Friday, June 15, 2012

Quick Takes: Incredulity and Outrage (or, A Normal Day in My Life)






(The underlying outrage here is that my font may be coming up as SCRIPT on some of your computers! I did not format it that way, and I can't do anything to stop it, apparently. Blogger, why are you my nemesis?)




1) Some of us had a little fun last week getting banned from the "Catholic for Choice" facebook page. It's easy and you should join us! If you have a facebook account, simply go here and write a "recommendation" or other comment. Here are the two I used, and they got me banned from the page within hours!

"Can you imagine that some Catholics 'choose' to be faithful? It's awesome!"


"Catholics for Choice? Well, you could choose to have integrity and not be part of an organization that you disdain and oppose. I encourage you to make that choice. :) "

Be creative (and respectful!), then enjoy the thrill of being censored and blocked by those who claim tolerance and "choice" for all!

2) Siblings are illegal in China. The enforcement of the "one-child policy" over the decades has been brutal, violent, unconscionable. Recently a story and photo of one instance of abuse and murder has gone viral, this time within China, where the outrage of the Chinese people has prompted an apology from the government. Unfortunately, what happened to this woman, her husband, and their child is not uncommon. The "one-child" policy still stands (with many on the American left supportive of it), and the evil will undoubtedly continue for some time. To see this one horrible incident exposed in the light, go to the following link, which I warn you is very graphic:


And, if you are on facebook, you should consider following and "friending" Reggie Littlejohn, a courageous American woman and Yale Law School grad who has dedicated her life to exposing these atrocities (and is the president of Women's Rights Without Frontiers):

Reggie Littlejohn -- a true feminist hero!



3) Roger Ebert's review of For Greater Glory perplexes me. The famed movie critic says that the film is "well-made" and "an impressive achievement"…. except for the Catholic theme. Read it, here, and tell me where I'm misinterpreting. Ebert is an ex-Catholic, which could explain a lot, but is this a professional review? For example, what on earth is this doing in a movie review?
It is well-made, yes, but has such pro-Catholic tunnel vision I began to question its view of events. One important subplot involves a 12-year-old boy choosing to die for his faith. Of course the federal troops who shot him were monsters, but the film seems to approve of his decision and includes him approvingly in a long list of Cristeros who have achieved sainthood or beatification after their deaths in the war. {emphases mine}
Huh? He doesn't believe that Christians would die for their faith, die for Christ? Goodness, Christians have been doing that, inspirationally and consistently, for, oh, about… TWENTY CENTURIES! Suddenly we find such courage, honor and integrity ignoble? When did that happen? What virtue, Mr. Ebert, is displayed by a Christian who would not die for his Lord, but instead would denounce and betray Him?

Ebert ends his review with a bizarre anti-Catholic statement that has nothing to do with the movie, but inexplicably seems only designed to slam the Church:
If it had not hewed so singlemindedly to the Catholic view and included all religions under the banner of religious liberty, I believe it would have been more effective. If your religion doesn't respect the rights of other religions, it is lacking something. {emphasis mine}
What the heck is that last line? Can anyone tell me what place that has in a movie review? And, besides, why would a movie recounting a war against Catholics need to "include all religions" in the retelling? Hello?

Sigh. But to leave things on a good note, check out this interview with the incredible young actor, Mauricio Kuri, who plays Blessed Jose. How beautiful that this young man puts Christ first and aspires to be as holy as the martyr he portrays.


4) I have no words for this, though it's not uncommon:


The whole thing makes me ill. If my children heard things described like that when they were eleven, they would rightly be traumatized. I have learned that innocence is not something that the sexual-rights crowd values, not even in children. Thank goodness homeschooling is still an option in America.

Which segues to this story from Sweden, the model nation for so many on the left….

5) I almost choked when I saw it today, but apparently many of you have been following this story since 2009:


Well, how lovely of tolerant, liberal Sweden to consider returning the son whom they stole from his parents three years ago as the family was boarding a plane to leave the country so that they could homeschool their child in peace! This is Sweden, not North Korea (or China, see Take #2), right?

