Notes: Tuesday, May 26-Monday, August 10, 2015 (part 1 of 2)

1. Some items connected with the 2015 Australian Federal Budget

1.1 Mr. Morrison on workforce participation as the whole, or at least the principal, purpose for Federal subsidies of childcare

See the transcript of Mr. Neil Mitchell's interview of The Hon. Scott Morrison M.P. (Federal Minister for Social Services) on May 1, 2015, downloaded from Mr. Morrison's Ministerial website:

http://scottmorrison.dss.gov.au/transcripts/3aw-with-neil-mitchell-1may2015

(Mr. Morrison's statements came to my attention via the article "More help for more work as childcare subsidies tightened" by Mr. David Crowe, dated May 2, 2015, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/more-help-for-more-work-as-childcare-subsidies-tightened/story-fntfa2d0-1227330846433

or the version printed under the headline "More help for more work", by Mr. David Crowe and Ms Tessa Akerman, on p. 2 in "THE NATION" section of The Weekend Australian, May 2-3, 2015, Second Edition, No. 15718, ISSN 1038-8761, published by Nationwide News Pty. Limited.)

Labels: childcare, economics, family, tax, work

1.2 "Tony Abbott’s families package is not child-friendly. The government will punish mothers financially if they can’t find a job, don’t have time to study or prefer to care for their own kids while they are young."

The quotation in that headline comes from the opinion piece "Budget 2015: Families package punishes children", by Ms Natasha Bita, dated May 13, 2015, downloaded from (behind the paywall at) The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/budget-2015/budget-2015-families-package-punishes-children/story-fntfbo7f-1227352625754

Labels: childcare, economics, family, tax, work

1.3 "Big families at present qualify for a supplement for their fourth and subsequent children, but from July 1, 2016, will lose $321 a year for their fourth child and every subsequent child."

The quotation in that headline comes from the article "Federal budget 2015: Large families to lose out amid big boost to childcare funding", by Ms Judith Ireland, dated May 12, 2015, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/federal-budget-2015-large-families-to-lose-out-amid-big-boost-to-childcare-funding-20150512-1mzhke.html?skin=text-only

Labels: family, tax

1.4 "The Australian Government will also establish a $50 million competitive gender equality fund to strengthen gender equality and women's economic empowerment in our region."

The quotation in that headline comes from the media release "2015 Foreign Affairs Budget", dated May 12, 2015, downloaded from the Ministerial website of The Hon. Julie Bishop M.P. (Minister for Foreign Affairs):

http://foreignminister.gov.au/releases/Pages/2015/jb_mr_150512.aspx

(The gender equality fund came to my attention via an opinion piece by Ms Miranda Devine.) See also the following webpages at H.M.A. Government's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website:

• "Gender equality and empowering women and girls":
  http://dfat.gov.au/aid/topics/investment-priorities/gender-equality-empowering-women-girls/Pages/gender-equality-empowering-women-girls.aspx

• "Australia's assistance for gender equality":
  http://dfat.gov.au/aid/topics/investment-priorities/gender-equality-empowering-women-girls/gender-equality/Pages/australias-assistance-for-gender-equality.aspx

• "Gender initiatives":
  http://dfat.gov.au/aid/topics/investment-priorities/gender-equality-empowering-women-girls/gender-equality/Pages/gender-initiatives.aspx

Note the reference at the second of those webpages to the Pacific Women Shaping Pacific Development programme; more information on that programme can be found at the third of those webpages and in item 1 of this "Notes" post.

Note also that, according to Ms Bishop recorded in Hansard (Tuesday, June 16, 2015, 1328-1333 hours), "initiatives supported under the gender equality fund will complement gender activities currently funded through country and regional programs"—complement rather than replace, I take it. (And see the rest of that portion of Hansard for further information on Australia's overseas Feminist propaganda.)

Labels: feminism, foreign affairs

1.5 The Jobs for Families childcare package is "going to be financed by cuts to the only govern-ment support for single income families, and that’s FTB"; (Family Tax Benefit part B "is currently paid until a family’s youngest child turns 16" but is "set to cease when the youngest child turns six; substantive-ly dismantling the Howard government’s support for single-income households")

The quotations, including the dashes where a word spanned two lines, in that headline come from the article "Budget move on child care ‘punishes those who look after kids at home’", by Mr. Robert Hiini, on p. 5 of the Sydney Catholic Weekly, May 17, 2015, Vol. 73, No. 4775, published by The Catholic Press Newspaper Company Pty. Ltd., apparently not available online; the first quotation was attributed to Ms Terri Kelleher of the Australian Family Association.

Labels: childcare, economics, family, tax

1.6 "Shorten backs plans to abolish tax break for non-working spouses"

The quotation in that headline is the headline of an article by Ms Katherine Towers, dated June 9, 2015, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/shorten-backs-plans-to-abolish-tax-break-for-non-working-spouses/story-fn59niix-1227389648458

See also the article "Labor cuts deal with Coalition to end tax break for spouses", by Mr. Phillip Coorey, dated June 8, 2015 (updated June 9, 2015), downloaded from The Australian Financial Review's website:

http://www.afr.com/news/policy/tax/labor-cuts-deal-with-coalition-to-end-tax-break-for-spouses-20150609-ghiqfm

A transcript of the interview in which The Hon. Bill Shorten M.P. (Leader of H.M.A. Opposition) confirmed Labor's support for the policy in question is available under the headline "Doorstop: Melbourne – Retirement of Chris Judd; Tony Abbott’s cuts to Family Tax Benefit payments Dependent Spouse Offset", provided by Mr. Kieran Barns-Jenkins, dated Tuesday, June 9, 2015, at Mr. Shorten's website:

http://billshorten.com.au/doorstop-melbourne-retirement-of-chris-judd-tony-abbotts-cuts-to-family-tax-benefit-payments-dependent-spouse-offset

Labels: family, marriage, tax

2. Some recent Gay-related data

2.1 Some recent data on the Queer proportion of the population

2.1.1 "In 2014, over half a million people or 3.0% of the adult population identified as gay, lesbian or 'other'. This includes 268,000 people who identified as gay or lesbian and 255,000 people who identified as having an 'other' sexual orientation."

The quotation in that headline comes from the webpage "General Social Survey: Summary Results, Australia, 2014" (catalogue no. 4159.0), dated June 29, 2015, downloaded from the Australian Bureau of Statistics's website:

http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4159.0

Labels: demography, G.L.B.T.

2.1.2 Judging by the latest version of the HILDA Statistical Report, between 1.8 and 4.8% of men are Gay and between 1 and 4.7% of women are Lesbian.

See p. 85 of The Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey: Selected Findings from Waves 1 to 12, by Associate Prof. Roger Wilkins, released on Wednesday, July 15, 2015, ISSN 2205-0566 (Online), © Commonwealth of Australia 2015, downloaded from the HILDA Survey webpage:

https://www.melbourneinstitute.com/hilda/

or go straight hither:

https://www.melbourneinstitute.com/downloads/hilda/Stat_Report/statreport_2015.pdf

Labels: demography, G.L.B.T.

2.2 "International research has shown that compared with the general population, HIV-negative Gay and Bisexual men are up to 20 times more likely to be diagnosed with anal cancer"

The quotation in that headline comes from the article "Anal Cancer Webinar Reduces Stigma Around Overlooked Disease", dated July 1, 2015, downloaded from acon's website:

http://www.acon.org.au/about-acon/latest-news/#anal-cancer-webinar

Labels: G.L.B.T., health

3. Australia refused to support a recent U.N. Human Rights Commission resolution "because it ascribed rights to the family as a unit instead of to individuals and failed to recognise the diversity of families, including same-sex families."

