.. I'm no expert in education and the educational system in the US but Bill Gates' criticism about the broken High school educational system leaves out a critical factor to the problem - student motivation. Systems and structure can only go so far but without student interest on the value of education and why they should stay in school, it will be very hard for the US to counter India and China's rising dominance in math and science. The analysis does not take into account the differences in culture and behavior between the East and the West. Young students in the East become focused in education for lack of anything to do besides helping out the family earn a living and do household chores. Young people in America enjoy the same freedoms and brand of western individualism that their parents and other adults have. They are faced with a myriad of choices and become distracted from focusing on schoo. Although the same choices and freedoms are creeping up to the east, they are still not there and they realize they need to earn and become successful before they can avail of all these individual and material freedoms. There is a difference in getting the goal of success. While young people in China and India realize the only way they can enjoy western lifestyle is to through career success through education, American students' sense of entitlement demotivates them to prepare for the future.
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.. It's springtime in Washington and time for that annual ritual called "pork barrel" - lawmakers inserting their fave projects to an emergency spending bill for their constituents back home. The rationalizations boggle the mind and insult voter's intelligence.

On a related note, will Dr. Frist eat the pork being served for him on the 2008 presidential table by the religious right? The Reverend has not stated categorically he is running and presidential kingmaker Karl Rove is playing his cards close to his chest. Frist says he isn't serving as Senate leader beyond 2006 leading pundits to speculate a 2008 presidential run. Stay tuned.

Meanwhile, nothing gets done in the Senate other than bills favoring the rich and powerful. There seems to be a new motto at the Capitol- "A friend indeed is a friend in need." It remains to be seen whether voters will have the last laugh during the midterm elections next year.
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.. Can love be taught? Probably not. Successful dating stands a better chance. Singles in America are keeping their fingers crossed.
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.. The business and government's incoherent economic policy and response to trade issues with China clearly show that the latter is a formidable economic and political power that must be treated carefully. From multilateral talks concerning North Korea, Russian and Iranian arms control to tensions in the Taiwanese strait, America needs the cooperation of the Chinese government. This is the main reason why the US will not do anything drastic any day soon about the issue of the yuan being pegged artificially against the dollar making it rise and fall with the green buck. The Bush administration's experts are hoping world trade will be self-correcting and will return to equilibrium. They will be proven wrong and by that time it will be too late.
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.. The NYPD reported last week that crime in nyc is at the lowest ever in decades. Tell that to the countless iPod users in the city who not only fear losing their cool gadget but their life as well. It's a nightmare for Apple to be in a situation where it now has to weigh customer concerns with marketing the product aggressively. The much sought after white mp3 pods have become a symbol of the great gap between the have and the have nots. Theft of the iPod increased dramatically in subways starting last year and now the MTA is compelled to remind riders to be careful. Students and young people are the most vulnerable to the theft which can sometimes turn ugly and not worth the risk of losing one's life.
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.. According to AP wire reports, Pope Benedict XVI "kiddingly told an audience of German pilgrims Monday that at one point during the conclave he viewed the idea of being elected pope as a 'guillotine,' and he prayed to God to be spared selection." The pope is going out of his way to soften his image by comments that seem to portray him as humbled by the selection. Is it just me or do I smell overkill here? The pope cannot joke his way out of the fact that his election is one of the most political conclaves ever. His conciliatory statements after his election just magnifies the tough statements and sermons he issued which were clearly designed to influence the College of Cardinals. In other words, Cardinal Ratzinger subtly campaigned for the job in violation of the rules set by Pope John Paul II. It was no surprise that he shattered the age old maxim, "He who comes in as pope comes out a cardinal."

