Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Two on Torture

From The Young Fogey:

Do We Owe Japanese WWII Waterboarders (executed after the war) an Apology?

From The Western Confucian:

The Gipper (+RIP) on Torture:

1. "...torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession..."

2. "No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat or war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification of torture."

Monday, April 13, 2009

Another Blogging Hiatus

Two reasons: Holy Week, and a paper I must prepare for The Medieval Congress at the University of Michigan in Kalamazoo.

Blogging will commence after next week.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Moscow Patriarchate Approves of Pope's Uncompromising Position on Ethics

From the Ochlophobist: In my opinion, this is the real "ecumenical" work, and the form of ecclesial dialogue that is truly appropriate and beneficial.Instead of having fancy wine & cheese meetings in Ravenna, we should be shutting down abortion mills together. Instead of having common prayer services in churches, we should be praying together in jail.

Let's do it!

Biretta tip: The Young Fogey

Thursday, April 09, 2009

KLA Attrocities Finally Revealed

Our invasion of Serbia bears its fruit. Thank you, Madame Albright and Mr. Clinton!

Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Suffering L'Aquila

Damaged Church of the Conception in Paganica, central Italy
Image credit

Of your charity please pray for the people devastated by the earthquakes in Central Italy, most especially L'Aquila.

For those who perished, +may their memory be eternal!

+Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetuam luceat eis.
+Requiescant in Pace

Viva Italia!

Saturday, April 04, 2009

A Monarchist Version of Functional Libertarianism

Would YOU Sign the Declaration of Independence?

This is one source of our current troubles--a utopian experiment that led to the central-state-empowering Constitution, to democracy and to the abolition of monarchies, to the Civil War and greater centralism, to American entry into WWI, to the punitive Treaty of Versailles, and thus to the rise of German nationalism and Hitler and WWII, tens of millions dead and the Holocaust, nuclear bombings of Japan, the Cold War, etc.

No thanks. Give me back the modest taxes under King George III, and rule from over the Atlantic.

The young Fogey adds: BTW good George III didn’t cause the grievances of some colonists; Parliament did.

For these reasons I am tending towards support of our joining the Commonwealth of English-Speaking Nations, under the nominal rule of Her Majesty the Queen.

Hat tip to The Young Fogey