See the article "Julie Bishop makes stand for same-sex families", by Mr. Dennis Shanahan, dated July 18, 2015, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/julie-bishop-makes-stand-for-same-sex-families/story-fn59niix-1227446546090

(That article came to my attention via the version printed on pp. 1 f., under the headlines "Bishop’s stand for same-sex families" for the first part and "Bishop in same-sex stand at UN" for the second, by the same author, in "THE NATION" pages of The Weekend Australian, July 18-19, 2015, Second Edition, No. 15784, ISSN 1038-8761, published by Nationwide News Pty. Limited.)

Labels: family, feminism, foreign affairs, G.L.B.T., human rights, U.N.O.

4. "Archbishop [Stephen ]Langton whole­heartedly embraced the scriptural thesis that civil government is not God’s original plan for humankind but rather a result of original sin."

The quotation, excluding my square-bracketed interpolation, in that headline comes from the article "MAGNA CARTA AT 800 Magna Carta understood as its drafter intended it to be", by Dr. Augusto Zimmermann, dated August 1, 2015, downloaded from News Weekly's website:

http://newsweekly.com.au/article.php?id=57014

Labels: law, morals, States

5. A couple of recent items regarding H.H. The Pope

5.1 One of the official presenters of Laudato si' at the press conference for that Encyclical's presentation was "Professor John[ or Hans Joachim] Schellnhuber, founder and director of the Institute for Climate Impact in Potsdam, Federal Republic of Germany, representing the field of natural sciences, with which the encyclical enters into profound dialogue, and who was recently appointed as an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of the Sciences".

The quotation, excluding my square-bracketed interpolation, in that headline comes from the item "Press conference for the presentation of the Encyclical Laudato si'", dated June 18, 2015, in the Holy See Press Office's Vatican Information Service's daily e-mail bulletin of June 18, 2015, Year XXII, No. 114; that item is also available under the same headline, with the same date, at NEWS.VA:

http://www.news.va/en/news/press-conference-for-the-presentation-of-the-encyc

H.H. The Pope's appointment of Prof. Schellnhuber as an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of (the) Sciences was reported in the item "Other Pontifical Acts", dated June 17, 2015, in the Holy See Press Office's Vatican Information Service's daily e-mail bulletin of June 17, 2015, Year XXII, No. 113; that item is also available under the headline "Pontifical Acts - 17 June", with the same date, at NEWS.VA:

http://www.news.va/en/news/other-pontifical-acts-677

Labels: Francis Bergoglio

5.2 "The Pope receives B'nai B'rith International and recalls the work of St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II to promote friendship between Jews and Christians"

The quotation in that headline is the headline of an item dated June 25, 2015 in the Holy See Press Office's Vatican Information Service's daily e-mail bulletin of June 25, 2015, Year XXII, No. 119; that item is also available under the same headline, with the same date, at NEWS.VA:

http://www.news.va/en/news/the-pope-receives-bnai-brith-international-and-rec

Labels: B'nai B'rith, Francis Bergoglio, Freemasons, Jews

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Lawrence, Martyr, A.D. 2015

Notes: Friday, August 1-Wednesday, December 31, 2014 (part 1 of 2)

1. "Divorces are more costly for Australian women than for men, and for longer periods, too, new research reveals."

The quotation in that headline is the first line of the article "Divorce more costly for Australian women", no byline, dated August 1, 2014, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:

http://www.smh.com.au/national/divorce-more-costly-for-australian-women-20140801-zz7zc.html?skin=text-only

Labels: divorce, economics, marriage

2. A couple of recent articles on the importance of the father-child relationship

See the article "The Distinct, Positive Impact of a Good Dad", by W. Bradford Wilcox, dated June 14, 2013, downloaded from The Atlantic's website:

http://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/06/the-distinct-positive-impact-of-a-good-dad/276874/

(that article came to my attention via the "Recommended Reading" section of the July-August 2014 issue of The Archdiocese of Sydney's Life, Marriage & Family Centre's Life, Marriage and Family News) and the blog post "Daughters and Their Dads: The Vital Relationship", by Mr. Bill Muehlenberg, dated August 27, 2014, downloaded from his CultureWatch blog:

http://billmuehlenberg.com/2014/08/27/daughters-and-their-dads-the-vital-relationship/

Labels: families

3. Mr. Attard on H.M.A. Government's "wealth transfer from single-income to dual-income families"

See the article "Govt's wealth transfer from single-income to dual-income families", by Mr. Daniel Attard, dated August 30, 2014, downloaded from News Weekly's website:

http://newsweekly.com.au/article.php?id=56696

Labels: childcare, economics, families

4. "Malta legalizes same-sex civil unions as bill passes 37-0"

The quotation in that headline is the headline of an article by Hilary White, dated April 15, 2014, downloaded from LifeSiteNews.com:

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/malta-legalizes-same-sex-civil-unions-as-bill-passes-37-0

(That article came to my attention via its posting at AQ.)

Labels: G.L.B.T., civil unions, Malta

5. Mr. Muehlenberg on "Islam, Polygamy and Western Subsidies"

See the blog post "Islam, Polygamy and Western Subsidies", by Mr. Bill Muehlenberg, dated September 23, 2014, downloaded from his CultureWatch blog:

http://billmuehlenberg.com/2014/09/23/islam-polygamy-and-western-subsidies/

Labels: Islam, polyamory

6. Ms Armstrong on the relationship between religion and politics

See the article "The myth of religious violence", by Karen Armstrong, dated Thursday, September 25, 2014, downloaded from The Guardian's website:

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/25/-sp-karen-armstrong-religious-violence-myth-secular

See also the book review (especially its penultimate paragraph) "Karen Armstrong explores historical links between religion and violence", by Gerard Windsor, dated October 4, 2014, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/review/karen-armstrong-explores-historical-links-between-religion-and-violence/story-fn9n8gph-1227079238329

(That article came to my attention via the version printed under the headline "Faith's place in the battlefield", with the same author, on pp. 18 f. in the "BOOKS" pages of the "review" supplement of The Weekend Australian, October 4-5, 2014, Second Edition, No. 15498, ISSN 1038-8761, published by Nationwide News Pty. Limited.)

Labels: Church and State, Confessional State, liberalism

7. "On Saturday 11 October 2014, Pride Football Australia will host the 3rd annual PFA Football Tournament in Sydney. … For the first time in the tournaments[ sic] history David Gallop and Football Federation Australia have officially endorsed the event."

The quotation, including its bold type but excluding the ellipsis, in that headline comes from the webpage "ACON Is Proud To Be A Main Sponsor of the Pride Football Australia Tournament", no author credited, undated, downloaded from acon's website:

Warning: acon is a Gay lobby group, so beware of obscene text and images at its website:

http://www.acon.org.au/get-involved/events/pride-football-australia-tournament

Labels: G.L.B.T., sport

8. "While anal cancer is relatively rare among the general population, gay men are 20 times more likely to contract it."

The quotation in that headline comes from the article "Boost to cancer funding", by Mr. Alex McKinnon, dated Match 7, 2013, downloaded from the Star Observer's website:

Warning: The Star Observer is a Gay medium, so beware of obscene text and images at its website:

http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/local-news/new-south-wales-news/boost-to-cancer-funding/99732

(That article came to my attention via the comment of 18.10.14 / 8pm by Trevor Grace in the combox at the blog post by Mr. Muehlenberg.)

