Sunday, April 24, 2005

New Living Will

You will need several copies of this Living Will; one for each Senator, one for each member of Congress, your Governor, and two more: one for Bush and the other one for whomever is actually running the country (Dick Cheney? Karl Rove?).

I, _________________________, being of sound mind and body, do not wish to be kept alive indefinitely by artificial means.

Under no circumstances should my fate be put in the hands of peckerwood politicians who couldn't pass ninth-grade biology if their lives depended on it.

If a reasonable amount of time passes and I fail to sit up and ask for a cold beer, it should be presumed that I won't ever get better. When such a determination is reached, I hereby instruct my spouse, children and attending physicians to pull the plug, reel in the tubes and call it a day.

Under no circumstances shall the members of the Legislature enact a special law to keep me on life-support machinery. It is my wish that these boneheads mind their own damn business, and pay attention instead to the health, education and future of the millions of Americans who aren't in a permanent coma.

Under no circumstances shall any politicians butt into this case. I don't care how many fundamentalist votes they're trying to scrounge for their run for the presidency in 2008; it is my wish that they play politics with someone else's life and leave me alone to die in peace.

I couldn't care less if a hundred religious zealots send e-mails to legislators in which they pretend to care about me. I don't know these people, and I certainly haven't authorized them to preach and crusade on my behalf. They should mind their own business, too.

If any of my family goes against my wishes and turns my case into a political cause, I hereby promise to come back from the grave and make his or her existence a living hell.

___________________________________________________________________
Signature

___________________________________________________________________
Witness

http://valoriez.blogspot.com/2005/03/for-gods-sake-let-her-go.html

Morality is always the product of terror; its chains and strait-waistcoats are fashioned by those who dare not trust others, because they dare not trust themselves, to walk in liberty. - Aldous Huxley

Saturday, April 23, 2005

Valorie's Genealogy Message Boards

The up-to-date copy of this post will be maintained at: http://genweblog.blogspot.com/2006/12/valories-genealogy-message-boards.html

Administrator's page: http://boards.rootsweb.com/Default.aspx?view=admin

Localities

Selkirkshire, Scotland: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.britisles.scotland.sel.general/mb.ashx?view=admin
( SCT-Selkirk list: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~valorie/SCT-Selkirk-L.htm )

Dalarna, Sweden: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.scan-balt.sweden.counties.dalarna/mb.ashx?view=admin

Surnames

Clans

Clan Chattan: http://boards.rootsweb.com/topics.ethnic.celtic.scottish.chattan/mb.ashx?view=admin
( Clan-Chattan list: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~valorie/Clan-Chattan-L.htm )

Clan Colquhoun: http://boards.rootsweb.com/topics.ethnic.celtic.scottish.colquhoun/mb.ashx?view=admin
( Clan-Colquhoun list: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~valorie/Clan-Colquhoun-L.htm )

Clan MacBean: http://boards.rootsweb.com/topics.ethnic.celtic.scottish.macbean/mb.ashx?view=admin
( Clan-MacBean list: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~valorie/Clan-MacBean-L.htm )

Clan MacPherson: http://boards.rootsweb.com/topics.ethnic.celtic.scottish.macpherson/mb.ashx?view=admin
( Clan-MacPherson list: http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/intl/SCT/CLAN-MACPHERSON.html )

How to Use the Rootsweb/Ancestry Message Boards

Making Most of Message Boards and Mailing Lists: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20040128.txt - From the RootsWeb Review archives

Meandering Through the Message Boards (locating boards, navigation -- the basics): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020710.txt

Maximizing Searches on Message Boards (using the advanced search feature): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20030108.txt

Message Boards - Utilizing Surname-Specific Searches (searching for those difficult surnames): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20030924.txt

Portals to Success (message board gateway): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020731.txt

Message Board Icons: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020529.txt

Visual Aids on Message Boards (more message board icons): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020814.txt

Where and How to Post on Message Boards: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020904.txt

Effective Message Board Posting: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020911.txt

Message Board Queries (using the Subject, Surname, and Classification fields): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020724.txt

Message Board Attachments: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020605.txt

Message Board Options -- Say It With Pictures (more about attachments): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20030528.txt

Will the Mystery Guest Sign In, Please? (Message Board Registration and Login): http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20040303.txt
(Registration and login are now required to post)

My Genealogy Lists: http://valoriez.blogspot.com/2003/12/valories-genealogy-lists.html

I keep the subject of my inquiry constantly before me, and wait till the first dawning opens gradually, by little and little, into a full and clear light. - Isaac Newton, 1642-1727

Friday, April 22, 2005

Sad Day in Washington State

After 30 years of effort, the Washington Gay Rights Bill is Defeated again. When will the Legislature understand that homosexual citizens deserve equal rights with all other citizens? Sen. Jim Hargrove, a Democrat, said he opposed the measure for religious reasons. "I believe adultery is wrong; I believe sex outside marriage is wrong; I believe homosexuality is wrong," he said. "I cannot give government protection to this behavior." And yet homosexual *behavior* or homosexual *intercourse* had nothing to do with this bill. The legislation would have prohibited discrimination in jobs, housing and insurance. And presumably Hargrove opposes allowing gay persons to marry, and doesn't see the irony in his ignorant statement.

