, my mistake! He's the head of the first largest group of Christians in the world.

Anyway, our Sweet friend David@Montreal posts the following on his blog:

Am I just imagining it- the faint whiff of post-colonial condescension to William’s making this pronouncement overseas? To say nothing of the blatant hypocrisy of this coming from this particular individual whose own actions would appear to indicate a casual or only occasional acquaintance with what human dignity entails. Coming at a time when:

he continues to tolerate the prissy waffling of traumatized misogenists within the ranks of his own Church’s clergy over the consecration of women bishops; essentially dismissing the vocations of certain sisters to serve in this capacity, discounting both their lives and faith and implicitly admitting that the C of E is not ready yet to deal with more than one half of the human race as dynamic, living human beings living valid lives of faith sealed by their baptism.

All right now, I didn't say that. David said it. You can read the rest of his mild (?) rant at his website.

And I'm not sending you over there just because David calls me "blessed Mimi, Queen of the South". Such blandishments don't influence me at all, when I link.

MORE COLLECTOR BOOKS FROM LAPIN

The Weird Rabbit does not own the books. He merely found pictures of them for us, so we can't ask him questions about the naughty contents.



Is it wrong to out one's own grandfather? What do you think?



Dancing dishes, dusters, pots, and kettles! Oh, to have such a gay kitchen!

Lapin, a suggestion: If you are considering buying the books, I believe you may be aiming above your reading level. Just a thought.

My readers: I have access to pictures of a whole treasure trove of such collector books, enough material to start a series, if you would like to see more titles.

GOOD NEWS ABOUT KATZIE

From Mark at Enough About Me:

VERY GOOD NEWS
Katzie is home.

It was a very bad bladder infection, but the vet was really worried, and she went above and beyond in providing care. They gave and intravenous antibiotic, flushed his bladder with antibiotic, and sent him home with an orally-administered antibiotic - which, apparently, tastes horrible.

He's acting like his old self much more - though the long periods away from home mean that Miutu is having difficulty adjusting.

Katzie got home yesterday in time to take care of me, as a steady diet of fear, sleeplessness, and changing temperatures has led to a crushing sinus infection. Yesterday afternoon, I was too weak to turn from my back onto my side without considerable effort.

Our prayers and our donations helped save Katzie's life. Thank you all who contributed in any way. Please continue to pray for Katzie to be restored to full health.

Now Mark needs our prayers, too.

O God, the strength of the weak and the comfort of sufferers: Mercifully accept our prayers, and grant to your servant Mark the help of your power, that his sickness may be turned into health, and our sorrow into joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Mark, when you feel better, don't forget your promise of a picture of Katzie.

"A DISHONEST COVENANT"

Paul Bagshaw's was an early voice from across the pond to speak against the Anglican Covenant. Paul blogs at Not the Same Stream.

The initial judgement was that a Covenant would be a hard sell. Therefore the decision was taken to avoid as much public debate as possible but to contain debate within the smallest possible inner circles of each Province. The rest has followed: public debate has deliberately been muted and it's hard to see how much, if any, difference it made to the shaping of the Covenant.
....

The only thing that made any difference was private opposition from Primates and their representatives. And then only in relation to the terms of the Covenant. Public and official statements that stated opposition to the Covenant were apparently ignored.

Paul's voice, along with the voices of a few others such as MadPriest, was one of only a few to be heard in England against the Covenant, and that's how it will come to pass that the Covenant will likely make easy passage through General Synod of the Church of England next month.

Although many of us in the US spoke against the Covenant early and often, perhaps we could and should have called more attention to those voices in other provinces, especially in the Church of England, who were doubtful that the Covenant was good or even simply benign. If the Covenant was rejected by the Church of England, it would be dead.

Please read Paul's entire post from which I copied my title, "A Dishonest Covanant".

Paul's article from 2007 may be found in Modern Church.

H/T to MadPriest at OCICBW for the link to Paul's post.

CUTE KITTEH!!!

Thanks to Cathy.

A NEW SOCIETY TO FORM IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND?

Anglo-Catholics in the Church of England, who are opposed to women bishops, but who do not plan to join the Roman Catholic ordinariates, formed The Mission Society of St Wilfrid and St Hilda.

Now Thinking Anglicans reports:

Reform members have voted to back the creation of a religious society within the Church of England for conservative evangelicals who want to promote the church’s mission but are opposed to the consecration of women as bishops.

