Support for homosexual marriage being ginned up through push polls August 20, 2013
Posted by Tantumblogo in Basics, disaster, error, family, horror, scandals, secularism, self-serving, sexual depravity, Society.comments closed
Big surprise. For those who don’t know, a push poll is not a poll that really checks to see what people think about a matter, but is designed, instead, to shape thinking on a matter. This is done in a variety of ways, but most typically through using leading questions that guide people to arrive at a favored conclusion. With respect to sodomites pretending to be married, that might include a format like this:
- Do you believe marriage is important for America?
- Do you believe marriage is founded on love, mutual respect, and shared interests?
- Do you believe everyone is entitled to love?
- Do you think it important to encourage loving relationships between couples?
- Do you know any homosexual people?
- Are they in stable, loving relationships?
- Do you support ‘marriage’ between people of the same sex?
By the time you reach the end, you’re a heartless America-hating “homophobe” if you don’t answer “yes” to the last question. The pollsters rarely share the “prep” questions, only the one the poll is “really about.”
National Review has an article that sheds some light on this phenomenon, and concludes that much of the supposedly “inevitable” cascade of support for homosexual fake marriage is being manufactured through push polling:
But Gallup continues to ask a question about the legality of “homosexual relations” before it asks about same-sex marriage, a technique known as “priming,” or preparing survey-takers for subsequent questions. In their book News That Matters, political psychologists Donald Kinder and Shanto Iyengar document how priming shapes respondents’ answers to subsequent questions, particularly where sentiments about a previous question spill over. Gallup asks whether respondents “think gay or lesbian relations between consenting adults should or should not be legal,” a question that most observers would assume is not even asked any more.
It turns out that Gallup did not always prime with a question on the legality of homosexual relations before asking about same-sex marriage. Back when it varied its practice — priming on some surveys and not others — support for same-sex marriage varied. When Gallup did not prime, support for SSM totaled, on average, 6 to 7 percentage points less than when it did. A few percentage points may not seem like much, until we recall last month’s Gallup survey: Swing 6 or 7 points in the other direction and you would bring the poll to near-equilibrium between supporters and opposers. Thus a majority of Americans might not — or at least not yet — actually support same-sex marriage. The Rice study did not prime its respondents, and it asked the question differently; the results show notably greater opposition than support.
The lack of clarity about polling extends to actual voting behavior as well. In 2010 Patrick Egan, assistant professor of politics and public policy at New York University, compiled ten years of polling data about same-sex marriage in states that had voted on same-sex-marriage ballot initiatives. He found that public-opinion polls consistently underestimated ballot-box opposition to SSM. Egan noted that “the share of voters in pre-election surveys saying they will vote to ban same-sex marriage is typically seven percentage points lower than the actual vote on election day.” Why? Egan doesn’t know. [I know why. Because the constant media drumbeat has now “primed” the entire population, more or less, to feel a compulsion to answer the question in the “correct,” culturally approved manner. But in the privacy of the voting booth (meh), people do not feel so compelled.]
[As I just said…….] In other words, when sensitive issues are at stake, people may feel pressure to give pollsters answers that sound enlightened, politically correct, or free of any trace of “bigotry” — a term that has reemerged as a club in the debate over same-sex marriage……
…..What to conclude? First, American public opinion seems split nearly down the middle on same-sex marriage, once we account for priming, question-wording “bonuses,” and Egan’s observations of systematic underreporting of opposition. Second, the bad news for those who oppose legal recognition of same-sex marriage is that the overall, decades-long trend lines do not favor them, individual surveys aside. Battering one’s opposition with catchy memes and claims about right and wrong sides of history may be annoying, but it has been effective……
Boy, has it. Few people can withstand the withering fusillade of propaganda they submit themselves to through the cultural programming box TV set for hours every day.
Pope Francis – “We cannot sleep peacefully while babies are dying of hunger….. August 20, 2013
Posted by Tantumblogo in Basics, Christendom, episcopate, General Catholic, Papa, persecution, shocking, Society.comments closed
…….and the elderly are without medical assistance.”
I sorely wish there were an addendum to that: “We also cannot sleep peacefully when millions of souls are falling into hell through neglect, indifference, and lack of catechesis.”
That is to say, the concerns the Pope repeatedly stresses regarding the natural, active virtues are very important. But even more important is the eternal destination of souls.
Another quick hit – how anti-Catholic is the Obama Administration? They considered terminating formal relations with the Holy See, recalling the ambassador.
“Reward your friends, punish your enemies.” Sounds about right.
