Friday, March 28, 2008
"and to the person who takes your cloak , do not withhold even your tunic"
Hi all,
Allison just sent me this link to an NPR segment (listen to the audio) - a beautiful example showing that Christ meant the words of the Sermon on the Mount to be taken literally:
"To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount.But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven."
Luke 6:29-36
Allison just sent me this link to an NPR segment (listen to the audio) - a beautiful example showing that Christ meant the words of the Sermon on the Mount to be taken literally:
"To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount.But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven."
Luke 6:29-36
Sunday, March 23, 2008
happy Easter 2
Best to everyone in this wonderful family. If barack Obama can't disown his grandmother then I can't disown young Kenny. Drats!! but neither can any of you disown me. Ha ha..Some family news: Rose has bought a new old house threeblocks from Edward and Missy and Kathy and me. She closed on it last week and her Meriden house is under contract.We had the whole gang here for Easter Breakfast{Tom had to work}.Everyone is healthy and most seem happy. who'd a thunk it.. Happy easter and may this season of repentance and resurrection affect us all and the world around us..
Happy Easter!
I was the only one looking for an Easter basket this morning, which was a first and hopefully a last. It just wasn't the same without Monica gloating because she knows where my basket is before I do. She and Bessie will have much to report after their trip to Rome, I am sure.
Being the only one officially around this holiday has me thinking about how blessed I have been- we all have been- for so many years to have each other. Christ died so that we might continue to have His life in us. Never is that life more evident than when I am surrounded by all the good people in my family, striving in all of our different ways to be better people. So, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all for the inspiration you have provided over the years and to wish you all a very happy Easter!
Being the only one officially around this holiday has me thinking about how blessed I have been- we all have been- for so many years to have each other. Christ died so that we might continue to have His life in us. Never is that life more evident than when I am surrounded by all the good people in my family, striving in all of our different ways to be better people. So, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all for the inspiration you have provided over the years and to wish you all a very happy Easter!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
March Madness--Last Call
Picks for the March Madness pool have to be in by 11 am Eastern Time tomorrow (Thursday).
It goes very quickly as you just click on the teams you want, and they're automatically written in for you. Sweet.
Our kids like saying the names "Xavier" and "Duke", hence, someone in this house is likely to win if Xavier and Duke play well!
Mae is a good Catholic girl and has St. Joseph's going all the way. Unlikely, but it would be quite the upset to have called.
--Maryanne
It goes very quickly as you just click on the teams you want, and they're automatically written in for you. Sweet.
Our kids like saying the names "Xavier" and "Duke", hence, someone in this house is likely to win if Xavier and Duke play well!
Mae is a good Catholic girl and has St. Joseph's going all the way. Unlikely, but it would be quite the upset to have called.
--Maryanne
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Corporate Welfare, continued
For the past 2 years I've been crying wolf on the real estate bubble in the US. It doesn't mean I was right (it's a pretty easy position to say "just wait, something bad is going to happen"), but the subprime market coupled with negative consumer savings showed some serious structural problems with the booming US economy. The house of cards built on this shaky foundation seems to be ready to tumble, and recession seems inevitable. There is hope that the recession may be a brief 8 month hiatus from growth, but there are some scary signs that it could be a long term affair (2 to 3 years).
Personally, I think that the deregulation of financial markets, as well as fed policy helped avoid a more important recession post 2001. The tech-bubble-burst coupled with decreased consumer spending (post-9/11) should have led to a longer, more significant recession in my opinion. The combination of defense spending (or homeland security spending if you prefer - same corporate profits) and the real estate boom helped avoid a more important recession at the time. But in hindsight, it appears that the US economy stepped back from a cliff in order to get a running start as it jumps off now.
The illegal war in Iraq has drained the nation's coffers, so it will be very difficult to fund public works projects that would have the triple benefit of
1) being necessary (how many bridges and levees need significant repairs)
2) strengthening the US economy long term (improved infrastructure adds to both quality of life and productivity gains)
3) creating jobs
The real estate bubble (fuelled in part by sub-prime markets and similar financial shenanigans - which were possible because of lack of oversight and deregulation) has weakened both the financial sector as a whole and the ability of the government to react - both because of real world financial constraints, as well as the current administration's ineptitude.
I will end this post as I ended my last – how much of the potentially huge bailout of the financial sector is going to be carried by the middle class? And here’s a couple of lines that struck a chord with me :
"Never do I want to hear again from my conservative friends about how brilliant capitalists are, how much they deserve their seven-figure salaries and how government should keep its hands off the private economy.
The Wall Street titans have turned into a bunch of welfare clients. They are desperate to be bailed out by government from their own incompetence, and from the deregulatory regime for which they lobbied so hard. They have lost "confidence" in each other, you see, because none of these oh-so-wise captains of the universe have any idea what kinds of devalued securities sit in one another's portfolios.
So they have stopped investing. The biggest, most respected investment firms threaten to come crashing down. You can't have that. It's just fine to make it harder for the average Joe to file for bankruptcy, as did that wretched bankruptcy bill passed by Congress in 2005 at the request of the credit card industry. But the big guys are "too big to fail," because they could bring us all down with them."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/17/AR2008031702154.html
Peace to all
Jeffrey
PS – I created a bracket in the NCAA pool – can someone lend me the $10 cover charge to kick into the pool ?
