"The Global Consciousness Project, also known as the EGG Project, is an international multidisciplinary collaboration of scientists, engineers, artists and others continuously collecting data from a global network of physical random number generators located in 65 host sites worldwide. The archive contains over 10 years of random data in parallel sequences of synchronized 200-bit trials every second."
Jesuits have a history as reformers, and are considered the “brains” of the Catholic church, insofar as academics, particularly higher education, medicine, law, and science, is important to them. In fact, it was a Jesuit priest, Father Georges Lemaître, a Belgian Catholic priest, theoretical physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and professor of physics at the Catholic University of Louvain, in Belgium — the Université Catholique de Louvain, from where he earned Docteur en Sciences in 1920, and in 1927, earned the Ph.D. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology — who first came up with the expanding universe theory, years ahead of Edwin Hubble, who later confirmed Lemaître’s work, rather than originating it, as some mistakenly believe. Another magnificent scientific achievement, now considered the scientific standard, is the “Big Bang” theory of the origin of the universe, was also originally proposed by Fr. Lemaître. Additionally, he also served as an artillery officer in WWI. When afterward he began academic pursuits, he studied at the renown University of Cambridge, where he later became a researcher, and an associate researcher at Harvard, and MIT. So, he was definitely no slouch in numerous ways.
But Pope Francis…
The interview was wide-ranging, and covered numerous topics of concern to all, not just to the religious, or to Catholics, which included bishops accused of sexual abuse of children, and adults, and their complicity in those criminal activities, as well as public perception of the church’s lack of concern about spousal/domestic partner abuse.
Toward the conclusion of the interview, Pope Francis was asked about his thoughts on the Russia/Ukraine matter, and made the following remarks.
Editor’s Note: On Nov. 22, 2022, five representatives of America Media interviewed Pope Francis at his residence at Santa Marta at the Vatican. Matt Malone, S.J., the departing editor in chief of America, was joined by Sam Sawyer, S.J., the incoming editor in chief; executive editor Kerry Weber; Gerard O’Connell, America’s Vatican correspondent; and Gloria Purvis, host of “The Gloria Purvis Podcast.” They discussed a wide range of topics with the pope, including polarization in the U.S. church, racism, the war in Ukraine, the Vatican’s relations with China and church teaching on the ordination of women. The interview was conducted in Spanish with the assistance of a translator, Elisabetta Piqué. A transcript of the Spanish text can be found here.
Here is the full transcript of that portion of the interview.
Gerard O’Connell: Holy Father, about Ukraine: Many in the United States have been confused by your seeming unwillingness to directly criticize Russia for its aggression against Ukraine, preferring instead to speak more generally of the need for an end to war, an end to mercenary activity rather than Russian attacks, and to the traffic in arms. How would you explain your position on this war to Ukrainians, or Americans and others who support Ukraine?
Pope Francis: When I speak about Ukraine, I speak of a people who are martyred. If you have a martyred people, you have someone who martyrs them. When I speak about Ukraine, I speak about the cruelty because I have much information about the cruelty of the troops that come in. Generally, the cruelest are perhaps those who are of Russia but are not of the Russian tradition, such as the Chechens, the Buryati and so on. Certainly, the one who invades is the Russian state. This is very clear. Sometimes I try not to specify so as not to offend and rather, condemn in general, although it is well known whom I am condemning. It is not necessary that I put a name and surname.
