Erika Aguirre, 28, of Berwyn, Illinois broke into a home and shot Deisy Jaimes, her lesbian lover, several times, critically wounding her as well as her father, Enrique Jaimes, as his wife and other two teenage children all escaped after shots fired by Aguirre missed hitting anyone else. The incident concluded when Aguirre committed suicide with a single shot to her head.
For background, read Illinois Lesbian Arrested: Sexually Abused Girls and read about child abuse by lesbian mothers.
Also read President Obama Targets Homosexual Domestic Violence Counseling
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
1st-grade Lesbians Force Sex on Ohio 2nd Grade Girl
Homosexual Kills, Injures Hundreds on Amtrak Train
Homosexualists Arrested for Beating Christian at Seattle Gay Event
Homosexualists' Terrorist Attack on Christians — Perp arrested for attempted murder
-- From "Correctional officer committed suicide after shooting 2" by The Associated Press 11/17/15
Bridgeview (Illinois) Police Chief Walter Klimek identified the dead woman as 28-year-old Erika Aguirre. The Cook County Sheriff's Office says Aguirre was an employee for four years, working at the jail's intake division. Klimek says Aguirre and a 27-year-old woman had been in a relationship for four years but had recently broken up.
Klimek says Aguirre broke into the home southwest of Chicago about 11:30 p.m. Sunday and shot the 52-year-old man twice. The former girlfriend was then shot numerous times. Klimek says both are in critical condition at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Cook County correctional officer shot two, then killed herself in Bridgeview" by Ashlee Rezin and Simone Alicea, Chicago Sun-Times 11/16/15
Neighbors called police at 11:32 p.m. when they saw a woman, dressed in black and carrying a gun, walking around the house, according to Bridgeview Police Chief Walter Klimek.
Officers responded to the home, looked through a window and saw a person lying in a pool of blood in the kitchen, Klimek said. The 5th District SWAT unit, comprised of members from police departments from the 5th District Circuit Court area, was then called to the scene.
The unit entered the home and found the woman dead in the kitchen, Klimek said.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Cops: Female guard shot ex-girlfriend, dad in Bridgeview, then killed herself" posted at Chicago Tribune 11/16/15
[Erika Aguirre] broke a basement window while the couple and their three children were inside, police said.
The 17-year-old heard glass break and went to investigate. She "confronted the shooter in the basement, at which point she was able to escape," Klimek said, but not before she was shot at "a couple of times" but not struck.
The 17-year-old was able to alert her mother and brother, and they were able to escape from the house.
A semi-automatic gun was recovered along with three magazines, each of which holds up to 15 rounds, Klimek said. He said about 15 rounds were fired inside the home.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Woman Kills Self After Shooting Ex-Girlfriend And Ex’s Father In Bridgeview" posted at WBBM-AM780 CBS Chicago 11/16/15
Aguirre then confronted 52-year-old Enrique Jaimes, and shot him twice. She then went to an upstairs bedroom, and shot 22-year-old Deisy Jaimes in the head, shoulders, and legs, police said. Both victims were taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in critical condition.
Neighbor Jeff Polston said he called 911 after a girl who got out of the house unharmed knocked on his door for help. She told him about the intruder, describing her as a cold-blooded killer.
“She just said it was methodical; very slow, and not nervous,” Polston said.
Investigators determined Aguirre and Deisy James had been in a recent relationship, until they broke up.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Homosexual, Lesbian Teachers Arrested for Sex with Students
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Monday, November 16, 2015
Miss. Town Defies Atheists' Anti-Christmas Demands
Most of the citizens of Collins, Mississippi (population 2,500+) crowded the small downtown area to sing Christian hymns and rally against the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) threats of legal action to remove all privately-donated displays at Bettie D. Robertson Memorial Park including the permanent ones as well as the annual “Christmas in the Park” display.
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
Atheists Help Liberal Schools in Oregon Ban Christmas Choirs
Atheists' Complaints Motivate Christmas Fervor Across America
Atheists Threaten School so Citizens Pray Publicly
New Mexico Mayor Tells Atheists Nativity Scene Stays in Place
Also read Texas School Supt. Tells the FFRF Atheists to Go Fly a Kite
-- From "Collins residents support religious decorations, still may face legal issues" by Amanda LaBrot, Reporter, WDAM-TV7 (Laurel, MS) 11/4/15
Thousands of Collins residents packed Main Street to oppose a legal complaint about the religious displays in the city's Christmas decorations, but the Freedom from Religion Foundation says that does not mean the decorations can legally stay in a public park.
[FFRF staff attorney Elizabeth] Cavell said she is waiting on a response from the city before she can determine if the organization needs to take further legal actions. She said in a case like this, she would expect the city to comply and remove the religious displays. Collins Mayor V.O. Smith said he is currently working with the city attorney to determine the next step for Collins.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "People of Collins want decorations to stay despite complaint" by Candace S. Coleman, WHLT-TV22 (Hattiesburg, MS) 11/4/15
FFRF sent Collins a letter last week about these religious structures, which are in one of the city-owned parks.
Dozens of townspeople spoke during the public forum. All wanted to leave the figures up.
Some stay up all year round, others just for Christmas. However, the [FFRF] organization believes all of them are unconstitutional and unwelcoming to non-Christians.
Mayor V. O. Smith said he doesn’t have plans to take the Christian symbols down.
In fact, he had city workers put up Christmas decorations early this year to make a statement.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Organization calls for removal of city of Collins religious displays" by Amanda LaBrot, Reporter, WDAM-TV7 (Laurel, MS) 11/2/15
The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a non-profit educational organization and member of Atheist Alliance International, filed a complaint stating that the city's decorations were unconstitutional, and "tremendously unwelcoming to non-Christian citizens."
"[The FFRF] had an unnamed local person complain about the religious displays in our city park," said Collins Mayor V.O. Smith.
Smith says the religious symbols have been a part of the city's display for 12 years, but are actually owned by the Covington County Chamber of Commerce. He said the decorations and lights stay up year round, but are only lit from Thanksgiving until Dec. 26 every year.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "In This Mississippi Town, Residents Are Fighting Atheist Organization Calling for Removal of Christmas Display" by Kate Scanlon, The Daily Signal 11/12/15
In an interview with The Daily Signal, Marie Shoemake, the executive director of the Covington County Chamber of Commerce, confirmed that the organization, not Collins, owns the displays.
Shoemake said that in addition to Christmas and family-friendly displays, there are displays honoring the military and fallen service members.
Shoemake said that the displays are intended to “bring joy to the community” and have a positive economic impact on the town, with visitors to the park often stopping “in our beautiful town” for gas, food, and shopping.
She said that the displays are maintained by volunteers and church groups, and there is no charge to see them.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read about myriad attacks on Christmas in schools around the nation, but Indiana Protects Christmas from Atheists' Lawsuits.
“It's just a small town, a southern town, that they think that they can bully and make us do what they want us to do.”For background, read about the antics of the FFRF.
-- Regina Daughdrill, Collins resident
“It really set a fire under us to do all we can to keep this park operating so we’re hoping that we will be successful in doing this. . . . I told them last Friday do not take anything down in the park.”
-- V. O. Smith, Mayor of Collins, MS
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
Atheists Help Liberal Schools in Oregon Ban Christmas Choirs
Atheists' Complaints Motivate Christmas Fervor Across America
Atheists Threaten School so Citizens Pray Publicly
New Mexico Mayor Tells Atheists Nativity Scene Stays in Place
Also read Texas School Supt. Tells the FFRF Atheists to Go Fly a Kite
-- From "Collins residents support religious decorations, still may face legal issues" by Amanda LaBrot, Reporter, WDAM-TV7 (Laurel, MS) 11/4/15
Thousands of Collins residents packed Main Street to oppose a legal complaint about the religious displays in the city's Christmas decorations, but the Freedom from Religion Foundation says that does not mean the decorations can legally stay in a public park.
[FFRF staff attorney Elizabeth] Cavell said she is waiting on a response from the city before she can determine if the organization needs to take further legal actions. She said in a case like this, she would expect the city to comply and remove the religious displays. Collins Mayor V.O. Smith said he is currently working with the city attorney to determine the next step for Collins.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "People of Collins want decorations to stay despite complaint" by Candace S. Coleman, WHLT-TV22 (Hattiesburg, MS) 11/4/15
FFRF sent Collins a letter last week about these religious structures, which are in one of the city-owned parks.
Dozens of townspeople spoke during the public forum. All wanted to leave the figures up.
Some stay up all year round, others just for Christmas. However, the [FFRF] organization believes all of them are unconstitutional and unwelcoming to non-Christians.
Mayor V. O. Smith said he doesn’t have plans to take the Christian symbols down.
In fact, he had city workers put up Christmas decorations early this year to make a statement.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Organization calls for removal of city of Collins religious displays" by Amanda LaBrot, Reporter, WDAM-TV7 (Laurel, MS) 11/2/15
The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a non-profit educational organization and member of Atheist Alliance International, filed a complaint stating that the city's decorations were unconstitutional, and "tremendously unwelcoming to non-Christian citizens."
"[The FFRF] had an unnamed local person complain about the religious displays in our city park," said Collins Mayor V.O. Smith.
Smith says the religious symbols have been a part of the city's display for 12 years, but are actually owned by the Covington County Chamber of Commerce. He said the decorations and lights stay up year round, but are only lit from Thanksgiving until Dec. 26 every year.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "In This Mississippi Town, Residents Are Fighting Atheist Organization Calling for Removal of Christmas Display" by Kate Scanlon, The Daily Signal 11/12/15
In an interview with The Daily Signal, Marie Shoemake, the executive director of the Covington County Chamber of Commerce, confirmed that the organization, not Collins, owns the displays.
Shoemake said that in addition to Christmas and family-friendly displays, there are displays honoring the military and fallen service members.
Shoemake said that the displays are intended to “bring joy to the community” and have a positive economic impact on the town, with visitors to the park often stopping “in our beautiful town” for gas, food, and shopping.
She said that the displays are maintained by volunteers and church groups, and there is no charge to see them.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read about myriad attacks on Christmas in schools around the nation, but Indiana Protects Christmas from Atheists' Lawsuits.
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Calif. Mayor Calls City Prayer Vigil for Solutions
Stockton, California Mayor Anthony Silva will be hosting a 12-hour citywide prayer rally tomorrow to call on God Almighty for guidance in efforts to counteract gang violence and improve economic development.
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Christian Invocation Outrages California City Council
California Parents Say Bible Harmful to Students, Must Ban
Texas Mayor Declares 'Year of the Bible'
Texas School Supt. Tells Anti-prayer Atheists to Go Fly a Kite
Sheriff Defies ACLU: July 4th Prayer in Louisiana
13 States vs. ACLU in North Carolina Prayer Battle
Also read Florida Battles Satanic 'Prayer' at Civic Meetings City-by-City, therefore Only Christian Prayers Allowed by Arizona City
-- From "Stockton Mayor Prepares for 12-Hour Prayer for Reduced Violence at City Hall" by Kay Recede, KTXL-TV40 (Sacramento, CA) 11/13/15
Mayor Silva, along with with 24 congregations throughout Stockton, will meet on the steps of city hall and pray on Monday. Pray for peace and for hope, “You can’t stop the evil that’s gonna take place. You know, that’s taking place, but through prayer we believe that we’re able to push back,” Pastor Armando Peraza with Victory Outreach said.
Pastor Peraza’s congregation, Victory Outreach, will be one of the group’s in attendance, “Because we know that prayer can change things,” the pastor explained.
Every 30 minutes a different group will lead in prayer for a city where violence is notorious and knows no bounds. Prayer knows no prejudice, unfortunately neither does violence. . . . “There’s power in unity and we come together as a community and begin to pray for the city it shows a force in our city,” the pastor told us.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Stockton mayor seeks 12 hours of prayer" by Roger Phillips, Stockton Record Staff Writer 11/14/15
“It’s significant because we’re bringing a city together of 310,000 diverse residents who all have different religious beliefs, but with those different beliefs there are common goals we can all agree on,” Silva said.