Speaking at the network’s annual conference yesterday, attended by over 170 members, Revd Rod Thomas, the Reform chairman, said: “This is a very positive move not just for us, but for the wider church. The creation of a society can both provide a model of how the church can change to become more focused on mission, not maintenance, and a way forward through the dilemma it faces over women bishops.

“Reform members are involved in innovative ways of reaching into local communities with the good news of Jesus Christ. Many are in churches with a good number of younger men and women being trained for future gospel work. We have a mission-focus which brings health and life that is good for the wider church, and a religious society would enable us to continue that focus.

Further, the Revd Rod Thomas, the Reform chairman, now says that the combined votes of the Anglo-Catholics and Reform members of General Synod, who are opposed to women bishops, may now be sufficient to block the draft legislation, as it is now written, when the body takes up the current legislation, since a two-thirds majority is needed for passage.

"VOTE YOUR HEART OUT"

Mark Harris at Preludium has a splendid post about politics and voting. Christine O'Donnell is a candidate for the US Senate in Mark's state.

Almost no one seems to get it: We need elected officials who are willing to do the mind numbing job of reading sewer reports and statistical tables, economic reports and proposals for new technologies and then vote with some wisdom. If they can't read or don't have time that they hire good people who do and will instruct them.

And we ought to expect from our elected leaders that they help this country break its war habit, a habit that poisons our economy, community life and takes lives endlessly.

I hear very little mention of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan by the candidates, more's the pity. Mark posts charts which illustrate the human and monetary costs of our wars.

Along with his wise words about the coming elections, Mark posted the video below, which made me smile and which I've lifted. In these times, a smile is most welcome.

NOT LATE THIS TIME!

Yesterday, I went to New Orleans to an appointment for a routine check with the ophthalmologist following my cataract surgery nearly one year ago. Since I don't like driving the Interstate highway system through cities, I planned to drive through the streets of Jefferson Parish, with the rest of the traffic and the stop lights, but as I watched the time, I saw that I would not be on time for my appointment, if I did.

After a quick prayer for nerves of steel and for my sharpest driving skills to kick in, I headed for Interstate-10, which is also congested at times, with traffic moving slowly or not at all, and hoped for the best. The journey was a breeze, and I arrived at the doctor's office with seven minutes......and a whole day to spare.

Yes, when I walked into the office, the receptionist was at her desk, but the rest of the offices were dark. Obviously, THE DOCTOR WAS NOT IN. My appointment was for today. Ah well, nothing to be done, except drive home and drive back in tomorrow (today). As I turned and started to walk out, I thought, "There are other doctors in the group practice, who work from another office. Perhaps one of them would see me." I turned back to ask the receptionist, and she said it was quite possible. With a quick phone call, she arranged for me to see a different doctor at their other office, which was only a short distance away.

Every morning, I pray in "Morning Prayer" not to be overcome by adversity. The thought of returning to New Orleans the next day did not thrill me, and, in fact, seemed to me like a small adversity. I'm not one to give up easily, and the thought which came to mind helped me to overcome. Thank God for "Morning Prayer"...and for planting ideas in listening minds?

All is well with my eyes, except that in a few months, scar tissue which formed in both eyes will have to be zapped, a rather common procedure after cataract surgery, which is done right in the office.

Since I did not have time to eat lunch before I left for my 2:00 PM appointment, I planned to eat an old-fashioned hamburger and fries at Dot's Diner, pictured below. In fact, after I saw the doctor, I could hardly wait, because the time was around 3:30 PM. My mouth watered as I approached the diner.



When I arrived at Dot's, a sign was posted on the door saying that the diner would be closed tomorrow (today) because Disney would be filming there. The cook at Dot's will play the cook in the film. She could not remember the name of the movie, but I found the title, "From the Rough", at the website of New Orleans Office of Film & Video.

Anyway, about the hamburger and fries, "Mmm mmm good!"

Oh, and, "All's well that ends well."

Off topic: Did you know that the phrase above was a proverb before Shakespeare used the words in his play?

"John Heywood included it in A dialogue conteinyng the nomber in effect of all the prouerbes in the Englishe tongue, 1546:

Lovers live by love, ye as larkes live by leekes
Saied this Ales, muche more then halfe in mockage.
Tushe (quoth mine aunte) these lovers in dotage
Thinke the ground beare them not, but wed of corage
They must in all haste, though a leafe of borage
Might by all the substance that they can fell.
Well aunt (quoth Ales) all is well that endes well."

CRISIS AT THE PALACE!

