Close to Home trailer

Apple

official website

Aliens: War Games

First a proposal for a Star Trek animated series with mini-episodes like Clone Wars, now a company is proposing a series inspired by Aliens. Details at AICN.

Go to Bluefields and click on Animated Boards to see a sample. I don't care much for the character designs, but they're temporary and not final. As for the idea of turning this into a cartoon... I don't know if one can take violence portrayed with these character designs seriously. But then again, maybe we don't need any more animated programs that are both violent and realistic. (Or live TV programming that is violent.) But if we're talking about realism for realism's sake... I'd prefer something close to the Aliens comic books or Blue Gender.

Dave Grossman on violence in video games.

Contemporary Latin poetry

Something the New Scot might be interested in...

P. Cockburn, Who is Muqtada al-Sadr?

The Most Powerful Man in Iraq
Who is Muqtada al-Sadr?
By PATRICK COCKBURN

Some Boundless articles, 15 February 2007

The Hindrance of a Hint
by Carolyn McCulley

Biblical Dating: Are You Ready to Date?
by Scott Croft

BA: Courtship and Group Dynamics
by John Thomas

You see, by having set out to do things "right" in terms of having Godly relationships outside courtship and dating, you and your friends have created exactly the environment which leads to interest and affection, because with emotional bonds come emotional affection and soon the heart is off and running, despite all the efforts to the contrary. This is not a bad thing at all, unless individuals naively believe this won't happen or don't want it to happen.

Here's what I really want you to understand: A "group" made up of marriage-minded singles of the opposite sex is by its very nature fluid, and whatever its current form is, it is temporary. God put a longing in us for couple-hood, and we will keep moving towards that, no matter the disruption of our other associations. That is quite literally part of the cross you bear as a group of opposite sex singles: You will fluctuate as a group. You just can't "hang out" forever. If sustaining "the group" unaltered is a high priority, you are going to be frustrated and disappointed.

You need a paradigm shift of your view of the purpose of "the group." Don't view the group as a glassy pond of water where things should stay pretty much calm and the view should remain the same. View the group as a stream, where water is coming in and going out and currents and shores and landscapes change. People grow out of one season and into another. This is right and good.

The group dynamic will be altered when couples successfully pair off, and it will be altered when it doesn't work out. Sustaining the group "dynamic" is not the important thing. In fact, sustaining the group itself is not the most important thing. What matters most is the hearts of individuals. God doesn't see things in terms of small groups of friends, per se, but in terms of individual hearts. So the "group" gets wobbled. That's all right. What is most important is that individual people are still treated with respect and love and reached out to. That's what matters. This will take intentional effort on the part of other members of the group.

When it doesn't work out, you might lessen the pain and mess a little bit by remaining warm and welcoming to both parties, not allow any "bashing" of either person by anyone, don't take sides, and be intentional about reaching out to them. That's really all you can do. If someone remains bitter, angry, hurt, or un-forgiving, then healing needs to be sought after. But if individuals choose on their own to quit "hanging out" with the group merely because it feels awkward, that's not a huge deal in my opinion. Just make sure that he or she knows "the group" wants and will welcome them back whenever they feel comfortable being there again.

Caesareans lead to risk of having a still birth

Thanks to NOR

Caesareans lead to risk of having a still birth
By Celia Hall, Medical Editor
Last Updated: 2:27am GMT 14/02/2007

An excerpt:

Women who have had a baby by caesarean have a higher risk of a still birth in a later pregnancy an audit of thousands of births has revealed.

Although the increase in risk is small, the number of women having caesareans has now risen to above 23 per cent, approximately twice as many as when the births in the study were taking place.

The study of nearly 82,000 live and still births, where the mother had previously had a caesarean, found a stillborn rate of 4.6 per 1,000 births compared with 3.5 per 1,000 in woman who had not had a previous baby by caesarean operation.

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The data came from records of women in Oxfordshire and West Berkshire who had babies between 1968 and 1989 and the study is reported in the Journal of the Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

The researchers believe the caesarean may affect the formation of the placenta in a subsequent pregnancy so that it does not function properly.

Dr Ron Gray and colleagues from the department of public health at Oxford University, say that still births happen for many reasons but they believe four per cent in the study could have been caused by a previous caesarean.

Dr Gray says that because of the increase in caesareans the four per cent figure could now be higher.

"These findings suggest that caesarean section in one pregnancy slightly increases the risk of still birth in following pregnancies," Dr Gray said.

"This is now the fourth study of this kind to have shown an increase risk.

"We would suggest that further research is required to understand why this is happening. In the meantime clinicians and women need to be aware of the increased risk but also that the risk is small.

Can Economic Justice Be Achieved Without Law?

From the archives of New Oxford Review

FALLEN MAN & FALLEN MONEY-MAKING
Can Economic Justice Be Achieved Without Law? October 2000
By Thomas Storck

In economics as in other areas, the Church has to contend with more than one error at a time, for truth is one but error is many. Socialism, for example, has been condemned, and the definitive judgment of Pius XI in 1931 that "No one can be at the same time a sincere Catholic and a true socialist" (Quadragesimo Anno, no. 120) still holds. But here I want to take up another error about economics equally incompatible with Catholicism. This error is succinctly put in the following sentence: "The way to have people make better choices is not to coerce their economic decision-making, but to inform their personal morality." The writer is Fr. Robert Sirico, president of the Acton Institute, a libertarian think tank in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Let us take a look at the background to this statement, as Fr. Sirico has developed it in his publication, Acton Notes, to understand what it means and why it is wrong.

Fr. Sirico begins his discussion by speaking of economics and its relation to the concept of scarcity. He writes, "Simply put, economics is the study of human action with regard to scarcity," adding that "Scarcity is one of the inescapable facts of life." Nor is it unusual to link the notion of scarcity closely with the definition of economics. Standard economics texts do the same. But Fr. Sirico means, as do nearly all economists, not actual scarceness of resources (lack of food or clothing or building material) in the world. Rather they are talking about a kind of disproportion. Fr. Sirico says that man's "wants and desires are always greater than the resources available to meet them; people are forced...to rank their alternatives and choose from those available options." Scarce resources, he adds, can include not only a lack of money or goods but even a lack of time in which to do everything one might want to do.

