The Provincial Emails

Valley of the shadow of dearth

2012-02-13T06:00:00.020-06:00

"Our own Archdiocese grew by over 13,000 Catholics in 2010" says Archbishop Listecki at 3:12 in the 2012 Catholic Stewardship Appeal video, found here, with a caption "13,000 new Catholics in the Archdiocese". The first question at the March 9, 2010 Milwaukee Press Club Newsmaker Luncheon with Archbishop Listecki (video Part 1) touches on the 38,000 fewer Catholics in the Archdiocese the

US suit against Vatican withdrawn

2012-02-12T15:57:00.000-06:00

Vatican Radio reported, "Attorneys for the victim in a Wisconsin sex abuse case voluntarily withdrew a lawsuit against the Holy See on Friday, in which Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinals Tarcisio Bertone and Angelo Sodano, the Secretary of State and Secretary of State-emeritus, respectively, were named as defendants. ..."

Truth Squab

2012-02-10T06:00:00.002-06:00

Our Archdiocese of Milwaukee's website has a Setting the Record Straight - Media Corrections page to "correct errors and clarify information found in local media outlets". As of today, it had five entries in a period going back over a year. The media is apparently doing an exemplary job covering the ArchMil's travails. By comparison, our Archdiocese has had to confess past "imprecise

Running (with) the numbers

2012-02-10T06:00:00.000-06:00

Allen R. Sanderson in the Chicago Tribune on how Numbers and wording can make so-so news sound so outrageous. For example, "With regard to income inequality, virtually all headlines and stories focus on gross income rather than income after taxes (on average, paid by the rich) and government transfers (on average, received by the poor). And they are not adjusted for the number of members of a

Credit where credit is due

2012-02-07T06:00:00.010-06:00

Robert L. Elliott criticizes our Archdiocese's handling of notice to potential claimants in this letter to the editor in yesterday's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "Had he been complete and candid in his comments, Topczewski [Jerry Topczewski, Chief of Staff, Archdiocese of Milwaukee] would have commented that the archdiocese had worked very hard to make sure that

New Mandate on Coverage for Contraceptives: Strategies for Organizations

2012-02-06T06:00:00.003-06:00

Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP issued this Health Law Alert on the controvsial regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on January 20, 2012.

Anger mismanagement

2012-02-05T06:00:00.007-06:00

Archdiocese Angers Many by Contesting Abuse Claims, Laurie Goodstein reports in The New York Times. Regarding the record number of sexual abuse claims filed in its bankruptcy, around 550, "The archdiocese will also ask the judge to bar any claims involving priests who were members of religious orders. Although those priests may have been working in parishes that are part of the archdiocese, the

Going through a faze

2012-02-04T11:20:00.001-06:00

WTMJ-TV reports Milwaukee Archbishop unfazed by about 550 sex abuse claims. "Archbishop Listecki's message is that the church will see the accusers in court."That's the spirit that's made our Archdiocese what it is today. Bankrupt. (via SNAP Wisconsin)

Play It Again, Bob

2012-02-03T18:00:00.002-06:00

Starring Bob Hope and Woody Allen, with Bing Crosby, Part 1 and Part 2.

Biden his time

2012-01-30T06:00:00.005-06:00

In his January 24, 2012 weekly "Love One Another" email, Archbishop Listecki writes, "... once again, last week a decision by the Obama Administration’s Health and Human Services put the Catholic Church at odds with a mandate that would force the Catholic Church and Catholic institutions to provide birth control, sterilizations and abortions. This action violates the teachings of the Catholic

The smoke of Santa has entered the church

2012-01-29T10:03:00.000-06:00

That Christmas night fire still has our parish's church closed. During the cleanup, Mass for Sundays is in the Community Room (hall) and televised in the adjacent Gathering Space (narthex). Seating is rented folding chairs. Saturday evening's Mass was standing room only. That is, there were only scattered single seats (in the narthex, at least) and rather than squeeze past or make people move,

