Climate-Gate - Is it just the tip of the Iceberg?

Recent stories about the falsification of data in order to support the theory of man caused climate change have rocked the scientific community. Senator Inhofe stated he has called for an investigation on "Climate-gate." The Washington Times has an editorial that explaining that this information should have been made available to the public through Great Britain's Freedom of information Act and that condemning the hackers does not change the fact that members within the scientific community have been conspiring to mislead the public and government about the whole climate change issue.

As many have said for years, the whole climate change business is just another attempt by a certain element in this world to take control of people's daily lives and force them into a regimen that limits their opportunities. Hopefully this evidence of the fabrications within and among the promoters of global warming will awaken the rest of us and cause us to reject the latest in junk science.

Is it finally time to excommunicate them all?

The latest brush-up between a Roman Catholic bishop and a "Catholic" politician who believes that he knows more about church teaching than the Church herself, raises once again the question often discussed among Catholics on the street but never mentioned in the public debate.

Excommunication.

The word itself seems to beg the question. Isn't it some archaic action of the "Pre-Vatican II" Church? Aren't we past all this now that Catholics have been mainstreamed into modern society? And what's the big deal, anyhow? Its only about abortion. And the Church leaders just buried Senator Edward Kennedy with all the pomp and circumstance of a hero's funeral? So what is the big deal about his son Patrick attacking the Church for not quietly taking her seat in the back of the bus and accepting the health care plan proposed by the Democrat party?

Thomas J. Tobin, the Bishop of the Diocese of Providence responded to the criticism with a blistery comment of his own.

“Congressman Patrick Kennedy’s statement about the Catholic Church’s position on health care reform is irresponsible and ignorant of the facts. As I wrote to Congressman Kennedy and other members of the Rhode Island Congressional Delegation recently, the Bishops of the United States are indeed in favor of comprehensive health care reform and have been for many years. But we are adamantly opposed to health care legislation that threatens the life of unborn children, requires taxpayers to pay for abortion, rations health care, or compromises the conscience of individuals."

Bishop Tobin pointed out that

"Congressman Kennedy continues to be a disappointment to the Catholic Church and to the citizens of the State of Rhode Island. I believe the Congressman owes us an apology for his irresponsible comments. It is my fervent hope and prayer that he will find a way to provide more effective and morally responsible leadership for our state.”

The increased aggressive behavior by Catholic politicians to not only publicly oppose basic church teachings on human rights has escalated over the last year and a half since the publication of the pre-election pamphlet by the USCCB on the responsibility of Catholics in the voting and exercising their civil rights. We all recall Biden and Pelosi attempting to instruct their bishops on Catholic moral teaching. While they showed themselves the fools they are, the media gave them cover and many bishops unfortunately ran for the tall grass. Their collective failure to uniformly use these "teaching moments" would come to haunt them in a big way.

Obama and his dissident Catholic allies made strategic use of their high profile Catholic supporters in getting more of the Catholic vote and neutralizing the previously effective grassroots get out the vote campaigns by pro-lifers in the past two elections. Now with the debate over health care raising the omen of taxpayer abortions, subsidized abortion care by government fiat, and the conflict such laws will create for Catholic doctors and hospitals, the failed efforts of the USCCB to call these politicians and pro-abortion Catholics to account become even more significant.

And do not forget the debacle at Notre Dame this past May.

So what about the state of Patrick Kennedy's soul given his unbridled support for killing unborn children?

And what about the state of the souls of the many Catholic senators, congressmen, governors, state legislators, and cabinet secretaries who have consistently supported and voted in favor of abortion funding, pro-abortion measures, and against even the most pitiful efforts to limit or reduce the need for abortion?

There are currently 161 Catholics presently serving in the Congress. Only 26 have 100 percent pro-life voting records, while 28 have a zero percent rating. Sixty-five have less than a 20 percent pro-life rating and 75 have accepted donations from pro-abortion lobbying groups. One can check for a particular member of congress here.