LCWR keynote speech steeped in modernism…… August 20, 2013
Posted by Tantumblogo in asshatery, Basics, disaster, error, foolishness, General Catholic, priests, religious, scandals, secularism, self-serving, sexual depravity, Society.comments closed
……and was clearly heretical, given the formal definition of the heresy of modernism made by the great Pope St. Pius X, whose 100th anniversary of death is approaching.
Fr. Philip Neri Powell takes apart the reported lowlights from Sr. Ilia Delio’s keynote speech before the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. These women are simply totally immune to warnings, threats, and counsel. They are so full of pride they are willing to see their orders disappear rather than be proved wrong. But that’s how the Gnostics always were, prideful perverters of the Faith (Delio’s statements in italics, Fr. Powell’s response in plain, my comments)
“If we are to rethink in terms of religion, we have to think in terms of cosmology. . .” [I doubt very seriously that she means “cosmology” in the same sense that physicists understand the term. She’s talking about Brian Swimme’s pseudo-mystical/quasi-scientific blend of eastern bumpersticker philosophy and bad 70’s head shop poetry, The New Universe Story. This book has been The Thing among the LCWR crowd since sometime in early 2000.] [It’s all new age pantheism, one with the cosmos claptrap. And, from what I’ve gleaned through some rather intensive study of progressive religious, Fr. Powell is spot on. Enneagrams are so 90s, the new fad is warmed over 40 year old leftist pop psychology. In other words, these women are profoundly immature.]
and energy. Love is not physical; it’s relational. Of course, if you’re a pantheist, God is identical to the universe and since God is love, then the universe is love. Whoa. Dude. Pass the bong.] [Eh, I think Fr. Powell had grown tired of replying by the end of the post. As I said, Sr. Delio has two gods, and it is plain the one she shows preference towards. For her, and other Teilhardian pantheist modernists, the Faith must conform to the dictates of (quite frequently, deliberately anti-Catholic) “science.” That was the whole point of de Chardin’s heresy! She plainly conflates “god” and the universe above, when she says “the universe is love.” This is incredible, that there are still people out there promoting this garbage, and that she is an “approved” professor of theology at a supposedly Catholic university! Give me a break! This women is spouting 80 year old heresies, and she’s pretending their “new!”]
Chickens coming home to roost, autism edition August 20, 2013
Posted by Tantumblogo in Abortion, asshatery, contraception, error, foolishness, General Catholic, horror, persecution, sadness, secularism, self-serving, sickness, Society, unadulterated evil.comments closed
CMR has posted a photo of a letter some Canadian woman sent to her neighbor, said neighbor having an autistic child. All I can say is, when you promote, propagandize, and ultimately convince the vast majority of people that the only lives that matters are their own, and maybe a handful of people around them, this is what you get:
Autistic children can act out. Of course, all children can, but autistic children can be difficult to handle. Nevertheless, even if this case is egregious, the narcissistic self-important hurtfulness of the above is simply beyond the pale. The letter writer seems to have reduced her neighbor – both parent and child – to sub-human garbage levels, to be tolerated, at best, if they be totally obesequious and do everything they are told to do.
From the initial complaint over noise, we cross over into stereotypical misanthropy, just plain hatred of a sub-human “other.” This child is fit for nothing but to be cut up and used – by good, “normal” people like the letter writer – for their own selfish ends. Rather like unborn babies, who should also be grown to develop replacement parts for aging “real” humans. This is straight out of the worst kind of fusion of Stalinism and Brave New World.
I saw a TV report of the teen in question, and they showed some of his typical noises. They are pretty minor. I’d say whoever wrote this letter has a serious amount of self-hatred. It’s very depressing to consider that the complainant has kids of their own. These types of behavior tend to be generational, absent a large amount of Grace.
I’m certain many prayers are warranted for all involved. Nevertheless, I am convinced that if we were not possessed of a culture so morally bankrupt as to be having to debate whether it’s best to just off old (and young) geezers who trouble us, such a thought would not have entered the letter-writer’s mind. That is to say, she’s simply co-opting the dominant cultural trends and applying them to her hatred, to have just a bit more invective to hurl. We did not see her say, for instance, that the child should be sold off to some slave labor camp, because such considerations have not yet entered the cultural zeitgiest, yet. But, reading Solzhenitsyn, horrid neighbors like this threatened to denounce others they did not like to the Chekists in the Soviet Union, and thus gained power over them. People did such, because it was part of the culture they lived in, as recommendations of euthanasia is part of ours.
I am also convinced that as this culture reaches its barbaric, sexular pagan nadir, slavery will come back into existence under other names. It’s inevitable.
St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori’s Rule of Life, part 2 August 20, 2013
Posted by Tantumblogo in awesomeness, Basics, Eucharist, fun, General Catholic, Glory, Grace, Interior Life, religious, Sacraments, Saints, sanctity, Tradition, true leadership, Victory.comments closed
God be praised, here is part 2 of the great Moral Doctor’s Rule of Life, from The Way of Salvation and Perfection. God willing, I shall finish the third and final part tomorrow!
