Self-profiling

I think we are going to see some hard times.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see undesirable groups of people being isolated by "authorities".

There is an interesting piece in Free Republic about how this might be initiated.

It’s called "self-profiling".

Heck… I would be happy if a few people who post here would do some "self-editing"… but I digress.

You will need your Catholic faith in the time to come. 

Real Catholic Faith, not the squishy goop you get in some places.

Doctrine.  Worship. 

In the meantime, here is a really great bird photo. 

Happy thoughts!

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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28 Comments

  1. JoyfulMom7 says:

    Yea though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me

  2. jmm says:

    There is a need for “self cleaning” of the church.
    A loving, “thank you very much for your support now here is the door” kind of
    cleaning.
    We will need all the faith we have in the coming years.

    Nice pic of the Purple Finch! They have invaded my bird feeder in Ohio
    and are most welcome.

  3. John Polhamus says:

    All the more reason I think to be bold right now. Speak up while you have the chance. Make your resistance to persecution known in advance. Use the right to speak, or lose it. Personally I would rather that persecution come as a tidal wave, not as a thief in the night. That’s how Satlinism settled in. WE MUST BE HEARD NOW, for the sake of others, if not (or if even) for ourselves. Hence my somewhat belligerant response to someone’s joke last night. But it’s getting difficult to tell the jokes from the threats.

    Pretty birdie. Pretty birdie. Nice thought. Happy thought.

  4. Cel says:

    Seems like that diagram might also work for the categories of “Pro-lifer”, “Papist”, “Traditionalist”

    At least certain progressives might think so.

  5. Terri says:

    Sigh, harder and harder to hold on to hope. What is a busy mom supposed to do but pray? Thoughts like this are distressing and while they shouldn’t be ignored, my day to day must continue. What to do What to do…off the grid is not possible for everyone…Thanks for the bird, I think I will go pick some flowers…

  6. Peggy says:

    I’ve found myself as much if not more concerned about our fastly evaporating freedoms–religious, economic, social and political–than anything else. I have almost daily freak-outs over what President Death is doing to our nation. Everything horrible is really happening–take over of private businesses, mandatory civil service, no-bounds ESCR, idiotic foreign policy, wiping out the middle class and discouraging contributions by the wealthy so middle class and charities have nowhere else to go but govt…which will choose the worthy.

    Mary, Empress of the Americas, pray for us.

  7. Magdalene says:

    Don’t laugh too soon…

    We may indeed have the opportunity to suffer for Christ in an extraordinary way. Fr. John Hardon was predicting years ago that only the very strongest in faith will be able to hold on to it in these coming times. Those who compromise with the world and give scandal (notre dame, pro-abortion catholics) and take many other worldlings or confused ones with them will not be able to take the necessary stand in faith,

  8. John Polhamus says:

    Peggy, et al, go with me here, for a minute. Watch the signs: this seems to be the day as well, when global currency comes out of the closet. I see it being talked about, I see Geithner…or was it Goebles…grasping at absolute economic power; we hear that no other than ACORN rented the intimidation bus that visited the homes of AIG executives, in the style of the Youth Cadres of the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Intimidation, badgering…how long till Acorn starts lynching? That’s no idle hypothesis, the pattern already exists.

    Now at the same time, we have the Holy Father and officials like Archbishop Burke clearly demonstrating the limits of aggornimental accomodation with the world, and on the other hand, half of the Episcopate chomping at the bit to comply with the world on its own terms whatever the Holy Father says.

    So the question must be asked…

    Actually, I think I’ll let one of you out there ask it, I don’t want to be accused of stirring. While we must of course and above all have faith, still we MUST think ahead, we must strategize, and we must be prepared. So follow the signs and pose the question if you want to continue the conversation. I see it as double-barrelled. How do you see it?

  9. Wouldn’t it be funny if clicking on that “Free Republic” link was one of the government links and now they know I know? Where will that put me I wonder?

  10. shadow-y govt dude says:

    Wouldn’t it be funny if clicking on that “Free Republic” link was one of the government links and now they know I know? Where will that put me I wonder?

    That was my first thought. “Congratulations, you’ve been profiled through FreeRepublic!” Though as a pseudo-govie myself I’m 99% sure that such a mass “rounding up” of the populace would not come from any currently existing Gov’t agency, within the Intelligence Community or otherwise. What I’d be more worried about is the free-lance political activist groups building their own private databases for targeted psychological and physical harassment. Heck, how fast did Joe the Plumber get ferreted out once he became a political target, or that Mormon restaurant owner who supported Prop 8 in CA? Perhaps I’m just naive, but I don’t see the IC ever turning its guns and resources against the civilians for a temporary political regime. If we face persecution for our beliefs in the days to come, it’s likely to come from legislators, PACs and the other usual suspects.

    Just sayin…

  11. MenTaLguY says:

    The usual pattern is for “freelance” activist groups to eventually be given quasi-official roles in government after one of their own comes to power. I probably don’t need to make the obvious comparisons.

  12. Mark says:

    It will take an incredible amount of fortitude in the months and years to come. But we should take comfort in the words of Tertullian:

    But go zealously on, good presidents, you will stand higher with the people if you sacrifice the Christians at their wish, kill us, torture us, condemn us, grind us to dust; your injustice is the proof that we are innocent. Therefore God suffers that we thus suffer; for but very lately, in condemning a Christian woman to the leno rather than to the leo you made confession that a taint on our purity is considered among us something more terrible than any punishment and any death. Nor does your cruelty, however exquisite, avail you; it is rather a temptation to us. The oftener we are mown down by you, the more in number we grow; the blood of Christians is seed.