Personally, I think that the deregulation of financial markets, as well as fed policy helped avoid a more important recession post 2001. The tech-bubble-burst coupled with decreased consumer spending (post-9/11) should have led to a longer, more significant recession in my opinion. The combination of defense spending (or homeland security spending if you prefer - same corporate profits) and the real estate boom helped avoid a more important recession at the time. But in hindsight, it appears that the US economy stepped back from a cliff in order to get a running start as it jumps off now.
The illegal war in Iraq has drained the nation's coffers, so it will be very difficult to fund public works projects that would have the triple benefit of
1) being necessary (how many bridges and levees need significant repairs)
2) strengthening the US economy long term (improved infrastructure adds to both quality of life and productivity gains)
3) creating jobs
The real estate bubble (fuelled in part by sub-prime markets and similar financial shenanigans - which were possible because of lack of oversight and deregulation) has weakened both the financial sector as a whole and the ability of the government to react - both because of real world financial constraints, as well as the current administration's ineptitude.
I will end this post as I ended my last – how much of the potentially huge bailout of the financial sector is going to be carried by the middle class? And here’s a couple of lines that struck a chord with me :
"Never do I want to hear again from my conservative friends about how brilliant capitalists are, how much they deserve their seven-figure salaries and how government should keep its hands off the private economy.
The Wall Street titans have turned into a bunch of welfare clients. They are desperate to be bailed out by government from their own incompetence, and from the deregulatory regime for which they lobbied so hard. They have lost "confidence" in each other, you see, because none of these oh-so-wise captains of the universe have any idea what kinds of devalued securities sit in one another's portfolios.
So they have stopped investing. The biggest, most respected investment firms threaten to come crashing down. You can't have that. It's just fine to make it harder for the average Joe to file for bankruptcy, as did that wretched bankruptcy bill passed by Congress in 2005 at the request of the credit card industry. But the big guys are "too big to fail," because they could bring us all down with them."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/17/AR2008031702154.html
Peace to all
Jeffrey
PS – I created a bracket in the NCAA pool – can someone lend me the $10 cover charge to kick into the pool ?
Monday, March 17, 2008
March Madness
Hopefully you recieved an e-mail regarding an NCAA Basketball Pool. You can sign up through your e-mail, if you didn't get one, let us know.
Mike
Mike
You don't choose your family :-)
I don't want to censure anybody from expressing what they feel like sharing with the family. I think it's possible that certain members of the family are "turned off" by the abortion issue, as it is a rather divisive one, but I'd rather see those posts than none at all !
My two cents on the abortion issue are not grounded in 12th century philosophy or on the church's teachings. I am politically pro-choice, personally pro-life. There is too much suffering in the world for fully developed and previously born "human persons" - I think it's more important for society to focus energy and resources towards these suffering populations rather than the tremendous energy spent trying to save the un-born. (In saying this - don’t think for one second that I don’t acknowledge the “good will” towards the “born” by pro-life proponents in our family – they walk the walk).
I do find that it is an ENORMOUS contradiction that many of same people who oppose the right to an abortion are also against the use of public funds towards preventing unwanted pregnancies. How do they explain that contradiction in law schools? Do they simply deny human sexuality? Must one consider that the spread of disease and the risk of unwanted pregnancy must be the potential punishment for sexual intercourse in order that there is less of it in the world? Wouldn’t somebody who was motivated to eradicate abortions appreciate anything that helped diminish unwanted pregnancies? That’s where I get lost…
I like the “respect of life” argument, but much less the “every sperm is sacred” argument (Monty Python reference)… On one hand there is a claim that the respect of life is secular, and on the other, there is use of non-secular arguments that contribute to more unwanted pregnancies, therefore more abortions (as well as the spread of disease, etc)…
PS - Abstinence only education has never worked, there has never been any evidence that it does (not that many of the current administration’s policies are based on evidence). http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/13/AR2007041301003.html.
Other than that, we had a nice weekend here, how about you?
On a different subject matter, what do you all think of the financial crisis that is brewing ? I am a loyal Paul Krugman reader, I admit that his writing has helped shape many of my opinions (although not everything he writes is gold). When I think of the potential cost taxpayers may have to bear in order to save the financial institutions that pay their managing directors millions upon millions of dollars, and whose shareholders have been living the highlife over the past couple of years, it makes me sick. I can't believe that people are still afraid of the "economic boogeyman" that is comprehensive health coverage, but do not revolt against the real abuses of power and tax dollars such as Iraq and deregulation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/17/opinion/17krugman.html
Peace to all
Jeffrey
My two cents on the abortion issue are not grounded in 12th century philosophy or on the church's teachings. I am politically pro-choice, personally pro-life. There is too much suffering in the world for fully developed and previously born "human persons" - I think it's more important for society to focus energy and resources towards these suffering populations rather than the tremendous energy spent trying to save the un-born. (In saying this - don’t think for one second that I don’t acknowledge the “good will” towards the “born” by pro-life proponents in our family – they walk the walk).
I do find that it is an ENORMOUS contradiction that many of same people who oppose the right to an abortion are also against the use of public funds towards preventing unwanted pregnancies. How do they explain that contradiction in law schools? Do they simply deny human sexuality? Must one consider that the spread of disease and the risk of unwanted pregnancy must be the potential punishment for sexual intercourse in order that there is less of it in the world? Wouldn’t somebody who was motivated to eradicate abortions appreciate anything that helped diminish unwanted pregnancies? That’s where I get lost…
I like the “respect of life” argument, but much less the “every sperm is sacred” argument (Monty Python reference)… On one hand there is a claim that the respect of life is secular, and on the other, there is use of non-secular arguments that contribute to more unwanted pregnancies, therefore more abortions (as well as the spread of disease, etc)…
PS - Abstinence only education has never worked, there has never been any evidence that it does (not that many of the current administration’s policies are based on evidence). http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/13/AR2007041301003.html.