Who could disagree? The questions remain: What does this mean? And, is it the right starting-point for the study of economics? An example might help. If we declared that human sexuality is concerned with scarcity -- scarcity of available sexual partners, scarcity of time, scarcity of energy -- and that the human sexual appetite is "always greater than the resources available" to fulfill it, our statement would not be untrue. But it would essentially misrepresent the true nature of sexuality. For if we began our discussion of sexuality this way, we would be focusing only on the disordered appetites of fallen man. We might go on to calculate how to provide the greatest number of sexual experiences for the greatest number of persons in the shortest amount of time. But our whole system would be based on how fallen man behaves. We would not know how he is supposed to behave or what the real nature and purpose of sexuality are. Now if, by contrast, we began by saying that human sexuality is concerned with the God-given way of continuing the human race, with binding one man and one woman together for life for the procreation and education of children and the fostering of mutual love between the spouses, then, even though we obviously would have to take into account human sin, we would find our discussion going in an entirely different direction.

Back to economics. To characterize economics as essentially concerned with "human action with regard to scarcity" is to fail even to ask the preliminary and primary questions: What is it for? Why do we do it?

So how would we frame proper questions with regard to economics? We might ask, Why did God make man so that he needs external goods? What is the purpose of the external goods we use and need and of the activity we engage in to procure them? Is economic activity an end in itself or is it for the sake of something else? Does the acquisition of material goods or money have any intrinsic purpose by which all of us are bound, regardless of what an individual might will or desire?

If we begin with these questions, then we might discover some important truths, such as that by making man a material being God made him dependent on external goods, but that these goods are not ends in themselves. That is, we engage in economic activity not for its own sake, but for the sake of human life as a whole -- to provide the material goods we need so we can devote ourselves to our family life, our social and community life, our intellectual life, our spiritual life. Economic life is simply a means, not an end. And we might also discover that, although scarcity does indeed reign with regard to man's wants, it is a somewhat different story with regard to his true needs. For God has made the bounty of the earth such that there is almost always plenty of food, clothing, and shelter for the human race, as well as the other goods we require. Finally we might discover the centuries-old truth repeated by Pope John Paul II of "the universal destination of material goods," or as Leo XIII put it earlier, that "the earth, though divided among private owners, ceases not thereby to minister to the needs of all" (Rerum Novarum, no. 7), and that therefore economics must be about more than what I do with my property; it must concern itself with the needs of the whole human race.

If our consideration of economics begins with the idea of scarcity, however, we soon see that different people make different choices in dealing with this scarcity. One person chooses to work very hard and make a lot of money; another person prefers to spend more time with his family even though this means he will make less money. Different people value different things; or as we say nowadays, different people have different "values." But what follows from that? Economics, as Fr. Sirico says, "cannot prescribe what people ought to value," but is concerned solely with "how to achieve" the things each person has decided that he wants. And since there are almost as many "values" as there are people, it seems reasonable that we should give everyone the maximum freedom of choice. So economics becomes a "value-free" technique for obtaining more of the resources that each person desires according to his own wants and "values." But what if, as Christians, we deplore the choices that some people make and want them to make better choices? To repeat Fr. Sirico's key statement: "The way to have people make better choices is not to coerce their economic decision-making, but to inform their personal morality."

Is there anything wrong with this? After all, economics and ethics are not the same. Should we not recognize the existence of a body of knowledge -- economics -- that is concerned with how to get what we want? In the traditional Christian and Thomistic understanding of knowledge, there is a hierarchy of intellectual disciplines: An intellectual discipline is indeed autonomous to a degree, but it cannot violate the fundamental laws of its parent discipline; philosophy (including ethics) in a sense rules over all other disciplines, such that economics can never be reduced to mere techniques which prescind from questions of right and wrong.

If we believe that God created the world, that it did not arise by chance, then clearly, despite the Fall, all things are interrelated according to divine pattern. Even though mankind constantly sins, this does not mean that this divine pattern no longer exists. To use my earlier example, sex: Though disordered, it is still related to procreation, and the more men and women use sex solely as a means of pleasure, without regard to the moral law, the worse they and their society become. Similarly economic activity has a purpose, and the more this purpose is violated and disregarded, the more economic activity is deformed and society is harmed. For example, if we look on economic production not as an activity intended by God for making the external goods that mankind needs in order to live, but rather as something that an individual may use solely to create profit for himself, then we have deformed not just human nature, but the nature of economic activity itself, by turning one of the ends of production into the sole end.

Most sensible people recognize that ethical norms governing sexual behavior must be inculcated by more than pious exhortations. Both human law and social custom are very important in restraining man's lust. It is not a violation of true sexual freedom that we proscribe and punish certain acts. For instance, although Fr. Sirico opposes restricting pornography on the Internet, clear-thinking people see that this is necessary if we are to attempt to keep society from being overwhelmed with degrading sexual images. Similarly with economic activity. Man's greed is as boundless as man's lust, and it is not a violation of true economic freedom to use both human law and social custom to restrain greed. To assert that we must rely only on moral exhortations to restrain wrong economic choices is unreasonable.

Often the opponents of any restrictions on, say, pornography assert that if it harms anyone, it only harms the user. They would call this a "victimless crime" (and not even a crime) because only the one indulging in the behavior could suffer any harm. But this is not true. The pornographic mentality and sensibility have had gravely deleterious effects on the rest of us. The misuse of economic activity also affects all of us. When the notion becomes common, for example, that production is solely for the sake of profit, regardless of whether the product made actually serves the true ends of economic activity and human life, then a society will become glutted with useless and harmful goods, as long as these produce a profit for their producers and sellers. (One might just as well justify the selling of strategic goods to the enemies of one's country on the grounds that such sales are profitable.) Of course, I am not suggesting that profits are wrong, only that profits are not all that is needed. Though profit is necessary in economic activity, such activity still must serve the real needs of mankind if it is to be true to itself.

Those who object to the use of law to guide or restrain economic activity generally assert that such laws inevitably result in statism, inefficient central planning, and poverty. The Communist regimes are held up as a warning for us, that once we create restrictions on economic choices, we will end up with the evils and horrors seen in the Soviet bloc. But this is a straw man, a caricature. It is true that socialism and Communism purported to ensure that economic activity was conducted for the good of the whole; it is true that both of them resulted in great evils. But this by no means proves that all means used to restrain the economic activity of fallen man will always produce such evils. Until the 18th century Christian states always understood that it was part of their task to moderate the effects of economic activity and guide it toward the common good. Obviously such attempts were not perfect and sometimes they resulted in stupid regulations that promoted inefficiency. But just because something is hard to do does not mean it should not be attempted.

