New Year Blessings

Wishing everyone a better, brighter and blessed New Year, filled with true happiness and good health!

God Bless!

Two "Year in Review" Posts...

The first is by the humorous Dave Barry.

The second is by the contemplative Jennifer's.

Enjoy!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Have a Wonderful, Blessed and Joyful Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Adventurous New Year!!!

God Bless all of my readers!

~Trubador

A Brief Christmas Eve Contemplation...

Here in the U.S.A. we have the Declaration of Independence "in order to form a more perfect union."  But God is asking each one of us to sign a "Declaration of Dependence" - dependence on Him, in order to form a more perfect union with Him.

Sometimes we don't feel like having to depend on someone else.  We think that it's not necessary.  We feel ashamed.  Or we feel obligated.  But, in the case of our LORD, the only obligation is to be more like Him (as it was intended before the fall).  He's asking us to be transformed.  And He knows that we can't do that on our own.  Which is why He sent His only Son to show us the Way.

So, when you next look upon the Nativity scene this holiday season take time to contemplate His humble birth, His years of loving ministry, wise teachings, and numerous miracles, His persecution and sacrificial death on the cross, and His glorious resurrection to new life.

And when things are difficult or overwhelming do not be ashamed to depend on Him to get you through the tough times, and to be your companion during the good times as well.  Thank Him for all that He has done for you.

May you and your loved ones experience a truly Merry Christmas, filled with countless blessings.  May your hearts be open to God.  May your lives be transformed.

And, on your heart and soul, sign your "John Hancock" on that Declaration of Dependence on God.

You'll be the better for it.

GOD BLESS!!!

Bill Bennett has a blog...

I had no idea!  Since October, Bill Bennett has maintained a blog.  His radio program airs too early here on the west coast (3-6 AM) for me to hear any of it.  I wish I could.  I'd list Rush Limbaugh, Bill Bennett, Laura Ingraham, and the up-coming Fred Thompson radio programs as the must-listen conservative radio broadcasts.

Other programs such as Hugh Hewitt, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Michael Medved, Mike Gallagher, Bill O'Reilly, Dennis Prager, Mark Levin, Lars Larson, Larry Elder, etc... you have to take with a grain of salt.  Beck is okay, but he overuses his schtick at times.  Hewitt is a political wonk and has a tendency to be party over principles kind of guy, but he can be very insightful.  Mike Savage is an embarrassing joke.

With Rush, Laura, Fred and Bill Bennett you really can't go wrong.

Fred Thompson goes to radio...

On March 2, 2009, when O'Reilly's radio program ends (he's concentrating on his TV program), Fred Thompson will start his own radio program on Westwood One.

iBreviary (Daily Prayers Go 21st Century)

From Vatican City (via Yahoo News)

The Vatican is endorsing new technology that brings the book of daily prayers used by priests straight onto iPhones.

The Vatican's Pontifical Council for Social Communications is embracing the iBreviary, an iTunes application created by a technologically savvy Italian priest, the Rev. Paolo Padrini, and an Italian Web designer.

The application includes the Breviary prayer book — in Italian, English, Spanish, French and Latin and, in the near future, Portuguese and German. Another section includes the prayers of the daily Mass, and a third contains various other prayers.

After a free trial period in which the iBreviary was downloaded approximately 10,000 times in Italy, an official version was released earlier this month, Padrini said.

The application costs euro0.79 ($1.10), while upgrades will be free. Padrini's proceeds are going to charity.

Digital Downloads and the Music Industry...

This'll turn the digital download and DIY portion of the music industry on it's head... again.  From the UK Telegraph (via HotAir... I think... can't seem to find the original link):

More than 10 million of the 13 million music tracks available on the internet failed to sell a single copy last year, a study has found.

It showed that for the online singles market 80 per cent of all revenue came from around 52,000 tracks.

Of the 1.23 million albums available, only 173,000 were bought, meaning 85 per cent did not sell at all.

The study, by Will Page, chief economist of the MCPS-PRS Alliance, a not-for-profit royalty collection society, challenges the idea that niche markets were the key to the future for internet sellers...

[Mr. Page] continued: "There is an eerie similarity between a digital and high-street retailer in terms of what constitutes an efficient inventory and the shape of their respective demand shape of their respective demand curves. I think there's something more going on there: a case of new schools meets old rules."

More Russian Protests...

(via Gateway Pundit)

Protesters took to the streets in several Russian cities in response to an increase in car tariffs.  Police clubbed, kicked and detained dozens at the unauthorized rally.

Click the link (above) for more details, including video.

Meet "Mriga"...

She's currently on layaway, but I hope to have her in my hands by the end of March.  She's Canadian: an Art & Lutherie Acoustic Cutaway Dreadnaught (from one of the Godin companies of guitars), with an Antique Burst Cedar solid top, Wild Cherry sides and back, Silver Leaf Maple neck, Rosewood fingerboard and bridge, semi-gloss custom varnish, Tusq nut and saddle.  No electronics to start (I'll add that later).

I'm hoping to get back to taking lessons again, soon.

Day By Day - Sunday Funnies

Blago and the Obama/Palin MSM Double-Standard...

