We celebrate July 16th, the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The Blessed Virgin Mary presented St. Simon Stock with the Brown Scapular, which is worn over the shoulder and associates us with the spiritual family of the Carmelite Order. It is a sacramental devotion that fosters a fraternity among the brothers and sisters who wear it. We rarely see people wearing it these days.

I love The Parallel Lives by Plutarch. I first read it when I was in junior high school. 

Among those lives, I'm particularly interested in Lucius Cornelius Sulla. His life and the history following his death provide lessons for the White House. Furthermore, they offer serious implications for Japan, an allied nation,  in the post-Abe era. 

Both countries share a similar situation regarding constitutional crises and the continuity of their state systems. We are often too absorbed in chasing tech trends to notice that we are forgetting the very societal foundations upon which that technology relies.

I definitely respect Constitutional Originalism, yet I appreciate the concept of the Living Constitution, insofar as original principles are applied to modern contexts.

The Apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 11:30–33, "If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. ... In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas set a guard on the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and escaped from his hands."

Standing beside the city wall of Damascus 34 years ago, I didn't understand why he boasted of his weakness. However, at this stage in my life, I fully understand what he means. 

The Apostle continues in 2 Corinthians 12:10, "Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong."

When I admit my weakness, He alone fills my emptiness without me even noticing.

Barack Obama made the following remarks on June 13, 2008, during a private campaign fundraising event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, while running as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.
“I won’t but that sounded pretty scary. You’re a tough guy,” Obama said. “If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun,” Obama said. “Because from what I understand folks in Philly like a good brawl. I’ve seen Eagles fans.”
I absolutely love him and his speeches. 

I've commented on and labeled the posts generated by the AI with "Let's check the answers."

Tomorrow, I will return to my original role as a Principal Investigator and Senior Research Scientist at NICT's ICT Testbed R&D Promotion Center—a position that I previously held for ten years until March.