.. Despite the looming clouds of uncertainty over the economy, franchising is the hottest thing there is for earning a quick buck.
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.. Gratis! This was how researchers unwittingly scored a marketing coup for Starbucks when it branded a simple mathematical phenomenon - traffic geometric progression into the so called "Starbucks effect." I experienced this very well when I used to work for Shell as a retail executive. The trick to avoiding gridlock traffic is simply to avoid rush hour usually between 7-9 a.m. and 5-7 p.m, the 2-hr. travel window before and after work. The bulk of the people just simply travel during this period and the number of vehicles pour in a predictable geometric pattern (2x2=4 then 4x4=16) in an instant as opposed to arithmetic progression (1+1=2 cars then +2= 4 cars). The key is to avoid the period when queuing would build up the most. I am leaving out here the rate and speed of acceleration between cars because that is another nightmare altogether. Whew!
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.. A reader puts in blunt terms the concern about Pope Benedict XVI's election..
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.. Data is everything in these modern times. We never know the value of things until we lose them. Whether in business or at home, you need to protect your data.
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.. A mixture of joy and disbelief greeted the election of a Benedict XVI as the new pope of the Catholic church. In an age when the church is faced with problems and challenges regarding its relevance in the modern world, the College of Cardinals chose a man who clearly is pessimistic about the future and looked to the past as a guiding post in terms of doctrine and orthodoxy.
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.. Concern is growing about a global economic slowdown which may turn nasty..
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.. Best t.v. or bull___t t.v., you decide.
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.. As the hope of the future, this is a relief.
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.. Is controlling the exploding population of the Philippines the solution to poverty? Is it really a simple question of arithmetic where less mouths to feed mean more money in the pocket? I doubt it's as simple as that. This is a clear example where"zero-sum" theory - gains made by the winners in an economic transaction equal the losses suffered by the losers - does not apply. There are no clear winners and losers in this argument. There is the ancillary argument that the predominantly American-media and the West are barking on the wrong tree when it comes to defining "economic value", quality of life and even happiness (I'm guilty of empirical heresy here.) If the federal poverty line threshold expressed is $18,400 annualy for a family of four (minimum wage of $5.15 an hour for a single income earner in a family of is technically not enough to hurdle the poverty threshold), this is not true in third world countries where two-thirds of the people subsist on $2 a day living and $5 an hour is 30 times greater than the prevailing hourly wage in India for example.

In a happiness survey conducted a few years ago in different countries around the world, most of those in the top ten most happy were from developing countries and conversely, the unhappiest people on earth were mostly from western-capitalist countries. It is a fact that economic value is relative and we should not equate it with economic cost. The cost of feeding 60 million Filipinos is not the same as the cost of feeding 60 million Americans due to differences in the standard of living. It's a bit condescending to tell people from the thirld world how to live and define for them "quality of life" in purely economic terms. That being said, greater emphasis should be pointed to the failure of government to improve the lives of the poor by creating wealth and opportunities for employment. Corrupt officials and the failure of the law to curb them is symptomatic of the "feudal" mentality and political chaos of poor Catholic countries such as the Philippines and mostly in Latin America.

The church, time and again, has been a convenient excuse for politicians and economic policymakers.
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.. The last 20 men standing..
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..Full text of the schedule of the novendiales, the nine days of mouning prior to the conclave on April 18.

VATICAN CITY, APR 7, 2005 (VIS) - At the end of today's Fifth General Congregation of Cardinals in the period of vacant see, Holy See Press Office Director Joaquin Navarro-Valls released the following information to journalists:

"Following the opening prayer the cardinals who arrived yesterday in Rome swore their oath.

"There were 140 cardinals present.

"The College of Cardinals has delegated Cardinal Edmund Szoka the legislative power to mint coins and print stamps for the period of the vacant see.

"The following program has been established for Monday, April 18, the start of the conclave.

- At 10 a.m. Mass "pro eligendo Summo Pontifice" in St. Peter's Basilica;

- At 4:30 p.m. Gathering in the Hall of Blessings in the Apostolic Palace (the Pauline Chapel is being restored) for the start of the procession to the Sistine Chapel where the work of the conclave will begin.

"The cardinals also examined several problems relative to the celebration of the funeral Mass and the rite of the Holy Father's burial in the Vatican Grottoes.

"They also considered several questions relative to the start of the conclave and in this sense chose the two preachers for the exhortations as established in the Apostolic Constitution "Universi Dominici gregis."

"Father Raniero Cantalamessa will give his intervention on Thursday April 14 during the General Congregation of the morning.

