The Great Cardinal William Keeler

Here is an interview done by the extraordinary Cardinal William Keeler way back in 2001. He was totally courageous and candid; and completely visionary. In my estimation, he was one of the first public figures to take the major corporations to task for their seemingly underground involvement in porn. Then the world was just beginning to come to terms with the porn explosion that took over the Internet. Now, the problem has grown exponentially. But for a time, it looked as if the Bush Administration was going to start cleaning-up the porn mess left over from the inept and decadent Clinton White House. Then, September 11^th happened, and everyone's priorities changed. Since then, little has been done to stop the pornographic juggernaut. AT&T is still a major sleaze merchant through their Uverse TV system. As for GM, they sold their shares of DirecTV to Rupert Murdoch. Both AT&T and Murdoch have smartly covered all of their bases and given generous contributions to the Democratic and Republican Parties.

 

 

In June 2001, you spoke to the bishops' meeting in Atlanta and denounced AT&T for profiting from adult films. Why?

At the meeting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, I raised the issue of concern that a mainline corporation, one that had been admired by generations of Americans, one that seemed so much in the mainstream of good things in our country -- AT&T, Ma Bell -- was in the business of merchandising hardcore pornography. And I thought it was something shocking, as [it was] to others who work with me in the Religious Alliance Against Pornography. It's an ecumenical inter-religious group. Together we said, "This shouldn't be."

 

Tell me about the last 30 days, about the push that the Religious Alliance Against Pornography has been involved in.

One of the concerns that we have in the Religious Alliance Against Pornography is that we represent many religious groups, including Christians, Jews, Muslims, Mormons, Salvation Army. [They] are all very strong supporters of what we're trying to do. But it may not be appreciated for just how broad a spectrum of the population we speak.

So we've been asking our leaders around the country to drop a note to AT&T, to let them know that what's happening under the sponsorship of AT&T is very offensive to many, many people who have a faith in God and a concern about morality.

What do you hope to accomplish?

We hope that by this effort, those who lead AT&T will say, "Wait a minute, we are in the wrong business. We should make a shift that respects the beliefs, the feelings of so many good people out there who have been our customers, who are our stockholders.
 

There will be a lot of people that will argue that the growth of pornography or adult entertainment has been so extraordinary over the past decade that the genie is out of the bottle, that pornography is mainstream now. Why the growth?

I can't put a finger on a specific reason. ... The government, over the last few years, has relaxed its prosecution of cases. There has been a commercialization that has used sexuality in so many ways to try and sell its wares. All one has to do is open a magazine or turn on a television program and look at the advertising.

See, there's been a drift across the board in society. We certainly have a responsibility now to blow a whistle, to say, "Watch out," to individuals and to society as a whole. And what's come to me from parents is, "How am I going to raise my children in this kind of an environment?"

Why the effort to focus on mainstream companies?

When a company like AT&T, which has won the hearts and allegiance of so many people, gets into this business, it's a way of legitimating it, saying that it's OK, it's alright. That's the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval we don't want to see put on this kind of business.

On March 21 of this year, you met with the new attorney general, Ashcroft. Can you tell me what the purpose of that meeting was?

The Religious Alliance Against Pornography came with a conviction that we should, as citizens, voice our concern to government officials responsible for prosecuting the laws that are on our books of our country, to call attention of the attorney general to these laws that are extant against pornographers, and to say, "Please do something about it. They're on the books, they should be enforced." It has to do with the very character of our country.

Did the attorney general define his point of view about the role of the Dept. of Justice, as a prosecutor himself?

No. ... He saw the moral ill, and also the legal ill that pornography can be for our country, especially as it's spelled out already in the laws. And, I think, he has a personal commitment in that area. How far he will be able to go will depend on the kind of people that are in local prosecutors' offices around the country.

What did you ask Mr. Armstrong [C. Michael Armstrong, AT&T's chief executive officer] to do?