Then there are the various incidents over the past two years wherein prominent "Catholic" politicians acted contrary to the law that requires we protect the dignity of innocent human life. Thee events range from simply endorsing legislation to pushing through funding. One could recite a litany of actions by these politicians, all of which scandalize the Faithful and are acts that directly cooperate with objective evil.

So I raise the question once again. Is it not time to directly address the scandal?
U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops in “Living the Gospel of Life” states clearly:

No one, least of all someone who exercises leadership in society, can rightfully claim to share fully and practically the Catholic faith and yet act publicly in a way contrary to that faith.

If we believe in the teachings of the Church, and these teachings are nothing more than the exposition of the natural law, then those who scandalize the Faith must be called account for the sake of their immortal souls. For our concern is not simply with the protection of the innocent, it is also that none may perish in sin. If we really care about these politicians, then we do not want them to suffer the loss of their eternal souls.

So what are the bishops waiting for?

It has been 36 plus years since Roe v. Wade. We all know the travesty of that decision. 50,000,000 dead babies so far. Perhaps it is time to put aside the private conversations and the hopeful polite dialogue, Perhaps the bishops should realize that many of them have been played for chumps. This Congress is poised to destroy the Catholic hospital network. It is angling to force the Church underground. Now is not the time to be reserved. It is the time for action.

The bishop of a diocese is the shepherd responsible for the souls of the faithful, whether they be the saints of the sinners. Sinners generally need more attention and their return to the flock is met with great rejoicing. It is up to the bishops to tell the Bidens, Peolis, Pastors, Grijalvas, and their cohorts that the gates of Heaven are closed to them unless they repent of the grave sins against life.

If they do not care, then we have done all we can do. Otherwise, we may act to bring about some real conversion.

Pope John Paul II's 'Gospel of Life' teaches that abortion is the greatest evil attack on innocent, defenseless life. It is an attack on humanity, on goodness truth and beauty. Only if we respond to the attack on innocent human life with prayer, sacrifice and action, can we end it in our nation. The Bishops need to realize that now is the time.

We may not get another chance.

Thirty years ago today - a reflection

On the morning of October 13, 1979, in Grady Gammage Auditorium at Arizona State University, those men and women who had successfully passed the Arizona State Bar Exam and were deemed fit to practice law, raised their right hands and and repeated the Oath admitting them to the practice of law. I was among those participants and it was a day that brought pride to my family and friends. It was an exciting day for me, one which offered great anticipation. I was a lawyer and soon to hang out my shingle and begin the noble work of an honored profession.

I will admit that my idealism had been tempered after three years of law school. Learning how the law really works and that there is a difference between justice and the law takes some getting use to. And the shadow of the abortion controversy was ever present. I could not shake myself of the notion that until that evil was lifted from our nation, everything the law touched was somehow tainted.

Yet I was hopeful that God would use me in some small way to make a difference.

Two days later I opened up my office on 324 E. Thomas Road in Phoenix, not far from where I lived while attending high school. I would swing by the old house and visit our neighbor, an old Greek hatter, named Georg Falkadis. He made me my first hat and every so often I would stop by, sit with him in his parlor and let him reminisce about the early days of downtown Phoenix.

It was the beginning of an adventure that found one part of me engaged in the general practice of law and the other part drawn to advocacy for the unborn, their mothers and those who who protect them both from the treacherous claws of the abortion industry. After thirty years, it is still the same story. And I hope that through the years, I have done more good than ill, and helped more than hurt. Of course those thirty years have had quite an impact on my life. I met and married a most incredible young lady and we have been blessed to raise 11 amazing children. Those children have been and continue to be the conduit of God's awesome love. I have been involved in a movement that is all about the "other person;" a movement that has allowed me to meet and befriend some of the greatest human beings on the face of the earth. And I do not mean just the famous or important ones when I say this. So many people have given of their time, their talent and their treasure to help save the lives of these little ones and to help women who were without hope. They would open up their homes and take in young women who had been kicked out of their homes. They would give up their Saturdays or maybe even more of their weekdays to sidewalk counsel. Then there were the little old ladies who would come to the office and help with the mailings. This was before computers made things easier. We had the prayer warriors them as we do today. And not just the prayer warriors but also those who seemed to suffer as well, offering their physical ailments for the sake of the children.

