PJ Media

PJ Mediahttps://pjmedia.com/author/michelecatalano/feed/PJ Media is a leading news site covering culture, politics, faith, homeland security, and more. Our reporters and columnists provide original, in-depth analysis from a variety of perspectives.en-usWed, 10 Jun 2026 05:19:17 -0400Jersey Shore: Fist-Pumping, Hair Gel, and No Sense of Shame<![CDATA[MTV’s new show, Jersey Shore, is a hit. Whether people are watching it for the train wreck possibilities or because they actually enjoy it doesn’t matter. MTV put a crass, decadent show on the air and is being rewarded for it. From Wikipedia:]]>Sun, 13 Dec 2009 00:00:35 -0500<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/12/13/jersey-shore-fist-pumping-hair-gel-and-no-sense-of-shame-n15008The Richmond High Gang Rape: Who's to Blame?<![CDATA[Richmond, California, is a town with a lot of questions and no immediate answers following the brutal gang rape and beating of a 15-year-old girl at her homecoming dance — an attack watched by at least ten other people.]]>Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:28 -0500<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/11/03/the-richmond-high-gang-rape-whos-to-blame-n15399Swine Flu: Panic But Remain Calm?<![CDATA[President Obama this week declared H1N1 a national emergency. This — combined with the fact that vaccines for the flu are in short supply — has caused another round of panic.]]>Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:07:38 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/10/29/swine-flu-panic-but-remain-calm-n15443Naked Justice: Arrested for Nudity in His Own Kitchen<![CDATA[You’re standing in your kitchen making coffee. You are naked, but no one else is home. It’s early in the morning and you are in the privacy of your own home. All right, so maybe you’re a little bit odd, and maybe not everyone makes coffee naked. But your house, your rules, right?]]>Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:00:15 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/10/25/naked-justice-man-arrested-for-being-nude-in-his-own-kitchen-n15481Just Look Away From The 'Balloon Boy'<![CDATA[In the aftermath of the Balloon Boy story, there are some questions to be answered. Not just the obvious questions like “What the heck is wrong with this boy’s father, Richard Heene?” but also the question: “Why is the media fascinated with stories like this?”]]>Mon, 19 Oct 2009 02:55:24 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/10/19/just-look-away-from-the-balloon-boy-n15527Women Don't Have to Get the Blues<![CDATA[Maureen Dowd thinks women are, in general, unhappy. In her op-ed piece which has been wending its way around the Internet recently (“Blue is the New Black”), she writes:]]>Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/09/30/women-dont-have-to-get-the-blues-n15696Who's Your Daddy? George Clooney? Brad Pitt? The World of Celebrity Genetics<![CDATA[There are so many things to worry about when you’re thinking about having a child. Do you have what it takes to be a good parent? Do you have enough money? What if it looks like your mother-in-law?]]>Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:08:09 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/09/15/whos-your-daddy-george-clooney-brad-pitt-the-world-of-celebrity-genetics-n15837We Say 'Never Forget' — But Do We Really Mean It?<![CDATA[John Dunn, a New York firefighter, expects that when he visits the 9/11 memorial this week on Long Island there will be even fewer people there than the year before. It’s been that way for the past few years — and not just at the memorial, he notes:]]>Fri, 11 Sep 2009 00:00:11 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/09/11/we-say-never-forget-but-do-we-really-mean-it-n15878Raising a Dangerously Obese Child Is a Shame — But Is It a Crime?<![CDATA[In aisle six there’s a man wheeling a grocery cart filled with prepackaged and ready-to-make food: TV dinners, frozen breakfasts, macaroni and cheese, and similar items. The cart is also overflowing with sugary cereals and a variety of soda. The man weighs about 400 pounds. With him is his son. The boy is about 12-years-old and weighs close to 200 pounds. He’s pointing to things he wants — Pop-Tarts, Oreos, Rice Krispies Treats — and the father is throwing everything the kid asks for into the cart.]]>Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:04:22 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/07/27/raising-a-dangerously-obese-child-is-a-shame-but-is-it-a-crime-n16279All Michael Jackson, All the Time<![CDATA[The death of a pop culture icon is always an event; and Michael Jackson’s fame equaled that of Elvis and Marilyn Monroe. He was world-famous and beloved for most of his career.]]>Sat, 27 Jun 2009 00:19:37 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/06/27/all-michael-jackson-all-the-time-n16539Who Cares About Jon and Kate? Apparently, We Do<![CDATA[There are more people who know what’s going on in the lives of Jon and Kate than what’s going on in Iran.]]>Wed, 24 Jun 2009 03:07:22 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/06/24/who-cares-about-jon-and-kate-n16566A Front Seat to Historic Change in Iran<![CDATA[]]>Mon, 22 Jun 2009 01:23:18 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/06/22/a-front-seat-to-historic-change-in-iran-n16587Poor Little Rich Hipsters<![CDATA[In the midst of a recession, the New York Times wants to make sure you remember the people most affected by these “tough economic times.”]]>Fri, 19 Jun 2009 00:10:41 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2009/06/19/poor-little-rich-hipsters-n16615Christmas Shopping in a Time of Recession<![CDATA[UPDATE: So much for fighting materialism.]]>Thu, 27 Nov 2008 10:50:51 -0500<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2008/11/27/christmas-shopping-in-a-time-of-recession-n18255Obama's Call for Community Service Is Not Marxism<![CDATA[Is community service synonymous with slavery? Whether that service is mandated or suggested, could it in any way be construed as enslaving citizens? This week, an acquaintance noted the “irony” that college students would be required by a black president to do community service. She then pointed out the 13th Amendment.]]>Thu, 13 Nov 2008 00:00:37 -0500<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2008/11/13/obamas-call-for-community-service-is-not-marxism-n18364Let's Take Some Pride in Obama's Election — No Matter Who We Voted For<![CDATA[We have a black president.]]>Wed, 05 Nov 2008 03:22:32 -0500<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2008/11/05/lets-take-some-pride-in-obamas-election-no-matter-who-we-voted-for-n18418Election Diary: Win or Lose, a Historic Day for Us All<![CDATA[It was dark when I woke my daughter. Do you know how hard it is to wake an 18-year-old the night after a party? Especially when it’s dark out? Then I reminded her why I was waking her. “It’s time to vote.”]]>Tue, 04 Nov 2008 04:31:54 -0500<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2008/11/04/election-diary-win-or-lose-a-historic-day-for-us-all-n18427When Choosing a Candidate Means Losing a Friend<![CDATA[When I turned 18 and was looking forward to voting in my first presidential election, my father gave me a bit of advice: “Don’t ever tell anyone who you are voting for.” I smiled politely, the way teenagers do when they think their parents have no idea what they’re talking about. Of course, I didn’t take his advice. I told anyone who would listen that I was voting not for Reagan or Carter, but for John Anderson. And then I learned a valuable lesson: My father was right.]]>Sun, 02 Nov 2008 02:01:41 -0500<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2008/11/02/when-choosing-a-candidate-means-losing-a-friend-n18440Losing Sight of the American Dream<![CDATA[Although the term was coined in 1931 by James Truslow Adams, who defined it as “that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement,” it really was, for the most part, about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Over the years, the dream has changed accordingly, defined by what we think will bring us happiness. However, it has not changed in a good way.]]>Wed, 22 Oct 2008 10:05:09 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2008/10/22/losing-sight-of-the-american-dream-n18518Breast Milk Ice Cream, Anyone?<![CDATA[In these times of trouble and turmoil, financial crisis and contentious presidential campaigns, it’s nice to know we can always find some humor among the news stories. In this case, we turn once again to PETA, which provides us with some unintended comic relief.]]>Sat, 04 Oct 2008 00:15:43 -0400<![CDATA[Michele Catalano]]>https://pjmedia.com/michelecatalano/2008/10/04/breast-milk-ice-cream-anyone-n18631