“Parrot Talk”

A term that has lately been making the rounds is “parrot talk.”   Parrot talk is today’s label for the standardized speech that has replaced spontaneous conversation – phrases such as “Have a nice day,” “How may I help you,” “Welcome to WalMart” [or wherever], and all the other choreographed newspeak that people now automatically utter nowadays.  This is especially true in places like restaurants, where the words are pre-picked for employees to say:  “Hi, ‘you guys’ [to men and women alike], my name’s ‘So-and-so’; I’m your server.’’ [“waiter” and “waitress,” and “ladies” and “gentlemen,” you know, are now verboten, because they’re too “gender-specific”].  And the words are pre-picked for them because they are, in fact, required to say them.  In fact, it’s actually part of their “job description.”

The term “parrot talk” is an apt one, because it suggests mindless talk, i.e., talk that requires no rational thinking – like that of a parrot, which talks purely by mimicry -- not because it understands what it’s saying.  And the reason that many people now speak this “mindless talk” is that they have become “parrots” of sorts -- “dumbed down” to the point where they cannot speak in anything other than pre-rehearsed, choreographed lingo.  This, of course, is due in large part to the “boob tube” (TV) and the other mass media, which do peoples’ thinking for them.  “Experts” like “Dr. Phil,” “Dr. Oz.” and a whole host of other talk-show jockeys and “expert commentators” have sprung up to tell all of us what to think and say.  It has, in fact, spread to all facets of our society, with just about everybody “getting in on the act.”  And, of course, nowhere is this more apparent than at the cult centers, with their self-appointed “experts on everything.”  At SGG, they are “theologians,” “liturgists,” “Latinists” – you name it – except that they’re bogus.  In reality, they’re experts on NOTHING.

One really excellent point made recently by Pistrina Liturgica (click here for article) was about the SGG cult-masters’ “mawkish characterization of the Mother of God: it sounds as though the cult masters learned their Mariology from a backward maiden-aunt who never reached the fourth grade.”  Indeed, at Dannie and Tony’s SGG, Mariology – real Mariology – is non-existent.  But it doesn’t stop there: they are, in fact, deficient in knowledge of ALL of the other “-ologies” that real priests are supposed to learn.  (The same deficiency applies at the MHT and CMRI “seminaries”).  Not only that, but they are woefully deficient in just about every category of real Catholicism – especially Catholic morality.  They are, again, experts on NOTHING.

Dannie and Tony are – as they’ve demonstrated so many times -- nothing more than pompous, empty-headed blowhards who instead offer copious quantities of “ecclesiastical buzzwords” and syrupy sentimentality that they try to pass off as “Catholicism,” but which are totally devoid of substance.  Phrases such as “Immaculate heart of Mary,” “Holy Sacrifice of the Mass,” “Sacred Heart of Jesus,” “”Our Lady of (pick a place)” are sprinkled liberally throughout Dannie’s sermons (and his Bishop’s(?) Corner) with reckless abandon.  But as for real morality and real Catholic thinking, there isn’t any. What the cult-masters are giving their flocks is nothing more than ecclesiastical parrot talk.

And their culties, in turn, could be termed parrot listeners, because they mindlessly accept (and repeat) everything that Dannie and Tony say -- and accept it all at face value, “no questions asked.”  For them, Dannie’s sanctimonious pap passes for “holiness.”  And his unwarranted (and unnecessary) over-use of words like triduum and “men’s schola” passes for “Latin proficiency.”  At SGG, syrupy phrases like “immaculate heart of Mary” pass for “Mariology,” and the use of archaic rubrics¹ (that no longer have any relevancy) passes for “Liturgical expertise.”  And, as always, Dannie’s “dolly dress-up” processions and extravaganzas pass for “real Catholicism.” 

But none of this IS Catholicism.  It is, instead, a cruel caricature of it.  As we’ve pointed out so many times, it’s all cosmetics.  If Dannie were really serious about real Catholicism and real Catholic morality, he would never have countenanced the blatant immorality² of the 2009 SGG school scandals, nor would he have tried to cover it all up -- nor would he have “parroted” phony Tony’s depraved position on Schiavo.  And if he and Tony are such great “Latinists” and “liturgists,” why did they botch so miserably every attempt they made in those areas: “Ordo 2016,” SGG’s “calendar,” Tony’s hapless attempts at “scholarship”  (such as WHH), etc., etc., etc.    The fact is, these two boobs have failed miserably in everything Catholic – because they are NOT Catholic.

