A rare thing for me to do is to post twice in a day,..yet I thought this deserved its own entry. Freerice.com works with the UN food bank to give rice to the needy. By playing a game, you get to feed people through correct answers. A website like this proves that everyone can help. I will propose that during the season of advent, we the online community pick a day and throughout that day flood freerice.com with as many hits as possible.
Thank-you
Monday, December 1, 2008
Rumblings of a Coalition Storm is a-Brewin...
What better way to prove Jean Charest right when at the Federal level, the minority Tories are in trouble. The most recent news on the Canadian political spectrum is that a possible coalition of Liberal, NDP and you guessed it ,..BLOC Quebecois will topple the Harper regime and form a new government! Well, if that doesn't prove that minority governments don't work,..I really don't know what will. You see, for us in la Belle Province, we are already going to the polls on December 8th in a very unpopular election. The Provincial Liberals argued that in order to endure the coming economic crisis, we'll need stability, and believe it or not, I agree. Last tuesday's debate changed nobody's mind but solidified my belief that now is not the time to change the Captain of the ship, instead we need to support him. Super Mario and Pauline were trying to destabilize Charest by accusing him of hiding losses at the Caisse de Depot.,one problem, though the Caisse operates independantly from politics. (All you separatists who are accidently reading this post, remember 1995? When Jacques Parizeau wanted to use 15 million dollars from the Caisse to prop up the Canadian dollar should a 'Yes' vote win? Convenient when it only benefits you, isn't it?) Although, to be fair, I believe that the Caisse should release quarter updates, but that is for them to decide.
Back to the Federal level, what happens if the government falls?, Well nobody wants to go the polls and frankly we can't afford it. Canadians need stability, yet we also need an identity. For myself, I vote on social issues, that aside, we must ask ourselves the question, is Canada a failed experiment in socialism? Even the Federal Liberals are left of center. Can you really imagine this scenerio as the government?
Prime Minister Stephane Dion. (I don't think the Liberals would allow it!)
Defense Minister Jack Layton. (Koombya my Lord,..Koombaya)
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Gilles Duceppe. (C'mon how funny would that be?)
For good measure, I would run by-elections in Tronna (toronto), Montreal and Vancouver. The candidates would be unopposed and they would be Don Cherry, Pierre Falardeau and David Suzuki. I would have in that order, my Speaker of the House, my Heritage Minister, and my Environmental Minister.
Oh Lord, I could do this all day...
Back to the Federal level, what happens if the government falls?, Well nobody wants to go the polls and frankly we can't afford it. Canadians need stability, yet we also need an identity. For myself, I vote on social issues, that aside, we must ask ourselves the question, is Canada a failed experiment in socialism? Even the Federal Liberals are left of center. Can you really imagine this scenerio as the government?
Prime Minister Stephane Dion. (I don't think the Liberals would allow it!)
Defense Minister Jack Layton. (Koombya my Lord,..Koombaya)
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Gilles Duceppe. (C'mon how funny would that be?)
For good measure, I would run by-elections in Tronna (toronto), Montreal and Vancouver. The candidates would be unopposed and they would be Don Cherry, Pierre Falardeau and David Suzuki. I would have in that order, my Speaker of the House, my Heritage Minister, and my Environmental Minister.
Oh Lord, I could do this all day...
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Time,..and Lack Of...
Thomists will define 'Time' as simply the measure of motion. Human beings being both rational(soul) and sensual(body) must live with this constraint. All of our actions whether we like it or not are governed by this fact. Our bodies corrupt everyday as our sensual finality awaits us. Death will come like a thief in the night....Okay, now that I've probably depressed the hell out of you, I would just like to say that because of time, my posts will become more sporadic. But I promise that when I post I gonna rock you!
I recently discovered the King's men. It is a men's group based out of Pennsylvania in the US. Their mission statement is forming men to be leaders, protectors and providers. Their enemy is pornography. Their enemy is my enemy. Two things come to mind,..the first being that there is a crisis in masculinity and second, when did we (men) drop the ball? I recall my youth, in the early eighties,..going to school with an A-Team lunch box, and coming home to watch GI Joe and Transformers. I played hockey, as well as did a lot of martial arts. Oh yeah,..almost forgot, I never threw a handgrenade at anybody, and believe it or not, my father had a gun in the house! How come I didn't become a homicidal maniac which by today's pop psychology standards, I would have been the real victim had I perpetrated a crime because my dad was verbally abusive? The answer is simple, I was priviledged to live in a home with discipline(anybody catch the root word?), boundaries that were enforced and a solid nuclear family that ate supper together every night, no exceptions.
The act of intercourse, if you will, begets the family, so as the family goes, so does the world. In the Universal Church, the family unit is often referred to as the domestic Church. So lets fast-forward to today's Pagan,..ooops(tourettes...) I mean open-minded progressive, politically correct, tolerant sexually liberating utopia which we have always dreamed of (I hope you catch my sarcasm...). Well, we have an AIDS epidemic, (among other STDs) Abortion on demand, so-called gay marriage, feminism (wait,..I don't mean authentic feminism, I mean the power hungry 'feminazis' who are confused about their gender..)and marxist socialism creeping up. Sadly, I think it is pretty obvious about what is happening in the world. If you live in Quebec, it's pretty clear!
About pornography, I have a special hatred for you, because I am a man, and yes men do think differently than women about sex. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was pretty liberal myself before I came into the Church. Being a product of 'Spirit of Vatican II' deceivers...oops! (tourettes again!)I mean good willed teachers I was taught that masturbation is healthy and necessary for psychological balance, y'know we need to release ourselves,..be free. (BTW, that is not 'freedom' that is instead 'license.') Nevertheless, I have since amended my thinking, and continue to struggle everyday with this issue, it is a sin, a mortal sin. The good news is that we can overcome it, through prayer, fasting and being accountable. Also do not get discouraged and go the Sacrement of Reconciliation often. In the past, one could just throw away the porn, now it is everywhere, especially on the internet. St Michael's Brigade (Coming soon!) will tackle this issue head-on, and as men we will fight together! The devil is strong!, but Christ ultimately wins! Men need to be men! The next time someone gives you that hippie BS line about, Oh, what would Jesus do? Quote the Gospel of St John: 2,13-22. (Depending of course on the situation!)
P.S. If anyone struggles with this issue, feel free to email me and I can provide helpful resources as well as prayer.
Peace
I recently discovered the King's men. It is a men's group based out of Pennsylvania in the US. Their mission statement is forming men to be leaders, protectors and providers. Their enemy is pornography. Their enemy is my enemy. Two things come to mind,..the first being that there is a crisis in masculinity and second, when did we (men) drop the ball? I recall my youth, in the early eighties,..going to school with an A-Team lunch box, and coming home to watch GI Joe and Transformers. I played hockey, as well as did a lot of martial arts. Oh yeah,..almost forgot, I never threw a handgrenade at anybody, and believe it or not, my father had a gun in the house! How come I didn't become a homicidal maniac which by today's pop psychology standards, I would have been the real victim had I perpetrated a crime because my dad was verbally abusive? The answer is simple, I was priviledged to live in a home with discipline(anybody catch the root word?), boundaries that were enforced and a solid nuclear family that ate supper together every night, no exceptions.
The act of intercourse, if you will, begets the family, so as the family goes, so does the world. In the Universal Church, the family unit is often referred to as the domestic Church. So lets fast-forward to today's Pagan,..ooops(tourettes...) I mean open-minded progressive, politically correct, tolerant sexually liberating utopia which we have always dreamed of (I hope you catch my sarcasm...). Well, we have an AIDS epidemic, (among other STDs) Abortion on demand, so-called gay marriage, feminism (wait,..I don't mean authentic feminism, I mean the power hungry 'feminazis' who are confused about their gender..)and marxist socialism creeping up. Sadly, I think it is pretty obvious about what is happening in the world. If you live in Quebec, it's pretty clear!
About pornography, I have a special hatred for you, because I am a man, and yes men do think differently than women about sex. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was pretty liberal myself before I came into the Church. Being a product of 'Spirit of Vatican II' deceivers...oops! (tourettes again!)I mean good willed teachers I was taught that masturbation is healthy and necessary for psychological balance, y'know we need to release ourselves,..be free. (BTW, that is not 'freedom' that is instead 'license.') Nevertheless, I have since amended my thinking, and continue to struggle everyday with this issue, it is a sin, a mortal sin. The good news is that we can overcome it, through prayer, fasting and being accountable. Also do not get discouraged and go the Sacrement of Reconciliation often. In the past, one could just throw away the porn, now it is everywhere, especially on the internet. St Michael's Brigade (Coming soon!) will tackle this issue head-on, and as men we will fight together! The devil is strong!, but Christ ultimately wins! Men need to be men! The next time someone gives you that hippie BS line about, Oh, what would Jesus do? Quote the Gospel of St John: 2,13-22. (Depending of course on the situation!)
P.S. If anyone struggles with this issue, feel free to email me and I can provide helpful resources as well as prayer.
Peace
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Why are most prochoicers environmentalists?...
Where to begin,..welllll,..Brock Lesnar is the new UFC Champion defeating Randy Couture this past Saturday....The Quebec Liberals are still ahead in the polls while the ADQ has pretty much tanked and finally the Habs won on Sunday over St Louis by shootout. On a side note, in my riding of Margerite Bourgeois, the PQ still hasn't put up any campaign posters, which confirms their financial woes.