From the The Telegraph:

Malvern Water has been the choice of the Royal Family for more than 400 years after Queen Elizabeth I first drank it in the 16th century.

Queen Victoria refused to travel without the spring water and the current Queen orders gallons of it whenever she travels abroad.

But Coca-Cola, which produces the drink, are halting production at the end of next month after being squeezed out of the market by cheaper rivals.

They also claim the size of the factory in Malvern, Worcs., is too small to compete with larger brands such as Evian and Highland Spring.

Coca-Cola have now decided to sell off the site as luxury housing and make the 17 workers who produce the water redundant.

The decision has shocked residents living near the Colwall plant in the town where the water has been drank since 1558.

Paul Tuthill, a district councillor and chairman of Malvern Town Council, said: "This is a great shock.

"What is the Queen going to do about her water because she always drank Malvern Water?

"I think Coca-Cola ought to offer it for sale to local entrepreneurs to take it over rather than just sell the site for high value housing."

I expect the Queen will manage, but I'm sorry for the workers who will lose their jobs. And why not offer to sell the plant to local business people who might keep Malvern water flowing? I can guess. Coca-Cola will make a lot more money by selling off the property to developers of luxury housing.

Since the days of Elizabeth I, the water is reported to have curative qualities. Charles Dickens and Charles Darwin agreed and claimed to have been cured by drinking the water.

Thanks to Lapin for the link and the title of the post.

A LITTLE ECUMENICAL HUMOR...

A pastor's wife was expecting a baby, so he stood before the congregation and asked for a raise. After much discussion, they passed a rule that whenever the preacher's family expanded, so would his paycheck.

After 6 children, this started to get expensive and the congregation decided to hold another meeting to discuss the preacher's expanding salary.. A great deal of yelling and inner bickering ensued, as to how much the clergyman's additional children were costing the church, and how much more it could potentially cost.

After listening to them for about an hour, the pastor rose from his chair and spoke, 'Children are a gift from God, and we will take as many gifts as He gives us. Silence fell on the congregation.

In the back pew, a little old lady struggled to stand, and finally said in her frail voice, 'Rain is also a gift from God, but when we get too much of it, we wear rubbers.'

The entire congregation said, 'Amen.'

Don't blame me. Blame Paul the BB's friend, Kathy. No, not that Cathy...Kathy with a "K". Paul is naughty, and, of course, his friends are naughty, and see what they make me do? I couldn't help myself. It was two against one.

OCT. 20: WEAR PURPLE FOR THOSE LOST

On October 20th, 2010, we will wear purple in honor of the 6 gay boys who committed suicide in recent weeks/months due to homophobic abuse in their homes and at their schools. Purple represents Spirit on the LGBTQ flag and that’s exactly what we’d like all of you to have with you: spirit. Please know that times will get better and that you will meet people who will love you and respect you for who you are, no matter your sexuality. Please wear purple on October 20th. Tell your friends, family, co-workers, neighbors and schools. RIP Tyler Clementi, Asher Brown, Seth Walsh, Justin Aaberg, Raymond Chase and Billy Lucas. You are loved.

Posted by IT at The Friends of Jake.

GOOD-BYE TO BECKY

Tomorrow afternoon, Roger (Lapinbizarre) and Becky will say good-bye to each other.

From Roger:

Just off the phone with the vet's office. Have bitten the bullet and am taking Becky in at 2:00 tomorrow afternoon. She hasn't eaten for two days and has only eaten spasmodically for the past week. Far thinner now, with bones protruding all over the place. I know more about the articulation of the collar bones and hips of a moving quadruped than I ever wanted to learn under these conditions. She drinks still and still does her walks, looking for kitties in all the usual places, but slower every day, so there's life in the old girl yet (Archie!). I don't believe that I'm doing her any great favours keeping her alive, but between guilt at killing something that depends on me this deeply; love of her, and the formed by her still-continuing deep affection for me, I'm quite unhappy about it.

In May 2008, I posted the story of how Becky came to live with Roger, followed by the sad news a short time later that Becky had lung cancer. The good news is that, although at the time of diagnosis Becky was given only a few months to live, she and Roger had far more time together than anyone expected - two and a half years.

Pilgrim God
who journeys with us
through the joys and shadows
of this world

be with us
in our sorrow
and feel our pain;

help us to accept
the mystery of death
without bitterness
but with hope.

Among the shadows
of this world,
amid the turmoil of life
and the fear of death

you stand alongside us,
always blessing, always giving
arms always outstretched.