We've been asking AT&T to get out of the hardcore porn business. Ma Bell shouldn't be selling smut.

What was Mr. Armstrong's response?

AT&T, I think, still looks at it as some kind of legitimate business because there are other people out there making money in the same arena. But we just say, "Look, you're a company of great prestige. And you're being in it gives to pornography, hardcore pornography, a legitimacy that it does not deserve."

Did he define the type of pornography that they do provide, and define that there is some stuff that they will not air?

AT&T's representatives at this meeting indicated that there are some worse things out there. But, I think, there was a concession made that what they have is pretty raw.

Define what was the reason that they felt they had to carry the Hot Channel and the other erotic networks that they play?

One point that was alleged to us is that GM was in the same business, and they had to keep up with GM. Since that time, GM has publicly announced that it's spinning off this aspect of the business, so it's moving away from the association that it has had with the hardcore pornography.

Did they seem embarrassed about saying that this was a business decision?

I had a sense that those who spoke with us, or at least one who spoke with us, saw this as a simple business decision -- did not see it in the parameters of morality that we were presenting, but was looking at it more as a dollars-and-cents kind of decision. …

... Did they sort of say, basically, "You don't understand the realities of business"? Or did they say to some extent, "We apologize. It's not what we want to be in. Maybe we'll get out of it at some later point, but right now, at this moment--" What was the actual response?

I had the sense, as we moved along with the meeting, that there became a little greater openness of mind than in the initial discussion. It was acknowledged that those who were there around the table represented a significant group of people in the United States. It was acknowledged that they would study the issue some more. However, there was no concession made at that point. But I did hear very clearly said that, "We will continue to consider this issue.

Do you think they -- Mr. Armstrong specifically -- knew what he was carrying?

He had come to a recent knowledge of it. And I think that helped him to see the depth of our concern.

Can you be more specific about that?

No, no. But, he did know that was pretty nasty stuff. ...

... Everybody that we talked to out in L.A., as far as the people who are making this stuff, say, "Listen, this is my right. You might not like it or not, but this is legal." And there's other people, people from the former Justice Department, who say, "What are you talking about? Penthouse magazine is illegal. The stuff on HBO is illegal. The reason it's being done is that nobody is doing anything about it. The laws are on the books." ... Is this legal or isn't it?

There's no question that what is obscene material is illegal. And maybe there can be some quarrel about whether a particular piece is obscene or not. But there's no question that such material that's truly obscene and absolutely repugnant to most people is illegal. There's not a question about that.

Did [Ashcroft] sort of draw that line -- what is legal, what isn't illegal?

No, we talked in generalities of hardcore pornography. For example, if hardcore pornography is involved in interstate traffic, that kind of thing, or if it is sent through the mail, there's no question about that. If...what hurts children is done, there's no question about that being illegal. It's not protected by the Constitution. It's not protected free speech. It's something else. It's something that is offensive to so many people.

But where is that line? What is hardcore? You can buy hardcore on every magazine stand in America.

I don't know about that. I'm not one that goes around magazine stands looking through magazines. …

.. Renewing the Mind of the Media, what exactly is the program, and why is it important?

Renewing the Mind of the Media is a program that's important. The largest church in the United States, the Catholic Church, undertook this program a couple of years ago as a way of trying to educate their own people about some basic moral principles that apply to what's happening now in our culture. In the past year, in maybe thousands of parish churches around the country, people were given the opportunity to contemplate, "What can I do in my own family, what can I do in this community, what can I do personally to try and better the situation that we have with our media and with the appearance of pornography and violence?" ...

In the last 10 years or so, there is enormous thirst for this type of material, because a lot of people are making money. They call it a $10 billion industry. Why the thirst?

One of the things we know about pornography -- and this is attested to by a number of experts from all kinds of backgrounds -- is that it is addictive. And what it causes in its consumers is the need to keep consuming, and to look for something even more provocative than what was seen before, in order to keep the same level of stimulus and of interest. This can help explain, at least in part, the industry. The porn industry has grown so dramatically in recent years.

