McCain Palin Video

This is from before she was picked, I believe.

(via The Corner)

Interesting Liturgical News From Bangladesh

The Bishops in Bangladesh take action:"Church Tries To Protect Traditional Hymns, End Loud Singing" Apparently, the melodies and lyrics are set, no new songs are currently being composed, and it's not clear if accompaniment other than the harmonium (?!) is allowed:

The program assembled 71 liturgical singers in charge of leading choirs, and parish liturgy committee representatives from the country's five dioceses and one archdiocese to learn the correct musical notes to be played and sung in the hymns, as well as how loudly they should be sung. ... Over the decades, Father Sima further noted, there have been developments such as using the harmonium to accompany hymns, and the recent seminar included instruction on the correct musical notes to be sung for those hymns.

Different music suits different times, he said, and for religious occasions, two types of music, traditional and band, or pop-style, songs are available, "but band songs destroy the beauty, depth and spirituality of liturgy."

The priest did concede, however, that band music could be used on certain occasions, "but not in liturgical celebrations."

...New hymns are not being composed, he added, but ECLP is now thinking of doing something to change that.

Heather King on the Saints

"Saints aren’t 'good,' they’re beyond good, they’re part crazy."

The Martyrdom of Blessed Miguel Pro, S.J., Mexico City, November 23, 1927
via Internet Monk

"Doctors wrestle with South Dakota abortion law"

Emily Bazelon's confusing take in Slate Magazine:

"On the one hand, the organization doesn't want to put abortion providers in legal jeopardy, since failure to follow the law can be punished as a criminal misdemeanor. On the other hand, doctors have an ethical responsibility to give patients accurate medical information. The mandatory statement linking abortion to an increased risk of suicide isn't supported by reliable medical evidence. And the statements about the fetus as a human being are moral or philosophical rather than scientific at heart, in Planned Parenthood's view. So what's an abortion provider in South Dakota to do?"

Well it seems clear to me. If making the statement about the "fetus as a human being" is objectionable because it is "moral or philosophical" rather than "scientific" than it seems we can derive the principle:

S: Doctors should base their advice on science and not moral or philosophical principles.

Taking S as true, than the ethical responsibility to provide patients with accurate medical information is moot, given that it is a moral or philosophical principle and not a scientific one. So Doctors should ignore ethics and follow the law, for the punishments of the state are scientific facts.

Or we might see that we have arrived at an absurd conclusion and admit that it is not the case that a statement's being moral or philosophical rather than scientific disqualifies it as proper medical advice.

The Pennywhistlers

I've been thinking a lot more about Pete Seeger ever since I went to see The Power of Song when it was playing here in New York. I had known about his albums and concerts, but not about his TV shows. Which, not surprisingly are available on Youtube. Here's one with Johnny Cash and June Carter (not yet Cash herself...). Cash appears to be pretty strung out here, but the singing is still impressive.
And this is a group called the Pennywhistlers who I'd never heard of but apparently made a name for themselves with Eastern European folk songs.

"Socrates Heads It in and Leibniz Doesn't Have a Chance"

I was of course familiar with the Philosopher's Song, but I'd never seen this other Monty Python philosophy bit before:

"Maybe that's in the episode I didn't see."

Anderson Cooper's response to Kelly Ripa's comment "They're obviously a talented family" about Living Lohan.
(via TVNewser)

MySpace... It's Almost As Good As Napster

before we knew that Napster was wrong... I've been listening to songs from Spirit of the West that I've wanted to get my hands on for years, but were out of print.