Last week, I received an email from a friend of mine inviting me to check out RealCatholicTV.com. WOW! It was just the dose of orthodoxy our western pussyfooting world needs. One of the hosts, Michael Voris is absolutely amazing! The show is called the Vortex, and really this guy pulls no punches. I really encourage everyone to check it out, it will be worth your time. Upon checking through back episodes in the archives, I noticed a particular theme that he hammered on, one that I found myself strangely at odds with. The theme is Social Justice.
Now, hold on,..did you catch your breath? All you little hippie wannabes?..Okay, let me explain, from a Catholic point of view. I am very-much pro social justice. It is mandated in our Catechism as well as expanded upon at the Second Vatican Council. What I am against is Social Justice (look,..I even capitalized it for the hippies,..hehehe) tainted by marxist overtones. The Church especially in Quebec has been hijacked by people looking to push their own agenda within the Church. They usually disregard Theology and philosophy and instead push a very broad 'theistic' (huh, yeah barely!)humanist approach to bring about the Kingdom of God,..oops, I mean 'Reign of God.' (We don't want to offend women,..)They discuss or 'dialogue' as they say about every social issue which only they see as unfair. Let's look at some examples; pay equity, women's rights, equality among men,..oops 'people.' All these things are good. Noticably absent from their equity, are the rights of the unborn, protection of the family, and an authentic search for Theological truth. They talk about the environment, animal rights, and how to reform, while dialoging, the oppressive male dominated patriarchal system.
Now it is important to realize that everyone of these issues are important, it is just where they fit in the hierarchy of Truth. If I believe that Abortion is an intrinsic evil, am I against women's rights? If I believe that human beings are much more important in the economy of salvation, am I against nature or the environment? The answer of course is that I am for both. (I will address the issue of women's ordination in another post). Being for both, however must take into account their priorities with the scope of Truth. A majority vote on an issue does not make that issue true, it is an opinion and can be wrong. I am going to stop now, and wait for the flurry of hatemail to arrive in my hotmail account.
tata...
Last week, I received an email from a friend of mine inviting me to check out RealCatholicTV.com. WOW! It was just the dose of orthodoxy our western pussyfooting world needs. One of the hosts, Michael Voris is absolutely amazing! The show is called the Vortex, and really this guy pulls no punches. I really encourage everyone to check it out, it will be worth your time. Upon checking through back episodes in the archives, I noticed a particular theme that he hammered on, one that I found myself strangely at odds with. The theme is Social Justice.
Now, hold on,..did you catch your breath? All you little hippie wannabes?..Okay, let me explain, from a Catholic point of view. I am very-much pro social justice. It is mandated in our Catechism as well as expanded upon at the Second Vatican Council. What I am against is Social Justice (look,..I even capitalized it for the hippies,..hehehe) tainted by marxist overtones. The Church especially in Quebec has been hijacked by people looking to push their own agenda within the Church. They usually disregard Theology and philosophy and instead push a very broad 'theistic' (huh, yeah barely!)humanist approach to bring about the Kingdom of God,..oops, I mean 'Reign of God.' (We don't want to offend women,..)They discuss or 'dialogue' as they say about every social issue which only they see as unfair. Let's look at some examples; pay equity, women's rights, equality among men,..oops 'people.' All these things are good. Noticably absent from their equity, are the rights of the unborn, protection of the family, and an authentic search for Theological truth. They talk about the environment, animal rights, and how to reform, while dialoging, the oppressive male dominated patriarchal system.
Now it is important to realize that everyone of these issues are important, it is just where they fit in the hierarchy of Truth. If I believe that Abortion is an intrinsic evil, am I against women's rights? If I believe that human beings are much more important in the economy of salvation, am I against nature or the environment? The answer of course is that I am for both. (I will address the issue of women's ordination in another post). Being for both, however must take into account their priorities with the scope of Truth. A majority vote on an issue does not make that issue true, it is an opinion and can be wrong. I am going to stop now, and wait for the flurry of hatemail to arrive in my hotmail account.
tata...
Thursday, November 13, 2008
'Tronna' sports network (TSN)...and Aquinas
Okay, so last Saturday, I was wrong. Happy? I hope so, cause I got enough hotmail concerning the Leafs beating the Habs that I was certain the mayor of Toronto was planning a parade at the corner of Jarvis and Young street. A whopping 6-3 whallop in favor of the Maple Leafs. What does that proove?...and the answer is...NOTHING! The loss said more about the lack of effort the Habs gave in that game than anything else. Plain and simple, undisciplined hockey will net you the results you deserve. After Carbonneau took 'les boys' out to the woodshed, they came back with a shutout victory over Ottawa. Tonight we are in Boston, up against the brilliant coaching mind that is Claude Julien. I don't know if the game is broadcast on TSN and frankly don't care. Even as anglos,..my friends and I will never miss a chance to watch RDS and hear Pierre Houde,.."Et c'est le buuuuut!!!"
here comes the switch...
I received an interesting email from an evangelical Christian. After 'meeting' me in an apologetics forum, was surprised if not confused to find out I was Catholic. This individual said that I knew my stuff concerning the existence of God and really gave him ammunition when dealing with atheists or secularists. The Catholic label was perplexing to him. After sharing his testimony with me, and articulating how Christ had impacted his life he was 'Born Again.' Next came the million dollar question, (a question which I will go into greater detail when time permits,..)As intelligent as I was (to him...lol!!!), why and how could I be Catholic? The answer is one statement..."BECAUSE IT IS TRUE."
God Bless
here comes the switch...
I received an interesting email from an evangelical Christian. After 'meeting' me in an apologetics forum, was surprised if not confused to find out I was Catholic. This individual said that I knew my stuff concerning the existence of God and really gave him ammunition when dealing with atheists or secularists. The Catholic label was perplexing to him. After sharing his testimony with me, and articulating how Christ had impacted his life he was 'Born Again.' Next came the million dollar question, (a question which I will go into greater detail when time permits,..)As intelligent as I was (to him...lol!!!), why and how could I be Catholic? The answer is one statement..."BECAUSE IT IS TRUE."
God Bless
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
In Flander's Field...
Today is Remembrance day. The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. It certainly does not take very long to offer a moment of thanks to all the fallen soldiers who have given their lives at the cost of our freedom. As Canadians, we are not known as a patriotic people, our common heritage derives from hockey, maple syrup and an overall laid back attitude shared by both official languages. Yet there is something about today that makes us all proud to be Canadian. To all soldiers, past and present, I would like to offer a heartfelt thank-you.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
John Paul II Sexual Revolution...
I hoped I grabbed your attention,..but I'll warn you, I not talking about whether the Great Pope submitted letters to Penthouse Forum. Of course to those who know, I'm talking about Theology of the Body, the Holy Spirit's gift to the world through the late Pope's sexual dissertation. Last night over coffee, my girlfriend and I were joined by a seminarian friend of mine to discuss such issues as politics, religion and of course WWE wrestling. (...But I'm not kidding...) Stemming from our conversation from a few weeks ago, on 'being' we turned our attention to a DVD entitled 'Straight Talk For Men.' The speaker was Christopher West and he went on to articulate a very convincing case for Catholic teaching on sexual matters. The union of man and woman is a foreshadowing of the consumation of Christ and the Church, the dignity of the each sex and how God's innermost secret is revealed as a union of Love between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All I can say is WOW! It's funny cause I've given Christopher West's Theology of the Body for beginners books away to secular people and the answer is always the same. WHY WERE WE NOT TAUGHT THIS IN CATHOLIC SCHOOLS?!?
Pondering this sad reality gets me angry, cause the culprits are often the same misguided priests from the 1960's with an allergic reaction to anything than is even remotely orthodox. These wolves in sheeps clothing that were charged with pastoring God's faithful sought to undermine everything Objective and replace with a emotionally sensitive kumbaya festival. GENTLEMEN, Wanna know why your parishes are empty? (anyway, side note, my ADD acting up again..) On matters of human sexuality, 'freedom,' often confused by liberal elites becomes 'license.' Ask yourself the question, if people lived the teaching of the Church, (ie,a man and woman)would there exist abortion, AIDS, STDs,..Don't bite my head off, I'm just asking you to think...
180 degree turn,...
The Habs lost last night in a shootout. (4-3) Although the Canadiens outshot the Bluejackets, they just didn't find their legs. Jaroslav Halak seemed to be fighting the puck. Tonight, a new day! Habs in Toronto facing the Maple Laughs,..er..Leafs. Carey Price back between the pipes. Ca sent la victoire des Canadiens...!BTW, they are not for sale!
Apparently Pauline Marois is a snob,..just thought I'd mention that in passing...
A recent argument/debate/name calling contest with a separatist is leading me to take up a collection to build a monument of Rene Levesque in downtown Toronto,..cause that's where most businesses relocated to from Montreal. Think about it, if La Belle Province wasn't soooo politically unstable, would the Hockey Hall of Fame really be in 'Toronna..'
WWE released Paul London and Chuck Palumbo,..I don't think I'll be losing sleep if they show up in TNA.(Totally Nonsense Action.) Knowing Vince they probably have no-compete clauses...