On the second day of the war, I went to the Russian embassy [to the Holy See], an unusual gesture because the pope never goes to an embassy. And there I said to the ambassador to tell [Vladimir] Putin that I was willing to Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Tuesday, March 1, 2022
The global scourge of the COVID-19 pandemic is almost over and we’ve made at least 6 million holes in the ground around the world to bury the dead or distribute their ashes while we falsely lionize grocery store clerks as “frontline heroes” along with the Nurses and Physicians who for 2 years have consistently and almost helplessly watched over the almost-surreal accumulation of the deaths of deniers and vaccine refuseniks, climate change is slowly-but-surely devastating our globe, floating islands like flotsam and jetsam flotillas of plastic trash larger than the state of Texas continue killing ocean life, so-called indestructible “forever chemicals” course through the veins of the unborn and the living, the wealthy along with their corporations and minions chronically pay no income taxes thereby placing the burden of funding governmental operations on the working man, cops nationwide kill our dark-skinned brothers at liberty, insane men with massive caches of military weaponry kill worshipers along with school children and other bystanders in public while GOP politicians enact laws making purchasing such deadly firearms much easier, inflation is at a 40-year high, GOPers are doing their damnedest to deny voting and other civil rights to non-WASPs and return America to the bad old days of Jim Crow, while yet other GOPers attend White Supremacist rallies as honored guests and praise Russian thug Vladimir Putin who has invaded Ukraine to commit war crimes, Volodymyr Zelenskiy a former comedian who is Ukraine’s Jewish President is standing firm along with his people who have remained to resist and fight those terrorists, and tonight, American President Joe Biden will give his first State of the Union address to a joint session of an almost recalcitrant do-nothing Congress which deadlocked Senate remains stalemated and immobilized as if frozen stiff though still living and breathing.
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Tuesday, September 15, 2020
Not to worry.
It’s just another episode of the Trump Surreality Show.
You haven’t missed anything.
“We say enough to our conflict, after years of not fighting each other, finally we’ll bring calm to Dubai’s surrounding areas,” the Netanyahu character sarcastically begins.
The opening line derided the fact that the so-called “peace deal” was in fact between two countries who had never been at war.
“Unlike Begin, I didn’t compromise on anything,” the Israeli figure continues, referring to former Prime Minister Menachem Begin signing a peace treaty with Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in 1979.
If you really want to know what people think about their politics, and (mis)leaders, look at their humor.
So, here’s what Israelis think about the not-really-a-peace deal the Carnival Barker in Chief manipulated today.
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Sunday, August 30, 2020
Selma-to-Montgomery Civil Rights march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, Selma, AL, on “Bloody Sunday,” March 7, 1965
By now, if you pay any attention to any news from anywhere – radio, teevee, Internet, etc. – you’ve heard the disheartening news of a 17-year-old young man from Antioch, Illinois who has been accused of shooting and killing 2 individuals who were apparently no threat to him, and seriously wounding a third – 26-year old Gaige Grosskreutz – in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
There are numerous videos of Kyle Rittenhouse, seen throughout the events wearing a green short-sleeved tee-shirt, sporting a baseball-style cap turned backwards, and brandishing an AR-15 type assault rifle as he cavorted in the streets of Kenosha concurrent with the events unfolding after law enforcement authorities there shot Jacob Blake 7 times in the back at arm’s length range.
U.S. Representative John Lewis (1940-2020) (D-GA,5) stands in front of the Edmund Pettus Bridge, Selma, Alabama – a pivotal site for the Civil Rights Movement.
Jacob Blake was an apparently unarmed 29-year old Black man, and father of three young children, aged 8, 5, and 3, who sat in the car and watched the tragedy unfold, as their father was Tazed, then shot 7 times in the back with a pistol – paralyzed from the waist down as a consequence – by a 7-year veteran law enforcement Officer Rusten Sheskey, a White man.
Young Mr. Rittenhouse, who will be tried as an adult under Wisconsin state law, is described as Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Wednesday, June 19, 2019
A “rabbit ears” television antenna sat atop television sets to receive television broadcast signals.
Would you pay to watch advertising?
If you have cable teevee, or satellite service, you do.
I dare say most folks are unaware that television signals still come over the airwaves – even digital ones – can STILL be received with Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Sunday, May 13, 2018
Peace is possible only when truth is readily available. This is why Pope Francis has dedicated this World Communications Day to a reflection on the polarizing effect of fake news. False information creates and fuels division, bleeding its consequences into both personal and group behaviors. By contrast, a “journalism of peace” promotes Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Saturday, August 12, 2017
As I awakened this morning, in my mind, I was hearing the refrains of this gentle song… “Going up home to live in green pastures, Where we shall live and die nevermore. Even the Lord will Be in that number when we shall reach that Heavenly Shore.”
