Happy New Year, Everybody!

(H/T: Marathon Pundit)

A Vision Of Winter Beauty

...with a small political message.

Merry Christmas

The twenty-fifth day of December,
in the five-thousand, one-hundred and ninety-ninth year of the creation of the world, from the time when God in the beginning created the heaven and the earth;
the two-thousand nine-hundred and fifty-seventh year after the flood;
the two-thousand and fifteenth year from the birth of Abraham;
the one- thousand five-hundred and tenth year from Moses and the going forth of the people of Israel from Egypt;
the one-thousand and thirty-second year from David being anointed King;
in the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;
in the one-hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;
the seven-hundred and fifty-second year from the founding of Rome;
the forty-second year of the reign of Octavian Augustus;
in the sixth age of the world,
when the whole world was at peace,
Jesus Christ,
the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father,
desiring to sanctify the world by his most merciful coming,
was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
and nine months having passed since his conception,
was born in Bethlehem of Judah of the Virgin Mary,
AND WAS MADE MAN.

A very merry and blessed Christmas to each of you, and all of yours. May God bless us, every one.

Benedicamus Domino!

Why I Believe In Santa Claus

A regular tradition from all of the staff, cast and crew here at Thoughts of a Regular Guy is the annual re-post of this essay (slightly modified) from 2005:

As a Roman Catholic, I wholeheartedly believe in Santa Claus. Santa is real, and deserves credit for much good in the world.

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't claim that the guy on your Coke can this month is real. Not the secular figure we all know: red suit, north pole, elves, reindeer, makes toys, flies through the world on Christmas Eve to visit all the good children, via their chimneys. Only children really believe in him.

But there is a real St. Nick. And for those who accept a traditional understanding of the communion of saints, this might be a fulfilling way to view him.

In the eighth century, he was a bishop, and liked to bring toys and gifts to needy families in his diocese at Christmas time. His name was Niklaus, or Claus, or Nicholas.

After his death, the Church came to recognize that God had made him a saint. And that's the most important thing to know about Santa Claus:

He is a saint, and lives in glory with God in Heaven.

He doesn't wear a red suit trimmed in fur. He is clothed with the glory of God.

And he doesn't bring presents to children on Christmas eve anymore. But if there is nothing good we can do except by the Grace of God, and if it is the business of saints to intercede before God for us here on Earth, then I believe that St. Nick makes it his business to intercede for children -- and grownups too -- to be given the grace to love one another, and to show that love by gift-giving.

Every child sitting on the lap of a mall Santa is praying to St. Nicholas. Every letter to Santa anyone writes is carried by angels to the great one, who lays it at the feet of our divine Father.

And every person who sees something in the store and thinks, "she would just love that," and buys it in the hope of bringing happiness to a loved one, does so under the prompting of God's grace, gained for him by the prayerful intercession of St. Nicholas.

And the joy of a family gathered on Christmas morning to open their gifts isn't just a materialistic euphoria, but God's grace, filling the home and the hearts of its inhabitants, at least for a little while.

And by being aware of that grace, and being open to it, we can prolong the joy of Christmas. We can recall that love is not an emotion like happiness or fear, but a disposition towards others in our lives, a pattern of behavior, and we can join our prayers with those of St. Nicholas that our lives will be filled with the grace to love each other, and to show that love in obvious ways.

And so, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

Joe Walsh Says Merry Christmas!

Dear Santa, all I want for Christmas is for Joe Walsh to be my congressman.

Christmas Message, 2009

Pro-Life Bloggers: Help My Campaign For Free

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Why They Support The Regular Guy

Watching this video has been perhaps the most humbling experience of the campaign thus far.

Walsh Picks Up Pro-Life Endorsement

Joe Walsh announces his endorsement by the Illinois Federation for Right to Life (they've also endorsed your favorite state representative candidate):

8th Congressional District Republican Candidate Joe Walsh announces Illinois Federation for Right to Life Endorsement

Lake Zurich: Joe Walsh, candidate for the Republican Nomination to the 8th Congressional District, is pleased to announce the co-endorsement of his candidacy by the Illinois Federation for Right to Life PAC. The IFRL PAC notified candidates December 8th.

“The IFRL PAC endorsement is significant in this race and for me personally. My position on the Right to Life of the unborn is based on a soul searching and intellectual journey. The result of that journey has become a personal, religious and scientific understanding that life begins at the moment of conception,” said Walsh.

“The incumbent, Melissa Bean, has finally shown her true colors on the issue of life when she voted against the Stupak amendment to the Healthcare Reform Bill. Bart Stupak is a Democrat Congressman from Michigan who offered an amendment barring Federal dollars for abortion in the Healthcare Reform Bill. The amendment passed the US House with bi-partisan support. Melissa Bean’s vote puts her at odds with the vast majority of people in the 8th District who oppose their tax dollars being used to pay for abortions,” said Walsh.

