I have not had time to blog in a while, but there has been some awfully good stuff happening in the world in my absence, so I will try to catch up now.
OH, THAT'S WHERE I LEFT IT
The Nation's Finest Newspaper picked up a story about a Houston-area man who lost his wallet in 1996. Last week it magically appeared behind a cash register at the Big Lots where, in retrospect, he thinks he lost it. The money was gone, but the identification, pictures, etc. were still there.
If there are gremlins and other assorted such creatures, they would probably do something like steal a wallet, hide it in the same place for seven years, then have it appear behind a cash register in a Big Lots seven years later.
THE POET
The Moscow Times had a fantastic quote, saying that the following quote from George W. Bush, were it less "windy," would have made "a haiku of disconnect." The quote, in poetic form is below.
For decades, when the leaders of our two countries met,
they talked mainly of missiles and warheads,
because the only common ground we shared was the desire to avoid catastrophic conflict.
In recent years,
the United States and Russia have made great progress in building a new relationship.
WAS JERRY LEE LEWIS A ROMA?
Poor Roma (as the Gypsies are now known). First, one of their princesses (the daughter of a "self-proclaimed king") storms out of the middle of her wedding ceremony. To some extent this is to be expected, since she is only 12 (or 14, nobody is sure). Then, the story is picked up by the international press, as the linked Canadian Press and BBC stories show.
However, there a few legal aspects of this case that make it really dicey. First, as mentioned above, the bride was the daughter of a "self-proclaimed" king. Now, in reality, I guess that essentially all royalty are self-proclaimed at some point. I mean, royalty seems to have started as a meritocracy. Win, and your self-proclaimed status is reinforced. Lose and die. Still, Gypsy king status seems like it ought to have a little higher of a bar than just plain ol' king, since the gypsies are an international group.
Second, the Canadian and British reports disagree on the legal minimum age for marriage in Romania. Neither believes that it is legal for a 12 year old to get married (sorry Mr. Lewis), but the Canadians think it is 18, while the Brits think it is 16. I guess with what we know of the Canadians, it seems more reasonable to believe the Brits. On the other hand, I am guessing that a Romanian jail is a little harsh, so you might want to wait until you gypsy bride turns 18—just to be on the safe side.
WORD OF THE DAY
America's Finest Newspaper picked up an LA Times story with my new favorite word in it: "Papabili." This is apparently Italian for "pope-ables," and denotes those Cardinals thought to be possible candidates for Pope if and when John Paul II dies. I try to use "papabili" at least once a day.
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR
The Moscow Times reports that the Ukrainian President has indicated that Ukraine should stop aspiring to EU membership. Instead, it should focus on its customs union with Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan and building trade with those countries. Isn't this how the Ukrainians ended up a Soviet state in the first place? Does he really think that Belarus and Russia will be better economic allies than Great Britain and Germany? Poor Ukraine. Seems like their president may be taking a page from the Belarusian dictator's playbook and becoming friends with the country that doesn't care if he ever holds elections.
CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY FROM A MUSLIM
America's Finest Newspaper does occasionally run an actual news story worth being printed. For instance, today, they ran a story about Christians in Iraq. It is estimated that about 5% of Iraqis are Christian (mostly Chaldean Catholics). Anyway, it is a good article, but the real gem comes from a Shiite leader, who says of his Christian countrymen, "Christians should listen to the instruction of Jesus Christ, who didn't take alcohol at all, and also to the Virgin Mary, who didn't wear makeup or take drink."
Now, I have a little quote here from the Gospel of John (2:1-11) which I think may, just may, undercut the no alcohol argument:
On the third day there was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with His disciples. When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."
And Jesus said to her, "O woman, what have you to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.
His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever He tells you."
Now six stone jars were standing there, for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.
Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim.
He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the steward of the feast." So they took it.
When the steward of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew, the steward of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, "Every man serves the good wine first; and when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.
This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.
Now, I'm no scholar, but the fact that Mary basically ordered Jesus to make more wine implies to me that (a) wine was not theologically problematic, and (b) that Mary might have had a little sippy sip herself. On the other hand, I can find no reference to Mary at the Lancôme counter at the Jerusalem Nordstrom's, so the Shiite guy may have a point about the make-up.
AND FINALLY
Here is a link to the second half of the Christian Science Monitor article on the Uighurs in China. It is an excellent article and worth a read (if not commentary).