But, again, the folks in California that we talk to who make this stuff, say, "It's my First Amendment right, this is America."

When a fire breaks out, our response is to say, "There's a fire there, and it's going to hurt a lot of people." And what we see here is a moral fire. It's consuming individuals, destroying families. And no matter what people may say about from another point of view, the commercial should yield to the moral. What's right can't be compromised. And we have such a fire blazing here, we really have to summon every resource we can to try and contain it.

Does it say anything about society right now that an AT&T or GM or DirecTV or all the others out there that are now involved in distributing this stuff?

I have a hunch that there are people at the very top that don't understand what they're into. There are people making decisions based on the dollars, without realizing how awful the content is that they're involved with. They're too busy with their business to take a look at the product.

And I've had people in Hollywood, and in our own local TV industry, say, "Well, we're making products and showing things I wouldn't let my own children see, I wouldn't permit into my house." That tells me something about these people who are more sensitive. But I think some of the people at the top in this way in which so much in the entertainment industry has been centralized, look only at the bottom line, and do not look at the content. And they're not even concerned about it. They're only interested in profit.

Thanks to Shelley Lubben: You Can Now Read My Story

The courageous Shelley Lubben has organized The Pink Cross Foundation to help sex industry workers, former porn actors, and pornography addicts. Despite much persecution, she continues to fight against the sleaze machine that daily grinds out the perversion which will eventually entrap and enslave millions. She kindly agreed to post a short essay dealing with my conversion back to the Catholic Faith. This arrives at the end of a difficult struggle. For almost a decade, I believe the Lord has been calling me to make my story public. But His will in not mine. I would rather remain silent and safe. Like one of my heroines: St. Mary Magdalene, after the death of Jesus, and she fled to a cave in France, I have led a very quiet and secluded life since leaving the world of pornography. This was mostly by choice. After almost dying in sin, I felt shell-shocked. It was as if I were a lost and wandering soul suddenly thrown back into a body that I once occupied years before. I didn’t know what to do. Thankfully, Jesus allowed me rest upon his shoulder. Over the past couple of years, the call to speak out against pornography has been increasing. I could no longer duck and hide. With strength from God, I sat down in front of the computer and began to write. I couldn’t remember much. I asked God to guide my efforts; and He did. The Holy Spirit healed my mind, and returned those long buried memories. My prayer is that I can have my work published, so that others, especially the young, may not make the same foolish mistakes that I made.

Here is the link:
http://www.thepinkcross.org/former-gay-porn-star-joseph%E2%80%99s-story

Thank-you GOP for Taking a Stand Against Porn

The Republican Party currently changed their anti-pornography stance to also include adult porn. The new language replaces previous platform wording, which only opposed child pornography. It will now read, “Current laws on all forms of pornography and obscenity need to be vigorously enforced.” Many Americans would be surprised to learn that the distribution of hardcore porn on the Internet is a violation of current federal law. The problem is enforcement. In the landmark Supreme Court Case of Miller v. California, pornography was ruled to be not protected under the First Amendment. But the decision of the Court was extremely vague as to the definition of what can be considered obscene. Therefore prosecuting porn cases can be tricky; and usually unpopular with the porn-addicted American populous. For political survival, many have been unwilling to do so. It will all come down to who is in The White House next year and who will be the Attorney General of the US.

Worst Book of the Year Award: Fifty Shades of Grey; or the Acceptance of Deviance in America

So far, the biggest literary seller of the year has been “Fifty Shades of Grey” by British female writer E.L. James. I read through the book rather quickly. First of all, I could not help but to notice that it is clearly a book written by a woman for women - as it is extremely chatty. Most men, including myself, would find it very tedious. All in all, the book is passably well-constructed, but extremely boring. Though it's main claim to fame is the attempt to make BDSM, (bondage, disciple, and sado-masochism) a romantic alternative for the upwardly mobile educated young woman. In this respect, it was not convincing. Like most of pornography, it promises then never fulfills. As a culture, we are so inundated with sexual imagery that it has become difficult to shock. What's next?