Troubles and trials
Often betray us
Tempting the wearing
Body to stray
But we shall all meet
‘Side the still waters
With the Good Shepherd
Leading the way
Those who have strayed were
Sought by the Master
He who once gave His
Life for the sheep
Out on the mountain
Now He is searching
Bringing them in
Forever to keep
Going up home to
Live in green pastures
Where we shall live and
Die nevermore
Even the Lord will
Be in that number
When we shall reach that
Heavenly Shore
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Saturday, August 12, 2017
Widowed young (age 28) and suddenly, Jane Frances de Chantal (1572-1641) faced a difficult life raising her six children alone. Then she chanced to hear Francis de Sales preach and became his lifelong friend. She was taken by the notion that “all God wants is our heart,” and her writings are centered on the two facets of love: devotion to God and neighbor. She was Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Friday, August 11, 2017
In a November 18, 2015 interview with Tavis Smiley, singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman talked about her forthcoming “Greatest Hits” album and the remastering of her songs for it, and said in part about that process that, “Often turning the volume up means compression. And when you compress things, it’s great in a way because it’s louder, but it also takes the dynamics out. So we were really careful because, when you start to do that too much, you lose all of those little low and high moments, and a lot of those things matter in the sparse arrangements that, you know, are represented on some of these songs.”
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Sunday, July 9, 2017
We Americans are proud of our work ethic — perhaps too proud. We tend to value our work and busyness so much that we forget how to be still enough to hear Heaven’s quiet voice. We need Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Saturday, June 28, 2014
“How much is enough?” is a qood question to ask many folks, especially some among the Wall $treet crowd.
And to be certain, the two principles of “the worker is worthy of their hire,” and “You must not muzzle an ox to keep it from eating as it treads out the grain” are equally compelling ethics.
As those two ethics concern our nation’s economy, we can point to times in history where various nations suffered revolution, and the most common causes of revolution.
Just remember this: Food, Clothing, Shelter. If you can’t get them with what you have, you’ll fight, kill, go to war, or civil insurrection, to obtain the basic necessities of life.
Memo: From Nick Hanauer
To: My Fellow Zillionaires
You probably don’t know me, but like you I am one of those .01%ers, a proud and unapologetic capitalist. I have founded, co-founded and funded more than 30 companies across a range of industries—from itsy-bitsy ones like the night club I started in my 20s to giant ones like Amazon.com, for which I was the first nonfamily investor. Then I founded aQuantive, an Internet advertising company that was sold to Microsoft in 2007 for $6.4 billion. In cash. My friends and I own a bank. I tell you all this to demonstrate that in many ways I’m no different from you. Like you, I have a broad perspective on business and capitalism. And also like you, I have been rewarded obscenely for my success, with a life that the other 99.99 percent of Americans can’t even imagine. Multiple homes, my own plane, etc., etc. You know what I’m talking about. In 1992, I was selling pillows made by my family’s business, Pacific Coast Feather Co., to retail stores across the country, and the Internet was a clunky novelty to which one hooked up with a loud squawk at 300 baud. But I saw pretty quickly, even back then, that many of my customers, the big department store chains, were already doomed. I knew that as soon as the Internet became fast and trustworthy enough—and that time wasn’t far off—people were going to shop online like crazy. Goodbye, Caldor. And Filene’s. And Borders. And on and on.
Nick Hanauer With over 30 years of experience across a broad range of industries including manufacturing, retailing, e-commerce, digital media and advertising, software, aerospace, health care, and finance. Hanauer’s experience and perspective have produced an unusual record of serial successes. Hanauer has managed, founded or financed over 30 companies, creating aggregate market value of tens of billions of dollars. Some notable companies Include Amazon.com, Aquantive Inc., (purchased by Microsoft in 2007 for $6.4 billion), Insitu group (purchased by Boeing for $400 million), Market Leader (purchased by Trulia in 2013 for $350 million). Some other companies include Marchex, Newsvine, Qliance, Seattle Bank and Pacific Coast Feather Company. – Photo by Robbie McClaran
Realizing that, seeing over the horizon a little faster than the next guy, was the strategic part of my success. The lucky part was that I had two friends, both immensely talented, who also saw a lot of potential in the web. One was a guy you’ve probably never heard of named Jeff Tauber, and the other was a fellow named Jeff Bezos. I was so excited by the potential of the web that I told both Jeffs that I wanted to invest in whatever they launched, big time. It just happened that the second Jeff—Bezos—called me back first to take up my investment offer. So I helped underwrite his tiny start-up bookseller. The other Jeff started a web department store called Cybershop, but at a time when trust in Internet sales was still low, it was too early for his high-end online idea; people just weren’t yet ready to buy expensive goods without personally checking them out (unlike a basic commodity like books, which don’t vary in quality—Bezos’ great insight). Cybershop didn’t make it, just another dot-com bust. Amazon did somewhat better. Now I own a very large yacht.
