The Day Bobby Died

The day Bobby died, 6 June 1968, was an extremely tragic moment for America and, therefore, the world. Thomas Carlyle had a theory of history, that, history was shaped by the great men and their actions. No more momentous turning point of change, has there been in my lifetime, than, that which, occurred in the last generation, that of the death of Robert Francis Kennedy.

For one of many things, Bobby would have defeated Nixon. Life without Nixon, would have brought the Vietnam war to an end, years and lives earlier. The US would have enjoyed a better place in the eyes of the world and a better economy. The social problems that eat away at this country would have been lessened by great degrees. The Republican hegemony would not have happened. Bobby would have been president for eight years.

No Nixon, would have meant that G.H.W. Bush would have been sent to obscurity and his progeny would not have beleaguered the world. The current war would not be! Kennedy as president would have made Latin America a more peaceful and successful place. Oscar Romero would have lived and there would have been no Iran-contragate, for there would have been less need of revolt and bloodshed and the criminality and the extra-constitutionality of Watergate would not have been precedents for further erosion of law and justice.

One doubts that Ronald Reagan would have been able to mount a successful campaign in 1976. The Republican desire for the revenge for the failed Nixon would not have existed. The Iran situation would have been different and could not have been exploited by Casey for Reagan, as it was in 1980, and, that alone, gave him victory.

The greed of the Reagan-Bush minions would have been kept in check. Communism would have fell in 1989 anyhow, for Reagan and the role of the US were peripheral and minor and just economically costly.

The cause of the working man and the minorities would have advanced and without the ugly resistance caused by the Republicans, their corporate sponsors and ignorant followers. In such an environment NAFTA would not have come, Walmart would not have been able to get away with its tricks. Disparities in income would reflect western Europe and not the third world.

What sort of Republicans would there have been? So much of their apparatus would have been quashed. Would they have been a respectable and moderate party instead of the fascists, that, they are?

With the death of Bobby, the Catholic moment of US history and culture failed to come. The social and religious emphasis of Cesar Chavez, Thomas Merton, Dorothy Day and the martyred religious of Latin America [in fact the US aided their assassins and trained some of them] did not advance here, neither has the views of the last or current pontiff. The Sermon on the Mount has a very small audience since that black, black day.

Don McLean sang of the day the music died in '59 in the aeroplane crash that took the lives of Buddy Holly and his companions. It was more than bad news on the doorstep, the day democracy died, when the bullets took the life of Bobby.

"Few men are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence." -- spoken 6 June 1966 Capetown

"Fear not the path of truth for the lack of people walking on it." -- from his last speech

Another installment of outrageous republicans

#1 Jack Kingston, a congressman of Georgia, introduced a resolution to commend the wealthy, druggie, radio mouth Limbaugh, after some Democrats took Limbaugh to task, for equating soldiers who criticize the war as traitors. Remember, Limbaugh is one of the myriad of Republican supporters of war who made sure he didn't wear the uniform, himself, under any circumstances.

Who knows who is Kingston outside of Georgia? On the scale of metrics, he is more extreme than Delay in voting patterns and issues. He is tightly on the side of bushjr. When the Democrats regained the House he whined loudly about having to work a five day week, he for himself demands three; of course, someone working 72 hours a week at minimum wage should shut up.

#2 Larry Craig, a senator of Idaho, typical republican hypocrite, is now involved in a public soap opera. Craig was one of those who publically scolded Bill Clinton about his sexual infidelity. Perhaps, in comparison to himself, one is naughty to cheat on his wife with a woman, but not so with many anonymous men. His fellow staters have not made it clear to the nation on what they think of him.

Now, David Vitter, a senator of Louisiana, another republican hypocrite, has been caught several times with his pants down with rented wives by the night and hour. Still he does not make the status of his colleagues on that alone.

#3 David Dreier, a congressman of southern California, who would be Republican minority leader, save for the fact, that, he keeps his sodomite playmate as his chief of staff. He was Delay's man.
The Republicans are the party of unrestricted wealth and hypocrisy. They are ripe with decadence and perverson, a priori and, by definition. No one should be surprised by any scandal they are part of.

#4 Any Republican who was for the impeachment of Clinton and is not for the impeachment of Bush junior is a hypocrite most foul. They are enemies of the Constitution and a clear and present danger to the Republic.

Debasement of language

The debasement of american english: conservative, military and even ...


Republicans say they are conservatives with conservative values. I, posit, that I am a conservative and no Republican. Very few Republicans follow conservative principles*, they are merely Republicans (approaching fascism). There are principles that are what they are, irrespective of whom abides by them. This absolute loyalty to one's party or class does not respect principle. The Republicans are loathe to criticize or acknowledge the transgressions of their own. To be consistent with one's stated position necessitates open disagreement with others who are not. Reagan may have, jocularly, issued an eleventh commandment, but it holds stronger than the other ten .

