Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Just Another Public Sex Fest in San Fran.

The Folsom Street Fair and the recent "Up Your Alley" event makes public nudity and sex commonplace in America's Sodom City.

-- From "Street festival condemned for public sex acts" © 2008 WorldNetDaily 9/29/08

The 2008 Folsom Street Fair sex festival has completed another run in U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's district in San Francisco, and the local Chronicle newspaper described it this way: "There were naked people selling bondage gear and naked people seeking support for measures on the Nov. 4 ballot. There were naked people with cameras, taking pictures of other naked people. One man wore only an 11-foot Burmese python, which curled around his waist."

A number of Christian organizations, however, were led by Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth in condemning the scene on the city's public streets as depraved.

The festival, which celebrates deviant sex, including homosexual activities, has turned in recent years into a daylong showing of nudity and public sex acts with promotions of the unnatural and pornographic – all on the public streets of San Francisco with formal approval from Newsom.

. . . websites, to which WND is unable to link because of their graphic, XXX-rated content, published explicit photographs of various public acts of sex and nudity. The sites documented the festival's inclusion of oral and anal sex between men and men urinating on each other for pleasure.

Linda Harvey of Mission America described the event as a "massive pagan pansexual street party, complete with instances of full nudity, homosexuality, and crowds gathered around people being whipped for sado-masochistic pleasure."

"How Mayor Newsom and Nancy Pelosi can allow this in the city they represent is beyond all understanding," she said. "It truly seemed like the beginning of the end of civilization."

"It's outrageous that this is happening in the streets of a major city," she said. "Police stood by and did nothing to stop the nudity and of course, did nothing to prevent these whippings."

Liberty Counsel issued a statement calling for enforcement of the state's decency laws.

"During this event, fully nude men walk the public streets engaging [in] some of the vilest acts in broad daylight. Some parents even bring their children!" the group said.

"History has shown that California is a very influential state. If this illegal activity is not stopped, this debauchery may soon come to a town near you," Liberty Counsel said.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Arizona Tries Again to Protect Marriage

For the second time in two years, Arizonans will be asked to change the state Constitution to define marriage as a union of one man and one woman.

-- From "Marriage definition returns to Ariz. ballot" by Mary Jo Pitzl, The Arizona Republic 9/28/08

Three states - Arizona, California and Florida - have a marriage amendment on the Nov. 4 ballot.

In 2006, Arizona voters narrowly rejected a constitutional amendment that contained the one-man/one-woman definition of marriage, as well as a provision that would have prohibited government agencies from providing benefits to domestic partners.

That vote gave Arizona the distinction of being the only state in the nation to reject a constitutional amendment defining marriage. Twenty-five states have amendments that bar same-sex marriage.

This time, the [Arizona] measure is not weighted down with multiple clauses and provisions. Proposition 102 is 20 words long.

. . . Without a constitutional guarantee, a court in the future could follow in the steps of a California judge who last spring ruled that the state's one-man/one-woman marriage law was unconstitutional. The ruling touched off a series of same-sex marriages.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Monday, September 29, 2008

Atheists Sue School for Espousing a Moral Foundation

School advocates a "caring school climate," which atheists claim ties school to Jesus' teaching in Mark 9:37.

-- From "Atheists' group amends suit over school civics program" by Electa Draper, The Denver Post 9/26/2008

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is suing the Cherry Creek School District over a civics program that the foundation links to a Lutheran Scripture-based code of conduct.

The 40 Developmental Assets urge students to, among other things, spend an hour or more a week in religious community. This, the foundation alleges, is using taxpayer dollars to promote religious values.

For example, Asset 5, advocating a "caring school climate," is related by the institute to Jesus' teaching in Mark 9:37: "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name, welcomes me."

Although the school district doesn't disseminate the scriptural references underlying the program, foundation attorney Bob Tiernan said, the schools are still advancing the religious values of a specific sect.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Transgender Exposure on TV Rising

Having established homosexual representation on TV, sexual revolutionaries' efforts turn to transsexuals.

-- From "Transgender Contestant a First on ‘America’s Next Top Model’" by Gillian Gaynair, Associated Press, 9/23/08

As a little boy in the Washington suburbs, Darrell Walls liked to pretend to be Lil' Kim or a Pink Power Ranger.

He felt different - like a girl mistakenly born a boy.

But Walls eventually embraced that difference and today is living true, as Isis King. Now 22, King is the first transgender contestant on "America's Next Top Model," the CW Television Network reality show hosted by super model Tyra Banks.

"I'm just trying to be myself," King said during a telephone interview last week. "If I inspire people, that's a wonderful thing - whether you're trans or not."

While the number of transgender representations on television remains small, activists say in recent years they have seen a movement away from stereotypical roles such as transgender sex workers or villains. Now, the roles are not as marginalized - and some are even portrayed by transgender actors.

