Last week, San Francisco became the first major city to make Happy Meals illegal.

The city passed an ordinance forbidding the inclusion of a free toy in any children’s meal that contains more than set levels of calories, fat, and sugar. The standards ban most McDonald’s Happy Meals as they are now served in restaurants.

Under the new law, fast-food kids meals also must contain fruits, vegetables and beverages without excessive fat or sugar to qualify for toy inclusion.

A McDonald’s spokesperson, however, says the law will take the joy out of the Happy Meal.

The measure starts next December. So, as of Dec. 20, 2011, San Francisco restaurants will no longer be able to offer free toys...READ MORE

At the end of last week, when the Washington Post published an article I wrote about the Twitter trend of tweeting “I had an abortion,” I prepared myself for a bit of backlash, especially on Twitter, where the pro-abortion trend started.

I was not disappointed.

I’d like to say that I had positive, thoughtful interactions with people who disagree that all human life deserves protection. But that would be a lie. I had a couple of those. But I had other interactions that included name-calling, vulgarity, and ugly lies.

It was one of the latter interactions that sent me a link and opened my eyes to a disturbing “ministry” I previously did not know existed—one where people who dare to call...READ MORE

1. Make time for each other. Busy family life and work schedules will never leave wide open spaces in which to connect with your husband or wife. You need to make spending time together a priority and then MAKE the time for it. Your married “dates” don’t all have to be fancy dinners out with paid babysitters, though. You can schedule time for coffee together in the morning, open a bottle of wine after the kids have gone to bed, or watch a movie on a lazy weekend afternoon. Just spend that time together.

2. Say “I love you.” I’ve heard some wives complain that saying “I love you” all the time when leaving each other or ending a phone call can become routine and therefore (they think)...READ MORE

I usually prepare myself to be disappointed when celebrities begin to share their religious beliefs and opinions. As a fan of Elvis Costello’s music, however, I was happy see to him speaking respectfully about his Catholic upbringing in a recent interview:

You were brought up Catholic?

Yes, I was. I don’t go to church, or have the beliefs I was brought up in. But I grew up just after the scare-you-out-of-your-wits era, and didn’t encounter any of the unfortunate people for whom, perhaps, the demands of the prohibitions were too great for their nature, and hence these horrendous abuses of the power that they had over children. I had friends who did experience it. But I won’t just fall in...READ MORE

Today is the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls Day). And it is also the beginning of a particularly fruitful time of year to gain a plenary indulgence for souls in purgatory.

“An indulgence, applicable only to the Souls in Purgatory, is granted to the faithful, who devoutly visit a cemetery and pray, even if only mentally, for the departed. The indulgence is plenary each day from the first to the eighth of November; on other days of the year it is partial.

An indulgence, applicable only to the souls in purgatory, is granted to the faithful, who devoutly visit a cemetery and pray, even if only mentally, for the departed. The indulgence is plenary each day from the first...READ MORE

I have been following the discussion on Mark Shea’s recent post about homeschooling with great interest.

When it comes to schooling choices, I definitely defend every family’s right to do what works best for them. I have seen enough successful combinations of homeschool, public school, and private school over the years to know that there is no one right way to educate Catholic children. But some of the participants in Shea’s combox disagree.

Says one: “Fact: Home schooled kids are socially awkward. Fact: 99% of home schooled kids I have ever met were naive, arrogant, and ignorant. Fact: You should not home school your children unless the Catholic school in your area is teaching heresy or...READ MORE

November 2 is almost here ... are you ready to rock the Catholic vote?

Just in time for this year’s elections, CatholicVote.org has released a cool new video that shows some of the faces and reasons behind the Catholic vote.

I love how they incorporated everyday Catholics and their personal reasons for voting Catholic in this year’s elections. But what does “voting Catholic” mean?

EWTN’s Voter Guide is a good place to start researching your options and responsibilities as a Catholic voter.

Priests for Life offers a voter’s guide as well, one that elucidates the five non-negotiables: Abortion, Euthanasia, Embryonic Stem Cell Research, Human Cloning, and Homosexual “Marriage.” If you are...READ MORE

The Verve Pipe? I’m a little bit of a fan.

Did you happen to know, though, that their popular 1997 song “The Freshman” (featured in the video above) is about the songwriter’s regrets surrounding his ex-girlfriend’s abortion?

This song is on my iPod, and I had no idea. But it does appear to be true. You can read a line-by-line explanation of the song by band member Brian Vander Ark at Song Facts.

When I was young I knew everything

She a punk who rarely ever took advice

Now I’m guilt stricken, sobbing with my head on the floor

Stop a baby’s breath and a shoe full of rice

I found out the pro-life meaning behind this popular song’s lyrics and many others in a blog post at Live Action.