OH, THAT'S WHERE I LEFT IT
The Nation's Finest Newspaper picked up a story about a Houston-area man who lost his wallet in 1996. Last week it magically appeared behind a cash register at the Big Lots where, in retrospect, he thinks he lost it. The money was gone, but the identification, pictures, etc. were still there.
If there are gremlins and other assorted such creatures, they would probably do something like steal a wallet, hide it in the same place for seven years, then have it appear behind a cash register in a Big Lots seven years later.
THE POET
The Moscow Times had a fantastic quote, saying that the following quote from George W. Bush, were it less "windy," would have made "a haiku of disconnect." The quote, in poetic form is below.
For decades, when the leaders of our two countries met,
they talked mainly of missiles and warheads,
because the only common ground we shared was the desire to avoid catastrophic conflict.
In recent years,
the United States and Russia have made great progress in building a new relationship.
WAS JERRY LEE LEWIS A ROMA?
Poor Roma (as the Gypsies are now known). First, one of their princesses (the daughter of a "self-proclaimed king") storms out of the middle of her wedding ceremony. To some extent this is to be expected, since she is only 12 (or 14, nobody is sure). Then, the story is picked up by the international press, as the linked Canadian Press and BBC stories show.
However, there a few legal aspects of this case that make it really dicey. First, as mentioned above, the bride was the daughter of a "self-proclaimed" king. Now, in reality, I guess that essentially all royalty are self-proclaimed at some point. I mean, royalty seems to have started as a meritocracy. Win, and your self-proclaimed status is reinforced. Lose and die. Still, Gypsy king status seems like it ought to have a little higher of a bar than just plain ol' king, since the gypsies are an international group.
Second, the Canadian and British reports disagree on the legal minimum age for marriage in Romania. Neither believes that it is legal for a 12 year old to get married (sorry Mr. Lewis), but the Canadians think it is 18, while the Brits think it is 16. I guess with what we know of the Canadians, it seems more reasonable to believe the Brits. On the other hand, I am guessing that a Romanian jail is a little harsh, so you might want to wait until you gypsy bride turns 18—just to be on the safe side.
WORD OF THE DAY
America's Finest Newspaper picked up an LA Times story with my new favorite word in it: "Papabili." This is apparently Italian for "pope-ables," and denotes those Cardinals thought to be possible candidates for Pope if and when John Paul II dies. I try to use "papabili" at least once a day.
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR
The Moscow Times reports that the Ukrainian President has indicated that Ukraine should stop aspiring to EU membership. Instead, it should focus on its customs union with Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan and building trade with those countries. Isn't this how the Ukrainians ended up a Soviet state in the first place? Does he really think that Belarus and Russia will be better economic allies than Great Britain and Germany? Poor Ukraine. Seems like their president may be taking a page from the Belarusian dictator's playbook and becoming friends with the country that doesn't care if he ever holds elections.
CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY FROM A MUSLIM
America's Finest Newspaper does occasionally run an actual news story worth being printed. For instance, today, they ran a story about Christians in Iraq. It is estimated that about 5% of Iraqis are Christian (mostly Chaldean Catholics). Anyway, it is a good article, but the real gem comes from a Shiite leader, who says of his Christian countrymen, "Christians should listen to the instruction of Jesus Christ, who didn't take alcohol at all, and also to the Virgin Mary, who didn't wear makeup or take drink."
Now, I have a little quote here from the Gospel of John (2:1-11) which I think may, just may, undercut the no alcohol argument:
On the third day there was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with His disciples. When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."
And Jesus said to her, "O woman, what have you to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.
His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever He tells you."
Now six stone jars were standing there, for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.
Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim.
He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the steward of the feast." So they took it.
When the steward of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew, the steward of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, "Every man serves the good wine first; and when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.
This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.
Now, I'm no scholar, but the fact that Mary basically ordered Jesus to make more wine implies to me that (a) wine was not theologically problematic, and (b) that Mary might have had a little sippy sip herself. On the other hand, I can find no reference to Mary at the Lancôme counter at the Jerusalem Nordstrom's, so the Shiite guy may have a point about the make-up.
AND FINALLY
Here is a link to the second half of the Christian Science Monitor article on the Uighurs in China. It is an excellent article and worth a read (if not commentary).
posted by David at 11:17 AM
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