Growing smaller

2012-01-28T06:00:00.000-06:00

When then-Bishop Dolan was named Archbishop of Milwaukee, the number of Catholics here was reported as "about 700,000". The recent New York Times report of his designation as a Cardinal includes his recounting of the 2004 ad limina visit to Rome. "I said: ‘Holy Father, we have good news. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee is growing.’” That same article gives the number of Catholics in our

Elliptical training

2012-01-27T06:00:00.006-06:00

Catholic Leaders Challenge Gingrich and Santorum on Divisive Rhetoric Around Race and Poverty says a press release at the organization Faith in Public Life. The introduction to this "open letter" clarifies that the signers are mostly academics willing to call themselves "prominent theologians". In the body of the letter, they say, "Mr. Gingrich has frequently attacked President Obama as a 'food

Kane and the able

2012-01-26T18:00:00.007-06:00

Quote from Eugene Kane, "I've heard from some black mothers who complain the real problem with black male unemployment in Milwaukee is all those black fathers who don't get up off their lazy behinds to go find work to help support their children."from the context of his column in this morning's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Widow's mite, or might not

2012-01-23T06:00:00.004-06:00

In this this Milwaukee Catholic Herald article on the annual dinner honoring members of The Campanile Society, donors of $1,000 or more to the annual Catholic Stewardship Appeal, CSA director Rob "Bohlmann said without the society it would be a challenge to raise the money needed for each program due to decreasing amounts of small donations." That is not a new development, see this April 28,

This is what rearranged deck chairs looks like

2012-01-16T18:00:00.001-06:00

notes Jeff Jarvis

Do you want any wine with that?

2012-01-14T12:00:00.002-06:00

At Killing the Buddha, Buying the Body of Christ: How the communion wafer arrived in the capitalist marketplace, by Rowan Moore Gerety Why shouldn't it be commercial at the production end? At Mass, it's common now to line up, then stand there as they hand it to us, like a meal at McDonald's. (via Arts & Letters Daily)

Cardinal fan

2012-01-06T14:07:00.000-06:00

An Archdiocese of New York press release says, "His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI has announced that His Excellency the Most Reverend Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of New York, will be elevated to the dignity of Cardinal in a Consistory to be held on February 18, 2012."(via The New York Times) This means yet another new hat.

The 10 Best Books of 2011

2012-01-01T00:00:00.002-06:00

according to The New York Times.

Ten o'clock Midnight Mass averts tragedy

2011-12-25T15:07:00.006-06:00

News of my parish: Overnight fire damages St. Alphonsus Church in Greendale reports Bill Glauber at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "The fire broke out about 12:25 a.m. Sunday inside the church, 5960 W. Loomis Road, according to the Greendale Fire Department. "The state fire marshal's office was at the scene Sunday morning investigating the cause of the fire. The church held a Mass at 10 p.m.

The Cornfields of Academe

2011-12-20T06:00:00.001-06:00

At Iowahawk, "Found! In a dumpster behind Hamburg Inn, the first draft of University of Iowa professor Stephen G. Bloom's anthropology dissertation for Atlantic magazine explaining the bizarre cultural mores of the primative Aborigines who pay his salary."

CAPTCHAs Being Used to Help Digitize Books with Poor OCR Accuracy

2011-12-19T06:00:00.002-06:00

Bonnie Shucha explains at WisBlawg. "CAPTCHAs are those distorted letters that you have to enter after some internet transactions to verify that you're actually a human. "I recently learned that some CAPTCHAs are being used to help digitize old printed material by asking users to decipher scanned words from books that computerized optical character recognition failed to recognize. ..."

A Very Claremont Christmas

2011-12-18T06:00:00.004-06:00

The Claremont Review of Books presents 100 book recommendations, in seven parts.

Oy, you ready for some football?!