"Cardinal Thomas Spidlik, S.J. will address the cardinals in the Sistine Chapel on Monday, April 18.

"The cardinals will receive condolences from the diplomatic corps on Wednesday, April 13 at 10 a.m. in the atrium of the Paul VI Hall.

Archbishop Piero Marini, master of the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, has published a note on the "novendiali" or period of nine days of official mourning for the late Pope John Paul II, explaining the background and indicating the dates, times and principal celebrants of each of the nine Masses.

The communique states that "according to an ancient custom, for nine consecutive days there are special Eucharistic celebrations for the repose of the soul of the deceased Roman Pontiff, starting with the funeral Mass which is determined by the Congregation of Cardinals (cf. Universi Dominici gregis, n. 13 and 27)."

"Each day the celebration is open to everyone. It is, however, entrusted each day to a different group, taking into account that group's links with the Roman Pontiff. This variety of the congregation shows in a certain way both the milieu of the Supreme Pastor as well as the universality of the Church of Rome (Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontifici, n. 133)."

"The funeral Mass for the Supreme Pontiff John Paul II will take place April 8 at 10 a.m. in St. Peter's Square whereas in the Vatican Basilica, from the 9th to the 16th of April, the novendiali celebrations for the repose of the soul of the deceased Pope, will continue in the following manner:

Day 1: Funeral Mass

Day 2: Saturday, April 9, at 5 p.m.: For the faithful of Vatican City: The concelebration will be presided over by Cardinal Francesco Marchisano, archpriest of the Patriarchal Vatican Basilica.

Day 3: Sunday, April 10, 5 p.m. For the Church of Rome. Mass presided over by Cardinal Camillo Ruini, vicar general for the diocese of Rome, and concelebrated by the clergy of Rome.

Day 4: Monday, April 11, 5 p.m. For the Chapters of the Patriarchal Basilicas. The concelebration will be presided by Cardinal Bernard Francis Law, archbishop emeritus of Boston and archpriest of the Patriarchal Basilica of St Mary Major.

Day 5: Tuesday, April 12, 5 p.m. Cappella Papale. Mass to be presided over by Cardinal Eugenio de Araujo Sales, archbishop emeritus of Sao Sebastiao do Rio de Janeiro, proto-priest of the College of Cardinals.

Day 6: Wednesday, April 13, 5 p.m. For the Roman Curia. Concelebration will be presided over by Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State.

Day 7: Thursday, April 14, 5 p.m. For the Oriental Churches. Divine Liturgy in the Oriental Rite to be presided over by His Beatitude Pierre Nasrallah Sfeir, patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites.

Day 8: Friday, April 15, 5 p.m. For members of Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. Mass presided over by Archbishop Piergiorgio Silvano Nesti, emeritus of Camerino-San Severino Marche, secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

Day 9: Saturday, April 16, Cappella Papale. The concelebration will be presided by Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estevez, prefect emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, proto-deacon of the College of Cardinals.

All cardinals are invited to concelebrate in the Cappelle Papali on April 8, 12 and 16."

VATICAN CITY, APR 7, 2005 (VIS) - Following is the text of the spiritual testament of John Paul II, which was released today in an Italian translation of the original Polish. The translation from Italian into English has been done by VIS:

The testament of 6.3.1979

(and successive additions)

"Totus Tuus ego sum"

In the Name of the Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

"Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming" (cf. Mt 24, 42) - these words remind me of the last call, which will happen at the moment the Lord wishes. I desire to follow Him, and I desire that everything making up part of my earthly life should prepare me for this moment. I do not know when the moment will come, but like everything else, I place it too in the hands of the Mother of my Master: Totus Tuus. In the same maternal Hands I leave everything and everyone with whom my life and vocation have linked me. In these Hands I leave, above all, the Church, as well as my Nation and all humanity. I thank everyone. Of everyone I ask forgiveness. I also ask for prayer, that the Mercy of God may appear greater than my weakness and unworthiness.

During the spiritual exercises I re-read the testament of the Holy Father Paul VI. That reading prompted me to write this testament.

