Laughs

This is too good not to post :)  Enjoy

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent terrorist threats

and have therefore raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved."

Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or
even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the
blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out. Terrorists have been
re-categorized from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance." The last time the
British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588, when
threatened by the Spanish Armada.

The Scots have raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's get
the Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they
have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300
years.

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror
alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in France are
"Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire
that destroyed France's white flag factory, effectively paralyzing the
country's military capability.

Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to
"Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain: "Ineffective
Combat Operations" and "Change Sides."

The Germans have increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance"
to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher
levels: "Invade a Neighbor" and "Lose."

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat
they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels .

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy.
These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy
can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy.

Australia , meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to
"She'll be alright, Mate." Three more escalation levels remain: "Crikey!",
"I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend", and "The barbie is
cancelled."

Papal Resignation

    Well, Pope Benedict XVI resigned.  Wait, what???  Popes don't just...you know...quit.  Or do they?  Apparently they do...as of a couple days ago.  Actually, that is false. The first pope to resign was Pope St. Pontian, who resigned in 235 after being exiled by Emperor Maximinus Thrax to the salt mines in Sardinia .  In all there have been 10 popes who have stepped down from the Chair of St. Peter, the most recent being Pope Gregory XII in 1415....and now finally Pope Benedict XVI.  So now the Church is in a state of limbo. The "Sede Vacante".  Although Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone is the "acting head of the Church" as the Camerlengo, we don't really have a leader.  This is an historic moment of history.
     The general consensus is that whoever is elected to be the next Pope will have some very large shoes to fill.  See photo à Speculations are rampant on who it will be.  The Cardinals who are numbered among the "favorites" include:  Cardinal Scola of Venice, Cardinal Ouellet of Canada, Cardinal Turkson of Ghana, among others.  My personal preference is, of course, Cardinal Dolan of New York.  I find it quite amusing when I hear all these speculations.  I could almost put money on it that the Cardinals will elect someone whom nobody has hardly even heard of, and who will turn out to be one of the greatest Popes to date.  We need a Pope capable of guiding the Church through the rough waters of today's world.  Someone who is able to stand up to her critics and confirm her teachings.  We need a Pope who has the energy and willpower of Blessed John Paul II, and the holiness, faith, and intellect of Benedict XVI.  The next Holy Father needs to reform the reform of Vatican II (translated: he needs to implement what Vatican II really wanted...not how liberal Catholics misinterperated it).  I trust that the Holy Spirit will do his job well, and inspire the Cardinal Electors to choose a truly saintly man to lead Jesus Christ's One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic, Church.

March for Life - Part 2

     This is the promised second installment of my experiences in Washington D.C. for the March for Life.  If you didn't get a chance to read the first part you can read it here.
     Well, I left off the last post with dinner in the "Vantage Point" restaurant.   A very delicious dinner, by the way.  And yes, I ate too much.  Way too much.  But it was definitely worthwhile.  I was making up for my malnourishment at school (courtesy of the crummy cafeteria food, which would make anyone lose their appetite).  The hotel was relatively near Ronald Reagan National Airport so we had a great view of all the planes coming in.  One would appear on the horizon just about exactly every two minutes.  It was quite interesting.  We all slept soundly that night, partly out of utter exhaustion and partly because we all had full stomachs.
     The next day (Saturday) we had almost the entire day for sightseeing.  My friends Scott, Abby, Eileen, Kathryn, and John, and I started the day off with breakfast at McDonald's (McDonald's has some good pancakes, for the record).  Then we headed off to Arlington National Cemetery where we watched to changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  I had been to the changing of the guard before, and I have to say that it is one of the coolest things I have ever witnessed.  To watch the soldier stand guard at that tomb, pacing slowly back and forth, is quite the sight.  When his relief finally arrived the sergeant addressed the hushed crowd in a harsh, solemn, and commanding tone.  He ordered us to be silent during the proceedings out of respect and everyone instantly fell silent.  I'm pretty sure that everyone would've rolled around on the ground if he had ordered us to do so.  The entire ceremony had a sense of awe and solemnity around it.  After witnessing that awesome spectacle we visited the tombs of Audie Murphy, the most decorated soldier of WWII, and of John F. Kennedy, where I got yelled at for trying to answer my cell phone.  Apparently cell phones are strictly verboten.  After leaving the cemetery we walked to the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial, which happens to be my second favorite site in D.C., the other being the Lincoln Memorial.  We were soon joined by several more of our friends and we all walked to Chipotle for lunch.
       During the afternoon Eileen and I toured the Mall, visiting the Washington Monument, the National Museum of History, the WWII Memorial, the Vietnam wall, the Korean Memorial, and my favorite, the Lincoln Memorial.  I only wish that they would've built all those things in an area of about 4 blocks.  Your feet get sore with all the walking.
       No matter how many times I go back to DC (I've been three times now), it never gets old.  There is just something amazing about being in our nation's capital.  Every time I go there I feel like I am a little bit of a part of all the history that is there.  Standing in front of the statue of Abraham Lincoln, I always feel like I'm almost actually in his presence.  It was especially awesome this time since I had just recently seen Steven Spielberg's masterpiece, "Lincoln".
     We ended the day with Mass, before boarding the buses for the 24 hour ride back to campus.  Looking back, being a part of a 650,000 strong protest for life was an incredible experience.  I am proud to be able to add my voice to the fight for life and I am looking forward to going back next year (hopefully).

