New administration cracks whip.

Orthodox Catholics are facing “persecution” – and not from secularists, but from their fellow believers. That’s the startling claim made last week by Professor Josef Seifert, the philosopher and friend of St John Paul II. His remarks echoed some recent comments from Cardinal Gerhard Müller, who told the National Catholic Register that Vatican officials and university teachers were “living in great fear”. And Seifert and Cardinal Müller are only saying publicly what many will say in private.

In researching this article, I have heard from priests and academics on four continents who, as soon as I raised the subject of intimidation, immediately requested anonymity. Some referred to their need to earn a living or support a family. One professor quipped: “I am not ready for white martyrdom” – a theological term for the acceptance of great (but non-fatal) suffering for the faith.

Depends who has the whip hand, apparently.

Blood and gore, you give us more (you movie-makers).

How influential is Hollywood in promoting violence? A December 2013 study published in the American Academy of Pediatrics revealed gun violence in PG-13-rated films more than tripledsince the PG-13 rating’s 1985 introduction.

Moreover, three-quarters of the same celebrities who signed or supported a letter saying they’d had enough of “unnecessary gun violence” following the terrorist attack in San Bernardino have no problem promoting violence in their own movies. Celebrities like Jamie Foxx, who starred in “Law Abiding Citizen,” described by IMDb as a movie with “strong bloody brutal violence and torture, a scene of rape, and pervasive language,” as well as “Django Unchained,” another highly violent movie directed by cop-basher Quentin Tarantino, whose entire career has been dedicated to the production of ultra-violent movies. Celebrities like Jessica Alba, who stars in “Machete Kills,” and Liam Neeson, who starred in the extremely violent “Taken” — and its two equally violent sequels, “Taken 2” and “Taken 3.”

The same Liam Neeson Kimmel welcomed as a guest on his Sept. 27 show.

That’s late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, alleged comedian and one of our very principled promoters of gun controls.