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Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Coraline DVD Review

Coraline - An Alliance Films’ Release

On DVD: July 21st, 2009

Rated PG for frightening scenes; not recommended for young children.

Running time: 101 minutes

Henry Selick (dir.)

Henry Selick (screenplay)

Neil Gaimen (original book)

Bruno Coulais (music)

Dakota Fanning as Coraline Jones

Teri Hatcher as Mother / Other Mother

Jennifer Saunders as Miss Spink

Dawn French as Miss Forcible

Keith David as Cat

John Hodgman as Father / Other Father

Robert Bailey Jr. as Wybie Lovat

Ian McShane as Mr. Bobinsky

Special Features: "DISC 1 (DVD-18): SIDE A (Theatrical 2D Version) - Feature Commentary with Director Henry Selick and Composer Bruno Coulais (On/Off)

SIDE B (3D Version) - Feature Commentary with Director Henry Selick and Composer Bruno Coulais (On/Off) DISC 2 (DVD-9 BONUS DISC): ***ENGLISH Dolby Digital 2.0 ONLY for Bonuses but all offered with English SDH / Spanish and French subtitles.*** - Deleted Scenes -THE MAKING OF CORALINE (PLAY ALL - The Evolution of the Story; Inspiring Design: Character Design and Art Direction; Directing the Voice Sessions; Making Puppets; Coraline's Closet; Setting the Stage: How Does Your Fantastic Garden Grow?; It's Alive; I've Seen Fire and I've Seen Fog; The Eyes Have it; Wrapping Up Coraline - Voicing the Characters

Digital Copy Included!"

© 2009 Laika, Inc. All rights reserved. Distributed exclusively in Canada by Alliance Films. All Rights Reserved.

Our reviews below:

Coraline DVD Review By John C.

When Coraline Jones, displeased with her parents, climbs through a mysterious door in her wall, she ends up in a terrifying version of her own house and garden. At first everything appears better. But she soon finds out that she is being lured in by the clutches of her evil “other-mother”. This is a classic cautionary tale, but it is told in a very original and imaginative way. While the movie does have changes from Neil Gaimen’s original book, mainly the addition of the character Wybie, it still serves as a good adaptation.

While a lot of this film will be too creepy and intense for younger kids, it is truly a delight for older kids and adults. From the director of The Nightmare Before Christmas, Henry Selick, this is in a lot of ways a darker film than Nightmare, which was mainly a musical. (Contrary to popular belief, Tim Burton only served as writer and producer on Nightmare). Coraline isn’t a musical, but it certainly does have a fascinating musical score, featuring haunting sounds, including a choir singing.

Coraline is a fascinating stop-motion animated masterpiece that should not be missed. With chilling suspense along with scenes of wonderment, this truly is a great film. One of the best movies so far this year.

Coraline is available to buy in 1 and 2-disc formats. Both formats include the film in 2D as well as 3D. It comes with four pairs of glasses with green/magenta lenses. Though nowhere-near as good as the in-theatre 3D, they are certainly an improvement over the red/blue glasses, although they still do drain the colour. The sole bonus on the 1-disc set is audio commentary by director Henry Selick and composer Bruno Coulais. The 2-disc set includes everything on the 1-disc, as well as deleted scenes, an approx. 36-minute making-of, featurettes, and a digital copy of the film. The Blu-Ray set includes all that, plus an additional featurette, U-Control, and BD-Live features. If you don’t yet have a Blu-Ray player, than I definitely recommend you get the 2-disc.

Coraline DVD Review By Erin V.

**** (out of 4)

Coraline tells the story of Coraline Jones, who after moving with her parents to an old mansion, discovers a small hidden door. Through a secret passageway, she finds herself in what she believes to be a ‘better’ version of her new house, complete with an ‘Other’ Mother, and and ‘Other’ Father. The only little difference, is that everyone there has buttons sewn over their eyes. Since Coraline’s real world parents are busy all the time, she starts to like the Other world better. But little does she know, that everything there is just manufactured to ultimately trap her...

This movie is very intriguing. The storyline is quite strange, although masterfully told and animated. The second disc of the special edition includes a very interesting ‘making of’ documentary which runs approximately 36 minutes long. It covers everything from making the puppets used for the animation to the voice work done for the characters. It is amazing to see the amount of work put into this film. It really is absolutely astonishing that everything in the film was made by hand. Even the clothes that each character wears was knitted in miniature form!

The special edition also includes both the 2D and 3D versions of the film. What I find about it is that the movie already seems 3D enough without the extra gimmick. Unlike in theatres that now can use RealD, the kind of glasses that come with this are still with two colours.

The ones here are not like the old 3D, which was just terrible. The old ‘cyan and red’ glasses made you see double images rimmed all over the place with blue and red. No, this here has glasses with one magenta lens, and one green one. When you are wearing them, after about five minutes, you don’t really notice the two colours anymore as they kind of blend together. Also, you see no odd colour rimming on the images on screen. What the glasses do change though, is the colour and the brightness. And that is my complaint about them. The colour is drained on the 3D version - even when you flip the glasses off to compare. It is as though they have drained the green and pinks to more greyish tones so that they are not disappearing for the eye with that colour lens. This makes sense, but unfortunately it means that while we gain a 3D effect, we are losing some of the beauty of the colour.

Overall, I would recommend getting the 2-disc special edition while you can, or if you have a player, BluRay. Coraline is a wonderful, inventive movie in every way!

Coraline DVD Review By Nicole

**** (out of 4)

Coraline is an amazing, stop-motion animated film. When Coraline Jones moves in to a new home, she is bored. There doesn't seem to be anything to do in her new neighbourhood. The neighbours are strange, and the only other kid who live in the neighbourhood is a talkative boy who won't shut up At home, Coraline thinks her parents are boring. When Coraline finds a secret door in the house, she enters to fins a parallel universe where everything seems to go the way that she would like. Everyone, including her parents, seem better, (except they have buttons attached over their eyes). But pretty soon, it is apparent that things are not what they appear to be. When Coraline's "other mother" shows her true colours, Coraline has to escape before it is too late.

The animation is excellent and very original. The attention to detail is amazing. The score by Bruno Coulais is beautiful, possessing an ethereal, almost Celtic sound. The story is very interesting, reminiscent of an old fairy tale; while spooky at times, everything gets resolved in the end. The casting and acting is perfect.

The DVD has both a 3D and a 2D version of the film. The red and green 3D works better than the old red and blue, but still washes out a lot of the colour. However, it is a nice novelty to have. The bonus features are really worth it. The making of featurette shows the many steps in creating stop-motion animation. This was amazing to see. The featurette on voice acting was also really good.

Coraline is an excellent movie, that is worth owning on DVD.

Coraline DVD Review By Maureen

**** (out of 4)

Coraline is a creepily, creative stop-motion animation masterpiece. Based on the book, Coraline by Neil Gaiman the story follows Coraline Jones (voiced by Dakota Fanning) as she discovers a secret door in her family's new home and enters an alternate world. It is there she meets 'Other Mother" and "Other Father' and a host of other creepy characters, all with buttons for eyes. This is a dark but wonderful fairy tale of a story. The whole point of it is "be careful what you wish for."

What makes Coraline work so well is the amazing stop-motion animation. This movie is visually stunning to watch. I saw Coraline in 2D in theatres so I was curious to check out the 3D version on the DVD with the green/magenta cardboard glasses that came with it. While the 3D glasses are a fun novelty I actually prefer the 2D version. The 3D glasses seemed to fade the colour somewhat and were distracting for me.

What I really like about the DVD, other than the movie itself, is the making of feature. Seeing how they did the stop-motion animation gave me an even greater appreciation of how good Coraline really is. The other aspect of this movie that really works is the beautiful music by composer Bruno Coulais. Everything works in Coraline. Director Henry Selick has done a great job with this one.

If you appreciate good animation and a great story you'll want this DVD for your collection.

Coraline DVD Review By Tony

**** (out of 4)

Based on the book by Neil Gaiman, Coraline is the latest stop-motion feature from Henry Selick, best known for The Nightmare Before Christmas. It is a beautiful film with an excellent cast led by Dakota Fanning in the title role and brilliant musical score from Bruno Coulais. More stylized than realistic, the scary story is too whimsical to be threatening to any but the smallest children, and is sure to be among the best animated features ever made.

The DVD is released in several versions, including BluRay and 3D. We didn’t see the 3D version in the theatre, which would have been particularly awesome in the opening stitching sequence. Using the cheap red/blue glasses, the 3D DVD seen up close on a large monitor gave a decent illusion of 3D but the colours were washed out and modified compared to the regular version. Numerous fascinating mini-featurettes covering all aspects of the production are included. The website is also worth a visit, as it provides many delightful surprises, each accompanied by different music based on the brilliant score.