Other than that, we had a nice weekend here, how about you?
On a different subject matter, what do you all think of the financial crisis that is brewing ? I am a loyal Paul Krugman reader, I admit that his writing has helped shape many of my opinions (although not everything he writes is gold). When I think of the potential cost taxpayers may have to bear in order to save the financial institutions that pay their managing directors millions upon millions of dollars, and whose shareholders have been living the highlife over the past couple of years, it makes me sick. I can't believe that people are still afraid of the "economic boogeyman" that is comprehensive health coverage, but do not revolt against the real abuses of power and tax dollars such as Iraq and deregulation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/17/opinion/17krugman.html
Peace to all
Jeffrey
Sunday, March 16, 2008
A call for a new blog
Can we establish 2 blogs: one for discussion on abortion, and one for discussion of all other topics? I can then carefully avoid reading the former and focus on the latter?
Is anyone else in the family growing tired of this particular debate, or am I on the only curmudgeon on this board?
Is anyone else in the family growing tired of this particular debate, or am I on the only curmudgeon on this board?
Ken of Ivyknolls said...
This is from Brother Ken: I certainly agree that our society should be much more family supportive than it is. I note that very recently, China extended its one child policy, which undoubtedly produces many abortions. I would suggest that medical knowledge today, if it were available to Thomas then, would have him not so unsure as to when life began, Also, I question how many people who have abortions do so believing the fetus is not a human. In other words, I think many know what it is but choose to terminate anyway for a variety of reasons-hence the regret and guilt that we are told many suffer.
March 15, 2008 2:26 PM
This is from Brother Ken: I certainly agree that our society should be much more family supportive than it is. I note that very recently, China extended its one child policy, which undoubtedly produces many abortions. I would suggest that medical knowledge today, if it were available to Thomas then, would have him not so unsure as to when life began, Also, I question how many people who have abortions do so believing the fetus is not a human. In other words, I think many know what it is but choose to terminate anyway for a variety of reasons-hence the regret and guilt that we are told many suffer.
March 15, 2008 2:26 PM
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Comment on Uncle Jerry's post
Uncle Jerry - As a law student who gets into these discussions regularly in classes and among my diversely opinionated acquaintances, and someone who reads a lot about the issue in general, I'd agree with my father's clarification about the present-day debate over when life begins.
As my Dad said, mainstream philosophers' understandings and Church teaching on the beginning of life has advanced beyond Aquinas, who wrote in the 1200s when virtually nothing scientific was known about the biological development of the human organism. All they could rely on then was the mother's perception of the "quickening" of the baby to know life had begun. Now, science is very clear on the matter of the beginning of a unique human organism at fertilization, though people continue to debate the moment when human personhood begins. Some, like Peter Singer at Princeton, argue that personhood doesn't begin until an infant matures enough to be able to reason, and thus they can justify infanticide. [ Incidentally, I've heard it said that if we're not persons if we can't exercise reason, and it's justifiable to kill non-persons, human beings ages 14-18 would quickly become an endangered species ... I never would've made it this far...]
It may well be that it's not representative of your position on this, Uncle Jerry, but I'm pretty certain the vocal majority of the pro-choice movement today is not promoting an individual's choice about whether or not to consider the fetus a human being (and presuming the choice to view the fetus as a non-human being, inferring the freedom to choose to "interrupt" its development before it becomes a full-fledged person with human rights warranting societal protection). Rather, faced with incontrovertible scientific evidence about the beginning of human life, the woman's choice that pro-choicers advocate is whether or not to continue to be responsible for the care, before and after birth, of another human being who has imposed physically, emotionally, economically on the woman's life in a way she did not plan.
That's my take on the subject of the controversy. I swear I tried to be objective.
As my Dad said, mainstream philosophers' understandings and Church teaching on the beginning of life has advanced beyond Aquinas, who wrote in the 1200s when virtually nothing scientific was known about the biological development of the human organism. All they could rely on then was the mother's perception of the "quickening" of the baby to know life had begun. Now, science is very clear on the matter of the beginning of a unique human organism at fertilization, though people continue to debate the moment when human personhood begins. Some, like Peter Singer at Princeton, argue that personhood doesn't begin until an infant matures enough to be able to reason, and thus they can justify infanticide. [ Incidentally, I've heard it said that if we're not persons if we can't exercise reason, and it's justifiable to kill non-persons, human beings ages 14-18 would quickly become an endangered species ... I never would've made it this far...]
It may well be that it's not representative of your position on this, Uncle Jerry, but I'm pretty certain the vocal majority of the pro-choice movement today is not promoting an individual's choice about whether or not to consider the fetus a human being (and presuming the choice to view the fetus as a non-human being, inferring the freedom to choose to "interrupt" its development before it becomes a full-fledged person with human rights warranting societal protection). Rather, faced with incontrovertible scientific evidence about the beginning of human life, the woman's choice that pro-choicers advocate is whether or not to continue to be responsible for the care, before and after birth, of another human being who has imposed physically, emotionally, economically on the woman's life in a way she did not plan.