Silva also announced he will be hosting a town-hall meeting Nov. 30 “to have a serious discussion about Stockton’s past, present and future” and to talk about “the good, the bad and the ugly.”
“We have to start to change the narrative of Stockton,” Silva said. “Every time you hear the name ‘Stockton,’ people’s eyebrows are raised. We have to change the narrative so they are always saying something positive when they are speaking of Stockton.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read North Carolina Citizens Demand Prayer in Public School
"[Prayer] Gives hope to a city. It’s ok to pray and root for your city to succeed"UPDATE 1/19/16: Mississippi Capital Police Chief Leads City Prayer Meetings
-- Mayor Anthony Silva
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Christian Invocation Outrages California City Council
California Parents Say Bible Harmful to Students, Must Ban
Texas Mayor Declares 'Year of the Bible'
Texas School Supt. Tells Anti-prayer Atheists to Go Fly a Kite
Sheriff Defies ACLU: July 4th Prayer in Louisiana
13 States vs. ACLU in North Carolina Prayer Battle
Also read Florida Battles Satanic 'Prayer' at Civic Meetings City-by-City, therefore Only Christian Prayers Allowed by Arizona City
-- From "Stockton Mayor Prepares for 12-Hour Prayer for Reduced Violence at City Hall" by Kay Recede, KTXL-TV40 (Sacramento, CA) 11/13/15
Mayor Silva, along with with 24 congregations throughout Stockton, will meet on the steps of city hall and pray on Monday. Pray for peace and for hope, “You can’t stop the evil that’s gonna take place. You know, that’s taking place, but through prayer we believe that we’re able to push back,” Pastor Armando Peraza with Victory Outreach said.
Pastor Peraza’s congregation, Victory Outreach, will be one of the group’s in attendance, “Because we know that prayer can change things,” the pastor explained.
Every 30 minutes a different group will lead in prayer for a city where violence is notorious and knows no bounds. Prayer knows no prejudice, unfortunately neither does violence. . . . “There’s power in unity and we come together as a community and begin to pray for the city it shows a force in our city,” the pastor told us.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Stockton mayor seeks 12 hours of prayer" by Roger Phillips, Stockton Record Staff Writer 11/14/15
“It’s significant because we’re bringing a city together of 310,000 diverse residents who all have different religious beliefs, but with those different beliefs there are common goals we can all agree on,” Silva said.
Silva also announced he will be hosting a town-hall meeting Nov. 30 “to have a serious discussion about Stockton’s past, present and future” and to talk about “the good, the bad and the ugly.”
“We have to start to change the narrative of Stockton,” Silva said. “Every time you hear the name ‘Stockton,’ people’s eyebrows are raised. We have to change the narrative so they are always saying something positive when they are speaking of Stockton.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read North Carolina Citizens Demand Prayer in Public School
Saturday, November 14, 2015
Homosexualists Battle Against 'Transgender Rights'
With the rise in power of the Gay Agenda, including control of the White House, has come an internal battle for power within the ranks of the sexual revolutionaries. For example, lesbians who want to go to the bathroom without being confronted by men pretending to be women are crying foul, while many homosexual activists proclaim that it's simply wrong to convince kindergartners they're the opposite gender.
For background, read Lesbian Activist Decries Teaching Sex Change in Kindergarten while media cheer as Mother Plans Sexual Mutilation of Son
And also read 'Transgender Rights' Torpedo 'Gay Rights' Ordinance in Houston
-- From "Change.org Petition Wants to Take the T Out of LGBT" by Tim Murphy, New York Magazine 11/11/15
In many ways, this has been an encouragingly fast-moving year in terms of recognition for the transgender community, from Caitlyn Jenner to the recent decision by Governor Cuomo to extend legal protections statewide in New York. But the community is facing backlash, too, from feminists like Germaine Greer's not-"real women" commentary to Houston voters, who struck down a 2014 LGBT anti-discrimination law . . . And now a small number of gay people want to end common cause with them, too, putting up a Change.org petition demanding that several important LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) rights organizations remove the T from their missions.
Why undo such a long-standing coalition? "We feel their ideology is not only completely different from that promoted by the LGB community (LGB is about sexual orientation, trans is about gender identity)," reads the anonymous petition, "but is ultimately regressive and actually hostile to the goals of women and gay men."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Caitlyn Jenner confronts protesters who call her 'an insult to trans people'" by Alex Ungerman, ET Online, Reporting by Brendon Geoffrion, CBS News 11/13/15
Caitlyn [Bruce] Jenner is receiving backlash from the transgender community.
After the "I Am Cait" star gave a speech during a luncheon in Chicago, Illinois on Thursday, she was confronted by protesters outside the venue. The 65-year-old former Olympian stopped to address one protester, who over the loudspeaker could be heard saying, "You are an insult to trans people, you are an insult to women."
Caitlyn spoke to a group of 1,000 people at the 7th annual Speaker Series luncheon for the Chicago House, which provides social services for those impacted by HIV/AIDS and other LGBT issues.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "The State of the Trans Community, Part 4 -- Allies or Adversaries?" by Dana Beyer, Executive Director, Gender Rights Maryland, Huffington Post 11/11/15
. . . not all women have vaginas or vulva . . . [Caitlyn/Bruce Jenner claims to be woman, but still has "her" penis.]
We have made great progress over the past decade decoupling gender identity from genitalia. On the one hand, it's easy, because gender identity is a brain function and genitalia are just genitals. On the other hand, trying to teach a society that has been raised for generations (millennia, actually) to believe that sex is nothing more than genitals, is extremely difficult. Because we have been successful, we have put ourselves in the unenviable but unavoidable position of dealing with bathroom panic attacks that stem from fears of male genitals.
Not that long ago trans women were assumed to have undergone genital reconstruction. No more penis, therefore, no threat that the male weapon would be used for predation, a fear that underlies transphobia. Not that there weren't many trans women who could not afford bottom surgery, or for whom it was medically contraindicated, or who just didn't care, but the cisgender [normal] population viewed trans women as postoperative trans women. As the decoupling began, initially targeted to include trans men rather than non-operative trans women, it became obvious to more non-trans persons, as an unintended consequence, that some trans women still had their penises, and that propelled the bathroom panic forward.
Politically speaking and being hard-nosed and practical, I will say that trans persons have no right to demand that language be changed to include them while alienating the vast majority in the process. . . .
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gay man attempts explaining his 'Drop The T in LGBTQ' petition" posted at LGBTQ Nation 11/10/15
Gay/bisexual men and women just ARE — we don’t need medicine or surgery to help us become who we believe we are, which is the case with the trans community.
To take it further, the first is about sexual and affectional orientation, who we are sexually attracted to and who we choose to share our love with; the latter is about gender identity, and altering one’s body to fit what one’s mind believes it should resemble. They are two very, very different ideas, and the problem that develops when we are all under the same umbrella is that so many of our enemies see us as one and the same….
To me, the LGB movement, with its celebration of all types of gay men and women, such as bears, leather daddies, drag queens, diesel dykes, lipstick lesbians, etc., has always been about expanding and re-defining concepts of gender; the trans movement, on the other hand, appears to be about re-asserting and codifying traditional concepts of gender.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "The Rise of the Gay Bigot" by Kit Williamson, Advocate 11/13/15
Over the past few years, as we’ve seen such rapid, astonishing progress towards LGBT equality . . . Lately I’ve been struggling to understand why gay men feel so entitled to tell others how to behave, when so many people are of the opinion that we are societal deviants, no matter how well-behaved we are. Why are so many of us adopting the very same kind of oppressive language that has been wielded against us by antigay extremists?
It’s surprising how many gay men consider themselves arbiters of social norms and mores, as same-sex marriage has only held majority support in this country for a few years now. And that majority is still very slim . . . It is a particularly galling feat of hypocrisy for gay men, who have been on the outskirts of acceptable society for such a long time, to turn around and assert their role as gatekeepers so soon after achieving “respectability.”
There’s an audible “I got mine” mentality in [the “Drop the T” movement] that repulses me. Yes, I’ve seen exclusionary language from trans activists as well, and comments that seem homophobic or misogynistic, but it’s all symptomatic of the same problem.
Why should your opinion of what is the “correct” way to express gender, gender identity, sexuality, or religion become a mandate for others? . . .
Yes, the pendulum sometimes swings too far in the other direction; liberals can be bigots too. . . . I believe we can be sensitive and understanding of the experience of others without pushing political correctness so far that it becomes tyrannical and obscene. There is an obvious middle road we can take here.
. . . we need to be careful not to turn our passion and vehemence against one another; together we will all rise up, but divided we will all fall right back down to where we started.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gay Gestapo bullies transgenders" by Bryan Fischer, Guest Columnist, One News Now 11/12/15
An online petition, "Drop the T," calls on Big Gay groups like HRC, GLAAD, and Lambda Legal to separate themselves from the transgender community. . . .
[Petition excerpts:]
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
President Obama Forces Boys into Girls' Showers in Schools Nationwide
Federal Government OKs Perverts in Employees' Restrooms Across America
President Obama Edicts More Transgender Rights via ObamaCare
Hillary Clinton Promises to Codify More 'Gay/Transgender Rights'
'Gay Dads' Get Christians Fired over Pretend Son
Transgenderism is a 'Delusion' According to Victims and Professionals
For background, read Lesbian Activist Decries Teaching Sex Change in Kindergarten while media cheer as Mother Plans Sexual Mutilation of Son
And also read 'Transgender Rights' Torpedo 'Gay Rights' Ordinance in Houston
-- From "Change.org Petition Wants to Take the T Out of LGBT" by Tim Murphy, New York Magazine 11/11/15
In many ways, this has been an encouragingly fast-moving year in terms of recognition for the transgender community, from Caitlyn Jenner to the recent decision by Governor Cuomo to extend legal protections statewide in New York. But the community is facing backlash, too, from feminists like Germaine Greer's not-"real women" commentary to Houston voters, who struck down a 2014 LGBT anti-discrimination law . . . And now a small number of gay people want to end common cause with them, too, putting up a Change.org petition demanding that several important LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) rights organizations remove the T from their missions.
Why undo such a long-standing coalition? "We feel their ideology is not only completely different from that promoted by the LGB community (LGB is about sexual orientation, trans is about gender identity)," reads the anonymous petition, "but is ultimately regressive and actually hostile to the goals of women and gay men."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Caitlyn Jenner confronts protesters who call her 'an insult to trans people'" by Alex Ungerman, ET Online, Reporting by Brendon Geoffrion, CBS News 11/13/15
Caitlyn [Bruce] Jenner is receiving backlash from the transgender community.
After the "I Am Cait" star gave a speech during a luncheon in Chicago, Illinois on Thursday, she was confronted by protesters outside the venue. The 65-year-old former Olympian stopped to address one protester, who over the loudspeaker could be heard saying, "You are an insult to trans people, you are an insult to women."
Caitlyn spoke to a group of 1,000 people at the 7th annual Speaker Series luncheon for the Chicago House, which provides social services for those impacted by HIV/AIDS and other LGBT issues.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "The State of the Trans Community, Part 4 -- Allies or Adversaries?" by Dana Beyer, Executive Director, Gender Rights Maryland, Huffington Post 11/11/15
. . . not all women have vaginas or vulva . . . [Caitlyn/Bruce Jenner claims to be woman, but still has "her" penis.]
We have made great progress over the past decade decoupling gender identity from genitalia. On the one hand, it's easy, because gender identity is a brain function and genitalia are just genitals. On the other hand, trying to teach a society that has been raised for generations (millennia, actually) to believe that sex is nothing more than genitals, is extremely difficult. Because we have been successful, we have put ourselves in the unenviable but unavoidable position of dealing with bathroom panic attacks that stem from fears of male genitals.