Consensus: Coraline is an animated masterpiece. While definitely not for young children, those 12 & up will really appreciate this cool, kind of creepy, fantasy tale. **** (Out of 4)

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Sunday, March 16, 2014

Study: Antioxidants Present in Virgin Coconut Oil Inhibits Inflammation Associated with Arthritis

Reposted from Health Impact News Daily

by Brian Shilhavy
Health Impact News

In what may the first study of its kind, researchers in India extracted the antioxidants unique to virgin coconut oil from the oil and injected them into rats with induced arthritis. They found that the unique coconut oil antioxidants reduced inflammation associated with arthritis more effectively than current pharmaceutical drugs.

The authors of the study write that their motivation to examine the antioxidants present in virgin coconut oil in relation to inflammation caused by arthritis is due to the ineffectiveness and serious side effects of current pharmaceutical drugs prescribed for arthritis:

 Arthritis is one of the most pervasive diseases that cause disability. Arthritis encompasses over 120 diseases and conditions that affect joints, surrounding tissues and connective tissues. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by chronic inflammation of synovial joints and subsequent progressive erosive destruction of articular cartilage. The consequent morbidity and mortality have a substantial socioeconomic impact and epidemiology of arthritis in female:male is 3:1. Most of the patients with aggressive disease evolution become clinically disabled within 20 years.
At present the drug used to treat RA range from non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to more potent disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) [3]. The lack of reliable treatment for early RA is a major problem in modern medicine. Most of these treatments cause severe side effects such as stomach problems, heartburn, ulcers and bleeding in the case of NSAIDs and cataracts, high blood pressure, sleep problems, muscle loss, bruising, thinning of the bones (osteoporosis), weight gain and susceptibility to infections in the case of DMARDs. There is therefore a need to develop effective antiinflammatory drugs with fewer side effects. The main objective of the present study is to evaluate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect of polyphenolic fraction isolated from virgin coconut oil (VCO) on experimental arthritis.
The study found that antioxidants extracted from virgin coconut oil were more effective in reducing the inflammation in arthritis induced in rats, than Indometacin, a popular prescription nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) often prescribed for arthritis.

While this study was obviously motivated to create new patent-able drugs or supplements from virgin coconut oil antioxidants, it should encourage those who consume virgin coconut oil, knowing the effectiveness of the unique antioxidants present in some virgin coconut oils has wonderful health benefits. This is yet another benefit of virgin coconut oil that can be added to the already impressive long list of benefits associated with coconut oil, much of it related to the medium chain fatty acids, such as lauric acid.

It is important to note, however, that when discussing antioxidants present in coconut oil, that not all coconut oils are equal in amounts of antioxidants present. Refined coconut oils would have little or none, and not all virgin coconut oils are produced the same way to have the highest amounts of antioxidants. The virgin coconut oil used in this study was produced using the wet-milling method and heat.

Previous research has shown that antioxidants are most present in virgin coconut oils produced using the wet-milling method, and that they are released in more abundance into the coconut oil when some heat is used in the processing. Many virgin coconut oils on the market today are actually produced with no heat, or “cold pressed.” While this is an advantage in the olive oil industry, it is a disadvantage in producing high quality coconut oils. For more information, see:  What Type of Coconut Oil is Best? How to Choose a Coconut Oil.

Polyphenolics isolated from virgin coconut oil inhibits adjuvant induced arthritis in rats through antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action.

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  • Episode 243

    "CP9 Unmasked! Their Shocking True Faces" is the 243rd episode of the One Piece anime. It is...

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From Chapter 440

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qualifies as fair use under United States copyright law. Any other uses of this image, on this Wiki or elsewhere, may be copyright infringement.
The individual who uploaded this work and first used it in an article, and subsequent persons who place it into articles assert that this qualifies as fair use.

Note: Since this site is a One Piece wiki, most of the files' copyrights are held by Eiichirō Oda, Shūeisha or Toei Animation. Check the reference section and specify the copyright status if necessary.

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Tips to Learning Self-Taught Photography

Posing Techniques for Photographing Model Portfolios

6 Guides to Choose the Best DSLR Lens

How to Photograph Rays of Light

The Best Lens for Portrait Photography

Travel Photography Tips : How To Capture Extraordinary Travel Photos

The EDFAT Method in Photojournalism

Tips: Preserving Battery Life of your Digital Camera

Download Photography PDF: Wedding Photography Checklist

Image Stabilizer, Is It Required or Not?

Free software download: Digital Photo Slide Show

Posted by oneslidephotogaraphy On April - 19 - 2017
Free software download Digital Photo Slide Show

Digital Photo Slide Show

A digital CD slideshow is a great way to preserve and showcase your favorite photos. There are many free software downloads available to photographers who want to create slide shows from their digital camera photos. Listed below are a few of the most popular with a short review of what makes them useful. All software mentioned below will also let you edit your photographs before creating a slide show. For example, you can crop, resize, rotate, reduce red eye etc. Read the rest of this entry »

Related Photography Ideas for Photo Story 3 at

[video] Camera Warfare!

This is a video on War Photographers, people who risk their lives for their profession and information. Like a soldier in arms, armed with their camera and lenses, they dive right into ground zero of a conflict area and gets close up into the action of the battle field. But this video isn’t documenting the […]

What are the Advantages of Using a Monopod?

Generally, monopods aren’t substitutes for tripods. You won’t be able to photograph with bulb (long exposure) using a monopod. But if what you’re looking for is a tool to help you stabilize your camera from any shock, help you take pictures in poor light conditions, or just want an all-around sharper picture, then monopods trump […]

Records of Firsts in the World of Photography

Like in everything else, there are records of firsts in the world of photography. The following are some of the most groundbreaking firsts that we now find photographs of the norm. Check them out! First Fetus Photograph In 1965, Swedish scientist Lennart Nilsson photographed this 20-week old fetuswhile the fetus was alive without any interference. […]

Canon 70D vs Nikon D7100, which one is better?

Canon 70D and Nikon D7100 are premium DSLRs and both serves well for both professional photographers and hobbyists alike. Some similarities between the two: -Generally, the buttons and dial on both cameras are quite elaborate. Speed of continuous shots are almost identical. Canon 70D is capable of shooting up to 7 photos per second, while […]

At the End of These Images, I Cannot Say a Word

There are people who say that “pictures or images say thousands of words”. One of them is by telling and showing us what we are feeling and our relationship with someone. Every season, this couple took an image in front of their house. As the result, without any explanation and description, a story is being […]

Tips on Photographing Children and Families with Graham Monro

A once commercial photographer who did a lot of sport and magazine work, Graham Monro took his professional skills over to the domestic field of photography where he exclusively shoots portraits. In this video, he explains great tips to achieve phenomenal photographs of families and children. Though the video’s title explains that it explains wedding […]

External Flash Photography Techniques

In photography, lighting is the main key to getting an extraordinary photograph. One of photography’s instrument that’s in very close relationship with lighting is the flash light. There are many ways to use flash to get maximal results in different lighting conditions. Several of these are: Bounce Flash Technique (reflecting light) The goal when using […]


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Oracle Internet Directory Replication

Top three reasons for implementing OID Replication:

1. Local Accessibility and Performance requirement.
— All major enterprise operate on geographically separated location with common directory and remote location are interconnected with low bandwidth its good idea to move to OID replication based on geographical locations for improved performance and local accessibility

2. High Availability & fault tolerance.
— Implementing Directory Server on two or more replicated (multimaster) servers provide High Availability and better fault tolerance.

3. Better return on Investment.
—Deploying replicated OID in two or more small servers is always better in terms of Return of Investment (Scalable to increasing user load)

Type of replication (Single Master, Multi Master, Fan-Out)
Single Master: Only one supplier (Users can edit entry) and many consumers (Users can only read but not edit). Use LDAP or DB advanced replication protocol
Multi Master: Replica OID are Supplier as well consumer at same time from other Replica OID. Using DB Advanced replication only (can’t be achieved by LDAP based replica)
Fan Out: A supplier replicating one consumer which in turn is updating other consumers.

Three command line tools which you can use to monitor and troubleshoot OID replication are

OID Replication Management Tools
remtool: Replication Environment Management Tool
oidreconcile: OID Reconciliation Tool
hiqretry: Human Intervention Queue Manipulation Tool

Apart from this you can use GUI tool i.e. oidadmin to administer Member of Directory Replication Group

Key Points you should know for OID Replication:
OID Replication Architecture is based on loose connectivity model (Two Replica Directory are not guaranteed to be consistent in real time)

In my coming posts I’ll explain architecture of Multi Master Replication with processes at both Supplier and Consumer side (All Nodes in Multi Master replication act as both consumer and supplier)

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Barbara Paschal

Posted: Tuesday, November 12, 2002

   Barbara Joan Paschal, 65, died Saturday, Nov. 9, 2002.

   A native of Eatonton, Miss Paschal was a daughter of the late J.H. and Ruth Sowle Paschal. She was retired from Athens Newspapers Inc. after 16 years of service as a circulation data entry clerk. She was a member of Altrusa Club, Athens Business Club and Winterville First Baptist Church where she was a member of the Friendship Sunday School Class and Women's Missionary Union and was pianist for Adult I Department.

   Services will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Lord and Stephens Funeral Home, East, with Dr. Stan Annandale and the Rev. Palmer Rehberg officiating. Burial will be in Pine Grove Cemetery, Eatonton.

