Priests Playing Poker

The sins associated with playing cards are nothing new. The Synod of 1404 forbade card-playing by the clergy and in 1423 Saint Bernard called for the faithful to go home, get their playing cards and burn them right in the public square outside of Saint Peter's in the Vatican.

I wonder if that ruling against clergy playing cards has ever been rescinded?  Personally I can't ever recall seeing a priest at a poker table. And now I really want a version of Dogs Playing Cards but with priests instead.

Priests Playing Poker

The sins associated with playing cards are nothing new. The Synod of 1404 forbade card-playing by the clergy and in 1423 Saint Bernard called for the faithful to go home, get their playing cards and burn them right in the public square outside of Saint Peter's in the Vatican.

I wonder if that ruling against clergy playing cards has ever been rescinded?  Personally I can't ever recall seeing a priest at a poker table. And now I really want a version of Dogs Playing Cards but with priests instead.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Every week it seems Joe Biden seems to be making the case for being the worst US President in history. Question has to be asked if Merrick Garland has also been week by week making the case to be considered the worst Attorney General in history?

- Watched this interview live on TV. The second part in Spanish was just as entertaining.

- Taxes

- Boston coach Joe Mazzulla on his Catholic faith. Knew the Celtics coach was a staunch Christian but didn't realize he was Catholic. Boston goes for their 18th championship title tonight.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Why I'm Leaving the Cult of Wokeness. (HT Execupundit)

- Tucker Carlson Episode 87 with Cardinal Muller

- Totally believable

- VDH on Gaza - Truths behind all the Lies

Some Memes You May Enjoy

Many a truth is said in jest.

- Now it makes sense.

- What are the odds?

- Heh Heh

- What could go wrong?

William Langland

When the kindness of Constantine gave Holy Church endowments

In kindness and leases, lordships and servants.

The Romans heard an angel cry on high above them,

"This day does eccelesiae has drunk venom

And all who have Peter's power are poisoned forever"

More Linky Links

More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Funny because it's true!

- Good for Worcester! A new Catholic School policy in Worcester's diocese outlines that there's only two genders and proper bathroom use. 

- Saint Thomas (Doubting Thomas) in India. Who knew? The roots of Christianity in India is as old as the roots in Italy.

- Will the Patriots Malik Cunningham be the next Taysom Hill?

Priests Playing Poker

The sins associated with playing cards are nothing new. The Synod of 1404 forbade card-playing by the clergy and in 1423 Saint Bernard called for the faithful to go home, get their playing cards and burn them right in the public square outside of Saint Peter's in the Vatican.

Quotes for Today

Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.

"An investment in knowledge pays the best interest." - Benjamin Franklin

"Let us not postpone anything, let us engage in combats with life each day." - Seneca

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein

"My body is not a temple, it is a Catholic church. Full of wine, bread and guilt." - Helen Ingram

Priests Playing Poker

The sins associated with playing cards are nothing new. The Synod of 1404 forbade card-playing by the clergy and in 1423 Saint Bernard called for the faithful to go home, get their playing cards and burn them right in the public square outside of Saint Peter's in the Vatican.

I wonder if that ruling against clergy playing cards has ever been rescinded?  Personally I can't ever recall seeing a priest at a poker table. And now I really want a version of Dogs Playing Cards but with priests instead.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

I am mentally preparing myself for American hostages and increased loss of life in Afghanistan - where we may have to go back in because of the way the situation was mishandled. I also fully expect that the worst images will be shown by the foreign press as US media tries to downplay any potentially damaging images to the Biden Administration... Reminder that Jacqueline Bisset pretty much single-handedly created the Wet T-Shirt craze in the late 70's early 80's after her appearance in the movie The Deep... Pretty sure I'm not friends with anyone who disagrees with giving Afghan interpreters US citizenship. And also pretty sure I wouldn't want to know anyone who would disagree with that policy... Buying "carbon off-sets" to me always seemed like the modern equivalent of rich Northerners paying for replacements to fight for them in the Civil War. And just as hypocritical... I went to years of Catholic School and we were never told that Saint Peter - the Rock on which Jesus built his church - was married. Wonder why the Catholic Church conveniently forgot that aspect of Peter's life?... 

Quotes for Today

 Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.

