Our Lady of Guadalupe

Pope John Paul II entrusted the cause of life to her loving protection, and placed under her motherly care the innocent lives of children, especially those who are in danger of not being born.

Duchenne smile

There's a 'social smile' and a Duchenne smile...

FACIAL expressions of emotion are innate...
A genuine - or Duchenne - smile uses more muscles and cause the eyes to twinkle and narrow and the cheeks to rise. The Duchenne smile is named after the 19th-century French neurologist Guillaume Benjamin Amand Duchenne, who discovered that a smile resulting from happiness involved the eyes and the mouth.

Yes, Raul, socialism failed Cuba or

Cuba failed because of socialism, same thing.

As Cuba prepared to officially commemorate 50 years of socialism later Thursday, President Raul Castro declared that socialism had "not failed in any way."

In 1957, Cuban GDP was estimated at $2.8 billion with a population of 7 million. 52 years ago, Philippines estimated GDP was $94,729 with a population of 22 million.
In 2007, Philippines GDP estimate is $300 billion with 7.3% growth rate, a population of 90 million. Meanwhile Cuba's claim of 7.5% GDP growth rate in 2007 is unverifiable. No GDP numbers are available for the population of 11 million. In 50 years span, Cubans increase 60% while Filipinos populate exponentially. That's excluding Filipinos who immigrated and became citizens of other countries like United States, Canada and Australia and numerous religious sojourners all over the world.
Socialism in general and Castro in particular forgets that the source of the nation's wealth and strength are the 'masses'. Without the 'masses', there would be no 'People Power' to overthrow Marcos and Estrada. Pro-life Philippines saved the country from prolong grips of dictators.

Cuba in 1898...

In 1898, Puerto Rico, Cuba and Philippines were mentioned in the same sentence. Cuba was given independence, Philippines and Puerto Rico were tethered to then 45 states of United States of America.
Cuba and independent minded Cubans would have been a good fit as another state of the United States of America, by geography and sentiment at the beginning of 20th century. Industrious, self-reliant and entrepreneurial Cubans.
Same year of Castro's revolution, Alaska and Hawaii joined as states of America. Alaskan and Hawaiian golden anniversary celebration as US citizens will be markedly different as the citizens of socialist Cuba.
Instead Cuba has headlines like this…
Fifty years later, Cubans still are fleeing the revolution

The revolution never met their hopeful expectations, the island they love has slipped into decay, and for many, this week's golden anniversary provides little more than a flashback to traumas, old and new.

Communist Cuba: 50 Years Of Failure

New Year's Day marks 50 years of communist rule in Cuba. The Castro oligarchy will trumpet its survival and celebrate. But the reality, up close, is that it's the longest-running failure in the New World.

Today, Puerto Rico is still tethered to the US not a state. Philippines, wobbly democratic since 1946, had an estimated GDP of $300B in 2007, real growth rate of 7.3%, overly liberal press, overly critical of themselves 90 million strong masses, whose biggest import are dollar remittances and balikbayan boxes from family oriented and charitable Filipino immigrants in the US.
Alaska nurtured a conservative darling, Governor Sarah Palin and Hawaii, an ultra-liberal President–elect. Never would have happen if powers that be in the past did not join US of A.

Celery sticks...

tasteless but the crunchy bite sound she loves...
Nutritional content of a 5" long stalk...

Vitamin A - 76.3 IU
Beta Carotene - 45.9 mcg
Lutein+Zeaxanthin 48.1 mcg
Vitamin C - 0.5 mg
Vitamin K - 5.0 mcg
Niacin - 0.1 mg
Folate - 6.1 mcg

Elephant dance...

or Monkey dance...
so much energy, this two year old. apo#1 short of breath keeping up.

God loved the world so much, he gave his only Son, that all who believe in him might not perish, but might have eternal life. (John 3:16)

night out with apo#1 & favorite daughter...

dinner at Bond 45, pricey Italian restaurant but have the best thin crust pizza margarita outside of that pizzeria in Rome, few blocks from Vatican, then a 8pm show of just as pricey ticket for prime dates at 'Phantom'. Elizabeth Loyacano was Christine. Got some video before the lady with a flashlight shush me out.

Christmas '08

Sit down Christmas08 dinner...

Prayer before meals
Bless us, Oh Lord, and these Thy gifts which we are about to receive from Thy bounty, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Merry Christmas!

Joy to the World!!!

Where have Christmas shoppers gone?

