Gov. Bobby Jindal bowed to public sentiment Monday and shelved his plan to immediately eliminate income taxes and raise sales tax.Jindal's withdrawal of the plan demonstrates what citizens can accomplish by working together. Hardly anyone except Jindal and his close advisers liked the tax plan, which was poorly crafted, with numbers that did not add up. Perhaps Jindal and his inner circle have learned a lesson about opening up their planning process to outside advice, rather than operating in secrecy and holding plans close to the chest until the eleventh hour before the legislature convenes. Still, Jindal and cohorts are crafty, so citizens must must remain vigilant and not let down the guard, for further nefarious schemes are likely to emerge.
The governor admitted defeat on the first day of the legislative session during a speech to a joint gathering of the Louisiana House and Senate.
Jindal said he heard the complaints that he moved too fast and that his approach was not the best one.
House Democrats, religious leaders, public research groups, the business community and even the governor’s own accounting consultant found fault with his proposal to eliminate the state’s personal income and corporate taxes in favor of a higher state sales tax rate and a broadening of the sales tax base.
“Let me do something politicians don’t normally do,” Jindal said. “We’re going to adjust our course. We’re going to park our tax plan.”
What to say? I'd like to say R.I.P., Maggie, but what I will say is borrowed from an idea of my good friend Pj on Facebook.May the Zooniverse look kindly upon Margaret Thatcher. And should the Almighty Ones see fit to send her on another journey through this earthly realm (once she graduates from the re-education center along with her bast mate Ronnie), may they remember to equip her with a heart.Gold, pure gold. My comment:
"While Maggie and Ronnie are in the great re-education center in the sky, I'd hope they'd be forced to meet up with people who were hurt by their governance, which might speed up the growth of hearts for the two."So before I say R.I.P, I'd like that bit of re-education to happen. Perhaps if Maggie and Ronnie met with the people who suffered from their policies, they might grow hearts that feel empathy and suffer a little for a spell as their eyes are opened. Pj says further:
If only they could come back and tell their followers what they've learned.If only.... Pj, you are an inspiration.
David Cameron, who is cutting short his trip to Europe to return to London following the news, said: "It was with great sadness that l learned of Lady Thatcher's death. We've lost a great leader, a great prime minister and a great Briton."Thatcher is not the first woman who would leap to my mind as "an example" for my granddaughter or any other young girl or woman I knew. Ruthlessness is no compliment to either sex, nor is it character trait worthy of recommendation to those of an impressionable age.
He told the BBC: "As our first woman prime minister, Margaret Thatcher succeeded against all the odds, and the real thing about Margaret Thatcher is that she didn't just lead our country, she saved our country, and I believe she will go down as the greatest British peacetime prime minister."
....
In a statement, President Barack Obama said that, "the world has lost one of the great champions of freedom and liberty, and America has lost a true friend."
"Here in America, many of us will never forget her standing shoulder to shoulder with President Reagan, reminding the world that we are not simply carried along by the currents of history—we can shape them with moral conviction, unyielding courage and iron will."
He added that her premiership was "an example to our daughters that there is no glass ceiling that can't be shattered". (My emphasis)
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| BOTTICELLI, Sandro Cestello Annunciation 1489-90 Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence |
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.Soon after receiving the angel's message, Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth, who is pregnant with John the Baptist, and prays one of the greatest prayers in the Scriptures.
(Luke 1:26-38)
MagnificatIn Botticeli's painting, Mary seems to be recoiling from the angel, which makes me wonder about the artist's intention. (Botticelli is not alone in depicting Mary shrinking away.) Does he suggest that Mary recoils from the very sight of the angel, or is she shrinking from the message brought by the angel that she will be the mother of the Son of God? Does Mary think, "Oh no! Please, not me, " before she reflects and says, "...let it be with me according to your word"?
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in you, O God my Savior,
for you have looked with favor on your lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
you, the Almighty, have done great things for me,
and holy is your Name.
You have mercy on those who fear you
from generation to generation.
You have shown strength with your arm,
and scattered the proud in their conceit,
Casting down the mighty from their thrones,
and lifting up the lowly.
You have filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
You have come to the help of your servant Israel,
for you have remembered your promise of mercy,
The promise made to our forebears,
to Abraham and his children for ever.
(Luke 1:46-55)
'Is it lonely?’ She replied: ‘I don’t know. It seems a bit pointless. Going on one’s own and not having someone to share it with.’Nor do I understand why everything must go so fast.
Warming to the theme of aging she also said she didn’t like it and added: ‘I don’t know who does. Noel Coward-- and I don’t mean to name drop.
'But he said,”The awful thing about getting old is that you have breakfast every half-hour.” And that’s sort of what it is. I can’t understand why everything has to go so fast.‘
Interviewer Steve Kroft asks her: ‘But you have no interest in finding someone else?’We're together there. I don't think there's any way that I could learn to live in intimacy with another person at my age. And by intimacy, I do not necessarily mean sex. Dame Maggie and I have in common that we are both survivors of breast cancer.
Dame Maggie replies: ‘Absolutely not. I – no way’.
Prayer for Yom HaShoahBeliefnet - Source: Found on a scrap of paper at the liberation of Ravensbruck Concentration Camp in Germany
(Holocaust Remembrance Day)
Lord, remember not only the men of good will, but also those of ill will. But do not remember all the suffering they have inflicted upon us. Remember rather the fruits we have brought, thanks to this suffering: our comradeship, our loyalty, our humility, the courage, the generosity, the greatness of heart that has grown out of this. And when they come to judgment, let all the fruits we have bourne be their forgiveness.
With all the talk of budget cuts and austerity, affecting most severely "the least of these", rather than the 1%, or even the 10%, and whether poor people are deserving or undeserving, and whether hard-working people who labor for low wages should be given help to make ends meet in the midst of their struggles, and protecting fetuses in the womb, but showing little concern for already-born babies and children, Jonathan Swift's shocking essay titled "A Modest Proposal" returns again and again to my mind. I could have gone on and on about the injustices in our society, but I believe I've made my point.
Facebook asks, What's on your mind?"  |
| Grace Episcopal Church - Charleston, SC |
The Episcopal Church in South Carolina has filed to remove the state lawsuit filed against it to the U.S. District Court, citing statutory and constitutional issues that need to be addressed by the federal court. The Episcopal Church is also a defendant in the suit and has consented to the removal to the federal court.Not only did Mark Lawrence and the breakaways take property that belonged to the Episcopal Church when they left, they took the name of the Episcopal diocese. The faithful Episcopalians chose a clever new name after they were enjoined from using their proper name.
The suit, originally filed in South Carolina Circuit Court in Dorchester County by a group that is breaking away from The Episcopal Church, now moves entirely to the federal court system, according to Thomas S. Tisdale, Jr., Chancellor of The Episcopal Church in South Carolina, which is remaining part of The Episcopal Church.
“We have carefully examined the claims made against The Episcopal Church in South Carolina, and inherent in all these claims are federal statutory and constitutional issues that must be decided in a federal court rather than in South Carolina state court,” Mr. Tisdale said.
The plaintiffs, who include a group representing itself as “the Diocese of South Carolina” along with 35 parishes, now have 30 days to respond to the notice of removal. They could seek to have the case remanded to state court, and a federal judge would then have to decide where the case will be heard.
