A Quote

Also from the book Striking Back....

"The actions and ways of the terrorists are continually evolving. It is our duty to prepare ourselves for the type of war, more than we have been to this day -- methodically, knowledgeably, decisively, and expansively; this is a dangerous and critical task,"

This is from Golda Meir, mind you, in 1972....

The prime minister went on:

"From the blood-drenched history of the Jewish nation, we learn that violence which begins with the murder of Jews, ends with the spread of violence and danger to all people, in all nations."

She ended her speech with:

"We have no choice, but to strike at terrorist organizations wherever we can reach them. That is our obligation to ourselves and to peace. We shall fulfill that obligation undauntedly."


Food for thought, in our times....what has changed? Read that middle section again...and again...and again.

Those who don't learn from history are bound to repeat...

The recent tragic errors in reporting events have played out twice lately, and there are many causes for both. But it is not new, at all, and has happened many times in the past. The report of 12 survivors then the true report of one survivor in the W VA mining accident was played out for all who were still awake to see and hear, and the families were hurt in the process.

But Ariel Sharon's death was also reported in places, and he is still with us, albeit on life support.

At least twice there have been folks with egg on their faces about Presidential election results.
There was a 'too early' report that the Holy Father had died which turned out was not true, and that I had also sent out to my yahoo groups.

The examples could go on and on, but one that I just came across had hit people world wide just as the W VA miners did this past week, and it happened in the early days of live television reporting, in Sept of 1972, coming from Munich, Germany, broadcast world wide, including to Israel and America where the hostages' families, friends, etc lived, glued to the news.

I am reading Striking Back The 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and Israel's Deadly Response, by Aaron Klein. When I read pp 78-79 early this AM on a break at work, I was struck by how far we had not come in reporting.

To be clear, I do NOT blame just the media for that fiasco at the mine! Whoever carried unconfirmed information in the first place needs to take responsibility as well, and then we had all the cell phones spreading word, etc. And the length of time it took for the mining company to get to the families with what was REALLY happening is not justified in my mind.

But the rest of the world heard/saw it via the news, newspapers had headlines that could not be retracted that reported the wrong information for those waking long after the facts had come out and (in some cases, angrily) reported by the same people who had joyously reported the false UNCONFIRMED information several hours before.

The word here is UNCONFIRMED. Speculation is a phenomenon of today's 24/7 news stations, including what seems at times to be trying people on TV long before the trials has even begun, and convicting some even before they are charged.

The need to be the first to report has often caused problems. And I admit to having been taken in at times. I think that we all have been at some point.

But let me quote just a bit from this book...

"Once the helicopters left the Olympic Village, reporters were starved for credible information.... Reporters were forced to serve up live, on-air speculation about every rumor that floated their way. It was impossible to cut the live broadcast and promise a roundup later in the night. The news stations' prerogative held sway: the show must go on."

Next it describes how the reporters were kept at bay, denied entry to the airport, and hence, assumptions were made. As the sound of gunshots sounded, confusion grew. There was not a good system of communication between the airfield and those in charge in the Olympic Village.

quote again from the book.....

Rumors raged. Slightly after 2300 hours, a report circulated among the spectators at the airport gates and spread to the Olympic Village: the Israeli hostages had been rescued following a battle between the police and the terrorists; the terrorists had all been killed. In the absence of any real knowledge, this ideal outcome was exactly what people desparately wanted to believe, and it was presented as fact. The source of the information was unclear and yet everyone -- reporters, politicians, bystanders, and family members -- clung to it. Reuters, the international news agency, sent out an exclusive wire report at 2331: "All Israeli hostages have been freed. "

All attempts to check the facts with officials at Furstenfeldbruck failed.

snip....

The good news spread like wildfire through the Olympic Village and around the world. At last, a happy ending. The village erupted with celebrating athletes pooping champagne corks, hugging, smiling, and crying with joy. The members of the International Olympic Committee along with German and Israeli politicians relaxed for the first time in nineteen hours. In Israel, relatives and friends showed up at athletes' family homes with flowers and champagne. For most Israelis, it was difficult to hold their spontaneous joy in check. They did not heed Yeshayahu Ben-Porat's advice to wait until the hostages appeared before the cameras.

The author goes on to describe the reactions of a few of the wives of the hostages who had reservations and wanted to see their family members before believing the reports.

Then, eerily reminiscent of this past week....

... The truth reached the media just after three in the morning. At 0317 hours Reuters sent a corrected message over the wires: "Flash! All Israeli hostages seized by Arab guerrillas killed."

Jim McKay immediaely broadcast the devastating update to the world. He looked straight into the casmera and said: "I have just gotten the final word. When I was a kid my father used to say, 'Our greatest hopes and our worst fears are seldom realized.' Tonight, they have been realized.... They've now said that there were eleven hostages. Two were killed in their rooms yesterday morning. Nine were killed at the airport tonight...They are all gone. It's all over... I have nothing else to say."