“If I am successful in the Primary and General elections of 2010 I will be a strong voice for life in the US House of Representatives. The communities that make up the 8th Congressional District have traditionally been represented by Pro-Life Congressmen. I believe that this district is Pro-Life and I intend to be the candidate who will bring the district home,” said Walsh.

In their endorsement Press Release the IFRL PAC stated: “We are pleased to announce our endorsement of Joe Walsh as Republican Candidate for the Eighth Congressional District. Not only has Mr. Walsh expressed a desire to protect unborn children, but he has also indicated his support for the disabled as well as those who are endangered at the end of life.” [Emphasis added.]

Walsh Really Pro-Life

They're telling lies about my friend Joe Walsh, whom I've endorsed for Congress in the Illinois 8th District. They're saying he's not pro-life. As evidence, they're citing his position when he first ran for office thirteen years ago!

Well, back in 1990, I was pro-choice, too. Read this blog and tell me I'm not pro-life now.

Converts to the pro-life cause are desperately needed, and should be welcomed for their conversion, not punished.

I have no doubt that Joe Walsh is pro-life; there's just no faking the passion that Joe brings to this campaign and these issues.

This video is from my friend Michael Brown; you've probably seen some of his other work without knowing it.



from Joe Walsh:

You may have heard some rumor and innuendo over the past few days, written and spoken, trying to distort my position on the life issue. I would like to set the record straight.

For seven years, I have been pro-life without exception. I believe in the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death. There is no candidate in this race who is more pro-life than I am.

I grew up pro-life in a conservative Catholic family of nine children in North Barrington. When I first got involved in politics and policy as an adult in my 20s and early 30s, my beliefs on certain issues were different than they are today and in many ways I was a different person than I am today. In 1996, I ran for the United States Congress and in 1998 I ran for the Illinois State House. At the time, I ran as a pro-choice Republican with support for all the reasonable restrictions -- waiting period, parental notification, and ban on partial birth abortions. My position at the time was due to my antipathy toward government intrusion and involvement in both economic and private affairs and reflected my staunch limited-government views.

I began a five-year religious, intellectual, and scientific journey on the life issue after my race in 1998. It was an incredibly deep, long, personal journey of the heart which returned me to my pro-life roots. From that moment in 2003, when I knew in my head and my heart that life began at conception, the pro-life position without exception was where I wanted to be. It was where I had to be.

My conversion took place almost seven years ago.

It came to our attention a week or so ago that there was a whisper campaign going on regarding my political views on life back in 1996 and 1998. Only two days ago, we discovered that someone or some group -- either one of my Republican opponents or a pro-choice/Democrat organization -- sent out a mailing from a fictitious pro-life group with copies of articles from 1996 highlighting my past pro-choice views.

Setting the record straight, because my pro-life conversion took place so many years ago, I did not at all think that the views I held 14 years ago would be relevant in this race. Well, I should have known better and should have been better prepared for such a mean-spirited attack. Since entering this race, I've spoken in front of a number of different groups. I did not typically go into the history of my conversion to a pro-life position when speaking with these groups. I simply talked about where I am on the life issue now and where I’ve been for the past seven years.

Once again, I should have known better. I've discussed the story of my journey in numerous individual conversations since entering the race, and I actually find it to be the most rewarding thing I discuss. But as I stand before the voters of the eighth district today as an unabashed pro-life candidate in this race, I want to be completely candid about my position and the evolution in my mind and my heart that brought me here.

It's become clear from the voter response in the primary so far that I will be a strong general election candidate against Melissa Bean. That’s because it is clear that my passionate message of taking back our country is striking a chord among voters. We’ve certainly made clear as well that I would be a forceful, ardent candidate on life issues during the general election and that it is important that we have a candidate who can win with a pro-family agenda. Apparently, these facts don’t sit well with some.

Somebody doesn't want me to win this primary. They sent out a mailing using the name of a fictitious pro-life group with no return address to mischaracterize my positions and implicate the pro-life movement in this trick. It is tactics like these that keep many good people out of politics.

I've been clear from the start that I won't be at all like a typical politician which is why I want to set the record straight. I'm going to say what I mean and mean what I say and not worry about the political consequences. It's why I publicly criticize Republicans and Democrats alike for increasing the size of government. And it’s why I have not at all been bashful in my public speaking that abortion is the taking of an innocent human life regardless of how that life was begun. I will win or lose standing by this position.

The pro-life movement is about changing minds. They have been spectacularly successful in changing mine. But I have always been a believer in the "inalienable rights" that the founding fathers applied to human beings. The most important of these inalienable rights is the right to life. I believe that life begins at the moment of conception and my belief is based on personal and religious belief, and on the basis of scientific fact. I wish that I had always held these beliefs but I am grateful that I have fully embraced this fundamental issue.

It seems to me that whether it was one of my opponents (Republican or Democrat), whether it was some pro-choice interest group, or whether it was just a random hater behind this mailing, it’s clear that someone doesn't want there to be a strong pro-life candidate taking the fight to Melissa Bean next year.

Well, I'm not going to stop fighting.