Not that long ago trans women were assumed to have undergone genital reconstruction. No more penis, therefore, no threat that the male weapon would be used for predation, a fear that underlies transphobia. Not that there weren't many trans women who could not afford bottom surgery, or for whom it was medically contraindicated, or who just didn't care, but the cisgender [normal] population viewed trans women as postoperative trans women. As the decoupling began, initially targeted to include trans men rather than non-operative trans women, it became obvious to more non-trans persons, as an unintended consequence, that some trans women still had their penises, and that propelled the bathroom panic forward.
Politically speaking and being hard-nosed and practical, I will say that trans persons have no right to demand that language be changed to include them while alienating the vast majority in the process. . . .
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gay man attempts explaining his 'Drop The T in LGBTQ' petition" posted at LGBTQ Nation 11/10/15
Gay/bisexual men and women just ARE — we don’t need medicine or surgery to help us become who we believe we are, which is the case with the trans community.
To take it further, the first is about sexual and affectional orientation, who we are sexually attracted to and who we choose to share our love with; the latter is about gender identity, and altering one’s body to fit what one’s mind believes it should resemble. They are two very, very different ideas, and the problem that develops when we are all under the same umbrella is that so many of our enemies see us as one and the same….
To me, the LGB movement, with its celebration of all types of gay men and women, such as bears, leather daddies, drag queens, diesel dykes, lipstick lesbians, etc., has always been about expanding and re-defining concepts of gender; the trans movement, on the other hand, appears to be about re-asserting and codifying traditional concepts of gender.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "The Rise of the Gay Bigot" by Kit Williamson, Advocate 11/13/15
Over the past few years, as we’ve seen such rapid, astonishing progress towards LGBT equality . . . Lately I’ve been struggling to understand why gay men feel so entitled to tell others how to behave, when so many people are of the opinion that we are societal deviants, no matter how well-behaved we are. Why are so many of us adopting the very same kind of oppressive language that has been wielded against us by antigay extremists?
It’s surprising how many gay men consider themselves arbiters of social norms and mores, as same-sex marriage has only held majority support in this country for a few years now. And that majority is still very slim . . . It is a particularly galling feat of hypocrisy for gay men, who have been on the outskirts of acceptable society for such a long time, to turn around and assert their role as gatekeepers so soon after achieving “respectability.”
There’s an audible “I got mine” mentality in [the “Drop the T” movement] that repulses me. Yes, I’ve seen exclusionary language from trans activists as well, and comments that seem homophobic or misogynistic, but it’s all symptomatic of the same problem.
Why should your opinion of what is the “correct” way to express gender, gender identity, sexuality, or religion become a mandate for others? . . .
Yes, the pendulum sometimes swings too far in the other direction; liberals can be bigots too. . . . I believe we can be sensitive and understanding of the experience of others without pushing political correctness so far that it becomes tyrannical and obscene. There is an obvious middle road we can take here.
. . . we need to be careful not to turn our passion and vehemence against one another; together we will all rise up, but divided we will all fall right back down to where we started.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gay Gestapo bullies transgenders" by Bryan Fischer, Guest Columnist, One News Now 11/12/15
An online petition, "Drop the T," calls on Big Gay groups like HRC, GLAAD, and Lambda Legal to separate themselves from the transgender community. . . .
[Petition excerpts:]
"The infringement of the rights of individuals, particularly women, to perform normal everyday activities in traditional safe spaces based on sex; this is most pernicious in the case of men claiming to be transgender demanding access to bathrooms, locker rooms, women's shelters and other such spaces reserved for women."To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
"Most troubling, by persuading parents and health professionals to diagnose children as young as four as transgender, despite considerable research that shows that more than 90 percent of children who express 'gender dysphoria' at a young age grow out of it by adolescence and, in most cases, grow up to be well-adjusted gay men and women..."
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
President Obama Forces Boys into Girls' Showers in Schools Nationwide
Federal Government OKs Perverts in Employees' Restrooms Across America
President Obama Edicts More Transgender Rights via ObamaCare
Hillary Clinton Promises to Codify More 'Gay/Transgender Rights'
'Gay Dads' Get Christians Fired over Pretend Son
Transgenderism is a 'Delusion' According to Victims and Professionals
Friday, November 13, 2015
GOP Gov. Decrees 'Gay Rights' for Contractors
Yet to complete his first year in office, Massachusetts Republican Gov. Charlie Baker has issued an executive order for affirmative action for LGBT-owned businesses, thus mandating that the state's Supplier Diversity Program (SDP) target a portion of its billion-dollar spending to one of the wealthiest minorities (the sexually deviant), and therefore de-emphasizing preferences for disadvantaged minority groups of common parlance (blacks, hispanics, women, etc.).
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Republicans Going Gay, to be 'Moderate' & Likeable
Republican Party Platform OKs Abortion and 'Gay Marriage'
Republican Strategy: Dump Old Uneducated Christian Voters
More GOP Leaders Shun Moral Values to Win Elections
RINO Illinois Gov. Favors Homosexuals over Kids
-- From "Gov. Baker Expanding Opportunities For Disabled, LGBT Businesses" by The Associated Press 11/3/15
Baker on Tuesday announced changes to a state program to ensure that companies bidding on contracts come from a wide range of backgrounds.
Baker said his administration is committed to ensuring diversity as the state works with business suppliers and contractors to extend economic prosperity to more communities throughout Massachusetts.
Baker said the changes include what he described as a first-in-the-nation LGBT-owned business certification partnership between the state and the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce’s certification process which he said is recognized by many Fortune 1000 companies.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Baker administration expands affirmative action for state contracting" by Eric Convey, Senior staff reporter, Boston Business Journal 11/3/15
The changes are part of the state's Supplier Diversity Program, which uses internal rules for agencies, and contracting power with vendors, to send work to companies whose owners have certain demographic certifications. Those certifications come in some cases from government entities and in other cases from private organizations. . . .
In dealings with vendors, the preferences are reflected during the bidding process. Generally, the state won't sign contracts with companies that haven't certified that they're either owned by members of specific groups or themselves do business with companies owned by members of certain groups. Companies that fail to make good on those commitments can be excluded from future deals with the state.
While factoring demographics into contracting decisions is longstanding practice for Massachusetts, the state may be the first in the country to single out LGBT-owned businesses for preferential treatment.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Massachusetts Takes Lead on Next Frontier of LGBT Rights" by Claire Zillman, Fortune 11/3/15
The state introduced the diversity initiative in 2010 as a way to provide minority- and women-owned businesses with equal access to state contract bidding processes for construction, design, goods, and services. In 2013, businesses owned by service-disabled veterans were added to the mix.
The new policy is the result of a year of talks between the governor’s office and the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, which will certify businesses as LGBT-owned for the state, according to Jonathan Lovitz, the NGLCC’s vice president of external affairs. (Such a classification requires that 51% or more of a company is owned by lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender individuals.)
The executive order recognizing LGBT-owned businesses is the only statewide initiative of its kind, but the NGLCC has made inroads at the local level. . . .
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gov. Charlie Baker to help women, minority, veteran, LGBT-owned businesses get state contracts" by Shira Schoenberg, The Republican (Springfield, Mass.) 11/3/15
Under former Gov. Deval Patrick [Democrat], Massachusetts established a "supplier diversity program." The program provided technical assistance to businesses owned by women, minorities and disabled veterans. It required any contractor bidding on a state project that cost more than $150,000 to commit to spending a percentage of the money on diverse subcontractors or suppliers. This gave women and minority-owned businesses a competitive edge in getting work from state contracts. In fiscal year 2014, businesses certified under the supplier diversity program received $991 million in state contracts, out of approximately $4 billion in total state spending on goods and services.
Baker also announced plans to create new categories that will benefit from the supplier diversity program – businesses owned by gays and lesbians and businesses owned by people with disabilities. The state will first determine how many businesses fit those categories before setting goals for how much money must be spent with them.
The changes will apply to state contracts for goods and services. Baker plans to announce additional changes for construction contracts in the future.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Governor expands diversity program for businesses" by Joshua Miller, Boston Globe Staff 11/3/15
“We should be a leader, not a laggard when it comes to creating opportunities for diverse businesses to support and service the people of the Commonwealth,” Baker said, with a notably diverse crowd of people — gay and straight; black, brown, and white; women and men — standing behind him on the Grand Staircase of the State House.
The program — which helps certain groups gain preferential access to state spending — and its expansion may seem at odds with traditional Republican orthodoxy. But speaking to reporters, Baker insisted that it does not give anyone a leg up, but rather just levels the playing field for all.
Groups of people considered disadvantaged include African Americans, Cape Verdeans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, American Indians, Eskimos, and Aleuts.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Mass. Gov. Mandates Nation's First Affirmative Action Program for LGBT Contractors" by Zachary Leshin, CNSNews.com 11/12/15
[Gov. Baker's] executive order was criticized by Brian Camenker, executive director of MassResistance, a Massachusetts-based pro-family activist organization.
“Republican Gov. Charlie Baker's order including homosexual owned businesses in Massachusetts's Supplier Diversity Program is just one more example of our government being used to promote a narrow ideological agenda at the expense of the taxpayers,” Camenker said in response to a question from CNSNews.com asking him for MassResistance’s official position regarding the governor’s executive order.
“Even his far-left predecessor, Deval Patrick, did not go this far,” he added.
“When Baker told the Boston Globe that he was ‘to the left of Barack Obama on social issues’ a lot of people didn’t take him seriously. They certainly do now.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Indiana Law Fights Gay Agenda, then GOP Surrenders
And read America Going to Hell; Christians Lose Convictions
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Republicans Going Gay, to be 'Moderate' & Likeable
Republican Party Platform OKs Abortion and 'Gay Marriage'
Republican Strategy: Dump Old Uneducated Christian Voters
More GOP Leaders Shun Moral Values to Win Elections
RINO Illinois Gov. Favors Homosexuals over Kids
-- From "Gov. Baker Expanding Opportunities For Disabled, LGBT Businesses" by The Associated Press 11/3/15
Baker on Tuesday announced changes to a state program to ensure that companies bidding on contracts come from a wide range of backgrounds.
Baker said his administration is committed to ensuring diversity as the state works with business suppliers and contractors to extend economic prosperity to more communities throughout Massachusetts.
Baker said the changes include what he described as a first-in-the-nation LGBT-owned business certification partnership between the state and the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce’s certification process which he said is recognized by many Fortune 1000 companies.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Baker administration expands affirmative action for state contracting" by Eric Convey, Senior staff reporter, Boston Business Journal 11/3/15
The changes are part of the state's Supplier Diversity Program, which uses internal rules for agencies, and contracting power with vendors, to send work to companies whose owners have certain demographic certifications. Those certifications come in some cases from government entities and in other cases from private organizations. . . .
In dealings with vendors, the preferences are reflected during the bidding process. Generally, the state won't sign contracts with companies that haven't certified that they're either owned by members of specific groups or themselves do business with companies owned by members of certain groups. Companies that fail to make good on those commitments can be excluded from future deals with the state.
While factoring demographics into contracting decisions is longstanding practice for Massachusetts, the state may be the first in the country to single out LGBT-owned businesses for preferential treatment.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Massachusetts Takes Lead on Next Frontier of LGBT Rights" by Claire Zillman, Fortune 11/3/15
The state introduced the diversity initiative in 2010 as a way to provide minority- and women-owned businesses with equal access to state contract bidding processes for construction, design, goods, and services. In 2013, businesses owned by service-disabled veterans were added to the mix.
The new policy is the result of a year of talks between the governor’s office and the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, which will certify businesses as LGBT-owned for the state, according to Jonathan Lovitz, the NGLCC’s vice president of external affairs. (Such a classification requires that 51% or more of a company is owned by lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender individuals.)