Had enough? I bid you adieux...
Pondering this sad reality gets me angry, cause the culprits are often the same misguided priests from the 1960's with an allergic reaction to anything than is even remotely orthodox. These wolves in sheeps clothing that were charged with pastoring God's faithful sought to undermine everything Objective and replace with a emotionally sensitive kumbaya festival. GENTLEMEN, Wanna know why your parishes are empty? (anyway, side note, my ADD acting up again..) On matters of human sexuality, 'freedom,' often confused by liberal elites becomes 'license.' Ask yourself the question, if people lived the teaching of the Church, (ie,a man and woman)would there exist abortion, AIDS, STDs,..Don't bite my head off, I'm just asking you to think...
180 degree turn,...
The Habs lost last night in a shootout. (4-3) Although the Canadiens outshot the Bluejackets, they just didn't find their legs. Jaroslav Halak seemed to be fighting the puck. Tonight, a new day! Habs in Toronto facing the Maple Laughs,..er..Leafs. Carey Price back between the pipes. Ca sent la victoire des Canadiens...!BTW, they are not for sale!
Apparently Pauline Marois is a snob,..just thought I'd mention that in passing...
A recent argument/debate/name calling contest with a separatist is leading me to take up a collection to build a monument of Rene Levesque in downtown Toronto,..cause that's where most businesses relocated to from Montreal. Think about it, if La Belle Province wasn't soooo politically unstable, would the Hockey Hall of Fame really be in 'Toronna..'
WWE released Paul London and Chuck Palumbo,..I don't think I'll be losing sleep if they show up in TNA.(Totally Nonsense Action.) Knowing Vince they probably have no-compete clauses...
Had enough? I bid you adieux...
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Obamamania running wild with 54% of Catholic vote.
Welllll,...its been a while and obviously for good reason. This past November 4th, Barack Hussein Obama became the president elect and will assume office on January 20 of 2009. (May God have mercy on Catholic souls...) Why has this election been more significant than any other in the past? Because for the first time, the United States have elected a black president. Personally, I don't care if an individual is black, white, yellow, green or pink with purple polka-dots, it is the issues which matter. Clearly our subjective moral compass has defined the common 'good' by what is popular. ('Good' is philosophy is defined by 'that which is in accord with the nature of the thing.') Social issues aside, what I find most distressing is that a country which espouses religous values, blatantly ignored the bishops repeated appeals to common sense. Is war bad? Absolutely. But in the hierarchy of truths, there is only one issue described as an intrinsic evil. (War on the other hand falls into categories of bad judgement, because differing factors can play a part...)
Some Catholics, I am told, referenced the US bishops guide to forming a 'conscience' and took out the line that, 'catholics are not a single issue voting block.' Well, of course not! But in the scheme of things, where does absolute Truth fit in? Perhaps there were too many 'Spirit of Vatican II' bishops around, not enough Vatican II ones... To a Catholic, the life issue does not fall into dogma, it falls into divine law. Perhaps Hollywood, the left, and every other pro-bama entity claiming to be Catholic, should gather a translation commitee and revise the chapter of St. Luke's Gospel,(St Luke 1:44) I'll paraphrase Father Corapi; "For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the abstract fetal tissue leaped for joy." I guess for the Catholic liberals (an Oxymoron...)being politically correct and following the crowd means more than absolute truth. Father McBrien must be pleased.
On the Quebec side,...its offical! We go to the polls December 8th!
Whatcha gonna do when election fever runs wild on you?!!! Arghhh!!!(flex)....Brother!
Some Catholics, I am told, referenced the US bishops guide to forming a 'conscience' and took out the line that, 'catholics are not a single issue voting block.' Well, of course not! But in the scheme of things, where does absolute Truth fit in? Perhaps there were too many 'Spirit of Vatican II' bishops around, not enough Vatican II ones... To a Catholic, the life issue does not fall into dogma, it falls into divine law. Perhaps Hollywood, the left, and every other pro-bama entity claiming to be Catholic, should gather a translation commitee and revise the chapter of St. Luke's Gospel,(St Luke 1:44) I'll paraphrase Father Corapi; "For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the abstract fetal tissue leaped for joy." I guess for the Catholic liberals (an Oxymoron...)being politically correct and following the crowd means more than absolute truth. Father McBrien must be pleased.
On the Quebec side,...its offical! We go to the polls December 8th!
Whatcha gonna do when election fever runs wild on you?!!! Arghhh!!!(flex)....Brother!
Friday, October 31, 2008
A truly Scary Social Commentary,...
Happy Halloween,..yet goodbye to the social fabric of a once great province. Ever since 'the Quiet Revolution' Quebec has been in a downward cultural spiral which can only compare to advanced cancer. In the 1950's Quebec had the distinction of being North America's jewel for the Catholic Church. Faith occupied everyone's daily life and Mass attendance was around 95%. Now fast forward 50plus years later and we have Mass attendance at 5% of all French Speaking Roman Catholics. Indifference slowly gives way to secularism and throw in the 'sexual revolution' we end up with a western culture attempting to contracept themselves out of existance. Why so moody, and pessimistic, you ask? Well, the answer is simple. I did not go to work today, cause I needed to get some shopping done for my friends' Halloween party. Upon arriving at the store, (this morning,..so clearly everyone else had the same idea..)picking up my supplies, (pinky ring, teeth grill,..etc) I got in a line to pay at the cash. The woman in front of me was with her daughter, about 13years old (no I don't know why she wasn't in school...)and buying a KIDS SIZE playboy bunny costume.
Does anyone else see what is wrong with this picture? We are in deep trouble...All I know, is that I can assure you, that if I ever have a daughter, there is probably more of a chance that I would grow wings and fly, before I would ever buy her a playboy bunny costume,..let alone KIDS version!
Habs over Minnesota 2-1 (thanks to Carey Price)
Happy Halloween. (BTW, no I'm not going as a pimp, I am going as Bob 'Elvis' Gratton...)
Does anyone else see what is wrong with this picture? We are in deep trouble...All I know, is that I can assure you, that if I ever have a daughter, there is probably more of a chance that I would grow wings and fly, before I would ever buy her a playboy bunny costume,..let alone KIDS version!
Habs over Minnesota 2-1 (thanks to Carey Price)
Happy Halloween. (BTW, no I'm not going as a pimp, I am going as Bob 'Elvis' Gratton...)
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Falardeau follies,..a few days late
I wanted to touch on this earlier in the week, but was distracted by other more important things. Nevertheless, Quebec's answer to Don Cherry popped up in the news this week, when he called David Suzuki,"un Japanouille..." Pierre Falardeau, a Canadian filmmaker(yes, that is what it says on his passport, CANADIAN) and cultural curiosity is somewhat of an iconic figure among die-hard separatists. Now, I'm not talking about a family member or friend with nationalist leanings that you could have a legitamite debate with,..I'm talking about a full-fledged kook who is pissed off about the Battle on the plains of Abraham, and is still looking for a rematch. Sadly, the separatist movement harbours these nutjobs and gives them active membership in the Parti Quebecois. It is sad really, 'cause most separatists I know, really don't dislike Canada, they just see Quebec Independance as a way to affirm their cultural identity( I of course disagree, an independant Quebec after inflation with no trade partners might as well be named Quebexico) ....As for David Suzuki, he was upset that the Tories took as many seats as they did in Quebec despite the cuts to arts, and of course Harper's less than apparent environmental disposition.
Every one has a right to their point of view. I, or for that matter any other person might disagree, but we have to respect a person's opinion. What I don't respect is a clown using federal funding to subsidize separatist propaganda then complaining when the Feds won't give him money.(15 Fevrier 1839) Yes, Mr Falardeau is entitled to his opinion, but next time watch as how many left-leaning 'tolerant' students attend his lectures at various cegeps. I would love to see him meet the Phelps family from Westboro Baptist.
Till tomorrow,
Every one has a right to their point of view. I, or for that matter any other person might disagree, but we have to respect a person's opinion. What I don't respect is a clown using federal funding to subsidize separatist propaganda then complaining when the Feds won't give him money.(15 Fevrier 1839) Yes, Mr Falardeau is entitled to his opinion, but next time watch as how many left-leaning 'tolerant' students attend his lectures at various cegeps. I would love to see him meet the Phelps family from Westboro Baptist.
Till tomorrow,
Onward Jehovah Witness Soldiers,...
A brisk Saturday morning brings about the sights and smells of many things. Freshly cut lawns are perpetuating the aroma of nature throughout the neighborhood as the dew settles and lone birds chirp the beginning of the weekend. Then from the distance I can see movement,..They are too far away, yet closing in on my house. Their faces are sullen, almost melancholly as they get turned away more times than a vacuum salesman. They've arrived. Ready to deliver their message which is usually apocalyptic in nature, brasing themselves for another rejection....Wait! I am listening and they look at each other as if I'd just passed gas in a museum. I invite them in, they see my office, my library if you will. Their energy starts to drain as I pull out a Greek Concordance, my own copy of their Bible as well as a standard one and begin to ask questions...Now I control the conversation, and begin to pepper them with concerns. (One can almost see the sparks as their active intellect begins to process what for the first time is a rebuttal.) Now they are on the defensive, and within five minutes of me exposing their incoherrent logic, they create an excuse to leave. The seed however has been planted. I will later pray a 'Hail Mary.'...They usually don't go to the next house, and the fresh cup of coffee that I brewed will go to waste...