They are simply parasitic charlatans, preying on the gullible – and all for the purpose of material gain.  And, with classic cult tactics, they have done it: manipulating their followers -- plying them with pious parrot talk (mixed with fear tactics) to scare them into thinking that SGG is their “only hope for salvation” – and then cajoling them into submission.  Perhaps one day their “parrots” – er, parishioners – will wake up, and stop parroting what their cult-masters say.  Perhaps one day they will stop “towing the ‘parrot’ party line” (and letting the cult-masters do their thinking for them), and start thinking for themselves.  Perhaps one day they will wake up and see Dannie and Tony for what they are: a couple of imposters, draining them of their cash while simultaneously endangering their souls, and then reject these frauds – and LEAVE.  But meanwhile, until they get up the courage to do that, they can at least “jump-start” the process by tightening their purse-strings – that is, by STARVING THE BEAST.

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¹ Dannie once “waxed poetic” in one of his Bishop’s Corners (mentioned in its footnote) about a “Praegustatio” rubric.  It’s an archaic rubric that the Church (wisely) discontinued, for it consists of one of the Mass’s MC’s tasting the altar wine (before it is consecrated) to make sure that it’s not poison.  (Well, perhaps Dannie had good reason for resurrecting that rubric!  And we also wonder if he uses one of his lackeys for his “food taster” as well – for similar reasons!)

² Dannie and Tony were warned almost a year in advance about the scandalous goings-on at SGG by one of their parishioners (who was also a teacher there at the time).  The teacher told them about the immoral behavior going on between one of the SGG principal’s son’s and one of the school’s female students (the girl got pregnant by him).  He also warned them about the principal’s sons watching porn and animal torture videos on the school computer.  Dannie and Tony ignored his warnings.  Then, on Christmas Eve 2008, said parishioner, frustrated by his futile attempts to get Dannie to acknowledge what was going on, e-mailed him about it.

Dannie replied by banning the man from the property, and then proceeded to conduct a thorough character assassination of the man.  He was characterized as being “unstable” and being a “failure.”  (See “School Dazed Revisited 2” article for more detail.)  A few years later, there was even a rumor started that he was toting an AK-47 rifle (see article) and was going to terrorize that year’s SGG parish picnic!  Of course, this was pure fabrication.  And, eventually, the man’s accusations (about the SGG scandals) were borne out in fact; and Dannie and Tony’s efforts to vilify him all came to naught.  

Yes, the “Gift” DOES Keep on Giving!

Many people wonder how we at Lay Pulpit (and Pistrina Liturgica) can find so much to write about regarding Dannie (Dolan) and Tony (Cekada), week after week.  It’s simple: Dannie and Tony “hand it to us on a silver platter,” so to speak.  They are, as we often like to say, “the gift¹ that keeps on giving.”  By that, we mean that they, by their own words, incriminate themselves, thereby giving us plenty of “ammunition” to use against them.  (And for that, we thank them profusely!)  Case in point: the August 14, 2016 (Pentecost XIII) SGG Bulletin, there was a piece about SGG’s “school.”  (Click here, then go to “Back to School?” to see it.)

It went as follows: “Are your children attending the sub-pagan schools? Get them...out of there. What are you waiting for? It’s not as if sub-pagan schools actually teach children English grammar and give them facility with numbers and make them familiar with the lands and rivers and seas of our world, let alone introduce them to the great works of western civilization. If your children are in the sub-pagan schools, it will require almost a miracle of God to keep them from becoming sub-pagan themselves. They too will learn to worship the three-poisoned god of our times, self, sex, State. Take for granted that everything in their classes will be sexuality and politics; even in science classes.  Shakespeare?  Sexuality and politics and nothing else.  Get them out.  Begin, if necessary, with one room and one teacher and ten children.  Begin.”

That segment was then followed by this (parenthetic) addendum: “(The above was written by Anthony Esolen in Crisis Magazine, but deserved again a place in our bulletin, as your children do at our school. And God bless our persevering home-schoolers!)”