The executive order recognizing LGBT-owned businesses is the only statewide initiative of its kind, but the NGLCC has made inroads at the local level. . . .
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gov. Charlie Baker to help women, minority, veteran, LGBT-owned businesses get state contracts" by Shira Schoenberg, The Republican (Springfield, Mass.) 11/3/15
Under former Gov. Deval Patrick [Democrat], Massachusetts established a "supplier diversity program." The program provided technical assistance to businesses owned by women, minorities and disabled veterans. It required any contractor bidding on a state project that cost more than $150,000 to commit to spending a percentage of the money on diverse subcontractors or suppliers. This gave women and minority-owned businesses a competitive edge in getting work from state contracts. In fiscal year 2014, businesses certified under the supplier diversity program received $991 million in state contracts, out of approximately $4 billion in total state spending on goods and services.
Baker also announced plans to create new categories that will benefit from the supplier diversity program – businesses owned by gays and lesbians and businesses owned by people with disabilities. The state will first determine how many businesses fit those categories before setting goals for how much money must be spent with them.
The changes will apply to state contracts for goods and services. Baker plans to announce additional changes for construction contracts in the future.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Governor expands diversity program for businesses" by Joshua Miller, Boston Globe Staff 11/3/15
“We should be a leader, not a laggard when it comes to creating opportunities for diverse businesses to support and service the people of the Commonwealth,” Baker said, with a notably diverse crowd of people — gay and straight; black, brown, and white; women and men — standing behind him on the Grand Staircase of the State House.
The program — which helps certain groups gain preferential access to state spending — and its expansion may seem at odds with traditional Republican orthodoxy. But speaking to reporters, Baker insisted that it does not give anyone a leg up, but rather just levels the playing field for all.
Groups of people considered disadvantaged include African Americans, Cape Verdeans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, American Indians, Eskimos, and Aleuts.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Mass. Gov. Mandates Nation's First Affirmative Action Program for LGBT Contractors" by Zachary Leshin, CNSNews.com 11/12/15
[Gov. Baker's] executive order was criticized by Brian Camenker, executive director of MassResistance, a Massachusetts-based pro-family activist organization.
“Republican Gov. Charlie Baker's order including homosexual owned businesses in Massachusetts's Supplier Diversity Program is just one more example of our government being used to promote a narrow ideological agenda at the expense of the taxpayers,” Camenker said in response to a question from CNSNews.com asking him for MassResistance’s official position regarding the governor’s executive order.
“Even his far-left predecessor, Deval Patrick, did not go this far,” he added.
“When Baker told the Boston Globe that he was ‘to the left of Barack Obama on social issues’ a lot of people didn’t take him seriously. They certainly do now.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Indiana Law Fights Gay Agenda, then GOP Surrenders
And read America Going to Hell; Christians Lose Convictions
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Bible Verse Gets Georgia Athlete Disqualified
The Georgia High School Association (GHSA) negated the third-place finish of John Green, a senior Wolverine of West Forsyth High School (near Atlanta), in the state cross country championship race because he wore a headband printed with “Isaiah 40:30-31.” Officials said Green's uniform violated a vague and rarely enforced rule, even though they had approved Green's appearance before the race. Green was photographed wearing the same headband in last year's race, yet he was NOT disqualified.
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Atheists Threaten Georgia School for 'Football Baptisms'
Atheists Say Illegal Christianity is 'Rampant' in Georgia Schools
Coach Forced to Stop Praying After Games in Washington
Bible Harmful to Students, Must Ban: Parents Say
-- From "Bible Verse on Headband disqualifies Runner" posted at Valdosta Today (Valdosta, GA) 11/12/15
On Saturday, West Forsyth’s John Green was the third runner out of 226 to cross the finish line in the Class AAAAAA state championship race at Carrollton High School. Soon after collapsing from his effort and offering, as well as receiving, high fives from opponents as they walked by the cool-down tent, Green found out he placed 226th out of 226.
Green was disqualified by GHSA officials for sporting a white, plain head band with “Isaiah 40:30-31” written across the front—the same head band the Forsyth County News has photo evidence of him wearing when he was not disqualified in last year’s state meet.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Green's top 3 finish disqualified for headband with Bible verse deemed logo" by Michael Foster, Forsyth County News 11/11/15
According to West head coach Clayton Tillery and others involved in the West program, two GHSA officials cleared Green’s headband before the race. Then, a third man who was not in an official uniform or credentialed made a comment about the headband at the starting line and walked away.
When I approached GHSA officials on Saturday to discuss the ruling I was told “it was a uniform violation,” but when I asked to see in a GHSA handbook where the rule is I was shooed away.
The GHSA links its cross country handbook, a seven-page document, to its website. There are two pages that discuss uniform protocol. Page 4, titled State Meet Cold Weather Reminders, permits “beanies, toboggans, ear covers” of a single color, as long as they only have “one logo” visible. There is no mention of headbands.
The bigger issue, however, was enforcement. Dozens of runners had headbands on, and, according to Tillery, there were other runners in the race who wore headbands with Bible verses and the like written across them. There was also no manufacturer logo on Green’s headband because last year, Tillery says, he ripped it off. There’s also the glaring issue of the third official not communicating clearly to Green or the coaches.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Teen runner disqualified from state meet -- Was it the Bible verse?" by Todd Starnes, FoxNews.com 11/11/15
“It is hard to understand how an unreadable, inside-out Bible verse is something harmful to our sport and worthy of a post-race disqualification of a student athlete,” Assistant Coach Scott Griffith said in a prepared statement.
“We felt given the race course conditions, that John would not be able to run safely without something to keep his hair out of his face,” Coach Griffith said.
Since two of the race officials had already cleared the headband, they told him to turn it inside out and run the race. And when John crossed the finish line he was summarily disqualified – for breaking a rule that wasn’t on the books.
John had worn the headband since the start of the 2015 season. He also wore the headband at region and sectional meets. At no point was he ever told to take it off.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Georgia School: Learn Islam or Take Lower Grade
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Atheists Threaten Georgia School for 'Football Baptisms'
Atheists Say Illegal Christianity is 'Rampant' in Georgia Schools
Coach Forced to Stop Praying After Games in Washington
Bible Harmful to Students, Must Ban: Parents Say
-- From "Bible Verse on Headband disqualifies Runner" posted at Valdosta Today (Valdosta, GA) 11/12/15
On Saturday, West Forsyth’s John Green was the third runner out of 226 to cross the finish line in the Class AAAAAA state championship race at Carrollton High School. Soon after collapsing from his effort and offering, as well as receiving, high fives from opponents as they walked by the cool-down tent, Green found out he placed 226th out of 226.
Green was disqualified by GHSA officials for sporting a white, plain head band with “Isaiah 40:30-31” written across the front—the same head band the Forsyth County News has photo evidence of him wearing when he was not disqualified in last year’s state meet.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Green's top 3 finish disqualified for headband with Bible verse deemed logo" by Michael Foster, Forsyth County News 11/11/15
According to West head coach Clayton Tillery and others involved in the West program, two GHSA officials cleared Green’s headband before the race. Then, a third man who was not in an official uniform or credentialed made a comment about the headband at the starting line and walked away.
When I approached GHSA officials on Saturday to discuss the ruling I was told “it was a uniform violation,” but when I asked to see in a GHSA handbook where the rule is I was shooed away.
The GHSA links its cross country handbook, a seven-page document, to its website. There are two pages that discuss uniform protocol. Page 4, titled State Meet Cold Weather Reminders, permits “beanies, toboggans, ear covers” of a single color, as long as they only have “one logo” visible. There is no mention of headbands.
The bigger issue, however, was enforcement. Dozens of runners had headbands on, and, according to Tillery, there were other runners in the race who wore headbands with Bible verses and the like written across them. There was also no manufacturer logo on Green’s headband because last year, Tillery says, he ripped it off. There’s also the glaring issue of the third official not communicating clearly to Green or the coaches.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Teen runner disqualified from state meet -- Was it the Bible verse?" by Todd Starnes, FoxNews.com 11/11/15
“It is hard to understand how an unreadable, inside-out Bible verse is something harmful to our sport and worthy of a post-race disqualification of a student athlete,” Assistant Coach Scott Griffith said in a prepared statement.
“We felt given the race course conditions, that John would not be able to run safely without something to keep his hair out of his face,” Coach Griffith said.
Since two of the race officials had already cleared the headband, they told him to turn it inside out and run the race. And when John crossed the finish line he was summarily disqualified – for breaking a rule that wasn’t on the books.
John had worn the headband since the start of the 2015 season. He also wore the headband at region and sectional meets. At no point was he ever told to take it off.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Georgia School: Learn Islam or Take Lower Grade
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Maine Sues Pastor: Preaching Too Loud on Abortion
Maine Attorney General Janet Mills filed a civil rights lawsuit against Lisbon Pastor Brian Ingalls for peacefully preaching a pro-life message outside a Planned Parenthood facility in Portland. Abortionists appealed to the pro-abortion Democrat AG saying that pregnant mothers inside their facility could hear the pastor's concerns about “murdering babies, aborted babies’ blood and Jesus.”
For background, read Court Orders Portland to Pay $56,500 for Muzzling Pro-lifer
-- From "Maine sues anti-abortion protester, claiming he shouts too loud" by Dave Sherwood, Reuters 11/10/15
"All patients have the right to receive medical services free of 'the cacophony of political protests,' in the words of the United States Supreme Court," Mills, a Democrat, said in a statement. "While protesters have every right to say anything they want in a public area in the vicinity of a medical facility, they are not permitted to disrupt another citizen's healthcare services."
Maine law protects the right of any person to receive "safe and effective" medical services without disruptions caused by loud noises.
According to the complaint, police warned Ingalls to keep his voice down so that he would not be heard inside, but he continued yelling anyway.
The lawsuit would prevent Ingalls, a regular protester at the clinic, from coming within 50 feet (15 m) of the facility.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Maine sues Planned Parenthood foe, says he yelled too loudly" by Patrick Whittle, Associated Press 11/11/15
Attorney General Janet Mills filed the complaint against Brian Ingalls, 26, under the state's civil rights act. Mills said he violated the rights of patients at the Portland facility on Oct. 23 when the sound of his voice directed to the second floor disrupted counseling sessions between staff and patients.
Ingalls, of Lisbon, declined to comment when reached by email. His attorney, Erin Kuenzig, said it's a "baseless lawsuit" filed to circumvent a U.S. Supreme Court ruling about protester buffer zones. . . . The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2014 that similar buffer zones in Massachusetts violated free speech rights.
"They're trying to claim that it's some kind of safety concern that he was preaching the Bible on a public sidewalk," Kuenzig said. "Just completely meritless."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "AG accuses man of civil rights violations during Planned Parenthood protest" by Christopher Cousins, Staff, Bangor Daily News 11/10/15
The suit filed in Cumberland County Superior Court alleges that Ingalls frequently is a protester at the Portland Planned Parenthood location and on Oct. 23 “was yelling up toward the second floor of the building at 443 Congress St. about murdering babies, aborted babies’ blood and Jesus.”
Erin Kuenzig is with the Thomas More Law Center, which is representing Ingalls in this suit. She said that Mills’ suit is an attempt to rehash a prior legal battle the law center fought against Portland when the city tried and ultimately failed to implement a 39-foot buffer zone for protests around Planned Parenthood’s Congress Street location.
“The complaint that was filed was completely meritless and just an attempt to circumvent the court ruling issued in October,” Kuenzig said by phone Tuesday. “This is essentially another buffer zone. … It’s clear that Planned Parenthood doesn’t like what Mr. Ingalls is saying, and he’s simply a Christian who is preaching from the Bible.”
Kuenzig said one flaw in the complaint is that there is no guideline about how loud someone can protest.