"When audiences see real gay and transgender people facing many of the same ups and downs as everybody else, it helps to change perceptions and break down stereotypes," Neil G. Giuliano, president of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, said in an e-mail. "The casting of Isis on such a popular show offers a groundbreaking opportunity for a community that is historically underrepresented on television."

Viewers are also getting glimpses of how she's transitioning from man to woman. A recent episode, for example, shows her injecting female hormones. King began the treatments last year and wants to have the expensive surgery - not undertaken by all transgender people - by her 25th birthday.

The entire article is a MUST READ.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

New Legislation Against Eugenic Abortion

Pro-life advocates announce legislation to prohibit knowingly performing or financing abortions based on the race or gender of the unborn child.

E-mail your congressman to support this bill (IL residents)

-- From "Civil Rights Leaders and Conservatives Seek to Outlaw Race-Based Abortion" by Penny Starr, Senior Staff Writer CNSNews 9/24/08

“We gather here today because we still have not reached that high place where the light of God’s freedom shines on the face of every last one of these children,” said Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), sponsor of the Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act.

Franks, the ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, joined with other participants at the press conference in pointing out that abortion disproportionately affects the black community. Thirty-six percent of abortions, they noted, are performed on black women, while blacks only make up 13 percent of the population.

Steve Mosher, president of the Population Research Institute, said there is mounting evidence that sex-selection abortions--which have resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of female babies in China where there is a one-child-per-couple population-control policy--are now becoming more common in the U.S.

“This is an issue that grieves the heart of America and I believe it grieves the heart of God,” said Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.), who also attended the press conference. “This Congress condemned China for sex selection, but at the same time our country has no law prohibiting sex selective abortion.

Several pro-life activists from the black community, including Dr. Alveda King (niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.), spoke at the conference about how Planned Parenthood has targeted minorities by putting clinics in low-income neighborhoods. They also cited the acceptance of donations earmarked for the aborting of black babies by some Planned Parenthood representatives, as reported by a student publication at the University of California at Los Angeles.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Dr. Alveda King, niece of the late civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., says Planned Parenthood gave her “bad advice, bad counsel, and lied” about her abortion, even though the organization was “supposed to be my health provider,” she said.

Decent Americans Defeat Planned Parenthood

Pro-family advocates Tuesday celebrated the news that Planned Parenthood Columbia-Willamette took down the videos on the lewd TakeCareDownThere.com web site that was first launched in July.

-- From "Pornographic Planned Parenthood Videos Taken Off Site after Protests" posted at LifeSiteNews.com 9/24/08

[American Life League president Judie Brown said,] "Planned Parenthood finally pushed the envelope past the point of tolerance. Every person concerned with the health and wellbeing of our children should have been outraged by this blatant attempt to sexualize kids. It appears the roar of just anger over this Planned Parenthood filth was so great, Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion chain had to shut it down. This is truly a great day."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Friday, September 26, 2008

Liberal Media Minimize Pastors' Freedom to Preach

Defying a federal tax law they consider unjust, 33 ministers across the country will take to their pulpits this Sunday and publicly endorse a candidate for president.

-- From "Ministers to Defy I.R.S. by Endorsing Candidates" by Laurie Goodstein, New York Times 9/26/08

They plan to then send copies of their sermons to the Internal Revenue Service, hoping to provoke a challenge to a law that bars religious organizations and other nonprofits that accept tax-deductible contributions from involvement in partisan political campaigns.

The protest, called Pulpit Freedom Sunday, was organized by the Alliance Defense Fund, a consortium of Christian lawyers that fights for conservative religious and social causes. When the fund first announced the protest this year, it said it planned to have 50 ministers taking part. As of Thursday it said it had hundreds of volunteers, but had selected only 33 who were fully aware of the risks and benefits.

The fund provides legal support for religious conservatives who have long felt aggrieved at what they say are limits on their religious expression.

Erik Stanley, senior legal counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, said: “This is not something these churches want to do in secrecy and hiding. In fact, they don’t believe they’re doing anything wrong. They don’t believe they’re violating the law.

“What they’re doing is talking to their congregations about biblical issues related to candidates and elections, and they believe they have the constitutional right to do that.”

In the last decade, church politicking has drawn increasing scrutiny. Organizations like Americans United for Separation of Church and State have made a show of reporting churches to the I.R.S. to deter transgressors.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

If you want to read liberals' opinions about the danger of allowing church leaders to speak freely, then CLICK HERE (L.A. Times), or CLICK HERE (N.Y. Times), or CLICK HERE (Boston Globe) . . .

Gay Agenda on Parade in Prime-Time TV

Broadcast television will have 16 gay and bisexual regular characters in prime-time series this fall, more than double the seven of a year ago, a new study has found.