Ace points to a video of Joe Scarborough (via Hot Air, via Newsbusters) who poses the question as to why the MSM doesn't know if The One was involved in any way with Blago's 2002 campaign, and why the MSM were vociferously digging up any scrap of dirt on Palin in Alaska but weren't doing a fraction of the same journalistic due-diligence in Chicago.

Change-ish!

Introverts vs. Extroverts

Julie the Happy Catholic has a post linking to a "Monday Morning Memo" on the difference between introverts and extroverts.  Very enlightening.

Al Qaeda in Iraq BEFORE the War...

CIA agents have confirmed that Al Qaeda was in Iraq before the U.S. invasion in Spring of 2003.

Did Fitz Delay The Blago Arrest?

Flopping Aces links a story by one source who seems to think this might have been the case, in order to help The One win the election.

Putin (and his puppet) & Kasparov Clash Again...

Like a well-played epic chess match, Putin and Kasparov continue in their real-life strategic maneuvering for the soul of Russia.  A knight moved here, a pawn captured there.  Looks like a few more pawns were captured yesterday:

Police thwarted a banned anti-Kremlin protest in central Moscow on Sunday, seizing dozens of demonstrators and shoving them into trucks.

Organizers said 130 people were detained around the capital but police put the number at 90. The opposition movement headed by fierce Kremlin critic and former chess champion Garry Kasparov said the co-leader of the group was one of those seized.

The Other Russia movement organized the protest, in defiance of a ban, to draw attention to Russia's economic troubles and to protest Kremlin plans to extend the presidential term from four years to six. Critics say the constitutional change as part of a retreat from democracy and is aimed at strengthening the grip of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his allies.

News broadcasts on the main television networks made no mention of the Moscow crackdown or of protests in St. Petersburg and Vladivostok.

More Democratic Corruption (surprise, surprise)...

(From Gateway Pundit, via the Wall Street Journal)

As Gateway Pundit states, "this could be the largest fraud scandal in U.S. history."  This guy's apparently a top Democrat donor.  Read the whole thing here:

Bernard L. Madoff, a former chairman of the Nasdaq Stock Market and a force in Wall Street trading for nearly 50 years, was arrested by federal agents Thursday, a day after his sons turned him in for running what they said their father called "a giant Ponzi scheme."

More Blagobamamania...

Hmmm... seems that The One's administration did indeed meet with Gov. Blagobribery.

And even the Chicago tribune admits that The One is part of the infamous "Chicago Machine".

Change-ish!

The Obligatory Blago Post...

Hmmmmmm... It seems as though The Obomination has some connections to the corrupt and recently arrested Democrat governor of Illinois. Seems also that The One did in fact meet with Blago on November 5 to discuss The One's soon-to-be vacant Senate seat.

Change-ish!


UPDATE: This is getting juicy! A 2-hour conference call with lots of details. And Michelle is now in the mix. (heh-heh-heh)

UPDATE #2: Looks like Rezko is not finished singing, yet. (heh-heh-heh... break out the popcorn, this is gonna be funnnnnnnnnnnnn)

Getting Disappointed With Steele...

Rumors started floating over the last couple weeks that Michael Steele was squishy on abortion and traditional marriage. His membership in the pro-choice heavy Republican Leadership Council (along with the likes of former governors Christie Todd Whitman, Tom Ridge and Sen. John Danforth) doesn't help. Looks like that may just be the case. If this is so, then he's off my list for taking up the RNC chairman's post, and instead I'm supporting Ken Blackwell from Ohio... unless he gets squishy, too.

*SIGH*

UPDATE: Apparently, William Bennett has endorsed Steele for the RNC post... hmmmmmm. Meanwhile, Steve Forbes endorses Blackwell. This is getting verrrrrrry interesting.

A few good links...

CMR posted his "Conservative Manifesto".

And RWN has a post about people who are every bit conservative, but just don't know it.

The Zo chimes in with his own thoughts about conservatism:


Fred Thompson speaks on the state of the economy:


Fox News journalist Chris Wallace lays into those who compare GW Bush with Nixon (re: the new "Frost/Nixon" film).

And, finally, Michelle Malkin has a post (with video) of The Obomination admitting that he was just a "random quote generator" during the campaign. (Change-ish!)

Oil Prices Back to Normal...

The markets closed today with a barrel of crude oil going for $40.81 and the national average for gas @ $1.77/gallon. This is back to December 2004 levels (which is right before things starting going a little fishy with the market manipulations in January of '05).

But we all know that that market can fluctuate again, and OPEC nations like Iran, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, plus the market speculators, as well as the Russia/Georgia/Ukraine situation could very easily bring oil and gas prices back up to obscene highs. Which makes this bit of information about the Democrat-controlled congress and the Obomination Administration very troubling.

On the Liturgical Cycle...

Jen has a wonderful post on the Liturgical Year:

"Probably the closest thing I ever experienced to the liturgical year was simply the change in seasons, but even that was a surprisingly weak structure. After all... celebrating feasts of bountiful harvests or the arrival of fair weather is nothing more than a symbolic gesture now that we have supermarkets that overflow with a surplus of every variety of food every day of the year. Thanks to air conditioners and heaters, winters and summers no longer impact life on anything other than a surface level. And the rhythm of the seasons can fluctuate drastically depending on where you live.

"It wasn't until I began exploring Christianity that I realized how much I craved some sort of kind of anchor for my years, and for life in general."

Read the whole post here.