I leave no property behind me of which it is necessary to dispose. As for the everyday objects that were of use to me, I ask they be distributed as seems appropriate. My personal notes are to be burned. I ask that this be attended to by Fr. Stanislaw, whom I thank for his collaboration and help, so prolonged over the years and so understanding. As for all other thanks, I leave them in my heart before God Himself, because it is difficult to express them.

As for the funeral, I repeat the same dispositions as were given by the Holy Father Paul VI. (Here is a note in the margin: burial in the bare earth, not in a sarcophagus, 13.3.92).

"apud Dominum misericordia
et copiosa apud Eum redemptio"

John Paul pp. II

Rome, 6.III.1979
After my death I ask for Masses and prayers.
5.III.1990

Undated sheet of paper

I express my profound trust that, despite all my weakness, the Lord will grant me all the grace necessary to face according to His will any task, trial or suffering that He will ask of His servant, in the course of his life. I also trust that He will never allow me - through some attitude of mine: words, deeds or omissions - to betray my obligations in this holy Petrine See.

24.II - 1.III.1980

Also during these spiritual exercises, I have reflected on the truth of the Priesthood of Christ in the perspective of that Transit that for each of us is the moment of our own death. For us the Resurrection of Christ is an eloquent (added above: decisive) sign of departing from this world - to be born in the next, in the future world.

I have read, then, the copy of my testament from last year, also written during the spiritual exercises - I compared it with the testament of my great predecessor and Father, Paul VI, with that sublime witness to death of a Christian and a Pope - and I have renewed within me an awareness of the questions to which the copy of 6.III.1979 refers, prepared by me (in a somewhat provisional way).

Today I wish to add only this: that each of us must bear in mind the prospect of death. And must be ready to present himself before the Lord and Judge - Who is at the same time Redeemer and Father. I too continually take this into consideration, entrusting that decisive moment to the Mother of Christ and of the Church - to the Mother of my hope.

The times in which we live are unutterably difficult and disturbed. The path of the Church has also become difficult and tense, a characteristic trial of these times - both for the Faithful and for Pastors. In some Countries (as, for example, in those about which I read during the spiritual exercises), the Church is undergoing a period of such persecution as to be in no way lesser than that of early centuries, indeed it surpasses them in its degree of cruelty and hatred. "Sanguis martyrum - semen christianorum.". And apart from this - many people die innocently even in this Country in which we are living.

Once again, I wish to entrust myself totally to the Lord's grace. He Himself will decide when and how I must end my earthly life and pastoral ministry. In life and in death, Totus Tuus in Mary Immaculate. Accepting that death, even now, I hope that Christ will give me the grace for the final passage, in other words (my) Easter. I also hope that He makes (that death) useful for this more important cause that I seek to serve: the salvation of men and women, the safeguarding of the human family and, in that, of all nations and all peoples (among them, I particularly address my earthly Homeland), and useful for the people with whom He particularly entrusted me, for the question of the Church, for the glory of God Himself.

I do not wish to add anything to what I wrote a year ago - only to express this readiness and, at the same time, this trust, to which the current spiritual exercises have again disposed me.

John Paul II

Totus Tuus ego sum

5.III.1982

In the course of this year's spiritual exercises I have read (a number of times) the text of the testament of 6.III.1979. Although I still consider it provisional (not definitive), I leave it in the form in which it exists. I change nothing (for now), and neither do I add anything, as concerns the dispositions contained therein.

The attempt upon my life on 13.V.1981 in some way confirmed the accuracy of the words written during the period of the spiritual exercises of 1980 (24.II - 1.III).

All the more deeply I now feel that I am totally in the Hands of God - and I remain continually at the disposal of my Lord, entrusting myself to Him in His Immaculate Mother (Totus Tuus)

John Paul pp.II

5.III.82

In connection with the last sentence in my testament of 6.III.1979 ("concerning the site / that is, the site of the funeral / let the College of Cardinals and Compatriots decide") - I will make it clear that I have in mind: the metropolitan of Krakow or the General Council of the Episcopate of Poland - In the meantime I ask the College of Cardinals to satisfy, as far as possible, any demands of the above-mentioned.