But let’s speak frankly to each other. I’m not the smartest guy you’ve ever met, or the hardest-working. I was a mediocre student. I’m not technical at all—I can’t write a word of code. What sets me apart, I think, is a tolerance for risk and an intuition about what will happen in the future. Seeing where things are headed is the essence of entrepreneurship. And what do I see in our future now?
“On the other hand, in stark contrast, love covers a multitude of sins.
“Love your enemies. Pray for those who persecute you. Do good to those who hate you. Let the light of your good deeds shine so brightly so that many others can see it, who will then give praise to your Heavenly Father because of them.
That brief poem, or epigram, by Edwin Markham summarizes succinctly the idea upon which I will expound in this entry.
In the past several days, it came to light that a Shoals area Alabama entrepreneur, Garrett Shirey – who, with his brothers Reese & Austin, are founders and co-owners of Shirey Ice Cream in the northwest Alabama town of Florence, population 39,447 – had Tweeted at least two uncharacteristic and very unbecoming messages. The specific dates and times they were made, and the content can be seen in the screen shot images of the Tweets, both which appear later in this entry.
Posted by Warm Southern Breeze on Monday, January 21, 2013
The things we continue to learn about the explicit wickedness and evil of that era continues to plague the South, and the nation at large… particularly those who pander to it in the Republican party. And GOP party officials wonder why they continue to lose elections. Perhaps they should get a clue.
FIFTY years ago, Birmingham, Ala., provided the enduring iconography of the civil rights era, testing the mettle of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. so dramatically that he was awarded the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize.
During his protest there in May 1963, the biblical spectacle of black children facing down Public Safety Commissioner Eugene (Bull) Connor’s fire hoses and police dogs set the stage for King’s Sermon on the Mount some four months later at the Lincoln Memorial. And the civil rights movement’s “Year of Birmingham” passed into history as an epic narrative of good versus evil.
Our understanding of the “good” has expanded beyond the lone-dreamer theory to embrace other activists, like King’s partner in Birmingham, the Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. Yet the evil segregationist archetype is fixed in the popular mind as the villainous housewife of “The Help” or the cretinous mob of “Django Unchained” — nobody we’d ever know, or certainly ever be.
But the disquieting reality is that the conflict was between not good and evil, but good and normal. The brute racism that today seems like mass social insanity was a “way of life” practiced by ordinary “good” people.
According to the Southern community’s consensus of “normal,” those fighting for rights now considered mainstream were “extremists,” and public servants could rationalize plans to murder men like Shuttlesworth, confident that they were on the right side of history.
Consider new evidence about a plan by Connor to have Shuttlesworth assassinated. Under Connor’s orders, Detective Tom Cook Read the rest of this entry »
Jamphel Yeshi, a Tibetan exile, runs after setting himself on fire during a protest against the upcoming visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao to India in New Delhi March 26, 2012. Hu is scheduled to attend the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Summit in India on March 29. REUTERS/Stringer (INDIA – Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST)
BEIJING (AP) — China accused the Dalai Lama of allying with Japanese right-wingers in an island dispute as a way of attacking China and blamed him for glorifying a wave of self-immolations among Tibetans. The comments came as state media reported two more Tibetans died after setting themselves on fire.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said the Dalai Lama’s comments in Japan on the island dispute showed his “reactionary nature” and determination to split China apart under the guise of religion.
Age: 38
Warm Southern Breeze 