Moreover, the Catholic Church has made it clear beyond doubt that the conception of economic activity as unfettered by civil law is at variance with her own vision.

Fung Wah update

The driver was cited too fast for going too fast in the given conditions (negligent operation), false logbooks, and faulty brakes. The fines for these most recent safety violations will most likely top $10,000.

The Boston Channel sent one of its reporters undercover to see if there were still safety violations--there was a hidden camera and they observed some rules being violated. Perhaps that story is available online somewhere.

More details.

Relating to the Opposite Sex

Relating to the Opposite Sex

Interview With Author of "Men and Women Are From Eden"

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland, FEB. 14, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Mary Healy says she has the key to helping men and women in their relationships with each other.

Healy is the author of "Men and Women Are From Eden" (Servant Publications), a study guide to Pope John Paul II's theology of the body.

In this interview with ZENIT, she discusses getting to the root of the problems between the sexes, and from there, finding the most effective solutions.

Q: With so many books coming from the secular press on relationships and the differences between men and women, where does this book on the theology of the body fit in?

Healy: The topic of the differences of the sexes never gets old, because in every generation men and women experience the challenge of relating to one another. Yes, there is an avalanche of secular books offering relationship advice, some of it helpful and some less so -- and some that should be tossed in the trash!

But no advice really gets to the heart of the matter unless it goes all the way back to the beginning -- to God's original plan for man and woman, as it was unveiled in the garden of Eden, before the Fall.

And of course the only complete access we have to that original plan is through Scripture, authoritatively interpreted by the Church.

Pope John Paul the Great left the Church a great gift by presenting the biblical teaching on men, women, sex and marriage in a new and compelling way, in his catecheses known as the theology of the body.

The purpose of my book is to try to make the theology of the body accessible to ordinary people, and to give them a tool for studying it in-depth.

When people are introduced to the theology of the body, they usually find that it resonates with the deepest stirrings of their hearts and begins to transform their whole approach to relationships, from the inside out.

Q: The title seems to allude to the popular relationship book from the United States entitled "Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus." Is your book a Catholic version of that best seller? What inspired the title?

Healy: Yes, you caught the hint. The title is inspired by John Paul II's insight -- based on the words of Jesus himself in Matthew 19:4 -- that the key to understanding who we are as men and women is found in the book of Genesis, in the story of Adam and Eve in the garden.

As John Paul II noted, the creation accounts in Genesis are "mythic," not in the sense of being fictional, but in that they recount the events at the dawn of history using symbolic language so as to convey profound truths about God and the human condition.

Only by understanding those truths will we be able to fully appreciate our identity as men and women and fulfill our longings for authentic love.

Q: While much of what popular theories say about the differences between men and women is true, is there something lacking about how these theories view maleness and femaleness, and then the dynamics of relationships between the two?

Healy: The best that a secular approach can do is explain the biological, psychological and social reasons why men and women have trouble relating, and then offer practical advice for dealing with those differences. But as John Paul II shows, those differences are not merely accidental; they are part of God's marvelous design for humanity. In fact, they even hold the clue to the meaning of our existence.

Our sexual complementarity reveals what he called "the spousal meaning of the body" -- that is, the body's capacity, in its masculinity or femininity, to be a vehicle and expression of self-giving love. Adam and Eve discovered that when they encountered one another and, in the words of Genesis, became "one flesh."

So, God has stamped in our very bodies the call to a communion of persons, an exchange of love in which each person becomes a gift for the other.

But because of the Fall -- our first parents' decision to disobey God -- the complementarity that God designed for life-giving union became instead a source of conflict. Ever since then, relationships between men and women have often been characterized by lust, selfishness, manipulation and abuse.

So you can see why relationship advice remains on a very superficial level unless it gets to the root of the problem, which is sin, and the key to the solution, which is our restoration to God's magnificent plan through the grace of Christ. Once that key is found, then people begin to deal with the dynamics of relationships on a much more profound level.

Q: John Paul II explains that the response to the human being's quest for happiness is to be found in the Garden of Eden. Can you explain this?

Healy: As Pope John Paul II explains, the story of our origins presents a vision for why we were created and what is the deepest purpose of our lives.

According to Genesis, when God wanted an image of himself in the created world, he didn't fashion isolated individuals, but rather a married couple. This means that both are needed to complete the picture.

Why? Because it is their communion of love with one another that most reveals God! Only in the New Testament is the truth fully revealed that God himself is a communion of persons, an eternal exchange of love between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

And God has destined us to share in that exchange. This is the meaning of our sexual complementarity and of the vocations in which it is lived out, whether in marriage or in consecrated life.

By becoming a gift to one another in a communion of persons we learn to love and be loved as God loves, and so prepare to share in his life forever. This is our dignity and our destiny, and the quest for happiness depends on discovering it and living it out.

Q: Who is this book written for? Youth? Couples in crisis? Engaged couples? Can a beginner with no background in theology or philosophy understand it?

Healy: All of the above!

My book does not focus on practical advice, but rather on the doctrinal foundations people need to guide their practical decisions. It was written with the goal of helping ordinary people understand the theology of the body and apply it to their real-life situations.

John Paul II writes on a very theoretical level, but as a priest he had counseled hundreds of couples, and he well understood the issues people face. The theology of the body is not too abstract or difficult for anyone. It is true that those who try to put it into practice will find it very challenging on a personal level -- in fact, eventually they will find that it is simply impossible without the grace of the Holy Spirit.

Even solid Catholics may find that it causes a revolution in their whole perspective on sex, marriage and relationships. But that is part of the whole point, because the grace to change is there for anyone who asks.

Regarding youth in particular, I have taught theology of the body to teens and young adults, and I have found them in every case to be extremely receptive to and hungry for these teachings. This generation has reaped the bad fruits of the sexual revolution, and they see the fallout in broken families and broken lives all around them.

Many of them are not impressed by the false promises of the permissive culture they've grown up in. They are ready for something new. The theology of the body gives them hope and enables them to pursue their vocation, whether to marriage or celibacy, with a deep sense of purpose and vision.

Q: What impact do you hope the book will have on the Catholic world?

Healy: I hope my book will help many people, both Catholics and non-Catholics, discover the theology of the body and the dramatic impact it can have on their lives. In Europe and America, Christians do not have a very good track record for presenting a lifestyle different from the surrounding secular culture -- as shown by our statistics on divorce, abortion, contraception and premarital sex.