To quote a story on 365gay.com,

Microsoft, Washington state's biggest employer, is accused of bowing to a conservative Christian group and pulling its support for an LGBT civil rights bill, ensuring its defeat. The New York Times has picked up the story - Microsoft Comes Under Fire for Reversal on Gay Rights Bill: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/national/22gay.html

The legislation, which gay rights groups had fought for nearly 30 years to achieve, fell by only one vote yesterday in the state Senate.

Microsoft, one of the first employers in Washington to write LGBT equality into its company policy, and a longtime advocate of the civil rights bill, withdrew its support this year. LGBT activists say the move followed a meeting between the company and the leader of an evangelical church located a stone's throw from Microsoft's Redmond headquarters.

I'm so happy to be able to say that I use no Microsoft products!

According to the Seattle PI, "Minority Leader Bill Finkbeiner, R-Kirkland, took most of the heat yesterday for his no vote." He had previously voted for similar measures. The PI: "Finkbeiner said although he was conflicted about the vote, he didn't think the new law was necessary." "'There's a lot of things that I think are wrong, and we don't have a law against them,' Finkbeiner said. "I don't believe that in any way this vote condones discrimination in any way, shape or form. I still absolutely believe that it's wrong. I still believe that it does happen in some occurrences, but this state is actually pretty progressive and open minded.'"

Finkbeiner is wrong. If the bill was not needed because there is no discrimination taking place against gay people because of their sexual orientation, the bill would not have been introduced. 16 states in the US have similar legislation, along with some cities and towns. All of them were written and passed because there was a need for them.

To write to your Washington state legislators, see: http://www.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx
Write or call them, and express your feelings about this injustice. Equal rights for ALL!

Post Script: This has made me angry enough to look up Equal Rights Washington and join and donate money. http://www.equalrightswashington.org/

Also see: Teen shows wisdom that elders lack: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/jamieson/219935_robert13.html

Now that I've donated some money to fight the injustice in our state, and written a letter to Sen. Finkbeiner, I'm starting to feel a bit better. ERW had a cool link for writing letters to editors of newspapers: http://capwiz.com/wa/dbq/media/. This makes it easy to send up to 5 short letters to newspapers who accept letters by email. Try it!

Equal Rights Washington

A coalition of organizations working to advance equality for the LGBT community in Washington State.
http://www.equalrightswashington.org email: info@equalrightswashington.org
P.O. Box 12216
Seattle, WA 98122
phone 206-324-2570

Morality is simply the attitude we adopt towards people we personally dislike. - Oscar Wilde

Wednesday, April 20, 2005

420

Am I out of touch? I've heard of 420 (or 4:20, 4/20) before ("Stoner's Day"), but at this point, I don't know anybody who is celebrating. I never wanted to use drugs, and by the time I met them, those friends who indulged had mostly stopped. Now that my kids have grown up and moved into Seattle, my links to the dope smokers in the neighborhood are gone. So I'm out of the loop. Sounds like friends of friends of Colin's will be puffing today, but I don't know them. It seems odd to celebrate Adolf Hitler's birthday by lighting up a doobie! But that's just me.

See Snopes.com for more about 420: http://www.snopes.com/language/stories/420.htm

NPR's take on 420 - talk to your kids: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4607795

Marijuana in the Body: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/dope/body/

Science may have found a cure for most evils, but it has found no remedy for the worst of them all: the apathy of human beings. - Helen Keller

Monday, April 18, 2005

Month Names in Germany, France & Switzerland

Etienne Herrbach has kindly given me permission to quote his post to the FRA-ALSACE-L@rootsweb.com:

In German-written records, many forms can be found beside the standard German names resembling the English and French forms. The following table lists the various forms that can be seen more or less frequently in Alsace, but also in Germany and in Switzerland:

Legend: English / French / German; Alsatian (various forms)

January / Janvier / Januar; Jänner (Jenner), Wintermonat, Hartmonat, Hartung, Eismond

February / Février / Februar; Hornung, Taumond, Narrenmond

March / Mars / März; Lenzmond, Lenzmonat, Lenzing, Frühlingsmonat

April / Avril / April; Ostermonat, Ostermond

May / Mai / Mai; Wonnemonat, Weidemonat

June / Juin / Juni; Brachmond, Brachmonat, Rosenmonat

July / Juillet / Juli; Heumonat, Heumond

August / Août / August; Erntemonat, Ernting, Sichelmond, Bisemond

September / Septembre / September; 7ber, Herbstmonat, Herbstmond, Scheiding

October / Octobre / Oktober; 8ber, Weinmonat, Dachsmond

November / Novembre / November; 9ber, Windmonat, Nebelung

December / Décembre / Dezember; Xber, Christmonat, Heiligenmonat, Dustermond

(Note the roots "monat(h)" = month and "mond" = moon -- obvious relationship!)

