Our Memorial Day

~ “LETTERS FROM AMERICA” - by The Metaphysical Peregrine ~
This Monday is a national day of remembrance for US military Soldiers, Marines, Airmen and Sailors that have given their lives in defense of this country and freedom. Memorial Day should have a sense of the sacred, but for most it’s the weekend of barbeques and beer, the weekend that officially kicks off summer, and the weekend of sales.

May 26: Saint Philip Neri

“ O God, who never cease to bestow the glory of holiness on the faithful servants you raise up for yourself, graciously grant that the Holy Spirit may kindle in us that fire with which he wonderfully filled the heart of Saint Philip Neri. ”

[Original Latin text: Deus, qui fideles tibi servos sanctitatis gloria sublimare non desistis, concede propitius, ut illo nos igne Spiritus Sanctus

Welcome to the 21st-Century Food Wars

From the Middle East to Madagascar, high prices of food are spawning land grabs and ousting dictators. The food crisis of 2011—which is real and serious—may bring with it yet more bread riots cum political revolutions. What is worse, if until a few years ago sudden price surges were quickly followed by a return to the relatively low food prices that helped shape the political stability of the

The Long Fall of Silvio Berlusconi

You may say that the round of Italian elections that closed Monday—which went badly for the center right ruling coalition—were only for local administrations, but Silvio Berlusconi emerged as the biggest loser as the outgoing mayor of Milan, Letizia Moratti, failed to avoid a runoff in her bid for re-election. In fact, it was he himself who had presented the local contest as a referendum on his

Draghi Is in Poll Position

A former Goldman Sachs banker and the current Governor of the Banca d’Italia, Mario Draghi is now in pole position in the race for the European Central Bank’s presidency. In fact, besides having been already endorsed by French president Nicolas Sarkozy, he has been given an official blessing by German Chancellor Angela Merkel: “I know Mario Draghi,” she told Die Zeit newspaper, “he is a very

Economic Survey of Italy 2011

From the OECD:

Italy’s economy has passed the deep recession triggered by the global crisis and seems set for a gradual recovery. The strength of this recovery is uncertain: it would be wise to plan for no more than the rather sluggish growth seen in the decade prior to the crisis. Hence, the priority remains structural reforms to increase growth potential, while maintaining a stable fiscal

When a Cloud Covers the Sun

“My life,” says the Dalai Lama, “has not been an altogether happy one; I have had to pass through many difficult times.” Of course hard times include losing his country to Chinese Communist invaders, and trying to promote and  preserve Tibetan culture in exile. “Yet,” he continues, “I regard these difficult periods as among the most important times in my life. Through them, I have gained many new

“Must’ve Been Drunk”

Merle Haggard & George Jones


This song reminds me of two old friends of mine years ago, when they met a young lady from Des Moines who made a great impression on them, in one way or another.

For lovers of country music only: two living legends in a very “relaxed” state of mind...

Why?

The cover of the May 4/10, 2011 issue of The Stranger
I have just learned that Al-Qaeda has confirmed the death of Osama Bin Laden. Well, I’m not what is usually referred to as a “conspiracy hunter,” but if I were, I suppose I couldn’t help asking why on earth they felt the need to do so. But  I just am not that kind of blogger. They must have become suddenly sincere and intellectually honest,

Weren't They a Bunch of Assassins?

Hypocrisy Watch: as everybody knows, Osama bin Laden was killed by SEAL Team Six, officially known as Naval Special Warfare Development Group or DevGru. Yet, when GW Bush was president the media called them “Cheney’s assassination squad.” Now that a Democratic President has employed them to take out Osama bin Laden a lot of things seem to have changed…

Via DDMHA and The PJ Tatler

A Man of God

Yesterday in Saint Peter’s Square the late Pope John Paul II was proclaimed Blessed—the next-to-last step before a Catholic is formally declared a saint—before one million and a half faithful. Yet another show of strength from an extraordinary man. But the event began the previous night, when a crowd of hundreds of thousands, mostly young people, flocked to the Circus Maximus oval to pray, sing