For this we know:
every living thing is yours
and returns to you.

As we ponder this mystery
we give you thanks
for the life of Becky
and we now commit her
into your loving hands.

Gentle God:
fragile is your world,
delicate are your creatures,
and costly is your love
which bears and redeems us all.
Amen.

Andrew Linzey, Animal Rites: Liturgies of Animal Care.

Pray for Becky and Roger.

UPDATE: Do you believe in the power of prayer? Here's the latest update on Becky from Roger:

Maybe your powerful prayer is working. She was wretched and panting all night, but this morning she perked up when I dressed and was ready, tail wagging, to walk. I decided to take her, gently, to the dog park for one last time. Out there she showed a fair amount of her old spirit and activity, and when she tired she sat by me, gazing up. A couple of old dog hands out there - one a professional breeder for 30 years - said "That dog's not ready to go yet". Brought her home, weary, and she headed for that back gate, wanting another walk. Upstairs, she turned up her nose at liver, yet again, but, to my surprise, scarfed down a couple of sausages (Italian; mild; onion), followed by a pound of raw ground beef. So I called the vet's office, who also said "she's not ready yet, we'll cancel".

So there we are. She's pulled another, albeit short-term, of her Lazarus jobs.

Lying peacefully, apparently contentedly, at my feet, as I write.

I don't know what to say, except that Becky is God's miracle dog.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, CATHY!

Happy Birthday to You, dance performed by Chipmunks Alvin, Theodore and Simon; music is taken from different videos and of course the Chipmunks are not singing this song by themselves. This video was intended for all who would appreciate amateur video makers :)

May you have many more Blessed and Happy Birthdays, my dear Cathy.

UPDATE: Wait! Below is a picture of the gift of a CD from Cathy, which just now arrived in the mail for me on HER birthday. How lovely! And all I gave Cathy was a blog post. Shame on me! The music is gorgeous!



The package is addressed to Miss Mimi Butler.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Cathy. I love it.

"LEAVE, WITH MY 'BLESSING'"

From Viv Groskop at the Guardian:

On our wedding day we virtually ran back down the aisle the second the ceremony ended. "I thought you were going to trip up, you were in a such a hurry," I remember one guest saying. Why the rush? Because it wasn't really a wedding at all, but a blessing – and throughout the ceremony the vicar had not let us forget it.

My husband had been married before and, in the Church of England, remarriage is at the vicar's discretion. Our vicar had decided against it. Throughout the ceremony he referred repeatedly and pointedly to "new beginnings" as opposed to just "beginnings". He insisted that there be no exchange of rings, because we were, technically, already man and wife. (We went to a registry office five days earlier.) I spent most of the ceremony fiddling with my headdress because I had been told that I shouldn't be wearing a veil (too bridal for a blessing). It was only at the last minute that the vicar relented and allowed my father to walk me down the aisle. And did I mention that it was not a beginning but a new beginning? I can still remember seeing, out of the corner of my eye, friends and family in the congregation cringing.

It seems to me that a grudging "blessing" is an oxymoron. Either you bless with your whole heart, or there is no blessing. Can you guess who was the vicar who gave Viv and her husband the "blessing" with a grudge attached? Why none other than the Rev. Stephen Bould of St Peter, Folkestone, who announced that he would leave the Church of England to join a Roman Catholic ordinariate. Amongst his parting words are:

"It is a battle we are fighting now. Let's fight it with flair, imagination and spirit."

Battle metaphors abound amongst the dissatisfied in the Episcopal Church and in the Church of England.

Back to Viv:

Ten years on I'm disillusioned.... I would like to see the Church of England be more inclusive not only towards women priests but towards people like me – people who rarely attend church, often question their faith, but who are, essentially, supportive of the church. It's not as if you'd ever be turned away from a service, but there is a clear message on high days and holidays. Always the hopeful raised eyebrow: are you coming back on a regular basis or not? How serious are you? In today's Christian Britain you are either atheist or God Squad. There's no inbetween.

Bitter fruit, indeed.

I'm curious as to whether the bishops and priests who announced that they will take up Rome's offer have stopped presiding at the Eucharist. Do the clergy headed for Rome believe that their orders are presently valid and will suddenly become invalid once they cross the Tiber? According to Roman rules, the Church of England clergy will become humble lay folk, or, at best, seminarians, until they are screened and re-ordained. Just a thought.

Thanks to Cathy for the link.