“There’s no way to judge that,” she said. “This is just another way to try to silence pro-life advocates outside the abortion clinic.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
Pastor's Wife Fined for Praying Too Loud in North Dakota
Christians Arrested for Praying Too Loud Near Chicago Abortion Clinic
Indiana Town Denounces Loud, Praying Christians
Missouri Police Steal Preacher's Amplifier to Shut Him Up
Pastor Arrested in California for Reading Bible in Public
Christian Jailed in Texas for Witnessing on Sidewalk
Buffalo, NY Police Boot Christian from Festival for Talking
Jesus Talk Outlawed in New Orleans, Arrests Made
Preacher Arrested: 'Breach of the Peace' on Street
Virginia Police Halt Bible 'Noise,' Preacher Sues City & Wins
Pastor Wins Free Speech Lawsuit Over California Mall
Police Say Prayer Illegal Outside U.S. Supreme Court Building
Christians Arrested for Praying at Gay Festival
Praying Mother Banned from School Grounds in New Hampshire
For background, read Court Orders Portland to Pay $56,500 for Muzzling Pro-lifer
-- From "Maine sues anti-abortion protester, claiming he shouts too loud" by Dave Sherwood, Reuters 11/10/15
"All patients have the right to receive medical services free of 'the cacophony of political protests,' in the words of the United States Supreme Court," Mills, a Democrat, said in a statement. "While protesters have every right to say anything they want in a public area in the vicinity of a medical facility, they are not permitted to disrupt another citizen's healthcare services."
Maine law protects the right of any person to receive "safe and effective" medical services without disruptions caused by loud noises.
According to the complaint, police warned Ingalls to keep his voice down so that he would not be heard inside, but he continued yelling anyway.
The lawsuit would prevent Ingalls, a regular protester at the clinic, from coming within 50 feet (15 m) of the facility.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Maine sues Planned Parenthood foe, says he yelled too loudly" by Patrick Whittle, Associated Press 11/11/15
Attorney General Janet Mills filed the complaint against Brian Ingalls, 26, under the state's civil rights act. Mills said he violated the rights of patients at the Portland facility on Oct. 23 when the sound of his voice directed to the second floor disrupted counseling sessions between staff and patients.
Ingalls, of Lisbon, declined to comment when reached by email. His attorney, Erin Kuenzig, said it's a "baseless lawsuit" filed to circumvent a U.S. Supreme Court ruling about protester buffer zones. . . . The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2014 that similar buffer zones in Massachusetts violated free speech rights.
"They're trying to claim that it's some kind of safety concern that he was preaching the Bible on a public sidewalk," Kuenzig said. "Just completely meritless."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "AG accuses man of civil rights violations during Planned Parenthood protest" by Christopher Cousins, Staff, Bangor Daily News 11/10/15
The suit filed in Cumberland County Superior Court alleges that Ingalls frequently is a protester at the Portland Planned Parenthood location and on Oct. 23 “was yelling up toward the second floor of the building at 443 Congress St. about murdering babies, aborted babies’ blood and Jesus.”
Erin Kuenzig is with the Thomas More Law Center, which is representing Ingalls in this suit. She said that Mills’ suit is an attempt to rehash a prior legal battle the law center fought against Portland when the city tried and ultimately failed to implement a 39-foot buffer zone for protests around Planned Parenthood’s Congress Street location.
“The complaint that was filed was completely meritless and just an attempt to circumvent the court ruling issued in October,” Kuenzig said by phone Tuesday. “This is essentially another buffer zone. … It’s clear that Planned Parenthood doesn’t like what Mr. Ingalls is saying, and he’s simply a Christian who is preaching from the Bible.”
Kuenzig said one flaw in the complaint is that there is no guideline about how loud someone can protest.
“There’s no way to judge that,” she said. “This is just another way to try to silence pro-life advocates outside the abortion clinic.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
Pastor's Wife Fined for Praying Too Loud in North Dakota
Christians Arrested for Praying Too Loud Near Chicago Abortion Clinic
Indiana Town Denounces Loud, Praying Christians
Missouri Police Steal Preacher's Amplifier to Shut Him Up
Pastor Arrested in California for Reading Bible in Public
Christian Jailed in Texas for Witnessing on Sidewalk
Buffalo, NY Police Boot Christian from Festival for Talking
Jesus Talk Outlawed in New Orleans, Arrests Made
Preacher Arrested: 'Breach of the Peace' on Street
Virginia Police Halt Bible 'Noise,' Preacher Sues City & Wins
Pastor Wins Free Speech Lawsuit Over California Mall
Police Say Prayer Illegal Outside U.S. Supreme Court Building
Christians Arrested for Praying at Gay Festival
Praying Mother Banned from School Grounds in New Hampshire
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Kids' Sexting Arrests — Overreaction, Say Parents
Two 14-year-old boys in Smithtown School District (Long Island, NY) have been arrested because one had sex with an underage girl while the other filmed it and then transmitted it to other kids. The charges against the two boys include a felony for disseminating indecent material to minors as well as a misdemeanor for child abuse. Dozens of students at Kings Park High School have now been suspended for participating in the transmission of this sexually explicit material.
Meanwhile, the sexting epidemic is prompting more education "experts" to advise that sexting doesn't harm kids, but rather what's needed is education in "safe sexting."
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Hundreds of Colorado Students Self-produce Child Porn, Police Say
Sexting Epidemic: Indiana & Illinois Schools, Police Say
Teens Jailed for Child Porn Group Sex Video in Illinois
Teen Students Learn to Produce & Distribute Child Pornography
Also read Education Experts Say: Relax Parents, Sexting is Simply How Kids Flirt Today
-- From "Sexting scandal rocks Long Island" posted at WNYW-TV5 (New York, NY) 11/10/15
Parents of the suspended children are outraged. They say their children cannot control what text messages are sent to them. Some parents have said they would defy the suspensions and send their children to school.
School officials say the [suspended] students will be arrested for trespassing if they show up.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Cellphone sex images lead to arrests of Long Island teens" by Anthony DiLorenzo, WPIX-TV11 (New York, NY) 11/10/15
Suffolk County police said an encounter that occurred off school grounds between a male and female, who knew each other, was recorded on a cellphone by a male acquaintance in late October. Police said the recording was distributed electronically.
Further dissemination of the video may result in criminal charges, police said.
Smithtown School District confirms it is investigating the incident and working with Suffolk County police on the investigation into the allegations that its students were also involved in the sexting.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Massive sexting scandal at Kings Park High School leads to dozens of suspensions, some arrests" by Kristin Thorne, WABC-TV7 (New York, NY) 11/9/15
Andrew Fenton's son is one of dozens of students in the Kings Park Central School District on Long Island who are now suspended for this week for allegedly texting or even viewing a video of another student in a sexually explicit video.
Fenton told Eyewitness News that kids were pulled into the principal's office at Kings Park High last Friday, and 20 parents had a meeting with the principal on Monday morning. Two students have officially been arrested.
"It's impossible to believe that your son could get into trouble because somebody forwarded a video to his phone that he has no control over receiving it," says Fenton.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Parents Say They’ll Risk Arrest, Bring Kids To School After Suspensions In Sexting Case" Posted at WCBS-TV2 (New York, NY) 11/10/15
Thomas Phelan said his 15-year-old son was unfairly dragged into a sexting scandal involving several students at Kings Park High School and William T. Rogers Middle School simply for receiving a text message.
“My son was an unwilling participant because he didn’t give anyone permission or authority to send this over to him,” he said.
“A kid to receive that on their phone, I don’t know how they punish those specific kids because you can’t stop what you receive on your phone.” parent Wayne Davignon told WCBS 880’s Mike Xirinachs.
The school district posted a letter to parents on its website that said: “Possession and/or disseminating of indecent material is illegal. This can be a serious violation of the KCPSD Code of Conduct and a crime, which can result in suspension and/or arrest.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Showdown looms for parents, principal after school casts wide net in sexting scandal" by Cody Derespina, FoxNews.com 11/10/15
At least one of the suspended students attempted to attend class at Kings Park High School on Tuesday morning, but school officials called his father and told him the boy would need to be removed, Newsday reported. The father reluctantly consented and, shortly after 9 a.m., two police officers escorted the boy off the premises.
Distributing obscene images of minors is a felony in New York, and a spokesperson for the Suffolk County Police Department told FoxNews.com that students found to have passed along the sexting images could be arrested.
Any students who attempted to defy the suspension were subject to arrest if the district requested it, a spokesperson for the Suffolk Police Department said. Police maintained a presence at the school on Tuesday morning.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Dear Parents and Guardians" by Timothy T. Eagen, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, Kings Park Central School District 11/9/15
Yes, WE do have a serious problem. However, from my perspective it is that our young people are carrying mini computers in their back pockets that are both unfiltered and largely unsupervised. This is a shared problem, and more than just an issue of one student, one decision, or one suspension.
This is not simply a Kings Park issue, but rather a more global issue. The good news is that this is an issue that we can address together as a community.
Many of our children are using mobile devices and social media in perfectly safe, normal, and educational ways. However, some of our children are engaging in problematic behavior.
The thing that deeply upsets me is that very few, if any, of our students district-wide reported any recent problematic behaviors to an adult. This I find troubling. There is a law on the books called the 911 Good Samaritan Law, where a person cannot be arrested for calling 911 if they are with someone in immediate need of attention. My goal over the next few months is to work with our principals and parents to get the word out that we need our young people to be good citizens and report problematic behavior to an adult. In most cases, no school discipline would result for the reporter/upstander. On the contrary, the young person would certainly be rewarded for helping to make Kings Park a safer place to live and go to school.
To read the entire letter above, CLICK HERE.
From "Schools Can’t Stop Kids From Sexting. More Technology Can." by Jonathan Zimmerman, Sex Educator, New York University (posted at New York Times) 11/10/15
. . . For the past century, we’ve been worrying that new forms of media are fostering sexual immorality in the young. And we’ve called upon our schools to stem the evil tide. . . .
The schools are an easy target, but the wrong one. Public ambivalence about youth sexuality limits what the schools can do, nor do we have strong evidence that schools can affect teenagers’ behavior, in any event. And it’s hardly certain that youth sexting is the dangerous scourge that most adults imagine. . . . nobody has ever shown that the sexting induces kids to engage in riskier behavior. . . .
Many teenagers regard sexting as a normal part of courtship . . . [they] know that it can be perfectly innocuous . . . when a romantic couple shares intimate photos and deletes them right afterward.
. . . So how should we address the issue of sexting? What if we tried to meet the kids where they are? The most promising sex education initiatives right now are text-messaging services, which allow teenagers to submit questions anonymously and receive informed answers. In North Carolina and Texas, these services are operated by public health departments; others are run by organizations like Planned Parenthood. . . .
To read the entire opinion column above, CLICK HERE.
Meanwhile, the sexting epidemic is prompting more education "experts" to advise that sexting doesn't harm kids, but rather what's needed is education in "safe sexting."
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Hundreds of Colorado Students Self-produce Child Porn, Police Say
Sexting Epidemic: Indiana & Illinois Schools, Police Say
Teens Jailed for Child Porn Group Sex Video in Illinois
Teen Students Learn to Produce & Distribute Child Pornography
Also read Education Experts Say: Relax Parents, Sexting is Simply How Kids Flirt Today
-- From "Sexting scandal rocks Long Island" posted at WNYW-TV5 (New York, NY) 11/10/15
Parents of the suspended children are outraged. They say their children cannot control what text messages are sent to them. Some parents have said they would defy the suspensions and send their children to school.
School officials say the [suspended] students will be arrested for trespassing if they show up.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Cellphone sex images lead to arrests of Long Island teens" by Anthony DiLorenzo, WPIX-TV11 (New York, NY) 11/10/15
Suffolk County police said an encounter that occurred off school grounds between a male and female, who knew each other, was recorded on a cellphone by a male acquaintance in late October. Police said the recording was distributed electronically.
Further dissemination of the video may result in criminal charges, police said.