   In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Winterville First Baptist Church, 305 N. Church St., Winterville, GA 30683.

   Athens Banner-Herald, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2002

Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Tuesday, November 12, 2002.

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Thursday, January 11, 2007

Telelogic Releases Free UML Tool

On January 2nd, Telelogic made an announcement of the availability of a free modeling environment based on the Object Management Group´s (OMG) UML 2.1 standard.

Telelogic’s release of the free Modeler product is a bold move, and VDC expects the announcement to have a significant impact on the UML tools market going forward. The new product will allow Telelogic the opportunity to promote the value of UML to non-users in new market segments as well as to better address developers currently employing UML for more basic functions and those considering a more gradual, low risk adoption of a model-based development approach. VDC believes that the release is an appropriate market response considering the current competitive dynamics in the embedded UML space.

While a segment of embedded projects require the use of sophisticated UML environments, in VDC’s view, many developers are still using UML tools for basic modeling and drawing capabilities. There is substantial demand for lower priced UML tools, and VDC believes a significant portion of development teams using UML tools have purchased lower cost solutions such as Microsoft Visio, Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect, Gentleware Poseidon, and others to model their applications. Many vendors of low cost UML tools have rapidly improved their solutions, and VDC expects these vendors to continue to offer more advanced capabilities over time.

Another significant factor is that the majority of embedded developers are not using any UML tools to develop their applications. The opportunity to design applications using Telelogic Modeler at no cost to the user should serve to promote the use of UML, ultimately helping more companies to realize the benefits of using a model-based development approach. By creating greater awareness and adoption of UML in new markets, the release has the potential to benefit not only Telelogic, but all vendors within the UML market.

Telelogic Modeler will certainly be attractive to a segment of the embedded UML market that currently demands less from its UML tools, and to those that have considered experimenting with the use of UML, but are not willing to take significant risk in doing so. The availability of a no-cost, low-risk tool from a leading vendor like Telelogic should have a positive impact on UML adoption. Telelogic Modeler will also give Telelogic the opportunity to build valuable relationships with new accounts that will be important as these companies’ UML tools requirements mature and they look to migrate to more advanced tools.


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PCA, CLAC speak up to oppose closed tendering in Sault. Ste. Marie

civic centre sault ste marie
Rendering of the Sault. Ste. Marie civic centre

Organizations representing the construction industry’s businesses and labour outside of the conventional organized labour system are asking Sault Ste. Marie’s city council to support a motion from Coun. Matthew Shoemaker to look deeper into the costs and impact that  closed tendering is having on its citizens and finances.

Under current rules, the city can only allow contractors that are signatories of two unions—the International Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and the Labourers International Union of North America—to work on municipal projects.

Sault taxpayers are being over charged by as much as 30 per cent each year for construction projects, according to the Progressive Contractors Association of Canada (PCA).

“There’s plenty of good research that shows Sault taxpayers are getting soaked on every single city construction project,” said PCA spokesperson Karen Renkema. “When local taxpayers are paying between 20 to 30 per cent more than they should for local projects there’s something seriously wrong. It’s about time that changed.”

Ontario’s outdated labour laws make construction work more expensive in the Sault by forcing the city to award all projects to contractors affiliated with two unions only, PCA says “Any local companies and workers who aren’t affiliated with those unions are not allowed to bid or work on the projects, no matter how qualified they are. Research from the Cardus think tank shows this lack of competition drives up construction costs in the Sault by as much as 20 to 30 percent each year – with taxpayers footing the bill.”

“The $6.5 million civic centre facelift is a perfect example of just how unfair things are for taxpayers, local companies and workers,” Renkema said in a statement. “Taxpayers will be overcharged by at least $1 million on this project and many local companies and skilled workers will have no chance to work on that project. How fair is that?”

The current rules prevent many local companies and their workers from working on projects like the court house or improvements to the water treatment facilities, Sault Online has reported. PAC and the Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLAC), which represents employees of companies through an interdisicplinary model, assert that, according to many studies, this also drives up the costs of these taxpayer-funded projects.

“This is an issue of both cost and fairness,” Sault Online quoted CLAC representative Ian DeWaard as saying. “The current tendering restrictions are preventing local contractors from bidding on public projects and this is fundamentally wrong. All qualified union and non-union companies should have the right to bid on publicly funded projects. Fair and open tendering is the only way to give residents the right to work in their own community and to achieve maximum value for money on municipal projects.”

“CLAC is calling on all councillors to support this resolution so they can get the facts they need to make an informed decision about next steps,” says DeWaard. “We believe that the study will show that when particular unions are able to monopolize work that is paid for by municipal governments, costs go up and public dollars buy less of the needed additions, refurbishments, and infrastructure replacements.”

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Friday, 17 July 2015

Response to 'A Layman's View on the Documents of the Synod.'

To Nicolas Bellord:

 Firstly Thank you Sir - it's more credit to your acumen rather than Mr Kahn's clarity that you were able to scry a Gradualist subtext from his meandering soporific inchoate 'Faith' magazine article.

[This is the subtle danger around us - that we're bored into submission, obfuscated by meandering irrelevance - that in the meantime they'll creep up behind us, hit us over the back of the head and be off with the crown jewels before we can blink...I have to confess I thought Mr Kahn's article mind-numbing and duplicitous - like chewing on polystyrene or drowning in cream soda]

Your article and its forthright scrutiny are admirably excellent.
You have reassuringly [albeit somewhat optimistically] confirmed what I already surmised - that the RS resolved the RPD-crisis and the work of skilled intellectuals able to 'seek & destroy' any legalistic or linguistic loopholes and to 'Catholicise' [with apologetic] that which was overtly secular and self-serving.

You appear to conclude [with reservations] that this affirmative action might allay many of our doubts and grave concerns regarding the imminent Synod?
To some extent I agree
It has granted some reassurance that the few Intellectual giants remaining in the Church know exactly with what they are dealing and how to counter it.
[yet I also remind myself that this time round there will be significantly fewer of these people there]

But my reservations are not concerns for the RS - I'm increasingly convinced that the orthodoxy [sans the three questionable papal impositions] was permitted and uncountered for ulterior motives. Primarily as a Muller-pacifier . The overt RS Orthodoxy plays right into kasperite hands - for now the only perceivable residual problem seems to be the remote kasperite one which was defeated once and now hardly seems a risk at all - meanwhile we remain at even greater risk from Gradualism as nobody seems to either know what it is or what havoc it can wreak.

So in response - as your exemplary work certainly requires no critique - I'm going to revert to singing from the same songsheet as I've done all year and call foul on last year's synod, suggest an insidious conspiracy theory behind it all, plead for a wider realisation in the inherent and imminent dangers in Gradualism and furthermore suggest we're at the Rubicon - this IS the moment - if Gradualism is given any precedent? National churches follow and Schism is inevitable.

a] Let's face what happened at the Last Synod and why it MUST NOT be allowed to happen again at Synod15
1] Depositions for speeches had to be submitted six weeks before synod to ensure censorship, suppression, forced revision or selective partisan adjudications eg 'regrettably removed due to time constraints'
2] The rigging of the preparatory consistory with the 'kasper' agenda
3] The postal interception,theft and destruction of the book "Remaining in the Truth of Christ"
4]The sudden global synchronicity in preaching and interview comments regarding the 'law of gradualism' - ie stooges being briefed to misrepresent Familiaris Consortio-recognised gradualist effects as an argument for the heretical principle of gradualism
5] The daily media briefings bearing no resemblance to what was actually occurring on the synod floor
6] The election of committee leaders being arbitrarily dismissed with the majority-imposition of kasperite papal appointees
7] The fraudulent forgery of a counterfeit mid-term relatio composed not by Cardinal Erdo
but instead by Papal secretary Mgr Forte - already deposited at the printers BEFORE synod commenced and bearing to relation to actual discussions during synod.
8] The leaking of this mid-term relatio to both major Italian political parties - notifying them of its
pro-homosexual content and arranging with these secular powers for a joint declaration to be simultaneously timed with the TV report of the MTR to make a joint declaration supporting same-sex marriage.
9] The Tuesday rebellion against the MTR ,
10] The attempted suppression of making the committee deliberations public leading to...
11] The BlueThursday rebellion and ultimately...
12] the papal ignoring of the final vote against the three clauses &
13] the imposition of these within the formal documents sent to every diocese with...
14] NO official records made that these did not pass the required 2/3 vote - hence for the first
time in modern history we have papal records which deliberately misrepresent and misreport the events and deliberations within a synod -and throughout the entire synod process we had...
15] due process and procedurality being overturned, microphones turned off, schedules
terminatedand revised preventing certain speakers being allowed to present positions contrary to the Kasperite one - direct intervention from the Synod Chair Cardinal Baldisseri - who was...
16] constantly being bombarded with repeated notes from Pope Francis [who was obviously
sending directives and involved with the interventionist alterations to process and procedurality]