That's my take on the subject of the controversy. I swear I tried to be objective.
not so random thoughts
First, Douglas, my "brain scans"are fine. 9 more days. Second on the abortion front, let me weigh in. I am not sure where and when it was determined theologically or scientifically that the fetus is a human being and that abortion is, therefore, the killing of a human being. In my previous life I used to study these things and I remember that Thomistic theology said that there was no certainty about this question and ,therefore, a correct moral approach was to err on the side of safety and not approve abortion. that was the church teaching for many years and it is one that I have tried to teach to my family while at the same time understanding that others might come to different conclusions and eschewing the criminalization of those decisions by others. Contrary to the letter from the Princeton student, we know from long experience in our country and in others that the criminalization of abortion leads to many horrors affecting most of all the poorest among us who can't purchase the services of private clinics etc. I agree with the need to encourage celibacy for the unmarried,preventions of unwanted pregnancys for everyone, adoption when it is indicated and refusal of abortion by those who believe it is wrong. It is essential that we support women who are pregnant much better than we do, through paid leave from work to nutrition and free health care that doesn't carry the stigma of welfare or charity. my mother tells me that when I was in utero her physician recommended abortion{no cheap jokes here}. She went home to talk to my father about it and he told her the Church said no to that procedure. Good for me and Steve, Doug and Therese, since the reason for the recommendation was that mom already had two caesarians and could not tolerate any more.I am glad Brown[and Mom] decided to abide by the church's teachings and I hope that our family continues to do so. Criminalization of a practice when society is so deeply divided about the fundamental question of whether or not the fetus is a human being strikes me as unwise and unjust.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Constance's ski trip
It's been pointed out to me that my political / current events commentary is appreciated more (although marginally) than my inappropriate joke material for the Brown family blog, so I'll try to stick to that in the future...
Constance, as well as every kid in her grade level at school is skiing this week on a school trip to the Pyrenees. I think it cost us €15 out of pocket, the rest is subsidized by the local and regional government. This is a French tradition, and happens in just about all school districts (I'm sure it may exist in the states some places as well...)
While it's true that a certain % of the kids in Constance's school have been on skiing vacations with their families, it's likely that there are some kids in the class who will see the mountains and the snow for the first time in their lives, and that is something that I personally feel is a good allocation of my taxes. Sure, there is no "return on investment", but I remember the first time I went skiing (thanks to Tina Wileikis, our music / piano teacher), and I will always have fond memories of that first day on the slopes. The area we live in is the poorest region in France (as measured by GDP) and the town we live in has a certain number of people who live pretty much hand to mouth (the hand being the "welfare" state support that they live on). As much as I don't like my taxes allowing people to "choose" whether to work or not ("Well if I work I only make €300 more a month, and that's not enough to make it worthwhile..." is something I have heard people say openly), I do like the fact that the children of these families get to have a one week ski vacation including rentals, lifts and lessons - and everybody in the same boat (or bus, if you would).
That will have to do for now, I hope you are all well, enjoy palm Sunday (that was always one of my favorite masses) as well as your Easter preparations…
Peace,
Jeffrey
Constance, as well as every kid in her grade level at school is skiing this week on a school trip to the Pyrenees. I think it cost us €15 out of pocket, the rest is subsidized by the local and regional government. This is a French tradition, and happens in just about all school districts (I'm sure it may exist in the states some places as well...)
While it's true that a certain % of the kids in Constance's school have been on skiing vacations with their families, it's likely that there are some kids in the class who will see the mountains and the snow for the first time in their lives, and that is something that I personally feel is a good allocation of my taxes. Sure, there is no "return on investment", but I remember the first time I went skiing (thanks to Tina Wileikis, our music / piano teacher), and I will always have fond memories of that first day on the slopes. The area we live in is the poorest region in France (as measured by GDP) and the town we live in has a certain number of people who live pretty much hand to mouth (the hand being the "welfare" state support that they live on). As much as I don't like my taxes allowing people to "choose" whether to work or not ("Well if I work I only make €300 more a month, and that's not enough to make it worthwhile..." is something I have heard people say openly), I do like the fact that the children of these families get to have a one week ski vacation including rentals, lifts and lessons - and everybody in the same boat (or bus, if you would).
That will have to do for now, I hope you are all well, enjoy palm Sunday (that was always one of my favorite masses) as well as your Easter preparations…
Peace,
Jeffrey
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Report from Myrtle Beach
We just returned from a great 4-day weekend at the 4th Annual Brown Family Golf Trip... family members present: Pete and Tom Rubino 2, Jerry Brown 2, John Brown, Steve Brown - the younger, Doug Brown 2, Pat Brown, Brian Meskiell, and myself. Also - some great friends who qualify as honorary Brown family members: Bill, Brendan, Ed, Keith, Jeff, Chris, and Jordan.
We played 4 beautiful courses, and had lots of fun together.
The weather was all over the map! Thursday - 65 and sunny... Friday 62 and very rainy - we got 1 round in... Saturday - extreme wind and cool temps... and Sunday - started out cold and sunny, but warmed up nicely for a great finish!
BIG NEWS - Keith Fowler shot a Hole-in-One on the 17th at Oyster Bay on Sunday - he was in the last group, so when he came into the clubhouse we gave him the Brown Cheer - it was fun to see his excitement and pride. (For those of you who are doubters, Keith was quick to point out that his shot was witnessed by Brendan Higgins - a cop, and by John Brown, a lawyer. INSERT YOUR JOKES HERE:_________________________________).