Unfortunately, I read that the work has become a cult hit with teenage girls. In that way, it serves the same function as “Playboy,” soft-core music videos, and advertisements do in the male sphere: grooming the youth for a full acceptance of sexual perversity and hard-core porn. This book is devious in that it hits women where they are most vulnerable: in the world of fantasy. As the majority of women are cognitively motivated, hence the near absence of picture-driven porn marketed to females. I remember back in parochial grade-school, during the 1970's, everyone being horrified that someone bought a Judy Blume book to school. Now, they would be considered rather tame, then it was the beginning of moral laxity and the popularization of sexual experimentation. Today, we are living with the human costs and the near-destruction of our culture.

Resisting Pornography:

Awesome Catholic priest. I love this video for the fact that the Father discusses how the ease of access to porn has changed the whole dynamic of pornographic consumption.

Posting to Facebook from Youtube:

Over the past few months, I have seen some of the most wonderful and informative videos on Youtube. But I am incredibly annoyed by the vicious and ugly comments often made about those clips which feature Catholic priests, and or some other Catholic speaker or author. My recommendation is: instead of posting to a Facebook page your favorites from Youtube, use a blog. That will exclude any of those mindless hate rants.

Alfred Kinsey: The American Mengele

The so-called work of Alfred Kinsey is closely related to the tortures, vivisections, and botched operations of the Nazi concentration camp doctor Josef Mengele. Both men regarded experimentation as the ultimate end, no mater who was hurt, even innocent children. In these bizarre projects, they ultimately received pleasure, far beyond any scientific truth they might have attained. And lastly, their conclusions were already defined, conforming to their own set of personal deviances. Although Mengele has long been discredited as a blood-thirsty egomaniac, Kinsey still holds much of his reputation intake, even though it has been proven that he experimented or was complicit in the scientific sexual molestation of children, the endorsement of pedophilia, and the production of pornography. Like Mengele, his results were faulty from the start: Kinsey used a disordinate number of actively gay men and sexual offenders in his research pool. With the publication of “Sexual Behavior in the Human Male,” America suddenly thought it was a country of libertines and degenerates. Later generations, would accept the notion of sex without consequences. Now, we are all living with the very real human damage. And his over-reaching influence is still felt today in the pseudo-science of sexology, and the horrendous growth of and acceptance of sexual promiscuity and pornography. For “Playboy” founder Hugh Hefner once referred to himself as “Kinsey's pamphleteer.” I will never forget seeing the baseball kiddie-movie “The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training” as a child. At some point during the film, the boys on the team get a hold of a “Playboy” magazine. For them, it becomes a sort-of Holy Grail. The impact of that magazine, it's mindset, and the lifestyle it promoted, would have a huge impact on my own life. And it all started with some wicked third-rate scientist.

For more information read “Sexual Sabotage” by Judith Reisman.

Television: The New Soft-Core

The Parents Television Council (PTC), a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating parents about television content, has released a new study looking at nudity on prime-time broadcast television which reveals a major increase over the 2011-2012 season. The study found that there were 76 incidents of full nudity on 37 shows compared to 15 incidents in 14 shows the previous ratings season, representing a 407 percent rise in incidents. Almost 70 percent of the scenes that featured such nudity were on shows which aired prior to 9pm, compared to 50 percent of the full nudity scenes which aired before 9pm during the 2010-2011 season.

It has been my contention, that television, music videos, pop-stars, and primarily the internet, have become the new grooming grounds for children and young adults to get hooked into the pornographic age. For the most part, they have replaced the soft-core magazines, i.e. “Playboy” and “Penthouse,” of my generation. This exposure to salacious nudity works in the same way marijuana does in the sphere of illicit drugs. It gives you just a taste of what it is to be high. Later on, people move on to harder substances. Conversely, children, as they grow up, will want more explicit sexual images to satisfy their ever developing curiosity. This is a battle for the minds and souls of the future. The line must be drawn now.