The first paragraph (written by Anthony Esolen) was legitimate, Esolen being a still-living professor at Providence College in Rhode Island.  But the “parenthetic” reference to his quote (written by Dannie, Tony, or one of their lackeys) IS NOT.  It was just another cheap attempt by the SGG mountebanks to link themselves to a legitimate personage – and, more importantly, to give everyone (reading their trash) the impression that SGG’s “school” embodies all those qualities outlined in Esolen’s quoted passage.²   Nothing could be farther from the truth.

SGG’s “school,” – scholastically speaking – is (as the evidence has shown so many times) a DUNG HEAP.  To begin with, it is NOT accredited.  And, as for “the three R’s” (reading, writing, and [a]rithmetic), SGG fares no better than the average “lowest-common-denominator” public school (actually, not even as well).  None of SGG’s (or MHT’s) kids has ever reached any level of educational distinction (such as national merit scholar), nor do they take any of the standardized tests that are required of accredited institutions.  (For more “stats” on the school, see SGG’s School: A Bad Bargain.)

By the way, that quoted passage (from Esolen) seemed to insinuate that grammar was not taught in “sub-pagan schools.” However, we beg to differ with Prof. Esolen’s “insinuation,” if that’s what it was.  As it turns out, virtually ALL public schools (if that’s what he’s calling “sub-pagan” schools) teach grammar (and “the other two R’s”) as a matter of course.  They MUST, because government standards mandate it. ³  If children in the public schools don’t learn their grammar, etc., it’s not because the schools don’t teach it, but because the students don’t “absorb” it.  (This is especially true in inner-city schools, whose students are from families “at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder.”  Such people, as a rule, place little value on education.)

At one time, perhaps, the quality of the teachers (or the curriculum) might have been a legitimate reason for students not getting “the three R’s”; but that is no longer the case – especially in most “higher end” public schools, such as those in “good school districts.”  However, there are schools where the teaching staff (and the curriculum) are sub-standard: the cult-center schools.  Not only (as pointed out earlier) are SGG’s, MHT’s, and the CMRI’s schools not accredited, but their teachers in most cases have no credentials either.  (One of SGG’s “teachers” was the “principal’s” daughter, who was only a high-school graduate – and from SGG’s cesspool school at that.  And as for the “principal” himself – the man who heads SGG’s “school,” his “educational expertise” leaves something to be desired.⁴  (The same can be said for MHT’s school, most of whose “nuns” are high-school grads at best, and who have no teaching expertise whatsoever.)

“But,” one of Dannie’s bootlickers, in self-righteous indignation, might remonstrate, “Well, even though SGG might not measure up academically, the kids there are still getting a Catholic education!”  Well, the answer to that is:  NO, THEY ARE NOT.  SGG is, if you will recall, the institution whose resident “theologian” (and erstwhile “expert on everything”) – Tony Baloney (aka Erroneous Antonius) -- postulated most emphatically on the “right” of Michael Schiavo to have his wife, Terri, starved and dehydrated to death.  It is also the place where the children were taught that riding roller-coasters and wearing sport-logo headbands were mortal sins – but that watching porn, watching animal-torture videos, and impregnating a fellow student are (apparently) NOT -- as long they’re done by the principal’s sons.

SGG is, by anyone’s yardstick, a moral leper colony.  Its only “Catholicism” – as Dannie and Tony have proved so many times – is purely COSMETIC.  It is nothing more (as is MHT) than a CULT, where fear reigns, and where ignorance and intimidation are the order of the day.  And the really sad part about SGG’s “school” is that the Gerties are paying a PREMIUM for it.  If they really knew what the “principal” and his family were being paid for providing this academic train wreck, they’d be in a pretty foul mood indeed!

Another “sad” (but true) thing is the sanctimonious pap Dannie added at the end of the other remarks (in the aforementioned Bulletin) about SGG’s school: “And God bless our persevering home-schoolers.”  It’s “sad but true” because there is (for once) “more truth than poetry” in that remark -- because those home-schoolers are at least getting a better education than those poor suckers at SGG’s “school.”  Another point to ponder -- and this is a really scary thought -- is that, as bad as SGG’s school is, it’s probably better than what those poor schmucks are getting at MHT’s sewer.  At least at SGG, students are not used (at least regularly) as “janitors.”  But in either case, though (SGG or MHT), the parents are “paying through the nose” for an absolutely WORTHLESS “education.”  (Now that IS a scary thought!!)

