Liam Kinnon

“…the Europe of science and technology, the Europe of civilization and culture, must be at the same time a Europe open to transcendence and fraternity with other continents, and open to the living and true God, starting with the living and true man.”
- Benedict XVI
Taken from here: http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/253063/tale-two-europes-george-weigel

“People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.” – George Orwell

Darryl Dash posted that quote on Twitter and it set me to thinking. I am writing this post half a world away from Canada, on a vacation. Right now, another world away, there are Canadians, my age and younger, in a conflict. They are serving their country, for reasons unapparent at times to both them and us. Yet, they are doing us proud.

As I thought about these rough men and strong women I realized something. Their sacrifices, and the sacrifices of their predecessors have allowed an entire generation in the West to grow up not knowing war. I have suffered no privation; I have had no violence seared into my psyche. I am a member of a privileged society. Our privilege is the result of the action of those veterans of wars past, and is maintained by the soldiers of today.

May I never forget what I need not remember; I am no witness to nation against nation, because others carry the sword on my behalf.

I can’t get enough of the latest Dave Matthews Band single.  I’m really looking forward to the new album.  I’m never disappointed when I go to read his lyrics and this line really stuck out to me today.

Funny the way it is how someone’s broken heart becomes your favorite song.

Check out the whole song below.

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned how much I loved the movie Coraline.  The beauty of the stopmotion filming and effects was unmatched in any recent movie.  The way Henry Selick brought this incredible story by my favorite author, Neil Gaiman, to life was amazing to watch.  The 3D experience made it that much more mindblowing.

Anyway, while looking for information on the movie I found this interview with Neil Gaiman and Henry Selick.  It was interesting to read how the whole thing came about.  The interviwer asked Neil Gaiman about how scary the story can be, and Gaiman gave this really insightful answer:

In a good way. Honestly, I believe that you need your bad guy to be bad. You need your monster to be monstrous, you need something for a kid to go up against. Otherwise you’re in that bleak dull Disney Channel fiction in which somebody thinks that they weren’t invited to the birthday party, but at minute 18 they discover it was all a mix-up and they really were and there is not conflict and there is no evil and there’s nothing to fight and there’s nothing to win and nothing was ever at risk and everybody gets to hug! And that’s not what you send people out into the world with! You don’t arm them with that. Arm them with the idea that yes, there are monsters out there, but you can defeat them. In my experience, “Coraline” is so much more scary for adults. Adults are watching a film about a child in danger, kids are watching a film about somebody brave doing something cool.

I love G.K. Chesterton. N.T. Wright referred to him on a video I was watching today when being open minded came up. I searched for the direct quote and found this:

Merely having an open mind is nothing; the object of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it again on something solid.
G.K. Chesterton

Skepticism is a valid intermediary position.  One should be willing to examine evidence, and suspend judgement barring sufficient information.  However, sufficient is the key word here.  If you spend your entire life waiting to be entirely convinced of everything you will get nowhere.  That is the trouble with walking around open-minded; your brains tend to fall out.*

*I realize that last sentence is not original, but I can’t find out who originally said it.

I just read an article talking about Obama making Canada his first international trip as President.

These were two of the top three comments.

Jenson J. Wrote:

WHY? Answer that question first!

From past U.S. attitude and deads the only time the U.S.A. has anything of value and goodness to say about Canada and Canadians is when we are doing what they want or that they want something or want us to do something for them that they feel we won’t be inclined to do for them!

Not counting the past two U.S. Administrations which insulted, trashed, villanized, pinalized and came just close to giving all Canadians the bird out side of those in our Military that have died.

He is not doing this for the U.S. public.

I’m really not sure what this guy was trying to get across, clarity obviously was not his forte.

MSS-CA wrote:

oh_ouch wrote:wrote:
U.S. president-elect Barack Obama plans to travel to Canada because of Prime Minister Harper and the Conservatives. so there!
—–
ONLY the Republicans and Conservatives can have 17 year old daughters pregnant (or 17 year old mothers) and yet speak against sex education. I am sure that Mr. Obama decided to come here because he realized that people who can see Russia from their homes are dumb like Mr. Harper! Easy to deal with neo-conservatives!