The short forms (7bre, etc.) were often used in Latin records, too.

As to the French Revolutionary calendar, needless to say that the months did not correspond at all to traditional months; e.g. 1st Vendémiaire = 22 or 23 or 24 September, depending on the year. There are plenty of websites explaining that, and softwares converting dates between the two systems.

Let me just add that in Alsace the revolutionary months were sometimes translated into German-Alsatian names (Brumaire => Nebelmonat, Frimaire => Frostmonat, Nivose => Schneemonat, etc.). Therefore, one must be careful since some translated forms re-used the traditional forms above, e.g. Windmonat = Ventose, but also = November, Erntemonat = Messidor but also August. However, the translated forms of revolutionary months were not used very widely in Alsace; instead, the French names were spelled according to the "Alsatian accent": e.g. Termittor or Dermidor for Thermidor, Brairial for Prairial, etc.

Sources:
- Wolff C., 1975. Guide des recherches généalogiques en Alsace. Editions Oberlin, Strasbourg. [out of print]
- Roll C.R., 1991. Manuel illustré pour la généalogie et l'histoire familiale en Alsace. Le Verger, éditeur, Illkirch. [in process of revision]

Calendars: http://valoriez.blogspot.com/2005/04/calendars.html

We, the unwilling, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, for so long, with so little, we are now qualified to do anything with nothing. - Mother Teresa

Calendars

Old Style and New Style Dates and the change to the Gregorian Calendar: A summary for genealogists: http://www.cree.ie/genuki/dates.htm

10,000-Year Calendar: http://www.calendarhome.com/tyc/

Calendars for the Years 1582-3000: http://www.aaronscollection.com/calendars/temp/

Frequently Asked Questions about Calendars (web pages, pdf, text file): http://www.tondering.dk/claus/calendar.html

Month Names in Germany, France & Switzerland: http://valoriez.blogspot.com/2005/04/month-names-in-germany-france.html

The French Républican Calendar: http://www.napoleon.org/en/essential_napoleon/calendar/index.asp
http://www.gefrance.com/calrep/calen.htm
http://www.francogene.com/search-fr/calrep.php

Roman Numeral Year Dates, A Conversion Guide: http://www2.inetdirect.net/~charta/Roman_numerals.html

The Julian Calendar: http://www.polysyllabic.com/Julian.html

Regnal Chronologies: http://www.hostkingdom.net/regindex.html

Jewish Calendar: http://www.jewfaq.org/calendar.htm

Western-Chinese Calendar Converter: http://www.mandarintools.com/calendar.html

Maya/Aztec Calendar calculators: http://www.diagnosis2012.co.uk/mlink.htm

The Seven-Day Week / Meanings of the Names of the Days: http://www.crowl.org/Lawrence/time/days.html

History of the Months / Meanings of their Names: http://www.crowl.org/Lawrence/time/months.html

History of Calendars: http://astro.nmsu.edu/~lhuber/leaphist.html

Interactive Calendars: http://www.calendarzone.com/Interactive/

Some Unusual Calendars: http://www.theorderoftime.com/cyber/to/time/calendars.html

Cyndi's List Calendars & Dates: http://www.cyndislist.com/calendar.htm

I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires. - Susan B. Anthony

Sunday, April 17, 2005

Narrowness, or Focus?

I woke up thinking about narrowness, and focus. Aren't they the same? I don't think so. Narrowness implies closing oneself off to new experiences, sensations, thoughts and ideas. Focus, on the other hand, implies a GOAL. A person (or even a nation) can be focused on that goal, and still remain liberal, open, generous, curious, and spontaneous.

A narrow person can also be focused, and may even reach the goal faster that way. But will they be able to enjoy the accomplishment? I think there is a reason that we call the classical education "liberal." We used to value curiousity and breadth. Nowadays, it seems that "conservatism" is in style instead. In other words, narrowness. I find that sad, but understandable. People are scared, because of the attacks, and the present administration is trying to stoke and grow that fear.

However, the way to meet challenges is with creativity, not fear! Diversity is a sign of strength in a society, and in systems in general. If we retreat to a Fortress America, we will be under attack from all directions. I hope we regain our liberal stance, and use our creativity, our riches and generosity, our openness and intelligence, to improve the world.

Thus endeth the sermon.

Another fascinating look at this issue (sorta) - Cool to be Dumb: How Being Stupid is Part of the American Way from YGA Magazine: http://www.ygamag.com/pub/pages/editcooldumb.html

Everyone has a talent. What is rare is the courage to nurture it in solitude and to follow the talent to the dark places where it leads. - Erica Jong

Monday, April 11, 2005

Joseph Hansen's Novels

Joseph Hansen deserves his own post. I enjoyed his books so much, and am so sad I found them after his death.