Edmund Burke portrait. Joshua Reynolds studio. c.1768. London.
A political thinker that is recognized as a conservative is Edmund Burke (1729-97). Compare this list of his aphorisms with today's established power and george junior, and see, to what degree, are Republicans conservative? And if I, were to, give you more quotes from Saint Augustine and other men of conservative principle, would that drive the point home?

• Among a people generally corrupt liberty cannot long exist.
• Bad laws are the worst sort of tyranny.
• But the age of chivalry is gone. That of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded; and the glory of Europe is extinguished forever.
• But what is liberty without wisdom, and without virtue? It is the greatest of all possible evils; for it is folly, vice, and madness, without tuition or restraint.
• Falsehood is a perennial spring.
• Hypocrisy can afford to be magnificent in its promises, for never intending to go beyond promise, it costs nothing.
• I venture to say no war can be long carried on against the will of the people.
• If we command our wealth, we shall be rich and free; if our wealth commands us, we are poor indeed.
• In a democracy, the majority of the citizens is capable of exercising the most cruel oppressions upon the minority.
• It is a general popular error to suppose the loudest complainers for the public to be the most anxious for its welfare.
• It is not what a lawyer tells me I may do; but what humanity, reason, and justice tell me I ought to do.
• Justice is itself the great standing policy of civil society; and any eminent departure from it, under any circumstances, lies under the suspicion of being no policy at all.
• Kings will be tyrants from policy, when subjects are rebels from principle.
• Magnanimity in politics is not seldom the truest wisdom; and a great empire and little minds go ill together.
• No passion so effectually robs the mind of all its powers of acting and reasoning as fear.
• One that confounds good and evil is an enemy to good.
• Our patience will achieve more than our force.
• People crushed by laws, have no hope but to evade power. If the laws are their enemies, they will be enemies to the law; and those who have most to hope and nothing to lose will always be dangerous.
• The greater the power, the more dangerous the abuse.
• The march of the human mind is slow.
• The people never give up their liberties but under some delusion.
• The true danger is when liberty is nibbled away, for expedience, and by parts.
• There is but one law for all, namely that law which governs all law, the law of our Creator, the law of humanity, justice, equity - the law of nature and of nations.
• Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it.
• Those who have been once intoxicated with power, and have derived any kind of emolument from it, even though but for one year, never can willingly abandon it. They may be distressed in the midst of all their power; but they will never look to anything but power for their relief.
• To make us love our country, our country ought to be lovely.

Air Force Colonel David Opfer is the spiritual founder of Fox News [sic]. Fox's premise is that the establishment media is liberally biased [sic], so it presents "the news" for you to decide. David Opfer, is an individual, that, I know virtually nothing about, but he is emblematic for the one sentence he spoke in a fit of perturbence. He was upset about the reporting on the war he was involved in, and he complained, "You always write it's bombing, bombing, bombing. It's not bombing, it's air support".

Here it is in miniature. The accuracy and truth of observation should be suppressed to support the goal and programs of those in power. Military euphemism is quite de rigeur in today's America, death and destruction is replaced with words that connotate reality obliquely. The logic of Christ tells us,"But let your speech be yea, yea: no, no: and that which is over and above these, is of evil". --Matthew v.37. This language of creative euphemism is dishonest. Once in America, some military men spoke honestly -- "War is hell" -- General Wm. T. Sherman. Now, this logic leads directly to: that the preparations for warring are the preparations for hell. And who in the press and in the public says such things?

Alexander Haig tortured english into gobbledygook. This he picked up in the military, between jargon, acronyms, euphemisms, et cetera. He brought this into the executive branch. Honest language describes and illuminates clarity; it does not obscure and make nebulous. When it does the latter, you must be sceptically curious and on guard.

Words mean what they mean. Their definitions are not determined by the hearer or speaker, and certainly, not by the least knowledgeable. If words are misused or misunderstood that should not be the accepted usage. Words do change overtime, I admit, but that change is gradual and was greater prior to mass printing than now. The more literate a nation is, the more stable are the meanings of words and the fallback position is that of the more ancient usage as the standard.

Enemies of language are bureaucracy -- military, government, business. The language of advertising can be simply analyzed by its deviousness and trickery as being grievously suspect. When this spreads to journalism and conversation, we are debased and maliciously used.