Labels: G.L.B.T., health

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Day within the Octave of Christmas, and the feast of St. Sylvester I., Pope, Confessor, A.D. 2014

Notes: Tuesday, March 18-Monday, May 5, 2014 (part 2 of 2)

7. "The Philippines’ highest court has approved a controversial birth control law"

The quotation in that headline comes from the article "Philippine court clears birth control law", no author credited (though the stated source is the A.F.P.), dated April 8, 2014, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:

http://www.smh.com.au/world/philippine-court-clears-birth-control-law-20140408-zqsfb.html?skin=text-only

Labels: abortion, contraception, law, Philippines

8. On Wednesday, April 9, 2014, the respective chief executive officers of the National Rugby League, the Australian Football League, the Australian Rugby Union, and Football Federation Australia and the executive general manager of Cricket Australia signed, on the initiative of the organisers of the Bingham Cup, a commitment to implement, by the end of August (August 31 is the last day of the Bingham Cup Sydney 2014 tournament), policies consistent with, but not necessarily embodying all the recommendations of, the Anti-Homophobia and Inclusion Framework for Australian Sports (which (Framework) was devised by the Human Rights Commission, Bingham Cup Sydney, Australian Sports Commission, Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby, and the Human Rights Law Centre). That was the first time when the major professional sport codes in Australia—or, apparently, in any country—collectively pledged commitment to opposing discrimination on the basis of sexual disorientation. "In the evening, Her Excellency[ The Governor of New South Wales], as Patron, … hosted a Reception at Government House in support of the Bingham Cup Sydney 2014, Gay Rugby’s World Cup, and to acknowledge the signing" of the aforementioned commitment.

The quotation in that headline comes from the webpage "Wednesday, 9 April 2014" at the official Governor of New South Wales website:

http://www.governor.nsw.gov.au/news/diary-of-engagements/wednesday-9-april-2014/

These are the sources for the other information in that headline:

• the article "Gay player wouldn’t be an issue says Inglis, as players and officials back new anti-discrimination plan", by Mr. Iain Payten, dated April 10, 2014, downloaded from the Sydney Daily Telegraph's website:
  http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/gay-player-wouldnt-be-an-issue-says-inglis-as-players-and-officials-back-new-antidiscrimination-plan/story-fni3fbgz-1226879312061
  (That article came to my attention via the version printed under the headline "COME OUT & PLAY" (sub-heading: "Inglis confident an athlete's sexuality is no big deal"), by the same author, on p. 78 in the "SPORT" pages of The Daily Telegraph, Thursday, April 10, 2014, ISSN 1038-8745, published by Nationwide News Pty. Ltd.)

• the article "Sports bosses unite to send off homophobia", by Mr. Peter Lalor, dated April 10, 2014, downloaded from (behind the paywall at) The Australian's website:
  http://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/rugby-union/sports-bosses-unite-to-send-off-homophobia/story-e6frg7o6-1226879372101

• the article "NRL chief Dave Smith joins other code bosses to tackle homophobia", by Mr. Rupert Guinness, dated April 9, 2014, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:
  http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/nrl-chief-dave-smith-joins-other-code-bosses-to-tackle-homophobia-20140409-zqspe.html

• the press release "NRL launches anti-discrimination policy", no author credited, dated Wednesday, April 9, 2014 (4:00pm), downloaded from NRL.COM:
  http://www.nrl.com/nrl-launches-anti-discrimination-policy/tabid/10874/newsid/77496/default.aspx

• the article "Bigoted sledges in sport on way out", by Mr. Benedict Brook, dated April 10, 2014, downloaded from the Star Observer's website:
  Warning: The Star Observer is a publication of the Gay press, so beware of obscene images and text (though in fairness I acknowledge that one also needs to beware of obscene images and text in non-Gay media these days):
  http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/local-news/bigoted-sledges-in-sport-on-way-out/121514

Labels: G.L.B.T., N.S.W., sport

9. How Mr. Carr accounts for the power of "the Israeli lobby": "party donations and a program of giving trips to MPs and journalists to Israel"

The quotations in that headline come from the transcript (under the headline "Bob Carr 'frustrated' by Israeli lobby and lack of First Class fares") of an interview between Sarah Ferguson and The Hon. Bob Carr, broadcast on April 9, 2014 on ABC1's 7.30, downloaded from the A.B.C.'s website:

http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2014/s3982168.htm

(That interview came to my attention via this installment of The Australian's "CUT & PASTE" column.)

Labels: State of Israel

10. Fr. Zuhlsdorf on what the Conciliar church requires in order for one of its deacons to receive Traditional priestly ordination

See the blog post "ASK FATHER: Can deacons request ordination in Extraordinary Form?", by The Rev. Fr. John Zuhlsdorf, dated April 3, 2014, downloaded from his Fr. Z's Blog:

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2014/04/ask-father-can-deacons-request-ordination-in-extraordinary-form/

Labels: Roman Curia, Summorum Pontificum

11. Liturgical dance still going strong in The Diocese of Wollongong

11.1 At two Masses for "all the Year 6 students from across the Diocese[ of Wollongong]", which (Masses) involved Msgr. Ingham and "a number of our diocesan clergy", "[m]any students carried out the various liturgical ministries as readers, servers, dancers, part of a procession, student musicians, choir and soloists."

The quotations, excluding my square-bracketed interpolations, in that headline come from the first item ("Bishop Peter celebrates with Year six students") of the "In schools" pages (pp. 24-25 of this issue; the quotations in question are on p. 24), no author credited, in Journey ("News from the Catholic Diocese of Wollongong"), No. 54, Summer 2013, ISSN 1835-7024, published by the Catholic Diocese of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia, available online here:

http://www.dow.org.au/journey

or go straight hither:

http://www.imags.com.au/flipbooks/journey/files/assets/basic-html/index.html#1

Labels: liturgical dance, liturgy, Wollongong

11.2 "Girls from St Patrick's, Port Kembla, have been invited to present the water, which will be blessed as the Easter water, in a liturgical movement at the Easter Vigil Mass at 7pm on 19 April."

The quotation in that headline comes from an item in the "DIARY" section of the weekly "VISTA2014" ("Upcoming Catholic Events") pages (pp. 20-21 this week; the quotation in question is on p. 20), compiled by Nora Jonkers, in the Sydney Catholic Weekly, April 13, 2014, Vol. 73, No. 4720, published by The Catholic Press Newspaper Company Pty. Ltd., apparently not available online. Note that, although the term "liturgical movement" can sometimes, especially in the context of the Easter Vigil, mean something other than a liturgical abuse, judging by the restriction of the participants to girls, "liturgical movement" is presumably used here in the same way in which I always heard it used during my time (early 1990s to early 2000s) in Wollongong systemic (nominally-)Catholic schools: That is, as another way of saying 'liturgical dance'.

Labels: liturgical dance, liturgy, Wollongong

12. Mr. South on the conditions formerly known collectively as Gay bowel disease

See his comment of 27.3.14 / 11pm in the combox of the blog post "Church Busters: A How-To Guide", by Mr. Bill Muehlenberg, dated March 26, 2014, downloaded from Mr. Muehlenberg's CultureWatch website:

http://billmuehlenberg.com/2014/03/26/church-busters-a-how-to-guide/

Labels: G.L.B.T., health

13. In the afternoon of Tuesday, 1. ult., H.R.H. The Duke of Kent "visited the Masonic Hall, St. Michael's Road, Newquay", England.

See the Court Circular—the source of the quotation in that headline—of that date.

Labels: Edward Kent, Freemasons

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Pius V., Pope, Confessor, A.D. 2014

Notes: Wednesday, January 1-Monday, February 10, 2014 (part 2 of 2)

12. "Pope Francis assured mothers that breast-feeding their babies in public, even during a papal Mass in the Sistine Chapel, is OK."