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Venting,...thru Verbal diarrhea...
Last night, I began to reflect upon modern psychology and its grip, if you will on Western culture. It would seem that every action that a human being undertakes in today's world is the direct result of some emotional traumatic event buried deep within someone's subconscious. That being said, throw in a little subjective philosophical thinking and out come enough pundits of 'political correctness' to start a terrorist group. There is no doubt in my mind that humanity is losing its marbles, especially in the 'Christian West.'
The result is that we are flipping everything upside down! Children are starving in the world yet we parade our dogs in little jackets. (somehow being to ignorant to the idea that nature has equiped man's best friend with fur!) Criminals, whose rational appetite has freely led them to commit various atrocities are excused because some PHD (in psychology by the way...)has deemed them to be really the victim. So what do people do? They start seeing a 'shrink' who tells them exactly what they want hear, I mean it isn't really their fault, they were marked by their childhood. Whatever distracts the individual from putting the blame upon themselves, has turned out to be big business worth lots of money. My question is simple. WHERE HAS OBJECTIVE TRUTH GONE? Ohhh, its out there, just not politically correct to say so. Perhaps one day, our mindset will be soooo open minded, that our brain may fall out. That is the ultimate goal of liberalism.
On a lighter note,...HABS win! (3-2 shootout over the 'Canes)
Peace
The result is that we are flipping everything upside down! Children are starving in the world yet we parade our dogs in little jackets. (somehow being to ignorant to the idea that nature has equiped man's best friend with fur!) Criminals, whose rational appetite has freely led them to commit various atrocities are excused because some PHD (in psychology by the way...)has deemed them to be really the victim. So what do people do? They start seeing a 'shrink' who tells them exactly what they want hear, I mean it isn't really their fault, they were marked by their childhood. Whatever distracts the individual from putting the blame upon themselves, has turned out to be big business worth lots of money. My question is simple. WHERE HAS OBJECTIVE TRUTH GONE? Ohhh, its out there, just not politically correct to say so. Perhaps one day, our mindset will be soooo open minded, that our brain may fall out. That is the ultimate goal of liberalism.
On a lighter note,...HABS win! (3-2 shootout over the 'Canes)
Peace
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
The Charest Rumormill, and why Ultra Magnus WAS an effective leader,..
Newsreels are buzzing with the probable call for a provincial election next week. It would seem that this past weekend which saw both opposition parties hold conventions, the falling Canadian dollar, and the statement from our premier that the National Assembly is not functioning are all part of a greater cosmic plan to induce us Quebecers to go to the polls. I think Charest's intentions are good, his approval rating is high and we will need a majority government to handle whatever financial crisis already brewing in embryonic form.
The Action Democratique defections, will ultimately have to stand up to their voters' reactions and see how well this plays out. Mr. Dumont's values seem to reflect the social conservatism of Stephen Harper at the federal level, but this can be a good thing in Quebec's regions, where people are very Nationalistic yet not outright separatist.
The Parti Quebecois (greying heads and all...) with Pauline Marois will attempt to seduce us with their xenophobic, close minded separatism that form the backbone of their 'raison-d'etre.' (Imagine, a looming economic crisis, and these people want to talk separation!!! We should be asking ourselves, what alternate dimension do these people come from?)
A final note on this point, although I share many social values with Mr. Dumont, I believe the Liberals are much better positioned to govern, and take action should anything come up. Time and again, Mr. Charest has shown himself not the pawn of Ottawa as the separatists charge, but a proud Quebecois, open to decentralized federalism. On a side note, Mr. Dumont's 'autonomist' vision makes me think of Vatican City, I mean c'mon, it is cute!
Now on to something totally different...(my girlfriend at this point, will point out my ADD...)
Growing up, and still now, the Transformers (G1 series)were etched into my very 'being' from an early age. Optimus Prime(in many respects a Christ-like character like Aslan the lion)battled for truth, justice and peace in the universe. Fast-forward to 1986. The first Transformers movie (animated) is released and my father brings me to see my hero. Welllllll,..talk about dealing with a death in the family, Prime's death marked my childhood, even when they brought him back (cause parents were complaining...)it still didn't change the fact that he died,...in battle,..heroically,..through Megatron's scheming,..you get my point? DEAD. Prime, on his death bed passes the Matrix of Leadership to Ultra Magnus, who fumbles it like a football resulting in a younger autobot touching it first thereby imprinting him.(Rodimus Prime..)
A little bit of history on Ultra Magnus. Magnus started off as Dion, a friend of Orion Pax (Optimus Prime)and was rebuilt shortly after Prime. Both autobots were the prototypes for new defenders, or soldiers. Both were meant to lead. Magnus took over the autobot forces on Cybertron until he found Prime on Earth, shortly thereafter, he rejoined Prime and constructed what is known as Autobot city. Ultra Magnus in short was an autobot general, kinda like Colin Powell. Soooooo, now Magnus has the big chair, and is trying to rebuild after an all night attack resulting in several prominant autobot casualties,(Iron Hide, Ratchet, Prowl, Braun, Wheeljack and Windcharger to name a few.) Meanwhile, Megatron now mortally wounded and discarded into deep space by Starscream receives an upgrade from Unicron. People, if ya don't know,..rent the freakin' movie! Magnus saves the remaining autobots from an attack on his shuttle by splitting up the shuttle and then sacrifices himself on the planet of Junk. (Magnus is later rebuilt by the Junkions...)
The verdict is Ultra Magnus is resolute, and very willing to sacrifice himself to save his troops. In season three, Magnus acts as 'consigliere' to Rodimus, and commands most of the military operations. If I ever have twin boys, I will name them Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus! How 'bout them apples?! Yeah,..! Had enough? Time for me to transform and roll out...
The Action Democratique defections, will ultimately have to stand up to their voters' reactions and see how well this plays out. Mr. Dumont's values seem to reflect the social conservatism of Stephen Harper at the federal level, but this can be a good thing in Quebec's regions, where people are very Nationalistic yet not outright separatist.
The Parti Quebecois (greying heads and all...) with Pauline Marois will attempt to seduce us with their xenophobic, close minded separatism that form the backbone of their 'raison-d'etre.' (Imagine, a looming economic crisis, and these people want to talk separation!!! We should be asking ourselves, what alternate dimension do these people come from?)
A final note on this point, although I share many social values with Mr. Dumont, I believe the Liberals are much better positioned to govern, and take action should anything come up. Time and again, Mr. Charest has shown himself not the pawn of Ottawa as the separatists charge, but a proud Quebecois, open to decentralized federalism. On a side note, Mr. Dumont's 'autonomist' vision makes me think of Vatican City, I mean c'mon, it is cute!
Now on to something totally different...(my girlfriend at this point, will point out my ADD...)
Growing up, and still now, the Transformers (G1 series)were etched into my very 'being' from an early age. Optimus Prime(in many respects a Christ-like character like Aslan the lion)battled for truth, justice and peace in the universe. Fast-forward to 1986. The first Transformers movie (animated) is released and my father brings me to see my hero. Welllllll,..talk about dealing with a death in the family, Prime's death marked my childhood, even when they brought him back (cause parents were complaining...)it still didn't change the fact that he died,...in battle,..heroically,..through Megatron's scheming,..you get my point? DEAD. Prime, on his death bed passes the Matrix of Leadership to Ultra Magnus, who fumbles it like a football resulting in a younger autobot touching it first thereby imprinting him.(Rodimus Prime..)
A little bit of history on Ultra Magnus. Magnus started off as Dion, a friend of Orion Pax (Optimus Prime)and was rebuilt shortly after Prime. Both autobots were the prototypes for new defenders, or soldiers. Both were meant to lead. Magnus took over the autobot forces on Cybertron until he found Prime on Earth, shortly thereafter, he rejoined Prime and constructed what is known as Autobot city. Ultra Magnus in short was an autobot general, kinda like Colin Powell. Soooooo, now Magnus has the big chair, and is trying to rebuild after an all night attack resulting in several prominant autobot casualties,(Iron Hide, Ratchet, Prowl, Braun, Wheeljack and Windcharger to name a few.) Meanwhile, Megatron now mortally wounded and discarded into deep space by Starscream receives an upgrade from Unicron. People, if ya don't know,..rent the freakin' movie! Magnus saves the remaining autobots from an attack on his shuttle by splitting up the shuttle and then sacrifices himself on the planet of Junk. (Magnus is later rebuilt by the Junkions...)
The verdict is Ultra Magnus is resolute, and very willing to sacrifice himself to save his troops. In season three, Magnus acts as 'consigliere' to Rodimus, and commands most of the military operations. If I ever have twin boys, I will name them Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus! How 'bout them apples?! Yeah,..! Had enough? Time for me to transform and roll out...
Monday, October 27, 2008
China Exists,..despite the fact that I've never been there...
In my first post weekend blog, I would have loved to start off with something lite, Cyber Synday, for instance saw the return of the Honky Tonk Man to face the this generation's Chris Jericho in the form of Santino Marella. I must confess, however that due to unforseen circumstances, I missed the show.