2011-12-15T18:00:00.006-06:00

Human Events posts a screen shot by Hoosier Access of the column "My Tim Tebow Problem", by Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, from The Jewish Weekly, December 12, 2011. (via Dad29)

Foolishness and stumbling block

2011-12-15T06:00:00.001-06:00

The Onion, December 6, 2011: In Major Gaffe, Obama Forgets To Dumb It Down Morning Joe, December 12, 2011: Obama Sees Our Democracy As 'Stumbling Block To His Greatness' (via Althouse)

Page-turners

2011-12-11T06:00:00.001-06:00

The Economist on the best books of 2011.

A city for the birds, but in a good way

2011-12-08T06:00:00.002-06:00

News that stolen owl Dakota has been recovered somehow reminded me of childhood tales of Gertie the Duck.

"New rules aim to put kibosh on food fraud"

2011-12-07T06:00:00.009-06:00

Above headline for story by Jason Stein[feld?] in the print edition of today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is kiboshed for online edition.

Punditism

2011-12-06T06:00:00.001-06:00

"Punditism requires that everyone engaged in running for office or writing about policy have crisp, morally clear solutions to all problems at all times. Preferably three point plans." --Mickey Kaus

100 Notable Books of 2011

2011-12-04T06:09:00.000-06:00

Holiday [sic] gift guide from the New York Times book review.

The pleasure of your company

2011-11-21T06:00:00.012-06:00

Today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on political incivility. "Another attempt at bipartisanship has taken root among everyday citizens in the Madison area. "A liberal couple and conservative couple who had been having regular dinners to exchange their views decided in August to invite others. About 70 people showed up at the most recent meeting of what they're calling Reach Out Wisconsin." Our

The Top 10 reasons that Top 10 lists are so popular with journalists, readers

2011-11-18T06:00:00.001-06:00

Mallary Jean Tenore at Poynter

Spelling does not take precedence

2011-11-16T06:00:00.003-06:00

Today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editorial on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act [Obamacare] says "Justices should shut out the political clamor and rule the way logic and precedence [sic] demand - in favor of the law." One of the precedents is a Court of Appeals decision with an opinion by Judge Laurence Silberman."The mandate [for individuals to purchase

A patter of Bourgeois

2011-11-07T06:00:00.014-06:00

Father Roy Bourgeois was in Milwaukee to speak at this year's Call to Action conference, Annysa Johnson reported in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "This year, he received a second 'canonical warning' from the Maryknolls, saying he would be expelled from the order if he did not publicly recant. The move prompted more than 200 priests, including some in Wisconsin, to sign an open letter

Federal hiring proves to be recession-proof

2011-11-06T12:00:00.001-06:00

Tom Curry reports at MSNBC. "While overall payroll employment in the United States has fallen by nearly five percent since the official start of the recession in December 2007, there are 12 percent more federal workers today than there were when the downturn started, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics."and "going back to the Bush presidency, a report from the Congressional Research

Last Round-up

2011-11-01T18:00:00.002-05:00

"Nino's closes its doors after 41 years: Local streak house was last in restaurant chain", Josh Lintereur reports in the Sheboygan Press.

Faith in our future ... investment returns

2011-10-25T06:00:00.018-05:00

The latest from the Archbankruptcy is Milwaukee archdiocese pension funds fall short: Unfunded liabilities total $41.8 million, according to bankruptcy filing, reports Annysa Johnson in today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "the size of the lay workers' pension liability (at $37.4 million) and the funding level of the cemetery workers' pension (55% - with $1.3 million in assets and a $1 million

By Robot

2011-10-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

Pagan Kennedy reports on the rise of computer-generated ebooks in this New York Times article, Do Androids Dream of Electric Authors?

Sounds of silence

2011-10-14T06:00:00.003-05:00

Headlines from this week's Milwaukee Catholic Herald Liturgist, rock ‘n’ roller make music together Pope: Silence, solitude needed in 'agitated, sometimes frantic' world

Weather forecast poker

2011-10-11T06:00:00.007-05:00

T.S. O'Rama with four of a kind. I suppose sunny beats partly sunny, etc., and bets would have to be placed weeks in advance.

