When you come to the edge of all the light you know,
and are about to step off into the darkness of the unknown,
faith is knowing one of two things will happen:
there will be something solid to stand on, or
you will be taught how to fly.
Barbara J. Winter
Image of the Day
Pope Francis and Political Spin
Rand Paul and the Issue of Abortion
Hillary Clinton, the Daraprim Kerfuffle, and Bad Public Policy
Oddly, the way I learned of this issue because a Hillary Clinton tweet whacked a small retirement position I have in biotech stocks. Turing Pharmaceuticals gained rights to an antiparasitic drug called Daraprim. (There are a limited number of patients (e.g., 9-13K prescriptions a year); the food-borne disease, often spread by lack of proper heating of food or improper hygiene in food preparation, can particularly hurt those with compromised immune systems, e.g., babies, AIDS or cancer patients. The company notoriously changed the dosage cost from $18 to $750 virtually overnight. [Now I should point out that many needy patients qualify for nominal prices, and the author of the prescription count citation argues that there are very good, cheap antibiotic drugs which can also treat the disease.]
Now whenever an economically illiterate "progressive" like Hillary Clinton decides to demagogue an issue like this, it usually means one or both of two things: (1) an expensive new entitlement; (2) price caps. Short of the Dems winning a filibuster-proof supermajority, that's unlikely to ever get through Congress. Clinton knows that, but she 'll shamelessly exploit the issue
What would be real reform? Streamlining and/or privatizing FDA approvals and/or other steps to shorten time to market and competition.
The In-N-Out Mystique
I never wanted to live in California (in 1998 and 1999 I commuted to California from Chicago for multi-month projects; my boss on the second project unexpectedly told me as I was leaving for the airport on Friday afternoon that if I did not agree to go perm, not to fly back next week; he would otherwise reach out to me if and when they finally decided to upgrade Oracle Apps/EBS. There were a couple of California cultural icons that I grew fond of before I moved back to the Chicago suburbs in the summer of 2001: Trader Joe's (a supermarket with healthier foods and unique, premium/reasonably-priced private-label products) and In-N-Out Burgers. I made a number of business trips to Los Angeles and/or Orange Country while I lived in Silicon Valley, and I got introduced when everyone in my workgroup decided to go to the local restaurant. Quite often there were lines to get into the stores, and often it was impossible to find a table or seat. The food was tasty although I'm not quite sure it measured up to the hype. I do recall there were Bible verses on wrappers and/or soda cups. (I remember Whataburgers during my high school years in south Texas quite fondly.)
Facebook Corner
(Catholic Libertarians). This article is long but well written and worth bookmarking for later reference. ~Mark
« Both sides are mistaken about the Pope’s teachings and the nature of Catholic social doctrine. The Pope’s writings and interviews show that his teachings are within the Catholic social tradition, and that he supports business creativity, job creation, economic growth, and free markets... Francis agrees that “Marxist ideology is wrong.” »
I don't have to read the article. His rhetoric is "cut and paste" from progressive ideology. He has attacked unbridled capitalism and consumerism. He has embraced politics as a noble profession. Now I do agree that he's not a Marxist as I mentioned in one of my recent blog posts, http://rguillem.blogspot.com/2015/09/sunday-talk-soup-and-economic-idiocy-of.html
(Catholic Libertarians). "If I have given the impression of being a bit of a lefty, that would be an error in the explanation." The Pope then joked, "If it is necessary for me to recite the Creed, I am willing to do it."
Ever wonder why prominent Catholic libertarians, like Judge Napolitano, Jeffrey Tucker, and Tom Woods, are more traditionalist than many or most Catholics? A lot of us identifiy with the spiritual disciplines and cultural heritage of the pre-Vatican Church. Now we see all sorts of accommodations, with the Pope sending mixed messages on moral teachings, looking to liberalize annulments; we have reports of a Swiss bishop meeting with complaints of "old-fashioned" notions of marriage and family. Jesus was far more demanding--recall He criticized Moses' permissive doctrine on divorce. When it came to adultery, he went beyond the physical acts and talked about the sinful lust for another. What did Jesus say when His disciplines complained that His Words were too hard, that He was losing fellowers? "Many are called; few are chosen." There has been almost no call for challenging the sexually-obsessed Western democracies.
The Pope is engaging in political spin. He is a leftie, pure and simple. Not a leftie in the sense of liberation theology, but he believes in economic intervention by the State and even argues that redistribution programs are one of the highest forms of charity (see my reply to Amy below, quoting his exhortation).
Now remember, Pope Francis mocks the concept of the invisible hand (see the exhortation), although Jesus taught "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." He doesn't seem to have faith in the private sector's (including the Church's) forms of charity. He's pretty much a Statist in his own written words--and he knew what he was writing was controversial: "If anyone feels offended by my words..."
Pope is NOT leftie or Right wing. He is completely neutral on politics. Some people may agree and disagree in few point. But the important here is the message of love and unity he send.
The Pope is engaging in bullshit political spin. He is a leftie from an American standpoint. See my response to Amy below. QED.
I think the biggest misconception people have is when he says "people need to do this, we need to do that, we need to take care of the poor, etc, etc," he is not necessarily talking about government needing to do that....I don't know why people always automatically make that leap!
You're dead wrong.
"As long as the problems of the poor are not radically resolved by rejecting the absolute autonomy of markets and financial speculation and by attacking the structural causes of inequality, no solution will be found for the world’s problems or, for that matter, to any problems. Inequality is the root of social ills..Choke on this piece of crap. Political programs "one of the highest forms of charity"? A political whore is in a "lofty profession"? Give me a break!
"We can no longer trust in the unseen forces and the invisible hand of the market. Growth in justice requires more than economic growth, while presupposing such growth: it requires decisions, programmes, mechanisms and processes specifically geared to a better distribution of income, the creation of sources of employment and an integral promotion of the poor which goes beyond a simple welfare mentality.
"I ask God to give us more politicians capable of sincere and effective dialogue aimed at healing the deepest roots – and not simply the appearances – of the evils in our world! Politics, though often denigrated, remains a lofty vocation and one of the highest forms of charity, inasmuch as it seeks the common good."
Political Cartoon
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| Courtesy of Lisa Benson via Townhall |
Lionel Richie (with Alabama), "Deep River Woman". I love, love, love this song: one of my 2 favorite Richie tunes ("Running With the Night"). Unfortunately, it would snap a Top 10 streak for Richie on the Hot 100, adult contemporary, and R&B charts. He would go on to hit #1/Top 10 once more on the R&B chart and a mini-string of Top 10 hits on the A/C chart in 2 albums over the coming decade and roughly a half-dozen or so Top 20 hits on the A/C chart after 1996 over a few albums.