Missing regulars this year: Jerry 1 - hope you are doing OK with Brain Scans... and Kenny 3 - hope you are healing OK as well.
As for the news - Goodbye, Governor Spitzer... hello Governor Patterson!
As for the recent blogs about abortion that nobody wants to answer - I think that we all want no abortions - but not all of us are on the same page about how to bring it to an end.
Also - Jeff - please send your jokes to me first for approval.
We played 4 beautiful courses, and had lots of fun together.
The weather was all over the map! Thursday - 65 and sunny... Friday 62 and very rainy - we got 1 round in... Saturday - extreme wind and cool temps... and Sunday - started out cold and sunny, but warmed up nicely for a great finish!
BIG NEWS - Keith Fowler shot a Hole-in-One on the 17th at Oyster Bay on Sunday - he was in the last group, so when he came into the clubhouse we gave him the Brown Cheer - it was fun to see his excitement and pride. (For those of you who are doubters, Keith was quick to point out that his shot was witnessed by Brendan Higgins - a cop, and by John Brown, a lawyer. INSERT YOUR JOKES HERE:_________________________________).
Missing regulars this year: Jerry 1 - hope you are doing OK with Brain Scans... and Kenny 3 - hope you are healing OK as well.
As for the news - Goodbye, Governor Spitzer... hello Governor Patterson!
As for the recent blogs about abortion that nobody wants to answer - I think that we all want no abortions - but not all of us are on the same page about how to bring it to an end.
Also - Jeff - please send your jokes to me first for approval.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Time for the "sheriff" to turn in his badge!
Eliot Spitzer was known as the "sheriff of wall street" - I guess that's over. I would also guess that his "pledge of ethics reform" will have to start at home. Too bad for his family, such a disgrace. On the positive side - it may be the end of his extreme abortion bill (S.5829). "This bill would raise abortion to the level of fundamental right, prohibiting any reasonable restrictions; would allow non-physicians to perform abortions... and under the guise of eliminating discrimination, would also endanger the religious liberty of the Chruch" It could force Catholic hospitals, service agencies and schools to cooperate in abortion and other morally objectionable practices at the risk of losing their state-issued licenses. (ECardinalEgan letter 3.6.08) As it is New York State already permits abortion throughout the entire pregnancy - and has the highest abortion rate in the nation. Maybe by the time I finish this blog, Spitzer will have resigned! That's all for now folks!
Weekend update
Hello one and all. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend, nothing all that exciting to talk about here in the south of France, we are still waiting for spring to come around, the weather has been uncharacteristically mediocre...
I just thought I’d drop in a line or two in the interest of keeping people coming back to this blog thing. I took the kids out to see a hockey game Saturday night. We had a great time, although Eleanor fell asleep before the final buzzer. I kind of stood out in the crowd of supporters, since I cheered as much for the good hits as I did for the goals, and Euro-style hockey is much more about puck movement and skills, and less of a contact sport than you’ll see in North America. It’s a nice spectacle all the same, and the local (Montpellier) team won, so we were all happy.
In the interest of moving the discussion towards some lighter fare that we can either all agree or at least agree to disagree on, I’ll share my favorite political joke from last week (courtesy of Jimmy Kimmel) :
(joke edited out of main post and put inthe comments - apparently not an appropriate joke)
Peace to all,
Jeffrey
I just thought I’d drop in a line or two in the interest of keeping people coming back to this blog thing. I took the kids out to see a hockey game Saturday night. We had a great time, although Eleanor fell asleep before the final buzzer. I kind of stood out in the crowd of supporters, since I cheered as much for the good hits as I did for the goals, and Euro-style hockey is much more about puck movement and skills, and less of a contact sport than you’ll see in North America. It’s a nice spectacle all the same, and the local (Montpellier) team won, so we were all happy.
In the interest of moving the discussion towards some lighter fare that we can either all agree or at least agree to disagree on, I’ll share my favorite political joke from last week (courtesy of Jimmy Kimmel) :
(joke edited out of main post and put inthe comments - apparently not an appropriate joke)
Peace to all,
Jeffrey
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Election Results (Test)
This is a test post, but I thought to include a link to something in it:
Link to delegate tracker
Link to "what have the Unions ever done for us?" video (Australian)
And, one joke:
*************************************************
An elderly couple had dinner at another couple's house, and after eating, the wives left the table and went into the kitchen.
The two gentlemen were talking, and one said, "Last night we went out to a new restaurant and it was really great. I would recommend it very highly."
The other man said, "What is the name of the restaurant?"
The first man thought and thought and finally said, "What is the name of that flower you give to someone you love?
You know... The one that's red and has thorns."
"Do you mean a rose?"
"Yes, that's the one," replied the man. He then turned towards the kitchen and yelled, "Rose, what's the name of that restaurant we went to last night?"
-Ed
Link to delegate tracker
Link to "what have the Unions ever done for us?" video (Australian)
And, one joke:
*************************************************
An elderly couple had dinner at another couple's house, and after eating, the wives left the table and went into the kitchen.
The two gentlemen were talking, and one said, "Last night we went out to a new restaurant and it was really great. I would recommend it very highly."
The other man said, "What is the name of the restaurant?"
The first man thought and thought and finally said, "What is the name of that flower you give to someone you love?
You know... The one that's red and has thorns."