Turtle Sunday

2011-10-10T06:00:00.002-05:00

From the Police Report in Franklin Now, September 29, 2011. "Police helped a turtle find its way after a resident of the 2900 block of Drexel Avenue called police at 5:15 p.m. Sept. 25, reporting that the critter was on the sidewalk in front of her home. She was afraid it might make its way to the road. Police caught the turtle and released it at a swamp near South 31st Street."

Looking back at The Sixties, and theirs

2011-10-09T06:00:00.010-05:00

There's now a national organization for old progressive priests. Robert McClory's article in the National Catholic Reporter quotes Fr. David Cooper as saying the new Association of U.S. Catholic Priests was formed to give priests a voice he says they lost due to changes in canon law. In 1983. "Asked why a national association has not emerged before, Cooper said he didn't know." If progressive

Neo-logism

2011-10-01T06:00:00.004-05:00

"In the book-review media and weeklies of opinion, at the beginning of the Fifties, it was the fad to refer to these writers as 'New Conservatives' or 'Neo-Conservatives'-the prefix 'neo' usually implying the contempt of the commentator. Recently, at the end of the Seventies, the epithet 'Neo-Conservative' has been clapped to yet another set of writers and scholars." --Russell Kirk

Bryan damage

2011-09-22T18:00:00.012-05:00

Catholic News Service reports "New York Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan, president of the U.S. bishops' conference, told President Barack Obama in a Sept. 20 letter that his administration's fight against the Defense of Marriage Act will undermine marriage and create a serious breach of church-state relations." What if the administration asks him why their opposing a defense of marriage law is a a

Wedgie

2011-09-15T06:00:00.003-05:00

"'wedge issues' (translation: issues)" --Mickey Kaus

Two large step program

2011-09-13T06:00:00.006-05:00

"[Mel] Gibson, of course, can be a powerful artist when he is sober and going to confession on a regular basis." --Terry Mattingly

Franklin Library Friends annual used book sale

2011-09-06T06:00:00.005-05:00

The Friends of the Franklin Public Library annual used book sale is Friday through Sunday, September 9th through 11th, at the library. Members-only preview Thursday evening (you can become a member on the spot.) Details at Book Sale Finder.

Reading Rat August 2011

2011-08-31T23:59:00.054-05:00

On authors in my recommended reading. Baring the Brain as Well as the Soul: Milan Kundera's The Joke, by Yvonne Howell Polanyi in the United States: Peter Drucker, Karl Polanyi and the Midcentury Critique of Economic Society, by Daniel Immerwahr [pdf] The Lovejovian Roots of

'They Were Truly Idiots'

2011-08-26T06:00:00.001-05:00

Der Spiegel interview with Mikhail Gorbachev (via Arts & Letters Daily)

Greatest Hits of the Sixties

2011-08-24T06:00:00.002-05:00

"'hippie punching.' This is now an accepted way to mock almost any contemporary criticism of unabashed liberals." --Mickey Kaus

Taking a different toll

2011-08-23T06:00:00.003-05:00

Greg Couch explains Chicago's blues over Brewer, Packer rise.

What, never? Well, hardly ever!

2011-08-20T12:29:00.000-05:00

"Genuine ecumenical dialogue can never be fruitful merely through contrasting newspaper articles without personal conversation on a face to face level." says Bishop Richard J. Sklba in this column in our Archdiocesan weekly contrasting his view of Catholic teaching with that expressed by Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod president Rev. Mark G. Schroeder in this Milwaukee Journal Sentinel op-ed.

