Louisiana Is A Leader!

From the Violence Policy Center:

States with higher gun ownership rates and weak gun laws have the highest rates of gun death according to a new analysis by the Violence Policy Center (VPC) of just-released 2006 national data (the most recent available) from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

The analysis reveals that the five states with the highest per capita gun death rates were Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska, Mississippi, and Nevada. Each of these states had a per capita gun death rate far exceeding the national per capita gun death rate of 10.32 per 100,000 for 2006. Each state has lax gun laws and higher gun ownership rates. By contrast, states with strong gun laws and low rates of gun ownership had far lower rates of firearm-related death. Ranking last in the nation for gun death was Hawaii, followed by Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New York. (See chart below for top and bottom five states.

State Firearm Death Rates, Ranked by Rate, 2006

Rank State Rate

1 Louisiana 19.58
2 Alabama 16.99
3 (tie) Alaska 16.38
3 (tie) Mississippi 16.38
5 Nevada 16.25
6 Arizona 15.93
7 Wyoming 15.60
8 Tennessee 15.52
9 Arkansas 15.16
10 New Mexico 14.57
11 South Carolina 14.23
12 West Virginia 13.99
13 Oklahoma 13.47
14 Missouri 13.14
15 North Carolina 12.77
16 Montana 12.67
17 Kentucky 12.63
18 Idaho 12.30
19 Georgia 12.25
20 Maryland 12.10
21 Indiana 11.77
22 Florida 11.54
23 Michigan 11.45
24 Pennsylvania 11.05
25 Kansas 10.85
26 Virginia 10.68
27 Colorado 10.43
28 Oregon 10.40
29 Texas 10.35
30 South Dakota 9.77
31 Ohio 9.72
32 California 9.28
33 Delaware 9.26
34 Vermont 8.70
35 Utah 8.68
36 Washington 8.56
37 Illinois 8.11
38 (tie) Maine 7.99
38 (tie) Nebraska 7.99
40 Wisconsin 7.61
41 North Dakota 7.22
42 Iowa 6.49
43 Minnesota 6.38
44 New Hampshire 6.25
45 New Jersey 5.68
46 New York 5.20
47 Connecticut 4.95
48 Rhode Island 4.43
49 Massachusetts 3.28
50 Hawaii 2.58
. National Average 10.32

*Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Control and Prevention.

Just look at that! No. 1 in per capita gun deaths! I'm a tad, just a tad embarrassed by this, but many of my fellow citizens here in Louisiana seem to take this information in stride.

Who knew that weak gun laws correlated with the number of deaths by gunshot?

But remember: As the bumper sticker says, "Guns don't kill people. People do." Tell that to the loved ones of those who are dead from gunshots.

Go read Steve Kanga's refutation of the fallacious statement. Sounds good to me. I like the final words:

A wit once described this irrelevancy thus: "Fingers don't kill people, bullets do."

Let's raise a glass to that, my fellow citizens.

Holiday Complaints Received By Thomas Cook

"The beach was too sandy."

"We bought Ray-Ban sunglasses for five euros (£3.50) from a street trader only to find out they were fake."

"No-one told us there would be fish in the sea. The children were startled."

"It took us nine hours to fly home from Jamaica to England but it only took the Americans three hours to get home."

"I compared the size of our one-bedroom apartment with our friends' three-bedroom apartment and ours was significantly smaller."

"The brochure states 'No hairdressers at the hotel.' We're trainee hairdressers - will we be OK staying here?"

"We found the sand was not like the sand in the brochure. Your brochure shows the sand as yellow but it was white."

"We had to queue outside with no air conditioning."

"I was bitten by a mosquito. No-one said they could bite."

"I think it should be explained in the brochure that the local store does not sell proper biscuits such as custard creams and ginger nuts."

"On my holiday to Goa in India I was disgusted to find that almost every restaurant served curry. I don't like spicy food at all."

"We booked an excursion to a water park but no-one told us we had to bring our swimming costumes and towels."

Thanks to Erika.

Memo To Bishops: Catholics Not Listening

From Fr. Thomas J. Reese, S. J. in the Washington Post:

During the 2008 presidential campaign, there was a steady drumbeat of opposition to Barack Obama from some U.S. Catholic bishops, which only increased after his election. But despite the attention these attacks received in the media and on Internet blogs, polls show that the Catholic people are not listening.
....

In the presidential election, Catholics voted for Obama, and Hispanic Catholics, who are a growing percentage of U.S. Catholics, gave him around two-thirds of their vote. Since the election, Obama has continued to do as well if not better with Catholics in the polls.

Fr. Reese hazards a guess as to why the people are not listening.

I think part of the problem is that the bishops stopped listening and teaching and started ordering and condemning. With an educated laity it no longer works to simply say, "it is the teaching of the church." This is the equivalent of a parent shouting, "Because I said so."

The bishops must persuade and convince with arguments not by turning up the volume. When they resort to commanding and threatening punishments, people are turned off. Banning speakers, denying Communion, silencing theologians is a sign of weakness not strength. Censorship and violations of academic freedom come across as admissions that their arguments are not convincing and therefore the opposition must be silenced.

And the coup de grâce:

The bishops will also be embarrassed when Pope Benedict welcomes President Obama at the Vatican, or are all these people going to tell the Pope that he cannot talk to a pro-choice President?