1.III.1985 (during the spiritual exercises)
Again - as regards the expression "College of Cardinals and Compatriots": the "College of Cardinals" has no obligation to consult "Compatriots" on this subject, however it can do so, if for some reason it feels it is right to do so.

JPII

Spiritual exercise of the Jubilee Year 2000 (12-18.III)
(for my testament)

1. When, on October 16, 1978 the conclave of cardinals chose John Paul II, the primate of Poland, Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski told me: "The duty of the new Pope will be to introduce the Church into the Third Millennium." I don't know if I am repeating this sentence exactly, but at least this was the sense of what I heard at the time. This was said by the Man who entered history as the primate of the Millennium. A great primate. I was a witness to his mission, to his total entrustment. To his battles. To his victory. "Victory, when it comes, will be a victory through Mary" - The primate of the Millennium used to repeat these words of his predecessor, Cardinal August Hlond.

In this way I was prepared in some manner for the duty that presented itself to me on October 16, 1978. As I write these words, the Jubilee Year 2000 is already a reality. The night of December 24, 1999 the symbolic Door of the Great Jubilee in the Basilica of St. Peter's was opened, then that of St. John Lateran, then St. Mary Major - on New Year's, and on January 19 the Door of the Basilica of St. Paul's Outside-the-Walls. This last event, given its ecumenical character, has remained impressed in my memory in a special way.

2. As the Jubilee Year progressed, day by day the 20th century closes behind us and the 21st century opens. According to the plans of Divine Providence I was allowed to live in the difficult century that is retreating into the past, and now, in the year in which my life reaches 80 years ('octogesima adveniens'), it is time to ask oneself if it is not the time to repeat with the biblical Simeone 'nunc dimittis'.

On May 13, 1981, the day of the attack on the Pope during the general audience in St. Peter's Square, Divine Providence saved me in a miraculous way from death. The One Who is the Only Lord of life and death Himself prolonged my life, in a certain way He gave it to me again. From that moment it belonged to Him even more. I hope He will help me to recognize up to what point I must continue this service to which I was called on October 16, 1978. I ask him to call me back when He Himself wishes. 'In life and in death we belong to the Lord ... we are the Lord's. (cf. Rm 14,8). I also hope that, as long as I am called to fulfil the Petrine service in the Church, the Mercy of God will give me the necessary strength for this service.

3. As I do every year during spiritual exercises I read my testament from 6-III-1979. I continue to maintain the dispositions contained in this text. What then, and even during successive spiritual exercises, has been added constitutes a reflection of the difficult and tense general situation which marked the Eighties. From autumn of the year 1989 this situation changed. The last decade of the century was free of the previous tensions; that does not mean that it did not bring with it new problems and difficulties. In a special way may Divine Providence be praised for this, that the period of the so-called 'cold war' ended without violent nuclear conflict, the danger of which weighed on the world in the preceding period.

4. Being on the threshold of the third millennium "in medio Ecclesiae" I wish once again to express gratitude to the Holy Spirit for the great gift of Vatican Council II, to which, together with the entire Church - and above all the entire episcopacy - I feel indebted. I am convinced that for a long time to come the new generations will draw upon the riches that this Council of the 20th century gave us. As a bishop who participated in this conciliar event from the first to the last day, I wish to entrust this great patrimony to all those who are and who will be called in the future to realize it. For my part I thank the eternal Pastor Who allowed me to serve this very great cause during the course of all the years of my pontificate.

"In medio Ecclesiae".... from the first years of my service as a bishop - precisely thanks to the Council - I was able to experience the fraternal communion of the Episcopacy. As a priest of the archdiocese of Krakow I experienced the fraternal communion among priests - and the Council opened a new dimension to this experience.

5. How many people should I list! Probably the Lord God has called to Himself the majority of them - as to those who are still on this side, may the words of this testament recall them, everyone and everywhere, wherever they are.

During the more than 20 years that I am fulfilling the Petrine service "in medio Ecclesiae" I have experienced the benevolence and even more the fecund collaboration of so many cardinals, archbishops and bishops, so many priests, so many consecrated persons - brothers and sisters - and, lastly, so very, very many lay persons, within the Curia, in the vicariate of the diocese of Rome, as well as outside these milieux.