Just finished Fadeout (1972) by Joseph Hansen, recently deceased. Too bad it took me so long to find Dave Brandstetter, bereaved gay insurance investigator. Good twists and turns in Sixties California, and a nice noir ending. Next ordered:
The man everybody was afraid of and Death claims. Finished Death claims (1973) at the cabin. Nice twists and turns. I love how Hansen intertwines the personal life of his Dave B., and the mystery he is trying to solve.

Our power was out for 5 hours today because of a wind storm. I took the opportunity to finish The man everybody was afraid of (1978), my favorite so far. The ending was a bit of a let-down, after the high tension of the main story. But all ends were tied up neatly, I guess. I need to order the next 2 or 3. While I'm waiting for them, I started one of my Christmas books, Diana Gabaldon's Outlander, which is the beginning of a long series of long books. This one is 850 pages (paperback), and there are 7 books so far. It's set in the Highlands of Scotland, near where my McPhails, Macphersons and MacQueens came from, and straddles the world of post-war Britain and 18th-century Scotland. Sex, romance, fantasy, history, heroic deeds AND genealogy -- what's not to like? Finished Outlander tonight, and it was even better than I hoped. On to Hansen's Troublemaker (1975), which I had to ILL. So I got them a bit out of order. Troublemaker was a quick read! And a bit lack-luster, compared to the others. I wish I could have read it in order. Trouble on the horizon for both Dave's father (heart) and his relationship with Doug, and of course the mystery is solved, finally. And naturally, I'm still waiting for Skinflick (1997) too (ILL). sigh.

Next up, Gravedigger (1982). When I finished Gravedigger (it was a short one), I went looking on the Web for more information about Joseph Hansen, and happened onto his blog, http://josephhansen.blogspot.com/. No wonder I love his books -- the man can not only write, but THINK! Gravedigger, by the way, is really good. So exciting, really, I didn't want to put it down. Why does Dave put himself in such danger?

And they just keep getting better and better (and shorter)! Nightwork (1984) might be the best yet. This one involves illegal waste dumping, along with racism, racist gangs, poverty and corporate malfeasance. Romping good story, and I think he and his lover Cecil are finally in a good place. About time for some happiness!

Next, The Little Dog Laughed (1986). This is the most political yet. And it has little to do with gay issues, either, although the hypocricy of the US military about gay soldiers is certainly highlighted. The bad guy is a thinly-disguised Oliver North with his own private army, but once again Dave escapes with his dignity. What wit, what charm! The surprise ending is a laugh -- I can't wait to see where Hansen takes this. Skinflick is in at the library, so I'll be dipping back to the past.

But first, an oldie that Hansen wrote under the nom de plume Rose Brock, Longleaf. Part historical, part romance, part mystery-thriller. What hooked me was Bird's search for her true family, which meant going from her little town in post-Civil War east Tennessee to the mysteries and dangers of New Orleans. What bothered me was a genealogist niggle -- only the *father's* family was inquired into; there was not a search for the marriage record, and thus, Bird's mother's family name. Oh, well! It was a good read. All right, Skinflick. What a great book, and a pivotal part of the series. Not only does Dave confront the sex trade (bodies, books & mags and films), but also the death of his father and loss of his rebound relationship (and his car!). So he has to rely on friends, both personally and professionally. He ends up almost dead, but I think this is the low point, and he survives. Solves the mystery, but his company still has to pay out the money......

Thomas was working on my computer most of the day, so it was fortunate that Early Graves (1987) came in! This is Hansen's first treatment of AIDS, and it's a doozy! Hard to remember the fear and loathing that surrounded HIV and those who were afflicted with it, today. And yet, the fear and loathing continue in some places. I was thinking this was a bit late, but I see that Philadelphia didn't come out until 1993. This was string of murders of gay men, all infected -- and it ended up right on Dave's doorstep. Literally. Dave's life is at risk in so many ways! He survives, though, and Cecil still loves him.

I'm so sad that this series is about to end for me. Dave is getting tired, though. In The Boy Who Was Buried This Morning (1990), he gets on the case just to keep from boredom, sadness, and too much smoking and drinking. Aging is not for the faint of heart! Thank goodness he goes on the job, however, even if he can't save the life of one of the innocents. Hansen takes on the 'haters' - the KKK and their allies. And then buys a restaurant, and retires from the biz for good. I'm glad Hansen gives him in swan song in the last of the series, A Country of Old Men (1991). It will be difficult to bid Dave farewell.

I'm so sad and downhearted. I wish I had read the dozen books more slowly, so I had some left. A Country of Old Men was great, although the most difficult to read. The story begins with a battered and neglected pre-schooler who witnesses - maybe - a murder of a person he knows and trusts. Too much drinking, too many drugs, too many people who hurt those who love them because they crave their substance of choice more than they crave their loved ones. I've seen too much of this in real life. The mystery is nice and tangled and baffling, but the road is winding through sad country, and you know, heading to a sad ending. Bon voyage, dear Dave. I'll think of you often, and you too, Joe Hansen. How odd that I read the ending of this series the day after the death of Johnny Carson, whom Dave (and his father) so closely resembled. Wealthy, humble, reserved, compassionate, attractive. And they both disappeared from public view about the same time. Fare you well, all of you slim smiling men.