"I don't plan to wear a mask for anything after July 4th. If your business requires it, don't expect my money." - Scott Adams

"Let us not postpone anything, let us engage in combats with life each day." - Seneca

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein

"Black holes are where God divided by zero." - Steven Wright

"My body is not a temple, it is a Catholic church. Full of wine, bread and guilt." - Helen Ingram

"When they say trust the science. What they mean is don't ask questions." - Oliver Cantin

"There is no such thing as work-life balance. There is only your life. Spend it on things you care about and find meaningful." - Max Hodak

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

There should be blue colored MAGA hats for Democrats who are sick of the "Progressive" tilt of their party... Reminder that Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez directly help cost tens of thousand of well paying jobs in her District by running off Amazon's plans for a new HQ. She's never paid a political price for that... Even though I no longer attend mass this post resonated with me for many reasons. There's a backlash coming including for the Catholic Church. The idea of a Holy Day of Obligation has gone out the window. And those who don't uphold the lessons of the Saints and Martyrs are not worth listening to...  Really like the idea of stakeholders of public companies holding management responsible for "woke" decisions that negatively effect stock picks. Get a bunch of these CEO's fired and more companies will become less likely to virtue signal at the cost of long-time investors. One can only hope... The last time I attended mass was for my brother's funeral. As a divorced man they technically don't want me and I unequivocally don't want them...  

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Morgan Housel - Best Story Wins

- Christopher Walken in a  live-action version of Puss in Boots. This was a real thing! 

- Spacehey a "reincarnation" of MySpace and a "competitor" to Facebook. Wouldn't be surprised if things like Spacehey become more numerous and popular. Like upgraded message board communities without the exploitative big-brotherism of  Facebook.

-There should be a movie about Dick Tuck. It could end (or begin) with the Watergate break-in.

- "Thou Shalt Not Suffer a Cat to Live." The Catholic Church's forgotten war on cats. (But what about Christopher Walken as a cat?)

Why the Catholic Church is So Against Masturbation

Everyone has trouble talking about sex with their kids. I don't care how cool or hip or how with it you think you are - you are still going to have trouble talking to your kids about sex. 

Even God had trouble talking about sex. Seriously. If you read between the lines in the story of the Garden of Eden - you see how uncomfortable God was in talking about sex. 

Start from the beginning. God made Adam in his image but with one major difference - God was smart whereas Adam didn't know any better because he did not eat from the tree of knowledge - yet. Think about that for a minute. You have a dumb male - a naked male at that - in perfect health just bopping around the Garden of Eden with really nothing to do. Every guy knows what that means. 

Adam must have spent all of his time playing with himself.

There must of been a first time when Adam discovered the hard-on. It was probably morning - a BEMHO (basic early morning hard-on) - not to be confused with a HOFNAR (hard-on for no apparent reason). Can't you picture it? Adam, "Hey what's this?" And of course the first thing he does is to touch it. "Hey it feels pretty good to rub this thing. Hey - this - is - great! Now I know how I'm going to spend my day."

As an aside - God gave Adam the job of naming all the plants and animals. So you know Adam must have also named his newly found best friend. That's why men give their penis a name to this very day. It's a throwback to the Garden of Eden. (I call mine Mr. Happy.)

Now God used to roam the Garden of Eden in those days and you know he must have walked into Adam when Adam was jerking it. 

God, "Whoa - Adam? What are you doing?" 
Adam, "Just rubbing myself God. Hey watch what happens when I go really fast." 
God, "Adam that's fine. That's something you do in private." 
Adam, "Private? What's that? I'm the only one here. I'm in private everywhere I go." 
God, "I really have to do something about this guy."

So that night God took one of Adam's ribs and created woe-man and the Bible tells us that is was so that Adam would not be "lonely" but really it was because God was probably tired of seeing Adam playing with himself all the time. 

Confession

I grew up Catholic and I have to confess that most of my time at mass was spent reviewing the Boston Red Sox roster in my head. First I would try to recall each player on the 25 and 40-man rosters. Then I would start thinking about if certain players at Pawtucket would be upgrades. This would get me to about the time the priest was giving his homily. At that point I was most likely starting to go through next year's free agent class and wondering which of those players would be a good fit in Boston.

When it was time for communion - I would stop thinking about the Red Sox roster and start thinking about which women in the receiving line I would like to have sex with (but that is a different confession).

I am thinking about starting to attend church again. I think it might help with my fantasy baseball skills.

Let's Talk Some Politics

Today's political post is brought to you by the words "Long Memory" and "Values".

1. When it comes to "Long Memory" the Media may have covered for Democrats in both the past and present but other Democrats have a long memory. Bill Clinton is basically radioactive at this point because of his philandering (#MeToo).

Even Barack Obama is not safe with Rep Ilhan Omar going after the 44th President saying he was responsible for the "caging of kids" at the border and who was guilty of drone murder but who got away with it because he was more "polished" than Trump. How long before Obama is heckled on the campaign trail by this new Left? My guess is just once will be enough for him to withdraw into his own world. His supporters will be offended by the way he will be treated and many probably will stay at home on election day 2020.