No Synod has ever previously been carried out in such a disastrously duplicitous,maniacally machiavellian and freakishly fraudulent way as last year's extraordinary synod. Events more redolent of I Claudius, House of Cards or a Whitehall farce.
Theft, forgery, fraud, gerrymandering, suppression,ultramontane arbitrary [if not whimsical] draconian papal interventions [eg I don't like the people elected - so I'll choose my own to make the majority - I don't like the final vote, so I'll include the voted-down sections into the universal proposals anyway] was a calamitous trainwreck readily available to peruse for all who wanted to see it [regrettably the majority of Catholic commentators and journalists preferred to be in utter denial of the events and instead chose to promote a version of events where none of the nightmare happened - conducive to the afterglow of the imaginary 'Francis Effect']
General assemblies of the in-standing Synod process SOLELY deal with pastoral and evangelical issues in regard to non-negotiable, irrefutable, incontrovertible Doctrine on Faith and Morals.
Changing Doctrine in any way, shape or form is not an option - although a Pope may extend a remit to discuss certain doctrinal interpretations or developments - A Pope cannot possibly delegate any of His Apostolic Power regarding any actuation to a Synod. A Synod is an advisory council - NOT a legislature or a binder/looser of doctrine.
A mandatory Synod criterion is that the pastoral applications deal with a FIRM undisputed doctrine - it is presumptive and absolute - and may not be questioned [irrespective of the requested so-called parrhesia - the doors are not merely firmly shut on doctrinal change - there are no doors to be opened]

b] There is a prevailing confusion in regard to what Kasper and the progressives are actually seeking at this Synod: They're NOT seeking a change in Doctrine - they're seeking a mandate by which the Doctrine may be ignored, defied, alienated and irrevocably severed from the pastoral applications - through the heresy of Gradualism [ie sinners may continue to live in a state of mortal sin and continue to sin providing they are showing some willed effort towards a less-sinful life - and be accordingly welcomed and not shunned or deemed scandalous in any way - eg the Gradualist resolution to the divorced and remarried is to allow the mortal sin to continue so long as they go through a 'feeling sorry and saying sorry' process, for the active homosexual couple it's 'they've made their bed and can't go back without too much cruel intolerant, uncharitable, injustice - therefore they have to compensate and make some minor form of amends - but to expect immediate continence would be unjust']
The Kasperites are NOT MERELY AFTER communion for the divorced and remarried - they want Gradualism as an accepted precedent which may be applied to ANY pastoral situation - all the teaching can be ignored, all the canonical regulations or Vatican directives or Gospel commands or natural law prohibitions can be defied - in the name of compassionate, tolerant, merciful pastoral ministry [within a decade there would be chaplains for abortion, divorce, gay marriage guidance, euthanasia etc]
The idea we have increasing lay-participation and lay-empowerment is both fallacious and duplicitous given we've had three generations of Catholics being defiantly uncatechised and denied the Catholic apologetic [ironically especially those within the religious education system] - to the extent that most of our clergy under sixty [unless devoted extra-curricular academics] do not really have the same knowledge and understanding that even a junior member of the Catholic Evidence Guild possessed half a century ago. The majority of Catholics in the West are well-meaning pagans who know a little bit, understand even less and when attempting to answer any doctrinal or moral issue would normatively 'best-guess wing-it' and in the process fall into half a dozen blatant or obscure heresies...
In just the same way only an informed conscience may take moral precedent
Only an informed laity has any rights whatsoever to speak on behalf of the laity - because only then would the opinions stated be grounded upon precepts and principles of the Taught Faith - not on speculative whims and tastes and wild imaginings of what they presume the faith to be.
We've had Six Synods on this very issue in the past fifty years - and each one has been ignored.
So how can the laity be consulted on issues about which they've never been formally taught - articles on the faith and moral teachings they have never been told?
Finally there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that the Synod this October will be co-ordinated any differently from the last debacle where deliberate Papal and Chair intervention [together with flagrant extra-Synodal misdemeanours - like leaking documents to secular enemies of the Church or stealing and destroying books which promoted authentic teaching on the Doctrine of marriage] led to grave violations of procedurality and due process.
The laity may not be informed enough to counter, question or conform to the metaphysical, theological or moral issues at synod - but they are certainly more than competent in adjudicating procedures on the grounds of justice and the common good.
And the average Catholic - on either witnessing or being informed of the scandalous shenanigans of last year's Extraordinary synod [which one expert in the legal field not a million miles away referred to as 'redolent of a banana republic']...
Would [if made aware of the scandal] all agree on one thing:
Which is why it will probably happen again this Autumn

c] Communion for active homosexuals/'divorced' and 'remarried' was an obfuscation and diversion from the true socio-cultural and secularising forces which are threatening, compromising and jeopardising the faithful and leading to marital and family break-up.
Ever heard of Nepreryvka?
 It was the early communist Russian attempt to deliberately destroy the perceived
'lethal threat of the family' to the collectivist state.
Weekends were abolished and a five-day week was introduced - each day designated with a
colour - each family member having a different colour with
corresponding rest-days of that colour - hence family meals and social
gatherings were always fractured and dissociate by the alienating factor
of some members always being forced to work and not being able to
Notice the contemporary comparisons with today's working
conditions of mothers being economically forced into the workplace - the
majority working either continental shift patterns in factories or
retail hours which demand weekend work and their absence from crucial
aspects of their normative child-rearing and family-supportive roles?
Notice also the cultural absence of social support for those who are victims
of adultery and separation and divorce? Whereas there are virtually
every other form of support group or national charity or political lobby
group - victims of adultery and desertion seem to be abandoned.
Now these are merely two among the 1800 issues raised during last year's
extraordinary synod - and yet we are all in the nightmare-fug of
'merciful' communion for ongoing fornicators and adulterers...
Irrespective of all the hundreds of other issues regarding marriage and the family which have been supplanted in the wake of last years's Extraordinary Synod - even regarding the issues at hand?
The true crises are being ignored.

d] We have to recognise what is actually occurring within this ideological
assault upon the Church. Pastoral solutions are indeed the implementation of moral theological positions
BUT moral theology without the underlying dogma grounded upon the
metaphysical appreciation of Revelation and reason becomes mere casuistry. We are
facing three major threats through three heresies - we got the war wrong
- we misunderstood Satan's tactics - we thought this was all about
destruction of the liturgy and the sacraments and the
fracturing/dividing of the Church on analgesic ethical/ecclesiastical
issues - the plethora of contra-humanae vitae positions and the
dismantling of the very nature of the sacraments like holy orders,
marriage, baptism etc...we were wrong
This is a war about the very nature of human beings - of creation - of grace itself - and ultimately about the nature of God and God's will and God's love for us.

e] Yes of course the majority of Gradualist proposals were excised from the RPD in the final RS - it was a flooding experiment to see just how competent the anti-Kasperite intellectual opposition were in picking up the gradualism timebombs/loopholes - plus it left the trad/con intellectuals complacently certain it was an issue that had been dealt with - but nevertheless it permitted a flooding of mantras which ostensibly only seemed to be overly appealing to tolerance and mercy - it introduced a vocabulary which if repeated often enough would seem like innocuous vaticanista verbalese - the familiarity with the trite sayings would lead the majority into thinking they were merely 'turns of phrase meaning very little other than at face value' when in actual fact they were lethal viruses jeopardising the entirety of moral teaching and praxis. As the orthodox intellectuals had so easily excised the gradualist aspects in the RS - it now seems in this interval betwen synods to be of little import - Gradualism is not a concern and won't be a major discussion issue or priority concern of those preparing for synod. They're lulled into a false sense of security and are not shouting it from the rooftops and warning everyone around them of its dangers - hence the grave risk - especially considering the majority of the Catholic media and commentators haven't any idea what gradualism really means.

f] The RPD was a diversionary tactic to subvert the Extraordinary Synod in preparation for the ultimate purpose
 - Decentralised national Churches with their own agenda and their own policies which will accommodate both their hierarchical mindframes and the demands of the 'available laity'.

The major stumbling block to autonomy and self-determination and legislating/issuing directives of arbitrary whim or majority vote - is Church teaching - as Catholics they have to stay Catholic and have to remain in conformity with Rome, obedient to the Pontiff and subservient to Vatican directives.
If only there was some way for them to do whatever they want while still pretending that they believed, upheld and promoted orthodox Church credal and moral teaching?
How can they secede and become materially schismatic while ostensibly appearing in communion and 'formally' non-schismatic?
Well there is a way!
It's called Gradualism.
You can retain the Church teaching but 'pastorally' nobody is expected to follow it, or obey it, or not do what it forbids - merely to gradually aspire and evolve into conformity with the best intentions towards the 'spirit' of the Gospel and Church teaching.
The Germans are desperate for a National Church, so too the Canadians, as are major US factions still wounded after the billions lost during the abuse scandals, the Philippines want it - the Irish want it.
Gradualism - pastoral self-determination - is the first hurdle in achieving it.
The ability to introduce all manner of new pastoral policies and regulations - with no Vatican interference.