Venerable beads

2011-08-05T06:00:00.005-05:00

Duane Dudek's recent report on how a Hartford station keeps faith with rosary broadcasts includes a sidelight on the Church's demographic cliff. The broadcasts are produced by Ron Weber of the Holy Name Society at St. Kilian parish. "'When I joined the Holy Name, we'd have 150 members at a breakfast,' said Weber, a retired mason who grew up on a farm in a devout family and lived his entire life

Erie's Trautman gets bobblehead bishop

2011-07-28T06:00:00.003-05:00

Dana Massing reports in the Erie Times-News. "Now Erie Catholic Bishop Donald W. Trautman is among those immortalized in miniature with a bobblehead. "Trautman said the likeness is 'pretty close.'" No indication whether he wished there were a shorter, simpler term for "bobblehead".

A-Rod and D-Grubs

2011-07-25T06:00:00.010-05:00

At the A.V. Club, Matt Wild reports that Aaron Rodgers and David Gruber would like to talk to you about auto insurance. "Yes, the man who took home a Super Bowl XLV ring can now be seen with the man who took home a 2010 'Shepherd Express' Readers’ Choice Award for Best Personal Injury Lawyer."

Antichrist, not that there's anything wrong with that.

2011-07-23T15:37:00.000-05:00

Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod president Rev. Mark G. Schroeder on ecumenism via ignorance, in a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel op-ed. "The WELS position on the anti-Christ has been portrayed as a prominent doctrine in our church. In reality, it is not a topic of daily discussion or a regular theme in Sunday sermons."

Bachmann climbs out of WELS

2011-07-17T12:00:00.002-05:00

Those who cannot remember the past are bound to appear to have slept through Sunday School. Presidential candidate Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), caught unaware in a 2006 debate that the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod professes that the papacy is the anti-Christ, has now left her WELS congregation. Somehow she and the reporters and even the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights

Brown-out

2011-07-15T06:00:00.023-05:00

Anthony Daniels' review of Gordon Brown's memoir in The New Criterion notes approaches you might notice used elsewhere. Regarding his role in the recent financial crisis, "His technique of self-exculpation is to aggregate the predicaments of all countries as if they were the same in all respects. His basic rhetorical strategies, employed consciously or not, are suppressio veri and suggestio

Never lost a fair fight

2011-07-13T06:00:00.002-05:00

The Economist reviewed Among the Truthers: A Journey Through America’s Growing Conspiracist Underground, by Jonathan Kay. "The idea that some shadowy group or other is running things for their own benefit, not that of the ordinary working man, is, after all, the constant solace of the unsuccessful."

Cost comparison in todays dollars STS vs. Saturn V

2011-07-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

Discussion at NASA Spaceflight on the relative cost if the Saturn V had been used for the missions of the Space Shuttle.

Results of Book Sale Finder Survey

2011-07-10T06:00:00.002-05:00

"Book Sale Finder has released the results of its comprehensive survey concerning people who attend or organize charity used book sales in the United States and Canada."

The Church bell curve

2011-07-09T12:04:00.001-05:00

Bill Keller reviews Absolute Monarchs: A History of the Papacy, by John Julius Norwich, in The New York Times. Among 265 popes over almost 2,000 years, "The popes who achieved greatness ... were outnumbered by the corrupt, the inept, the venal, the lecherous, the ruthless, the mediocre and those who didn’t last long enough to make a mark."

High sticking

2011-06-28T06:00:00.001-05:00

The Economist's briefing on The Anthropocene includes discussion of potential sudden disastrous environmental changes from human actvity. "On the other hand, the invocation of poorly defined tipping points is a well worn rhetorical trick for stirring the fears of people unperturbed by current, relatively modest, changes."