A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death. - Albert Einstein

Thursday, April 07, 2005

Open Letter to Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings

Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings
United States Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue South West
Washington DC 20202

Secretary Spellings:

I strenuously disagree with your stand on PBS and the Postcards from Buster episode. Gay issues DO belong in the classroom -- although I cannot see that visiting a household headed by lesbian women can be counted as "raising the issue." Gay and lesbian children are IN our classrooms. Should they have to suffer persecution, bullying, harassment and even rape and murder because of who they are?

NO! And no person should suffer this treatment just because they are out of the mainstream in some way.

Please take a strong stand on behalf of ALL children to be treated with respect, dignity, and safety. Urge all schools to implement strong anti-bullying and anti-harassment policies that explicitly cover gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students.

Sincerely,

Valorie Zimmerman
Robert R. Zimmerman

copies to: Terry Bergeson, Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction
Dr. Barbara Grohe, Superintendent, Kent Public Schools
King County Journal

Press Release: PFLAG Supports Day of Silence

Washington, D.C. - April 7 - Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) strongly supports the students participating in next week's Day of Silence. The Day of Silence, April 13th, is an annual, national student-led effort in which participants take a day-long vow of silence to peacefully bring attention to bullying and harassment faced by gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GBLT) youth and their allies in schools. The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), the organization that coordinates the Day of Silence, anticipates that 450,000 students in all 50 states will participate this year.

The Day of Silence brings attention to a chronic and dangerous problem, as PFLAG's Schools Assessment Survey found earlier this year. The survey, which focused on resources available to students, parents and faculty in schools across the country, found 70% of schools had no training for educators on how to stop GLBT bullying and 92% had no training for students on how to stop GLBT bullying.

"At a time when physical and verbal abuse against GLBT students has become an epidemic, the lack of resources and information to protect our children is shocking," said Jody Huckaby, PFLAG's Executive Director. "The voices of our GLBT young people have long been silenced in our schools and their plight only made worse by institutional indifference."

PFLAG parents, having too often seen their own children suffer physical or verbal abuse, are particularly supportive of the students' efforts on the Day of Silence. Sam Thoron, father of a lesbian and PFLAG's president said, "We know from personal family experience how damaging harassment at school can be. I salute the courageous students participating in the Day of Silence and call on school administrators and educators to stop ignoring these kids and put an end to bullying and abuse."

Day of Silence: How You Can Help

The Day of Silence, a project of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in collaboration with the United States Student Association (USSA), is a student-led day of action where those who support making anti-GLBT bias unacceptable in schools take a day-long vow of silence to recognize and protest the discrimination and harassment -- in effect, the silencing -- experienced by GLBT students and their allies.

How can you help? To support your local schools in participation in the annual Day of Silence, April 13, 2005, find resources at http://www.dayofsilence.org/. Your participation could make a difference in the level of involvement in the community while letting GLBT students know they are not alone. TeachRespect.org also has some PSAs and other resources: http://teachrespect.org/. Contact your local schools, and find out what training teachers and staff are getting to better support LGBT students.

In separateness lies the world's great misery; in compassion lies the world's true strength. - Buddha

Saturday, April 02, 2005

Goodbye to Pope John Paul II

Non-catholic outsider I am, but John Paul's contradictions move me to write about Karol Jozef Wojtyla, 1920-2005 who became the first Polish pope, and the first non-Italian pope for over four hundred years. He is given credit for helping Polish communism crumble, and thus contributed to the eventual end of the USSR. And yet he was a severe critic of modern capitalist society. He was seen to have liberated many from the heavy hand of communism, but severely treated those who advocated liberation in Latin America. He constantly visited the poorest nations in the world, and preached against the causes of poverty and suffering. However, by continuing the church's invectives against birth control and the use of condoms, he condemned more people to poverty and suffering and death from AIDS than perhaps any human in history.

He venerated Mary, and was reportedly very respectful of individual women, but made the rejection of the ordination of women a major part of his papacy, and continued the destructive policy of denying birth control to women. He loved children, and was a strong advocate of priestly celibacy, but made no effort to stop the sexual abuse of children by priests all around the world.

In his treatment of gay persons, Pope John Paul was positively schizophrenic. In his Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons:

Although the particular inclination of the homosexual person is not a sin, it is a more or less strong tendency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil; thus the inclination itself must be seen as an objective disorder. Therefore special concern and pastoral attention should be directed to those who have this condition, lest they be led to believe that the living out of this orientation in homosexual activity is a morally acceptable option. It is not.

Later, in his 2005 book Memory and Identity, John Paul labeled homosexuality an "ideology of evil." And yet -- not a sin!