The quotation in that headline comes from the article "Pope to moms: It's OK to breast-feed in public, even in Sistine Chapel", by Carol Glatz, dated January 13, 2014, downloaded from the Catholic News Service's (C.N.S.'s) website:

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1400120.htm

(A version of that article is also available at the Sydney Catholic Weekly's website, under the headline "Pope to mums: It’s OK to breast-feed in public, even in Sistine Chapel", with the same author, dated January 14, 2014:

http://www.catholicweekly.com.au/article.php?classID=1&subclassID=99&articleID=13161&class=Copyright&subclass=Vatican

and it came to my attention via the version printed under the headline "Breastfeeding in Mass is OK, says Pope", with the same author, on p. 13 of The Catholic Weekly, January 19, 2014, Vol. 73, No. 4708, published by The Catholic Press Newspaper Company Pty. Ltd.) For another report on the same event, see the article "Pope tells mothers to breastfeed in church", by Philip Pullella, dated January 13, 2014, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:

http://www.smh.com.au/world/pope-tells-mothers-to-breastfeed-in-church-20140113-hv85w.html?skin=text-only

For translations of the relevant portion of the Papal homily in question (that of January 12, 2014, for the New-calendar Feast of the Baptism of the Lord), see here:

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/francesco/homilies/2014/documents/papa-francesco_20140112_omelia-battesimo_en.html

and the Vatican Information Service item "TO BE PART OF THE CHAIN OF FAITH IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL INHERITANCE A CHILD CAN RECEIVE", dated January 12, 2014, downloaded from the NEWS.VA website:

http://www.news.va/en/news/to-be-part-of-the-chain-of-faith-is-the-most-beaut

(The latter came to my attention via the version with same headline and date in the Holy See Press Office's Vatican Information Service e-mail bulletin of January 13, 2014, Year XXII, No. 7.)

Labels: breastfeeding, Francis Bergoglio, morals

13. "Few British Catholics agree with Church on abortion, gay ‘marriage’ and euthanasia: poll"

The quotation in that headline is the headline of an article by Hilary White, dated Wednesday, December 4, 2013, downloaded from LifeSiteNews.com:

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/few-british-catholics-agree-with-church-on-abortion-gay-marriage-and-euthan

(That article came to my attention via this AQ thread.)

Labels: U.K.

14. Some information on the health risks involved in the Gay/Lesbian lifestyle

See the article "HOMOSEXUALITY UNMASKED", dated January 2011, downloaded from Christian Order's website:

http://www.christianorder.com/features/features_2011/features_jan11_bonus.html

(That article came to my attention via the comment by Rory Donnellan on January 29, 2014 at 1:01 pm in the comments section of this blog post/press release by Mr. Gaynor.)

Labels: G.L.B.T., health, medicine

15. "Two to three days a week at work is the best job/home lifestyle balance for career mums"

The quotation in that headline is the headline of an article by Laura Chalmers, dated January 10, 2014, downloaded from couriermail.com.au:

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/two-to-three-days-a-week-at-work-is-the-best-jobhome-lifestyle-balance-for-career-mums/story-fnihsrf2-1226798530510

(That article came to my attention via the similar article "Making family life work", also by Laura Chalmers, p. 03, the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Friday, January 10, 2014, ISSN 1038-8745, published by Nationwide News Pty. Ltd.)

Labels: economics, families, work

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Scholastica, Virgin, A.D. 2014

Notes: Tuesday, July 17-Tuesday, July 31, 2012

1. A couple of points of interest from "Partnership of dioceses leads to witness in schools", by Tracey Edstein, on p. 6 of the June 2012 issue (No. 114) of Aurora, the magazine of The Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle

(It's available from that Diocese's website, and came to my attention via the version published under the headline "Catholic, Anglican bishops renew tri-diocesan pact" on p. 21 in the "Regional Round-up" section of the Sydney Catholic Weekly, Vol. 71, No. 4624, June 3, 2012.)

1.1 An amusing definition of ecumenism

by The Lord Bishop of Maitland-Newcastle (though His Lordship disagrees with it):

Our ecumenical people meet with your ecumenical people and we have a lovely time together!

Labels: ecumenism

1.2 Msgr. Wright's "message of Christian care and service rather than a message of belief or conversion"

This is the last paragraph of that article:

A feature of the Service of Worship was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, giving expression to the Covenant through a pastoral care partnership. This partnership sponsors and supports Chaplains/Pastoral Care Workers in the schools of the regions served by the three dioceses. Bishop Bill said, "It is our prayer that through this ministry, students, their families and school staffs will come to experience the loving compassion of Jesus Christ: a message of Christian care and service rather than a message of belief or conversion."

Labels: Bill Wright

2. Some links to reports which contain recent Papal mentions of the Second Vatican Council or its Catechism or both

http://www.news.va/en/news/presentation-of-the-year-of-faith

http://www.news.va/en/news/papal-message-closes-fiftieth-international-euchar

http://www.news.va/en/news/blessed-are-the-peacemakers

http://www.news.va/en/news/the-church-must-preach-truth-and-justice

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-recalls-time-as-conciliar-expert-in-nemi

Labels: C.E.C., Vatican II

3. "Obama admin video tells Pentagon ‘Being gay isn’t about sex; it’s about life’"

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/obama-admin-video-tells-pentagon-being-gay-isnt-about-sex-its-about-life

(That article came to my attention via this AQ post of it.)

I log that quotation in relation to the observation by the Australian Gay activist Prof. Dennis Altman that

The greatest single victory of the gay movement over the past decade has been to shift the debate from behavior to identity, thus forcing opponents into a position where they can be seen as attacking the civil rights of homosexual citizens rather than attacking specific and (as they see it) antisocial behavior.
[http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2008/05/01/on-relationship-recognition/]

Labels: Dennis Altman, G.L.B.T.

4. On some recent developments regarding 'family planning'

4.1 "the Foreign Affairs Minister, Bob Carr, said Australia would double its overseas aid for family planning programs to more than $50 million a year by 2016"; "[a]t least $70 million over the next four years will go to the United Nations Population Fund to promote equitable access to family planning", and "[a]n extra $10 million will be given to the International Planned Parenthood Federation program to ensure people caught in disasters can gain access to reproductive health services." Furthermore, a "London conference, organised by the British government and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is set to refocus on the issue and garner $2 billion in pledges by 2020."

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/focus-on-family-planning-as-carr-doubles-foreign-aid-20120711-21wdw.html?skin=text-only

See also "Abortion aid 'won't help save lives of mothers in childbirth'", by Damir Govorcin, p. 7, the Sydney Catholic Weekly, Vol. 71, No. 4631, July 22, 2012, apparently available on-line, but behind a paywall, here; the following is my transcription:

Mr[ Paul] Hanrahan[, executive director of Family Life International, "Australia's largest Catholic pro-life org-anisation"] said the Rio +20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development held in Brazil recently failed to deliver what the population controllers wanted - a univer-sal 'right' to abortion.
"Obviously, the 'major fam-ily planning summit' in Lon-don which Mr Carr will at-tend, is a pathetic attempt to carry out the Rio + 20 agenda by a circuitous route, via friendly diplomats and gov-ernments, mainly in the West-ern world," he said.

Labels: contraception

4.2 "The British government is pledging to double its efforts on family planning, raising its spending from £90 million ($137 million) a year to £180 million."

http://www.smh.com.au/world/faith-in-contraception-puts-gates-on-collision-course-with-the-vatican-20120712-21yx7.html?skin=text-only

Labels: contraception

5. "The 2011 annual surveillance report into HIV, viral hepatitis and sexually transmissible infections in Australia, compiled by The Kirby Institute at the University of NSW" says that while "HIV transmission primarily occurred through sexual contact between men, about 25 per cent occurred through heterosexual contact."

http://www.smh.com.au/national/health/hiv-no-longer-means-certain-death-20120714-222rn.html?skin=text-only

Labels: G.L.B.T., H.I.V./A.I.D.S.

6. The text of an interview with Msgr. Di Noia

http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/the-vatican/detail/articolo/society-of-st-pius-x-di-noia-16482/

(That came to my attention via this AQ post of it.)

Labels: Augustine Di Noia

7. Mr. Copland—"the political editor of ACT queer magazine FUSE" and "the convenor of the ACT Greens"—on "an ongoing problem with the queer movement where people[ such as polyamorists] who don’t fit into the mainstream queer mould are being excluded from the debate, with claims that they are ruining our chances to reach equality"

http://www.starobserver.com.au/opinion/soapbox-opinion/2012/06/14/we-need-to-return-to-our-liberation-roots/79005

(That came to my attention via this Australian article.)

