Monthly Archives: April 2025

by Anthony Picciano

We mourn the passing of Pope Francis

Dear Commons Community,

We mourn the passing of Pope Francis who died yesterday.  He was a good pope and one Catholics could be proud of.

The Vatican today released the first images  of Pope Francis in his casket at the Casa Santa Marta, the guesthouse where the late pontiff had lived since being elected in 2013.

The Holy See said the pope’s body will be transferred via a procession on Wednesday to St. Peter’s Basilica, where he will lie in state until his funeral on Saturday morning.

Millions of mourners are expected to pass through and pay their respects.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, left, prays in front of the body of Pope Francis laid out in state inside his private chapel at the Vatican, Monday, April 21, 2025. (Vatican Media via AP, HO)

After the funeral, the pope will be entombed at the Basilica of St. Mary Major, in accordance with his wishes.

Francis died on Monday at the age of 88 after a series of health problems culminating in a stroke, coma and heart failure.

Pope Francis’s body is laid out in state inside his private chapel at the Vatican, Monday, April 21, 2025. (Vatican Media via AP, HO)

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside over the funeral Mass on Saturday.

Pope Francis’s body is laid out in state inside his private chapel at the Vatican, Monday, April 21, 2025. From left, Dean Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, unidentified bishop, Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, Master of Ceremonies Archbishop Diego Giovanni Ravelli, Cardinal Camerlengo Kevin Joseph Farrell, and Master of Ceremonies Lubomir Welnitz. (Vatican Media via AP, HO)

The Vatican also released footage of Cardinal Camerlengo Kevin Farrell presiding over the rite of the ascertainment of death on Monday evening in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta:

Earlier in the day, the door to Francis’ apartment was sealed in accordance with tradition:

After Francis’ funeral, the cardinals will meet in a conclave to choose a new pope.

No date has been set, but in accordance with custom is expected to begin between May 6 and May 12

by Anthony Picciano

Maureen Dowd: Lot About Trump Doesn’t Add Up

Courtesy of WHYY

The New York Times‘ Maureen Dowd had a scathing column on Trump on Sunday entitled,  “Lot About Trump Doesn’t Add Up.”  Here is her introduction.

“You have to give it to Donald Trump. The man is a marvel at multitasking.

In one sensational swoop, President Trump was able to set the global economy reeling, shatter our alliances, shred our standing in the world, tank consumer confidence, scupper the Kennedy Center and tart up the Oval Office, turning it into Caesars Palace on the Potomac.

And yet he still managed to find time to brag about winning his Jupiter golf club’s championship and sign an executive order relaxing restrictions on water pressure from shower heads — “I like to take a nice shower to take care of my beautiful hair,” the president cooed. He also ordered an investigation of an election security official he had fired four years ago for having the temerity to acknowledge that the 2020 election was not stolen.

“We’re living in a bizarro world where heroes are being targeted and scoundrels are in a position to target them,” David Axelrod told me.

And her conclusion: 

“The former casino owner in the White House brags that he has never gambled. But he is gambling with Americans’ lives and futures. How strange, as even the dollar loses its allure, that a man long considered a branding savant has so badly mucked up the U.S. brand.”

The entire column is below.

Tony

The New York Times

Lot About Trump Doesn’t Add Up

April 12, 2025
By Maureen Dowd

Opinion Columnist

You have to give it to Donald Trump. The man is a marvel at multitasking.

In one sensational swoop, President Trump was able to set the global economy reeling, shatter our alliances, shred our standing in the world, tank consumer confidence, scupper the Kennedy Center and tart up the Oval Office, turning it into Caesars Palace on the Potomac.

And yet he still managed to find time to brag about winning his Jupiter golf club’s championship and sign an executive order relaxing restrictions on water pressure from shower heads — “I like to take a nice shower to take care of my beautiful hair,” the president cooed. He also ordered an investigation of an election security official he had fired four years ago for having the temerity to acknowledge that the 2020 election was not stolen.

“We’re living in a bizarro world where heroes are being targeted and scoundrels are in a position to target them,” David Axelrod told me.

Trump is also consumed with terms of surrender for top law firms and Ivy League universities in his quest to get even with those he feels went after him unfairly or embraced wokeness too avidly.

My Netflix algorithm searches for “revenge,” “lives ruined” and “mayhem.” But I don’t want that in my government.

Trump is engaging the full power of the presidency to settle scores. The White House was not meant for petty tyrants on revenge tours. In the biggest job in the world, Trump seems like a very small man.

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“Revenge is the oxygen that keeps him afloat,” said Tim O’Brien, the Trump biographer.