We went to Secaucus outlet looking for driving gloves my first born want for Christmas. The mall was almost empty. Maybe the 20 degree temperature and several inches of still white snow in the ground? But it's two days before Christmas, malls used to be crowded at this time of the year. The line at the post office was not that long either.
I send Christmas cards to family, friends and dtp clients this year. Enclosed some Madonna & Child magnets in clients cards. For decades, I have received and never sent any. I intended to but never got around to buying boxes of Christmas cards until this year.

Kk saw Santa! 12/13/08

first video on Flip...

to be continued...

Orgasmic birth, my foot!

tip from Hotair.com
It's all about pain and reward. Labor pain is intense uterine contractile pain felt from the tip of a woman's hair to the tip of her toenails. When the baby's head and shoulder is out,it is total body pain relief not orgasm. The heavier in weight the baby, the intense the pain of labor and delivery. Sexualization of the birth process to promote a birthing method? Does this help the pro-life movement?

high school seniors...

Today is the day colleges notify online high school seniors if they are accepted as 'early decision'. Apo#1 applied at Columbia but was deferred to regular decisions.

Rev. Hutcherson's First Amendment...

The controversy over the anti-religion sign prompted Rev. Ken Hutcherson, pastor of the Antioch Bible Church in Kirkland, to post a pro-religion sign about 15 feet from where the athiest sign was located. It reads: "There is one God. There is one Devil. There are angels, a heaven and hell. There is more than our natural world. Atheism is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds."

hat tip: headlinebistro.com

Where's the money coming from?

Obama Pledges Massive Public Works Program, New York Times, by Peter Baker
from lucianne.com

Where is the money coming from to fund these 'massive public works program'?
The government can print the paper that money represents. Government does not create the money, just the currency paper on which it is printed.
Adam Smith and Milton Friedman rise up from your grave.
We are screwed...

iPhone blogging

daily reading at a Catholic mass at my other blog - www.lolamely.blogspot.com

The Trojan Horse unloaded already...

from Tulsa Today...hurry read it before someone overload their server.

Obama’s hope, it is now apparent, is for a “globalist” America. And his change, it is now apparent, is the polar opposite of free-market capitalism, a free press, freedoms of religion, assembly, etc., any semblance of respect for the United States Constitution, and, who knows, a resurrection of his revolutionary Marxist black liberation theology to replace the Judeo-Christian tenets upon which our country was founded.
“The most noticeable characteristic of Obama,” says Dr. Kate, in a chilling article entitled The Trojan Candidate, ”is his profound lack of respect for America as shown with his behavior on the flag pin, the failure to observe decorum regarding the national anthem, the fake presidential seal, the printed announcement of his speech in Germany, the upside down flag on the tickets and behind Biden at the Convention, his airplane with painted-over American flag, and his detached and callous appearance at Ground Zero. By this behavior, Obama is mocking America, cheapening its decorum and symbols.”

Ht: lucianne.com
Obama terminate America one baby at a time...

VDH on the future of his beloved California...

from pajamasmedia.com

How close are we to the iron laws of economic correction? Very. When the money runs out and the squeezed taxpayer has no more juice, then we either change or begin to resemble Third-World countries where everyone works for the government; nothing gets done; no one is accountable; the wealthy hide income and live in guarded seclusion; the bemedaled thug in sunglasses promises the turba bread and circuses from the balconey, and the middle class turns to drink—and dreams of once-upon-a-time California.

Tax Holiday!

will be propose by Rep Gohmert, R-Texas...

Gohmert’s tax holiday plan is elegant in its simplicity: every American taxpayer would pay no federal income or FICA taxes for the first 2 months of 2009. For the typical American family -- earning about $50,000 a year -- that would mean they would keep about $2000 that would otherwise be paid to the government.
Gohmert’s plan doesn’t pay for Wall Street bonuses or let banks use bailout money to buy other banks or pay dividends. It doesn’t rely on bureaucrats to pay money out to the right people at the right time or try to stimulate the economy with token payments to people who don’t pay taxes.
Most Americans pay about 25 % of their income in federal income tax and another 7.25 % in FICA (social security and Medicare taxes). Computing how much money Gohmert’s tax holiday would leave in your family’s checkbook is very simple.
Take your monthly income (the gross amount shown on your pay stubs before tax and any other withholding) and multiply it by .66. That amount is roughly what Gohmert’s two-month tax holiday will leave in your pocket.

from HumanEvents.com, Jed Babbin