"Do you mean a rose?"
"Yes, that's the one," replied the man. He then turned towards the kitchen and yelled, "Rose, what's the name of that restaurant we went to last night?"
-Ed
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Tremendous Brown Legacy
The Letter to Obama is beautiful and well-written...and hopeful. I love the compassion extended to the mothers. So often I think women aren't really left a "choice" at all because they lack support at so many levels. A culture of life would allow every mother to birth her child and offer that child the love of a family--whether that be the biological family or the joyous adoptive family. We have wonderful examples of people within the extended Brown family furthering this culture of life. What a tremendous legacy!
RocknRoll
that was a great day with the family, but as you can see from the photo....You can make me dress up, but you can't make me behave! That's my rock star stance that I have obviously mastered.
Glad to join the blogging ranks!
Well, here we go -I accepted Monica's invitation to join the ranks. I must say that I have already had a few laughs from the blogs. I especially liked the photo, Patrick in particular, at Big Doug's 60th.
Tong Myung
Tong Myong doesn't mean anything. It is the name of the founder of Korea several thousands of years ago. The George Washington, if you will.
I somehow got on.
Dear family, It wasn't easy but for better or worse I am here, blogging away. This should be interesting (and time consuming). Best wishes to all. Ken
open letter to Obama
Hey All -- I'm glad so many of you made the transition to the blog!! All is well in New York, NY - today the weather's in the 50s and I'm delighted. I was afraid that the conversation was losing some of its polemic tone, so I felt it was time to bring up Obama again.
Before the blog distracted me, I was sitting here preparing for my American Legal History class that begins in an hour. Our topic the last two weeks has been post-Civil War Reconstruction and for today I had to read Plessy v. Ferguson. I've read Plessy multiple times since high school for various classes, but it struck me anew to read it in the context of these words written by a student at Princeton I know who had an "open letter to Barack Obama" published online today:
" ... Of course, some do deny that every human being has a right to life. They say that size or degree of development or dependence can make a difference. But the same was once said of color. Some say that abortion is a “necessary evil.” But the same was once said of slavery. Some say that prohibiting abortion would only harm women by driving it underground. But to assume so is truly to play the politics of fear. A compassionate society would never accept these false alternatives. A compassionate society would protect both mother and child, coming to the aid of women in need rather than calling violence against their children the answer to their problems. Can we become a society that does not sacrifice some people to help others? Or is that hope too audacious? You have said that abortion is necessary to protect women’s equality. But surely we can do better. Surely we can build an America where the equality of some is not purchased with the blood of others. Or would that mean too much change from politics as usual? Can we provide every member of the human family equal protection under the law? Your record as a legislator gives a resounding answer: No, we can’t. That is the answer the Confederacy gave the Union, the answer segregationists gave young children, the answer a complacent bus driver once gave a defiant Rosa Parks. But a different answer brought your father from Kenya so many years ago; a different answer brought my family from Egypt some years later. Now is your chance, Senator Obama, to make good on the spontaneous slogan of your campaign, to adopt the more American and more humane answer to the question of whether we can secure liberty and justice for all: Yes, we can. — Sherif Girgis of Dover, Del., is a senior philosophy major at Princeton University and a 2008 Rhodes Scholar.
Before the blog distracted me, I was sitting here preparing for my American Legal History class that begins in an hour. Our topic the last two weeks has been post-Civil War Reconstruction and for today I had to read Plessy v. Ferguson. I've read Plessy multiple times since high school for various classes, but it struck me anew to read it in the context of these words written by a student at Princeton I know who had an "open letter to Barack Obama" published online today:
" ... Of course, some do deny that every human being has a right to life. They say that size or degree of development or dependence can make a difference. But the same was once said of color. Some say that abortion is a “necessary evil.” But the same was once said of slavery. Some say that prohibiting abortion would only harm women by driving it underground. But to assume so is truly to play the politics of fear. A compassionate society would never accept these false alternatives. A compassionate society would protect both mother and child, coming to the aid of women in need rather than calling violence against their children the answer to their problems. Can we become a society that does not sacrifice some people to help others? Or is that hope too audacious? You have said that abortion is necessary to protect women’s equality. But surely we can do better. Surely we can build an America where the equality of some is not purchased with the blood of others. Or would that mean too much change from politics as usual? Can we provide every member of the human family equal protection under the law? Your record as a legislator gives a resounding answer: No, we can’t. That is the answer the Confederacy gave the Union, the answer segregationists gave young children, the answer a complacent bus driver once gave a defiant Rosa Parks. But a different answer brought your father from Kenya so many years ago; a different answer brought my family from Egypt some years later. Now is your chance, Senator Obama, to make good on the spontaneous slogan of your campaign, to adopt the more American and more humane answer to the question of whether we can secure liberty and justice for all: Yes, we can. — Sherif Girgis of Dover, Del., is a senior philosophy major at Princeton University and a 2008 Rhodes Scholar.