How can I not embrace with grateful memory all the bishops of the world whom I have met in "ad limina Apostolorum" visits! How can I not recall so many non-Catholic Christian brothers! And the rabbi of Rome and so many representatives of non -Christian religions! And how many representatives of the world of culture, science, politics, and of the means of social communication!

6. As the end of my life approaches I return with my memory to the beginning, to my parents, to my brother, to the sister (I never knew because she died before my birth), to the parish in Wadowice, where I was baptized, to that city I love, to my peers, friends from elementary school, high school and the university, up to the time of the occupation when I was a worker, and then in the parish of Niegowic, then St. Florian's in Krakow, to the pastoral ministry of academics, to the milieu of....to all milieux....to Krakow and to Rome....to the people who were entrusted to me in a special way by the Lord.

To all I want to say just one thing: "May God reward you."

"In manus tuas, Domine, commendo spiritum meum."
A.D.
17.III.2000

.. For those who are really serious in handicapping the next selection of the pope.
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.. There's a saying in Rome that says "if you go inside the conclave as a Pope, you come out a cardinal." It was wise for Cardinal Hummes (pronounced Hoo-mes) to downplay his chances for the papacy. The last two popes (John Paul I, II) were not early favorites but were in fact compromise candidates. Though John Paul II made a rule revision requiring a simple majority (50+1) in the event balloting reaches 30 (there are 2 ballots each in the morning and afternoon with a 2/3 unanimous vote requirement) making it easier to vote as a bloc, the Holy Spirit will likely spring another surprise.
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.. It comes as no surprise that tobacco is the single most prevalent cause of cancer deaths.
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.. And what employees prefer.
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.. The Yankees opened the 2005 Major League Baseball Season with a bang with their second straight win against their bitter rival and 2004 World Champs Red Sox. But baseball, just like life, is a marathon and there are still 160 games left spanning from April - October. Feels good seeing the Yanks sticking it to the Bosox though and redeeming themselves after their horrendous collapse in the 2004 ALS.
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.. Here's the most exhaustive list of the leading names of possible candidates for the papacy I have ever read.
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.. The campaign to succeed John Paul II began even before his death and the list of possible candidates have always revolved around prominent names. The mystery surrounding the process of electing a Pope in a conclave has been more fascinating and exciting than even the "Da Vinci Code". Will the Italians reclaim the post? Will their infighting and lobbying produce another compromise as surprising as Karol Wojtyla's back in 1978? Will the College of Cardinals make a bold statement by electing a man from Africa? Stay tuned.
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.. God in His infinite wisdom and grace has called home a faithful servant and a great man of faith. Now official mourning begins and the search for a new Pope will take place in a conclave (the meeting of the College of Cardinals to cast their secret ballots). In a figurative sense the Pope died but the Papacy lives. The Papacy - the Vicar of Christ and the Successor of Peter is greater than one man and like the Church has survived against all odds - against all the assaults and tides of history according to Greg Tobin in his book "Selecting The Pope". The papacy will survive and persevere, upheld by the fundamental belief that the "Holy Spirit sustains the church and the pope in his authority and teaching office that there is reason and purpose beyond mere human understanding of his role in keeping the church one, holy, catholic, and apostolic."

.. As I reflect and pray about the Pope's situation, both fear and hope come to mind. Fear of the imminent passing of a great and holy man, and hope for the church that she will continue to be in God's bossom even as Pope John Paul has passed away. The Catholic faithful should not lose sight of the real focus of our faith, the Way the Truth and the Light WHO is Jesus Christ and that no one comes to God the Father but through him. Yet we give thanks and honor to HIM for giving us a man who has been a great modern example of what it means to be a disciple of Christ in the modern world.

.. The church will continue to be a light in the modern world and the problems that divide the faithful, from contraception to abortion (mostly for American Catholics) to married and women priests to AIDS and human rights will continue to be debated and dealt with. The church needs to be creative to solve these problems and it needs to adapt its theology to apply to modern problems.

.. We need faithful servants more than ever and the church should be wise to be more open to other possibilities of creative evangelism such as this one from India.
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