Of course we have these same people, or their sons and daughters, or their friends out here today making a difference, one life at a time. Believing that everything will happen in God's time, that we as a people will finally realize that killing our future is so wrong, that we as a people will get on our knees, atone for our sins and seek His forgiveness, I can continue and seek to make a difference each day, open to what ever God has in store.

In keeping that faith, I draw upon the example of my parents, two people who live their faith every day. I can happily say that I know my parents' story and it is a beautiful one; not without tragedy, not without disappointment, but filled with an amazing appreciation for the gifts God has given us. A strong work ethic, a clear sense of right and wrong, and a dedication to family, my parents showed me what love was all about.

So I consider 30 years of practicing law. There have been some very interesting cases and a lot of very ordinary ones. Yet with every client there was a human being and in most cases I learned something from those encounters.

Ironic that while so much has changed, some things have not. It will be interesting to look back years from now and see if I will be reflecting from behind the same desk. After all I still have a six year old to see through school.

Thanks for joining me on a personal walk in the past.

USCCB CLUELESS IN DEALING WITH OBAMA

The United States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB) issued a press release Thursday following President Obama's address to the Congress on Wednesday evening. This statement by Kathy Saile, Director of Domestic Social Development at the USCCB, once again exposes the total lack of understanding by bureaucratic professional Catholics blinded by the Washington mist that floats along the Potomac.

Saile starts out by stating the obvious. "We agree that 'no one should go broke because they get sick.' That's why the U.S. Bishops have worked for decades for decent health care for all. The Catholic Church provides health care for millions, purchases health care, picks up the pieces of a failing health system, and has a long tradition of teaching on ethics in health care. Health care reform that respects the life and dignity of all is a moral imperative and urgent national priority."

She then makes an incredible statement in light of the president's propensity for shading the truth. "We welcome the President's speech as an important contribution to this essential national debate and task."

An important contribution?

Is she serious?

Saile continued in her statement. "We agree with the President that there are details that need to be ironed out. With his address last night, we see the opportunity to work towards a truly universal health policy with respect for human life and dignity, access for all with a special concern for the poor, and inclusion of legal immigrants. We also see the possibility of meeting the bishops' goal to pursue the common good and preserve pluralism, including freedom of conscience and a variety of options, and restraining costs and applying them equitably across the spectrum of payers."

Even my good friend Richard Dorflinger does not seem to get it.

Can we look with some honesty at the Obama abortion agenda and be truthful about what he has held as a position since his days as a state senator?

Of course Saile has a history of catering to the leftist agendas in her various roles prior to joining the USCCB in September 2007.

So what possesses the USCCB to fall in line with the propaganda being shoveled by the White House, except a willingness to compromise Catholic teaching? The president and the Democratic leadership has made abortion a central part of their agenda. The House and the Senate have rejected affirmative efforts to remove abortion coverage from the two proposed health bills. The Democratic majorities have defeated these various efforts and the USCCB has yet to call those Catholic politicians to account. Indeed, the lack of serious comment in the aftermath of the Kennedy funeral combined with the pass given those Democrats, have caused great resentment in the ranks of every day Catholics. On the one hand abortion is suppose to be the most critical of the social justice issues. Yet, the social justice leadership at the USCCB have run interference for Obama.

This latest pandering to the White House appears to a part of the continued efforts by dissident Catholic groups to undermine the Church's teachings and to marginalize the Church's influence in the public square. These groups have sown confusion among the Catholic Faithful and those interested in Catholic matters. The USCCB needs to stop giving the Obama administration and their lackeys in the Congress the cover on this whole health care mess. Look at the problems in New York, Massachusetts, and New Jersey, just to mention a few states, where the Church is getting hammered in the public square and where Catholic teaching is under blistering attack.