How does one get the principle passed through Synod?
Subterfuge, diversion, feint attacks, smokescreens!
Now the kasperites are in a minority - but so too are the Orthodox traditionalist intellectuals capable of confronting and arguing against the kasperites.
The major voting block are generally ignorant conservative Bishops with varying degrees of liberal socio-cultural leanings generally dependant upon geography and whichever elitist groups are in the political ascendancy; but in general they are administrative self-interested committee chairmen absorbed in their own local crises.
The ONLY WAY to get a vote past these people is to distract them into failing to realise what's actually happening and what they are actually endorsing.
Hence what do you do?
You create a secondary phoney war which will distract them so much that they will spend any effort or concern around that 'popular/zeitgeist' issue itself while ignoring anything else occurring.
In other words you give them a battle which they can fight and win - even though they are not exactly intellectually competent to comprehend or explain the intricacies or the apologetic behind why it is so wrong - the Orthodox intellectuals to whom they listen are categorical in telling them this is wrong - and hence they conform en masse to the 'orthodox' anti-kasperite position of refusing to give communion to adulterers and fornicators [well for the time being anyway - let's see how the wind blows in a few years time?]

Now how do you force them into this phoney war instead of the normal posturing, self-interested hand-wringing and publicity-garnering speech making that happens at synod?
How do you get them out of their torpor to actually do what you want?
You throw a firework into the middle of the room.
First you unsettle everyone with confusion and a sense of unease that they are being manipulated and puppeteered and the whole thing seems to be being 'rigged' by hyper-draconian procedurality and false media reports and concentrating the media onto issues which do not reflect the dozens of issues actually being daily discussed on the Synod floor. You then disconcert them even further by slapping them in the face - they vote for certain candidates to lead the discussion committees - this vote is ignored and countermanded and a kasperite majority of candidates are imposed as committee heads by papal intervention.
There was not one Conservative Bishop at Synod that did not feel decidedly ill at ease during that weekend.
Then came the bombshell!
Forte's fraudulently forged  Mid-term Relatio - the RPD.
So the majority of the conservative Bishops thought:
 "Aha! this is what it's all about - this is what the fight is - this is what the kasperites [with their support from those inside the Curia and the western clerical powerbrokers] were up to all along"
so they spent the rest of the final week concentrating their efforts on reacting to the RPD...

But it was all a sham! A game!
The RPD was a phoney war served on a silver platter for the Orthodox Traditionalist intellectuals to waste their time fighting and for the majority-block conservatives to waste their time trying to keep up with what was going on...and just in time for them to not get bored with the issues -  or learn too much about the issues - the discussion committees are over, the votes are called - the battle against the kasperites is won! All this fuss about nothing! Phew! Time to go home - and we don't need to worry about the next Synod because we all know what it's about now and the kasperites won't be able to get away with that nonsense again.
Except they DON'T know what it was all about - they only think they do.

And that's now the most dangerous because we now have the majority block [liberal leaning but] conservative Bishops in a psychological position of;

1] They think they have shown their orthodox credentials in defending Catholic teaching and put the kasperites and their wretched RPD in their place - they thought they could pull the wool over our eyes? well they lost!
2] but hey - conciliation and unity and all that! And we did receive a bit of a media bashing by seeming to dash the promises and hopes in the media of a new more merciful, compassionate and tolerant Franciscan papacy. Maybe it's time to be a little more accommodating?  Certainly we won't bend on Catholic teaching regarding marriage and divorce and gay marriage - but maybe a more inclusive, welcoming, merciful 'openness to dialogue' on the pastoral scene might be a consideration? Just so long as doctrine and morality aren't at issue - maybe I'll be a little more open to a more 'pastoral mindset' than I may have seemed at the last synod. It also seems to be what the Pope wants? So providing they don't pull any more stunts like the RPD I'll be more open to a compromise resolution in the pastoral arena - providing it doesn't go near the doctrinal issues. Maybe I won't listen so much or too much to the traditionalist elitist Orthodox intellectual block this time - I'm independent - I know what's going on - I'm my own man - I've proven I can make my own right decisions during Synod - so this time round?  I'll make my own decisions thank you very much.

 So now we have the scene set: The majority conservative block will be entering this autumn's Synod
1] Thinking they know what it's about
2] Thinking they know what they are doing
3] Thinking they know the risks and what should be avoided BUT
4] Thinking they should also be less confrontational and more conciliatory with the Francis-favoured kasperite position providing it doesn't go anywhere near doctrine they'll at least listen to some compromise 'pastoral' resolution.

...a perfect opportunity for a gullibly-endorsed subtly Gradualist-precedent subtext to be inserted within the final conclusions and thus open for inclusion in the final Apostolic Exhortation.

As a result Catholic moral teaching and praxis becomes dead in the water as whole nations and dozens of Bishops conferences and hundreds of dioceses declare pastoral procedures which directly contravene it...all appealing to the 'year of mercy' gradualist pastoral approach.
Catholic civil wars and ceaseless battles with the Vatican will ensue...
Chaos will reign. The National Churches sever all but the most nominal ties with Rome.
...and ultimately schism becomes inevitable.

The RPD also served several purposes external to Synod events:
1] An experiment to determine the secular media reaction and political reaction
2] A test to see how much this 'Francis effect' had instilled loyalty and conformity [irrespective of what was being said] among the opportunistic Catholic media and [sheep/lemmings] within Catholic social media
3] An experiment to test the mettle of  Groundbase Orthodox Catholicism - to see just how vociferous, effective, convincing, communicative and capable they were in not merely distributing their message - but how many would listen them.
4] A test to see just how much the internecine animosity and divisiveness among Public Catholics in the media and social media  - the political right vs left - the ultra-traditionalists versus the neo-conservatives versus the laodicean liberal luvvies versus the ultra progressivists versus the weathervane limelight-hugging opportunists - would result in infighting and personality clashing  feuds rather than argue about or reach some form of consensus about the issues within the RPD

g] the RPD was contained in the post-synodal packages sent to every diocese - along with the RS. Given the RPD's less technical and more 'reader-friendly' language [despite its flagrant ambiguity and overt heterodoxy] it would seem more likely that if anything from the synodal package was used as either reference or resource in parish discussions - it seems more likely that the RPD was used more than the RS

h] When all is said and done the fate of Synod does not lie in the Synod chamber but in the arbitrary whim of His Holiness and how much he will scrutinise or seek advice from experts in regard to the ghost-written apostolic exhortation Anyone who has read Lumen Fidei will realise it's a composition of embryonic note-considerations made by a lengthily-reflective Pope Benedict - tagged together with ill-fitting conjunctions and link-phrases and awkwardly inappropriate Franciscan 'corrections' in terminologies and nomenclature [one almost feels they were scrawled in crayon] forming an almighty mess - like unfinished Mozart manuscripts being rehashed into an Andrew Lloyd webber musical...Gaudium Evangelii is a car-crash from start to finish [it bears little if any resemblance to the considerations/deliberations of the Bishops at the last synod - and is more a vanity exercise of unrelated musings] - and Laudato Si? Nuff said! So any expectations for a morally or pastorally coherent apostolic exhortation are somewhat dampened by the past record...but we can be certain if a Gradualist precedent is passed by the Bishops - unless Cardinal Muller is able to pull off a miracle? Or Pope Benedict comes out of retirement to publicly fight it? It will be in the exhortation.

i] The Laity weren't really consulted on this Synod
We all witnessed the ACTA hijacked/Tabletista parish meetings where the progressivist agenda - even if treated with outright hostility and vociferously opposed in the parish forum - was the 'approved 'doctored' version' sent to the Bishop and on to Rome...
The priests who signed the letters on both sides of the Atlantic - will be ignored - as will the laity who supported and endorsed their position....
The war on Grace has reached its cardinalatial battle - this is the turning point - if Gradualism is accepted, even if it's only as a minor obscure insertion in the apostolic exhortation - it will be an anti-morality timebomb giving absolute laissez-faire 'pragmatic' libertinism to pastoral applications - relativistic 'morality' - situationist ethics - preference utilitarianism - while all being officially condemned in Church documents - will spread like a pandemic in our parishes, colleges, charities, schools, hospitals...
...all this is at risk..this huge sword of Damocles swinging above the Mystical Body of Christ...and all the commentators and journalists and professional Catholic luvvies will be droning on about is the 'progress, the opening up, the welcoming, the reaching out and the wonders of the guidance of the Holy Spirit"....

I still maintain we're in grave danger - I seriously suspect a subterfuge of an ostensibly waiveringly accommodating pseudo-orthodox set of conclusions from Synod - with some cleverly, subtly hidden timebombs secreted amongst the verbosity...The situation will be given time to settle, the synod will become a fleeting memory - and then they'll explode!
I am convinced they will attempt a Gradualist insurrection...and if they succeed? Hell will follow...

But sadly I am even more convinced that even if the Gradualist revolt fails?
The rebels will simply resort to plan B.


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China’s Communists Mark 60 Years in Power With Parade (Update1)

The People’s Republic of China celebrates its 60th anniversary today by staging a military parade through the heart of Beijing to demonstrate the country’s rising global influence. Hundreds of missiles and tanks and thousands of troops from the world’s largest standing army will parade past Tiananmen -- the Gate of Heavenly Peace -- where Mao Zedong on Oct. 1, 1949, declared the Communist Party’s victory in a civil war and took the reins of government.