But that is beginning to change. I am convinced that as the theology of the body is embraced by the current generation, marriages will be strengthened, families will be healed, respect for human life will be renewed, and young people will be rekindled in their zeal to live for God.

"By becoming a gift to one another in a communion of persons we learn to love and be loved as God loves."

This can be problematic formulation because to love is precisely to be a gift to one another. Of course it needs to be emphasized that charity/agape is possible only through grace and that it is possible for natural love to exist.

I still have to read the revised translation of Theology of the Body, and see how its analysis of moral acts compares to the Thomistic one.

Matthew Simmons: Or, prove me wrong

EB

Oil has peaked, but where's the data? analyst asks
Barbara Lewis, Reuters

One of the leading exponents of the peak oil theory that reserves have gone beyond maximum production and entered irreversible decline urged the world's oil industry to build a data base to prove whether he is right.

Energy investment banker Matthew Simmons, chairman of Houston-based investment banking firm Simmons & Co. International, ... said it was not just national oil companies, but also oil majors,... who should be providing precise data to establish the health of the world's supplies once and for all.

"In my opinion the only way to reliably gauge the timing of the peak is to stipulate a legal requirement for any field producing over 50,000 barrels per day to produce historical data on a quarterly basis," Simmons said in a speech as part of International Petroleum Week.

Data so far in existence are sketchy, with the exception of for the British and Norwegian North Sea, Simmons said.

He noted members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, led by Saudi Arabia, have never allowed an independent audit of their reserves.

"The world is basing its energy future on a non-audited set of books," he said. (13 Feb 2007)
Sounds like a reasonable proposal! -BA

Illogical Thoughts

An interesting blog I found through Boundless: The Line. Pete Takeshi should read this entry.

Stuff from Movies IGN

Transformers preview (includes 4 clips). Will the movie turn out to be a fanboy's dream? Sarge is planning to see the movie, Pete Takeshi thinks it will be another Independence Day.

Info about the Iron Man movie, plus an interview with Robert Downey, Jr. Will he grow a moustache for the role?

For his part, Downey has said he lobbied hard for the role, including packing on muscle and growing a goatee like the comic book character has.

The cast is presumed to be in it for the long haul, so there may be an appearance of the War Machine in a sequel:

During a recent visit to the production offices of Iron Man, Ain't It Cool News was able to confirm that all of the actors are assigned to a three-picture deal and that Terrence Howard will indeed become War Machine in a later installment.

Some Iron Man art; if Marvel Movies can pull this off, I think it could compete with Spiderman in box office draw. Website

Video Interviews: Breach
Will anyone be watching the interviews? I'd like to hear the cast discuss Robert Hanssen's Catholicism and Opus Dei connection.

News about the Dark Tower adaptation. I don't suppose this adaptation of a Stephen King work has your interest, Pete Takeshi?

There will be a Mummy 3. Why? I doubt they'll try to release it at the same time as Indy 4 (May 22, 2008)--the Wachowski Brothers are doing a live-action version of Speed Racer (May 23, 2008). No news about cast selections yet; will my brother-in-law see the movie? There will also be a Toy Story 3.

Stills from Luc Besson's Angel-A. 300. Who's going to see The Hills Have Eyes 2 (trailer)?

Medal of St. Benedict and Monte Cassino

The Jubilee Medal

source
Enameled:

source
Explanation of the Medal of Saint Benedict:
The Jubilee Medal of Saint Benedict
The Medal of Saint Benedict (OSB)
Catholic Encyclopedia

St. John's Abbey

Alternate Designs:
Ok, I guess the first two aren't really alternate designs, they should be the same as the jubilee medal, though there are some minor variations with the second.

source

TFP

source

source

A pendant:


When I was at the seminary, Duncan Wong (now Fr. Wong) gave me a medal of St. Benedict from one of the traditional Benedictine monasteries in France; I can't remember if it was from Fontgambault or Le Barroux, but the medal certainly looks different from the Jubilee Medal. I still have the medal with me. Perhaps one of these days I will take photos of it and upload them. One of these days I would like to visit both monasteries. (Which reminds me, Clear Creek has some new photos up.)

Perhaps I can ask my mom and KK to pick some more up for me if they go to Rome. I don't think they will be going to Monte Cassino, though. They can buy medals in Rome, but they cheap imitation medals, lighter in weight. Christ the Desert Monastery sells the genuine jubilee medals, and they are somewhat pricey there, but I would rather have the genuine jubilee medal to give away than the knock-offs.

[some fantasy bimetallic coins, with Pope Benedict XVI]

The Abbey of Monte Cassino

As many of you know, the Abbey was bombed and severely damaged by the Americans during World War 2 because the Germans were using it as a fortress. It is said that the bombing did not have its intended effect, unfortunately--in fact, it made things even more difficult for the Allies, as the Germans were able to hide better in the rubble. However, it is claimed by the monks that the Germans were not hiding in the Abbey at all. [pt 2, pt 3, pt 4]


Some photos of the results of the bombing; photos at Military Photos

Wiki entry on the Battle of Monte Cassino; a website devoted to it
Time article on the bombing; on the rebuilding
British Memories of Monte Cassino


(source)
St. Benedict of Nursia established the monastery about 529. According to the old Catholic Encyclopedia, a tower where he dwelt remains, enclosed by newer buildings (the monastery has been rebuilt several times). I do not know if it survived the bombing.

At that time when I visited Monte Cassino I thought it was a dying community—the monk who was in the gift shop was rather elderly; there was no sign of the other monks. But now that I think about it, I didn’t have enough evidence to make that conclusion. After all, it seems like an appropriate task for the elderly monks to operate the gift shop, since their health prevents them from engaging in tasks requiring greater physical exertion. The other monks were probably busy with work or in cloister, not to be disturbed. Still, I would be somewhat surprised to learn that Monte Cassino is in a healthy state and attracting vocations. I can’t imagine what the difference would be like if the monastery were filled to capacity with monks. Would it still be as silent?
(source)
The basilica church was ok, but even then I had more of an Eastern sensibility, preferring Byzantine altars over the long rectangular altars common in Romanesque monasteries. I can’t find a picture of what the basilica church looked like before the bombing, so I don’t know if it was done in the same style. If I have the opportunity to visit again, I wish to spend more time at the tomb of St. Benedict.