Monday, March 3, 2008
The Big Dog turns 60
Douglas Brown, Sr - also known as "The Big Dog" put together his own 60th birthday bash this past weekend. We were a party of 11 (Mom&Dad, Doug&Di, Mel&Rob, Amy&Gene, Pat&Heather, and me and my shadow) and "party" is the appropriate word when this crowd gets together. We started off with some drinks at the Alex Hotel (E45th street), and then made our way over for a matinee of "Rock and Roll" at the Jacobs Theater. If anybody was expecting "Broadway Musical" type "entertainment", they would have been disappointed, but we were treated to an excellent performance of a well written play which mixed some English intellectuals invloved in the Communist party with the Czech "revolution" and the following Soviet repression. The music of the times was the thread throughout the play. I guess my father's love for the music, as well as his love for all things Czech (my mother is Irish/Czech) inspired him to get tickets for this show. I am happy he did, there was a lot of food for thought in the play (plus excellent acting and writing), as well as a good time in general. Pat was especially inspired by the dialogues discussing the different levels of concsiousness and the relativity of truth, as you can see here :
After the play, we went back to the hotel for a cocktail in my parent's suite : here's the view from their suite :
After our cocktail party, we made our way to "Le Perigord", an excellent french restaurant (Big Dog's choice, and a good one!). We had a great meal with lots of great wines before making our way back to the hotel.
It really was an excellent weekend, and I'd just like to give a shout out to Julie and Brian Doyle (and their kids) who looked after Constance for me, which enabled me to partake fully in the Manhattan festivities.
Jeff
Sunday, March 2, 2008
My first blog entry
This is a first ever for me: I've never "blogged" before. I had read about blogs in my alumnae magazine, an article for which I was grateful. It gave a whole who, what, when, where, why and how for blogs so I finally learned (in theory) about them. I've been directed to others' blogs that have shown up in searches, but here I am contributing! I laugh because I was always the kid to ask when my father's watch needed to be set, when the video camera wouldn't work right, when something didn't record on VHS, etc. I was technologically advanced...up to year 2000 when I "retired" from graduate school and had my second baby. It seems a lot has happened in the field since Y2K! The description no longer fits at all!
Jeff, I enjoy your contributions. I got a laugh from the math joke. Like Monica, I'm hoping any and all will post some things (consecutive or not). It makes for fun reading.
As far as random family news, the following comes to mind:
*We enjoyed the baptism and celebration of Andrew Tong Myung Kim last Sunday. Even Kateri and Elizabeth came to NJ from Boston. (Steve and Maura couldn't make it b/c of illness.) The rest of the family was there, and it was a good time. He's a cutie, and it was great party. Sue and Tony were the Godparents. We all gathered around the baptismal font for the pouring of the water. I think the average age of our group must have been around 9 years old, and the average height somewhere around 46 inches. I still don't know what Tong Myung actually means, but Joe and Max have been going around the house saying it. I think they just enjoy the sound. Every now and then I'll hear "Tong Myung, Tong Myung".
I had fun playing "Set" at the party with a few of my kids and some of my nieces and nephews. Anyone with kids ages 5+, this is a great game that's sort of mathematically based. The object is to look for sets that either match or are opposite in shape, shade, count and color. My classmates at Hopkins used to play it obsessively in our student lounge. So it's one of those games an adults can play with children, all try their best and a kid may still win! It also travels well since it's just a special deck of cards. [No, I don't have stock in the company, I just really like the game and thought you might too!]
*Wednesday, March 5, will be the first birthday of my daughter, Teresa Anne. How the year has flown by! I've read it takes a full year to get used to a new family member. We're certainly "used" to her, but I wouldn't quite say the house runs smoothly or anything! It's mostly contained chaos. Teresa doesn't walk yet--all the Harkins have proved to be late walkers--but she's learned to push a large toy truck around the house. She's quite a sight, walking hunched over this monster truck, and she zooms around. It cracks me up that she can't walk on her own but can go so fast and change directions so competently with this truck. She loves it! The other thing she's becoming known for is her growl. She used to say "HI!", but ever since she learned to roar at these new dinosaurs we got, she's gotten her signals crossed. She now growls/roars whenever she's happy. She loves baby dolls and growls (like an angry dog) at them! We haven't heard "Hi" in a long time now.
*We just got back from a week visiting Mike's parents in Colorado. We had a great trip, although traveling with the whole gang wasn't simple. Next time we go, I think we'll try to fly LaGuardia to Denver and drive from Denver to Colorado Springs rather than do LaGuardia to Minneapolis, Minneapolis to Colorado Springs like we did. It had been 3 years since we were there. I enjoy seeing pictures in their house: it's like a big scrapbook of our lives. Whereas most of the pictures we have up at home are only the current ones, his parents have spread the new and the old out throughout the house so we see our wedding pictures, all the babies' pictures and many of the photos we've sent through the years, all on display. The highlight of the trip was our 3 day expedition at Ski Cooper. Everybody skied except Teresa. Little guys learn so quickly on skis not much bigger than my shoes. Jerry and Pete are little madmen and are drawn to any path that goes through trees. We opened the place and closed it down each day, and those two didn't stop except for about a 15 minute lunch. With fresh snow and temps near forty, the conditions were ideal all three days. Mike's parents ski too, and the four adults just alternated watching Teresa in the lodge. Yours truly had a great time and definitely is now nursing the skiing bug! The other trip highlight for the kids was washing the car when we got back from the mountains. As Mike's Dad put it, "It's a half hour job, but with help it takes an hour and a half." Max could barely stand up, he was so gleeful squirting the hose. ...I wouldn't be surprised if their house is still shaking a week after the visit ended! It's used to a lot more quiet than we provided, but I think the grandparents had at least as much fun as the kids.
