What's in the news?

[gaggedLouise]

I wonder where France would stand on public statues of St Louis/Louis the 9th  Any French E people round here?

I made a quick check at the French and English wikipedia and at Google pictures (I'm fluent in French) but can't find anything about statues of the famous king and crusader in any public squares or state-run buildings in France - and wikipedia picks up on monuments and depictions of people. There's a big equestrian statue of him at the Sacré-Coeur church, high on the Montmartre hill of Paris (the one with the high, creamy white domes) but precisely that's a church.

There are many statues of Joan of Arc in public places around France, and she's a saint too - canonized in 1920 - but above all she's a national heroine. That being said, I do understand why many Poles feel John Paul II is a kind of national hero who should belong to all of Poland, as well as to the Catholic church.

[Oniya]

There are many statues of Joan of Arc in public places around France, and she's a saint too - canonized in 1920 - but above all she's a national heroine. That being said, I do understand why many Poles feel John Paul II is a kind of national hero who should belong to all of Poland, as well as to the Catholic church.

Yeah, as I was walking up to get the little Oni, I started wondering about Jeanne d'Arc.

[Kythia]

There are many statues of Joan of Arc in public places around France, and she's a saint too - canonized in 1920 - but above all she's a national heroine. That being said, I do understand why many Poles feel John Paul II is a kind of national hero who should belong to all of Poland, as well as to the Catholic church.

It's always bugged me that she's a saint.  God said "kick the English out of France".  She didn't.  Why the hell is she a saint, it's like "Man, Joan, you had one job"

[Oniya]

It's always bugged me that she's a saint.  God said "kick the English out of France".  She didn't.  Why the hell is she a saint, it's like "Man, Joan, you had one job"

Typically, there have to be a certain number of miracles attributed to a person before they are canonized (and if I'm reading things right, it's three to be beatified or declared 'Blessed', and then another two to be raised to sainthood).  I went looking, and found this information.

So, it had nothing to do with her actions in life per se, but with things that happened when her name was invoked after her death.

[Kythia]

Typically, there have to be a certain number of miracles attributed to a person before they are canonized (and if I'm reading things right, it's three to be beatified or declared 'Blessed', and then another two to be raised to sainthood).  I went looking, and found this information.

So, it had nothing to do with her actions in life per se, but with things that happened when her name was invoked after her death.

LOL.  I should have done smilies.  It was a joke.  My bad.

To clarify, I know why she was canonised.  It was as a martyr, casus excepti because of time immemorial, there are no specific number of miracles required, it is to do with her actions in life, saints don't perform miracles (with the exception of Mary) they intercede with God to perform miracles.

Must remember to smilie.  A  :P would have saved a lot of people a lot of time.

;D

[Deamonbane]

Typically, there have to be a certain number of miracles attributed to a person before they are canonized (and if I'm reading things right, it's three to be beatified or declared 'Blessed', and then another two to be raised to sainthood).  I went looking, and found this information.

So, it had nothing to do with her actions in life per se, but with things that happened when her name was invoked after her death.

Huh... I always thought that it was 3 miracles to become canonized.

[Oniya]

LOL.  I should have done smilies.  It was a joke.  My bad.

I figured the 'You had one job, Joan...' was a joke.   ;)  If anything, I have an overweening curiosity, and with the Internet at my fingertips, it's easy enough to indulge it.  (Although sometimes I regret that decision...  Usually when anything from 4chan is involved.)

[Mikem]

This just in,  :P it's been revealed that Iran did indeed fake the sinking of it's mock up vessel of a Nimitz Super Carrier. The mock up was instead heavily damaged and towed back into port. If Iran can't even sink a fake United States Aircraft Carrier, how can they hope to sink the real, fully armed deal?

Article

Also, I read this nifty little comment from an Iranian military official in the article.

"We practice the same drills on replica aircraft carriers because sinking and destroying U.S. warships has, is and will be on our agenda."

So, I'm gonna go full on Patriot American for this one, (jokingly of course) and ask if we could just buttrape them some Freedom yet?

[Lustful Bride]

This just in,  :P it's been revealed that Iran did indeed fake the sinking of it's mock up vessel of a Nimitz Super Carrier. The mock up was instead heavily damaged and towed back into port. If Iran can't even sink a fake United States Aircraft Carrier, how can they hope to sink the real, fully armed deal?