Do not omit to hear Mass daily. [As in, daily!] But what is of the greatest importance is that those who hear Mass should makde a special application to their own souls of the merits of the Passion of Jesus Christ. Mass should be heard for the same ends for which it was instituted; namely:
- To honor Almighty God
- To thank Him for His benefits
- To make atonement for the punishment due our sins
- To obtain Divine Grace
So that we ought then to pray as follows: “Eternal Father, in this Mass I offer Thee Jesus Christ, with allthe merits of His Passion, to honor Thy Majesty, to thank Thee for all Thy benefits towards me, in satisfaction for my sins and for those of all the living, and of those who died in Thy Grace, and to obtain all the graces necessary for salvation.” At the elevation of the Host, we may say “By the blood of Jesus Christ, grant me to lvae Thee in this life and in the next.”
In addition to this, read some spiritual book for a half hour, at least, a day. It is best to make use of the lives of the Saints.
Moreover, do not fail to pay every day a visit to the Most Holy Sacrament, when you should make at least the following acts:
- O Lord, I thank Thee for Thy love in leaving Thyself to me in this Holy Sacrament
- With my whole heart I love Thee, O God, above all other good; and because I love Thee I am sorry for all my offences against Thee, whether great or small
- I beseech Thee to grant me perseverence in Thy Grace and Thy holy love.
At the same time make a visit to our Blessed Lady, before one of Her images, and beg of Her also the same graces of perseverence and the 
love of God.
In the evening, make an examination of conscience, and then add the Christian acts.
Frequent the holy Sacraments of Confession and Communion at least once per week, and oftener if possible. [In St. Alphonsus’ time, most people received the Blessed Sacrament irregularly. Very few, if any, received every time they assisted at Mass] With regard to Confession, say beforehand: “I thank Thee O my God! for having waited for me until now! I hope, through the merits of Jesus Christ, for the pardon of all my offences against Thee! I am sorry for them, and repent of them with my whole heart, because by them I have lost Heaven and deserved hell; but, above all, I am grieved to my inmost soul, and hate and detest my sins more than all evils, because they ahve offended Thy infinite goodness. I purpose in future rather to die than offend Thee any more.”
After Confession thank God for the pardon which you hope you have received, [make a good Confession!] and renew your good resolution never more to offend Him, and to avoid all occasions of sin; and pray to Jesus and Mary for perseverence.
As to the Holy Communion, we must know that it is the Grand Medicine, as the Council of Trent terms it, which purifies us from our dialy venial faults, and preserves us from mortal ones. He who communicates most frequently will be freest from sin, and will make farthest progress in Divine Love; only let him communicate with a good desire. But, in order to derive more abundant fruits from Commounion, he should manage to spend half an hour after receiving in producing devout acts, or at least in praying out of some spiritual book…….
It is well to make choice of a good confessor and to follow his direction in all spiritual matters, and even in temporal matters of importance; nor should he be left without a good reason. St. Philip Neri spoke thus: “Let those who are desirous of advancing in the way of
God put themselves under an enlightened confessor; and let them obey him, as occupying the place of God. Whoever does this may feel assured that he will never have to render an account to God of what he does.” And this is only conformable to the words of Jesus Christ, that whosoever hears His ministers hears Him (Lk X:16). A general Confession should be made, if it has not hitherto been made, for it is a most excellent means of bringing one’s life into good order; and it is advisable to make it to the director himself, that he may be the better able to guide us.
Avoid idleness, dissipated companions, immodest conservations, and, more than all, evil occasions, especially where there is danger of incontinency; and for this reason one cannot be too cautious in keeping one’s eyes from dwelling on any dangerous objects. [Can you imagine what St. Alphonsus would say of our hideous culture of today, where a mere drive on a highway is a near occasion of serious sin! “If your eye causes you to sin, poke it out!” This is a major reason we have no TV! It is almost impossible to watch TV without being scandalized by immodesty, if not outright perversion!] For a person that does not avoid the voluntary occasions of sin, especially those which have frequently proved fatal to his innocence, it is morally impossible to persevere in the Grace of God: He that loves the danger shall perish in it (Eccles III:27).
————————–End Quote————————–
I have no doubt, that any soul who follows St. Alphonsus’ Rule of Life (see part 1 here), will experience tremendous interior growth, will evidence exterior sanctity, and is veritably assured of salvation. What a great grace, to have Saints like this who share the route to Heaven with us!
The problem, of course, is in the doing!
A Blog for Dallas Area Catholics 