Smithtown School District confirms it is investigating the incident and working with Suffolk County police on the investigation into the allegations that its students were also involved in the sexting.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Massive sexting scandal at Kings Park High School leads to dozens of suspensions, some arrests" by Kristin Thorne, WABC-TV7 (New York, NY) 11/9/15
Andrew Fenton's son is one of dozens of students in the Kings Park Central School District on Long Island who are now suspended for this week for allegedly texting or even viewing a video of another student in a sexually explicit video.
Fenton told Eyewitness News that kids were pulled into the principal's office at Kings Park High last Friday, and 20 parents had a meeting with the principal on Monday morning. Two students have officially been arrested.
"It's impossible to believe that your son could get into trouble because somebody forwarded a video to his phone that he has no control over receiving it," says Fenton.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Parents Say They’ll Risk Arrest, Bring Kids To School After Suspensions In Sexting Case" Posted at WCBS-TV2 (New York, NY) 11/10/15
Thomas Phelan said his 15-year-old son was unfairly dragged into a sexting scandal involving several students at Kings Park High School and William T. Rogers Middle School simply for receiving a text message.
“My son was an unwilling participant because he didn’t give anyone permission or authority to send this over to him,” he said.
“A kid to receive that on their phone, I don’t know how they punish those specific kids because you can’t stop what you receive on your phone.” parent Wayne Davignon told WCBS 880’s Mike Xirinachs.
The school district posted a letter to parents on its website that said: “Possession and/or disseminating of indecent material is illegal. This can be a serious violation of the KCPSD Code of Conduct and a crime, which can result in suspension and/or arrest.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Showdown looms for parents, principal after school casts wide net in sexting scandal" by Cody Derespina, FoxNews.com 11/10/15
At least one of the suspended students attempted to attend class at Kings Park High School on Tuesday morning, but school officials called his father and told him the boy would need to be removed, Newsday reported. The father reluctantly consented and, shortly after 9 a.m., two police officers escorted the boy off the premises.
Distributing obscene images of minors is a felony in New York, and a spokesperson for the Suffolk County Police Department told FoxNews.com that students found to have passed along the sexting images could be arrested.
Any students who attempted to defy the suspension were subject to arrest if the district requested it, a spokesperson for the Suffolk Police Department said. Police maintained a presence at the school on Tuesday morning.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Dear Parents and Guardians" by Timothy T. Eagen, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, Kings Park Central School District 11/9/15
Yes, WE do have a serious problem. However, from my perspective it is that our young people are carrying mini computers in their back pockets that are both unfiltered and largely unsupervised. This is a shared problem, and more than just an issue of one student, one decision, or one suspension.
This is not simply a Kings Park issue, but rather a more global issue. The good news is that this is an issue that we can address together as a community.
Many of our children are using mobile devices and social media in perfectly safe, normal, and educational ways. However, some of our children are engaging in problematic behavior.
The thing that deeply upsets me is that very few, if any, of our students district-wide reported any recent problematic behaviors to an adult. This I find troubling. There is a law on the books called the 911 Good Samaritan Law, where a person cannot be arrested for calling 911 if they are with someone in immediate need of attention. My goal over the next few months is to work with our principals and parents to get the word out that we need our young people to be good citizens and report problematic behavior to an adult. In most cases, no school discipline would result for the reporter/upstander. On the contrary, the young person would certainly be rewarded for helping to make Kings Park a safer place to live and go to school.
To read the entire letter above, CLICK HERE.
From "Schools Can’t Stop Kids From Sexting. More Technology Can." by Jonathan Zimmerman, Sex Educator, New York University (posted at New York Times) 11/10/15
. . . For the past century, we’ve been worrying that new forms of media are fostering sexual immorality in the young. And we’ve called upon our schools to stem the evil tide. . . .
The schools are an easy target, but the wrong one. Public ambivalence about youth sexuality limits what the schools can do, nor do we have strong evidence that schools can affect teenagers’ behavior, in any event. And it’s hardly certain that youth sexting is the dangerous scourge that most adults imagine. . . . nobody has ever shown that the sexting induces kids to engage in riskier behavior. . . .
Many teenagers regard sexting as a normal part of courtship . . . [they] know that it can be perfectly innocuous . . . when a romantic couple shares intimate photos and deletes them right afterward.
. . . So how should we address the issue of sexting? What if we tried to meet the kids where they are? The most promising sex education initiatives right now are text-messaging services, which allow teenagers to submit questions anonymously and receive informed answers. In North Carolina and Texas, these services are operated by public health departments; others are run by organizations like Planned Parenthood. . . .
To read the entire opinion column above, CLICK HERE.
Monday, November 09, 2015
Creators of Life Worshiped — Prizes to Scientists
Disappointed after decades of searching in vain for life beyond Earth, science journalists have turned their focus to proven success in creating life here on Earth through genetic manipulation known as CRISPR-Cas9. Not only are Nobel prizes in the offing, but funding sources have opened up, including from billionaire Bill Gates. Although scientists envision endless possibilities for the potential good, they equally fear the inevitable devastating evil uses of such breakthroughs.
-- From "Gene editing: Research spurs debate over promise vs. ethics" Lauran Neergaard, Medical Writer, Associated Press 10/11/15
Should we change people’s genes in a way that passes traits to future generations? Beyond medicine, what about the environmental effects if, say, altered mosquitoes escape before we know how to use them?
“We need to try to get the balance right,” said University of California, Berkeley, biochemist Jennifer Doudna. She helped develop new gene-editing technology and hears from desperate families, but urges caution in how it’s eventually used in people.
Laboratories worldwide are embracing a technology to precisely edit genes inside living cells — turning them off or on, repairing or modifying them — like a biological version of cut-and-paste software. . . .
“It’s transforming almost every aspect of biology right now,” said National Institutes of Health genomics specialist Shawn Burgess.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Powerful 'Gene Drive' Can Quickly Change An Entire Species" by Rob Stein, WBEZ-NPR (National Public Radio) 11/5/15
[Biologist Ethan] Bier was stunned by what he saw. . . . His student, Valentino Gantz, had found a way to get brown fruit flies to produce blond-looking offspring most of the time.
Turning fruit flies from brown to yellow might not sound like a major achievement. But it was. It showed that scientists had a very fast and easy way to permanently change an entire species.
The drive is a sequence of DNA that can cause a mutation to be inherited by the offspring of an organism with nearly 100 percent efficiency, regardless of whether it's beneficial for that organism's survival.
By combining it with new genetic editing techniques, scientists are able to drive changes they make quickly through an entire species.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Bill Gates on Revolutionary Tech: CRISPR" by Carlos Watson, Yahoo News 11/9/15
The technology Bill Gates is most excited about: Say hello to gene editing!
. . . CRISPR technology, which is changing how we think about genetics and health. CRISPR technology basically allows for gene editing — it’s like a scapel that can cut out harmful mutations and turn genes on and off. The potential applications range from fighting hereditary disease in people to boosting crop yields to engineering cows without horns, so as to obviate a painful dehorning procedure. The ethical implications have barely been sussed out.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Nobel speculation kicks into high gear" by Chris Cesare, Nature 9/24/15
Nobel prize season is approaching, and scientists and other pundits have begun the annual ritual of speculating — with varying degrees of seriousness — about who will win this year’s awards.
The annual predictions by Thomson Reuters, released this year on 24 September, name more women than ever before: four in total. Among the potential laureates for the chemistry prize are Emmanuelle Charpentier of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig, Germany, and Jennifer Doudna of the University of California, Berkeley, who would share the prize for helping to create the CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technique.
If Doudna and Charpentier won, it would be just three years after they published their seminal paper.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "The Gene Hackers" by Michael Specter, The New Yorker 11/9/15 (November 16, 2015 Issue)
CRISPR has two components. The first is essentially a cellular scalpel that cuts DNA. The other consists of RNA, the molecule most often used to transmit biological information throughout the genome. It serves as a guide, leading the scalpel on a search past thousands of genes until it finds and fixes itself to the precise string of nucleotides it needs to cut. . . .
With CRISPR, scientists can change, delete, and replace genes in any animal, including us. . . .
Inevitably, the technology will also permit scientists to correct genetic flaws in human embryos. Any such change, though, would infiltrate the entire genome and eventually be passed down to children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and every subsequent generation. That raises the possibility, more realistically than ever before, that scientists will be able to rewrite the fundamental code of life, with consequences for future generations that we may never be able to anticipate. Vague fears of a dystopian world, full of manufactured humans, long ago became a standard part of any debate about scientific progress. . . .
Developing any technology as complex and widely used as CRISPR invariably involves contributions from many scientists. Patent fights over claims of discovery and licensing rights are common. [Feng] Zhang, the Broad Institute, and M.I.T. are now embroiled in such a dispute with Jennifer Doudna and the University of California; she is a professor of chemistry and of molecular biology at Berkeley. By 2012, Doudna, along with Emmanuelle Charpentier, a medical microbiologist who studies pathogens at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, in Germany, and their lab teams, demonstrated, for the first time, that CRISPR could edit purified DNA. Their paper was published that June. In January of 2013, though, Zhang and George Church, a professor of genetics at both Harvard Medical School and M.I.T., published the first studies demonstrating that CRISPR could be used to edit human cells. Today, patents are generally awarded to the first people to file—in this case, Doudna and Charpentier. But Zhang and the Broad argued that the earlier success with CRISPR had no bearing on whether the technique would work in the complex organisms that matter most to scientists looking for ways to treat and prevent diseases. . . .
CRISPR research is becoming big business: venture-capital firms are competing with one another to invest millions, and any patent holder would have the right to impose licensing fees. Whoever wins stands to make a fortune. Other achievements are also at stake, possibly including a Nobel Prize. . . .
From the moment that manipulating genes became possible, many people, including some of those involved in the experiments, were horrified by the idea of scientists in lab coats rearranging the basic elements of life. . . .
Normally, it takes years for genetic changes to spread through a population. That is because, during sexual reproduction, each of the two versions of any gene has only a fifty per cent chance of being inherited. But a “gene drive”—which is named for its ability to propel genes through populations over many generations—manages to override the traditional rules of genetics. A mutation made by CRISPR on one chromosome can copy itself in every generation, so that nearly all descendants would inherit the change. . . .
While CRISPR will clearly make it possible to alter our DNA, serious risks remain. Jennifer Doudna has been among the most vocal of those calling for caution on what she sees as the inevitable march toward editing human genes. “It’s going to happen,” she told me the first time we met, in her office at Berkeley. “As a research tool, CRISPR could hardly be more valuable—but we are far from the day when it should be used in a clinical setting.” . . .
Until April, the ethical debate over the uses of CRISPR technology in humans was largely theoretical. Then a group at Sun Yat-sen University, in southern China, attempted to repair, in eighty-six human embryos, the gene responsible for betathalassemia, a rare but often fatal blood disorder. If those disease genes, and genes that cause conditions like cystic fibrosis, could be modified successfully in a fertilized egg, the alteration could not only protect a single individual but eventually eliminate the malady from that person’s hereditary lineage. Given enough time, the changes would affect all of humanity. The response to the experiment was largely one of fear and outrage. The Times carried the story under the headline “Chinese Scientists Edit Genes of Human Embryos, Raising Concerns.” . . .
[Doudna] told me that she was constantly amazed by [CRISPR] potential, but when I asked if she had ever wondered whether the powerful new tool might do more harm than good she looked uncomfortable. “I lie in bed almost every night and ask myself that question,” she said. “When I’m ninety, will I look back and be glad about what we have accomplished with this technology? Or will I wish I’d never discovered how it works?”
Her eyes narrowed, and she lowered her voice almost to a whisper. “I have never said this in public, but it will show you where my psyche is,” she said. “I had a dream recently, and in my dream”—she mentioned the name of a leading scientific researcher—“had come to see me and said, ‘I have somebody very powerful with me who I want you to meet, and I want you to explain to him how this technology functions.’ So I said, Sure, who is it? It was Adolf Hitler. I was really horrified, but I went into a room and there was Hitler. He had a pig face and I could only see him from behind and he was taking notes and he said, ‘I want to understand the uses and implications of this amazing technology.’ I woke up in a cold sweat. And that dream has haunted me from that day. Because suppose somebody like Hitler had access to this—we can only imagine the kind of horrible uses he could put it to.”
