JPNZ71

Hey look. If CMAA tried to eliminate everything it thought innapropiate, this forum would have been discontinued years ago... but we are all STILL here having civil conversations about our interest in Sacred Music, the church, the world, and other interesting topics. This forum is well moderated (thanks to our moderator for all his hard work keeping us respectful)

Yes, Charles... we know about you. :)

purple, bro.

Let's get another thread going on that one... would you like to start it? This one has a different subject.

it's called youhoo virus

Francis - If you want to start that thread, I'll comment on it. I don't think my comments are off topic. This, and another thread I commented on, were started to address whether or not public liturgy should be cancelled. Many of the comments that followed were not conducive to building the credibility of CMAA or the positions on liturgy and music which it advances. I know most people on this forum don't care what I think about this - fine. But I can assure you, if the the priests I know and have worked for, including my present priest and Bishop, read some of these comments, they would take CMAA less seriously, not more, and would dismiss its positions on liturgy and music as being far too closely aligned with conspiracy theorists, science deniers and confederate flag supporters. This is not me being a bully. This is me telling all of you how things are out here in real life music ministry work. Take it or leave it. Just don't complain about the relative music and liturgy wasteland found in the typical Catholic parish if you chose to leave it.

@jpnz71

give voice to the ignorant/cruel on social and cultural issues

Yes. It looks bad to call everyone racist and bigoted.
Whether or not you think that you sound enlightened, nobody will take you seriously for your random insults to everyone and the fact that you jump wildly from one subject to another, and then combine them all to say that everyone else are crazy racists.

I'm glad you felt confident enough to randomly join the forum just in time to make everyone aware of their ignorance...

Honestly, @chonak , his presence is almost the exact definition of a "troll."
[You have a point. Sometimes people seem to join the forum just to complain a lot, throw a tantrum, and stalk off in a huff. I think it means they have other issues, really, and are just venting them on us. --admin]

No, I am not a troll. I am an organist and music director working in the Roman Catholic Church. I have long hoped CMAA and the positions on music and liturgy it represents could make inroads into the Catholic parishes I have worked, and the Catholic Church as a whole. I have followed CMAA and this forum for all the years I've been working in sacred music. I commented on this and the Cardinal Burke thread because it is clear to me that the perspectives articulated on social/cultural/political issues voices on these and other forum threads are holding CMMA back, and thus getting in the way of advancing the perspectives on liturgy and music I wish could be heard and heeded by priests and parishes.

the purpose of flattening the curve is to ensure that the hospital system is never overwhelmed

Since the fifty percent reduction in projected hospital room requirements announced today, there is near-zero danger of "overwhelmed," although a couple of cities (NY) may have near-capacity. Of course, the President sent 1,000 rooms which float, complete with all the MD's, nurses, equipment, etc. That should help.

As you know, Italy is a FAR different situation than the US in sociological terms. They are not a good model-basis, although for some unknown reason they became one.

Here, some States and/or cities have decreed that residents must remain inside. Glad to hear your situation is different.

People with the time to quarrel with others on internet forums like this would do better to practice their music, study their Latin, or say their prayers.

[Note: The SPR site has a list of over a dozen articles about "The Jewish lobby", so that's not a site acceptable for posting here.--admin]

What is the SPR?? I missed it. San Pedro Airport??
[It's the site tomjaw was citing with material from a "Swiss doctor", who is a retired professor in New York. As it happens, it was appearing on a fringe web site that also appears to have a bad agenda. I assume tomjaw had no idea about that.--admin]

Two interesting videos:
MN Senator, Doctor Jensen said that he received a 7 page document from the MN Department of Health advising him to fill out death certificates with a diagnosis of COVID-19 whether the person actually died from COVID-19 or not.

What is Dr. Jensen's political agenda? Whenever a politician speaks, you have to take whatever is said with a mountain of salt. Did he allow viewing of the document in this video of sufficient clarity and with enough time for it to be read? Many politicians are more concerned about getting the donations of big corporations (many of who want to remain open, since their bottom line is all they care about) than caring for the well-being of their constituents. Is he purposely or mistakenly misrepresenting the advice in the document?

On another topic, the advice of the "Swiss doctor" is not working out well in practice so far. Sweden has followed a policy like his: to quarantine only the elderly. While Sweden's rate of infections is similar to that of neighboring countries, its reported death rate from the virus is higher. These are my calculations based on figures from the worldometers site as of 4/8:

Country : Cases per 100,000 population : Deaths per 100,000 population

Denmark : 93.3 : 3.72
Finland : 44.9 : 0.72
Norway : 111.5 : 1.56
Sweden : 83.4 : 6.80

Chris, instead of asking vague questions that seem to invite mere speculation, why not just give your own view directly?

Chonak,

I didn't think I was being vague. I'm not sure what I think,yet, which is why I asked the question.

Here are your questions, Chris:

What possible reason would the Department of Health have for issuing such instructions?

Which is more credible: Dr. Jensen or the Department of Health?

Is "advice" really a directive, or is it actually, just advice?

These questions are not about factual knowledge. This is just asking for opinions and speculations.

Chonak,

Behind a policy pronouncement there is usually a rationale. Accordingly, I asked why the DOH issued such an instruction, assuming Dr. Jensen has presented it accurately. I'm not asking for speculation.

On the question of credibility, BHCordova expressed the opinion that when politicians speak, we should take whatever they say with a mountain of salt. In the case of Dr. Jensen, has he consistently spoken accurately, or is he one of the hacks who work for the media, and thus produce soundbites? This is, again, a case of factual information, not merely speculation. Except that the DOH is an institution instead of a person, a similar inquiry is appropriate.

On the question of "advice", this, too, should be properly treated as a factual question: does the language of the decree match similar language in mandates or in suggestions?



Now, it's possible to mistake my meaning, and construe the questions other than I intend. It would be possible for me (or anyone) to ask such questions intending other than I presently intend; knowing context is valuable to assess accurately the difference.