March for Life - Part 1

   This past week I was fortunate enough to be able to travel to Washington D.C. for the 40th annual March for Life.  Benedictine College took over 300 students to the March this year.  We were on the bus for 26 hours...and then 26 more hours on the way back.  We left campus Wednesday afternoon and arrived in DC on Thursday night.  I'll give you a little summary of how the trip went.

    Upon arriving in DC Abbot James Albers (the abbot of St. Benedict's Abbey in Atchison) said mass for us at a parish somewhere in the city.  We didn't get to the hotel (a fancy Holiday Inn in Arlington) until late.  Everyone was pretty exhausted.  It felt amazing to get to sleep stretched out again.  It is quite difficult to sleep on a bus.

    The March was the next day and we were up bright and early.  Unfortunately for us, it was only 23 degrees out.  I was wearing jeans with my pajamas under them, wool socks, two shirts, a sweatshirt and a coat (better be safe than sorry).  Fortunately it was relatively dry...last year the entire Mall was a mud pit.  We started the day off with mass at St. Peter's church, which is about a half mile from the capitol building and where all the Catholic politicians go to church.  Then we walked down to the mall to wait for the rally to start.  We were about an hour early and literally some of the first people to get there, so we found ourselves right up in the front by the stage.  For the record, 23 degrees Fahrenheit is pretty dang cold.  Especially when you are standing still for two hours.   By the time the rally finally started at noon my feet were started to hurt.  By the end of the rally they were very nearly numb.  Maybe next time I'll invest in feet warmers to put in my shoes (do they even make those? Because that would be legit.)

Me with Rick Santorum

    Anyway, I was really excited when I heard that one of the speakers at the rally would be Rick Santorum, one of my political idols and heroes. He gave a short but wonderful and heartfelt speech. He said, "Give these poor children who are all too often if they’re discovered in the womb to have a disability, all too often aborted, please give them a chance. Welcome them into our home as you here welcome them into our human family [...] You are the voice of the voiceless. You are those who stand for love in a world of death. And we are proud to be here with you." Then the march finally started. As we were standing there waiting to move out (it takes awhile for 650,000 people to get moving. Think traffic jam) I look over and see Santorum standing about 15 yards away from me. People are pressing around him, shaking his hand and taking pictures. Realizing this to be the chance of a lifetime, I pushed my way over towards him. I shook his hand and told him what a big fan of his I was. And then I got a picture with him. Easily one of the most awesome things that ever happened to me (along with Tebowing with Matt Maher...yes, I have a picture of that too) It made the painfully long bus ride, the $200 it cost me to take the trip, and the frozen feet, all worthwhile :-)

    The actual March took probably an hour(ish).  Halfway through it the snow that had been falling sparsely started coming down steadily.  It was pretty cool.  After getting to the Supreme Court all 300 BC students prayed a rosary together.  Then we all walked to the senate offices where Terry Gainer, the Senate Sergeant at Arms and a Benedictine alum, provided us with lunch/dinner.  After that a couple of my friends and I took the metro back to the hotel...after getting this awesome picture (with a very awesome person).  We finished off the night with dinner (yes, another dinner) in the "Vantage Point" Restaurant on the 17th floor of the hotel.

   To be continued...

Oh yeah, I have a blog. I almost forgot

Wow, it's been over a month since I've posted anything on here.  Ooops.  But I've been pretty busy with Christmas and school and other stuff.  So I kinda have an excuse.  Speaking of school, I have to go to class now (Principles of Microeconomics.  Yeah, I know....exciting).  But I shall write something properly on here as soon as I get a chance.