One particularly telling usage is that of the word -- even-- as an adverb. Even is meant to be an emphatic intensifier. In advertising and every day on the local "news reporting" it is used to list the third member of that list, when it can only be synonymous with "and" or "also" or "and this too". This false emphasis is to make hype of the mundane and to mislead that the trivial is vital or extraordinary.

Advertising is a racket, like the movies and the brokerage business. You cannot be honest without admitting that its constructive contribution to humanity is exactly minus zero.--F. Scott Fitzgerald

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* Chuck Hagel, Ron Paul, Bruce Fein

Saint Francis and Sputnik (Спутник)

Listening to the more thoughtful programmes on radio/tv, several mentioned the upcoming half century anniversary of the inaugural to the cold war, space age rivalry. Since there are few thoughtful christian programmes, I doubt many will hear of Saint Francis of Assisi. Both provoke insight upon our condition.

Sputnik, the grand achievement of Sergej Pavlovič Koroljov. The russians, even with the communist regime, were not incompetent oafs. When effectively their abilities were channeled, they could, and did accomplish. The rooskies were somewhat nonplussed about the event, but after seeing the paranoia in America evoked, they could engage in nonchalant, assured braggadacio, “After all, vee deed eet verst”.

The arrogant and waspish, american elite looked down upon those they relegated as backward, semi-asiatic, slavonic, peasant nations. This, along, with the balance of power gamesmanship put the country into a fit of apoplexy. First Eisenhower, then others, played clumsy public persona appearances of dismissiveness and then comical disasters of attempt (the american sputnik poofed in December of ’57).

It allowed John Kennedy to be more bellicose than mere sanity would permit, and not until Armstrong planted the stars and stripes on lunar soil was the chip loosened from the US shoulder. But, by then Koroljov, the “Chief Designer”, had been dead three years. He was one of many of Stalin’s gulag alumni. His mind intact, his health not; part of the cruel toll of caesarean sovietism, that the west will not appreciate.

Later Jurij Aleksejevič Gagarin, the first spaceman, the cosmonaut would be lauded and honored with a national day on the calendar to solidify russian space prowess. There was a progression: sputnik, Lajka (mutnik), the space chimp and then man.

Saint Francis, Il Poverello, set about to live as Christ had done, a gospel literalist. One can see how different a gospel literalist is from a “bible literalist”. Last night in franciscan monasteries, churches and other homes there was celebrated the Transitus, a prayer service, recollection and perhaps a dramatic re-enactment of the passing from life to everlasting life of our friend.

Today, in many churches, animals are blessed. Animals are our brothers in creation. Francis talked to them of God’s gift of the volume of air for them to exercise the gift of flight. In Steinbeck’s Tortilla Flat, the Pirate, one of a band of poor men in the story, gathers his dogs about him to expound tales of our friend to the hounds’ delight. One of literature’s poignant christian moments, a homeless man (a bum) sharing mercy with abandoned animals, all enjoying a comitatus of Christ's companionship and fellowship.

We as a society should look at Franky. He went on crusade and spoke to, perhaps, the only famous Kurd in history, Saladin. We did not achieve peace then or now, but some of us try to anyhow and peace within oneself is a good and wonderful accomplishment.



p.s. Today is also the 50th birthday of Michael Maurer of Ohio University.

Another Anti-capitalism Sunday

Luke xvi.

13 No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Last week we had one of Jesus's lessons in truth and logic. today we continue the chapter in Luke with Dives and Lazarus, the rich man and the poor man.

19 There was a certain rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen; and feasted sumptuously every day.
20 And there was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, who lay at his gate, full of sores,
21 Desiring to be filled with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table, and no one did give him; moreover the dogs came, and licked his sores.
22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. And the rich man also died: and he was buried in hell.
23 And lifting up his eyes when he was in torments, he saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom:
24 And he cried, and said: Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, to cool my tongue: for I am tormented in this flame.
25 And Abraham said to him: Son, remember that thou didst receive good things in thy lifetime, and likewise Lazareth evil things, but now he is comforted; and thou art tormented.
26 And besides all this, between us and you, there is fixed a great chaos: so that they who would pass from hence to you, cannot, nor from thence come hither.
27 And he said: Then, father, I beseech thee, that thou wouldst send him to my father's house, for I have five brethren,
28 That he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torments.
29 And Abraham said to him: They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 But he said: No, father Abraham: but if one went to them from the dead, they will do penance.
31 And he said to him: If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they believe, if one rise again from the dead.


Now, this tells and suggests so much in how the rich regard the poor and much else: Lazarus is in the limbo of the fathers (the bosom of Abraham), for Jesus has not, yet, harrowed hell and opened the gates of heaven. And from this limbo, now empty, hell proper was visible, and vice versa, but uncrossable. And for those who would not believe and heed the prophets, even Jesus they would not believe, if and when, he would rise from the dead.


Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Saint Jerome. c.1605. Rome.

Today is also St. Jerome's day. Every day is someone's. Now, St. Jerome was an ill-tempered, one eyed hermit, but he also translated Scripture into the vulgar tongue, so that it was further transmitted, to us. Still his Vulgate is the official standard. Many of the manuscripts he used are forever unavailable to us, and if God granted him discernment, it is to our benefit.

the rich shall trade the poor as if sandals

4 Hear this, you that crush the poor, and make the needy of the land to fail,
5 Saying: When will the month be over, and we shall sell our wares: and the sabbath, and we shall open the corn: that we may lessen the measure, and increase the sicle, and may convey in deceitful balances,
6 That we may possess the needy for money, and the poor for a pair of shoes, and may sell the refuse of the corn?
7 The Lord hath sworn against the pride of Jacob: surely I will never forget all their works.-- DRC

Last Sunday's old testament reading was from the eighth chapter of Amos. I do not remember hearing a homily given for this reading. I can remember people squirming in the past, when the lector read the passage well. It is appropriate for harvest season, the moon was full on the midweek next, but it is not politically correct to discomfort a capitalist people of moneyed desires and who vote republican. Still, there are some beautiful passages of social justice in scripture, and if men would heed there would be less need for prophets, but, today, prophets do not have a hearing in the forum, whereas, profits own the forum.

In continued coincidence as one thing ties into another, Martin Sheen (who has connections with the Catholic Worker And Dorothy Day) was on Prairie Home today and I had to miss a class on Dorothy Day as I was working on an elevator shaft on the night of the harvest moon. We hear too little about, and do too little to enact social justice. What a thought: you that crush the poor, and ... possess ... the poor for a pair of shoes. The shameless, scheming and essentially ruthless rich, who game the system still.

Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time -- what you may have heard in church:

Hear this, you who trample upon the needy
and destroy the poor of the land!
“When will the new moon be over,” you ask,
“that we may sell our grain,
and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat?
We will diminish the ephah,
add to the shekel,
and fix our scales for cheating!
We will buy the lowly for silver,
and the poor for a pair of sandals;
even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!”
The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
Never will I forget a thing they have done! --NAB

Some translations add a different flavor. What is the best word for calciamentis ? Earlier in Amos ii 6:

Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Israel, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath sold the just man for silver, and the poor man for a pair of shoes. -- DRC

Forward to Jesus as the just man sold for silver and one should see the gravity of the matter.

Bruce speaks to America

This morning, at 8.50 a.m., on NBC, Bruce Springsteen eloquently and heartfully addressed America on the troubles that the country is bearing during this period of sedevacantism that began in 2001. Bruce then continued through the program performing a rousing mini concert, that was warmly received by the audience there present. One can only speculate why the group all wore black, and it seemed Bruce had several religious medals about his neck. Are we mourning in America for America?

Rarely has american broadcast television allowed the airing of uncensored truthful words this century:

This is a song called Livin' In the Future. But it's really about what's happening now. Right now. It's kind of about how the things we love about America, cheeseburgers, French fries, the Yankees battlin' Boston... the Bill of Rights [holds u we plan to do something about it, we plan to sing about it. I know it's early, but it's late. So come and join us.p microphone, urging crowd to cheer] ... v-twin motorcycles... Tim Russert's haircut, trans-fats and the Jersey Shore... we love those things the way womenfolk love Matt Lauer. But over the past six years we've had to add to the American picture: rendition, illegal wiretapping, voter suppression, no habeas corpus, the neglect of that great city New Orleans and its people, an attack on the Constitution and the loss of our best men and women in a tragic war. This is a song about things that shouldn't happen here happening here. So right now we plan to do something about it, we plan to sing about it. I know it's early, but it's late. So come and join us.

Thank You Mister Springsteen !

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p.s. Oct. 7, 2007 Springsteen was interviewed on 60 Minutes.

"It's unpatriotic at any given moment to sit back and let things pass that are damaging to some place that you love so dearly."

"There's a part of the singer going way back in American history that is of course the canary in the coal mine. When it gets dark, you're supposed to be singing. It's dark right now."

"I think we live in a time when what is true can be made to seem a lie."

"And what is lie can be made to seem true. And I think that the successful manipulation of those things have characterized several of our past elections. That level of hubris and arrogance has got us in the mess that we're in right now. And we're in a mess. But if we subvert, the best things that we're about in the name of protecting our freedoms, if we remove them, then who are we becoming, you know? Who are we, you know? The American idea is a beautiful idea. It needs to be preserved, served, protected and sung out. Sung out."