Labels: G.L.B.T., polyamory

8. The Statement, given at Ecône, on July 14, 2012, of the General Chapter of The Society of St. Pius X. to Rome

http://www.dici.org/en/news/society-of-st-pius-x-general-chapter-statement/

The Statement has also been posted on the "Announcements" page of the S.S.P.X.'s District of Australia website.

Labels: S.S.P.X.

9. Dr. Feser on, among other things, how he "came to see that existing naturalistic accounts of language and meaning were no good"

http://edwardfeser.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/road-from-atheism.html

See also this interview with Dr. Feser, which came to my attention via the version published as "New Atheism 'is devoid of moral, intellectual merit'", "A conversation with Dr Edward Feser, university professor, author, philosopher and former atheist", by Damir Govorcin, on pp. 11 f. in the "Connections" section of the Sydney Catholic Weekly, Vol. 71, No. 4631, July 22, 2012.

Labels: languages

10. "Men work twice as long as women in paid employment; women work twice as long as men in unpaid employment at home."

http://www.smh.com.au/national/statistics-confirm-its-still-a-mans-world-20120727-22zki.html?skin=text-only

(That article came to my attention via the version published as "Statistics confirm it's still a man's world", by Tim Colebatch "with Andrew Stevenson", p. 10, "News" section, The Sydney Morning Herald, Weekend Edition, July 28-29, 2012, No. 54542, ISSN 0312-6315.)

Presuambly the source for the quotation in that headline is ultimately the "Engagement in work (employment related and unpaid)" page at the website of The Australian Bureau of Statistics (A.B.S.), where it says that

While in 2006 males spent nearly twice as long as females on employment related activities, females on average spent nearly double the time spent by males on primary activities associated with unpaid work.

and proximately the A.B.S.'s media release "Men fare worse than women in education, health and crime", July 27, 2012, which has a link to the "Gender Indicators" page, which in turn has a link to a "Time use" page (in the context of "Work and Family Balance"), where there is a link to the ultimate source.

Labels: work

11. Mr. Creighton on the intentions of the Federal Government's childcare policies:

JUDGED by its intentions, the Australian government's childcare policies are superb.

"Gone are the days when this sector was considered a babysitting service," trumpeted Childcare Minister Kate Ellis this week, as she foreshadowed $22.3 billion of spending on early childhood services over the next four years.

[… ]According to the federal government, that money aims to ensure "nurturing, culturally appropriate, safe and socially inclusive" care for children in "approved childcare services", whose parents in turn enjoy "workforce participation choices".
[http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/broken-puzzle-of-childcare/story-fn59niix-1226431226541]

(That article came to my attention via its publication under the same headline ("Broken puzzle of childcare"), by the same author (Adam Creighton), on p. 15 in the "Inquirer" section of The Weekend Australian, Second Edition, No. 14866, ISSN 1038-8761, July 21-22, 2012, published by Nationwide News Pty. Limited.)

Labels: childcare

12. Mr. Unwin on historical Masonic influence in Manitoba, Canada:

I spend my final evening creeping through the corridors of the Manitoba Legislative Building. Built between 1913 and 1920 by British architect Frank Worthington Simon, this grand edifice is the ultimate monument to Winnipeg's good times. My guide is local author Frank Albo, whose bestselling Hermetic Code unlocks a world of occult mystery smuggled into the architecture.

"Everything is hidden in plain view," he tells our wide-eyed tour group as he reveals Masonic codes, hieroglyphic inscriptions and an intriguing hotchpotch of Christian and pagan symbolism.

Manitoba's legislators (all Freemasons, it turns out) believed they were reconstructing nothing less than Solomon's Temple amid the prairies. It's gripping stuff. But what really catches my eye are the two magnificent stone bison either side of the great marble steps to the upper chamber - a Manitoban take on the totemic wild boars of classical temples.
[http://www.theaustralian.com.au/travel/holiday-at-the-heart/story-e6frg8rf-1226430230929]

(That article came to my attention via the version published under the same headline ("Holiday at the heart"), by the same author (Mike Unwin), on p. 8 of the "Travel & Indulgence" supplement of The Weekend Australian, Second Edition, No. 14866, ISSN 1038-8761, July 21-22, 2012, published by Nationwide News Pty. Limited.)

Labels: Freemasons

13. "A study published in medical journal Psychosomatic Medicine found mums and dads were 52 per cent less likely to catch a cold compared to those couples without children", "[a]nd the bigger the family, the better mum and dad's odds of staying healthy, research by Carnegie Mellon University found."

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/parents-less-likely-to-catch-their-childs-cold/story-e6freuy9-1226422949125

(That article came to my attention via the version published under the same headline ("Parents less likely to catch their child's cold"), by the same authors (Lisa Power and Samantha Malagre), on p. 07 of the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Vol. 1, No. 2589, ISSN 1038-8745, Wednesday, July 11, 2012, published by Nationwide News Pty. Ltd.)

Labels: families, health

14. "Secret minutes of a meeting on June 30 also revealed that the leadership of the Australian Young Greens party wanted to push for a public debate on polyamorous marriage, which allows people to have several wives or husbands."

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/greens-caught-recruiting-youth-on-refugee-issue/story-fnejm6bt-1226423536728

(That article came to my attention via the version published under the headline "Greens use refugees as lure", by the same author (Simon Benson), on p. 11 of the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Vol. 1, No. 2589, ISSN 1038-8745, Wednesday, July 11, 2012, published by Nationwide News Pty. Ltd.)

Labels: Greens, polyamory

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Confessor, A.D. 2012

Notes: Wednesday, April 4-Tuesday, April 10, 2012

1. "Up to 3 per cent of births in many developed nations involve ART"

… Up to 3 per cent of births in many developed nations involve ART, according to a complementary article by an Australian expert.
Circulation
2012;doi:10.1161/5
circulationaha.111.071183
(Scherrer U et al)
2012;doi:10.1161/
circulationaha.112.100479
(Celermajer D et al)
[I transcribed that from Adam Taor's weekly "Pulse" column, this time on page seven of the "Health" section of the "Weekend Professional" supplement in The Weekend Australian of March 31-April 1, 2012 (Second Edition, No. 14772; ISSN 1038-8761); it is also available at The Australian's website:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/health-science/good-week-for/story-e6frg8y6-1226313817562
That complementary article's (or rather, editorial's) abstract is available at Circulation's website:
http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2012/03/13/CIRCULATIONAHA.112.100479.abstract?sid=aa73822d-3f2b-4bff-ae70-2411ddda243b]

Labels: A.R.T.

2. "CHILDREN'S behaviour has grown considerably worse since the abolition of corporal punishment in Britain 25 years ago, teachers say"

http://www.smh.com.au/world/no-cane-no-gain-in-the-behaviour-of-students-20120405-1wflt.html?skin=text-only

Labels: corporal punishment, education, U.K., youngsters

3. According to new Australian research, "[o]verall, the more kids a [sixty years or older ]woman [had ]had, the less likely she was to die during [the sixteen-year period which the researchers studied]"

Good week for ...

WOMEN with lots of children, after NSW research showing they live longer than childless women. …
Age Ageing
2012;doi:10.1093/ageing/afs016
(Simons L et al)
[Bold type and the first ellipsis in the original,
I transcribed that quotation from Adam Taor's weekly "Pulse" column, this time on page five of the "Health" section of the "Weekend Professional" supplement in The Weekend Australian of April 7-8, 2012 (First Edition, No. 14777; ISSN 1038-8761); that column is also available, in slightly different form, at The Australian's website:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/health-science/good-news-for-mothers/story-e6frg8y6-1226318915633
That article's abstract is available at Age and Ageing's website:
http://ageing.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2012/03/14/ageing.afs016.short?rss=1]

Labels: families, health

4. It's less than two weeks till St. George's Day 2012

and I note that there are two vacancies in The Order of the Garter; H.M. The Queen's website lists twenty-three (non-Royal/-Extra) Companions, but that does not take account of the death of Lord Ridley on the 22nd ult. The last St. George's Day on which there were no vacancies was that of 2009; in 2010, Lords Richardson and Bingham died, and in 2011, His late Grace The (11th) Duke of Grafton died; since Garter Day 2008, Her Majesty has admitted only two new Companions to the Order, so now there are still two vacancies.