More Information about the Abbey:
OSB
CE

More Photos:

Mark and Jo Ann's Travels
Carinoza's photos
ItaliansRUs
TourItaly
Sandy Travels
Monte Cassino Abey: An Icon for Peace
someone's flickr

The Rule of St. Benedict

(Turino Vanni)

OSB links
Latin; Latin Library
Holy Rule
St. Benedict's Abbey, Kansas
Sisters of St. Benedict, Indiana
Benedictine University
Medieval Source Book
Friends of St. Benedict
EWTN
Monachos.net
About the Rule, by Abbot Jerome
Christ Desert Monastery
Lay Benedictines
Benedict and Medieval Monasticism
CE
Saint Benedict, His Rule, and Orthodoxy Laity
The Rule of St. Benedict Compared with the Rule of the Templars
John Henry Cardinal Newman, The Mission of St. Benedict


The Rule of Saint Benedict: A Doctrinal and Spiritual Commentary by Adalbert de Vogue

Misc Links:
Icons at Alton Abbey (includes the following)

Icons of Western Saints

St. Benedict Monastery, Michigan

Let us Be Human: Peak Oil

Let Us Be Human: Peak Oil
Rev Sam Norton, Elizaphanian

via EB

Ah man, another Fung Wah crash

Another Fung Wah bus crashed into a guardrail on the Mass Pike in Allston...

Bad road conditions--icy and slushy roads... but it's not clear yet what the cause of the crash is.

Whether the bus drivers should be able to speak English may become an issue.

Photos: Lim Soo-Jung

Actress Lim Soo-jung from South Korea arrives for the screening of her movie ' I'm A Cyborg, But That's Ok' at the 57. International Film Festival Berlin 'Berlinale' in Berlin on Friday, Feb. 9, 2007. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Actor Jung Ji-hoon, actress Lim Soo-jung and director Park Chan-wook, from left, from South Korea pose during a photo-call for their movie ' I'm A Cyborg, But That's Ok' at the 57. International Film Festival Berlin 'Berlinale' in Berlin on Friday, Feb. 9, 2007. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber

Actress Lim Soo-jung, from South Korea poses during a photo-call for their movie ' I'm A Cyborg, But That's Ok' at the 57. International Film Festival Berlin 'Berlinale' in Berlin on Friday, Feb. 9, 2007. (AP Photo/Hermann J. Knippertz)

Actor Jung Ji-hoon and actress Lim Soo-jung, from left, from South Korea react during a photo-call for their movie ' I'm A Cyborg, But That's Ok' at the 57. International Film Festival Berlin 'Berlinale' in Berlin on Friday, Feb. 9, 2007. (AP Photo/Hermann J. Knippertz)

Director Park Chan-wook, actorJung Ji-hoon and actress Lim Soo-jung, from left, from South Korea arrive for the screening of their movie ' I'm A Cyborg, But That's Ok' at the 57. International Film Festival Berlin 'Berlinale' in Berlin on Friday, Feb. 9, 2007. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Photos: Pope Benedict XVI

An Orthodox prelate kisses the hand of Pope Benedict XVI at the weekly general audience in Paul VI hall at the Vatican, Wednesday Feb. 14, 2007. (AP Photo/Plinio Lepri)

Pope Benedict XVI greets the faithful as he arrives for the weekly general audience in Paul VI hall at the Vatican, Wednesday Feb. 14, 2007. (AP Photo/Plinio Lepri)

In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Benedict XVI welcomes Queen Rania of Jordan for their audience at the pontiff's private library at the Vatican, Friday, Feb. 9, 2007. (AP Photo/L'Osservatore Romano, ho)

Sitting through the first Nor'easter

of the season, and while I can hear the crackling of the snow doing something (accumulating on the roof?), and I see the snow falling outside, the day won't be that much different for me, since I will be spending it indoors... no Valentine's Day plans for me, since I am still looking for a Mamabear as Miss Huen puts it. The Lady Downstairs was supposed to be throwing an anti-Valentine's Day party, but I don't know if that will come to be, especially with the snow falling outside. The President gave a televised news conference this morning, pre-empting The View. It seems to be on the surge and Iraq, but there isn't much that he could say that would persuade me that the surge is the wise course of action. So, I have tuned him out.

on Nor'easters

Ss. Cyril and Methodius, February 14

"The Apostles of the Slavs"
CE; CE entry on Moravia

Magnificat.ca
Wonderland Bulgaria

The two brothers developed the Glagolitic alphabet (or Glagolitsa) for translating the Bible into the Slavic languages.

Glagolitic alphabet and pronunciation
History and Development of the Cyrillic Alphabet

Slavic Languages Map

Listen to the Slavic Languages

Old Church Slavonic Online

Old Church Slavic language

Old Church Slavonic alphabet and language

Resources for Old Church Slavic

CE entry on Slavonic Language and Liturgy
website on Slovio, a fabricated simplified Slavic language

Wiki:
Glagolitic alphabet

Early Cyrillic Alphabet

Cyrillic Alphabet

Proto-Slavic languages
Slavic languages

Other links:
Ss. Cyril and Methodius Byzantine Catholic Seminary
Ss. Cyril and Methodius Seminary
Ss. Cyril and Methodius University
Sisters of Saint Cyril and Methodius

Ss. Cyril and Methodius Ukrainian Church (Ontario--look at the iconostasis)

Pennsylvania; choir page

Milwaukee, WI (OCA)

Today is also Valentine's Day. Happy Valentine's!
CE entry on St. Valentine

source: All Saints in Brookline

Jacopo Bassano, St Valentine Baptizing St Lucilla

Kim Anderson Photography
The following are from Kim Anderson Arts:

David Franke Endorses Contra Dancing

I had to post this just because it speaks of contra dancing. From Won By One by David Franke:

While I love world music and African dance, my home base is traditional American music and dance. In particular, you’ll find me contra dancing every Friday. The odds are that you haven’t heard about contra dancing, so let me explain that its initial roots are in England, but by now it’s as American as, well, apple pie. When I’m on a contra line, I’m sharing that line with colonial Vermonters of the Green Mountain Boys era and every generation of Americans before and since. We dance to live music, with New England, Appalachian, and Celtic tunes being the dominant influences. Many of our dance moves are the same as in square dancing, though we are arranged in long lines of couples rather than squares.

