Just between Bluegal and me...

I'd still say Bluegal and her own blogging Wonder Woman personae wins hands down regardless of her twitter note and in almost any photoshop contest up.

My effort, a much deserved kick at The Economist can be found at ePluribus Media (+++ a bit more) while Bluegal's vastly superior effort can be found here...

For those who argued against Catholic Parishioners having more oversight over their donations

to the Catholic Church... Is it more than just political donations and actions that the church is trying to hide?

A Roman Catholic priest in Connecticut has been arrested on charges he stole $1.3 million in church money over seven years to use for male escorts, expensive clothing, and luxury hotels and restaurants.

Waterbury police say the 64-year-old Rev. Kevin J. Gray was charged Tuesday with first-degree larceny. Gray is the former pastor at Sacred Heart/Sagrado Corazon Parish in Waterbury.

It seems to me that local parishioners, had they had a little more oversight over where their money goes to, would have caught this one long ago.

Would you not worry about what they were doing with your money, both politically and non-politically, given their recent and previous actions?

Catholic Church role in killing sex-abuse bill downplayed
Published: 08:27 p.m., Saturday, May 8, 2010

The Legislature's Judiciary Committee introduces a controversial bill the Catholic Church finds discriminatory, Connecticut's bishops issue an urgent call to parishioners to protest, and the proposal goes away.

Sound familiar?

On its face, the Catholic Church's recent defeat of legislation extending the statute of limitations for sex abuse echoes the organization's 2009 quashing of a highly controversial Judiciary Committee proposal giving the laity greater oversight of parish finances.

In an April 10 letter distributed at weekend Mass the bishops, including William E. Lori of the Bridgeport diocese, invoked that comparison to again rally the faithful.

"You will remember the now infamous Senate Bill 1098 last year, which was an attempt to restructure the governance of the Catholic Church," they wrote.

Did 1098 cross the line between church and state? A bit.

But it did so a lot less than the Catholic Church, and other churches to be fair as well, have constantly crossed the line into being non-stop political action groups funding policy and issues and they could probably be regulated that way (which isn't saying much given Citizen United and the activist right wing SCOTUS). Never mind the criminal activities that get covered up under the veil of their "religious rules".

Forcing them to be a bit more accountable to their parishioners is a minor blur in the line compared to how they have proven to have misused the churches funds for political actions, sexual indiscretions and cover-ups for other deeply disturbing illegal actions against children.

Hopefully the members of the Catholic churches that fund these actions will take the reigns away from these financial abusers themselves.

Because I would prefer the government keep on its side of the line. On it's side of that famous "Wall of Separation".

But if the Catholic church expects the government to stay on their side of the line than the Church had better get the fuck back on their side of the line. And maybe, just maybe, stop doing so many horrid and criminal things?

[update] PZ Myers at Pharyngula "celebrates" this news with some dark humor:

"Hooray for the Catholic Church! It's a priest who wasn't raping children!"

Father Kevin Gray had better things to do with his time.

Apparently for the past seven years Gray has been spending church money to fund trips to New York and pay for sessions with male escorts, and he also racked up $200,000 in restaurant bills including a large tab at Tavern on the Green.

It is a step up for the church, from child molesters to hedonistic embezzlers. Progress!

Conflict Minerals and the "Ore on Terror"

Steven D at the BooMan Tribune pointed out this interesting video on a campaign to raise awareness concerning the grave situation in the Congo:

Profiting from the worst war on the planet that no one in America knows anything about by purchasing "conflicts minerals" from the Congo for their products:

Also from Steven D, and after some nudging from readers, an added a diary covering what you can do about it.


One of the things I have always loved about Blogging is the fact that not only can we start to look at things that are wrong, pick apart stories, facts and ideas... But we can work together on solutions for them when we see these problems for what they are.

Below is the same story unfolding with a different name to the region affected, IMHO, as Jon Stewart and the Daily Show crew give us the "Ore on Terror":

Ore on Terror
Afghanistan will never not know war after tons of incredibly valuable natural resources are found underneath its surface.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Ore on Terror
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Dem Dems are Dumb Dumbs

Yep - the local New Milford Democrats are lead by dumb dumbs. Their entire leadership team is continually outmaneuvered and outsmarted by the Republican Town Committee (RTC). Why they seek leadership positions year after year - and why they're re-elected by the membership - is beyond me.

John Lillis and Liba Furhman are so pathetic they claim they couldn't find anyone to take a seat on the Board of Finance. Really? You couldn't find ONE person, among a few thousand registered Dems, who would take a seat on the BOF?

Let's take a look at the record of recent failures to see what the real story is for these dumb dumbs.

The Park and Rec Board has ZERO Dems. 5 R's and 2 U's, but no Dems. The last time an appointment was open, the wife of a Dem elected official asked repeatedly to serve. Because the leadership did nothing, the Mayor put forth another "R." Is this just being lazy - or dumb?

The Board of Ed had an opening in February '10, due to the resignation of Dr. Lisa Diamond. She gave the Dems ample time to find and put up a qualified nominee. In a stroke of unethical genius, the RTC Mayor put up a registered Dem to fill the void. The Dem, Rodney Weinberg, had asked da Dems repeatedly to serve on the BOE or other commission, but his name - or that of any other Dem - was never put up. As usual, Lillis showed up late to the party, and the right-leaning Weinberg was confirmed. Is this just lazy - or dumb?

After months and months of a Dem seat being open on the BOF, the Mayor could wait no more. She put up a "U," Beth Falder, at the last TC meeting (6/28/10). Mrs. Falder might as well be an "R," or a "T" for Tea Party, as she lead the public charge of the anti-school crowd this year. According to a party insider, Liba Furhman claimed there was not one person's name they could bring forward for that seat. Again - lazy or dumb?

If da Dems could lift a finger and type out an email to their membership, maybe they'd get a response from "one or more" volunteers. Or, if da Dems put a two paragraph note in the local papers (just like the RTC does all the time), asking for volunteers for boards and commissions, maybe they'd get a response. Or, if they asked their members to ask their friends and neighbors, I bet dem Dems could get one, sole, single, solitary person to volunteer.

Am I way off base here? Would any of you reading this be willing to step up and take a seat on the BOF, BOE, Park and Rec, or any of the other boards and commissions in town? Let me know.

We don't need to remind everyone of da Dems recent general election success to take a shot at the leadership. They lost control of every board in town, and only by the grace of the Town Charter were they able to cling to a few paltry seats of importance. But, when you run a campaign consisting of nothing, that's what you get. Nice leadership Lillis and Liba!

What do I think is the real problem? Lillis and Furhman are overly controlling, and unwilling to give new people an opportunity. If they don't know you - forget it. If they don't like you - forget it even more. If you have any new ideas... I think you get the point.

If you want a leadership position, then lead. Do something - ANYTHING - to show New Milford da Dems aren't dead.