Some might say that the bishops are more Catholic than the pope, but I would never say that.

Do read the entire editorial. It is quite good. If I did the "Brick of the Day Award", I'd give it to Fr. Reese. I will anyway. Fr. Thomas J. Reese, S. J. is my "Brick of the Day".

(H/T to MadPriest for the "Brick of the Day" idea.)

Is it time for another Mass of Reparation? This one will be for Georgetown University, where Fr. Reese is Senior Fellow at Woodstock Theological Center.

Thanks to Lapin for the link.

Roseann - Update

Dear Mimi and MP,

I just received a one line statement from Roseann saying she is still in the hospital, because she seems to be getting worse. She asked me to call Gary and I'll do that later on in the day.

Sue

I'm so sorry to hear this news. Pray, pray, pray, my friends.

To ACC: Please Vote "No" On RCDC

We learn from the Episcopal Café that the Anglican Communion Deputy Secretary General Gregory Cameron, when questioned about the meaning of "church" in the Ridley Cambridge Draft Covenant now being considered by the Anglican Consultative Council, answered that "church" means "province" or the national church. However, he added that so long as the constitution and canons of the national church do not forbid it, he believes that individual dioceses may sign on to the RCDC, if the ACC passes it. The Joint Standing Committee of the ACC recommends passing the Covenant as is, without revision, all or nothing. I hope and pray that the vote by the ACC is against passing RCDC.

Tobias Haller says:

...[This Covenant] is a step backwards, and will prove to be a tool for division and fragmentation, rather than an instrument towards unity. Unless we all just sign up and get on with our lives, allowing it to serve its symbolic function with no real power over any of those who sign it.

Exactly. In addition, I fear that if RCDC passes, it will be used to exclude and punish. That's not my idea of a Covenant. I go back to my original question. Why do we need a Covenant at all?

We have the New Covenant of Our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Anglican Communion, we have the the Creeds, the Baptismal Covenant, the Book of Common Prayer for our common worship, the Instruments of Communion, and the bonds of affection which link together the various autonomous churches of the Communion.

It's true that the bonds of affection are strained at the moment, but will a coercive, exclusionary, and what I fear will come to be a punitive Covenant improve relations amongst the member churches of the Communion? I think not.

As Michael Russell says in the comments at the Episcopal Café, "Please ACC drown the whole thing or give it to a new committee."

St. Francis de la Sissies

You may have seen this around the tubes, but if you haven't, do watch. It's delightful. Enjoy again if you've seen it already.

Thanks to Lapin.

From Ann On Her Grandson

Thanks for all the prayers --- the doctor said the breath holding is nothing to worry about and that he might occasionally have a seizure as a result - - scary but not serious -- -they gave him a brain scan - all is well with that. He will have an eeg but the doctor does not think it will show anything either. He will out grow it.

whew!

Ann

Good news.

Thanks be to God.

Waxing Gibbous Moon

Tonight, as I walked, I noticed that the night was bright, even away from the street lights. The reason: the sky is clear, and 90.3% of the moon is visible, and it was right above me. Time to throw up post the haiku again.

Waxing gibbous moon
The words themselves a poem
Turning full moon soon

Grandmère Mimi - 2005

"Night", "bright", "light", "right" - all in a few short lines. That's got to mean something. But what?

It's A Dog's Life

Oops! I forgot to give Doug his due credit.

Happy Birthday, Gayle!

Today is my sister Gayle's birthday and also the 3rd anniversary of her memorial service after she died of pancreatic cancer. The picture above is a favorite of both my brother-in-law, Frank, and me.

In Gayle's honor, a wealthy friend set up The Dillenkoffer Endowment.

The Dillenkoffer Endowment was formed to support gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered teens with college tuition grants in Kansas and Missouri.

Gay teens across the country continue to face personal and academic challenges unlike those faced by their straight classmates. In addition to challenges at school, many face rejection by their families and the community at large as well as religious persecution. Even violence is not uncommon. Statistics show gay teens are more likely to abuse substances, drop out of school, run away from home, be involved in prostitution and attempt suicide.

The Dillenkoffer Endowment's mission is to:

* recognize and reward gay teens who are able to succeed in the face of personal and academic challenges;

* help them achieve even greater success through higher education; and

* provide them with the tools to be role models to others as they become young adults.

If you would like to learn more about the endowment or make a donation, click on the link above or scroll down and click on the dark blue plaque on the right sidebar.

Earlier today, I nearly fell out of my chair when I read the words below from the Lectionary reading from Wisdom. They are so right and true for me today.

But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died,
and their departure was thought to be a disaster,
and their going from us to be their destruction;
but they are at peace.
For though in the sight of others they were punished,
their hope is full of immortality.
Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,
because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;
like gold in the furnace he tried them,
and like a sacrificial burnt-offering he accepted them.
In the time of their visitation they will shine forth,
and will run like sparks through the stubble.

Wisdom 3:1-9

Below is a picture of Gayle at a party in her tuxedo-like outfit. By chance, we both bought very similar outfits of this type some years ago. She loved a party and liked the idea that the Mexican-Americans and Mexicans (along with a good many folks of non-Mexican heritage) in the US celebrated on her birthday. Today Grandpère and I will celebrate her life at a Cinco de Mayo party at a local Mexican Restaurant.