This is a quintessential American experience harking back to an earlier era. Live acoustic music, not the DJ- and rock-oriented club scene. No alcohol or drugs—people come only to dance and socialize. We often share potluck meals or snacks. It’s truly intergenerational, with everyone from grandparents to teens and young children dancing with each other. Dance flirtation is encouraged, but try to go beyond that and you’ll be invited to find a different venue. At a contra dance weekend, everyone adopts the young kids by looking out for them so their parents can dance too. This is a uniquely American cultural community, found in hundreds of towns and cities across the nation.

Why do I bring this up? Because in 15 years of contra dancing and all the conversations I’ve had with the other dancers when we’re not on the floor, I cannot think of one conservative among them. Occasionally one will show up for one or two dances, but they don’t come back. I don’t know why, but from conversations with a few of my conservative friends who know of my strange obsession, I suspect they find it too quaint, too hokey for their tastes. They prefer the more fashionable forms of dance and partying that are popular in the suburbs, the synthesizer over the fiddle, the country club over the Grange hall. Heck, they don’t even know what a Grange hall is. So from my personal experience in social and cultural traditionalism, I’d say Weyrich and Lind have their work cut out for them, culturally perhaps more than politically.

But wait. All this was true in contra dancing until a couple of years ago. Inexplicably and spontaneously, at dances across the country, high-school and college students have discovered this ancient art form and taken to it with all the energy and enthusiasm you’d expect in their age group. Church youth groups are beginning to come together to our dances. And from conversations with the kids, particularly at rural dances outside metropolitan Washington, D.C., I know that a surprising number of them are home schooled. Being outside the cultural mainstream already, they have no problem with a dance form that might be sneered at by the “in” kids at school. And their parents certainly have no problem with the wholesome atmosphere at the dances.

Conservatives who don't like contra dance? They're not traditional conservatives? Or conservatives with no roots in the South or England?
I believe that contra dance, if one can find people willing to play the instruments, is a good way to build community. It's just that too many people, even those who profess to be conservatives, would rather be off doing "their own thing."

Related Links:
What Is Contra Dance?
Contra Dance History
English Country Dance and Its American Cousin
Resources and References for Contra Dance
Country Dance and Song Society
Folk Dance Association
Cambridge Contra Dance
CDS Boston Centre
Traditional American Dance and Music Society, Richmond, VA (alt?)
Bay Area Country Dance Society
ContraDancers.com (Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area)
North Texas Traditional Dance Society
CFootMad
wiki

For Pete Takeshi:
Contra Dance New York

The Next Conservatism

Mr. Joshua Snyder alerted me to the new issue of American Conservative. The main article is "The Next Conservatism" by Paul M. Weyrich and William Lind. I remembered seeing Mr. Weyrich's name before, and "Next Conservatism rang a bell." I then recalled having read his series of "Next Conservatism" articles, perhaps at Townhall, or maybe it was at another site... G-Nitro had posted some of these at Soompi forums as well. Anyways, this series (which added William Lind and others as contributors) can be found Free Congress--however, it is a bit odd that some of the essays are missing at their own website. These, however, can be found at Concerned Women for America and at the other archives of his writings at AmericanDaily, and Newsmax. The essay at American Conservatism can be considered a summary of this series.

Further, the next conservatism should revive the dormant conservative agrarian tradition. As the Amish demonstrate, the small family farm can be economically viable. Organic farming, conservation and restoration of the soil, farmers’ markets and “crunchy cons” should find an honored place in the next conservative agenda. Family farms are good places for children to grow up. While environmentalism is becoming an ideology, conservation and care in the use of God’s creation have long-standing conservative credentials. In turn, agriculture has always been a conservative culture.

Similarly, the next conservatism should include the issue of scale of enterprise. Conservatives have long recognized the danger big government poses to free markets. Is there not a similar threat from big business enterprises, especially when those enterprises are international corporations with no concern for the homeland? Is the market truly free when vast corporations can manipulate prices and politicians to destroy local businesses, both manufacturers and retailers, that are anchored in the local community and contribute to it in ways big companies do not? When everything for sale is labeled “Made in China,” Heaven decrees fair trade instead of free trade.

Another old conservative issue the next conservatism should revive is aesthetics. America may be the richest nation in history, but that has not made it the most beautiful. Strip malls, suburban sprawl, and hollowed-out cities have created an environment few people can love. The New Urbanism offers an alternative that looks to the past to recover traditional designs for towns and cities. The next conservatism should incorporate New Urbanism but not on the Portland, Oregon model of urban growth boundaries and the like (inside of which you find, surprise, more sprawl!). Rather, the next conservatism should promote dual building codes. Developers could choose to build to existing sprawl codes or Traditional Neighborhood Design codes, depending on what they think the market wants.

Related1y, the next conservatism should promote the return of trains and streetcars as alternatives to dependence on automobiles. The private automobile is a great way to travel as long as not many people have one. At present, the proliferation of cars creates such congestion that everyone, liberals and conservatives alike, wastes vast amounts of time sitting in traffic. Not even a Mercedes sports car is much fun when it can’t move. Bringing back trains and trolleys can save us time and help revitalize our cities. The future energy situation also makes it likely that coming generations will thank us for re-creating the network of trains and streetcar lines America once enjoyed. Here as elsewhere, the next conservatism should take the long view.

I know James Howard Kunstler would agree with the last two proposals just mentioned. What does he think of moral questions?

This issue of American Conservative features three responses to "The Next Conservatism":

Future Cons by James P. Pinkerton, Not Your Father’s Conservatism by John Derbyshire, and Won By One by David Franke

Knowing me, I can't say that I will get a chance to write anything about the responses, but if something strikes me I will try.

Peter Hitchens on prisons

Peter Hitchens on prisons... the books he mentions are out of print, but I am interested in them.

Paul Beck seems to think there is a contradiction between opposing prolonged imprisonment, especially for indefinite periods, and supporting the use of prison as a punishment at all. Once again, I must direct his attention to a book of mine, called 'The Abolition of Liberty'. This is the re-engineered version of 'A Brief History of Crime', which I produced after 'Brief History' was subjected to irrational and ad hominem attacks which obscured its main arguments. 'Abolition of Liberty' lacks two chapters from 'Brief History', one on capital punishment and the other on the logical fallacies of 'gun control', which Britain's liberal commentariat were not adult enough to meet with reason. It has, in compensation, an extra chapter on the wrongness of identity cards. I don't mention these books in the hope of becoming rich. Royalties are tiny. It just means that those who are really interested in my arguments can learn where they may find them set out at length. People often don't know I've written them.