Stats on Internet Porn

The Pope on Porn

Our current Holy Father never ceases to amaze me. He has a remarkable gift for making the most spiritually dense concepts seam flawlessly poetic. Everything he writes is astoundingly rich and beautiful. A new favorite is this address he gave on September 24, 2011, to the youth in Freiburg, Germany. Here is a section that I particularly love:

“In the final analysis, the world in which we live, in spite of its technical progress, does not seem to be getting any better. There is still war and terror, hunger and disease, bitter poverty and merciless oppression. And even those figures in our history who saw themselves as 'bringers of light,' but without being fired by Christ, the one true light, did not manage to create an earthly paradise, but set up dictatorships and totalitarian systems, in which even the smallest spark of true humanity is choked.

At this point we cannot remain silent about the existence of evil. We see it in so many places in this world; but we also see it -- and this scares us -- in our own lives. Truly, within our hearts there is a tendency towards evil, there is selfishness, envy, aggression. Perhaps with a certain self-discipline all this can to some degree be controlled. But it becomes more difficult with faults that are somewhat hidden, that can engulf us like a thick fog, such as sloth, or laziness in willing and doing good.”

In the first paragraph, I believe the Pope is saying that without the inner guidance of Our Lord, any aspirations to better mankind will end in defeat. In this country, we see this in the current administration which continually heralds its egalitarian and massive bureaucratic social programs as the true road to heavenly happiness. As a result, our so-called progressivism and reliance on technology has only made life, perhaps more convenient, less human and more confused. And why is this? In the second paragraph, Benedict explains that this primarily remains in our adherence to sin. The worst of these are those “hidden” faults. Nowadays, I would argue that the most widespread of secret sins is sexual and pornography addictions. I follow the Holy Father in my line of rational, for he made a similar statement when he visited Scotland back in 2010. Again, speaking to the youth, he said:

“Finally, I would like to say a word to you, my dear young Catholics of Scotland. I urge you to lead lives worthy of our Lord and of yourselves. There are many temptations placed before you every day—drugs, money, sex, pornography, alcohol—that the world tells you will bring you happiness, yet these things are destructive and divisive. There is only one thing which lasts: the love of Jesus Christ personally for each one of you. Search for him, know him, and love him, and he will set you free from the glittering but superficial existence frequently proposed by today’s society. Put aside what is worthless and learn of your own dignity as children of God.”

Simply beautiful. And speaking from experience, everything the Holy Father said here is completely true. For the enticements of this world will give a fleeting narcotic effect that is all-encompassing, but leaves you bitter, stripped, and cynical. The love of the Lord is not glamorous, but it is true, solid, and ever-lasting.

Playboy Peddles Pedophilia

A comic from one of Playboy’s favorite illustrators.

One of Hefner’s bunnies at his Halloween party.

Dr. Judith Reisman has written one of the greatest examinations of pornography in contemporary society titled: “Sexual Sabotage, How One Made Scientist Unleashed a Plague of Corruption and Contagion in America.” The book is primarily about Alfred Kinsey and his wacky tome “Sexuality and the Human Male.” She argues that Kinsey’s faulty science of sex began the horrendous sexual revolution of the 1950s and 60s. Which then led to the proliferation of homosexuality, promiscuity, and pornography in our own time. I especially found her examination of the so-called soft-core magazine “Playboy.” Turns out it’s not so innocent after all. Her thesis is that “Playboy” regularly promotes a strange mixture of the sophistication, the American girl-next-door, and pedophilia. I did a quick search on the internet to find some examples for myself. Didn’t take long. Compare the two pictures above. I discovered them in a matter of seconds. It’s shockingly blatant. Americans need to realize that pornography is not cute, it’s not funny, nor is it harmless. It originates straight from hell. And if you let it take control of your life, that is precisely where you may lend up.