To read all of the extremely long article above, CLICK HERE.
"The gene drive immediately makes the organisms that carry it have the characteristic, and then secondly it causes them to have all their children have the same characteristic."For background, read Secret Designer Babies via Gene-editing Science and also read Unborn Must Die so Others Can Live, Scientists Say
-- Ethan Bier, Biologist, University of California, San Diego
"If any group or country wanted to develop germ warfare agents, they could use techniques like this. It would be quite straightforward to make new pathogens this way."
-- Stuart Newman, Biologist, New York Medical College
-- From "Gene editing: Research spurs debate over promise vs. ethics" Lauran Neergaard, Medical Writer, Associated Press 10/11/15
Should we change people’s genes in a way that passes traits to future generations? Beyond medicine, what about the environmental effects if, say, altered mosquitoes escape before we know how to use them?
“We need to try to get the balance right,” said University of California, Berkeley, biochemist Jennifer Doudna. She helped develop new gene-editing technology and hears from desperate families, but urges caution in how it’s eventually used in people.
Laboratories worldwide are embracing a technology to precisely edit genes inside living cells — turning them off or on, repairing or modifying them — like a biological version of cut-and-paste software. . . .
“It’s transforming almost every aspect of biology right now,” said National Institutes of Health genomics specialist Shawn Burgess.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Powerful 'Gene Drive' Can Quickly Change An Entire Species" by Rob Stein, WBEZ-NPR (National Public Radio) 11/5/15
[Biologist Ethan] Bier was stunned by what he saw. . . . His student, Valentino Gantz, had found a way to get brown fruit flies to produce blond-looking offspring most of the time.
Turning fruit flies from brown to yellow might not sound like a major achievement. But it was. It showed that scientists had a very fast and easy way to permanently change an entire species.
The drive is a sequence of DNA that can cause a mutation to be inherited by the offspring of an organism with nearly 100 percent efficiency, regardless of whether it's beneficial for that organism's survival.
By combining it with new genetic editing techniques, scientists are able to drive changes they make quickly through an entire species.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Bill Gates on Revolutionary Tech: CRISPR" by Carlos Watson, Yahoo News 11/9/15
The technology Bill Gates is most excited about: Say hello to gene editing!
. . . CRISPR technology, which is changing how we think about genetics and health. CRISPR technology basically allows for gene editing — it’s like a scapel that can cut out harmful mutations and turn genes on and off. The potential applications range from fighting hereditary disease in people to boosting crop yields to engineering cows without horns, so as to obviate a painful dehorning procedure. The ethical implications have barely been sussed out.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Nobel speculation kicks into high gear" by Chris Cesare, Nature 9/24/15
Nobel prize season is approaching, and scientists and other pundits have begun the annual ritual of speculating — with varying degrees of seriousness — about who will win this year’s awards.
The annual predictions by Thomson Reuters, released this year on 24 September, name more women than ever before: four in total. Among the potential laureates for the chemistry prize are Emmanuelle Charpentier of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig, Germany, and Jennifer Doudna of the University of California, Berkeley, who would share the prize for helping to create the CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technique.
If Doudna and Charpentier won, it would be just three years after they published their seminal paper.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "The Gene Hackers" by Michael Specter, The New Yorker 11/9/15 (November 16, 2015 Issue)
CRISPR has two components. The first is essentially a cellular scalpel that cuts DNA. The other consists of RNA, the molecule most often used to transmit biological information throughout the genome. It serves as a guide, leading the scalpel on a search past thousands of genes until it finds and fixes itself to the precise string of nucleotides it needs to cut. . . .
With CRISPR, scientists can change, delete, and replace genes in any animal, including us. . . .
Inevitably, the technology will also permit scientists to correct genetic flaws in human embryos. Any such change, though, would infiltrate the entire genome and eventually be passed down to children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and every subsequent generation. That raises the possibility, more realistically than ever before, that scientists will be able to rewrite the fundamental code of life, with consequences for future generations that we may never be able to anticipate. Vague fears of a dystopian world, full of manufactured humans, long ago became a standard part of any debate about scientific progress. . . .
Developing any technology as complex and widely used as CRISPR invariably involves contributions from many scientists. Patent fights over claims of discovery and licensing rights are common. [Feng] Zhang, the Broad Institute, and M.I.T. are now embroiled in such a dispute with Jennifer Doudna and the University of California; she is a professor of chemistry and of molecular biology at Berkeley. By 2012, Doudna, along with Emmanuelle Charpentier, a medical microbiologist who studies pathogens at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, in Germany, and their lab teams, demonstrated, for the first time, that CRISPR could edit purified DNA. Their paper was published that June. In January of 2013, though, Zhang and George Church, a professor of genetics at both Harvard Medical School and M.I.T., published the first studies demonstrating that CRISPR could be used to edit human cells. Today, patents are generally awarded to the first people to file—in this case, Doudna and Charpentier. But Zhang and the Broad argued that the earlier success with CRISPR had no bearing on whether the technique would work in the complex organisms that matter most to scientists looking for ways to treat and prevent diseases. . . .
CRISPR research is becoming big business: venture-capital firms are competing with one another to invest millions, and any patent holder would have the right to impose licensing fees. Whoever wins stands to make a fortune. Other achievements are also at stake, possibly including a Nobel Prize. . . .
From the moment that manipulating genes became possible, many people, including some of those involved in the experiments, were horrified by the idea of scientists in lab coats rearranging the basic elements of life. . . .
Normally, it takes years for genetic changes to spread through a population. That is because, during sexual reproduction, each of the two versions of any gene has only a fifty per cent chance of being inherited. But a “gene drive”—which is named for its ability to propel genes through populations over many generations—manages to override the traditional rules of genetics. A mutation made by CRISPR on one chromosome can copy itself in every generation, so that nearly all descendants would inherit the change. . . .
While CRISPR will clearly make it possible to alter our DNA, serious risks remain. Jennifer Doudna has been among the most vocal of those calling for caution on what she sees as the inevitable march toward editing human genes. “It’s going to happen,” she told me the first time we met, in her office at Berkeley. “As a research tool, CRISPR could hardly be more valuable—but we are far from the day when it should be used in a clinical setting.” . . .
Until April, the ethical debate over the uses of CRISPR technology in humans was largely theoretical. Then a group at Sun Yat-sen University, in southern China, attempted to repair, in eighty-six human embryos, the gene responsible for betathalassemia, a rare but often fatal blood disorder. If those disease genes, and genes that cause conditions like cystic fibrosis, could be modified successfully in a fertilized egg, the alteration could not only protect a single individual but eventually eliminate the malady from that person’s hereditary lineage. Given enough time, the changes would affect all of humanity. The response to the experiment was largely one of fear and outrage. The Times carried the story under the headline “Chinese Scientists Edit Genes of Human Embryos, Raising Concerns.” . . .
[Doudna] told me that she was constantly amazed by [CRISPR] potential, but when I asked if she had ever wondered whether the powerful new tool might do more harm than good she looked uncomfortable. “I lie in bed almost every night and ask myself that question,” she said. “When I’m ninety, will I look back and be glad about what we have accomplished with this technology? Or will I wish I’d never discovered how it works?”
Her eyes narrowed, and she lowered her voice almost to a whisper. “I have never said this in public, but it will show you where my psyche is,” she said. “I had a dream recently, and in my dream”—she mentioned the name of a leading scientific researcher—“had come to see me and said, ‘I have somebody very powerful with me who I want you to meet, and I want you to explain to him how this technology functions.’ So I said, Sure, who is it? It was Adolf Hitler. I was really horrified, but I went into a room and there was Hitler. He had a pig face and I could only see him from behind and he was taking notes and he said, ‘I want to understand the uses and implications of this amazing technology.’ I woke up in a cold sweat. And that dream has haunted me from that day. Because suppose somebody like Hitler had access to this—we can only imagine the kind of horrible uses he could put it to.”
To read all of the extremely long article above, CLICK HERE.
Sunday, November 08, 2015
'Gay Dads' Get Christians Fired over Pretend Son
Madeline Kirksey, a daycare manager at the Childrens’ Lighthouse Learning Center in Katy, Texas, and another worker were fired for refusing to encourage a sexually confused 6-year-old girl to believe that she's a boy simply because her homosexual "parents" want their daughter to be a son.
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
Kindergartners Taught Sex Change in Maine School
Secret Government-Paid Child Sex Change Surgery in Oregon
San Antonio Gay Agenda Ordinance Bans Christian Workers
ACLU Sues Christians for Refusing 'Gay Marriage'
Also read President Obama Demands Transgender Communal Nudity — Illinois School Balks
-- From "Katy Transgender Child Sparks Debate" by Cliff Saunders posted at KTRH-AM740 (Houston, TX) 11/6/15
One of the workers, Madeline Kirksey, went public with her concerns for the child that is being raised by a gay couple.
“I don’t think that we should be talking to other people’s children that are under the age of 18, about transgender,” Kirksey said.
“One day she wanted to be a girl. The next day she wanted to be a boy,” Kirksey explained.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Did school fire 2 for concerns about 6-year-old transgender child?" posted at FoxNews.com 11/4/15
Two staff members say they were fired from a Texas school when voicing concerns after being told last week to refer to a 6-year-old girl by a new name and start acting like she was a boy.
School administrators allegedly handed out a “common sense” set of guidelines for “How to Handle Transgender Students” to the staff, according to a document viewed by FOX26. The “mini-guide for teachers” suggested steps such as “Accord them the same respect you wish for yourself,” “Help defend their dignity” and “Educate yourself and your students.” One section begins, “Like the first black student in a white school 30 years ago, the transgender student today faces a population that finds them strange and frightening.”
Kirksey said she advocated talking to parents about the directive, and shortly thereafter she was fired from her position as a manager.
A teacher at the learning center also said she was fired for voicing her concerns.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Workers fired for raising concerns about transgender student Children's Lighthouse Learning Center" by Damali Keith, KRIV-TV26 (Houston, TX) 11/4/15
“It caused confusion,” says one employee. At Children’s Lighthouse Learning Center on Clay Road in Katy, Madeline Kirksey says last week she and her staff were told a six-year-old student is transgender. According to Kirksey, the child's parents cut the girl's hair short and Children’s Lighthouse Learning Center workers were instructed to start calling the girl a boy and by a boy's name.
After insisting on notifying parents regarding the transgender 6-year-old student at Children’s Lighthouse Learning Center, Kirksey says she was fired. The termination letter includes claims that she failed to tell a worker to leave a game room and "When requested by parent and management to call a transgender child by the child's new name, Madeline does not follow instructions."
"I said, ‘this is what this whole thing (firing) is about?' So she said, 'We'll scratch that off,' and that’s when she scratched off the line about the transgender child and wrote her initials by it,” explains Kirksey.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Christian Daycare Worker Refuses To Call Transgender 6-Year-Old A Boy. Now She’s Paying The Price" by B. Christopher Agee, Western Journalism 11/6/15
. . . After explaining that the girl often changes her own mind regarding which name she preferred, that point was removed from the letter. Her termination still stood, though, reportedly because she notified others of her concerns.
This, Kirksey determined, was not only inappropriate but contrary to her beliefs.