Oh… by the way, if a Republican OR a Conservative have a under age daughter who is pregnant, it is gift from god. If a Liberal or a Communist have a under age daughter pregnant, it is bad parenting! ha ha… Mr. Obama is smart to realized that conservatives still believe that that world is flat and the world is center of the universe like the bible says!

Thanks for that MSS-CA.  Somehow Obama coming to Canada can logically flow into calling all conservatives dolts.  That makes sense.

The sad thing is these people probably have blogs where they spew their unintelligible garbage constantly.  And this is why the mainstream media will always have a leg up.  It keeps us from having to read the morons as often as one does blundering around the blogosphere.

Yay!

I’ve never met the guy, but I can’t explain how excited I am to be reading new things from him again.  If you haven’t read him yet you must.  From his latest, on Europe:

Study much, and you’ll see:  A sure sign a culture is finished is when children are viewed in cost/benefit terms, rather than a blessing from God.  And guess what?  Kids usually fail the cost/benefit analysis, when your Volvo is setting you back hundreds of Euros a month.  Plus, they really cramp your Euro-cool lifestyle.

Americans who love Europe, who want to emulate Europe, who admire Europe, need to cram in all the love and admiration quick-like.  Europe doesn’t work.  It’s not going to be around much longer.  This is not my guess, this is the simple math:  They’re not having kids, folks.

No kids, no culture.  And the math — they’re WAY below replacement rate, and have been – is the future.  Last one out, turn off the lights.

This is why I love the guy.  Brilliant analysis, but in other posts he can be bitingly funny.  So now that he is blogging again, I recommend you read him.

I have nothing deep and meaningful so instead I’ll leave you with this, from my friend Matthew’s facebook status on Remembrance Day.

A world that does not honor its heroes does not understand its liberty.

That seems about right.

Love’s Apparition and Evanishment
An Allegoric Romance

Like a lone Arab, Old and Blind,
Some Caravan had left behind,
Who sits beside a ruin’d well,
Where the shy sand-asps bask and swell;
And now he hangs his aged head aslant
And listens for a human sound – in vain!
And now the aid, which Heaven alone can grant,
Upturns his eyeless face from heaven to gain:-
Even thus, in vacant mood, one sultry hour,
Resting my eye upon a drooping plant,
With brow low-bent, within my garden-bower,
I sate upon the couch of camomile;
And-whether ’twas a transient sleep, perchance,
Flitted across the idle brain, the while
I watch’d the sickly calm with aimless scope,
In my own heart; or that, indeed a trance,
Turn’d my eye inward-thee, O genial Hope,
Love’s elder sister! thee did I behold,
Drest as a bridesmaid, but all pale and cold,
With roseless cheek, all pale and cold and dim,
Lie lifeless at my feet!
And then came Love, a sylph in bridal trim,
And stood beside my seat,
She bent and kissed her sister’s lips
As she was wont to do;-
Alas! ’twas but a chilling breath
Woke just enough of life in death
To make hope die anew.

L’Envoy

In vain we supplicate the powers above
There is no resurrection for the love
That, nursed in tenderest care, yet fades away
In the chill’d heart by gradual self-decay.

S.T. Coleridge

I just had the opportunity to see Jean Chretien speak here at St. FX.  I have to be honest, he has what’s missing from Canadian politics these days: Charisma.  He spoke with deftness and humour about his time, not just as Prime Minister, but also in various cabinet positions and as a junior MP.  Though I probably never would have voted for him I can’t help but like him.

Here are some of the things he said tonight that I thought were great.

On Quebec:
“When you have equality you can’t have special status.”

On the arts:
“Artists vote for the Bloc in Quebec and the NDP in Ontario.  Investing in the arts was not a great investment for me, but it was the right thing to do.”

On his longevity in politics:
“My trick was undersell and overperform.”

On Africa:
“Africa doesn’t need charity it needs investment and access to markets.”
“We don’t pay enough attention to Africa.  If we pay more attention to Africa, Africa will have to pay more attention to what it does”