China now produces in a day the equivalent of a year’s output five decades ago, and is poised to surpass Japan as the world’s second-largest economy by 2010. The Communists, who lifted 300 million citizens from abject poverty and raised the country’s international influence, must now satisfy increasing demands for domestic freedom and accountability.

The celebration “is a show-off to beef up confidence in, and support to, the regime,” said Huang Jing, visiting professor at the National University of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. “Serious questions need to be asked how such a show of strength can translate into” tolerance, transparency and “inclusiveness in ethnic, cultural and religious diversity.”

The country’s rise to global prominence gives credence to Napoleon Bonaparte’s prediction two centuries ago that “China is a sickly, sleeping giant. But when she awakes the world will tremble.”

Show of Might

The People’s Liberation Army will display 52 types of new weapons including unmanned aerial vehicles and aircraft with advance warning radar, while 5,000 soldiers march their way through Tiananmen Square past the portraits of Mao and Sun Yat- Sen, Republican China’s first president after the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1912. Up to 200,000 people will take part in the parade, which includes a flotilla of 60 vehicles bedecked with flowers and digital displays showcasing six decades of China’s scientific, technological and economic achievements.

“The road ahead is still long and it isn’t smooth,” Premier Wen Jiabao told President Hu Jintao, Hu’s predecessor Jiang Zemin and hundreds of officials and diplomats at a banquet last night at the Great Hall of the People. “We must remain modest, cautious, not arrogant, not hot-tempered in our work.”

Sidewalk Tai Chi

As the city prepared for today’s celebrations, some Beijingers continued their morning rituals, such as tai chi exercises on the city’s sidewalks.

On Di’anmen Street, customers gathered at the Shun Tian Wang restaurant to eat vegetable-filled steamed buns at 0.5 yuan (7 cents) each. “Business is slow this morning because of the celebrations, but it will get busy later on,” said the proprietor, who would only give her surname, Wang.

South of Di’anmen Street, which bisects the inner city from east to west, police armed with machine guns blocked cars from heading toward Tiananmen Square, where thousands of people were gathering for the celebrations.

Today’s PLA parade is the 14th since the army emerged victorious in the 1949 civil war against the Kuomintang. The last was in 1999, when then-President Jiang Zemin’s Red Flag limousine drove past an honor guard marking the 50th anniversary.

Taiwan Ties

The end of the civil war sent Kuomintang leader Chiang Kai- shek and millions of Chinese fleeing to the island of Taiwan. Tensions between the two sides have eased since last year’s election of Ma Ying-jeou as Taiwan’s president, resulting in direct air and sea routes and fewer restrictions on investing in each other’s banking, insurance and securities industries.

China’s economy may surpass the U.S. by 2027, according to a projection by New York-based Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Foreign currency reserves are the world’s largest at $2.13 trillion, and the country is the biggest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury securities, with $800.5 billion at the end of July. The country’s largest lender, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., is the world’s biggest by value and its most profitable.

Economic growth and rising global influence have come at the cost of domestic expression. Opposition to Communist Party rule is banned while dissent, including the 1989 student demonstrations in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, is crushed.

Clash of Interests

The government must “reassure the international community and the Asia-Pacific region in particular, that a rapidly rising China will remain peaceful and responsible to global security and prosperity,” Huang said. “Its interests are extending to every corner of the world, and these interests are not always consistent with those of the others.”

As many as 800 million Chinese, 60 percent of the population, still live in the countryside, and rapid development has left millions of them behind. Still socialist in name, China has a wider income gap than Taiwan and South Korea have now, or had during their export-led industrializations.

The gaps are made wider by the spread of corruption. Graft has reached into the senior ranks of officials, with those convicted including the former parliamentary vice chairman Cheng Kejie, Shanghai party chief Chen Liangyu, and Chen Tonghai, former chairman of China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., or Sinopec, as the nation’s second-biggest oil company is known.

Even as Tiananmen Square is festooned today with 56 columns representing the country’s biggest ethnic groups, many ethnic Uighurs and Tibetans say they see China as an empire diluting their indigenous cultures and lifestyles.

Tibet, Xinjiang

The worst riots in six decades broke out in the past two years in Tibet and Xinjiang, two provinces on China’s western fringe, spurred by income gaps along ethnic and religious fissures.

The world’s most populous nation has also become the largest commodity resource consumer and one of the largest energy users. China last year passed the U.S. as the biggest emitter of greenhouse gasses, and widespread pollution of its atmosphere and waterways is rarely checked by public opposition.

The smog that enveloped Beijing for three days before today’s parade eased overnight after a light rainfall. Thousands of people are converging on Tiananmen Square under partly cloudy skies and a light haze.

--Michael Forsythe, Eugene Tang: Editors: John Brinsley, Ben Richardson.

To contact Bloomberg staff on this story: Michael Forsythe in Beijing +8610-6649-7580 or


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Saturday, November 30, 2013

Kids and Classical Music :: Part III :: Ideas for School Age Children

(Looking for Part I and Part II??  <- Those are the links!)

My boys are still elementary school age, so we haven't gotten into any very intense study of classical composers and styles. Everything we do is still meant to encourage enjoyment and appreciation, but the more exposure they have to a variety of music, the more the have been able to identify different styles and composers.

Last year I started using the book, The Story of the Orchestra, by Robert Levine.

While I like the concept of the book - it introduces major composers and includes portions of their work on CD - I ended up not using it much.  Instead, the kids preferred full-length picture books and biographies we found in the juvenile section of the library.  Now I use this book just to introduce different periods/styles of classical music and to guide the order in which we cover composers.   I usually gather whatever materials I can find on a particular composer and then we'll use them for a quarter of the school year.

We started last year with the the Baroque Period (my favorite, and if I didn't realize how lopsided it would be we'd probably do all Baroque all the time!) and covered Vivaldi, Bach and Handel (Handel is not in the above-mentioned book for some reason).  The fourth quarter we started into the Classical period and learned about Mozart.  This year we've covered Beethoven, and are waiting until after the first of the year to start up with some Romantic composers.

I thought what I would do is give you an idea of the materials we used for a couple of these composers and then quickly list some resources that are useful for a variety of composers.  This should provide an idea of the types of materials I gather for each composer... I hope :)

ANTONIO VIVALDI, 1678 - 1741

Picture Books:

I, Vivaldi, Janet Shefelman

Vivaldi's Four Seasons, Anna Harwell Celenza

Vivaldi's Ring of Mystery, from Classical Kids - a fictional story which incorporates real aspects of Vivaldi's life as a priest and orchestra director at an Venice orphanage for girls. Features his music throughout.

The Story of Vivaldi and Corelli, Music Masters series.  And hour of music and narrated biography.

Vivaldi for Valentine's - this really has nothing to do with couples or Valentine's.  It's just a collection of soothing ("romantic," if you will) by Vivaldi.  It's great for putting on at bedtime!

We also listened repeatedly to recordings I have of The Four Seasons and Gloria - one of my favorite Vivaldi pieces.  Here's the Gloria on YouTube.

Picture Books:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mike Venezia

Mozart: the Wonder Child: a Puppet Play in Three Acts, Diane Stanley

Mozart, Greta Cencetti

Young Mozart, Rachel Isadora (I know we got this from the library, but I don't remember much about it... not sure if it was that great.  Sorry.)

Mozart Finds a Melody, Stephen Costanza

Mozart's Magnificent Voyage
Mozart's Magic Fantasy: a Journey Through the Magic Flute
(both from Classical Kids) - stories relating events in the life of Mozart and a girl's "backstage" experience at a production of the Magic Flue.  Both feature pieces by Mozart; the first also has music by a few other composers.)

Mozart for Meditation (relaxing, suitable for bedtime music!)
There are actually tons of Mozart compilations in this "series" from the Philips label...
for your Morning Commute
for Mothers to Be
for a Monday Morning
for Midnight
for your Morning Coffee

And of course, we looked to YouTube...  The Mozart Requiem is one of my favorite choral pieces, so we listened to the more "exciting" portions of that like the Dies Irae.  After we became familiar with the music and story of The Magic Flute we watched clips of the Queen of the Night Aria and the well-known Papagena and Papageno duet.  Finally, I told the kids the story of how 14-year-old Mozart "stole" the music to Allegri's Miserere (Psalm 51) from the Vatican by committing it to memory.  It is referenced in the Mozart's Magnificent Voyage CD and we read more about it here. This story was especially fun for the boys because they were already very familiar with the Miserere - it's another one of the things they love to listen to at bedtime.  "Mom, what would we listen to at bedtime if Mozart had never sneaked out of the chapel and wrote it down?"  We don't even have to conjecture! Here's a lovely recording... YouTube again!

* * * * * *

Ok, I think that's enough for now.  You get the idea.  There's plenty of stuff to keep you busy for an academic quarter once you choose a composer!

* * * * * *

Some of these have already been referenced, but here are some ideas/resources to use for a variety of composers:

BOOKS:  In general, I tend to stay away from books that are collections of short bio's - things like "A Child's Book of Famous Composers"  - simply because I've never found one that holds my kids' attention.  They prefer, and deserve, whole books, and we all enjoy a good story!  I typically scour Amazon and the library on-line catalog to find relevant titles.