Those who have ears, too, here

2011-06-27T06:00:00.003-05:00

The suburban weekly Now newspaper reported on the Greendale Tall Corn Contest. "For those looking for some divine intervention in their favor, [Anne Marie] Pelkofer has this 'tidbit' to add to the mix, courtesy of St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Greendale. "'Father Alan (Jurkus), who is the pastor at St. Alphonsus, stopped by today with holy water in a little Tupperware container, and he said

Very direct democracy

2011-06-25T13:45:00.000-05:00

"The additional transparency added by the Internet is a good thing, limiting insider back scratching and deals done at the expense of constituents. On the other hand, the pressure toward direct democracy, or something very close to it, is likely to build. Is that a good thing? Probably not, unless you think America would do better if it were run more like your condo association." --Glenn Reynolds

What they've been up to in the old country

2011-06-09T06:00:00.002-05:00

Even the Gentiles do as much; more, actually.

2011-06-02T06:00:00.013-05:00

Intimations of a persisting streak of petty vindictiveness in the chancery of our Archbankrupt Archdiocese of Milwaukee run through an article by Annysa Johnson in this morning's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Church abuse victims criticize mediation efforts. For example, "The woman, who repeatedly was molested between the ages of 6 and 11, said she settled in 2004 for $125,000 because the

Reading Rat May 2011

2011-05-31T23:59:00.066-05:00

On authors in my recommended reading. David Mamet Explains His Shift to the Right, by Andrew Goldman Noah Webster, Founding Father, by Jesse Sheidlower, The New York Times, May 27, 2011, review of 'The Forgotten Founding Father: Noah Webster’s Obsession and the Creation of an American Culture', by Joshua Kendall Hume’s ‘False Philosophy’ and the Reflections of Common Life, by Jonathan Allen

Bubble double, double and trouble

2011-05-26T18:00:00.001-05:00

"The buyers think what they're buying will appreciate in value, making them rich in the future. The product grows more and more elaborate, and more and more expensive, but the expense is offset by cheap credit provided by sellers eager to encourage buyers to buy. "Buyers see that everyone else is taking on mounds of debt, and so are more comfortable when they do so themselves; besides, for a

Bipartisanship passing in the night

2011-05-25T18:00:00.005-05:00

"And that is what establishment spokespeople like [David] Brooks always mean when they yearn for 'bipartisanship': wise old men getting together in secret and reaching agreements that exclude democratic debate and render irrelevant genuine differences among the citizenry." --Glenn Greenwald (via Althouse)

Reading a Signe of the times

2011-05-24T06:00:00.002-05:00

(click here to view) Signe Wilkinson Philadelphia Daily News May 23, 2011 EditorialCartoonists.com (via JSOnline) Coming up: Hot Air in Dallas Charter Blamed on Rising CO2 Levels. P.S. Tony Auth on the latest John Jay study. (via SNAP Network)

Archbishop rent his garments?

2011-05-15T18:47:00.004-05:00

Turns out our Archbankrupt Archdiocese of Milwaukee never actually owned its headquarters facility, the Cousins Center, today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. "Jerry Topczewski, chief of staff for Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki and his predecessor Archbishop Timothy Dolan ... concedes there may have been 'imprecise communications' about the Cousins Center." As I recall, he used to be

Ordaining women as retired priests

2011-05-14T14:04:00.002-05:00

Voice Of The Faithful has provided a $10,000 grant to Ruth Kolpack to make a documentary film of her 2009 firing as a pastoral associate from a Catholic parish in the Diocese of Madison, today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Bishop Robert Morlino of Madison dismissed her, it appears, after being convinced of the truth of allegations "that she, among other things, encouraged non-Catholics to

Death before evangelization

2011-05-07T13:38:00.002-05:00

The "aging and dwindling congregation" of Blessed Trinity Church on Milwaukee's north side will soon merge with St. Catherine's, today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Apparently not recognizing that "aging and dwindling" means dying off, "members hope to remain a presence in their current community". Our Archdiocese is assuming this death spiral will continue. "Over time, it is projected

Iowahawk up

2011-05-04T18:00:00.003-05:00

"... today I stand proudly with my new friends of the formerly antiwar left in a mindlessly jingoistic salute to President Obama for an extralegal military assassination well done." --David Burge

Collegiality

2011-04-05T06:00:00.009-05:00

At FailBlog: Headline in Ireland's Sunday Business Post, subsequently changed in in the online version to Bishops agree new rules on sex abuse.