I was sent an email from Father Joseph Lee FSSP regarding a recent 'Theology on Tap' presentation he had done, specifically on the existence and activity of the Angels. Sitting at a Tim Horton's was myself, my girlfriend and a seminarian friend of mine. This of course, became our focal conversation which lasted well over an hour much to my girlfriend's contained enthusiasm!!(Sarcasm...) It would seem that our sophisticated world of 'Descartian' bullsh...er nonsense has given way to ridiculous conclusions. Bill Maher for example in hollywood only furthers his own ignorance by equating rationalism with atheism. Perhaps his feeble intellect concludes that chaos can bring about order, I mean I believed that once, but soon realized my room wasn't about to clean itself!
Back to angels,..and specifically the question, do angels exist? To that I resoundly say YES! But how do we know? Well by two ways, induction and deduction.(shout out to St. Thomas Aquinas!) Ooouuhhh, I can almost hear the groans through the internet. So let me simplify, St Thomas in the 'Summa' looks at the universe and concludes from 'Absolute Being'(God) all the way to 'rocks' there are gradual degrees. For example, a rock is inanimate matter, it just sits there, plants are animate and they grow...beasts (animals) grow and sense, man will grow sense and reason therefore is both body and spirit,....and then there is a big jump to God or Absolute Being. We can know that a piece of this puzzle is missing, therefore conclude that there must be pure spirits who are created possessing perfect knowledge. That being said, if we throw a little 'Revelation' on top of that, St Paul states that our battle is not against 'flesh and blood' but against 'powers and principalities'(two of the nine choirs of Angels).
Faith aside, why even in some liberal circles of the Church are the existence of Angels openly questioned? I would argue that because we live in a sensual world, that is if we don't see it or experience it, it isn't there. The Church would not sanction prayers to St. Michael if he were just a literary device as some 'progressive theologians' put it. All in all, I'm glad for the existence of angels, too often I've screwed up, thank God I have a guardian looking out for me.
So there you have it, the 'unforseen' circumstances,..angelic talk over coffee. In future posts, I will speak on the intelligence of angels as well as the demonic.
Annnd that's the bottom line,..cause MARCO said so! (glass breaks..lol!!!)
I was sent an email from Father Joseph Lee FSSP regarding a recent 'Theology on Tap' presentation he had done, specifically on the existence and activity of the Angels. Sitting at a Tim Horton's was myself, my girlfriend and a seminarian friend of mine. This of course, became our focal conversation which lasted well over an hour much to my girlfriend's contained enthusiasm!!(Sarcasm...) It would seem that our sophisticated world of 'Descartian' bullsh...er nonsense has given way to ridiculous conclusions. Bill Maher for example in hollywood only furthers his own ignorance by equating rationalism with atheism. Perhaps his feeble intellect concludes that chaos can bring about order, I mean I believed that once, but soon realized my room wasn't about to clean itself!
Back to angels,..and specifically the question, do angels exist? To that I resoundly say YES! But how do we know? Well by two ways, induction and deduction.(shout out to St. Thomas Aquinas!) Ooouuhhh, I can almost hear the groans through the internet. So let me simplify, St Thomas in the 'Summa' looks at the universe and concludes from 'Absolute Being'(God) all the way to 'rocks' there are gradual degrees. For example, a rock is inanimate matter, it just sits there, plants are animate and they grow...beasts (animals) grow and sense, man will grow sense and reason therefore is both body and spirit,....and then there is a big jump to God or Absolute Being. We can know that a piece of this puzzle is missing, therefore conclude that there must be pure spirits who are created possessing perfect knowledge. That being said, if we throw a little 'Revelation' on top of that, St Paul states that our battle is not against 'flesh and blood' but against 'powers and principalities'(two of the nine choirs of Angels).
Faith aside, why even in some liberal circles of the Church are the existence of Angels openly questioned? I would argue that because we live in a sensual world, that is if we don't see it or experience it, it isn't there. The Church would not sanction prayers to St. Michael if he were just a literary device as some 'progressive theologians' put it. All in all, I'm glad for the existence of angels, too often I've screwed up, thank God I have a guardian looking out for me.
So there you have it, the 'unforseen' circumstances,..angelic talk over coffee. In future posts, I will speak on the intelligence of angels as well as the demonic.
Annnd that's the bottom line,..cause MARCO said so! (glass breaks..lol!!!)
Friday, October 24, 2008
Not exactly the Monday Night Wars,....
Scott Hall suddenly shows up on Nitro in May of 1996, this of course led to a series of events catapulting the NWO into the forefront of the prowrestling industry. Yesterday, Jean Charest's Liberals raided the Action Democratique du Quebec and came away with a few new faces. Wow, if only politics were like wrestling,..well in retrospect they kinda are. Now I know what your thinking, (how cute,..Marco didn't take his meds today..umm)but upon closer inspection can we not draw upon the analogy?
The history of the main parties in Quebec for the last 40yrs is very comparable to the NWA(WCW) vs WWF(E) wars of the last 15yrs ending in 2001. (Please don't email me saying that TNA is a serious threat to Vince,..it is nothing more than a carnival-esque side attraction which should fizzle out in a few injuries,..err,.I mean years.) The Parti Quebecois represents NWA. Mismanaged, poorly organized, a collection of political ideologies across the spectrum from the center-right approach of Bernard Landry and Jacques Parizeau to the socialist leftist views of Pauline Marois. Of course this reflected their governing style as the PQ's last government had three(3!!!) ministers of health. The point being is that this what we would call more of a coalition than a party. Everyone was assembled based on article 1 of the PQ platform, to achieve Quebec Independance. (On a side note, is that even the PQ is divided on the issue of separation, some favour an economic and political partnership with English Canada we could easily call open federalism, while others favour outright Independance.)
The Quebec Liberal Party is like WWE. A tight ship with clear objectives, namely good governance. Claude Ryan, (Vince McMahon Sr.) and Robert Bourassa (Vince Jr)are two people associated with this party. Although 'Liberal,' it is actually more center-right especially under the leadership of Jean Charest. Staunchly federalist yet nationalist at the same time, and trying to attract foreign investment for the province.
The Action Democratique represents WCW. Although in reality the ADQ sprung out of the Quebec Liberal youth wing, in 1995 it sided with the 'Yes' option. Mario Dumont (Eric Bischoff) represented a right wing approach to the Quebec question. He favours big business and Harper-style social conservatism. Mr Dumont furthers his own schizophrenia by labeling his party 'autonomous' in regards to the Quebec question. The last provincial election saw the ADQ come in as the official opposition in a minority liberal government.
Okay,....now that I've prefessed that long piece of nonsense, (thereby cementing my readers' aforementioned conclusion that 'yes',..I do have ADD...)I can get to the meat of this week. To start, the speaker of the House resigned (Michel Bissonet). It is customary that a speaker be chosen, usually from the sitting government to replace him. The PQ got together with the ADQ to support Francois Gendron without the government's consent. (Remember this is a minority government...) To retaliate, the Liberals raid two ADQ members, Pierre Michel Auger and Andre Riedl. What 's next stay tuned!...
To conclude, if you think politics are boring just imagine Jim Ross and Jerry 'the King' Lawler on commentary! It's much more interesting than you think!!!
(oh yeah,..Lucian Bouchard is akin to Jeff Jarrett, an opportunist willing to jump ship whenever he can!!!...)
See ya.
The history of the main parties in Quebec for the last 40yrs is very comparable to the NWA(WCW) vs WWF(E) wars of the last 15yrs ending in 2001. (Please don't email me saying that TNA is a serious threat to Vince,..it is nothing more than a carnival-esque side attraction which should fizzle out in a few injuries,..err,.I mean years.) The Parti Quebecois represents NWA. Mismanaged, poorly organized, a collection of political ideologies across the spectrum from the center-right approach of Bernard Landry and Jacques Parizeau to the socialist leftist views of Pauline Marois. Of course this reflected their governing style as the PQ's last government had three(3!!!) ministers of health. The point being is that this what we would call more of a coalition than a party. Everyone was assembled based on article 1 of the PQ platform, to achieve Quebec Independance. (On a side note, is that even the PQ is divided on the issue of separation, some favour an economic and political partnership with English Canada we could easily call open federalism, while others favour outright Independance.)
The Quebec Liberal Party is like WWE. A tight ship with clear objectives, namely good governance. Claude Ryan, (Vince McMahon Sr.) and Robert Bourassa (Vince Jr)are two people associated with this party. Although 'Liberal,' it is actually more center-right especially under the leadership of Jean Charest. Staunchly federalist yet nationalist at the same time, and trying to attract foreign investment for the province.
The Action Democratique represents WCW. Although in reality the ADQ sprung out of the Quebec Liberal youth wing, in 1995 it sided with the 'Yes' option. Mario Dumont (Eric Bischoff) represented a right wing approach to the Quebec question. He favours big business and Harper-style social conservatism. Mr Dumont furthers his own schizophrenia by labeling his party 'autonomous' in regards to the Quebec question. The last provincial election saw the ADQ come in as the official opposition in a minority liberal government.