He was the first pope to visit a mosque or synagogue, or visit modern Israel, even calling the Jewish people "our elder brothers." And he was the first to apologize for the horrifying paralysis of the Roman Catholic Church during the Second World War, when there was no Catholic action to protect Jews. However, he enraged Jews around the world by beatifying a French Jewish Catholic convert. Although he labored to make ties with other religious leaders around the world, he left little ecumenical progress. The Eastern Catholic church accused him of "poaching" their adherants in the newly-opened countries of the former USSR. Talks with the Anglican church were broken off when they began ordaining women.

Although I'm sure he saw no contradiction, the Pope's strong stand against both abortion and capital punishment split American political views neatly in half. And although he met with conservative American leaders such as George Bush, and agreed with him on abortion and some other issues, he spoke strongly against capital punishment, and was seen as one of the world moral leaders against the invasion and occupation of Iraq. He stood against authoritarianism in government, but centralized the Catholic church even more than it was previously. This in contrast to the growing pressure from the Catholic laity for more local control of parishes and dioceses.

Although Africa is the only continent on which the Catholic church is growing, the Pope continued to declare any use of condoms as sinful. Consequently, AIDS is destroying and entire generation of Africans. And in Latin America, where the Church is declining, he punished those who taught the Liberation Theology which was carrying the continent towards social justice and social change. Although there are not enough priests for most parishes, he refused to reconsider the ordination of women or married men.

He began his papacy projecting a young, vital image. He was even a skier! But he ended his reign by exposing his ill-health and increasing weakness to the public more than any world leader in history.

All in all, it will be very interesting to see what the cardinals decide for the future. Can they possibly elect another man with such enormous contradictions to carry the Roman Catholic Church into the 21st century? Will there be a Third Vatican Council to bring the Church closer to world leadership again? The reforms of the Second Council seem very long ago and far away, along the hope those reforms brought to the world. Will the tensions within the Church crack it apart? The contrast between the Church left behind by John Paul II, and that left behind by Pope John XXIII could not be greater. Much beloved Pope? By the size of the crowds, evidently so. But a *great* Pope? Only time will tell.

---

Well, now the RC church has decided to stay on JPII's road, for a while. Ratzinger (now Benedict XVI) cannot live forever, thank goodness! For another view, from a Catholic from Chicago, see the Sun-Times columnist Andrew Greeley's opinions: http://www.suntimes.com/index/greeley.html. He quotes: "'It is wrong to say that the Holy Spirit elects the pope because there have been popes the Holy Spirit would never elect.' Source? Joseph Ratzinger."

He who allows oppression shares the crime. - Erasmus Darwin

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Night, by Elie Wiesel

My first encounter with Wiesel's writing, and this is his first book after liberation from Buchenwald in 1945. This is the darkest book I've ever read. Wiesel starts out as a devout Transylvanian Jew, whose entire existance is a worship of God. This is the last words of Night, after liberation: "I wanted to see myself in a mirror....I had not seen myself since the ghetto. From the depths of the mirror, a corpse gazed back at me. The look in his eyes, as they stared into mine, has never left me."

Wiesel later recovered his humanity, and has become a wonderful education to the world about the Holocaust, and the causes of it, and what we might do to keep this horror from recurring. But in this, his first book, the reader witnesses his total destruction, and the death of his faith, of his very soul.

Fortunately, Wiesel recovered in a French orphanage, and eventually began to write in French. He is now an American citizen, and was the chairman of the President's Commission on the Holocaust where he planned the American memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986. Elie Wiesel and his wife established The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity in 1986. The site says, "Through all its activities, the Foundation seeks to combat indifference, intolerance and injustice." So perhaps Wiesel has recovered his faith, in a way.

I have sworn upon the alter of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man. - Thomas Jefferson

Love is a Rebellious Bird

L'amour est un oiseau rebelle
que nul ne peut apprivoiser...

Love is a rebellious bird
Which none can tame...

L'oiseau que tu croyais surprendre
battit de l'aile et s'envola -
l'amour est loin, tu peux l'attendre;
tu ne l'attends plus, il est là!

The bird you think you've surprised,
Bats its wings and flies away;
Love is far away, and you can wait for it;
Give up waiting, and it is there! - Carmen from Carmen by George Bizet

Sunday, March 27, 2005

This I Believe

A few weeks back, I heard the introduction to the series This I Believe on NPR. I was just going to listen passively, but Colin asked me "what do you believe?" I decided to look at the website, and develop my own statement. This will be a work in progress for awhile. And maybe I'll submit it to NPR, if I'm satisfied with it.

Who has taught me life's lessons? My family, my friends, my husband, and most important, my children. When I wanted to do something that "everyone else was going to do," my mother asked me if I would jump off a bridge just because everyone else did? I did learn to act on my own, and form my own tastes, based not on popular opinion, or even my parents' teachings, but on on my own heart. I'm sure I've made some mistakes this way, but at least they are MY mistakes. My friends didn't always agree with me, and were not afraid to tell me so, either. And they were all loyal people, thoughtful and loving. Thank goodness for all the wonderful friends I've had through the years, even if we have lost touch. Believe me, I think about each of you, often. It was from my friends in La Leche League that I first heard this phrase, "people are more important than things." That phrase snapped my priorities in place, and I have seldom wavered in that. I'm sure our financial position would be better today if I had continued to work, and put my kids in daycare. And perhaps there would have been advantages for all of us in doing that. However, my children have been my most important teachers, and I would have missed many hours of important instruction from them! What little patience, tolerance, and endurance I have, I owe to my children. From my husband, I learned the value of "just doing it." Without fuss or production.