Meanwhile, just before three AM, a sleeping Golda Meir got a phone call from Zvi Zamir who had witnessed the entire event helplessly at the airport (he was head of Mossad, and there because of the kidnapping). She registered the shock of having gone to bed with the news that all were safe, to be awakened by him to learn.... that none were saved.

From 1972 to 2006, have we learned nothing?

God bless!

Bookworm .....

Another reason to like Narnia has been found by Bookworm in an article that can be found here, discussing Peter growing from teen boy into manhood.

Bookworm also points us to another blog, saying that all of the current posts were such that they were worth linking to. There are many, true. So I will do as Bookworm did, and point you to Flopping Aces, with special attention to this post.....Scroll down past the picture, ;^) and ask that you pay special attention to the updates, especially the sections referring to Mudville Gazette's Greyhawk!

And Bookworm also has a another post on Munich that discusses an interview with Tony Kushner, and is worth reading, especially with the comments added. And a final one that I recommend is here, but even more important than Bookworms' words (as good as they are) is the series of Comments that follow this piece. Do not miss them!

And pay attention to the hyperlinks in each!

God bless!

ABORTION KILLS FEMALE BABIES!!

I sat here in disbelief the first time I heard on the news, and saw a woman with a bloodied shirt being taken off the stage. I heard the chanting, and thought... that is soooo sick. They have forgotten or ignored a very important fact already, before they ever came up with the chant/rant! Females die all the time in the process they are chanting about!

Then I heard it again, and again, and again, and it made me angry. And my anger brings me here.

I have heard this same thing said over and over in the past for nearly every nomination that is made, and it is getting to be tiring, frankly.

The chant was "Bush and Alito will outlaw abortion and women will die!"

My response? ABORTION KILLS FEMALE BABIES!!

In China, Abortion kills mostly FEMALES!It is so bad there that now, they are finally realizing that the men will not be able to find women to marry, there won't be enough workers, the elderly number is growing steadily.....and the gov't is thinking of making some changes.

The funny thing is, I can't find too many places where the incident is mentioned online. I found it here and here, and then I found several references to the pdf file that shows the same sentiments about David Souter years ago in 1990.

Bishop Fliss Meeting Jan 15, 2006

I had not been following the story in northwestern WI until another friend recently made mention of the situation not being good, and the much needed prayer in the area, esp regarding the Bishop's seeming lack of concern/response.

However, the news story again crossed my path today, and it still is not resolved. Please pray for the meeting on January 15th. I don't know why, on this side of Wisconsin, I missed this story in December of 2004. I do vaguely remember hearing of a priest who had committed suicide, but did not catch the rest of the story until much more recently when I learned that a judge had ruled thatthere was probable cause that the priest had killed two men in Feb. 2002. I had not known this until my friend had asked for prayer.

Having lived in Bishop Fliss' Diocese from mid 88 to mid 95, I still did not knowmuch about him. Our parish was located on the farthest end from the Bishop, much closer to the Diocese of La Crosse at the time.

The entire situation is tragic, and my heart goes out to the families involved.

Judge Orders a Priest to Prove Christ Exists

The other day, I sent this to some of the groups that I am on, and intended to also put it here. I think that this priest needs prayer for Wisdom. But more importantly, this Judge may be in great need as well. The original article I had found is below, while another is located here.

The Times
January 03, 2006

Prove Christ exists, judge orders priest From Richard Owen in Rome

AN ITALIAN judge has ordered a priest to appear in court this month to prove that Jesus Christ existed.

The case against Father Enrico Righi has been brought in the town of Viterbo, north of Rome, by Luigi Cascioli, a retired agronomist who once studied for the priesthood but later became a militant atheist.

Signor Cascioli, author of a book called The Fable of Christ, began legal proceedings against Father Righi three years ago after the priest denounced Signor Cascioli in the parish newsletter for questioning Christ’s historical existence.

Yesterday Gaetano Mautone, a judge in Viterbo, set a preliminary hearing for the end of this month and ordered Father Righi to appear. The judge had earlier refused to take up the case, but was overruled last month by the Court of Appeal, which agreed that Signor Cascioli had a reasonable case for his accusation that Father Righi was “abusing popular credulity”.

Signor Cascioli’s contention — echoed in numerous atheist books and internet sites — is that there was no reliable evidence that Jesus lived and died in 1st-century Palestine apart from the Gospel accounts, which Christians took on faith. There is therefore no basis for Christianity, he claims.

Signor Cascioli’s one-man campaign came to a head at a court hearing last April when he lodged his accusations of “abuse of popular credulity” and “impersonation”, both offences under the Italian penal code. He argued that all claims for the existence of Jesus from sources other than the Bible stem from authors who lived “after the time of the hypothetical Jesus” and were therefore not reliable witnesses.