What we suggest to Dannie is that he and Tony dissolve the school, before SGG’s parishioners “dissolve” him, Tony, and the “principal.”  And we also suggest that, in future, Dannie and Tony both refrain from opening their mouths about “how good” their school is (or from promoting any of their other “ventures”).  Their “success rate” for doing such has been nothing short of catastrophic (their “Ordo 2016,” their “calendar,” Tony’s excremental “videos,” etc., etc., etc.).  But we know that they won’t refrain.  They can’t help themselves: they’ll keep making the same mistakes over and over again – “the gift that keeps on giving.”  And for that, as we’ve often said before, “we are eternally grateful.”

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¹ The word “gift” is very apropos -- in both English and German.  As an English word, it is appropriate, because it certainly IS a gift for us at Lay Pulpit (and Pistrina) to have Dannie provide us with so much “ammo” to use against him.  And, auf Deutsch, it’s also appropriate, because “das Gift” (in German) means poison – and Dannie’s verbal screw-ups certainly ARE “poison” -- for him and Tony, that is!

² It was probably Checkie’s idea (to link themselves to Esolen).  He did a similar bit of misrepresentation some years back (just as Dannie is doing now with his plagiarized “Latin for You”), when he wrote the article School Dazed -- his (futile) attempt to “defuse and deflect” the hard evidence of the scandalous events that occurred at SGG’s school back in 2009.  A refuting article, School Dazed Revisited (click here for it), shows how, in the very beginning of his School Dazed, Tony tried to mislead the reader, just as he and Dannie are doing now in the Bulletin piece.  (We recommend, by the way, reading the entire School Dazed Revisited article, as well as all of its sequels, here, here, here, here, and here.  They absolutely DESTROY every one of the arguments in Tony’s original School Dazed article.)

³ Prof. Esolen knows this: he knows that public schools (as well as Novus Ordo schools) have high academic standards.  Therefore, his insinuation is both naïve and irresponsible.  True, public schools have no “religious standards,” but neither do many traddie schools – at least those at the cult centers.  The public schools might teach no morality – but the cult centers preach wrong morality.  As they’ve proved so many times, they’re good at marketing the cosmetics of Catholicism, but not its substance.

By the way, it is, shall we say, “curious” that Dannie and Tony picked Prof. Esolen to quote, because he is a professor at Providence College, a Dominican institution (and, hence, a Novus Ordo one).  So, why would Dannie and Tony choose to quote from a “Novus Ordo Catholic” (whom they claim to be not Catholic)?  Why would they “consort with the enemy,” so to speak?  Why?  Because Dannie is not above using anyone, “friend” OR “foe,” to suit his purpose -- that’s why.  (Dannie did the same thing with the late Bernie Brueggemann  -- using his name several times for its “propaganda value” with the Gerties, who still revere Bernie’s memory.  And, as we mentioned before, he’s been doing it a lot lately with his plagiarized “Latin for You,” using someone else’s material, and passing it off as if it were his own.)

Bottom line: as to whether Esolen’s claims are true or not, is totally immaterial; he is not talking about the cult centers’ schools, but something else.  And besides, the cult centers cannot “ride in on the coattails” of what he said, because their schools, by and large, are the absolute worst.  It is they, not the “sub-pagan schools,” that are woefully deficient in everything -- academics AND “religion.”  And the worst part of it is, the Gerties are paying a premium for this garbage that SGG’s “school” puts out.

⁴ The following anecdote should give one some idea of the level of “erudition” of the principal himself: Once, after uttering the oft-repeated (but erroneous) phrase, “between you and I,” he (the principal) was accosted by a parishioner, who corrected him, saying, “No, Mark, it’s ‘between you and me.’”  Whereupon, the “principal” – miffed that anyone would dare “challenge” him -- condescendingly retorted, “No, ‘between you and I’ is correct.”  The parishioner, undaunted (and not backing down), countered, “No, ‘between you and me’ is correct – and I’m sure that your grammar book says so.”  Whereupon, the “principal” – visibly irked by such “impertinence” -- fired back (in an even more irritated and authoritarian tone), “No, it [the book] says that ‘between you and I’ is correct.”  At this point, the parishioner, realizing that he was dealing with an intransigent ass, walked away.  So, with a “headmaster” like that, one ought to have a fair idea of what to expect from this “school,” and what passes for “erudition” there at Dannie’s Dunce Factory.