Labels: Order of the Garter

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Easter Tuesday, A.D. 2012

Notes: Wednesday, January 18-Monday, February 6, 2012 (part 1 of 2)

1. "Obesity link to lack of mother bonding":

INFANTS who don't bond closely with their mothers show an increased likelihood of growing up to be obese.

[…] Pediatrics, 2011;doi:10.1542/peds.2011-0972, (Anderson S, et al)
[Bold type in the original,
"Obesity link to lack of mother bonding", by Adam Taor, dated January 14, 2012, downloaded from The Australian's website:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/health-science/obesity-link-to-lack-of-mother-bonding/story-e6frg8y6-1226242984452
Also published, in slightly different form, as the "Pulse" column by Adam Taor on page nine of the "Health" section of the "Weekend Professional" supplement in the print edition of The Weekend Australian, January 14-15, 2012]

Labels: families, health

2. According to the Holy Father, "the ecumenical task is a responsibility of the entire Church and of all the baptized, who must develop the partial communion that already exists among Christians and make it grow into full communion in truth and in charity"

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/2012/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20120118_en.html

"INVOKING THE GIFT OF UNITY AMONG CHRISTIANS"
VIS 20120118 (720)
http://www.news.va/en/news/invoking-the-gift-of-unity-among-christians

See also
http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40551

Labels: Benedict XVI. Ratzinger, ecumenism

3. H.H. The Pope on "legitimate separation of Church and State" and religious freedom

"DIFFICULTIES AND HOPES OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN AMERICA"
VIS 20120119 (760)
http://www.news.va/en/news/difficulties-and-hopes-of-the-catholic-church-in-a

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/speeches/2012/january/documents/hf_ben-xvi_spe_20120119_bishops-usa_en.html

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40451

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40441

Labels: Benedict XVI. Ratzinger, Church and State, religious liberty, U.S.A.

4. Several web-pages on recent news regarding the Neo-Catechumenal Way

"HOLY FATHER MEETS WITH MEMBERS OF NEO-CATECHUMENAL WAY"
VIS 20120120 (780)
http://www.news.va/en/news/holy-father-meets-with-members-of-neo-catechumenal

"APPROVAL FOR CELEBRATIONS OF NEO-CATECHUMENAL WAY"
VIS 20120120 (220)
http://www.news.va/en/news/approval-for-celebrations-of-neo-catechumenal-way

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2012/01/the-holy-see-did-not-approve-neocat-liturgical-variants-for-mass/

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2012/01/benedict-xvi-the-neocats-and-their-liturgy/

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2012/01/another-confirmation-that-neocats-must-follow-official-liturgical-books-for-mass/

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40450

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40468

Labels: N.C.W.

5. "Is Homosexuality Biologically Determined?"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40452

Labels: G.L.B.T., neuroscience

6. "Muslim men first to be found guilty of [Gay] hate crime [in the U.K.]"

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/9028205/Muslim-men-first-to-be-found-guilty-of-sex-hate-crime.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/20/three-muslims-convicted-gay-hate-leaflets

Labels: death penalty, G.L.B.T., hate speech, Islam

7. "A study published in the Lancet last Friday found that globally, more restrictive abortion laws do not lead to lower abortion rates – sometimes, rates are higher where abortion is illegal"

http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/beware-the-pro-lifers-doing-hard-labor-on-abortion/

Labels: abortion, law

8. Prof. George has a blog

More precisely, he contributes to this group blog:

http://mirrorofjustice.blogs.com/

(That came to my attention via this post at Fr. Zuhlsdorf's blog.)

Labels: blogs

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Titus, Bishop, Confessor, and of St. Dorothy, Virgin, Martyr, A.D. 2012

Notes: Wednesday, November 30-Tuesday, December 6, 2011 (part 1 of 2)

1. Several recent articles on or relating to so-called Gay marriage

1.1 Dr. Walter on conscience votes and religion in politics

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/conscience-votes-corrupt-our-political-system-20111129-1o4tr.html?skin=text-only

I would like to write a rebuttal of that article but I don't have time, so I just want to consider one point here: Dr. Walter concludes by writing that "to judge legislation according to the requirements of religious belief is to avoid the discipline of public life, and we should loudly and clearly call this abuse of office". Now, how does Dr. Walter propose to remedy that "abuse" if the politician is, say, a Catholic who takes seriously the teaching of St. Pius X. in §24 of Pascendi?

Labels: Church and State, morality, secularism

1.2 Prof. Gaita on so-called Gay marriage

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/to-reject-gay-marriage-is-to-be-blind-to-our-common-humanity-20111130-1o6v7.html?skin=text-only

I log that as an example of the befuddlement which afflicts even the more learned advocates of so-called Gay marriage.

Labels: G.L.B.T., marriage, morality

1.3 "the Queensland parliament last [week] passed a bill that legalised civil unions for same-sex couples"

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/in-depth/alp-conference-set-to-endorse-same-sex-marriage/story-fnba0rxe-1226210968062

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/state-politics/queensland-has-passed-a-bill-allowing-civil-unions-but-some-labor-mps-are-calling-for-gay-marriage/story-e6frgczx-1226210962614

Labels: civil partnerships, G.L.B.T., Queensland

1.4 Msgr. Nichols on "civil partnerships"

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/11/the-archbisop-of-westminster-on-civil-unions/

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=39895

http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=29311

Labels: civil partnerships, G.L.B.T., marriage, morality, Vincent Nichols

1.5 "Labor voted overwhelmingly [last Saturday] to adopt marriage equality as its official policy - but granted a conscience vote to its MPs to avoid a damaging split"

http://www.smh.com.au/national/i-do-labor-to-gay-marriage-20111203-1ocpc.html?skin=text-only

Labels: Australian Labor, G.L.B.T., marriage

1.6 Mr. Wallace on the Gay lifestyle:

In demanding more money be spent on health for their community, Canadian gay activists have claimed that the system was homophobic in not taking into account: "lower life expectancy than the average Canadian, suicide, higher rates of substance abuse, depression, inadequate access to care and HIV-AIDS ... all kinds of health issues that are endemic to our community". No amount of sharp video promotion by GetUp! can make this lifestyle normal in light of its own facts.

The activists, of course, attributed all the negatives of the lifestyle to bullying or homophobia, including that a homosexual man has a life expectancy some 20 years less than the average male.

However the fact that he has 25-26 times the chance of contracting HIV compared with a heterosexual man must surely have more to do with it, as would the acknowledged higher incidence of drug abuse.

If our schools are concerned about discouraging smoking for its 7-10 year shortening of life, how can we in all honesty encourage a lifestyle for men that shortens it on average by double that? But promotion of the lifestyle this has become.
[ellipsis in the original,
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/opinion/its-wrong-to-promote-a-dangerous-lifestyle/story-e6frgd0x-1226212590213]

Labels: G.L.B.T., H.I.V./A.I.D.S., health

1.7 "Same sex adoption is not a game"

http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/same_sex_adoption_is_not_a_game

(That came to my attention via this Cath Pews post.)