E-readers gaining popularity in the legal community

2011-04-03T06:00:00.002-05:00

This Legal Cents column by Jane Pribek in Wisconsin Law Journal includes my comments on a use I've found for the Kindle I received as a gift a few months back.

"Call a lawyer and Sumi, Sumi..."

2011-03-31T06:00:00.001-05:00

Might there be potential for a Guys and Dolls parody version of recent events in Wisconsin?

Deciders

2011-03-29T06:00:00.005-05:00

"Facing clear evidence of peril, we cannot wait for the final proof -- the smoking gun -- that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud." -President George W. Bush, October 7, 2002 "And as President, I refused to wait for the images of slaughter and mass graves before taking action." -President Obama, March 28, 2011

Bobos in parodies

2011-03-20T12:58:00.000-05:00

University of Chicago alumnus David Brooks selects the best student parodies of his work for the alumni magazine.

US Catholics win rare victories on church closures

2011-03-05T13:02:00.001-06:00

Michael Rubinkam reports at The Daily Caller. Parishioners in the Allentown diocese have persuaded a Vatican panel to overturn their bishop’s decision to close nine churches. ... The Congregation for the Clergy in Rome ruled that the bishop had failed to come up with a “grave reason” for shuttering the churches, as required under Catholic law. ...See Diocese of Allentown closing churches,

Scott-given

2011-03-01T06:00:00.001-06:00

Gerald W. McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, in an op-ed on the budget protests at our State Capitol. The vast crowds are demonstrating their determination to fight for the God-given right of workers to have a voice on the job.It was only weeks ago when Governor Walker's referring to God-given rights seemed controversial, see this earlier post

If that is your real name

2011-02-13T12:59:00.009-06:00

Our pastor passed along reassurance that "The Faith In Our Future Trust is not part of the Archdiocese" and so donors to it need not be concerned about the pending bankruptcy of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. As I recall from law school, a challenge would claim the Trust is, in fact, not independent of the Archbankrupt Archdiocese. On a hunch, I checked the domain registration ("Whois") of the

Reagan remembered

2011-02-05T18:00:00.004-06:00

Speaking of inaugural addresses, Gov. Ronald Reagan's first presidential inaugural address (1981) included the often-incompletely-quoted "In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem."

The past, or 'The Progressive', is another country

2011-01-19T12:00:00.006-06:00

That the political editor of The Progressive thinks government gives us our freedoms reminded me of this from President Kennedy's inaugural address, fifty years ago tomorrow. the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe—the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.

Bears After Luckman: Monsters of the Middling

2011-01-16T15:30:00.004-06:00

While I dig out my Jim McMahon Packer jersey, enjoy this QB retrospective by Mike Tanier in the Chicago edition of today's New York Times. Note: Jay Cutler not mentioned.

The Almighty

2011-01-12T06:00:00.015-06:00

Ruth Conniff, political editor of The Progressive, was Dreading the Scott Walker era in an Isthmus op-ed. Inauguration Day dawned dark and cold. The kids headed back to school, and our born-again Christian governor announced at his prayer breakfast that the Creator, not government, gives us our freedoms. Maybe Gov. Walker was thinking of the Preamble to the Wisconsin Constitution, which he has

The alternative to episcopal testimonial endoscopy

2011-01-08T11:43:00.005-06:00

Archdiocese assets to be put under microscope in Bankruptcy Court, reports today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Annysa Johnson included how various assets claimed not subject to creditors' claims were treated in other diocesan bankruptcies. Trust structures were contested in Portland, Spokane and Wilmington. In Wilmington, the court ruled that millions of dollars in an investment trust held by the

Watch your step

2011-01-07T06:00:00.005-06:00

Milwaukee Catholic Herald Wednesday, 05 January 2011 12:36: The archbishop said that Chapter 11 reorganization is the best way to achieve two goals.Dilbert October 30, 1995

