One of the great things about blogging is the ability to tackle explicit subjects shunned in even the most modern mainstream media. As a former police officer, as well as a husband, brother and father, I have something very explicit, but very important, to say to women who have been raped.This is taboo to discuss, but so be it: Many women fail to report rape because they feel complicit in the crime. The reason? During the rape her body reacted sexually – the vagina produced the usual secretions to ease penetration, the clitoris was stimulated and maybe she even achieved orgasm. Let’s set the record straight: your body reacted on a purely physical level, and the production of vaginal secretions and related signs of sexual arousal does NOT mean that you liked it, really wanted it or asked for it. And it most definitely does not mean that you encouraged your own rape. Ever.In the City of God, St. Augustine crafts his own consolatio, an attempt to assuage the suffering of women raped in the sack of Rome. He wrote that women raped in Rome’s fall do not lose their chastity which is a virtue in the soul and does not depend on how others use the body. Even if the body responded mechanically, that does not matter if the soul withheld consent. Rape is not a crime against a vagina; it is a crime against a person. That crime is not defined by the normal anatomical reactions of masses of nerve endings or other physiological reactions to the sex act. Rape is an assault against a person’s will and dignity; against their will, because the act did not involve a choice on their part, and against their dignity because the act treated them as an object, not a person. Now you know.
Personally, I blame Vatican 2....
Well for those who follow such things, the internet is chalk full of pi**ing matches between bloggers. When two heavyweights decide to go at it, it actually gets a little…entertaining. Which brings is to the current battle between two Catholic bloggers – Warren Kinsella and Kathy Shaidle. I feel particularly complelled to comment because:1. I read and like both blogs2. I am not myself any kind of significant blogging presence, and if either of them links to this I’ll get more hits in one hour than I usually get in a year, and3. I feel like it.The bottom line is that Kathy doesn’t think Warren is a particularly good writer and ego alone shouldn’t qualify him for a writing a gig at the Post. She also thinks him thin-skinned and a liberal hack. Warren thinks Kathy is a gnome and her blogging goes a bit too far in dissing the Religion of Peace (my interpretation). Both have also insulted each other’s physical appearance. I’ve never met either of them, but I think I would like them if I did, because:- As someone who’s not a professional writer, I can enjoy both styles without assessing relative literary merit;
- I like Warren’s family nature - his dedication to his family, his respect for his obviously amazing Dad, his time at the rink and so on. I’m a Dad and a son, so I get it. And I prayed the Rosary for his father.
- I like Kathy’s public commitment to her man, and her struggles with befuddled church hierarchy to achieve more formal recognition for what is obviously an amazing pairing; trust me, this Arnie fellow is a lucky guy. A woman with passion…it’s all any man really wants, and who cares if the boots don’t fit? (couldn’t find the link, but avid Relapsed Catholic readers know what I mean.)
- Both are political warriors, and not particularly fond of taking prisoners.
- Both write what they mean and mean what they write. Like you can find that in the MSM anymore. Not since Steyn left anyway.
So what do you say guys, Pax?
Gagged over this quote by Toronto law professor and author Kent Roach in this morning's Star:
"Some of it may be this failure of imagination or empathy for many Canadians to put themselves in Omar Khadr's shoes. Some of it may be the unpopularity of the family in general and I think some of it is probably related to the fact that he's alleged to have killed an American medic," Roach said yesterday.
Gee, ya think? You need a law degree to figure this stuff out?
Sorry, "professor", but I hardly regard it to be a personal character failing that I can’t put myself in the shoes of a raving fanatic lobbing hand grenades at an ally’s soldiers in a criminal foreign insurgency. And I won’t be crying a river if all of his ilk meet their end with a short drop and sudden stop.
Intervening on behalf of these jokers would only confirm what many of us already suspect – that aside from being an occasional get-out-of-a-hellhole-free card, Canadian citizenship is as about as valuable as Canadian Tire money.