Sentencing for Child Porn Offenders

For the past few days, I have been trying to read through the confusing and voluminous articles concerning federal mandatory guidelines for the sentencing of those in possession of child pornography. This is what I have surmised so far: since 2009, the US Sentencing Commission has been studying the issue and will propose new changes by the end of this year. The need for this review has arisen because of the great disparity in sentences handed down by many federal judges. I saw two recent (this year) cases were the offenders only received 21 months. According to a 2010 survey of judges by the Sentencing Commission, 70% said the proposed ranges (a minimum of 5 years in prison) for sentencing of those in possession of child porn were too high. Therefore, also according to a 2010 report, 45% of sentences were under the guidelines. Seems a truly bizarre form of judicial activism, because according to the US Justice Department, federal prosecutors obtained at least 2,713 indictments for sexual exploitation of minors in 2011, that's up from 1,901 back in 2006. Thankfully, some members of Congress, namely Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (Republican) have voiced worry. “I am concerned that the federal judiciary is failing to consider the severity of child pornography and its victims...This departure rate is disturbing and threatens the most vulnerable among us, our children.”

Link to his letter: http://sensenbrenner.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=280463

Please write to the Sentencing Commission and to your Congressmen/Senators: asking them to maintain the minimum sentence.

Office of Public Affairs, U.S. Sentencing Commission

One Columbus Circle, N.E., Suite 2-500

Washington, DC., 20002-8002

A Personal Prayer Request:

For a long time, I believe that the Lord has been asking me to speak out on the evils of pornography. For the most part, I have been very evasive. It all started years ago when my dear friend Fr. Christopher Crotty CPM asked me to write down some of the things I witnessed back in the 1990s in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Since then, I have done nothing. But God is still pulling me to fight against this corruption which daily swallows up countless souls. The people in porn and those affected by it, though still loved by God, are extremely lost and heavily permeated with demonic entities, please pray for my continued safety and that God will give me strength.

Update: Child Porn in San Francisco (The Closer You Look the Worse it Gets)

I have been doing some follow up investigation into the Larry Brinkin blog that I posted. In the article about the arrest of Brinkin, from sfgate.com, the e-mail address he was supposedly using to purchase child porn was listed in the story. I then performed a simple search on Google.com for the appearance of that address. Apparently, he made several visits to a disgusting web-site called Loliwood Studios which allows users to read and post purportedly fictional stories about pedophilia and child rape. From what I could surmise, there were posts on this site from all over the world. One story that I particularly noticed was about “grooming” prospective child victims. All I can wonder is: Why, is this web-site allowed to function? To me, it looks like a how-to and sharing trade-secrets manual for molesters. I theorize that web-sites such as these work in the same way as “Playboy” and “Penthouse,” giving men their first experience with pornography. Quickly, they then move on to more hardcore material. Tragically, for all of us, the men at the pedophilia sites then engage in buying child porn, or, I pray not, molesting, kidnapping or even murdering children. This must stop. These web-sites must be pulled down immediately!

One big problem: back in April of 2002, the Supreme Court handed down a horrendous ruling, rivaling Roe vs Wade, striking down the Child Pornography Prevention Act of 1996 that had prohibited the distribution and possession of virtual child pornography that appears to -- but does not -- depict real children. The law had banned a range of techniques -- including computer-generated images and the use of youthful-looking adults -- which were designed to convey the impression of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Therefore, this horrible web-site is morally reprehensible, but legal. But that does not mean, we as a society should allow it.