I have found almost all people are potential friends. I believe that we can trust one another, most of the time. I believe that the universe is beneficent. I believe in doing what is necessary, without whining about it. Mumbling under one's breath is OK, however. On the other hand, when the choice is between playing with the children or cleaning the house, I play with the children every time! Those are the times I treasure in memory. And who cares if the windows have smudges? Thank you Donna Trent for that important lesson!

I believe in enlightenment, and in life-long learning. If we all understood one another, we could all get along. I believe in public radio, and in giving them money during the pledge drives. :-)

I believe that the Earth is a living being, and we are all a part of Her. I believe that science is one way to know the nature of reality. I believe that we are not physical beings with a spirit, but instead, spirits having a human experience. So, intuition is a way to test the nature of reality, too. I believe that history is important. If you don't know where you have been, how do you know where you are going? I believe art, drama and music are just as important as reading, writing and arithmetic, and dance is as important as sport. I believe that tears are important, and tears shed in grief are a tribute to those we have lost. I also believe in laughing as much as possible! Thank you all you great comics who puncture the gasbags, and help us laugh even through grief.

I believe in eating when you are hungry, and sleeping when you are tired. I believe in picking up the phone and calling friends just because you think of them. I believe in communication. Three cheers for telephones, email, IRC, instant messaging, and weblogs!

Finally, I believe in freedom and justice for all. As my mother disappeared slowly with Alzheimers, and my dear cousin Carol was defeated by pain and poverty, I saw how our culture treats the old, the sick, the poor. Now that I have the privilege of raising Colin, I see how far we have to go in insuring freedom and justice for all.

Michelle's wonderful Credo: http://pearlbear.typepad.com/michelles_ministry_blog/2005/05/credo_statement.html

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Valorie's Wish List

o front yard landscaped
o solid beeswax candles of all kinds and types
o good dark chocolate
o Parish Records by Ulla Nilsdotter Jeub

Monday, March 21, 2005

For God's Sake, Let Her Go!

Is it torture if she doesn't feel pain? Surely Terri Shiavo's parents would be guilty of torture if she was feeling pain. I know that they love her dearly, but prolonging the life of her poor body long after most of her brain has died is not in her interest. So why have her parents been able to keep this in the courts, even though her husband and the doctors agree that she should be allowed to die peacefully?

Why have we had the shameful experience of the Congress of the United States injecting themselves into the controversy, and even the President? I can only think that it is the power of the so-called Religious Right. Do they really think that Jesus would say, "keep that feeding tube in"?

I feel the agony of Terri Shiavo's spirit every day, imprisoned in that wasted body. A 15-year sentence is long enough. My daily prayer is that Terri Shiavo be allowed to die and be released from bondage.

We don't see things as they are, we see them as *we* are. - Anais Nin

Friday, March 18, 2005

In Memory of Dawn Marie

Gone from My Sight

I am standing upon the seashore.
A ship at my side spreads her white
sails to the morning breeze and starts
for the blue ocean.

She is an object of beauty and strength.
I stand and watch her until at length
she hangs like a speck of white cloud
just where the sea and sky come
to mingle with each other.

Then someone at my side says:
"There, she is gone!"

"Gone where?"

Gone from my sight. That is all.
She is just as large in mast and hull
and spar as she was when she left my side
and she is just as able to bear her
load of living freight to her destined port.
Her diminished size is in me, not in her.

And just at the moment when someone
at my side says: "There, she is gone!"
there are other eyes watching her coming,
and other voices ready to take up the glad
shout;
"Here she comes!"
and that is dying.
- Henry Van Dyke

And see Living How You Want To: http://blog.laubenheimer.net/archives/000042.html

Irish Immigrants to US

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

May you always have work for your hands to do,
May your pockets hold always a coin or two,
May the sun shine bright on your windowpane,
May the hand of a friend always be near you,
And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.
-Irish Blessing

A great new aid to researching Irish immigrants to the USA has come online today, and index to the Missing Friends column that ran in The Boston Pilot, the Roman Catholic newspaper in the city, from 1831 to 1921. For more information see this article at Boston.com: The Irish immigrant past gets tie to today. The database is here: http://infowanted.bc.edu/. More than 31,438 records.