She said the aforementioned colleague echoed her concerns, leading them both to decline the order. Their decision, Kirksey said, earned them both a pink slip.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Houston Lesbian Mayor's Transgender/Gay Agenda Defeated by Voters
“One day, she wanted to be a girl, the next day she wanted to be a boy. The other kids are confused as well, calling her a boy and she would start screaming, 'I'm not a boy!'”For background, read how Parents and Schools are to Blame for Kids' Transgenderism, which is a 'Delusion' According to the Victims and Professionals
-- Madeline Kirksey
Click headlines below to read previous articles:
Kindergartners Taught Sex Change in Maine School
Secret Government-Paid Child Sex Change Surgery in Oregon
San Antonio Gay Agenda Ordinance Bans Christian Workers
ACLU Sues Christians for Refusing 'Gay Marriage'
Also read President Obama Demands Transgender Communal Nudity — Illinois School Balks
-- From "Katy Transgender Child Sparks Debate" by Cliff Saunders posted at KTRH-AM740 (Houston, TX) 11/6/15
One of the workers, Madeline Kirksey, went public with her concerns for the child that is being raised by a gay couple.
“I don’t think that we should be talking to other people’s children that are under the age of 18, about transgender,” Kirksey said.
“One day she wanted to be a girl. The next day she wanted to be a boy,” Kirksey explained.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Did school fire 2 for concerns about 6-year-old transgender child?" posted at FoxNews.com 11/4/15
Two staff members say they were fired from a Texas school when voicing concerns after being told last week to refer to a 6-year-old girl by a new name and start acting like she was a boy.
School administrators allegedly handed out a “common sense” set of guidelines for “How to Handle Transgender Students” to the staff, according to a document viewed by FOX26. The “mini-guide for teachers” suggested steps such as “Accord them the same respect you wish for yourself,” “Help defend their dignity” and “Educate yourself and your students.” One section begins, “Like the first black student in a white school 30 years ago, the transgender student today faces a population that finds them strange and frightening.”
Kirksey said she advocated talking to parents about the directive, and shortly thereafter she was fired from her position as a manager.
A teacher at the learning center also said she was fired for voicing her concerns.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Workers fired for raising concerns about transgender student Children's Lighthouse Learning Center" by Damali Keith, KRIV-TV26 (Houston, TX) 11/4/15
“It caused confusion,” says one employee. At Children’s Lighthouse Learning Center on Clay Road in Katy, Madeline Kirksey says last week she and her staff were told a six-year-old student is transgender. According to Kirksey, the child's parents cut the girl's hair short and Children’s Lighthouse Learning Center workers were instructed to start calling the girl a boy and by a boy's name.
After insisting on notifying parents regarding the transgender 6-year-old student at Children’s Lighthouse Learning Center, Kirksey says she was fired. The termination letter includes claims that she failed to tell a worker to leave a game room and "When requested by parent and management to call a transgender child by the child's new name, Madeline does not follow instructions."
"I said, ‘this is what this whole thing (firing) is about?' So she said, 'We'll scratch that off,' and that’s when she scratched off the line about the transgender child and wrote her initials by it,” explains Kirksey.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Christian Daycare Worker Refuses To Call Transgender 6-Year-Old A Boy. Now She’s Paying The Price" by B. Christopher Agee, Western Journalism 11/6/15
. . . After explaining that the girl often changes her own mind regarding which name she preferred, that point was removed from the letter. Her termination still stood, though, reportedly because she notified others of her concerns.
This, Kirksey determined, was not only inappropriate but contrary to her beliefs.
She said the aforementioned colleague echoed her concerns, leading them both to decline the order. Their decision, Kirksey said, earned them both a pink slip.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Houston Lesbian Mayor's Transgender/Gay Agenda Defeated by Voters
Saturday, November 07, 2015
N. Dakota Bans Prayer at Catholic School Football
Prayers will be heard over the PA system today, just like every other football day at Shanley High School, a Catholic school in Fargo, North Dakota where an emblematic Christian cross is displayed on the 50-yard line, despite a prayer ban by the state sports association claiming that prayer is illegal when the Catholic players compete on their own field during a playoff game.
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Football Coach Forced to Stop Praying After Games in Washington
Arizona Schools Ban Christian Football Coaches
Atheists Threaten Georgia School for 'Football Baptisms'
Also read North Carolina Citizens Demand Prayer in Public School
And read North Dakota Pastor's Wife Fined for Praying Too Loud
-- From "Law firm wants school association to suspend prayer ban" by The Associated Press 11/7/15
A non-profit law firm has asked the North Dakota State High School Activities Association [NDHSAA] to suspend its ban on prayer during a football playoff game at Fargo Shanley High School.
KFGO says attorney Peter Breen of the Thomas More Society in Chicago is representing Shanley High School. Breen says he thinks the policy may be unconstitutional.
Breen says the Supreme Court has ruled it's unconstitutional to require private schools to give up their religious identity in order to participate in government sponsored programs.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Attorneys for Shanley High School say ban on prayer at playoff games is unconstitutional" by Grace Lyden, WDAY-TV6 (Fargo, ND) 11/6/15
"Shanley is not a governmental actor. It is a private school, with a religious identity," the [Thomas More Society] letter stated. "When it hosts sports events, it does so as a private actor, and its religious expression cannot legitimately be characterized as that of the state.
"It's played at their facility, but it is a postseason game," [NDHSAA] assistant director Justin Fletschock said. "The postseason contests are controlled by high school activities association."
"This 'sponsorship' is illusory; in all material respects, Shanley will be hosting the game exactly as it does in the regular season — it will, for example, run ticket sales, organize and sell concessions, provide an announcer to announce the game, and provide down markers," the letter from Peter Breen and Jocelyn Floyd said.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "North Dakota Officials Urged to Reverse Ban on Prayer at Catholic School Football Game" posted at Thomas More Society 11/6/15
“The Constitution doesn’t require the State of North Dakota to police pre-game prayers at Christian and Catholic high schools,” said Peter Breen, Thomas More Society Special Counsel. “People of faith don’t give up their freedoms of speech and religion just because they are engaged in state-sponsored sporting events. We urge the Activities Association to allow member schools with faith traditions to express their faith during post-season games, just as they do during the regular season.”
Shanley has led a prayer at its school football stadium before each of its regular season games, but it is prohibited Association policy from leading a prayer before the playoff game, as Association representatives have claimed that such a prayer would violate the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution.
The religious identity of the hosting school will be unquestionable, as all attendees will also be “looking down on a massive Christian cross, featured in the Shanley crest, which is emblazoned in the center of the field at the fifty-yard line.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Catholic High School Football Program Banned From Praying Plans To Defy Rule" by Casey Harper, Daily Caller 11/6/15
. . . now that it is playoff time, the school says the [NDHSAA] association specifically told them they were not allowed to pray at Saturday’s game, which will be held at Shanley High’s field.
Shanley High School has teamed up with the Thomas More Society, a religious liberty legal group, and intends to defy the rule. The school sent a letter to the association Friday informing them of their intention to disobey, and that letter was provided to The Daily Caller News Foundation.
Shanley High School argues in the letter they are clearly a religious institution not subject to separation of church and state requirements.
While the association says allowing the prayers would violate the Establishement Clause as an official endorsement of religion, the school argues that actually denying the right to pray is the real violation of the First Amendment.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Ban on prayer at playoff games is unconstitutional, attorneys for Shanley High School say" by Grace Lyden, INFORUM (Fargo, ND) 11/6/15
Association leaders say [the prayer ban has] been the case during playoff season for 15 years. Although private schools are allowed to broadcast prayers before regular-season home games, playoff games are technically hosted by the association, which is public.
In previous postseason games held at Shanley, the school has skipped its usual prayer, said Michael Smith, superintendent of the Saint John Paul II Catholic Schools Network.
But for several years, administrators have started to wonder whether that’s right.
“We really wanted to make a formal request to the high school association and let them know there is a different perspective, and we wanted to hear their take on that,” Smith said.
Smith said Shanley has prayers before all of the school’s home events. At its football game against Central Cass three weeks ago, the Rev. Charles LaCroix led the crowd in prayer.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Deny God, or Fail, Texas Teacher Tells Students
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
Football Coach Forced to Stop Praying After Games in Washington
Arizona Schools Ban Christian Football Coaches
Atheists Threaten Georgia School for 'Football Baptisms'
Also read North Carolina Citizens Demand Prayer in Public School
And read North Dakota Pastor's Wife Fined for Praying Too Loud
-- From "Law firm wants school association to suspend prayer ban" by The Associated Press 11/7/15
A non-profit law firm has asked the North Dakota State High School Activities Association [NDHSAA] to suspend its ban on prayer during a football playoff game at Fargo Shanley High School.
KFGO says attorney Peter Breen of the Thomas More Society in Chicago is representing Shanley High School. Breen says he thinks the policy may be unconstitutional.
Breen says the Supreme Court has ruled it's unconstitutional to require private schools to give up their religious identity in order to participate in government sponsored programs.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Attorneys for Shanley High School say ban on prayer at playoff games is unconstitutional" by Grace Lyden, WDAY-TV6 (Fargo, ND) 11/6/15
"Shanley is not a governmental actor. It is a private school, with a religious identity," the [Thomas More Society] letter stated. "When it hosts sports events, it does so as a private actor, and its religious expression cannot legitimately be characterized as that of the state.
"It's played at their facility, but it is a postseason game," [NDHSAA] assistant director Justin Fletschock said. "The postseason contests are controlled by high school activities association."
"This 'sponsorship' is illusory; in all material respects, Shanley will be hosting the game exactly as it does in the regular season — it will, for example, run ticket sales, organize and sell concessions, provide an announcer to announce the game, and provide down markers," the letter from Peter Breen and Jocelyn Floyd said.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "North Dakota Officials Urged to Reverse Ban on Prayer at Catholic School Football Game" posted at Thomas More Society 11/6/15
“The Constitution doesn’t require the State of North Dakota to police pre-game prayers at Christian and Catholic high schools,” said Peter Breen, Thomas More Society Special Counsel. “People of faith don’t give up their freedoms of speech and religion just because they are engaged in state-sponsored sporting events. We urge the Activities Association to allow member schools with faith traditions to express their faith during post-season games, just as they do during the regular season.”
Shanley has led a prayer at its school football stadium before each of its regular season games, but it is prohibited Association policy from leading a prayer before the playoff game, as Association representatives have claimed that such a prayer would violate the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution.
The religious identity of the hosting school will be unquestionable, as all attendees will also be “looking down on a massive Christian cross, featured in the Shanley crest, which is emblazoned in the center of the field at the fifty-yard line.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Catholic High School Football Program Banned From Praying Plans To Defy Rule" by Casey Harper, Daily Caller 11/6/15
. . . now that it is playoff time, the school says the [NDHSAA] association specifically told them they were not allowed to pray at Saturday’s game, which will be held at Shanley High’s field.
Shanley High School has teamed up with the Thomas More Society, a religious liberty legal group, and intends to defy the rule. The school sent a letter to the association Friday informing them of their intention to disobey, and that letter was provided to The Daily Caller News Foundation.
Shanley High School argues in the letter they are clearly a religious institution not subject to separation of church and state requirements.
While the association says allowing the prayers would violate the Establishement Clause as an official endorsement of religion, the school argues that actually denying the right to pray is the real violation of the First Amendment.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Ban on prayer at playoff games is unconstitutional, attorneys for Shanley High School say" by Grace Lyden, INFORUM (Fargo, ND) 11/6/15
Association leaders say [the prayer ban has] been the case during playoff season for 15 years. Although private schools are allowed to broadcast prayers before regular-season home games, playoff games are technically hosted by the association, which is public.
In previous postseason games held at Shanley, the school has skipped its usual prayer, said Michael Smith, superintendent of the Saint John Paul II Catholic Schools Network.
But for several years, administrators have started to wonder whether that’s right.
“We really wanted to make a formal request to the high school association and let them know there is a different perspective, and we wanted to hear their take on that,” Smith said.
Smith said Shanley has prayers before all of the school’s home events. At its football game against Central Cass three weeks ago, the Rev. Charles LaCroix led the crowd in prayer.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Deny God, or Fail, Texas Teacher Tells Students
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