One more thing today...

I've got a new email address: chris.burgwald -at- gmail -dot- com.

Pathetic

This is from Cindy Sheehan's latest post:

Well, George and I are leaving Crawford today. George is finished playing golf and telling his fables in San Diego , so he will be heading to Louisiana to see the devastation that his environmental policies and his killing policies have caused. Recovery would be easier and much quicker if almost ½ of the three states involved National Guard were not in Iraq. All of the National Guard's equipment is in Iraq also. Plus, with the 2 billion dollars a week that the private contractors are siphoning from our treasury, how are we going to pay for helping our own citizens in Louisiana , Mississippi, and Alabama? And, should I dare say "global warming?" and be branded as a "conspiracy theorist" on top of everything else the reich-wingers say about me.

(Emphasis added.)

There's no justification for this. With every other sane American, I understand her grief about the death of her son. But she's gone well beyond the expression of grief with comments like these (and other nutty things she's said, a la the war in Afghanistan wasn't justified either, this is just about Israel, etc. etc. etc.).

HT: Hugh Hewitt.

Well this is certainly appropriate:

The toughest commentary of the day comes from Germany's Environmental Minister, Jürgen Trittin, a Green Party member, who takes space in the Frankfurter Rundschau, a paper owned by the Social Democrats, to bash US President George W. Bush's environmental laxity. He begins by likening the photos and videos of the hurricane stricken areas to scenes from a Roland Emmerich sci-fi film and insists that global warming and climate change are making it ever more likely that storms and floods will plague America and Europe. "There is only one possible route of action," he writes. "Greenhouse gases have to be radically reduced and it has to happen worldwide. Until now, the US has kept its eyes shut to this emergency. (Americans) make up a mere 4 percent of the population, but are responsible for close to a quarter of emissions." He adds that the average American is responsible for double as much carbon dioxide as the average European. "The Bush government rejects international climate protection goals by insisting that imposing them would negatively impact the American economy. The American president is closing his eyes to the economic and human costs his land and the world economy are suffering under natural catastrophes like Katrina and because of neglected environmental policies." As such, Trittin also calls for a reworking of the Kyoto Protocol -- dubbing it the uncreative title of "Kyoto 2" -- and insisting that the US be included.

I sure hope Angie wins this fall so nuts like this can be replaced.

HT: Drudge.

I knew it was coming as I took the quiz, and I'm pretty happy about it...

You scored as Hermione Granger. You're one intelligent witch, but you have a hard time believing it and require constant reassurance. You are a very supportive friend who would do anything and everything to help her friends out. Hermione Granger 85% Remus Lupin 65% Ron Weasley 60% Albus Dumbledore 55% Harry Potter 45% Draco Malfoy 45% Sirius Black 40% Severus Snape 35% Ginny Weasley 30% Lord Voldemort 5% Your Harry Potter Alter Ego Is...? created with QuizFarm.com

Pork-barrel spending:

" Just remember: if it's someone else's state, it's pork. If it's your state, it's much-needed infrastructure critical to economic and national security."

-- Augustine at Redstate.

Yep. Sadly, it appears that my new senator, John Thune, buys into this logic, in light of his votes for the energy and transportation bills.

Bummer.

A real gem

Somewhere around 1998 I discovered the book The Theology of Joseph Ratzinger by Blackfriars Dominican Fr. Aidan Nichols. It's the best book on the development of Ratzinger's theology I'd ever seen (and have ever seen); unfortunately, it's out of print. Shortly after Ratzinger was elected pope, I went to buy it used via Amazon.com, only to find that it was going to cost me some forty dollars.

Fortunately, the publisher recognize that there just might be a market for the book, and so it was reprinted sometime in the last few months with a new title: The Thought of Benedict XVI: An Introduction to the Theology of Joseph Ratzinger.

Furthermore, Fr. Nichols informs us in a new preface that he will be coming out with a second edition of the text which incorporates the Holy Father's writings since the first edition was published in 1988.

If you're interested in the development of Benedict's theology, this is a must-read.