And he has surrounded himself with small people who elaborately flatter him and puff him up in risible cabinet meetings. Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, even has a Maoist golden Trump head on his lapel.

Barack Obama’s White House portrait was nudged aside for one of Trump pumping his fist after the assassination attempt.

The Emperor of Chaos told us to “BE COOL!” as markets cratered and people got “yippy,” as Trump put it. But how is that possible when everything is so unstable?

I had to go to summer school for algebra, but I don’t want a government that’s bad at math. O’Brien wrote in Bloomberg News that Trump’s “tragicomic ‘formula’” for tariffs “somehow positioned Cambodia and Thailand at the top of the heap of countries posing major economic threats to the U.S. and also caused tariffs to be imposed on uninhabited islands near Antarctica.”

Even before Trump opened a Pandora’s box of economic woe, we knew numbers weren’t his strong suit. He had six bankruptcies, and his father had to buy $3.4 million in chips to save one of his casinos.

The most conclusive evidence of his innumeracy was his appearance in 2006 on Howard Stern’s show with Ivanka and Don Jr. The Trump siblings’ insistence that they got into Wharton on their merits inspired Stern to give them a grade school-level pop quiz.

“What’s 17 times 6?” he asked.

After some nervous laughter, Don Jr. replied “96? 94?” His father interjected, “It’s 11 12. It’s 112.”

“Wrong!” Stern said, adding, “It’s 102!”

Donald Trump repeated “112.”

Trump should be alarmed that investors are skittish about buying U.S. government bonds, usually considered safe assets.

“And guess who owns a lot of U.S. debt?” O’Brien said. “China, Japan, Europe. Are they feeling good about us right now?”

As everyone else gets yippy — JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon warned of a recession — the president seems to be enjoying center stage, toying with the strings like a cat.

“All of this unnecessary, orchestrated dissent and doubt and damage for his own amusement,” O’Brien told me. “He’s the kid in the garage with matches standing next to the gasoline tank.”

Now that Trump’s tariff scheme has gone horribly awry — and the administration’s attempt to spin it as an “Art of the Deal” victory has fallen flat — it remains to be seen if this will be a “Wizard of Oz” moment when the curtain gets pulled back on the con man.

Will the global chaos puncture the sense of mastery that Trump has projected?

“This is not a reality show,” Axelrod said. “This is reality.”

He continued: “People like the idea of cutting waste and fraud and abuse until it means that the Social Security office in your hometown or veterans’ health programs close down, or there are measles outbreaks, because they don’t know what they’re doing. Do these add up so, at some point, people say: ‘You know what? This isn’t really working for me.’”

The former casino owner in the White House brags that he has never gambled. But he is gambling with Americans’ lives and futures. How strange, as even the dollar loses its allure, that a man long considered a branding savant has so badly mucked up the U.S. brand.

by Anthony Picciano

Our Last Day in Amsterdam!

 

Dear Commons Community,

This was our last day in Amsterdam.  Tomorrow we fly home to New York.  We started the day by going to Easter Mass at the Church of Our Lady.  What was most interesting is that three languages (Dutch, English and Latin) were used interchangeably. One might think it would be a bit confusing but actually it worked well.  There are several large monitors on the sides of the church that provide language translations as needed.

After mass, we took a stroll along a canal and had brunch.

In the evening, we had a fine meal at Belhamel Restaurant followed by our last walk in Amsterdam.

Nice way to finish our trip.

Doei!

Tony

Church of Our Lady Interior

by Anthony Picciano

Our Lord in the Attic  (Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder)

Church of Our Lord in the Attic

Dear Commons Community,

Elaine and I visited Our Lord in the Attic  (Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder), a 17th-century  house church and museum in the center of Amsterdam. This Catholic Church was built on the top three floors of a canal house during the 1660s. It is an important example of a “schuilkerk”, or “clandestine church” in which Catholics and other religious dissenters (i.e., Lutherans, Jews) held services beause they were forbidden to do so publicly. The church has been open as a museum since 1888, and has 85,000 visitors annually. We were not aware that such churches existed and to see the artistry of Our Lord… was impressive.

Also, just a few yards down the street from Our Lord… is the oldest building in Amsterdam, Oude Kerk (Old Church) built originally in 1250 and took on its present form in 1570. The inside of Oude Kerk is bare with the exception of its magnificent organ.