Okay,....now that I've prefessed that long piece of nonsense, (thereby cementing my readers' aforementioned conclusion that 'yes',..I do have ADD...)I can get to the meat of this week. To start, the speaker of the House resigned (Michel Bissonet). It is customary that a speaker be chosen, usually from the sitting government to replace him. The PQ got together with the ADQ to support Francois Gendron without the government's consent. (Remember this is a minority government...) To retaliate, the Liberals raid two ADQ members, Pierre Michel Auger and Andre Riedl. What 's next stay tuned!...
To conclude, if you think politics are boring just imagine Jim Ross and Jerry 'the King' Lawler on commentary! It's much more interesting than you think!!!
(oh yeah,..Lucian Bouchard is akin to Jeff Jarrett, an opportunist willing to jump ship whenever he can!!!...)
See ya.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
'Roid' rage and 'Supplement'-tal anger...
Being in a gym environment, one can easily begin to categorize the type of people looking for change, both positively and negetively. A weekly exercise rootine followed by a healthy diet and lifestyle will no doubt have a lasting impression on one's state of 'being' as well as disciplinary development (goal setting). The results are always mixed dependant of course on the personality types. Every January there is an influx of eager beginners looking to shed a few pounds and begin a new lifestyle. By March, about one third of these'newbies'stick it out and by summer, they've gone the way of the dinosaur leaving the gym altogether, only to return next January after Christmas season(I will NOT refer to it as holliday season!)
Throughout the year of course there are a few negative examples of people wanting too much too fast. I refer of course to the 17-21 year old male demographic. These kids are easily recognizable.(disclaimer: I am not referring to all 17-21 yr old males, just certain arch-types...) Upon arriving at the gym they never go into a locker room, preferring to train and leave. Their workout consists mainly of 1-2 sets of bench press followed by ten minutes of looking in the mirror. Next, this breed of person will walk to the next exercise (usually something completely opposite like hamstring curls thereby showing their innocense)with his chest puffed out as if he weighed 250lbs when he's about 120lbs (with a brick in each pocket!) Hopefully this visual will make you laugh, cause what typically follows is sad.
When they leave the gym, reality kicks in. They weren't the biggest dogs in the yard. So the emotional epiphany will usually give way to the ego, and they become prone to clever marketing strategies with supplements, or worse, dillusions of grandeur with steroids.
I have no problem with supplements. For the most part they are a necessary means to muscle recovery. I have taken protein shakes, L- glutamine and betagen. My workout demands nutrition, and instead of going home and eating two whole chickens, I find this way to be much more cost effective. I have never taken steroids. I have no desire to take them, nor do I desire the effects of them. Too often, our token example (male 17-21yr old)will find himself prey to his own stupidity. A friend of mine once remarked, that you don't get the body, you only rent it. So our little buddy begins his first cycle of 'juice' and within three months is now weighing about 165 and looking shredded. Well, that three month cycle has seen your body produce and acquire enourmous amounts of testosterone, that eventually it stopped producing its own. (uh oh...) In six months our friend has become a very angry young man governed by emotional instablity and uncontrollable acne.(yup, another side effect...). Now his cycles are over and he must take an anti-estrogen to 'settle down.'
A month later, he weighs 150 and is not as strong as he once was while on the 'juice.' Two months later, he's in a freefall, either he does another cycle or he's losing everything,..well maybe not everything, in some cases some dudes get a lovely set of man-boobs! (take a look at Vince McMahon without a shirt!) You get my point. The moral of this story is that nothing is for free, work hard and results will build, no sacrifice, no victory and every other cliche...Saint Josemaria Escriva(No! not more Catholic undertones...lol!!) once said 'Blessed be pain, praised be pain...'Oh well, Me, I gotta do some Chest, kay, not for nutting but!'
Throughout the year of course there are a few negative examples of people wanting too much too fast. I refer of course to the 17-21 year old male demographic. These kids are easily recognizable.(disclaimer: I am not referring to all 17-21 yr old males, just certain arch-types...) Upon arriving at the gym they never go into a locker room, preferring to train and leave. Their workout consists mainly of 1-2 sets of bench press followed by ten minutes of looking in the mirror. Next, this breed of person will walk to the next exercise (usually something completely opposite like hamstring curls thereby showing their innocense)with his chest puffed out as if he weighed 250lbs when he's about 120lbs (with a brick in each pocket!) Hopefully this visual will make you laugh, cause what typically follows is sad.
When they leave the gym, reality kicks in. They weren't the biggest dogs in the yard. So the emotional epiphany will usually give way to the ego, and they become prone to clever marketing strategies with supplements, or worse, dillusions of grandeur with steroids.
I have no problem with supplements. For the most part they are a necessary means to muscle recovery. I have taken protein shakes, L- glutamine and betagen. My workout demands nutrition, and instead of going home and eating two whole chickens, I find this way to be much more cost effective. I have never taken steroids. I have no desire to take them, nor do I desire the effects of them. Too often, our token example (male 17-21yr old)will find himself prey to his own stupidity. A friend of mine once remarked, that you don't get the body, you only rent it. So our little buddy begins his first cycle of 'juice' and within three months is now weighing about 165 and looking shredded. Well, that three month cycle has seen your body produce and acquire enourmous amounts of testosterone, that eventually it stopped producing its own. (uh oh...) In six months our friend has become a very angry young man governed by emotional instablity and uncontrollable acne.(yup, another side effect...). Now his cycles are over and he must take an anti-estrogen to 'settle down.'
A month later, he weighs 150 and is not as strong as he once was while on the 'juice.' Two months later, he's in a freefall, either he does another cycle or he's losing everything,..well maybe not everything, in some cases some dudes get a lovely set of man-boobs! (take a look at Vince McMahon without a shirt!) You get my point. The moral of this story is that nothing is for free, work hard and results will build, no sacrifice, no victory and every other cliche...Saint Josemaria Escriva(No! not more Catholic undertones...lol!!) once said 'Blessed be pain, praised be pain...'Oh well, Me, I gotta do some Chest, kay, not for nutting but!'
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
To be the Man,.....Whoooo!
Okay, got your attention? Now there is nothing like a Ric Flair type promo to grab someone's interest and keep it. Irregardless of the content, an individual's curiosity factor will be peeked thereby allowing the salesman time for his/her own pitch to the masses. As this blog takes shape, it is becoming painfully obvious that I wear my faith on my sleeve. Now this does not mean that I am a saint, I struggle everyday with issues of morality and belief. So what you ask? Is this becoming a Catholic blog? Well not quite however I will be putting up links of interest that I enjoy...but first coming soon,...
MASTROPOLOGETICS: Very simply this is apologetics for the Catholic Faith done without the timidity of holding back Truth! Imagine a dude wearing a KISS t-shirt, with 16"(me!...hehe) arms speaking about such issues as Islam, the rising secular tide, how to dialogue with a Jehovah's Witness. It'll be witty, fun, hopefully inspiring (God willing!)and thought provoking.
Saint Michael's Brigade: A men's group for Catholic men, dealing with men's issues. Our mission is clear; Pornography must be destroyed, and we (men) need the necessary training to do it! It will include prayer,diet, weight training and honesty.
These are just two things that will be coming soon!,.BTW, expect a clothing line for both endeavours! be back in a bit...
MASTROPOLOGETICS: Very simply this is apologetics for the Catholic Faith done without the timidity of holding back Truth! Imagine a dude wearing a KISS t-shirt, with 16"(me!...hehe) arms speaking about such issues as Islam, the rising secular tide, how to dialogue with a Jehovah's Witness. It'll be witty, fun, hopefully inspiring (God willing!)and thought provoking.
Saint Michael's Brigade: A men's group for Catholic men, dealing with men's issues. Our mission is clear; Pornography must be destroyed, and we (men) need the necessary training to do it! It will include prayer,diet, weight training and honesty.
These are just two things that will be coming soon!,.BTW, expect a clothing line for both endeavours! be back in a bit...
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Saint Augustin;..'Lord, grant me chastity, just not right now..."
Its been a while since I last posted, and in the meantime, my Spiritual battle has intensified. I have said that I will post my conversion story, yet I'm trying to find a new word that better describes my condition. Conversion as it is, is a lifelong ongoing process, a relationship with the Lord whereby Grace is freely given and we(the recipients of that Grace) must freely choose to co-operate with Him.
I grew up in a Catholic home. My background is of Italian/and Scottish/Irish descent, so the chances of me not being Catholic were slim to none. My maternal grandmother lived with us and from my earliest memories would retire to her rocking chair to mumble stuff. (As a five year old, little did I know my grandmother would meditate upon the salvific mysteries of the Rosary, the second most powerful prayer right after the Mass itself!) Sunday Mass was always the norm, yet once into my teens, my parents never forced me to go, thus began my flirtation with secularism which would eventually mushroom into a full-blown relationship. What is interesting was at this time, I was attending a private boys school(Catholic) and my friends and I already were beginning to notice that different priests held different notions. The idea of objective truth was far from their radar screen, so most of the time we were taught to be socially conscious while not being afraid to question our identity. Don't get me wrong, as I think back there were some good and holy priests including one that I reconnected with at a good friend's wedding.