There's going to be a lot of digging through people's past words and actions. And the "guilty" will be held accountable - because the other candidates (and Russian bots) are going to make sure of that! Elizabeth Warren is toast because this. She just hasn't realized it. When Joe Biden announces look for a long trip down memory lane for Creepy Uncle Joe sponsored by Democrats who remember. This will serve to both tatter the reputations of the current candidates but also the MSM. "Wait that allegation is true - how come this was never reported?"

2. The Democrats don't know what they stand for anymore and some are now going after what used to be core constituents of the Democratic Party. Namely the Jewish and Catholic vote.

The Democrats have had an ant-Israel and anti-Jewish bias for a while but now it's official. President Obama was the most anti-Israel President of my lifetime (even worse than Jimmy Carter). Rep Omar openly makes vile anti-Semetic and anti-Israel comments and the Democratic leaders are powerless to do anything. Their response was literally a joke. And more fodder for President Trump.

The Democrats also showed their true colors towards Catholics during the Kavanaugh conformation hearings. The Knights of Columbus are already under attack. There are 1.7 million Catholics in Wisconsin - almost one-third the total population of the State. Wisconsin was a key to Trump winning the 2016 election. And the Democrats have recognized the importance of the State by announcing it will the the site of their convention. But how will that go over when most of the candidates go on record as both anti-Jew and anti-Catholic? Doesn't sound like a winning strategy to me.

I just can't wait to see what happens when people like Rep Omar go after late-term abortion because the Koran is against it.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Maybe one of the reasons these "new" Democrats are so anti-Israel is that 42-years ago Israel basically switched from socialism to capitalism and that change has made all the difference... "I went to the doctor and told him 'my penis was burning'. He said "that just meant someone is talking about it." - Garry Shandling (one of my favorite quotes)... How to get rich (without getting lucky). You need to revisit this thread from Naval every once and a while... I still think the word "disseminate" should refer to when a man masturbates to climax... Rio de Janeiro means "River of January". I wonder if somewhere there's a Rio de Febrero?... I think the crisis in faith in the Catholic Church stems from the fact that such a big deal is made out of First Communion. Second Communion? Not so much. That's when things start to go off the rails... February 14th could easily be renamed National Shave Your Legs & Pubics Day sponsored by Lady Gillette instead of Valentine's Day and there would be more truth in advertising...

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

In the wake of the Patriots Super Bowl victory many sports journalists were saying this season may have been the best coaching job in Bill Belichick's Hall of Fame career. Yet many of these very same journalists never (including this season) vote for Belichick as NFL Coach of the Year... You seriously have to wonder if the reason the Catholic Church in the US isn't excommunicating politicians who claim to be Catholic yet who also publicly support later term abortion is because the church is afraid those politicians would retaliate by going after the church for protecting pedophile priests... Speaking of the church - oral sex promoted in the Bible!... Still think that a sitcom about All-State's Mayhem guy dating Progressive's crazy girlfriend Flo would be worth watching... "The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself." - Benjamin Franklin... Adolph Hitler's sister in-law was named Bridget. Bridget Hitler. That just sounds funny to me. Like the name of an Irish punk band... 15 years ago today. I wonder if any other athlete from that issue is still active in their sport (never mind still playing at MVP levels)...

A Little Epiphany

This morning over my first cup of coffee I had a little epiphany. I realized that growing up I was a bigoted "left side of the church guy."

Main Street in Worcester runs North and South. The Church I attended growing up, Saint Peter's, was on Main St. "South" (which was also the name for the general section of the city I grew up in - Main South).

There were three doors to the church in the front and doors on either side. Me, my family and I realized this morning pretty much everyone who lived on the west side of Main Street - meaning the Clark University towards Park Ave neighborhoods - not West Side (capitalized meaning the Tatnuck section of Worcester) - we all used the left side front entrance of the church and sat in pews on the left side of the church. If we ever entered through the middle door in front of the church - we generally made our way over to the left side entrance to the church nave or sat on the left side of the center aisle. I can't recall ever entering the church through the right side front door.

The right side of the church? Well that was for the people who lived on the east side of Main Street (not to be confused with Worcester's East Side which is generally considered to be the Shrewsbury St. section of the city). I'm talking about people who live on Kilby St., Gardner St., and Crystal Park. Those neighborhoods. Those people.

The people from Clifton, Florence, and Dewey Streets - well we consciously or unconsciously self-segregated ourselves from those people. We sat on the left side of the church because we looked down on the people who sat on the right side. We lived on the "right" side of Main Street. The "good" side of Main Street. And we stuck together.

It took me 40-years to suddenly come to this realization.

Sure I knew some of the people and families who sat on the right side of the church. I even dated a girl from Crystal Park. But to be honest I think I always felt the people on my side of the church were superior.

Now I wonder how much different and richer my life could have been if I just sat on the right side of the church every once and a while.