So ends Saddam Hussein. Wonder what Iranian and North Korean leaders are thinking right now?(Caution - video is graphic).
From today’s news at Associated Press:
A top Vatican official condemned the death sentence against Saddam Hussein in a newspaper interview published Thursday, acknowledging the crimes of the ousted Iraqi leader but reiterating that capital punishment goes against the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. Cardinal Renato Martino, Pope Benedict's top prelate for justice issues and a former Vatican envoy to the United Nations, said that Saddam's execution would punish "a crime with another crime" and expressed hope that the sentence would not be carried out. In the interview with Rome daily La Repubblica, Martino reiterated the Vatican's staunch opposition to the death penalty, saying that life must be safeguarded from its beginning to its ``natural" end. "The death penalty is not a natural death. And no one can give death, not even the State," he said.
My my my. The Vatican has a "staunch opposition" to the death penalty, does it? Violates the "teachings" of the Catholic Church? Really?
Uh…not so much. The teachings of the Catholic Church are, in fact, publically available to anyone who cares to instruct themselves in such matters. In the case of the death penalty, the church does not now, nor has it ever, opposed capital punishment, per se – viz:
Assuming that the guilty party's identity and responsibility have been fully determined, the traditional teaching of the Church does not exclude recourse to the death penalty, if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor. If, however, non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect people's safety from the aggressor, authority will limit itself to such means, as these are more in keeping with the concrete conditions of the common good and more in conformity to the dignity of the human person.
So, while it would be fair to say that the Catholic Church is not a big supporter of the death penalty, it does not hold that capital punishment and the Christian faith are mutually exclusive, nor does it teach that the death penalty in and of itself violates the teachings of the Church.
Sigh. Maybe the red hat’s too tight or something, but wouldn’t be nice if the man responsible for propagation of the Church’s teachings on justice issues had actually, you know, read the Church’s teachings on justice issues?
UPDATE: The wicked witch is dead.
A few parting instructions for fellow Christians this Christmas, to help you all navigate all the Political Correctness (PC) out there – not to mention all those workers busy relocating Christmas trees back and forth, depending on where the PC roulette wheel landed:
1. No matter your church affiliation, for the next few days, if religion comes up just say you are a "Christian" – not Baptist, or Catholic, or Methodist. If you are a loyal member of the United Church of Canada, however, you’re still required to answer either "Pagan” or "Atheist." Sorry.
2. Being a Christian in a pluralistic democarcy does not mean your belief system gets suppressed in favour of minority views. It means that CHRISTmas gets celebrated with no less joy and tolerance than everything else.
3. Wish people a "Merry Christmas" and mean it, unless you know for certain they belong to another faith tradition. Err, in other words, on the side of Christ.
4. Attend at least one real Christmas Concert. I know, I know – you’ve already been to your kid’s "Winter Celebration" where all that stuff about Jesus is hummed instead of sung, but just once track down a real Christmas Concert with all the traditional carols and attend – and no, it doesn’t matter if it’s at a church other than yours. Yes, even if it’s an Anglican Christmas Concert, just go.
5. Pray, just once, for everybody – especially for people you can’t stand. Storm the gates of heaven for them. Forgive them everything. Please.
6. Create or visit a Nativity. They’re disappearing and if you don’t normally have one as part of your family tradition, start one. Make one. Buy one. Whatever.
7. Most importantly, no matter what anyone else thinks, just act like a Christian. Tell someone how happy you are that Christ was born. Let people see you being a good Christian. True ecumenism is conversion by example - not that water-down-that-convert-all-nations crap. As St. Francis said, "Preach always – if necessary, use words."
8. And have a Merry Christmas everyone: Eat, drink, hug your kid, make love to your wife/husband, pray – and feel free to mix up the order.
I’m doing it all....
One of the great things about blogging is the ability to tackle explicit subjects shunned in even the most modern mainstream media. As a former police officer, as well as a husband, brother and father, I have something very explicit, but very important, to say to women who have been raped.
