Bush has been saying quite clearly that he would veto the bipartisan S-CHIP re-authorization bill on the grounds that it went too far, and would divert some children from private to public insurance. But, according to the National Catholic Register (NCR), Bush was really trying to stop S-CHIP from opening the abortion floodgates. Funny, if that were truly the case, you would think Bush would be trumpeting this loudly. Does the NCR know something we don’t? (more…) Read more
Whew! The Catholic blogosphere is ranting and raving over the decision by the Connecticut Catholic Bishops’ decision to allow Plan B, the so called morning after Pill, to be distributed to all rape victims in Catholic hospitals. Here is what the Bishops have to say: (more…) Read more
My comadre gave us a beautiful little chapel to place in our prayer room. My husband installed it on the wall the other evening and then the question became, “what do we place in it?” I immediately glanced over to the corner shelf where I have icons and statues. There was only one statue that could possibly fit well with this little chapel–my statue of Mary. My statue has quite a story to tell so I thought I would share... Read more
I am currently doing graduate work in existentialism, and I must say that of my seven years of studying philosophy as an undergrad and grad student, this form of philosophy is the most exhilarating and rewarding. Existentialism addresses the most serious and pressing questions of human reality–death, emotion, time, community, etc. A constant among both the theistic and atheistic existentialists is the reality of authentic freedom of which the human subject finds himself/herself equipped. Freedom is exercised, say the existentialists,... Read more
A few Vox Nova readers recently stated in the comboxes that the U.S. soldiers currently occupying Iraq are “the greatest and the noblest of our generation” because of their courage and the sacrifices they make for the nation that they serve. As I was reading these admittedly somewhat trite comments last night, I received an email press release from Pax Christi USA announcing that Catholic and Mennonite peacemakers met with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the United Nations yesterday for... Read more
Bush talking to Aznar, February 2003. “Bush: Countries like Mexico, Chile, Angola, and Cameroon should know that what’s at stake is the security of the United States . . . [Chilean President Ricardo] Lagos should know that the Free Trade Accord with Chile is awaiting Senate confirmation and a negative attitude about this could put ratification in danger. Angola is receiving Millennium Account funds [to help alleviate poverty] and that could be jeopardized also if he’s not supportive…” Charming. Read more
At last night’s debate, Tim Russert asked a pointed question of the Democratic candidates: “Imagine the following scenario. We get lucky. We get the number three guy in Al Qaida. We know there’s a big bomb going off in America in three days and we know this guy knows where it is. Don’t we have the right and responsibility to beat it out of him? You could set up a law where the president could make a finding or could... Read more
The latest Princeton Affect and Time Survey has shown that women are at least 90 minutes a week “unhappier” than men. Alan Krueger, a Princeton economist says that there is a simple explanation for the difference (Source: NYT): Mr. Krueger, analyzing time-use studies over the last four decades, has found an even starker pattern. Since the 1960s, men have gradually cut back on activities they find unpleasant. They now work less and relax more. Over the same span, women have... Read more
Christopher Blosser has an impressive post that brings together lengthy citations from Pope Benedict’s speeches and writings on the topic of free market economy and Marxist systems. He put in a dash of Pope John Paul II for better context. What Christopher rightly adumbrates is that the interpretation of the criticism levelled by these two popes largely hinges upon which understanding of capitalism and Marxism one brings to the papal texts. The issue is, as his post points out, far... Read more
Georgetown will no longer discriminate against Planned Parenthood and other abortion rights organizations in their funding of internships. Under a program where Georgetown provided money for those performing unpaid internships in the public interest, a student was denied in the Spring a scholarship to work at Planned Parenthood. Further details are available from the student newspaper. In the words of the President of the Law Center’s Progressive Alliance for Life, “He [Law Center Dean T. Alexander Aleinikoff] and other administrators have... Read more
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