Tuesday, November 01, 2005

OH, THE IRONY!

Greenpeace Damages Coral Reef (11/1/2005)


"In one of those 'the operation was a success but the patient died' scenarios, Greenpeace's Rainbow Warrior II damaged a coral reef in the central Philippines--during a climate change awareness program. 

"The ship and its Birkenstock crew will have to pony up after being assessed a 640,000 peso ($15,000) fine after the 55m motor-assisted environmentally friendly schooner ran aground at the Tubbataha Reef Marine Park on Monday, according to park manager Angelique Songco. 

"The ship's bow sliced through a reef formation measuring 160sq m., she said...."

Monday, October 31, 2005

THE REAL ORIGINS OF HALLOWEEN

It's Not a Wiccan Holy Day After All

On BeliefNet (use the link above to read the article), a Catholic priest writes about the history of this allegedly pre-Christian pagan festival:

"We’ve all heard the allegations: Halloween is a pagan rite dating back to some pre-Christian festival among the Celtic Druids that escaped church suppression. Even today modern pagans and witches continue to celebrate this ancient festival. If you let your kids go trick-or-treating, they will be worshiping the devil and pagan gods.

"Nothing could be further from the truth. The origins of Halloween are, in fact, very Christian and rather American. Halloween falls on October 31 because of a pope, and its observances are the result of medieval Catholic piety...."