I was determined to achieve the total freedom that our history lessons taught us we were entitled to, no matter what the sacrifice. - Rosa Parks, 1913-

Sunday, March 13, 2005

The 6 Myths Of Creativity

Thought-provoking article on creativity from Fast Company, by Bill Breen. The myths:

1. Creativity Comes From Creative Types - when in reality, we all have the capacity for creativity.

2. Money Is a Creativity Motivator - not having to worry about money sets people's creativily free.

3. Time Pressure Fuels Creativity - pressure flushes creativily *out*. "Creativity requires an incubation period; people need time to soak in a problem and let the ideas bubble up."

4. Fear Forces Breakthroughs - Rather, "creativity is positively associated with joy and love and negatively associated with anger, fear, and anxiety."

5. Competition Beats Collaboration - "The most creative teams are those that have the confidence to share and debate ideas."

6. A Streamlined Organization Is a Creative Organization - Instead, "anticipation of the downsizing was even worse than the downsizing itself -- people's fear of the unknown led them to basically disengage from the work."

To sum up, "when people are doing work that they love and they're allowed to deeply engage in it -- and when the work itself is valued and recognized -- then creativity will flourish. Even in tough times." See the entire article: http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/89/creativity.html

Thanks for the link, SunirShah on Meatball.

Approach each new problem not with a view of finding what you hope will be there, but to get the truth, the realities that must be grappled with. You may not like what you find. In that case you are entitled to try to change it. But do not deceive yourself as to what you do find to be the facts of the situation. - Bernard M. Baruch

Friday, March 11, 2005

1880 US Census Free to Search at Ancestry

The up-to-date version of this post will be maintained at http://genweblog.blogspot.com/2006/07/1880-us-census-free-to-search-at.html

Interesting article today in the the Ancestry newsletter -

BEYOND THE INDEX: "MORE 1880 CENSUS SEARCH OPTIONS," by Michael John Neill
===================================================================

We have looked at the 1880 census search interface at Ancestry.com in the past. This week we revisit the search interface, which now offers researchers eighteen fields upon which to search. The variety of search options allows researchers to potentially locate undiscovered family members. However, the increased number of search options requires the researcher to be organized and systematic. This week we look at some strategies I used in my attempts to locate two of my ancestors' lost siblings in the 1880 census.

Note: The 1880 Census Index at Ancestry.com is free and use of the database does not require a paying membership. Access to images of the census is available for a subscription fee.

The entire article is available at http://www.ancestry.com/rd/prodredir.asp?sourceid=831&key=A973201

It is truly wonderful when you can find the object of your search with a few basic techniques. Some cases are more difficult, and Neill's systematic approach is one way to find the person using online indexes of all sorts. Jan Nutter Alpert asks, in her article More Tips From Ancestry.com From The NGS Winter Warm Up Recently In
Phoenix in the NGS UpFront Vol. 4, No. 3, 1 February 2005, "Did you know that if you go to the 1880 Census search page, you can enter your surname with an occupation and see where your ancestors lived who had the same occupation?" [I would qualify that to say "persons who shared surname and occupation"] She adds,

Did you know you can save the results of your searches on Ancestry.com by using the "MyAncestry" link? Why is this helpful? If you need to look at the census again, you just click on the name under "MyAncestry" and everything you have saved for that ancestor is there. Even though I make a paper copy of the census, it is easier to "zoom in" to analyze difficult handwriting online. Also when you want to take another look at the census page to see if other relatives live nearby, you can find the prior census page more easily. Since the conference I have also used the email feature to forward these new census pages to others who are researching the same family. Once you have entered an ancestor in MyAncestry you can enter the birth and/or death data you have and launch future searches from here, saving the time of having to enter the same data for each search.

Obstacles cannot crush me. Every obstacle yields to stern resolve. He who is fixed to a star does not change his mind. - Leonardo da Vinci, 1452-1519

Bebo, and ReminderAnywhere.com

Normally I'm not a fan of this sorta stuff, but Bebo.com is easy, fun, useful. I can see a family using it, or a group of friends. There are three parts; the addressbook, the pictures, and the journal. The photos and journal can be made public, like mine at http://valoriez.bebo.com (no photos yet, sorry!). Anyone you want to share your contact info, pix and comments with, you simply invite to the site. Once they respond and enter their contact info, you are asked by the site to confirm that this is indeed the person you want to share info with. Only once you confirm is your information and pictures available to the person you invited. A great way to ensure that everyone has up-to-date addresses, phone numbers, plus the ease of uploading the pictures and responding to them is just great.

A much more one-purpose site I've recently run across is the brand new ReminderAnywhere.com site: http://www.reminderanywhere.com. If you ever have trouble remembering birthdays and appointments, this site is for you. It will email you reminders of unique events such as appointments and meetings, and annual events such as birthdays and anniversaries. You can label each event in any way you like, and schedule up to 3 reminder emails for each event. You can request family and friends to enter their dates for you through the site, or you can set it up yourself. Free, of course, and so far, free of ads also.

I have tried out other web services, and always end up not continuing to use them, for one reason or another. Bebo and ReminderAnywhere are two I think I'll stick with.

If you could sell your experience for what it cost, you would never need Social Security. - Ben Berger