Tony

The Altar in Our Lord in the Attic

Sculpture of God the Father in Our Lord in the Attic

Painting of the Assumption and Ascension in Our Lord in the Attic

Alabaster Cameo of Eve in Our Lord in the Attic (Artist Unkown)

 

The Organ in  Our Lord in the Attic

Oude Kerk – Oldest Building in Amsterdam

The Organ in the Oude Kerk

by Anthony Picciano

Spent the day in Utrecht

 

Dear Commons Community,

Elaine and I spent the day in Utrecht which is an historic, cultural, religious and education hub of the Netherlands. Although there is some evidence of even earlier inhabitation in the region, Utrecht dates back to the Stone Age (app. 2200 BCE).  The  founding date of the city is usually related to the construction of a Roman fortification built around 50 CE. In 723, the Frankish leader Charles Martel established Utrecht as a religious base for bishops  and from then on Utrecht became the most influential seat of power for the Catholic Church in the Netherlands.  Its location on the banks of the river Rhine also allowed Utrecht to become an important trading center.  In 1636, Utrecht University was founded and today enrolls almost 40,000 students and is the largest university in the Netherlands.  It also enjoys an international reputation as one of the leading research universities in Europe.

The old part of Utrecht is incredibly charming with lots of small streets, alleys, and shops.  Restaurants dot along the canals.  It is an easy place to walk and Elaine and I logged six miles in one day.

Exhausting but fun!

Tony

 

 

Tower of Domtoren which was part of the Cathedral of St. Martin

Statue of Liberty in Front of the Cathedral

Gardens outside of the Cathedral

Main altar of the Cathedral

Academic Center of Utrecht University

Protest signs were posted on a number of windows of the Utrecht University Academic Center

 

by Anthony Picciano

Zaanse Schans – Preserved Dutch Village and Windmills

Dear Commons Community,

Yesterday Elaine and I visited the scenic Dutch village of Zaanse Schans near Zaandik, Netherlands, best known for its collection of historic windmills and wooden houses, several of which were relocated there from the wider region north of Amsterdam. The windmills and wooden houses were built in  the 16th through the 18th centuries. From 1961 to 1974, old buildings from all over the region were relocated using lowboy trailers.

Zaanse Schans derived its name from the river Zaan and its original function as a sconce (schans in Dutch) or fortification against the Spanish troops during the Eighty Years’ War of Dutch independence.  In addition to the windmills and houses, Zaanse Schans also is home to seven small museums. 

In sum, Zaanse Schans is a must see for any visit to the Netherlands.

Tony

Inside of a Windmill

by Anthony Picciano

Amsterdam Canal Cruise

Dear Commons Community,

Elaine and I took a canal cruise in Amsterdam today.  It was a good way to get more of a feel for the city with its 165 canals and 1700 bridges.  The cruise passed several interesting sights but what was most impressive was the guide describing Amsterdam’s history and development as one of the major commercial centers of Europe. Originally a small fishing village in the 12th century, Amsterdam became a major world port during the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century, when the Netherlands was an economic powerhouse. Amsterdam was the leading center for finance and trade, as well as a hub of secular art production. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the city expanded and new neighborhoods were built.  Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands on May 10th, 1940 and took control of the country. Some Amsterdam citizens sheltered Jews, thereby exposing themselves and their families to a high risk of being imprisoned or sent to concentration camps.   Anne Frank was sheltered in an attic in a house that was no more than 100 yards from where our cruise boat disembarked.

Enjoyable afternoon.

Tony

by Anthony Picciano

Trip to Bruges Cancelled Due to Belgian Railway Strike!

Another railway strike on Tuesday: Train traffic in Belgium disrupted

Dear Commons Community,

Elaine and I cancelled our trip to Bruges due to a railway strike in Belgium.  We actually were about a third of the way there but could not get a train across the border.  Below are details about the strike.

We returned to Amsterdam and had a wonderful dinner at an Italian restaurant (Lucca).

The best laid plans…..

Tony

_________________

Another railway strike on Tuesday: Train traffic in Belgium disrupted

Monday, 14 April 2025
By  Maïthé Chini

Train traffic in Belgium will again be disrupted on Tuesday 15 April due to another railway strike. The strike is organised by the five trade union organisations against certain measures in the Federal Government coalition agreement.

Despite several reconciliation meetings, the five union organisations (ACOD Spoor/CGSP Cheminots, ACV/CSC-Transcom, VSOA-Spoor/SLFP-Cheminots, OVS/SIC and ASTB/SACT) have decided to maintain the strike on Tuesday 15 April.

With the actions, railway staff are protesting against a series of reforms the Federal Government wants to implement. These include an increase in the retirement age and savings in the entire sector.

As a result, fewer trains will run from 22:00 on Monday until 22:00 on Tuesday.

Specifically, three in ten IC trains (between major cities) will not be running on Tuesday, and neither will four in ten local L and suburban S trains. Almost no peak-hour P trains will be operating during the morning and evening rush hours.

International trains

International railway traffic will be disrupted as well. …