But the central point about prisons is this. They can be punitive and austere while remaining humane, a balance achieved once in this country and in my view achievable again. What is important about a prison sentence is not its length, but its effect, both on the imprisoned person and on potential criminals weighing the risks of doing criminal acts.

The 'prison works' argument advanced by many unthinking populist conservatives, that at least those imprisoned cannot commit crimes while they are locked up, is absurd. This is an argument for locking them up forever, and a counsel of despair. I would much rather that they were free, but so anxious to stay out of prison in future that they give up crime. Also, I doubt very much whether prisoners can be taught to read, or given basic work skills, or disciplined habits of life, in anything but a highly disciplined prison where the hand of authority is heavy. I am sure a first offender could be give an adequate fear of prison (and communicate that fear to his friends and neighbours) by spending a week or even less in one - but only if that prison were sufficiently austere, disciplined and punitive. An effective preventative police force and an unrestrained judiciary would also play an important part in such an arrangement. Sentences of more than ten years seem to me to have only one likely effect, namely the total destruction of the imprisoned person. But see the book for a historical essay on how a humane and effective penal system was achieved and, by implication, how it could be achieved again, and also for an extended account of a visit I made to Wormwood Scrubs prison in West London.

Lind, Distributed Ops or Dumb Ops

Distributed Ops or Dumb Ops

William Lind explains what light infantry is, and makes some guesses about a recent USMC proposal.

Also, Col. Douglas MacGraegor takes a look at Gen. Petraeus.

Richard M. Weaver

source

North Carolina History Project

profile at the Acton Institute
Richard Weaver Works

wiki

His book Ideas Have Consequences. Entry about Ideas at Intellectual Conservatives's Top 25 Philosophical and Ideological Conservative Books. The Introduction.

Other books in print include In Defense of Tradition and The Southern Essays of Richard M. Weaver (both published by Liberty Fund). There is also The Vision of Richard Weaver.

Essays on Richard M. Weaver
Joe Scotchie's essay; Mr. Scotchie also wrote a biography of Professor Weaver, Barbarians in the Saddle (also published by Transaction)

Thomas Wood -- "Richard Weaver: Historian of the South"

Roger Kimball -- "The Consequences of Richard Weaver"

Joseph R. Stromber -- "The Old Cause: Richard M. Weaver on Civilization, Ontology, and War"

Touchstone review of 3 books on Prof. Weaver

Other books by Joseph Scotchie include

The Paleoconservatives

Revolt from the Heartland

Transaction also publishes Allan C. Carlson's Conjugal America, Family Questions, Fractured Generations, The Family in America, and The New Agrarian Mind.

Virginia is for Lovers

according to the tourism industry. The Commonwealth of Virginia.

(This post written in response to Mr. Snyder's The South Will Rise Again.)

I have a positive image of Virginia, for the most part, having spent 2 years at Christendom College. Then there was the first Virginian I met, Fr. N of the FSSP. He is from Richmond, and we had met at the seminary--he actually helped train me to be an altar server, and I was his assistant, scheduling servers for the various Masses. He certainly displayed what I came to think of as Southern politesse.

Then there were the Cuddebacks and the Blums at Christendom--the Blums are Virginia natives, as are the Cuddebacks, as far as I know--hospitable and devoted to their native state. Since Christendom is located in Virginia, there were plenty of Catholics attending the school who were from the South. I found them to be generally friendly and polite, more so than people from the West or from New England. There was one warm person from New Jersey; I'm not sure where the Brown siblings were from, but KB was nice. Those who seemed to be the most cold were from the northern Midwest, like Wisconsin and Minnesota. (With Lori O. being an exception?). I can't say much about the Midwest, though the people I know from Ohio are friendly, though perhaps they have a different set of manners than people from the South.

As for the inhabitants of Front Royal, I never had any problems with them--everyone I encountered was polite and friendly. I can't say that I ever encountered racism while I was in Virginia, though it was clear that some had never seen an Asian before (or perhaps one or two). But I didn't sense a hostile or prejudiced attitude. Front Royal is one hour west of Washington, D.C. (website for the Federals); but I think it is somewhat isolated from Yankee influence. There are some differences between Northern Virginia and Southern Pennsylvania, though I've never been in a rural community in Southern Pennsylvania. What is Lancaster like? I'd like to visit the Amish in Pennsylvania...

[Amishnews, Amish.net, Amish Experience, Amish Peddler, Lancaster County Visitors Center]

One of the most famous Virginians has to be Thomas Jefferson, who established the Univeristy of Virginia (where the Blums did their undergraduate studies). Another would be the first president under the Constitution [Cornell], George Washington. I haven't had the opportunity to visit Mount Vernon or Monticello; for me those aren't places I would want to visit alone. A third famous Virginian would be Robert E. Lee; he will make an appearance at the end of the post.

Morever, I have not visited Colonial Williamsburg, the colony of Roanoke, or Jamestown (which Queen Elizabeth 2 will be visiting this year for the 400th anniversary of its establishment). I didn't have a car at Christendom (I still don't), so it was difficult for me to get around. The college should organize some outings to these historical places for its students. I also wish the college dances would be more traditional, featuring American folk dances like the Virginia Reel... I would like to exerience more of traditional Virginian culture...

The Country Dance and Song Society

More on Jamestown:
Virtual Jamestown
APVA

Colin Farrell as Captain John Smith and Q'Orianka Kilcher as Pocahontas in the film The New World.


some production stills; production photos; more about the film

I shouldn't forget Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive; would it be wrong to say that these are some of Sarge's favorite places? I canoed on the Shenandoah River only once, Fr. Riley took us out that time; it'd be nice to do again. (The tourism site for Shenandoah.)

Then there is the legacy of Thomas Jefferson.

Portrait by Charles W. Peale.

Portait by Rembrandt Peale



Thomas Jefferson Digital Archive
Thomas Jefferson on Politics and Government
The Writings of Thomas Jefferson
Project Gutenberg
The Works of Thomas Jefferson
The Political Writings of Thomas Jefferson
Cambridge University Press volume
Jefferson Memorial
Establishing a Federal Republic
The Thomas Jefferson Papers
The Thomas Jefferson Heritage Society
wiki


I won't go into the conflict between the Democractic Republicans and the Federalists, except to say that their political battles foreshadowed what was to come half a century later. Jefferson's political writings I would like to study in greater depth later, so I won't attempt to offer anything "new" or "original" here. The link between the writings of the American political thinkers like Jefferson and medieval political theories is something I wish to investigate, especially on the question of sovereignty, but first I need to understand the medievals well...