6) Okay, here is an outrage that is almost completely unknown. My brilliant and noble friend Dorinda Bordlee, a pro-life attorney at the Bioethics Defense Fund, read the entire 2,700 page ObamaCare law (yes, she will not spend any time in Purgatory), and guess what hidden mandate she found? A $1-a-month per enrollee abortion premium to be put in a fund to be used specifically for elective abortions. And you will never even know about it, even though you will be the ones directly paying for it, to the tune of $12 a year times millions of Americans! Planned Parenthood needn't worry about defunding by the states, as this billion-dollar slush fund will keep them more than rolling in the green. If you can stomach it, read all the details, here:


God bless Dorinda for uncovering this sick/slick little plan. Now we can only hope that America gets the word.

7) Here is the precious orphan I want to show you today! Meet three-year-old Holly, who has Down Syndrome:

Holly is outgoing and a giggler! Click her picture for more information.
I actually have a friend who is head over heels in love with Holly and would give anything to bring her home. Due to circumstances beyond her control, she is unable to adopt right now. She prays that this little girl (who has a sizeable grant of over $2500 that can be used toward the adoption) will find a family soon. Maybe you are Holly's family?


And if you want to win a $100 JCrew gift card from Catholic blogger Jennie, check out what she's doing for Stella (remember sweet Stella??), right here:


No donation necessary to enter! 

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PS: Just a quick heads up that I am going to "go dark" for July and will resume blogging again in August. I still have a couple of weeks! I hope I can survive the time away from the screen! I will also be off of facebook… the hiatus will help me get this house in order and pay attention to many things I've let go. Including reading, family time, and school prep! Ack, I hope I can do this, and you'd better all still be here when I get back!!

Have a great weekend, and thanks to Jen for hosting!



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22 comments:

  1. Leila, I did hear about that abortion premium in the healthcare bill. Unreal. So much for "choice", huh? Prayer, prayer and more prayer, or our country will continue down this bizarre leftist slide.

    Love you Catholics for a Choice posts!

    And this is just so sad: "I have learned that innocence is not something that the sexual-rights crowd values, not even in children."

    ReplyDelete
  2. I don't remember what exactly I posted to get banned from their wall earlier this week, but it was something to the effect of "I don't understand...I thought the church teachings were against abortion and contraception?" I was blocked before I had the chance to recommend a link.

    Nice work :)

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  3. Gone for a month!?! I'm REALLY going to miss you! It occurs to me that the more radical ideas of child sex education Planned Parenthood now supports would have probably been considered child sex abuse in the not-so-distant past. So much in the world that's particularly horrifying. :(

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  4. Leila, I'm sorry, but about #2...what the Hell?!

    Aborted at seven months just because this baby happens to be child number 2???

    You know what I've been through with my recent pregnancy, you know what my sister has been going through with her own (and she has been very tight lipped about what people have actually said to her but I can tell it's not good). I continue to hear these absurd reasons of why people want to abort; too many kids, the "wrong" gender, and so on. I am so angry about this. I am waiting, just waiting, for someone who is pro-choice to explain the justified reason to abort a baby of seven months. Really, a baby of any gestation, but especially seven months!!

    I am so tired of hearing about abortion. I am so tired of hearing about BABIES dying because of CHOICE. I am angry for fighting for my baby and angry for my sister fighting for hers and for all we have gone through, when there are selfish people out there who kill the unborn through a selfish decision. I am tired of the people who argue on this blog and try to justify abortion to you, me and anyone else who is pro-life. I am tired of them not getting it. I am so tired of death. I'm tired of the visions of dismembered babies in garbage bags in my dreams. Why don't people understand? What more does it take?

    Where are you people to explain this to me?

    I'm sorry for my vent Leila, but I just can't take this anymore.

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  5. #6

    We are headed to hell in a hand basket.......

    I myself might not see China's one child policy enforced in America, but my daughters might.....And so help me God I will come back from my grave.

    I have many words I choose not to use......I might flip my lid.

    #2 is so horrific I'm not even sure I'm able to process it.....

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  6. "I am so tired of death."

    Becky, that says it all.

    We don't call it the Culture of Death for nothing, do we?

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  7. Thank you so much for writing on Reggie Littlejohn & WRWF. She is a personal hero of mine. You may also be interested in All Girls Allowed. They have an interesting financial support program to encourage families to keep their female babies instead of aborting them to try for a son.

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  8. Have a great break and I will be here!

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  9. So much going on out there, it can be overwhelming.

    Enjoy your break!