Regina S Rockefeller from Nixon Peabody, a law firm deeply involved in the push for "health care reform," had this to say:

Abortion is one of those hot-button squabble points. With leadership from Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), women’s health advocates won a key vote in the Senate health committee last week to ensure that women’s health clinics and HIV/AIDS clinics will be considered "essential providers" in any national health reform legislation. However, 20 conservative House Democrats have informed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) that they will refuse to sign onto any legislation that does not explicitly prohibit the use of tax dollars for abortion. In Massachusetts, private health insurance plans purchased with government funds through the Connector pay for abortion services.

So when the president and the Congressional leaders tell the people that abortion is not a part of the mix, they are lying through their teeth. They have promised Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion groups that they will be considered "essential providers" in any legislation.

Following the over two million people that demonstrated in Washington, D.C. yesterday, can we hope for any common sense to come out of the USCCB leadership?

Finding real long term answers to address the problems in the health care system require something more than simply new laws or new public regulations on health care.

We must start with prayer and fasting.

We must demand not simply no federal funding of abortion, but the end to legal abortion itself.

We must state clearly that 50,000,000 dead babies are too many and the killing must stop now.

We Catholics must withhold any support for any plan until this demand is accepted.

Anything less is collaboration of the most egregious kind.

The Catholic Church as a part of her corporal works of mercy provides care to the sick. To that end we have built hospitals and nursing homes and orphanages throughout the years. The Church never asked for or demanded the government to assist in these works of God. It is our role in the world. It is our duty to our brothers and sisters to provide opportunity so that they may find within themselves that which God has called them to do.

So why now? Why willingly become subservient to the federal government?

Why do we not set up our own private Catholic health care system, using the principles of subsidiarity and the venues of our parishes and dioceses to create our own co-operative, one that does not provide for abortion, birth control, sterilization, and other treatments that offend human dignity? Why not devise a way where Catholics (and anyone who wants to be a part of the system) can be a part of a network that supports those hospitals that respect and agree to abide by the Catholic view of respect for the dignity of the human person? Why do we need to bow to the federal government on this issue? After all who is more efficient in educating children, in providing real social services, in meeting the needs of those at risk in our society?

The government or the Church?

For 36 years abortion has corrupted, contaminated and corroded the body politic. Now there is an administration poised to take control of the health care system of the U.S. and to dictate that availability of abortion be a component of same. Obama's speech was made up of words that did not ring true, works that contradicted his previous statements, and words that run contrary to what Nancy Pelosi and others intend to do with these health care bills.

It is time that the bishops wake up, recognize the perilous times in which we live, and act as the Shepherds God has called them to be. In the meanwhile we, the laity, are not going to take this laying down. We will stand in solidarity with each other to defend our right not to be forced to abide in a system that robs a human being of his inherent dignity and right to life.

ABORTION IS BLACK GENOCIDE

ABORTION IS BLACK GENOCIDE

ABORTION IS BLACK GENOCIDE

The headline is not original. For many years during the late 1960s and 70s, Black leaders would start their speeches on their view that abortion was being pushed as a means of eliminating the Africa-American community. Civil Rights leaders from Jesse Jackson to Dick Gregory to Stokely Carmichael would allude to the paucity of real concrete assistance in the ghettos, but the over abundance of family planning clinics focused on reducing the Black population. Then Jesse decided he wanted to be president, organizations financing the civil rights struggles told leaders to hush when the abortion issue came up and another cover up in American politics took place with nary a complaint.

During the years that have passed, many of us would raise the issue of black genocide only to find the audience uninterested in what was happening in “those” communities. Yet the statistics reveal that over 37% of the abortions in the United States are committed on African-American women.

Now a new documentary has arrived on the scene. MAAFA 21 is a serious fact intensive documentary that exposes for the first time on film the systematic effort by the racists in America to exterminate the Black population through abortion and birth control. Done in the style of Ken Burns, this documentary walks the viewer from the end of the Civil War to the present day. It weaves a compelling indictment of the racists in America who attempted to control, lessen or even eliminate African- Americans once they got their freedom.

Produced by Life Dynamics and directed by Mark Crutcher, every person who cares about the problems caused by abortion will want to see this film. Not only that, but you will also want to show any person who doubts the corrosive effects abortion has had on the culture.