Wendell Berry (who is from Kentucky) sees himself as a Jeffersonian. (Mark Engler's article on Mr. Berry.) While I'm on the topic of agrarianism, let me mention the Southern Agrarians or the Vanderbilt Agrarians (not exactly Virgnia, but still germane to this point of the post).
Their important essays can be found in I'll Take My Stand: The South and the Agrarian Tradition. This inspired a "sequel" (not wholly attributable to the original 12), Who Owns America: A New Declaration of Independence.

Agrarian Valhalla: The Vanderbilt and Beyond, by Joe Scotchie (see also his essay on Richard Weaver)


(source)
One of the 12 original founders, Allen Tate. Introduced to me by Dr. Blum. [TN Encyclopedia; uiuc.edu; some poems; "The Violence of Allen Tate" by David Yezzi]


According to wiki, Allan C. Carlson, along with Wendell Berry, is considered to be a successor to the Southern Agrarians.

Then there is the Southern Partisan Magazine, which like anything that seems to support the Confederacy, is deemed to be problematic, if not racist. It no longer has a website as far as I can tell, so I can't judge any such claims for myself. Still, there is this SP interview of Thomas DiLorenzo. I note that its first editor was Dr. Thomas Fleming; it is now under Christopher M. Sullivan, who was elected to be the head of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (Mr. Sullivan's CIC page). At the end of the Dr. DiLorenzo interview there is this information:

This interview is Copyright 2004 by Southern Partisan.
To subscribe to this bimonthly magazine, send $40 to Southern Partisan, P.O. Box
11708, Columbia, South Carolina 29211.

I don't know if it is still current. A collection of essays from the magazine had been published but is no longer in print, So Good a Cause. An article at Salon that recounts the controversy involving John Ashcroft and the magazine. All I see from critics are charges of racism and the support of slavery without any concrete evidence other than that those they attack are supporters of an independent South.

More on the League of the South:
From an obituary last year for Grady McWhiney at Chronicles:

The League of the South is, of course, not a hate group—hate group being the latest term for “Southern group.” The League of the South could more accurately be described as a love group. If a hate group is hateful, then the odious Southern Poverty Law Center is a hate group. And the odious obituary for Grady McWhiney powerfully suggests that the New York Times is a hate group.

Grady McWhiney Research Foundation
Confederate Crackers and Cavaliers

From the Dallas Morning News obituary for Dr. McWhiney:

Henry Grady McWhiney challenged historical tradition by proposing that the nation's bloodiest internal conflict may have been less a war of ideology and more a clash of cultures.

The scholar, historian and author died April 18 at his home in Abilene. He was 77.

Dr. McWhiney was born July 15, 1928, in Shreveport, La. After he completed school, he enlisted in the Marine Corps during the final year of World War II. He married Sue Baca in California in 1947.

After his military service, Dr. McWhiney returned to Louisiana and attended Centenary College. After graduation, he earned a master's degree at Louisiana State University. He earned a doctorate in 1960 from Columbia University in New York.

Dr. McWhiney had a 44-year academic career, holding posts at Troy State University, the University of California at Berkeley, Northwestern University, the University of British Columbia, Wayne State University, the University of Alabama and Texas Christian University.

Dr. McWhiney focused most of his career on mid-19th-century American history, and his knowledge of the Civil War was in high demand at Civil War Round Table groups throughout the country.

He was a prolific publisher and wrote or contributed to dozens of books.

One of Dr. McWhiney's more provocative publications was 1988's Cracker Culture: Celtic Ways in the Old South. Mr. McWhiney theorized that fundamentally different cultures evolved in the South and the North from immigrant bases with a history of conflict. He said that those differences exploded into a war that was "not as much brother against brother as culture against culture."

"He made the argument that cultural continuity helped make Southerners distinctive. It was pretty aggressive in that somehow Southerners were different from other Americans," said Donald Frazier, a professor of history at McMurry University in Abilene who earned a doctorate under Dr. McWhiney's auspices.

Dr. Frazier said Dr. McWhiney's work was groundbreaking because it examined events not in terms of race or black-and-white issues but in the perspective of cultural heritage. He said that reviews for Cracker Culture were mixed.

"He was provocative academically in that he looked at things in new ways," Dr. Frazier said. "Any time you are out there with a new idea, you are bound to draw some fire."

In the book Attack and Die: Civil War Military Tactics and the Southern Heritage, Dr. McWhiney proposed that during the war Southerners tended to attack too often and that propensity was due to their Celtic heritage, Dr. Frazier said.

After his retirement in 1995, Dr. McWhiney suffered a series of strokes. Fearing he was near death with no heirs, he enlisted the aid of Dr. Frazier to found the Grady McWhiney Research Foundation in Abilene, using his estate as its endowment. The foundation's mission is to further education on American history in the middle years of the 19th century, Civil War history, Texas history and global military history.

One of the foundation's accomplishments was the purchase of the Buffalo Gap Historic Village in Taylor County, a collection of Texas frontier buildings and artifacts.

Dr. McWhiney "argued that history is something that should be accessible to everyone," Dr. Frazier said.

The War of Northern Aggression, or the War to Prevent Southern Independence... (Brian Dunaway's War and Secession)

Sam Francis argues against the contemporary movement towards secession. His review of Gods and Generals.


Stephen Lang as Gen. Jackson, Robert Duvall as Gen. Lee in Gods and Generals. (I still have to watch the movie all the way through.)

[Ron Maxwell's website, Jeff Shaara, an interview with Mr. Shaara. Surprisingly, the Apple trailers are still on-line.]

The prominent Confederate general of the movie...
General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson
VMI page; his papers (I don't want to get into a discussion about VMI and its going co-ed.)
Stonewall Jackson Homepage
American Civil War
wiki
The Letters of Stonewall Jackson to His Wife


Stonewall Jackson House
Stonewall Jackson Museum at Hupp's Hill
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park


Mort Kunstler painting of Gens. Lee and Jackson meeting with Jefferson Davis.

Last meeting of Gen. Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson

For more on General Robert E. Lee; see also Dr. Clyde Wilson's essay.
More Links:
The Abbeville Institute
Southern Events