Article

Also, I read this nifty little comment from an Iranian military official in the article.

So, I'm gonna go full on Patriot American for this one, (jokingly of course) and ask if we could just buttrape them some Freedom yet?

*Sees an opportunity*

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhnUgAaea4M

Cause I always miss the chance to post this. ::)


And in other news...Kevin BAcon has been having too much Bacon.

Yes, I swear to god this is Kevin.

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

http://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/video/kevin-bacons-bloated-face-is-unrecognizable-see-the-pic/ar-BBje3dZ?ocid=ansET11

[Beorning]

A general subject of news from over here: we're having presidential elections this weekend. Eleven candidates are running, including the current president.

Yesterday, there was a TV debate among all of the candidates... the president excluded. He didn't deign to appear...  ::)

When it comes to me, I'm honestly considering not voting. All of the candidates are so bad that I really can't make a choice...

[eBadger]

Public squares belong to the people - so, if the local people decide to commemorate a religious person in such a place, it's not the state's business to come down on them and say: "No no, we can't have anything tied to religion here!".

The BBC take to contrast with the Catholic Culture's obvious bias. 

From the sounds of it, the primary issue is that a) the people DIDN'T agree to it, and b) public funds were used for it without proper authorization.  Both of which seem like very valid reasons it's a Bad Thing, whether it's a pope or a rock star.  Probably they're leveraging the religious issue just as the simplest route toward having an eyesore removed.  I assure you, having visited, that France spends a LOT of money to maintain religious sites, so this doesn't mark some grand vendetta to run the religion out of the country. 

[Warlock]

ISIS have their own hotels now. Anyone feeling like taking a vacation in Insaneland?

[Darkleather]

How much extra do they charge for lynching you after breakfast?

[Lustful Bride]

ISIS have their own hotels now. Anyone feeling like taking a vacation in Insaneland?

"You can Check out anytime you like, but you can never leave."

[Mikem]

A general subject of news from over here: we're having presidential elections this weekend. Eleven candidates are running, including the current president.

Yesterday, there was a TV debate among all of the candidates... the president excluded. He didn't deign to appear...  ::)

When it comes to me, I'm honestly considering not voting. All of the candidates are so bad that I really can't make a choice...

Even with eleven choices it still sums up to choosing the lesser of two (or in your case eleven) evils. Wow politics. Such variety.

[Dashenka]

A general subject of news from over here: we're having presidential elections this weekend. Eleven candidates are running, including the current president.

Yesterday, there was a TV debate among all of the candidates... the president excluded. He didn't deign to appear...  ::)

When it comes to me, I'm honestly considering not voting. All of the candidates are so bad that I really can't make a choice...

I wish I could vote but alas.... Just very happy the Conservatives are very likely to win again.

Now to get to that referendum about the UK in the EU and to hoping I CAN vote for that.

[Dimir]

A study by The National Campaign To Prevent Teen & Unplanned Pregnancy found that 68% of sexually active teens that don't use birth control or protection do so because they're afraid of their parents finding out.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/07/living/feat-teens-birth-control-fears-parents/index.html

Thought some of the parents of Elliquiy would be interested in this.

[Dashenka]

Today is Victory Day in Russia.

Lots of celebrations and a massive military parade on the Red Square, commemorating the millions of Soviet soldiers who died to free Europe.


The shocking lack of European heads of state is typical for the EU.


http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32668511

[Beorning]

Today is Victory Day in Russia.

Lots of celebrations and a massive military parade on the Red Square, commemorating the millions of Soviet soldiers who died to free Europe.


The shocking lack of European heads of state is typical for the EU.


http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32668511

Oh, come on, Dash. Please note that, in the past, the European heads of the state did come for these Russia's celebrations. This year, they didn't come because of what Russia is doing in Ukraine.

If you ask me, it's a right thing to do. Russia is currently waging a war of unjust agression. Europe can't ignore this.

On a side note, a historical comment: while, indeed, the millions of Soviet soldiers you mentioned died to defeat Hitler, they didn't bring *freedom* to Europe. Instead, the Red Army brought with them another kind of submission - one which ended only in 1989. Please remember that.