Upon graduation, I believed myself to be a good person, well as good as one can get without grace. I led a healthy balance between sports, education, friends and girls and began contemplating a career. It was at this time that my involvement in prowrestling began. My areas of study in university were political science and religious studies. (BTW, a sure way to lose the faith is to take these courses from professors who have a very subjective viewpoint.)I began to work in the municipal elections campaign which led to my departure from the wrestling scene(it had signed on with a porn company as a backer)because I would not risk my candidate's chances. University hit me with a double blow which led to a series of very unusual events. Political Science gave me an interest in philosophy(unfornately Descartes)and religous studies gave me a huge interest in Jesus of Nazareth, and so began my quest for the historical Jesus. (sorry Albert Shweitzer...)
My library at home consisted of numerous works on philosophy, (Spinoza, Descartes, Rousseau..etc) and my thirst for religious studies was nourrished by the likes of Hans Kung, Marcus Borg, John Dominic Crossan...etc. To me, my authorities on Catholicism included Fr Kung, but also Fr Richard McBrien to name a few, not exactly known for their fidelity to the Magisterium, little did I know. I still considered myself a Catholic, it was a nice place to be, but we need to implement the changes of Vatican II (the Spirit of Vatican II) ...ohh yeah, almost forgot, I haden't even read Vatican II!!!!
Fast forward, one day I'm perusing a local Christian bookstore, in my familiar section lined up with dissidents and liberal thinkers. I notice a priest (a young dude!) looking at books. Questions filled my mind, for instance, ..is this guy brainwashed? Why is he a priest? he's too young and looks normal. Doesn't he know that Paul is the real founder of this pseudo-Christianity? I should tell him....
To preface what happened, I should let you know that I'm just under 5'9 and about 200lbs of muscle, I have done a lot of martial arts, wrestling, hockey etc...yet what this priest did was let me plead my case, then in rebuttal deliver to me the biggest intellectual ass-kicking of my life. That day God taught me some humility,..and after it was over, I felt more battered and bruised then ever before. The priest took down my number, and to this day still keeps in contact. Religous studies were coming to an end and I found myself looking at other giants of the so-called historical-critical movement, people such as Claude Tremontant who proposed the Matthian first principal. I also learned of a new philosopher, yes I knew Aristotle, but never knew his metaphysics,...know I was about to read St. Thomas Aquinas! May God have mercy on my soul....
Now I know you're probably wondering why I titled this entry with a quote from St. Augustin, well, like most newbies, grasping the faith intellectually was easy, living the faith requires sacrifice, and for myself struggling with issues regarding the Churches teaching on contraception, sex outside of marriage and masturbation have been hard. I am a sinner. I need Christ.
I grew up in a Catholic home. My background is of Italian/and Scottish/Irish descent, so the chances of me not being Catholic were slim to none. My maternal grandmother lived with us and from my earliest memories would retire to her rocking chair to mumble stuff. (As a five year old, little did I know my grandmother would meditate upon the salvific mysteries of the Rosary, the second most powerful prayer right after the Mass itself!) Sunday Mass was always the norm, yet once into my teens, my parents never forced me to go, thus began my flirtation with secularism which would eventually mushroom into a full-blown relationship. What is interesting was at this time, I was attending a private boys school(Catholic) and my friends and I already were beginning to notice that different priests held different notions. The idea of objective truth was far from their radar screen, so most of the time we were taught to be socially conscious while not being afraid to question our identity. Don't get me wrong, as I think back there were some good and holy priests including one that I reconnected with at a good friend's wedding.
Upon graduation, I believed myself to be a good person, well as good as one can get without grace. I led a healthy balance between sports, education, friends and girls and began contemplating a career. It was at this time that my involvement in prowrestling began. My areas of study in university were political science and religious studies. (BTW, a sure way to lose the faith is to take these courses from professors who have a very subjective viewpoint.)I began to work in the municipal elections campaign which led to my departure from the wrestling scene(it had signed on with a porn company as a backer)because I would not risk my candidate's chances. University hit me with a double blow which led to a series of very unusual events. Political Science gave me an interest in philosophy(unfornately Descartes)and religous studies gave me a huge interest in Jesus of Nazareth, and so began my quest for the historical Jesus. (sorry Albert Shweitzer...)
My library at home consisted of numerous works on philosophy, (Spinoza, Descartes, Rousseau..etc) and my thirst for religious studies was nourrished by the likes of Hans Kung, Marcus Borg, John Dominic Crossan...etc. To me, my authorities on Catholicism included Fr Kung, but also Fr Richard McBrien to name a few, not exactly known for their fidelity to the Magisterium, little did I know. I still considered myself a Catholic, it was a nice place to be, but we need to implement the changes of Vatican II (the Spirit of Vatican II) ...ohh yeah, almost forgot, I haden't even read Vatican II!!!!
Fast forward, one day I'm perusing a local Christian bookstore, in my familiar section lined up with dissidents and liberal thinkers. I notice a priest (a young dude!) looking at books. Questions filled my mind, for instance, ..is this guy brainwashed? Why is he a priest? he's too young and looks normal. Doesn't he know that Paul is the real founder of this pseudo-Christianity? I should tell him....
To preface what happened, I should let you know that I'm just under 5'9 and about 200lbs of muscle, I have done a lot of martial arts, wrestling, hockey etc...yet what this priest did was let me plead my case, then in rebuttal deliver to me the biggest intellectual ass-kicking of my life. That day God taught me some humility,..and after it was over, I felt more battered and bruised then ever before. The priest took down my number, and to this day still keeps in contact. Religous studies were coming to an end and I found myself looking at other giants of the so-called historical-critical movement, people such as Claude Tremontant who proposed the Matthian first principal. I also learned of a new philosopher, yes I knew Aristotle, but never knew his metaphysics,...know I was about to read St. Thomas Aquinas! May God have mercy on my soul....
Now I know you're probably wondering why I titled this entry with a quote from St. Augustin, well, like most newbies, grasping the faith intellectually was easy, living the faith requires sacrifice, and for myself struggling with issues regarding the Churches teaching on contraception, sex outside of marriage and masturbation have been hard. I am a sinner. I need Christ.
Friday, October 17, 2008
....Just wonderin....
Again, I will be delaying my conversion story, however I was thinking about another crucial issue that the American and to a lesser extent the Canadian media has not picked up on. Now it goes without saying that everyone is swept up with Barrack Obama, the democratic candidate for president of the US, but I honestly believe that we are forgetting a few details,...shall we say. Before I begin, I would like to point out that I was against the US-led invasion of Iraq. As a Canadian, we cannot afford not to follow International Law because we are too small. I do however, strongly support the mission in Afghanistan, the bitter fruit of 9/11.
The last few weeks we were inundated with coverage regarding the possible financial collapse of the market. Pundits everywhere are talking about a potential recession and putting the blame squarely on the shoulders of George W Bush. Is that really fair? The collapse of the market is being attributed to the mortgage crisis which has hit the US. Was it not Bill Clinton, who in 1996 deregulated the banks to pave the way for a plethora of lending institutions? Did he not make easy for an economically disadvantaged person to purchase a house they couldn't afford? Remember the negatively amortized mortgage ads polluting Yahoo and Google? Hmmm, is this really the fault of the Republicans, or did the Democrats push this snowball down the hill?...I'm just sayin...
The last few weeks we were inundated with coverage regarding the possible financial collapse of the market. Pundits everywhere are talking about a potential recession and putting the blame squarely on the shoulders of George W Bush. Is that really fair? The collapse of the market is being attributed to the mortgage crisis which has hit the US. Was it not Bill Clinton, who in 1996 deregulated the banks to pave the way for a plethora of lending institutions? Did he not make easy for an economically disadvantaged person to purchase a house they couldn't afford? Remember the negatively amortized mortgage ads polluting Yahoo and Google? Hmmm, is this really the fault of the Republicans, or did the Democrats push this snowball down the hill?...I'm just sayin...
Thursday, October 16, 2008
TNA; Professional Wrestlings' closest thing to an Abortion.
Now I know that I might anger a lot of so-called wrestling fans out in cyberspace, but I feel the time has come for me to make a comment about this cra...err,..show.
I have been a wrestling fan since as long as I can remember going back to the NWA, AWA, and WWF. International Wrestling was a staple in our house Saturday afternoons and eventually that gave way to WWF Mapleleaf Wrestling. For myself, the NWA was wrestling. Ric Flair, the Four Horsemen, Magnum TA, Dusty Rhodes, and the Road Warriors(LOD) all had a place in my heart. By the time 1986 came around, NWA was hard to catch in Canada, so all we had was WWF, what a show!!!(but it just wasn't wrestling..sigh..) Alas, I succumbed to peer pressure and became a Hulkamaniac. This was right around the time of Wrestlemania 2.
By the time, I got to Cegep(junior college), I started getting involved in some of the local independant wrestling companies, (the inception of IWS, CWE...)I have always been a fan and will always be. Fast forward to 2001, Vince McMahon buys WCW(thank God!) and finally puts it out of its misery thereby contributing less to cable TV pollution. In 2002, Jeff and Jerry(his Dad)Jarrett,(that's J,A,haha,double R,E,haha,double T) opened up Total Non-Stop Action wrestling. Originally, the company was part of the NWA(National Wrestling Alliance)and had exclusive rights to the heavyweight title. The Title goes back to the days of Frank Gotch. The idea is a good one, to showcase wrestlers who might not make WWE(WWF)and help break them into the business. What they created instead was a separate division, the 'X' division and are attempting to totally discredit the industry. Wrestlers in the X division perform ludicrous high spots when the match hasn't even told a story yet from a psychological point of view,...Example, the bell rings, and the heel(bad guy) gets a kick to the gut. This gives enough time for the face(good guy) to set up a barbed wire flaming table, and deliver a corkscrew piledriver from the top rope through said table. What's the problem you asked? Well the guy who sells the move will kick out at TWO!!!Repeat this nonsense for twenty minutes, different high spots 32times over and then have the face(or heel) set up his finisher, probably a bodyslam and get the pin! Where the @#$% is the psychology?!? Why would you pay money to lead up to a big match if every match is gimmicked?
