On Thursday, February 19, 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama made his first foreign tour as head of state, traveling to his northern neighbor, the gentle giant, Canada. President Obama restored a decades-old tradition of presidents making Canada the destination of their first foreign trip.

When Czech President Vaclav Klaus addressed the E.U. parliament, he blasted the European Union for alienating voters and oppressing member states.  Standing before a shocked parliament, Mr. Klaus then escalated his attack.  He compared the E.U. to the Soviet Union – permitting no freedom.  Parliament members threw their hands into the air and exited the chamber in protest (Associated Press, February 19, 2009).

While the syndicated "Dear Abby" advice column in many newspapers across the U.S. has been celebrated for decades for its wit and "common sense," in the column I read the other day it was clear that "Abby" had struck out. The individual writing to "Abby" was a 16-year-old, struggling with seemingly overwhelming homosexual feelings.  Struggling to deal with those feelings and failing to change them, the teen asks "Abby" for advice on how to "come out" and make his or her homosexuality public, expressing concern about how family and friends will react. "Abby's" advice?  Abysmal.  Let's take a look.

How are you doing with your New Year's resolutions?  Are you determinedly following through on your personal commitment to improve your appearance or your behavior?  Or, are you feeling guilty because you are behind schedule?  Maybe you haven't even started them yet.  One of my favorite TV shows is CBS News Sunday Morning.  Last Sunday's show had a brief segment about human guilt – why we feel guilty.  This report explained that one of the things making people feel guilty most frequently at this time of year is failure to live up to New Year's resolutions.  First, let's discover what guilt is. 

My family walked in the shadow of death this last year.  Not a pleasant subject, to be sure, but one that was thrust upon us nonetheless.  I lost my mother in April, 2008. She was elderly and infirm, and for the last two years of her life suffered from the scourge of Alzheimer's disease.  So, while it was sad to close that chapter, it was not unexpected, nor was it tragic. It was quite naturally her time to die, as it states in book of Ecclesiastes, chapter 3.