[Cassandra LeMay]

Liberia has not seen a new case of Ebola for 42 days and can now be considered Ebola-free.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/liberia-ebola-outbreak-declared-over-after-42-days-without-new-case-1.3067691

While they may still get new infections from neighbouring Guinea and Sierra Leone, the number of new infections in both countries is also at the lowest point this year. http://apps.who.int/ebola/

It's too early to call this outbreak over, but at least things are beginning to look better.

[Dashenka]

Oh, come on, Dash. Please note that, in the past, the European heads of the state did come for these Russia's celebrations. This year, they didn't come because of what Russia is doing in Ukraine.

If you ask me, it's a right thing to do. Russia is currently waging a war of unjust agression. Europe can't ignore this.

On a side note, a historical comment: while, indeed, the millions of Soviet soldiers you mentioned died to defeat Hitler, they didn't bring *freedom* to Europe. Instead, the Red Army brought with them another kind of submission - one which ended only in 1989. Please remember that.

1. This is not about Putin but the people who died.
2. So you'd have preferred for your (grand)parents to have been raised under a nazi regime over the red army regime? Interesting thought...

[gaggedLouise]

1. This is not about Putin but the people who died.
2. So you'd have preferred for your (grand)parents to have been raised under a nazi regime over the red army regime? Interesting thought...

Very true.

This isn't about being uncritically grateful to Stalin, to him personally over other things that he stood for, it's about the Red Army being absolutely essential to breaking down Hitler's grip over Europe, and therefore breaking Nazi power. The Soviet Union took the brunt of the land fighting in Europe. For three long years (from June 1941 to D-Day) they were the only state that put combat boots on the ground on land in any substantial numbers in Europe against Hitler, month after month, day and night, along many hundreds of miles, at a tremendous human cost  - and that cost wasn't primarily because of their supposedly being inept soldiers or lacking courage and motivation (neither of that was true). The Nazis easily allowed terror methods with Soviet soldiers and civilians of a kind they didn't normally use in the west - gassings, torture and mass shootings of captured soldiers, the killing and burning of entire villages, routine group hangings of men and women in public to strike fear into the people, and so on.

Hitler attacked the Soviet Union, they were arguably his primary target in the war, the war front he really wanted, and over a couple of years they mauled down his war machine. There is no way to defeat a first-rate power like the Third Reich in action without large numbers of boots on the ground, still less if said power has occupied most of a continent right out to its coastlines first, and the Soviets (mostly Russians) did the bulk of that work and made it possible for the invasion in the west (in itself a heroic effort) to be a success.

We all know why the western leaders didn't turn up in Moscow today but I think Dasha is quite right that the memory of the fallen of WW2, soldiers and killed civilians, is getting mixed up with issues of the cold war in a disingenious (or downright mendacious) way by some politicians and media pundits.

[Cassandra LeMay]

2. So you'd have preferred for your (grand)parents to have been raised under a nazi regime over the red army regime?

Nice false dilemma, as it ignores the obvious alternative that many people might have wished for, i.e. "neither A nor B".

[Ironwolf85]

Nice false dilemma, as it ignores the obvious alternative that many people might have wished for, i.e. "neither A nor B".

let's not forget putin is using the event for some good ol imperialistic military dick waving at european leaders...

[Dashenka]

Nice false dilemma, as it ignores the obvious alternative that many people might have wished for, i.e. "neither A nor B".

Oh, come on, Dash. Please note that, in the past, the European heads of the state did come for these Russia's celebrations. This year, they didn't come because of what Russia is doing in Ukraine.

If you ask me, it's a right thing to do. Russia is currently waging a war of unjust agression. Europe can't ignore this.

On a side note, a historical comment: while, indeed, the millions of Soviet soldiers you mentioned died to defeat Hitler, they didn't bring *freedom* to Europe. Instead, the Red Army brought with them another kind of submission - one which ended only in 1989. Please remember that.

I'll tell my granddad he shouldn't have bothered freeing Europe, cause you're ungrateful. Would have saved him and my nan a lot of troubles.

let's not forget putin is using the event for some good ol imperialistic military dick waving at european leaders...

Again, it's about remembering the 26 million people who died in the Soviet Union in WWII and to honour those who gave their lifes so that Europe could be free. Apparently though, according to Cassandra and Beorning, none of them should have bothered cause they all preferred the Nazi's.

Who knew.


All I have to say about it...


In other news...

A brand new military aircraft crashed in Spain.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32673713