Kosher Coke

Hat tip to Alive & Young for finding this one. I am completely addicted to Coca-Cola, so when I saw this I had to post it. As you may or may not know, corn syrup is cheaper than real sugar so folks in the food industry (including Coke) now use it instead of sugar for processed foods. Corn syrup is not kosher, thus the kosher Coke contains real sugar. If I can locate some of this custom blended "passover pop" locally I'll do a taste test and post my results.

Mmmmm. Reeeaal Suuuugaar...aaaahhhh.

BaitNet.com

I just found a handy new link via the Bayou Coast Kayak Fishing Club (see BCKFC in my Outdoor Links). It's BaitNet.com. If you're wondering where to find bait and tackle near a new fishing hole anywhere in the U.S. or Canada, look no further.

Ash Wednesday Watch

Unfortunately I'm a little late with this one but better late than never. I've found the perfect watch for Ash Wednesday (and the rest of Lent actually). Mr. Jones Watches has come up with a novel way of reminding us of our own mortality. They offer several interesting variations on this theme.

P.S. - It would also make a good gift for many Catholic politicians (Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, etc.) if you happen to have one on your Christmas list.

Hillary WAS Under Fire in Bosnia!

This video evidence was discovered in a storage room in the White House between some old Rose Law Firm billing records. and a few old VHS tapes labeled "B.C. 'personal' ".

See for yourself.

Until You've Eaten Dirt You are Not Poor

I've been helping a friend of mine with our local Ultreya meeting on nights when he's out of town for work. Tonight's speaker really made me appreciate the things that we all have in this country. Even things as basic as food. Our speaker this evening spends two weeks a year in Haiti giving aid to the poor. He has been doing this for over 20 years. During this time he has witnessed an incredible amount of human suffering.

The most recent turn of events in Haiti involves the increased cost of food world wide. In a country that has so little to begin with, food is now unaffordable for many Haitian people. As a result, many Haitians have resorted to eating dirt just to try to stay alive.



We should all consider the blessings God has given us and consider making a donation to a charitable organization such as CRS or some other reputable organization that truly promotes life.

Are You a Catholic Democrat?

If you are a Catholic Democrat, you might be interested to know what kind of company you are keeping. I ran across this article by Bill Roth on the Catholic Democrats website. Highlights and my comments:

"The abortion rate is roughly equivalent to what it was in 1973, and many religious people have been duped into thinking that one party is in favor of abortion and the other is opposed to it."

FALSE! According to the Guttmacher Institute (a pro-abortion entity) the abortion rate is NOT roughly equivalent to what it was in 1973. There were 16.3 abortions per 1000 women in the US in 1973. By 1981, that number had skyrocketed to 29.4 per 1000 (almost double). In 2005 the number was down to 19.4 per 1000. 19.4 is not roughly equivalent to 16.3, especially when counting human lives.

With regard to being "duped", one party IS in favor of abortion and the other IS opposed to it (with few individual exceptions).

"Pro-Choice" is not the appropriate term either, because "The Choice" will happen whether or not this "Choice" is legal."

What kind of an argument is that? Are you trying to say that you can't legislate morality? OK. Agreed. Should we now abandon all forms of civil society and embrace anarchy because some people will still "choose" to do the wrong thing? Are laws pointless and futile in this regard? I think not. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me, but it can keep him from lynching me, and I think that's pretty important." I'm inclined to believe that if unborn children had a voice in the matter they would feel the same way.

Notwithstanding any statistics or flawed philosophical views, abortion is the murder of an unborn child and that is simply and intolerably wrong! Why any self proclaimed Catholic would go to such great lengths to obfuscate an issue that is so clear and so important is beyond my comprehension. What is going on in that head of your's Mr. Roth?

The Secret to More Blog Traffic...

...post cute pictures of your kids and wait for someone with a much more popular site to post a link! Prior to my last post, a typical day at Unskilled Labor would be less than 100 hits a day from a few friends and bloggers with like interests. The photo post of my youngest daughter is getting almost 3000 hits a day! WOW! I feel like a proud Papa showing his wallet photos to the world. Thanks to the folks over at Spirit Daily for putting up a link to the pics of my little cutie.

My 2 Year Old's Devotion to the Blessed Mother

I took this picture of my 2 year old daughter today while visiting my in-laws. All I could think of was, "Unless you become like little children, you will not see the Kingdom of God."


Cute.

WaPo Pope Watch

The Washington Post has a "Pope Watch" going for B16's visit to the USA. This particular article itself is controversial, but the comments, oh my goodness! You will be fascinated, saddened, offended and encouraged by what people have written in response to the article. I must warn you, there is some anti-Catholic propaganda posted here which is downright fictitious so be careful about what you allow into your brain. Garbage in, garbage out.

Easter Warning: Crucifixion is Bad For You

The Catholic Church does not condone these bizarre acts but that has not stopped 21 men and two women from crucifying themselves during Holy Week in the Philippines. Four of these cats are going to crucify themselves with REAL NAILS! Oh man! I though I was making some kind of great sacrifice by standing in line for an hour tonight waiting for confession! These Filipinos (and Filipinas) are off the chart! I love the reaction from the local health organization,

“The City Health Office (CHO) autoclaved all the nails to be used and will administer anti-tetanus vaccine to all the “Cristos” to ensure their protection from possible infection,”

Yeah, when I am about to be crucified, the first question that always comes to my mind is "have these nails been autoclaved?" and, "when was my last tetanus shot?" How about a morphine shot? Or maybe 12 shots of tequila? What about some "healthy" advice, like, "Hey dude, you might not want to pound those 6 inch framing nails into your feet. It seems unnecessary and I think it will leave a mark."