*This is the first time in several years that Mike isn't toying with a career change. This year he has a new attitude toward teaching Math that's more accepting and positive. He admits to enjoying it more now that he's decided to stay in for the long-haul. I'm delighted and hope it continues. This is his sixth year at Mahopac High; his eighth year teaching in New York.
*Mae is in half-day Kindergarten. She informed us at dinner last night that sometimes when her teacher "doesn't have anything planned for the class", she lets Mae read a book to them. Mae gets to choose the book, and she sits in the teacher's chair while her classmates sit on the carpet. She's read at least 4 books to them to date. I would love to be a fly on that wall!
Duty calls, but I've enjoyed my first blog contribution. If we all do our part, I think this will be a great way to stay in touch with the family.
P.S. I'm sad that we're scheduled to miss the family picnic at Ken and Audra's July 11. That's the date of Mike's 20 year high school reunion, and we're supposed to return to CO for another visit. After 3 years away, we'll go twice in one year. Go figure!
Jeff, I enjoy your contributions. I got a laugh from the math joke. Like Monica, I'm hoping any and all will post some things (consecutive or not). It makes for fun reading.
As far as random family news, the following comes to mind:
*We enjoyed the baptism and celebration of Andrew Tong Myung Kim last Sunday. Even Kateri and Elizabeth came to NJ from Boston. (Steve and Maura couldn't make it b/c of illness.) The rest of the family was there, and it was a good time. He's a cutie, and it was great party. Sue and Tony were the Godparents. We all gathered around the baptismal font for the pouring of the water. I think the average age of our group must have been around 9 years old, and the average height somewhere around 46 inches. I still don't know what Tong Myung actually means, but Joe and Max have been going around the house saying it. I think they just enjoy the sound. Every now and then I'll hear "Tong Myung, Tong Myung".
I had fun playing "Set" at the party with a few of my kids and some of my nieces and nephews. Anyone with kids ages 5+, this is a great game that's sort of mathematically based. The object is to look for sets that either match or are opposite in shape, shade, count and color. My classmates at Hopkins used to play it obsessively in our student lounge. So it's one of those games an adults can play with children, all try their best and a kid may still win! It also travels well since it's just a special deck of cards. [No, I don't have stock in the company, I just really like the game and thought you might too!]
*Wednesday, March 5, will be the first birthday of my daughter, Teresa Anne. How the year has flown by! I've read it takes a full year to get used to a new family member. We're certainly "used" to her, but I wouldn't quite say the house runs smoothly or anything! It's mostly contained chaos. Teresa doesn't walk yet--all the Harkins have proved to be late walkers--but she's learned to push a large toy truck around the house. She's quite a sight, walking hunched over this monster truck, and she zooms around. It cracks me up that she can't walk on her own but can go so fast and change directions so competently with this truck. She loves it! The other thing she's becoming known for is her growl. She used to say "HI!", but ever since she learned to roar at these new dinosaurs we got, she's gotten her signals crossed. She now growls/roars whenever she's happy. She loves baby dolls and growls (like an angry dog) at them! We haven't heard "Hi" in a long time now.
*We just got back from a week visiting Mike's parents in Colorado. We had a great trip, although traveling with the whole gang wasn't simple. Next time we go, I think we'll try to fly LaGuardia to Denver and drive from Denver to Colorado Springs rather than do LaGuardia to Minneapolis, Minneapolis to Colorado Springs like we did. It had been 3 years since we were there. I enjoy seeing pictures in their house: it's like a big scrapbook of our lives. Whereas most of the pictures we have up at home are only the current ones, his parents have spread the new and the old out throughout the house so we see our wedding pictures, all the babies' pictures and many of the photos we've sent through the years, all on display. The highlight of the trip was our 3 day expedition at Ski Cooper. Everybody skied except Teresa. Little guys learn so quickly on skis not much bigger than my shoes. Jerry and Pete are little madmen and are drawn to any path that goes through trees. We opened the place and closed it down each day, and those two didn't stop except for about a 15 minute lunch. With fresh snow and temps near forty, the conditions were ideal all three days. Mike's parents ski too, and the four adults just alternated watching Teresa in the lodge. Yours truly had a great time and definitely is now nursing the skiing bug! The other trip highlight for the kids was washing the car when we got back from the mountains. As Mike's Dad put it, "It's a half hour job, but with help it takes an hour and a half." Max could barely stand up, he was so gleeful squirting the hose. ...I wouldn't be surprised if their house is still shaking a week after the visit ended! It's used to a lot more quiet than we provided, but I think the grandparents had at least as much fun as the kids.
*This is the first time in several years that Mike isn't toying with a career change. This year he has a new attitude toward teaching Math that's more accepting and positive. He admits to enjoying it more now that he's decided to stay in for the long-haul. I'm delighted and hope it continues. This is his sixth year at Mahopac High; his eighth year teaching in New York.
*Mae is in half-day Kindergarten. She informed us at dinner last night that sometimes when her teacher "doesn't have anything planned for the class", she lets Mae read a book to them. Mae gets to choose the book, and she sits in the teacher's chair while her classmates sit on the carpet. She's read at least 4 books to them to date. I would love to be a fly on that wall!
Duty calls, but I've enjoyed my first blog contribution. If we all do our part, I think this will be a great way to stay in touch with the family.
P.S. I'm sad that we're scheduled to miss the family picnic at Ken and Audra's July 11. That's the date of Mike's 20 year high school reunion, and we're supposed to return to CO for another visit. After 3 years away, we'll go twice in one year. Go figure!
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