Another Semester in the Books

Well, my third semester in college is over.  Wait, what?  It seems like only yesterday that I was packing my things and heading back to Atchison for the start of a new semester.  How could that have possibly been three-and-a-half months ago?  How time flies…especially when you are having fun.  (That’s another thing.  Why is it that when we want time to move more quickly it drags on and on and on, and when we wish we had more time it flies by so quickly that it’s gone before we even notice?  It is somewhat annoying.)  Oh well, I guess we just have to enjoy it while it lasts.

So many things happened in the world this semester that it is hard to keep track of them all, let alone everything that happened in my own life.  The past three months have been a whirlwind of activity…which makes it a little hard to adjust to the quietness of being home.  It is nice to be able to relax and not to worry about tests and assignments though.  There is practically no time for relaxation in college between schoolwork and friends.  It’s one thing happening after the other…with very few breaks in between.  Not that I mind, but every now and then my brain decides that it needs a break.  That usually happens very conveniently around fall break, thanksgiving break, and then Christmas break.  I think the college must have figured out exactly how much everyone can take, and then scheduled the breaks to coincide with everyone’s breaking point.

Let’s see, what did I learn this semester?  Well…I learned everything about how to run a presidential campaign, I learned all about the money and the economy, I read Aristotle, Socrates, Plato, Machiavelli, Locke, Hobbes, Aquinas, Jefferson, and Madison, and I re-learned all the ins and outs of American History (up to 1865).  I decided that Socrates was a jerk…brilliant and a philosophical genius, but still a jerk, and that Locke, Aristotle, and Madison made quite a bit of sense.  And if presidential campaigns are that complicated, I had better start now.  Oh, and I lost all hope in American society with the reelection of Barack Obama.  I thought that Americans were smarter than that.  Apparently, I was wrong.  November 6, 2012 was easily one of the worst days in my life.  It was the day that Americans could have put an end to a failure of an administration, an administration that was putting our beloved country on the fast track for destruction.  Instead, the people reelected Obama, and basically gave him a free rein on whatever he wanted to do.  In short, I learned that 60 million Americans have no common sense whatsoever.  It pains me to see America, the greatest country in the history of the world, in such a terrible state.

On a brighter note, I can’t wait to see all the apocalypse related Facebook statuses on December 21^st….and then all the statuses on the 22^nd.  It will be rather amusing.  Those Mayans must be up in heaven having a good laugh at everyone’s expense.  I wonder how long the confession lines will be…

All in all, my third semester in college was a great one.  Just to think, I am 3/8 of the way through college.  That is a scary thought.  You mean in a little over two years I’m going to have to go off on my own and get a *gasp* job?  Oh well, I have two years to think about that.  Here’s to the new year and next semester!!!

Fatherhood

   Fathers are supposed to be the head of the family, physically and more importantly, spiritually.  In today's world this seems to be forgotten.  It is a proven fact that children, especially boys, need a strong father figure in their lives.  Young men need a good example of strong and virtuous manhood.  When they don't have the results are not good.  90% of inmates in our prisons grew up without a father in their home.  That's pretty strong proof if you ask me.

   Hollywood and literature often portrays fathers in a terrible light.  They are more often than not portrayed as bumbling idiots...with the mother being held up as a model of virtue and common sense.  What does this tell children about their fathers?  Take the "Berenstain Bears" for instance.  In this seemingly good and harmless book series Papa Bear is portrayed as a big, lazy, bumbling, dumb, oaf.  He's is laughed at by Mama Bear and by Brother and Sister bear.  We see this kind of thing everywhere now.  Countless movies today depict families with abusive, corrupt, or just plain missing fathers.  One of the most glaringly obviouss of these being Homer Simpson of the ever popular "The Simpsons".  Being a father is one of the most wonderful callings a man can commit to.  Being a good father takes virtue, courage, and love.  It most definitely is not an easy task.  Fathers should be held up by society as examples.  Instead they are ridiculed and mocked. 

   It is always quite refreshing to see a movie that portrays fatherhood as it should be (Batman Begins, Life is Beautiful, Courageous, Finding Nemo, and even the Andy Griffith Show.)  The movie that stands out the most to me is "Life is Beautiful".  This movie takes place in Italy during WWII.  The father in this movie, Guido, is taken to a concentration camp along with his young son.  His self-sacrifice and love for his son is one of the most inspiring things you will ever see.

   I am very lucky to have grown up with a wonderful father my entire life.  My Dad quietly showed me and my brothers, mostly by his example, what it meant to be a man and a loving husband and father.  I never have to look farther than my dad if I want to see an example of a hardworking, Catholic man and father.  Thank you, Dad.  I can only hope that I will follow in your footsteps if I ever become a father myself.