Labels: families, G.L.B.T., morality

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Nicholas, Bishop, Confessor, A.D. 2011

Notes: Saturday, February 26-Monday, February 28, 2011

1. "Study: Working moms have sicker kids"

http://www.kansascity.com/2011/02/17/2662973/study-working-moms-have-sicker.html

Labels: families, health, work

2. "Russia has unveiled the biggest rearmament program since the fall of the Soviet Union"

http://www.smh.com.au/world/billions-to-be-spent-on-russian-rearmament-20110225-1b8kz.html?skin=text-only

See also:

"China determined to rival US arsenal"
http://www.smh.com.au/world/china-determined-to-rival-us-arsenal-20110227-1ba60.html?skin=text-only

Labels: P.R.C., Russia

3. Those Herald pieces on the findings from a recent survey of Australian Catholic priests

http://www.smh.com.au/national/priests-lose-faith-in-their-church-20110225-1b8r1.html?skin=text-only
http://www.smh.com.au/national/the-essay-holy-disorder-20110225-1b8sk.html?skin=text-only

This is an excerpt from the first comment published in the comments section of a CathNews item on the matter:

We are asked to find out our polititians' views on life issues before voting for them.
It seems that we should also be finding out our parish priests' views on these issues too.
[http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=25213]

Labels: Priesthood

4. "[N.S.W. Liberal-National] Coalition guarantees [Gay] Mardi Gras future"

http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2011/02/26/more-derelict-leadership/

It seems that Mr. O'Farrell has changed his tune from what he had to say at the time when, in October 2008, direct State funding for the Sodomites' Parade was publicly confirmed by Events NSW (direct and indirect Sydney City Council funding had been going on for the previous ten years, in the order of hundreds of thousands of dollars a year as of February 2009):

PREMIER Nathan Rees' decision to help fund Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardis Gras with taxpayer dollars shows he has his priorities wrong, Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell claimed today.

"He's confusing the hell out of people across the state,'' Mr O'Farrell said.

"If Mr Rees wants to prioritise funding, some of the announcements he's made in recent days would be further down the list for most people of this city and this state, behind infrastructure and services.''
[bold type in the original,
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw-floats-the-mardi-gras-with-financial-aid/story-e6frf0a0-1111117641186]

Labels: G.L.B.T., Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, N.S.W.

5. Mr. Sheehan on, among other things, the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/a-states-addiction-to-crime-20110227-1b9w8.html?skin=text-only

Labels: vice

Reginaldvs Cantvar
28.II.2011

Notes: Saturday, February 5-Tuesday, February 8, 2011

1. Recent developments regarding so-called gay marriage

1.1 Mr. Pearson on an attempt by the Sodomites' League to silence opposition to 'gay marriage'

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/oversensitivity-can-only-compromise-debate/story-e6frg6zo-1226000416817

Excerpts:

In December [Graham Young, "the founding editor of a well-regarded e-journal called On Line Opinion"] published a piece arguing the case against gay marriage by the pro-family campaigner, Bill Muehlenberg, and then a series of spirited exchanges on the merits of the argument. It was not the first article he'd run on the subject ; that honour had gone to Rodney Croome, a gay activist. Nor were most of the essays run opposed to gay marriage.

Young commented on the blog in mid-December. "The On Line Opinion approach is one that many find difficult to accept, and we are currently under attack from a number of gay activists because we dared to publish [Muehlenberg's essay] which is mostly a pastiche of comments by gay activists, even though the majority of articles I can find on the site support gay marriage. And by attack I mean attempting to intimidate me, sponsors or advertisers. How ironic . . . when we are sponsoring the Human Rights Awards."

[...] On account of the Muehlenberg piece, Young told me two major advertisers had just pulled out: the ANZ Bank and IBM. Comparing this year's January gross ad sales with last year's, he calculated that revenue from his main category of advertising had fallen by 96 per cent. Young is worried that these bizarre decisions will adversely affect other websites as well as his own and could even lead to some of them closing down.

Courts might construe that as the result of an indiscriminate secondary boycott, in contravention of the Trade Practices Act.

That's because Young and a group of other political sites have formed a network called The Domain, to bundle up their readers as a more attractive package for advertisers. The sites are very diverse in terms of ideology, from the ultra-leftist John Passant, to the more mainstream centre-Left Larvatus Prodeo, Club Troppo, Andrew Bartlett, skepticlawyer and the likes of Henry Thornton and Jennifer Marohasy.

[...] So I approached the public relations people at IBM and the ANZ Bank, to find out whether the decision to punish an article against gay marriage by withdrawing their ads was corporate policy.

[...] The initial responses from the PR people in both corporations was that it was news to them and they'd get back to me before my deadline. The ANZ's Stephen Ries replied first. "ANZ does not advertise on any opinion-type websites that may cause offence or segregate any individuals or group. In this instance our advertising was placed through an automatic advertising placement service and once we were alerted to the content we removed our advertising.

"The removal of our advertising should not be viewed as a violation of free speech; it's simply that we choose not to advertise on blogs that do not align to our organisational values."

Oh, brave new world! Apparently anything less than uncritical endorsement of gay marriage no longer aligns with the ANZ's organisational values. What's more, the loss of ad revenue to all the blogs in the Domain network, irrespective of each site's stance on the issue, is neither here nor there and has nothing to do with their freedom of speech.

It's also worth noting that despite the blanket assurances of not advertising on opinion websites, the ANZ was advertising on New Matilda on Friday.

IBM's Matt Mollett's reply was more gnomic. "To optimise reach with its target audiences, IBM continuously reviews and refines its advertising strategy based on a range of considerations, including demographics and content."

Young suspects that the peg on which to hang the internal decision to withdraw advertising within both organisations was a code developed by IASH, the Internet Advertising Sales Houses, which he declined to sign.

The code is a triumph of political correctness gone mad, and badly needs rewriting. Schedule C provides that IASH Australia members "are forbidden to place advertising on sites containing barred content - in other words, any of the inventory defined below - in any circumstances. Content articulating views intended or reasonably likely to cause or incite hatred of any race, religion, creed, class or ethnic group. Content articulating views calculated to cause offence to or incite hatred of any individual or group."

The last sentence is the loopiest in the schedule. It forbids anything that might offend anyone. This would neuter not just contentious articles but the free flow of comment on them that gives blogs their character. As Young says, this section threatens any Australian discussion site. "No newspaper could sign up to this and have discussion threads that were anything other than anodyne."

Labels: A.N.Z., G.L.B.T., I.B.M., marriage, morality

Related:

1.1.1 Letters to The Australian on the matter:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/gay-lobby-and-the-marriage-debate/story-fn558imw-1226001080435

Labels: A.N.Z., G.L.B.T., I.B.M., marriage, morality

1.1.2 Mr. Muehlenberg on the matter:

http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2011/02/05/marriage-mischief-and-the-pink-mafia/

There Mr. Muehlenberg provides a link to the On Line Opinion piece in question, and in a comment of 7.2.11 / 2pm at that blog post one Gregory Storer, who is, according to Mr. Muehlenberg, "a homosexual activist; [a former] candidate for the Secular Party of Australia in 2010, and still belong to it; and ... the one who launched the complaint against Online Opinion", writes that

people will go to the advertisers when they aren’t happy with something that the advertiser is supporting, that is our right, and that’s what I did. ANZ and IBM have diversity policies, I drew there attention to them advertising on sites counter to their policies. [...] And of course, I’m not the only person to have complained about this – so can’t take full responsibility)

I think that this episode is a reminder to employees of companies with these 'diversity policies' that they should be very discrete about voicing any opposition to the Sodomites' League and its works.