The Heavyweight division is for the WWE throwaways,..er.. alumni, Kurt Angle, Christian, and now Mick Foley!(who hasn't wrestled a full schedule since 2000...)
Since splitting from the NWA, they also are 'revolutionizng' the industry back having a six sided ring. C'mon all you smart marks, it looks horrible! To all the TNA fans, get real!!! WWE is wrestling and will continue to dominate. Hopefully Christian will regain his common sense and go back to Vince. TNA can only be compared to WCW at best, and should grateful to be allowed to exist on the same continent as WWE.
Later
I have been a wrestling fan since as long as I can remember going back to the NWA, AWA, and WWF. International Wrestling was a staple in our house Saturday afternoons and eventually that gave way to WWF Mapleleaf Wrestling. For myself, the NWA was wrestling. Ric Flair, the Four Horsemen, Magnum TA, Dusty Rhodes, and the Road Warriors(LOD) all had a place in my heart. By the time 1986 came around, NWA was hard to catch in Canada, so all we had was WWF, what a show!!!(but it just wasn't wrestling..sigh..) Alas, I succumbed to peer pressure and became a Hulkamaniac. This was right around the time of Wrestlemania 2.
By the time, I got to Cegep(junior college), I started getting involved in some of the local independant wrestling companies, (the inception of IWS, CWE...)I have always been a fan and will always be. Fast forward to 2001, Vince McMahon buys WCW(thank God!) and finally puts it out of its misery thereby contributing less to cable TV pollution. In 2002, Jeff and Jerry(his Dad)Jarrett,(that's J,A,haha,double R,E,haha,double T) opened up Total Non-Stop Action wrestling. Originally, the company was part of the NWA(National Wrestling Alliance)and had exclusive rights to the heavyweight title. The Title goes back to the days of Frank Gotch. The idea is a good one, to showcase wrestlers who might not make WWE(WWF)and help break them into the business. What they created instead was a separate division, the 'X' division and are attempting to totally discredit the industry. Wrestlers in the X division perform ludicrous high spots when the match hasn't even told a story yet from a psychological point of view,...Example, the bell rings, and the heel(bad guy) gets a kick to the gut. This gives enough time for the face(good guy) to set up a barbed wire flaming table, and deliver a corkscrew piledriver from the top rope through said table. What's the problem you asked? Well the guy who sells the move will kick out at TWO!!!Repeat this nonsense for twenty minutes, different high spots 32times over and then have the face(or heel) set up his finisher, probably a bodyslam and get the pin! Where the @#$% is the psychology?!? Why would you pay money to lead up to a big match if every match is gimmicked?
The Heavyweight division is for the WWE throwaways,..er.. alumni, Kurt Angle, Christian, and now Mick Foley!(who hasn't wrestled a full schedule since 2000...)
Since splitting from the NWA, they also are 'revolutionizng' the industry back having a six sided ring. C'mon all you smart marks, it looks horrible! To all the TNA fans, get real!!! WWE is wrestling and will continue to dominate. Hopefully Christian will regain his common sense and go back to Vince. TNA can only be compared to WCW at best, and should grateful to be allowed to exist on the same continent as WWE.
Later
Random Thoughts and Apologizing for Apologetics...
First off, the Habs! What can I say?..We beat the Bruins 4-3 by shootout in a game which the first period we looked the Red Army. Needless to say the second and third periods were competitive. With 48 seconds left in the third period Carey Price was beaten by a crazy bounce off the backboard to tie it all up. Honestly I thought that the Montreal Forum ghosts of Saint Catherine and Atwater were playing tricks on us,..but alas, all ended well, and so the gods/Francophone media were appeased...
Nowww,..on to something totally different. I(Marco) am a Christian. Not only that, I am a Catholic Christian. Believe it or not, a Catholic Christian of the Roman rite! Therefore a Roman Catholic Christian! (no, I'm not mimicking Elvis Gratton's airplane scene from 'King des Kings,' I'm just stating my Theologial identity.) In my spare time when not working, I also engage in Catholic Apologetics,.or defending the Faith with humility and pastoral sensitivity especially while living in a multi-faith society. The last two, I sometimes need to work on especially in light that I possess Italian temperment. I am a sinner, I need Christ. I need Christ's Redemptive sacrifice on the cross,.I need grace. Later on, I will preface this story,(my story) and if anyone can draw parallels, I would invite them to communicate with me through email.
Until later, its been a treat, but I gots to jet!
Ciao!
Nowww,..on to something totally different. I(Marco) am a Christian. Not only that, I am a Catholic Christian. Believe it or not, a Catholic Christian of the Roman rite! Therefore a Roman Catholic Christian! (no, I'm not mimicking Elvis Gratton's airplane scene from 'King des Kings,' I'm just stating my Theologial identity.) In my spare time when not working, I also engage in Catholic Apologetics,.or defending the Faith with humility and pastoral sensitivity especially while living in a multi-faith society. The last two, I sometimes need to work on especially in light that I possess Italian temperment. I am a sinner, I need Christ. I need Christ's Redemptive sacrifice on the cross,.I need grace. Later on, I will preface this story,(my story) and if anyone can draw parallels, I would invite them to communicate with me through email.
Until later, its been a treat, but I gots to jet!
Ciao!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Update,..this just in...
Soooo, now that everything is settling in, the actual results are 50 seats for the Bloc and 76 for the Liberals....Okay now the Quebec analysis. For any American readers, Quebec presents itself as a complex riddle when it comes to Federal politics. First off, the nationalist flavour of 'La belle Province' can be a little bit hard to read. The island of Montreal which generates Quebec's economy is usually pretty safe territory for the Liberal Party and last night proved no exception. Justin Trudeau, the son of Pierre Elliot (former P.M.) captured the riding of Papineau and starting rolling his political snowball career into motion. Quebec City regions held on to their Tory incumbents with the notable exception of Luc Harvey who lost the riding of Louis-Hebert. Other notables were the defeat of Micheal Fortier in Vaudreuil-Solanges who was expected to win at the start of the campaign, but saw his lead evaporate when Harper annouced cuts to the 'Culture' sector. Thomas Mulcair won his first federal general election for the NDP in the riding of Outremont which can be seen as a breakthrough that can be built upon.
As a Quebecer, what does this all mean? Well, suffice to say that it was a great day for Federalism, as even the seats the Bloc won were by and large the result of vote splitting. The Federalist camp is spread across the board while the Separatists(notice I don't call them sovereignists!) have only one protest party. For Canadians across the board, this election cost 300million dollars and we end up with pretty much the same result.
In other news, tonight, the Habs face the Bruins at the Bell Center and another McCain/Obama debate,..talk about must see TV!
As a Quebecer, what does this all mean? Well, suffice to say that it was a great day for Federalism, as even the seats the Bloc won were by and large the result of vote splitting. The Federalist camp is spread across the board while the Separatists(notice I don't call them sovereignists!) have only one protest party. For Canadians across the board, this election cost 300million dollars and we end up with pretty much the same result.
In other news, tonight, the Habs face the Bruins at the Bell Center and another McCain/Obama debate,..talk about must see TV!
The Results Are In!!!
Wellllll,...once again Canadian politics prooves that watching paint dry is not the most boring activity. To sum it all up,. The Conservatives win another minority government. Before I do the breakdown of Quebec, the House of Commons as of 1:30am this morning looked like this;
Conservatives: 143 seats
Liberals: 78 seats
Bloc: 48 seats
NDP: 37 seats
Independant: 2 seats
To quote more than one political pundit, this seems to be a "groundhog day" style election, mirroring the last one. Elizabeth May of the Green Party became the only national leader not to win her riding, losing to Peter McKay, a conservative and heavy favorite. Next post will be the Quebec breakdown!!! Oooohhh Yeahhh!
Peace!
Marco
Conservatives: 143 seats
Liberals: 78 seats
Bloc: 48 seats
NDP: 37 seats
Independant: 2 seats
To quote more than one political pundit, this seems to be a "groundhog day" style election, mirroring the last one. Elizabeth May of the Green Party became the only national leader not to win her riding, losing to Peter McKay, a conservative and heavy favorite. Next post will be the Quebec breakdown!!! Oooohhh Yeahhh!
Peace!
Marco
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Election Day
My first post will probably be a little dry,..today is Election Day!Yess!.....in Canada, (groan...) Okay so our politics aren't the most exiting, still I live in Quebec, where it is at least a little bit entertaining. For the most part, I would consider myself a Conservative in a Liberal fortress. The chances of any party beating the Liberals are very slim. (BTW I live in Montreal),..Outside Montreal it is a different story, DA BLOC! I will post the results, cause I know the world hangs in the balance anticipating the results of a Canadian federal election!
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