Winter Returns

How I love the weather in St. Louis. Never a dull moment. At noon today the temperature was in the 70's. Right now I am looking out the window at those big fluffy snowflakes covering the cars and roofs of the nearby buildings.

It's 5:00 PM on the east coast. Time for a few hot toddies.

Burkester Ball

Until recently my favorite Har$bishop, Raymond Burke, has been as quite as a church mouse. No political candidates to condemn and drag through the fire and brimstone. No parish to tussle with over lucrative financial assets. No excommunications on the agenda. No board meetings to attend at Cardinal Glennon. The women of the Archdiocese have remained in line and haven’t gone the ordination route. My transgressions are not all that sensational nor do they create sufficient scandal to warrant censure. All was fairly hum - drum in the life of the St. Louis head cleric.

That was until the basketball coach gave his personal opinion on stem cell research and abortion at a rally held for a Presidential candidate. The opinion runs contrary to the teachings of the Church. The basketball coach is Catholic. His employer is a large Catholic University. That University , St. Louis University, is within walking distance of Burke’s residence and the cathedral housing his chair. Oh, we got trouble right here in river city. Another controversy to attend to and Burke picked up the ball, dribbled to the basket and scored first on a breakaway.

Naturally, the coach would be denied the sacrament of the Eucharist if he appeared before Burke and had not repented. That was a given. But Burke went even further, demanding that the University reprimand the coach for his personal views. SLU’s response was that the coach was not on the clock and his personal views are his own. University President Fr. Lawrence Biondi has not commented on the issue, sort of an in your face slam dunk. Game tied at two.

SLU is a Catholic University - in name only - and a Jesuit University - in name only. But the Jesuits always have had the tradition and reputation of being the rascals of the Catholic church. The educational mission of the Jesuits in plain simple terms is to make one use their mind for something other than a hat rack. They pretty much allow and welcome free thinking. It would be difficult to advance this philosophy if the professors had to worry about everything they said. That they would be handcuffed and second guessed with each comment they made. How could one teach with such a cloud of doubt hanging over their head? If we wanted to inhibit free thinking, we could place some dictator from a third world country on the board of trustees.

Archbishop Burke, for the sake of all involved, let things go while the game is tied.

Oh, amid all the storm, in my opinion the Billikens turned in their best performance of the season this weekend .

Cheney Impeachment

I'll be brief and nonliterary on this one. For those who care or maybe care and haven't gotten the word, there is a new move afoot to impeach VP Cheney. Maybe hearings will provide some insight as to how high up the foodchain "who knew what." http://WexlerWantsHearings.com

Pessimism vs. Optimism

The pessimist looks at the situation and mutters, “Things could not be any worse.” The optimist meticulously scrutinizes every detail. “Oh, yes they can,” he confidently replies.


Peace on earth, goodwill towards men. The death toll mounts. The number of wounded, physically and emotionally, have not peaked. Suicide bombers massacre fifty here, a hundred there. Not on the tenure track, perish, not publish, they need only succeed once.

Silent Night is a tune on the Christmas radio station or a favorite CD. Shots fired ring out in the dark so far distant from the foreign war zone. From the inner city ghetto to the quaint exclusive gated suburban community , the crackle and pop of the mechanisms of death and destruction echo. Death laughs at discrimination. Young or old, rich or poor, race, religion, gender, death favors not one over another.


School systems deteriorate leaving our children behind. Fear of violence overshadows the anxiety of a failing grade.

Around the world, mothers pull their malnourished starving children to their bosom, clinging tightly, without hope for a miracle praying that impending death will be swift and merciful. Genocide in Dafur; rioting in Kenya. Voices opposed to political oppression are silenced with the blessings of the government. Dissent in Myanmar is quelled by military force, while in Pakistan an assassin’s bullet finds it’s target seemingly marked with the government’s stamp of approval.
Billions upon billions of dollars are pumped into a foreign war. Armored cars laden with loot travel unobstructed to the corporate coffers of Halliburton and the likes. Complaints are heard when the price at the pump reaches $3.00 or more per gallon. Yet, the disgruntled think nothing of standing in line at a sporting event to purchase a beer that goes for $43.00 per gallon.

Hopefully, my pessimistic friend will be right in 2008. Things won’t get much worse.