Child Porn in San Francisco

I am a little slow in getting to this story, but it is so incredibly horrific, that in this case: late is better than never. Way back, on June 22, 2012, Larry Brinkin, former Head of the Human Rights Commission in San Francisco was arrested for possession of child pornography. According to reports, the materials involved the abuse of infants and was extremely graphic and violent. According to one San Francisco news source: “Brinkin retired from the Human Rights Commission in 2010, and has been a beloved member of the gay community, with the Board of Supervisors even declaring the first week of February as 'Larry Brinkin Week.' At the time of his retirement, he earned more than $135,000 yearly.” Brinkin was also a major nationally recognized advocate for the acceptance of same-sex marriage. What is even more disturbing: that as of today (August 15, 2012,) no charges have been filed against Brinkin. And the media has been very silent on the story. Contrast this with the over-reporting on the Sandusky case. Liberalism is blind.

Here is some useful information:
San Francisco District Attorney Bureau of Investigations:
(415) 553-1030

DistrictAttorney@sfgov.org

Generation XXX

Horrendous story out of Canada :
A 13-year-old boy is awaiting sentencing in Calgary after pleading guilty to raping a four-year-old boy in his foster home. The teen, identified as T, told police after his arrest on Jan. 3rd that the idea for the assaults, which occurred over the course of a year, came from watching “gay porn” on his foster parents’ home computer.

After reading that, you may be thinking to yourself, well, this does not affect me, my kids don’t watch porn. But the truly frightening reality is that we are producing a whole new generation of Ted Bundys. These psychologically damaged children are walking around us, mingling with others, sitting next to, your own kids. Pornography puts everyone in danger.

Paul Ryan: The US Catholic (Last) Hope

Unlike liberals, I do not like to place too much hope in a political candidate, but with the announcement of Paul Ryan as the Vice-Presidential pick by Mitt Romney, I believe that the Lord is giving this Nation one last chance. The guy is awesome. And a practicing Catholic to boot. He is a great contrast to the annoying Rick Santorum who constantly evoked his religion, oftentimes incorrectly, to validate his political aspirations. Of course, religion should be the greatest determinant in our decision making process, but in a multicultural and multi-faith nation a secular leader can not appear to be forcing others to accept his beliefs. Ryan has struck a perfect middle cord. In an op-ed piece for “The National Catholic Register,” of the unwillingness to stop the US's spiraling debt, he wrote:
“The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has rightly termed this attitude “living in untruth … at the expense of future generations.” In approaching this problem as a lay Catholic in public life, I have found it useful to apply the twin principles of solidarity (recognition of the common ties that unite all human beings in equal dignity) and subsidiarity (respect for the relationships between individuals and intermediate social groups such as families, businesses, schools, local communities and state governments).”

He rightly accentuates the commonality which binds all people of good Faith. This is smart, approachable, and following Christ. He is proud of his religion, but does not bulldoze over others. He is charitable, but intelligent enough to understand economics goes beyond the quick-vote getting slogans the Democrats use to keep constituents well feed and happy. I agree with him, for we must always provide for the disadvantaged, but we, as a nation, must also live within our means. That is responsible stewardship.

All I can write is that Catholics better get behind this man, as he represents the best our Catholic laity has to offer in our country.

Here is the link to the full article:

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/applying-our-enduring-truths-to-our-defining-challenge

The Porn Pandemic

Internet Pornography Statistics
Pornographic websites	4.2 million (12% of total websites)
Pornographic pages	420 million
Daily pornographic search engine requests	68 million (25% of total search engine requests)
Daily pornographic emails	2.5 billion (8% of total emails)
Internet users who view porn	42.7%
Received unwanted exposure to sexual material	34%
Average daily pornographic emails/user	4.5 per Internet user
Monthly Pornographic downloads	1.5 billion (35% of all downloads)
Daily"child pornography" requests	116,000
Websites offering illegal child pornography	100,000
Sexual solicitations of youth made in chat rooms	89%
Youths who received sexual solicitation	1 in 7 (down from 2003 stat of 1 in 3)
Worldwide visitors to pornographic web sites	72 million visitors to pornography: Monthly
Internet Pornography Sales	$4.9 billion

Found this very interesting set of statistics today. What made me go in search of it? My continued frustration with the daily bombardment of pornographic advertisements on the internet. I opened my facebook page this morning to see a soft-core picture of a nearly nude woman publicizing some pornographic site. They cleverly added, beneath the picture, “ads not from facebook.” I wonder if the good which comes from this form of technology will ever outweigh the great evil they are pushing. Another annoying one is yahoo-mail. Usually once you go to your in-box there are several streaming promotions, usually salacious, but not as hard-core as facebook. I know that these sites are free, and they must raise revenue, but are we assisting in their demonic agenda by using these web-programs. This is a serious problem, that sadly most affects our youth.