Signor Cascioli maintains that early Christian writers confused Jesus with John of Gamala, an anti-Roman Jewish insurgent in 1st-century Palestine. Church authorities were therefore guilty of “substitution of persons”.

The Roman historians Tacitus and Suetonius mention a “Christus” or “Chrestus”, but were writing “well after the life of the purported Jesus” and were relying on hearsay.

Father Righi said there was overwhelming testimony to Christ’s existence in religious and secular texts. Millions had in any case believed in Christ as both man and Son of God for 2,000 years.

“If Cascioli does not see the sun in the sky at midday, he cannot sue me because I see it and he does not,” Father Righi said.

Signor Cascioli said that the Gospels themselves were full of inconsistencies and did not agree on the names of the 12 apostles. He said that he would withdraw his legal action if Father Righi came up with irrefutable proof of Christ’s existence by the end of the month.

The Vatican has so far declined to comment.



Copyright 2006 Times Newspapers Ltd.

QUESTION about the blog.... timestamp

Does anyone have any ideas as to why the date time thing no longer appears under the space to write blogs on my site? I sometimes put an idea into draft, and later want to use it, but don't want the original date on it, but want it posted on the date I hit publish. For quite awhile now, I can't do this, so I have tossed some drafts as a result, OR have had to copy and paste it all into a new window. That adds time and frustration...

Addendum:

Love bloghopping and what I find out there.....

Found a new blog today via Dad 29, who recommended one. When at that site, Fr Z recommended this one, where I found this post, written in April. Have to say that I totally agree with him on this topic.

PLUS, he also likes TSO...

Dick Clark, Jack Klugman, Kirk Douglas, Bert Parks

I had to work on New Year's Eve, and the other co-workers had chosen the channel to watch, opting for Regis. So I did not see the channel with Dick Clark on, and therefore, was not going to write anything here about it at all.

However, I just had the Fox News Channel on to keep up with the news about the miners, as background while I read. He chose to show a portion of Dick Clark speaking about is stroke, and asked the rhetorical question of whether or not it was a 'good' thing for Dick to appear at all. He had an MD expert speaking also, who felt it WAS a good thing, as so many will have strokes, and that the public needs to learn more, and prevent them.

Now, what I heard was a man who has obviously had a brain injury, who has obviously been working VERY hard to regain speech. And he has also obviously come a long way, and as he said, it is not perfect, but he is getting better.

So, though I know that many would rather he did not work on New Year's, and though many probably feel as someone that O'Reilly spoke of... "I would rather remember him as he was"... I have to say I do not agree at all.

I think that this man is doing VERY well, and is choosing to LIVE rather than hide away.

Yes, it was 'hard' to listen to his speech. The speech of hearing impaired or the brain injured is not 'normal' in our estimation. But that is subjective. The effort it takes for those severely hearing impaired to gain speech is tremendous, as it is with those who must relearn speech after a stroke. The frustration often leaves many to simply quit and give up.

It also causes many to give up on life and simply wait for the day that they die. They won't go anyplace, won't see anyone, won't do anything more than they have to. I have seen and cared for some very depressed people living like this.

But for those who strive to continue to live, to the best of their ability, it is imperative that they do whatever they feel that they CAN do.

Jack Klugman had cancer of the throat, and lost a vocal cord to it. He also had to relearn to speak, and his voice also is not 'normal'. But he returned to work, appears on talk shows often, and ..... we have adjusted. We have watched his courage, and learned to accept him AS HE IS now, not as we would have him be.

Kirk Douglas also, as I was reminded, had a stroke and has been back to acting since it happened.

Dick Clark will continue to appear in various places, I am sure, and will continue to work on his speech and his ability to walk, to do what he can do. Barring another stroke, he could live another ten, fifteen years, or possibly more. We will adjust to HIS new self also, if he does appear on TV more.

This is a real problem with our society today. We seem to think that anyone who is not 'normal' has less humaness than those who are 'normal'. Less to live for, less to be treated as a human being worthy of life, less to be treated with dignity, accepted for where they are and who they are in spite of what has happened to them.

We subjectively place ourselves... whom we think of as 'normal' in their place, and say 'I would not want to live like that'... instead of realizing that 'normal' is VERY subjective. Dick Clark did not choose to have a stroke. But he HAS chosen to live to the best that he can, where he is now. He has no reason to hide from us.

If we truly loved this Child of God before his stroke, then we learn to see him as still being worthy of that love even now.