Getting to Know the World's Greatest Composers, series by Mike Venezia (The kids and I both really enjoy these books.  They are informative - even Venezia's trademark cartoon illustrations are full of information that the kids remember long after the book's gone back to the library.  We also use his books on the artists that we're studying.)

Picture books by Anna Harwell Celenza.  She has books on these composers - usually focusing on the story surrounding one particular piece of music:
Ellington / (on his arrangement of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite)

Composer biographies by Opal Wheeler.  We have read only a couple of these, but have enjoyed them.  I'm hoping we'll be able to track down more, but our library only has a few.  She has written on all the usual suspects as well as Wagner, Chopin, Schubert, and Paganini.

CD's: Some educators disagree with the concept of using "snippets" of pieces for music study.  Example - on the Mozart Masters of Classical Music disc, the first track is just the well-known Allegro movement from Eine kleine Nachtmusik. For my purposes this is fine for now.  Perhaps in the future I will insist on playing complete pieces for my children, but for now, it's ok for me to provide them with compilations of the "Best of..."

Classical Kids Story Series - In addition to a handful of composers, they also have a story CD introducing early music called The Song of the Unicorn, and a delightful Christmas production called A Classical Kids Christmas.  (the thing that makes this disc different from many other kids' Christmas collections is that it's almost all sacred music interwoven with the story.  I really recommend it!)  The composers they have are:
Mozart (2)

PHILIPS label CD's such as Bach for Breakfast, or all the Mozart titles mentioned above.  It's not an actual series that I can link to, but if you click here, you'll find lots more titles featuring various composers.  As I alluded to before, I'll use these collections for bedtime music a lot - so many of the collections are soothing pieces for "relaxation," "meditation," or "daydreaming."

(note - all these links are to Amazon for convenience, but we've been able to find a lot of these books and CD's through our library.)

* * * * * *

If you've been searching for ideas for enjoying more classical music in the home, I hope that some of this has been helpful! It's a jumping off point, at least!  Please don't forget to leave your own ideas and resources here too!

Friday, November 29, 2013

A "Grateful For This Life" Photo Dump

** If you're waiting for my next post on classical music - Wow!  I'm flattered!  It will be here soon.  I haven't forgotten! **

Taking the day after Thanksgiving to post a few photos of my blessed life (taken over the last few days)...

6 Year Old Birthday Dominic with an unconventional "Birthday Cake"

ready for Mass Thanksgiving morning

best we could manage family photo

reading with Grandma!
cuddling with Papa!

Now thank we all our God, with hearts and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things has done, in whom this world rejoices!

Happy Day After Thanksgiving!

Monday, November 25, 2013

A Prime Time Photo Op

kind of a cheesy pun there...

I've been meaning to take this "Prime Time" photo for a while and realized that if I didn't do it soon, it would be too late. If my calculations are correct, this is the only time when the age of each of my children will be a prime number.  I felt like photo documentation was necessary!

Clare's holding a "1" in case you couldn't figure it out.   What I can't figure is out why Ruth looks so sacred of the number 3...
Dominic is my Thanksgiving-time baby.  He'll be six tomorrow, so like I said, we had to squeeze this in!

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Kids and Classical Music :: Part II :: Ideas for Young Children

Before you read here, check out Part I - my thoughts on Kids and Classical Music

This "mini series" is a collection of ideas on ways to expose children to classical music and to increase their appreciation for it along the way.   It's not about learning an instrument, music theory, or composition.  It's just about enjoyment.  And I enjoy this topic so much, I thought I'd share some of what we do in our home with you!

* * * * * *

Two years ago, when the boys were 4 and 5, I started to do some intentional exposure to classical music, meaning going beyond just having something playing in the background.

Here's some of what we used...
Resources/Ideas for getting young kids started on classical music:

(story by Paul Tripp)

This is a sweet story about a tuba who wants to be more than just the "oom-pah-ing" bass line in the orchestra.  If you Google it, all sorts of results come up...  My favorite version is the 1947 cartoon version by George Pal.
Tubby the Tuba, 1947 cartoon on Youtube
Tubby the Tuba, book and CD set (same text as the cartoon)

Tubby the Tube, story narrated by Danny Kaye (isn't he one of the best story tellers!?!)
Tubby the Tube - LIVE performance with the Boston Pops, Julia Child is the narrator!   I love this recording, because kids get to see real people playing the same instruments they've "met" in the cartoon.  (has a slightly different text)
More on tubas:
How it's Made: Tubas
Tuba Concerto by Ralph Vaughn Williams - just for some exposure to a another piece written specifically for tuba!

by Sergei Prokofiev

Story and music tell the story of Peter who helps capture a wolf in the forest.  Each character is represented by a different instrument of the orchestra.
* I used this recording of the story, narrated by David Bowie. It's one of many different tracks on the disc, Child's Celebration of Classical Music.  (note: there is a track on here with a Danny Kaye song Tubby the Tuba - same story, but it's not the full narration mentioned above.)

* Peter and the Wolf, a picture book illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak.  We got this from our library.

* This picture book and recording also look nice, but I have not seen it in person:  Sergei Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf, with fully orchestrated and narrated CD.  I especially like the preview pages which show the animals and the instruments that represent them.

* Peter and the Wolf Ballet - Royal Ballet School.   I let the kids watch this version on Youtube.  It's presented in 4 parts. The link here is to Part 1, and from there you can easily find 2, 3, and 4.

by Camille Saint-Saens

Saint-Saens portrayed several animals through short musical pieces.  Many recordings of these pieces are accompanied by poems, the first were by poet Ogden Nash.

The Carnival of the Animals, (Book and CD) Poems by Jack Prelutsky.  We were able to get this book and recording from our library.  We read each poem, and then listened to the corresponding tracks - poem and music.  It's fun to listen for things like the lions roaring, the elephants stomping around, donkey's braying, and the fossils clanking about.

* This link is to a full recording of the music accompanied by still pictures on Youtube.  (no poems)
* I have not heard this recording, but here's one with the Ogden Nash poems, narrated by 14 well known TV/movie personalities.

(Disney Production)

What a fun way to "see" how music can tell a story!

My kids have watched the VHS version of this that was left over from my own childhood.  I know that a special edition came out in 2000 with additional material - I have not seen it, so I can't comment on the "new" stuff.  I don't have a link to this, but check the library!

(by Benjamin Britten)

This piece of music was written by Britten to accompany an educational film about the orchestra.  It's based on a theme that was written by compose Henry Purcell and features different instruments and sections of the orchestra at different points. I've listened to many different versions of this on Youtube, and have decided to link to these...

* This version is a great musical and visual recording.  The narration though is not the original, but instead consists of new poems written for this particular performance at the PROMS at Royal Albert Hall, London. (skip intro if you want, the actual performance starts around the five-minute mark.) Look for the second half of the performance on the right-hand menu.

* This version does not have a great picture, and the sound and picture aren't quite in sync.  However, it's one of my favorite Youtube recordings because the conductor, Michael Tilson Thomas, looks like he's having so much fun and his dynamic personality really adds to the performance.  I like for the kids to see videos of conductors and performers enjoying themselves and the music - visual proof that classical music is not dull and boring! (Like the above version, it's also in two parts.

Note: I have not heard this recording aside from samples on Amazon, but I see that there is a recording that includes Peter and the Wolf, The Carnival of the Animals, and The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra - all conducted (and narrated?) by Leonard Bernstein.

by William Lach

This is another book/cd combo we were able to find at our local library.  Can You Hear It? contains several works of art and questions that help the reader find various items in the artwork. The tracks on the CD correspond to the paintings and your encouraged to "find" the same items you found in the pictures in the music.

Finally, we took the boys to a few live performances that year. Two were outdoor philharmonic concerts and the other was the opera Amahl and the Night Visitors.  I highly recommend this opera, and wrote as much in this post from last November.  If you're interested in checking out Amahl but can't get to a performance, you can also look for it on-line.  It was originally written for television, and you can watch that original performance here.  It includes a lovely introduction by the composer, Gian Carlo Menotti.  But it is a recording from the 50s, so the audio/video quality is probably not what today's children are used to :) There are many other performances of the opera on Youtube, but I wasn't able to choose one to link to... They are mostly mediocre "home videos" of community performances; You'll have to check them out for yourself.  (I recommend acquainting children with the story and some of the music before viewing the opera - either live or on screen - so that even if they can't understand a particular singer, they know what is being sung.)

* * * * * *

I know, I can be long-winded, but I hope that something in there is helpful for a family searching for engaging ways to introduce classical music to younger children.  In the next part, I will include some of what we've been using last year and this year as the kids get a little "older."

What resources have you used to bring classical music to your young kiddos??

Friday, November 22, 2013

Kids and Classical Music :: Part I :: My Thoughts

(Haha.  This on the heels of my post featuring oldies and Motown!)