Labels: A.N.Z., G.L.B.T., Gregory Storer, I.B.M., marriage, morality

1.2 The Australian Christian Lobby and, separately, a Tasmanian Liberal Senator launch petitions against 'gay marriage'

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/same-sex-first-then-polygamy/story-e6frg6nf-1226001084805

Labels: A.C.L., G.L.B.T., Guy Barnett, marriage, morality

1.3 "ACL takes campaign for marriage to the NT"

http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=24948

Labels: A.C.L., G.L.B.T., marriage, morality

1.4 "French High Court affirms Traditional Marriage"

http://members7.boardhost.com/CathPews/thread/1296769612.html

Labels: France, G.L.B.T., marriage, morality

1.5 Sodomite's League to run pro-'gay-marriage' ad campaign for St. Valentine's Day/Mardi Gras; "At the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva last week, Norway recommended that Australia should amend the federal Marriage Act to recognise same-sex marriage"

http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/lifematters/ad-puts-a-face-to-gay-marriage-issue-20110205-1ahn4.html?skin=text-only

Labels: G.L.B.T., marriage, morality, Norway

2. "New bible translation to remove the word "holocaust" from the Old Testament"

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1100418.htm
http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=397519#397519
http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=397527#397527

Labels: Scripture, theology

3. "One third of the Catholic theology professors in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland have signed a declaration calling for women’s ordination"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=35913

Labels: theology, womenpriests

4. "New insights on manipulation of 1960s papal commission on birth control"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=35907

Labels: contraception, Magisterium, morality

5. "Young Australians paid to have STD test"

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/young-australians-paid-to-have-std-test-20110131-1aaxd.html

Labels: health, vice

6. Interesting books reviewed/mentioned recently

6.1 "King Alfred the Great"

http://www.catholica.com.au/gc0/ak3/163_ak_010211.php

Labels: Alfred the Great

6.2 "God and Sex: What the Bible Really Says"

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/more-ways-to-be-happy/story-e6frg8nf-1225998118866

Labels: morality, Scripture, theology

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. John of Matha, Confessor, A.D. 2011

Notes: Tuesday-Wednesday, January 18-19, 2011

1. "British gay couple turned away from B&B win discrimination case"

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/british-gay-couple-turned-away-from-bb-win-discrimination-case/story-fn3dxity-1225990668968

Labels: discrimination, G.L.B.T.

2. Ms Tankard Reist on surrogacy

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/gestational-carrier-is-an-ugly-term/story-e6frg6zo-1225990595552

Labels: parenthood, surrogacy

3. "Abortion Has Caused 300K Breast Cancer Deaths Since Roe"

http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=35595

Labels: abortion, cancer, health

4. Dr. Peters and others on the obligation on clerics to be celibate and/or continent

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2011/01/continence-and-married-deaconspriests/

Dr. Peters has posted at his website a full, searchable P.D.F. version of his Studia Canonica article "Canonical considerations on diaconal continence” (previously only the abstract, which I have brought to your attention already in item 2 of this post, was available there):

http://www.canonlaw.info/a_deacons.htm

Unfortunately I do not have time to read it yet, though.

Labels: celibacy, Deacons, Divine positive law, Ecclesiastical law, Edward Peters, Priesthood

5. "Row over HIV health cash"

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/row-over-hiv-health-cash-20110115-19rvu.html?skin=text-only

Excerpts:

A BITTER row has erupted in Sydney's gay community after a group of prominent activists accused the state's leading homosexual health service of squandering millions of dollars in taxpayers' money.

Gay rights campaigner Gary Burns, HIV lobbyist Shayne Chester and journalist Peter Hackney have demanded the state government "demolish" ACON, formerly known as the AIDS Council of NSW.

The trio alleged the service, which specialises in HIV prevention, care and support, received $12.6 million in government funding last year but spent only $800,000 on programs and services. In a scathing attack, the group dubbed the organisation a "gravy train" and called on Premier Kristina Keneally to hand back ACON's work to NSW Health.

[...] Mr Chester said NSW had had high rates of HIV infection for more than a decade, and this was compounded by an increase in unprotected casual sex among gay men.

"Why is this happening?" he asked. "Because ACON, which is chartered with HIV education and prevention, is failing us."

[...] In NSW cases involving HIV infection peaked in the mid-1980s, with 1636 diagnoses reported in 1987. Since then rates have dropped dramatically, with 327 new cases recorded in 2009, although that is a slight increase from 323 in 2008.

Labels: ACON, G.L.B.T., H.I.V./A.I.D.S., health, vice

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of Sts. Marius, Martha, Audifax, and Abachum, Martyrs, and of St. Canute, King, Martyr, A.D. 2011

Notes: December 30, 2010-January 3, 2011

(You'll notice that, as well as the list of labels at the end of this blog post, in this and future editions of "Notes" I'll include a list of labels for each item at the end of each item.)

1. "Chimps play on gender lines"

http://www.smh.com.au/environment/animals/chimps-play-on-gender-lines-20101227-198lu.html?skin=text-only

LABELS: gender differences

2. Fr. Zuhlsdorf on, among other things, the origin of Ordinaries signing their respective names with a cross sign in front of those names

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2010/12/wdtprs-nobis-quoque-peccatoribus%e2%80%9d-and-joe-bagofdoughnuts-bp-of-black-duck/

LABELS: trivia

3. Prof. George et al. against a critique of their natural-law argument against so-called gay marriage

http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2010/12/2277
(brought to my attention by this post at Fr. Zuhlsdorf's blog)

LABELS: G.L.B.T., marriage, morality, natural law, Robert George

4. "[S]exual and reproductive health" (things such as abortion and contraception?) among the priority areas in the Federal Government's National Women's Health Policy 2010:

[The Hon. Nicola] Roxon [M.P., Health Minister] and Status of Women Minister Kate Ellis released the Government's National Women's Health Policy 2010.

[...] Health priority areas identified in the policy include chronic diseases, mental health, sexual and reproductive health and healthy ageing.
[http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/healthier-future-for-gen-y-girls/story-e6freuzr-1225978255293]

LABELS: abortion, contraception, health

5. Cardinal Pell on the incongruity of ostensibly genuine Catholic politicians defying Church teaching

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/sunday-telegraph/youre-either-one-of-us-or-youre-not/story-e6frewt0-1225980084014

Predictably, this has generated much discussion in a thread at the Catholica Forum. I wonder whether it was self-satire when, after this quotation (which is itself almost satirically over-the-top):

Where I draw the line is when he tries to impose his own Catholic Sharia Law on the rest of the community. He has the right to criticize Catholic politicians for failing to do this, but the good thing is that they are ignoring him, just like everyone else seems to do. That's the triumph of secularism.

"desi" wrote:

All together now for a great big chorus of:

'And so say all (well, a huge number anyway) of us, and so say.....'!

LABELS: George Pell, morality

6. Mr. Sheehan on Aboriginal over-representation in the criminal justice system:

I don't believe most Australians feel ''shame'' that Aborigines are 15-times over-represented in the criminal justice system. I believe they feel anger, as the victims of crime. Australians are sick of the chasm between rhetoric and reality, and the idea that the only acceptable public narratives for Aboriginal people are that of victim or artist or noble custodian. The percentage of incarcerated Aboriginals would be even higher if so many were not given a free pass by the justice system, which in turn has led to a self-perpetuating culture of violence.
[http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/cast-adrift-from-reality-the-slick-spruikers-of-our-shame-20110102-19cz9.html?skin=text-only]

LABELS: A.T.S.I.

7. As the Cloister closes its doors (not necessarily forever), a Window opens

So Coo-ees from the Cloister "will close in 2011":

http://coo-eesfromthecloister.blogspot.com/p/we-have-had-hoot.html

though not necessarily forever:

http://thewardenswindow.blogspot.com/2011/01/wilson-bypassed-as-same-sex-rights.html?showComment=1294038914531#c6147065956221964640

and there is a successor blog (whose blogger is no 'novice'!):

http://thewardenswindow.blogspot.com/

LABELS: blogs

8. A Holy Roman Emperor asking for respect for religious freedom for Christians subject to the Shah of Persia?

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- For almost 400 years, the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples has sent missionaries around the world. Now, in the new Propaganda Fide Missionary Museum, the public can see many of the items they sent back to Rome. The new museum also documents how certain challenges to faith recur. For example, there's a letter written in the mid-1600s by King Leopold of Germany, the Holy Roman Emperor, to the Shah of Persia asking him kindly, but forcefully, to respect the religious freedom of Christians in Persia. ...
[http://www.catholicnews.com/data/briefs/cns/20101209.htm]

I would be interested to read (an English translation of) that letter.

LABELS: Leopold I. Habsburg, Persia, religious liberty

Reginaldvs Cantvar
3.I.2011