Just as it was hard to watch John Paul II gain the weight and grow hunched, moving slower and slower, less facial expression, etc as he grew older and the Parkinsonism took over; just as it is hard to see Mohammed Ali with his lack of understandable speech, and 'blank' face, moving much slower than he did when he moved like a butterfly and stung like a bee... just as it was hard to 'look' at Terri Schiavo and see her as a disabled person with every right to be fed and hydrated via the G-tube OR via spoon-feeding with therapy aimed at helping her to swallow foods, etc... so it is hard to 'see' Dick Clark differently now.

But Dick Clark had a goal, and that goal was to get back to what he loved. Ushering in the New Year on New Year's Eve publically, on television, for all to see. He did it.

We must learn to meet the disabled where they are, not where they WERE at one time, and realize that we could be there someday ourselves.

We have to stop looking "embarrassedly"past the person in the wheel chair, and begin to look AT them, and speak TO them, even asking them how long they have been in the chair, if that is what we are thinking. Then listening to them tell us, IF they choose, how they got there.

We have to stop looking at those with Down's Syndrome or other cognitive/developmental disabilities with 'pity', and instead, help them to achieve what ever they are able to do for themselves, even if it is just to smile and say HHHHAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH for Hi. Or scratch their nose.

We have to stop determining that others' lives are not worth living (in our humble opinion, as WE are 'normal', and they are not... WE are productive, they are not... WE have a right to live... I would not want to live like them, so therefore, they do not have the right to live until natural death occurs...

And we have to learn that people still have a right to be outdoors in the sunshine (as Terri was not allowed), to have rehab (as Terri was not allowed) and to grow to the best that THEY can do, not what we wish that they could do.

We need to learn to be comfortable with Dick Clark's 'new voice' as he has had to. And cheer him on for the courage it took to choose to LIVE, to live well, and not give up.

The powers that be in television decided several years back that Bert Parks was too old and too old fashioned to continue to emcee the Miss America Pageant... and that fact made me angry, and many others.

Do I admire those who chose to LET him be on television the other night?
YES! Very much! Because 'the powers that be' could have said... nope, we need new blood, you just stay home, Dick... we loved you then, we don't need you now. You deserve to rest and take it easy... meaning that he was an embarrassment and shouldn't be seen in public.

Do I think Dick Clark should have been on television the other night? Yes. I think he had every right to return, and that he deserves accolades for the hard work he has done to get to where he is.

And just as we have grown 'accustomed' to Jack Klugman's new voice and accept it, we will learn to do the same with Dick Clark, and any others that may cross our paths....



God bless!

Pray for 13 Trapped Miners in WVa

Thirteen miners are trapped in a mine after an explosion in West Virginia, about 100 miles northeast of Charleston in the north-central part of the state. The dateline on the story is Tallmansville, W Va.

Please pray. I have been watching this for most of the afternoon. They are going to try to go in now. They have not heard a word from the miners since it happened this am about 9 AM Central, apparently.

They have been trying to monitor for methane and for carbon monoxide gases. There are currently five mine rescue teams there. Spokesman for the mining company said that they do not have any information that this was a methane related event. They are preparing to go underground right now.

Pray for the families who are there waiting for news of their loved ones, also.

It makes a Mother proud

Oh, my son may turn out to be an apologist yet...

http://www.irishmade.blogspot.com/

Bobby Schindler to speak in Erie, PA Jan 7th

Bobby Schindler,
brother of Terri Schindler Schiavo
will speak in Erie, PA
on January 7, 2006
at the Avalon Hotel
at 9:00 AM.

DANIELLE has an answer for Mike

I was cancelled at work for second shift, so have been doing one of my favorite things.... blog-hopping.

I went by to see what Dad 29 had written, and he pointed us to Michelle Malkin's. And there we found this!!

by Mike Luckovich

He got a lot of responses, apparently, but this one was the best of all. Using the same 'technique' that he did (names of those deceased in Iraq). Her explanation is below her picture, but the comments at the ajc.com site are worth reading.

by DANIELLE ANSLEY, an 11th grader

The first time I saw Mike Luckovich’s drawing of the word “WHY?”, made up of the names of 2,000 troops killed in Iraq, was when my mother was putting it up on our refrigerator. It bothered me that no one did a response showing how others feel. On Nov. 8, I got an updated list of the names of the war dead and started writing them, spelling out “FREEDOM.” Six days later, it was done. I only worked on it in my free time at school. It took me about 12 hours to get it done, so needless to say I devoted many of my classes to this, and stayed late after school to work on it. I didn’t take it home and show it to my mother until I had prints made. She and I have different views of things. She said that, as a mother, she didn’t like it that so many people have been killed. She was not happy when I placed my work next to Luckovich’s “WHY?” on the fridge, but it hasn’t been taken down. I may seem as if I am too young to have an opinion on matters like these. I am not saying that my opinion is right, for an opinion is just that — someone’s views on something. But, like a child’s voice, an opinion is often not heard.





ALL I CAN SAY IS... GO DANIELLE!!!