Look at the stats. below:

Children Internet Pornography Statistics
Average age of first Internet exposure to pornography	11 years old
Largest consumer of Internet pornography	35 - 49 age group
15-17 year olds having multiple hard-core exposures	80%
8-16 year olds having viewed porn online	90.00%

Children are being hooked into the evil of porn everyday. For this reason, I have been attempting to have a book published, that I have been working on for the past few years, about the horrendous impact of pornography on our society. Please pray for my efforts. Way back in 1930, the extraordinary Pope Pius XI promulgated the papal encyclical “Casti Connubii.” In it, he wrote: “Beware of popular entertainment, for 'divorce, adultery, all the basest vices either are extolled or at least are depicted in such colors as to appear to be free of all reproach and infamy.'” Was he not right on target.

For more information on the topic, the best book I have read is “Sexual Sabotage” by Judith Reisman.

Pelosi Hearing Voices

More proof that there is something incredibly wrong with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. I use to think that she was just extraordinarily misguided and deluded, but now I wonder if she is not demonic. At a recent gathering of the Women’s Political Committee, Pelosi said that the spirits of suffragists Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Alice Paul spoke to her at the White House. I find this truly bizarre, firstly - because all three woman were staunchly against the legalization of abortion; a cause that Pelosi has championed. Secondly, I recall former Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann claiming that God told her to run. This makes me cringe as well. These strange assertions of divine inspiration are troubling in a politician. It is an attempt to create an indefinable level of credibility and entitlement that borders on the psychotic. This is an old ploy, used by liberals and conservatives alike. Just this year, Obama tried to co-opt the words of Jesus to justify a higher tax rate: “For me, as a Christian, it also coincides with Jesus’ teaching that ‘for unto whom much is given, much shall be required.'” This is a inexplicable interpretation of Scripture. And herein rests one of the beauties of the Catholic Church. For we relay on the ancient tradition of the Magisterium, not on the whims fly-by-night preachers and jingoistic secular leaders.

Edith Stein: On Masculine and Feminine

In her seminal work, The Separate Vocations of Man and Woman According to Nature and Grace, Edith Stein, later St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, wrote:

“Christ embodies the ideal of human perfection: in Him all bias and defects are removed, and the masculine and feminine virtues are united and their weaknesses redeemed; therefore, His true followers will be progressively exalted over their natural limitations. That is why we see in holy men a tenderness and a truly maternal solicitude for the souls entrusted to them while in holy women there is manly boldness, proficiency, and determination.”

One of the greatest examples of this phenomena in females must surly be St. Teresa of Avila, who fearlessly persisted in her fiery determination to reform the Carmelite order and to establish a series of monasteries throughout Spain in a time when women who became recognizable were looked upon with suspicion. The other, I recently had the privilege of observing first-hand when I was in Rome: Pope Benedict XVI. As he has already proven in his innate ability to shift between the highest reaches of intellectual discourse all the way to popularly understood theology, the Holy Father can also express his sense of holiness in a two-fold manner. For example, at the Wednesday audience that I attended at the Vatican, the Pope can seamlessly go from Vicar of Christ, addressing the world’s Catholics in their individual languages to smiling father-figure clapping his approval at a group of children singing in his honor. What makes this impressive, is that he can do both, and not loose any credibility or seem pretended or false. I could see him truly speaking in tongues. He was everyone’s Pope.

The Holy Father

Pope Benedict comforts a sick child at his Wednesday general audience, August 8,2012.