* * * * * *

"If your ear is trained up on bad music... you will find it hard to listen to Beethoven."
- Esolen

A couple weeks ago we were doing a little cleaning around the house for the Soup Party and I decided to put on some motivational music.  I don't know why, but I pulled Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture out from the CD bin, popped it in, and turned it up.  Now, the kids have heard it before because it had occurred to me before that music written with cannons as one of the instruments just might be kind of cool for boys.  But this time it also occurred to me that Aaron knew a little about Napoleon from history last year, so as the music played, I told him the story.  And then we listened to it again and again and again... really loudly.  And he could hear the story.  And now he knows the highlights of Napoleon's ill-fated invasion of Russia and the primary themes of the 1812 Overture. Needless to say, I'm ecstatic!

It's been a long time now that I've wanted to write about kids and classical music, but I've hesitated because, as excited as I am to chat about this topic, I'm also nervous about seeming snooty, snobbish... hoity toity, if you will Please believe me that no one who knows me has ever accused me of being too cultured or classy... think beer instead of wine and casseroles in aluminum tins instead of foie gras on crystal platters.  Mmkay?  I shall do my best to be non hoity toity, because I'm really not.  I'm just really convicted that a background in classical music (even a small one) is so worthwhile for my children and I wish only to share my enthusiasm, offer some suggestions, and absorb your thoughts and ideas on this topic.

I think that gifting children with a knowledge and appreciation of classical music is immensely important and valuable.  I've always thought so, but never actually gave it much thought until reading Esolen's 10 Ways to Destroy the Imagination of your Child this past summer.  (After this post, I promise I won't mention the book again.)  I liked the book, but I loved the chapter "Distract the Child with the Shallow and Unreal OR The Kingdom of Noise."  The focus of the chapter is on the "noise" children encounter in our culture - on television, on the radio, on school walls (posters and slogans, etc...) and even in books. Children are so accustomed to books without plot or prose - instead today's children's books are filled with "insets" containing snippets of information.  Likewise, TV is just shallow story lines presented in fits and starts, "shots are quick, disjointed..." and are "punctuated by moronic sales pitches for toys and toothpaste and luxury cars..."  And popular music?? Children have been "fed on noise, and have no taste for melody... Just as their eyes have been trained to jitter with the skips and blips of visual distraction, (so) their ears jitter along with incoherent wailings..." and their minds do not have the capability of focusing on an intricate, challenging, thought-provoking plot, or poem, or piece of music.

Ah!  I thought.  He's right!  And that's why this has become more important to me even than it was before.  Actually, it hasn't necessarily gained importance, it's just that now I don't feel so "weird" making a big deal about it.  I feel justified.  Because if the ear and the mind and the soul aren't trained to hear real music when they are young, the opportunity may be lost.  The ability and interest to appreciate and understand good music is at risk of being destroyed by exposure to the alternatives.

A child "develops a taste for" vegetables because his parents offer him a variety of vegetables over and over again.  He "develops a love of" books because books are read to him and are readily available to him.  The same child that has developed tastes, loves, abilities and skills as a result of exposure to various foods, stories, projects, and activities, is similarly able to "develop an ear" for classical music if it is available to him.  Parents have the opportunity to not only expose their children to "good" music but to present it as something meaningful, exciting, adventuresome, and fun.

It's not like I've actually researched this topic.  I'm sure there are studies that have found things like, "minors exposed to classical music in excess of 14.3 hours a week have 27% more brain activity during their wakeful hours and sleep 4.65 times more soundly than those minors were exposed to 0 - 14.2 hours of classical music per week."  I haven't really based based my decisions on scientific findings.  I expose my kiddos to classical music because I enjoy it, they enjoy it, I believe it's good for them, and more importantly, because it's what my parents did for me. And I am so grateful.  Mom and Dad, are you there? THANK YOU.

I grew up surrounded by music because it's what my parents did. It was normal to attend the operas and concerts my mom performed in and to hear her voice in the  next room even though she wasn't home - she was a weekday program host on the local classical music radio station and it was the only station that was ever on in the home.   When I was young I would sometimes go to the station to "sleep over" while she worked the night shift, and when I was older I volunteered there.  She got tickets to great concerts and took me to them - I got to meet violinists Joshua Bell and Midori and cellist Yo-Yo Ma! (darn, if only I knew where those pictures were...) On Saturday mornings we would clean the house listening to the obscure opera, the Ballad of Baby Doe. (why, Mom?)  My parents took us to free philharmonic summertime concerts in the parks.  Many weekend evenings my Dad would "warm up" in the basement and leave for his "second job" - playing in a large dance band for weddings and large parties.  On Independence Day we'd go to hear him play in the local wind ensemble before fireworks.  When Dad put the Nutcracker Suite record on the turntable, the needle would often skip from all the "ballet" dancing and twirling going on in the house.

The memories go on and on.  And it was totally normal to us.  My parents did it because it they knew it and loved it; they didn't have an educational agenda.  It wasn't until I got to about sixth grade when I started to realize it actually wasn't that normal. But by that time I didn't care and I realized how unfortunate it was that other kids didn't get to stay up way past their bedtime to watch the four operas in Richard Wagner's Ring Cycle broadcast live from the Met.  By the time I got to college I finally realized that not only was what my parents had done not "normal," I realized it was extraordinary, and I was truly, truly appreciative.

I don't have the same music-related education and professional background that my parents have.  I don't have all the knowledge they did, so in some ways I feel that I have to work a little harder at bringing good music into our home.  It's not as seamless in my home today as it was in the home of my childhood. But I work at it since it does hold such importance for me and because I have already seen how rewarding it has been for my own children - and they probably don't even realize it yet!

* * * * * *

I have written this as a mini "series."  I'll be back next week with more on this topic (I *think* in three parts): ideas for exposing children, and your whole family, in general to more classical music; specific ideas and resources to use for very young children based on the things I did with my boys when they were 4 and 5; and ideas for further study, based mostly around specific composers.  What I do in our home is just what I've come up with - it's not based on any educational philosophy, program, or lesson plan.  It's how we keep classical music in our home, how we enjoy it, and how we keep it fun!  I hope you'll come back and join me next week and will consider contributing your own ideas and resources to the conversation!

* * * * * *

A post script hot tip:  This is the time of year to look around and see if any local opera companies or choral groups are performing the Christmas opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. It's a great first opera for kids, and I wrote all about it last year in this post here!

* * * * * *

And in case you want to hear the cannons... here's a portion of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture.  Hold on to you hats, though... this is the fastest performance of it I've ever heard!

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Thank God for Golden Oldies [or] How Pandora Saved Me From Imploding

I was primed for implosion last night.

If you suffer from occasional bouts of self pity and no one-appreciates-me issues as I occasionally do, perhaps this scenario will sound familiar to you...

Mom spends all morning tending to the needs of her children as well as baking two batches of cookies to stick in the freezer so that said children will have tasty snacks in the months to come. The dirty dishes pile up in the sink.

Mom spends all afternoon making a delicious and nutritious dinner.  More dirty dishes pile up in the sink.

Entire family eats delicious dinner, puts more dirty dishes in the sink, and moves on to other activities - Chess, drawing, creating a "Bingo" game that looks nothing like a Bingo game.

Mom can't believe that she didn't receive praise and adulation for delicious dinner and REALLY can't believe that she's left to do all the dishes that don't even all fit in the sink anymore. She really wants to leave the noise and mess behind her and just get in bed and read.  She thinks she DESERVES to be able to just get in bed and read...

That was me.  I started doing those dishes with a very unattractive scowl on my face and an even worse scowl in my soul. I tried to say a prayer about something like embracing service to my family but it fell flat.  Or maybe not - because something, or Someone - that Holy Spirit can be pretty sneaky -  moved me get an iPad and get some music going in that kitchen.  And as quickly as you can click on "Gladys Knight and the Pips," I was saved from the self-destruction for which I was headed and I managed to fall in love with my family again.

I smiled and sang and washed dishes to Sam Cooke, The Supremes, The Four Tops, Otis Redding, Bobby Darin, Nat King Cole, and of course, Gladys...

This is my soundtrack when I need a pick-me-up.  And my 50s, 60s, 70s playlist worked its magic again last night...  I was happy to be doing the dishes (even though my pregnant belly was soaking by the end of it!)  From my place at the sink I got to listen to a Father-Son Chess game, spy on a little girl sneak pieces of broccoli from her high chair, witness a boy run a Bingo game for his siblings, and I even got to take a couple breaks to dance with whoever happened to pass through the kitchen.  It was delightful!  And to think I might have missed it if I had been reading (uh, sulking) in bed.

Is it possible that my prayer was answered by way of an internet radio service?  Maybe.  Like I said, the Holy Spirit can be sneaky! Thanks Pandora, for being (almost) commercial free and for playing what I needed to hear.  You saved me from a self-pity induced implosion.  You gave me an evening of movie-worthy background music that calmed my troubled soul.  You re-opened my eyes to how blessed and beautiful this family life really is and how sometimes the place in front of the sink of dirty dishes is the place where I need to be to see it all unfold before me.

* * * * * *

And in case you love the oldies too... here are two more favorites for you  :)

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