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  10. It is hard not to get down-hearted when reading these things day after day, but onward we march! I put my "reccomendation" on Catholics for Choice, what an oxymoron! Roger Ebert's blog is shameful. Once upon a time I was so happy to find it and I think I lasted about 2 weeks reading it, then I wrote him a comment telling how much I enjoyed him growing up watching Siskel and Ebert with my dad on TV, happy, fond memories, but how shocked I am to find that he is such an anti-Catholic bigot that I can't stomach to read his blog. Goodbye I said and I've never been back.

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  11. In Anne McCaffrey's "Pegasus" series (first published in 1973), people on earth have to have government permission to reproduce. If they are caught reproducing illegally, then they and their children are forcibly sterilized. That's only slightly less horrifying than forced abortion, but I can totally see it happening.

    Ironically, as the series continues, those who are discovered to have psionic Talent (mental telepathy, teleportation, etc) are rewarded for reproducing in high numbers, because their Talents allows man to colonize other planets more efficiently which in turn leads to the encouragement to have large families within the colonies.

    It is interestingly scary when science fiction seems to come to life. Even within Asia, you have the one-child policy in China, and then South Korean government rewards families for having more than two children.

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  12. About the script: I noticed the other day when I clicked over from Facebook that it was in script, but when I typed in your address, it showed up normally. I didn't like the script and I noticed the address had the feed details in it and wondered if that was the problem - it seemed to be since it went away as soon as I removed it. Also, when I click from my reader or blogger itself, I don't get the script. So, I wonder if this is the problem for everyone or was just for me? (Oh, and it was the same post I looked at within less than 2 minutes of one another, so it wasn't a time thing that fixed it IMHO.)

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  13. About the rest: I think Becky said it best too!

    It all seems so heavy, so dark, so hopeless some days. I know it is not hopeless, for ultimately Jesus wins but it really does seem like too much sometimes.

    God bless you for keeping this up day after day...

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  14. Regarding the claims of your #6, I think you should check this out- the nitty gritty details might actually please you.

    http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/mar/21/blog-posting/does-barack-obamas-health-care-bill-include-1-abor/

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  15. Gwen, thanks, but I think you misunderstand. I wasn't ever under the impression that there would be $1 abortions (there won't be). It's the multi-million/billion dollar abortion slush fund that is the issue, and how sneakily it will be filled. The enrollees won't know until the "time of enrollment" that their policy is one of the (majority) that will cover elective abortions. That is a huge problem. Lot's of folks will be funding abortions against their will, so directly that their $12 a year will be put directly in a fund for payment to the abortionists. How many Americans do you think would be okay with that, truly?

    I have asked Dorinda for clarification, so I hope to get back to you on that.

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  16. Nicola, I used to love watching Siskel and Ebert, too! Sigh. And, Rebecca, thank you for the script info!

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  17. Roger, Roger, Roger. He is not a scholar, so I excuse his ignorance. I read his review on-line, and someone wrote in to correct him. Maybe we should write to him. Maybe I should go there right now and leave a comment.

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  18. I didn't feel like registering my vital statistics to rate or comment on Ebert's blog. I don't know what his problem is with the Catholic church. Sometimes people leave the church because someone looks at them sideways. Speaking of Sideways, that was a movie I didn't like. Just thought I'd throw that in.

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  19. Lena, thanks for trying, lol!

    Miss Gwen, Dorinda told me to post this link. There are interviews with her both on radio and TV explaining the nuances of the law and the abortion slush fund. She is an excellent lawyer, and she's done pro-life legal work, nationally and internationally, for decades. She knows what she's talking about:

    http://www.bdfund.org/ObamacareinCourt

    Hope that helps!

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  20. Hi Leila, first time commenter here. I have to say that the $1 fee for abortion reminds me a lot of what the Romans demanded of us: just offer a pinch of incense to the statue of Caesar. It's like they're daring us to defy them. It's going to seem SO EASY to just pay the extra dollar, rather than go without insurance and/or be fined and arrested for not buying Obamacare. It's just one little dollar, right? I think a lot of souls are going to be put into grave peril. Which is exactly why they did it.

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  21. Joe, welcome!! And, I think you nailed it. Well stated.

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  22. Ugh, so depressing. Like Becky, I'm so over this culture of death.

    In happier news, thanks for the shout out! Stella's already garnering a great deal of attention. I just know we're going to find her Mama.

    Holly is a doll. Love her.

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