JESUS AND MO - DONE

From Jesus and Mo.

BEING GAY ISN'T VOLUNTARY - HATE IS

Being Gay Isn’t Voluntary (get this on a tee in US store, get this on a tee in European store, make your own tee with this or get this on a postcard)

From Wordboner.

Thanks to Lapin.

MORE OF THE LARYNGOSPASMS

"Mister Gasman", a parody of "Mr. Sandman", as performed by The Laryngospasms at the 2008 AORN Congress at the Anaheim Convention Center. Come visit us online at www.Laryngospasms.com!!

The members of The Laringospasms are all certified nurse anesthetists. Wouldn't you like to have them put you to sleep?

A MAILING FROM JEFF LANDRY (R) FOR CONGRESS

On the post card Jeff says of Social Security:

Jeff will not change the retirement age for any worker nearing retirement.

To save social security for future generations Jeff will shore up the system by making changes without raising taxes; changes that will not jeopardize benefits of current retirees or workers within the system.

The explanation of Jeff's views on Social Security in his mailing is vague and deceptive. See the shadowy elderly couple pictured in the post card? The mailing is targeted to the elders amongst us and is intended to reassure us that nothing will change for us. And, if nothing changes for us, why should we be concerned about anyone else? I'm all right, Jeff, and that's all that counts, right?

Here's Jeff Landry's plan from his website:

Protecting Social Security and Medicare

Social Security and Medicare is a promise that was made to our seniors who paid into the system for many, many years.

Our seniors built the Nation we enjoy today. As your Congressman, I will not allow the current liberal administration to default on its promises to the greatest generation. I believe our nation must keep its promises.

I will not ignore threats to the solvency of Social Security or Medicare. I also understand that there is a need for a modernized secured retirement system that gives more freedom to today’s workers. A system that workers can use to build secure wealth and prosperity for their retirement and their posterity. As a member of Congress, I will work to ensure that all Americans have an opportunity for a secure retirement.

Simply put, I will protect Social Security and Medicare and help ensure we have a strong retirement system in our nation for decades to come.

Now we have a bit more detail about Jeff's position on the issue. In the end, Jeff's plan will result in the destruction of Social Security as we know it. It will put an end to mandatory contributions by employers and employees to the Social Security Trust Fund.

Jeff gives no details that I could find on his website on how he would protect Medicare. I sent an email to Jeff asking for details, but I have not yet heard back.

From Jeff's biographical information on his website:

Jeff, along with his family, participated in Louisiana Tea Party taxpayer rallies and he served as a Delegate to the Republican State Convention and served on the Party’s Platform Committee where he helped write the Party’s conservative platform.

How thrilling!

STORY OF THE DAY - HAPPY CAMPER

What if we all got along & people loved
each other & sang songs about peace?
he said. Would that be a good world? & I
said I didn't know about that, but it
would be a good summer camp & he
looked at me & shook his head & said,
It's no wonder you're leaving us with
such a mess.

From StoryPeople.

BULLET POINTS

Thanks to Ann V., who directed me to a new (to me) blog, Faith and Theology. Ann sent the link to the post titled Twelve point guide for ripostes to militant atheists, by Kim Fabricius.

A couple of samples to entice you to read the rest of the ripostes at the link:

—Your faith is unreasonable.

—Your reason is unreasonable – and you have such faith in your scepticism.

------------

—The Gospels contain inconsistencies A, B, and C.

—You forgot X, Y, and Z.

While meandering around the website, I found a marvelous post by Ben Meyers, titled On writing: thirteen theses. It's enough to give a blogger pause, nearly enough to cause a blogger to cease and desist, but not quite. However, reading the theses will perhaps cause me to think rather more seriously about what I write and to give additional attention to editing and deleting - and that would be before I hit the publish button. I joke that my motto is "Publish first; edit after", but making a joke of mistakes is a poor excuse for not writing a satisfactory post before publishing.

Excerpts from the theses:

2. Kinds of writing. There are four kinds of writing: bad, mediocre, good, and great. The difference between bad writing and mediocre writing is discipline. The difference between mediocre writing and good writing is editing. The difference between good writing and great writing is miracle.

------------

3. Writing and editing. T. S. Eliot once observed that good writers do not necessarily write better than others, but are better critics and editors. Good writers cull the overpopulated paragraphs of their work. Like a farmer protecting the livestock, the writer lovingly separates whatever is sickly and infirm – and then loads the gun.

Bang!

There you have it. Read the rest and weep. I know I did.