Planned Parenthood is the primary focus of the documentary once the history is presented. Founded by Margaret Sanger an avowed racist and bigot, and originally known as the American Birth Control League, Sanger’s organization had strong ties to the Eugenics movement, which held that Blacks and other non-white races were inferior to the white man. Crutcher reveals the close ties the leaders of the American Eugenics Society had with the Thirds Reich prior to World War II. The film connects the dots and presents a strong indictment of the elitist mentality that controls the Democratic party today as well as many huge international business conglomerates. A film that will need to be viewed over and over again, I recommend MAAFA 21 to anyone who wants to help make a sea change in the struggle to end abortion in America.

Fortunately there are now many organizations standing up to the abortion industry within and among the Black Community. Leaders like Alveda King, niece of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., are leading the fight to expose the racist eugneic nature of Planned Parenthood.
View the trailer

22,000 gather and pray at Guadalupe Festival

Over 22,000 people gathered at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale Arizona on Saturday August 8, 2009 to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe in the concluding event of the First International Marian Congress of Our Lady of Guadalupe held in Phoenix, Arizona. Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, the Congress presented a series of lectures discussing the apparition of the Blessed Virgin to the indigenous peoples of Mexico in 1531 and the effect of that visitation on the catholic Church in the Americas. The lectures includes a detailed study of the tilma upon which the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe appears.

The festival, which included testimonies, prayer, songs and dance was the culmination of the Congress and featured such renowned personalities as actor and producer, Eduardo Verastegui, and Immaculee Ilibagiza, author and survivor of the Rwandan Holocaust. Ms. Ilibagiza shared the horrific events that happened in her country and how she was spared by the grace of God. Eduardo spoke of his conversion and the power that God has to change lives for the better.

The program included the recitation of the Rosary with meditations read by people from around the world and the decades lead in various languages by representatives from the different nations.

Bishop Olmsted from Phoenix and Bishop Lori from Bridgeport, CT joined the crowd in prayer. Bishop Olmsted also spoke of the attraction of true beauty and the need to appreciate the beauty in our lives that comes from God.

Thew crowd, largely Hispanic cheered throughout the day with cries of "Viva" in response to the the different musicians.

Throughout the day the joy of living and the recurrent theme that we should live lives that respect the right to life from the womb to the tomb, resonated in the talks, the songs and the prayers.

What was very disappointing though was the failure of the press and the media to cover the event. There were no local stories on the news or on the radio, nor was there anything in print. as of this posting, there was not even anything on the internet or on the wire services, either secular or religious.

At a time when prayer and action are the two most important things that we can do given this current crisis, it is a shame that no one took the time to cover the event.

Well I was there and now you know a little bit about what happened her in the Valley of the Sun.

Urgent - Vote on Pence amendment today - ACTION ITEM

Urgent - Vote on Pence amendment today - ACTION ITEM


This morning, the House will vote on a Pence Amendment that would strip Planned Parenthood of its $350 million in taxpayer funding.

This is going to be a great preview for us to see which blue dog Democrats in the House are serious about keeping abortion funding out of the health care bill and which democrats are willing to listen to the pressure of their constituents regardless of their public position on abortion.

Please follow the steps below ASAP.

Thank you, you are the only lobbyists in Washington the unborn have

John

1. Call Harry Mitchell's' office at (202) 225-2190 He represents CD5.

2. Call Ed Pastor's office at (202) 225-4065 He represents CD4.

3. Call Raul Grijalva's office at (202) 225-2435 He represents CD7.

4. Call Gabrielle Gifford's office at (202) 225-2542 She represents CD8.

5. Tell the staff member who answers the phone that you are a constituent if that is correct or that you live in Arizona. You want the representative to vote YES on the Pence Amendment to De-Fund Planned Parenthood, because you do not want your tax dollars funding the largest abortion provider in America.

6. Please also call the Republican members of the Arizona delegation as well. All are on record as supporting the Pence Amendment. However it is always good to remind them that 80% of the American people do not want their tax dollars going to fund Planned Parenthood.