I'm all for sacrifice and mortification but I think this crosses the line and becomes a spectacle of self mutilation (Mt. 6:16-18).

ROMA VICTOR!

Business Wire Reports,

"...the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, Judge Jeffrey S. White ruled in favor of the Alliance of Catholic Health Care and a host of co-defendants and intervenors and rejected a constitutional challenge by the State of California to the Hyde-Weldon Amendment, a federal law which protects hospitals and health care workers from being forced to perform abortions."

Score one for the Alliance of Catholic Health Care et. al. and practicing Catholics in California!

I guess "pro-choice" only applies if you choose to murder babies. If you choose NOT to murder babies, the state of California will try to FORCE you to do so. If you still refuse, they will drag you to U.S. District Court. These "pro-choice" folks REALLY seem to want to limit your choices. Think about this for a minute, actually being FORCED to kill a baby against your will. You can't even find that sort of thing in the worst horror movie you could imagine! Being FORCED to KILL CHILDREN!!!

Is it not ironic that a group of people who claim to be "pro-choice" would fight to the ends of the earth to try to make sure that practicing Catholics are DENIED their ability to CHOOSE not to murder babies! Is this not diametrically opposed to the entire concept of CHOICE! Is there a so-called pro-choice person on the face of the planet who cares to debate this issue with me!?

'Frisco Libs Reject "Sins 2.0"

If you ever wondered what 'frisco libs think about Catholics and the Catholic Church, you can get a good idea here. Kinda scary to know how much you are hated by someone you don't know. I thought liberals were all about peace and love and tolerance.

Grand Isle 2008

No fish on the Grand Isle trip. We went out Saturday morning in our 12 foot kayaks in spite of the small craft advisory and 20 mph winds. Tough conditions to say the least, but not completely unmanageable as I saw it. My buddies begged to differ and I was out voted 2 to 1 in favor of bailing on the fishing and instead, hanging out on the beach and drinking. We fished for a total of about an hour and a half, tops.

It wasn't a wasted trip however. We had a good time and scouted the island for good spots to launch the 'yaks on the next trip. We found about a half dozen such spots for next time. I also got one decent picture.

Sacalait Forecast

Louisiana Game and Fish has the forecast for sacalait (crappie) fishing in the state. They won't give you a cajun sleigh ride like a redfish will, but the ol' papermouths are still fun to catch from a kayak.

Golf Hunting

I'm a little torn on this story. On one hand, no one wants to brag about wanton waste of wild animals. On the other hand, that is one heck of a golf shot! I mean c'mon, hitting and killing a live bird in a tree from 75 yards away with a golf ball! It reminds me of that scene from National Lampoon's Vacation where Clark Griswald jumps a road barricade on the way to the Grand Canyon.

Anyway, I say let the punishment fit the crime. He killed the bird, now he has to eat it!

New Icon for the Blog

Cooler than 4 popped collars!!! I've now joined the ranks of those fancy schmancy bloggers who have their own little icon that pops up next to the URL. The process is about as tedious as I would expect applying for government assistance would be. If you don't see a blue box with a gold "UL" diagonally across it, please let me know. I'm not sure I'm satisfied with this icon but at least I know how to do it now, and I can always change it later.

Pope Skywalker I

Pope Benedict XVI handled this meeting with the Jesuit order MUCH better than I would have...

Your sad devotion to that ancient religion has not helped you conjure up obedience from wayward religious orders, or given you clairvoyance enough to find the liberal Catholics' hidden fortress...ACK!

I FIND YOUR LACK OF FAITH...DISTURBING!

Oh Yeah. I am 100% certain I should NOT be Pope!

Bugs Bunny says, "Jihad!"

What's the deal with everyone turning Muslim? First B. Hussein Obama, then Hillary Rodham Clinton, now Bugs Bunny? Oh wait, my mistake. It was just the Hamas Bunny, Assud threatening to kill a cartoonist who dared to draw an image of Muhammad. I always wondered what the radical Islamic children watched on Saturday Morning.

Worlds Largest Shotgun

Hat tip to my good friend Joey P. for sending me this via e-mail. There's a good description of this round and the tank that fires it on David E. Petzal's site. In short, "The 50 pound shell contains 1150 .40 caliber tungsten pellets launched at 4500 fps, with an effective range of 500 yards." That's gonna leave a mark!

Redfish are Biting

Now that duck season is well past us, it's time to try to catch a few fish. These folks did well in Big Lake. I'll be heading for Grand Isle next weekend with my kayak to try my luck. Captain Danny Wray (pictured) of Calmwater Charters does well down there. He guides exclusively from kayaks. It should be fun.

Cajun Bible Verses

Ah like dem cajun bible verses me! In case yall aint seen dis, ah put da cajun 10 commandments like dat so yall could see dat too like dat.

1. God is number 1 ...an das' all.
2. Don't pray to nuthin' or nobody...jus' God
3. Don't cuss nobody...'specially da Good Lord.
4. It's Sunday...pass yauself by God's house.
5. Yo folks dun did it all...lissen to dem.
6. Killin dem duck and goose, dat's OK ...people--no!
7. God gave you a wife...sleep wit' jus' her.
8. Don't take nobody's pirogue...or nuthin'.
9. Don't go wantin' somebody's stuff.
10. Stop lyin' - yo tongue gonna' fall out!

Mais bruh, iss like ah say, if you caint laff at youself, don't go laff at nobody else like dat.