Parish is the word

2011-01-06T06:00:00.013-06:00

In a hearing yesterday, ... [Bankruptcy Judge Susan V.] Kelley cut off one attorney who, while questioning the [Milwaukee] archdiocese's chief financial officer, tried to lay the foundation for an argument that parishes are run by the archdiocese. The line of questioning by attorney Jim Stang appeared to be in response to the archdiocese's assertion Tuesday that the assets of parishes and

No bishops were harmed in the bankrupting of this Archdiocese

2011-01-05T06:00:00.032-06:00

My temptation is to ask how our Archdiocese of Milwaukee can be filing for bankruptcy (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, New York Times) when only weeks ago Bishop Richard Sklba said in the print version of this Catholic Herald interview, "My temptation is to say 'Tell me what we did wrong.' In that time and place. 'Tell me what we did wrong,'" he said.His claim is that our Archdiocese's handling of

Dis-Obey

2011-01-03T06:00:00.006-06:00

The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States provides that "Congress shall make no law ... abridging ... the right of the people ... to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." The political autobiography of Congressman David Obey (D-WI) included his interpretation. when groups come into my office to ask me for something, before we begin to talk, I have them read -

Denis Dutton R.I.P.

2010-12-29T06:00:00.002-06:00

At The Chronicle of Higher Education, Denis Dutton, Founder of ‘Arts & Letters Daily,’ Dies. Jeff Karon commented that "He also was the editor of Philosophy and Literature...". (via Arts & Letters Daily)

Good will hunting

2010-12-23T06:00:00.001-06:00

At Off the Record, Diogenes: "In a live broadcast, Nina Totenberg of National Public Radio revealed that she 'was at--forgive the expression--a Christmas party.' ..." Animadversor: "Miss Totenberg doesn't seem to be in fact apologizing at all, but rather to be mocking the very hesitancy to mention Christmas in a public forum that some here are accusing her

Last minute gift idea

2010-12-21T06:00:00.004-06:00

Last week's Milwaukee Catholic Herald included a special 32 page Bishop Sklba Tribute section. If your Christmas list includes someone who is an admirer of the Bishop, or someone who might be cross-examining him, additional print copies are available for $5.00.

Buried talents in unmarked graves

2010-12-19T12:00:00.017-06:00

Listening to the radio late Friday night while driving home from a distant Christmas party, I heard this BBC Global Business interview, Counting the Not for Profits. Two business school professors discussed the trend toward not-for-profit organizations providing specific information on to what extent they are accomplishing their missions with the money they receive. This would change the current

Archdiocese of Milwaukee loses battle for insurance coverage in abuse cases

2010-11-24T12:00:00.001-06:00

Joe Forward reported at the State Bar of Wisconsin on a decision issued yesterday by the Wisconsin Court of Appeals.

Fraser writes loving ode to Pinter

2010-11-21T02:00:00.005-06:00

"She also catches a wonderful dialogue between Pinter and his friend and literary hero, Samuel Beckett, that ought to resonate with anyone who has seen their plays. After Pinter had gone on some time with a political harangue, he said to Beckett: 'I'm sorry, Sam, if I sound very gloomy.' "Beckett replied, 'Oh, you can't be more gloomy than I am, Harold.'" --Jim Higgins (See Pinter in my

First among equals

2010-11-21T01:00:00.002-06:00

"The Founding Fathers—Jefferson, Adams, Madison, Hamilton, Franklin—have enjoyed a quasi-religious reverence in the United States to which there are few parallels in any other society. Floating above that circle of demigods is Washington, his name revered in a manner that almost transcends the limitations of a properly republican apotheosis." --The Economist (See Washington in my recommended

Declaration sends different message

2010-11-18T06:00:00.004-06:00

I was working on this letter to the editor when I came across my pastor's discussed in the previous post.