    Seems somehow pertinent in these days…

  13. S in Severn says:

    They came for the corporate upper management executives,
    and I did nothing, I was not an executive…

    Change the groups, the meaning is the same. I am not the only one that is both prayerful and fearful.

    Some nights the helicopters circling over head are a sinister sound.

    I only pray that I live a life where there is no doubt about my beliefs, that I can be “guilty” of being a Catholic, a Christian, a Believer in Christ.

  14. Patrick says:

    It may be that we might face some hard times, but I remain optimistic about the character of the American people. Let’s not get paranoid, remember, truth will out, and God will Reign Supreme, no matter what the prince of lies and his dupes try.

    Tomorrow is the Feast of the Annunciation, let us pray to God and thank Him for the Saviour and our Blessed Mother.

  15. supertradmom says:

    Love the bird picture. Isn’t there an important message from Christ connected with the birds of the field, which seems appropriate to this discussion? Father Z, did you juxtapose the diagram and the bird photo for such a purpose?

  16. shadowy govt dude says:

    “The usual pattern is for “freelance” activist groups to eventually be given quasi-official roles in government after one of their own comes to power.”

    Sigh. No examples necessary. All I’ll say is there’s only a certain extent to which those appointed folks can fool with the mission of the agency to which they’re assigned … to say nothing of the internal safeguards which keep each agency tethered to its particular mission… What’s more, in the agencies that have an active interest in monitoring potential domestic threats, it generally takes more than just a working hit list and friends in high places to get appointed.

  17. MenTaLguY says:

    I wasn’t thinking of individual appointments so much as particular groups being given government sanction.

  18. Jerry says:

    I suspect we are at a historical juncture and the times are about to get very serious. It may be about to get very ugly here and elsewhere. The most perfect union created by the founding fathers is going to receive its greatest challenge yet, I fear. The forces of Evil are at hand. We must hold strong to our faith and we will triumph.

  19. Stmichael says:

    Father,
    I don’t want to offend, but that piece and the Free Republic in general sounds rather conspiratorial. I tend to shy away from conspiracy theories and I don’t see any point in indulging in them. Yes, there are more ways to watch the Web than before and chart our moves, but I really doubt that gov’t bureaucracy can be THAT efficient at keeping tabs on little ol’ me (it is the gov’t after all). Even if they do, I’m not sure I have anything worth hiding :) Maybe if they outlaw the Mass, as in Elizabethan times, we’ll have something to worry about – and they’ll come knocking on your door first, no doubt, Father.

  20. Mark says:

    I have no idea why all of the backslashes were inserted in the above post. Apologies. Here is the post without the extraneous backslashes (I hope).

    By the way. Father, you can read some of the data that led to that Free Republic piece in this Fox News piece or this piece from the American Thinker.

    From the Fox News article:

    If you’re an anti-abortion activist, or if you display political paraphernalia supporting a third-party candidate or a certain Republican member of Congress, if you possess subversive literature, you very well might be a member of a domestic paramilitary group.

    That’s according to “The Modern Militia Movement,” a report by the Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC), a government collective that identifies the warning signs of potential domestic terrorists for law enforcement communities.

    The principal thing that most of these analyses in the blogosphere get factually wrong when looking at the original Missouri Information Analysis Center report is a lack of understanding about what exactly the “Christian Identity” movement is. It is not simply a collection of those individuals who identify themselves as Christians, but is a specific “ecclesial group” that makes an attempt to merge the theory behind White Supremicists and Biblical Christianity. (With a result that is really bizarre) — I’ll leave the Googling of that to anybody who is interested.

    The report itself does not read as that conspiratorial or chilling. But it could be used in that fashion: after all, how many pro-aborts attempt to link the entire pro-life movement with the one or two extremist abortion clinic bombers were out there? How many left wingers attempt to identify all those who are anti-illegal immigration with anti-hispanic racism? Don’t forget about the “Obama Truth Squad” (St. Louis City, County attorneys, along with police officials, who were making an effort to “correct” “misleading” statements by groups opposing Obama during the campaign (see this KMOV video piece about it)

  21. plisto says:

    What an extremely good photo! Wau! You got the tongue of the bird in the picture, that’s fabulous.
    Our good God has created all this beautiful stuff. in the midst of all confusion, let us be thankful for the small things!

  22. jarhead462 says:

    I don’t worry too much about the government monitoring my web access, like a poster said above, It is the U.S. Government, after all, and they are usually far behind the “geeks” when it comes to computers……But I also keep in mind (as a proud member of the NRA) that one of the first things Hitler did when he came to power, was make everybody register their weapons, so he could watch them….and “remove” them……yikes!

    Semper Fi!

  23. RBrown says:

    John Polhamus,

    There is already a global currency. It’s called the US Dollar.

  24. Steve K. says:

    RBrown – quite possibly not for long.

  25. Scott W. says:

    I’m trying to aspire to the idea: If you were accused of being a Catholic, would there be enough evidence to convict you?

  26. Scott W. says:

    Oh yeah, on the politcal front, let me suggest forgeting the tea parties and being just to the right of the leftists as they mambo leftward into the abyss with you following. Instead, jump out of the dance completely and take the red pill: http://unqualified-reservations.blogspot.com/2009/01/gentle-introduction-to-unqualified.html heh heh heh.

  27. RBrown says:

    RBrown – quite possibly not for long.
    Comment by Steve K.

    Possibly, but not quite possibly.

  28. Suzi says:

    I love (I’m being sarcastic) statements like this: “There
    are something like 27 levels of security classifications above even the
    President of these United States.” I’m amazed how stupidly gullible
    people are to believe stuff like that — if even the President is in the
    dark, how would this guy find out about it? He believed what somebody
    else told him, of course, and without question. The way these
    conspiracy theorists seem to think is amazing — in the process of
    doubting everything they’ll believe anything.

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