-- From "Study: Series TV showing more gays, lesbians" by Associated Press 9/23/08

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation said it was a positive sign of networks making their shows more representative, although more work needed to be done. These characters accounted for 2.6 percent of all the regular characters in TV series, up from 1.1 percent last year and 1.3 percent in 2006, according to the study, released Monday.

"As the networks gradually add characters from all backgrounds and all walks of life to prime-time programming, more and more Americans are seeing their LGBT friends and neighbors reflected on the small screen," [GLAAD President Neil] Giuliano said.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Chaplain Promises Students Credit to Campaign for Obama

University of Massachusetts at Amherst confirmed as liberal bastion

-- From "Political lesson for UMass chaplain" posted at Boston.com 9/23/08

News that a UMass chaplain had urged students to campaign for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama - and told them volunteering could earn them course credit - ricocheted through the political blogosphere yesterday, an immediate flashpoint for conservatives who rail against the school as a liberal bastion.

In an e-mail to students last week, chaplain Kent Higgins told students they could earn two independent study credits if they campaigned for Obama in New Hampshire, the Associated Press reported yesterday.

"If you're scared about the prospects for this election, you're not alone," Higgins wrote. "The most important way to make a difference in the outcome is to activate yourself. It would be just fine with [Republican candidate John] McCain if Obama supporters just think about helping, then sleep in and stay home between now and Election Day."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Study: Parental Involvement Reduces Teen Abortion

There’s solid evidence that well-designed laws can protect mothers and their unborn children.

-- From "A Parental-Involvement Opportunity" by Michael J. New, University of Alabama, posted at National Review Online 9/16/08

[Parental-involvement] laws enjoy broad support and unlike other laws limiting abortion, they can be easily justified as a parental-rights issue. Furthermore, my recent study for the Family Research Council provides evidence that well designed parental-involvement laws have been surprisingly effective at reducing abortion rates among minors.

Indeed, there are a number of academic and policy studies which demonstrate the effectiveness of pro-life parental-involvement laws. Four studies in peer-reviewed academic journals use time-series, cross-sectional data to simultaneously analyze all the enacted pro-life parental-involvement laws over an extended period of time. These studies find that these pieces of legislation reduce the in-state minor abortion rate by anywhere from 13 to 19 percent. Case studies of parental-involvement laws that have been enacted in Massachusetts, Indiana, Missouri, and Minnesota arrive at similar conclusions about the effects of parental-involvement laws.

However, the best case study of a pro-life parental-involvement law appeared in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2006. This study analyzed the Texas parental-notification law that took effect in 2000. The authors found that the law resulted in statistically significant declines in the abortion rate in Texas among 15-year-olds, 16-year-olds, and 17-year-olds. Now the authors did find some evidence that some 17-year-olds were able to circumvent the law by waiting until their 18th birthday to have an abortion. However, they found little evidence that Texas minors were circumventing the law by obtaining abortions in neighboring states.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Abortion Rate Drops - Mostly Older Women Now

The face of women who have abortions has shifted significantly in the past 30 years, with relatively fewer white childless teenagers and more mothers of color in their 20s and 30s opting to terminate their pregnancies, according to a report being released today.

-- From "Study Finds Major Shift in Abortion Demographics" by Rob Stein, Washington Post Staff Writer 9/23/08

In the first comprehensive analysis since 1974 of demographic characteristics of women who have abortions, researchers found that the overall drop in the abortion rate has been marked by a dramatic shift, declining more among white women and teenagers than among black and Hispanic and older women.

The analysis confirmed previous reports that the abortion rate fell to the lowest level since 1974, dropping 33 percent from a peak of 29 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 in 1980 to 20 per 1,000 in 2004.

During that period, the proportion of abortions obtained by women younger than 20 dropped steadily, falling from 33 percent in 1974 to 17 percent in 2004. For those younger than 18, it fell from 15 percent of all abortions in 1974 to 6 percent in 2004. At the same time, the proportion of abortions obtained by women in their 20s increased from 50 percent to 57 percent, and the share done for women age 30 and older rose from 18 percent to 27 percent.

In 2004, there were 10.5 abortions per 1,000 white women ages 15 to 44, compared with 28 per 1,000 Hispanic women of that age and 50 per 1,000 black women. That translates into approximately 1 percent of white women having an abortion in 2004, compared with 3 percent of Hispanic women and 5 percent of black women. Jones attributed that to the focus on reducing teenage pregnancy and on increasing contraceptive use.

The proportion of all abortions performed for white women decreased from 45 percent in 1994 to 34 percent in 2004, while the proportion for Hispanics increased from 16 percent to 22 percent and the proportion for black women rose from 35 percent to 37 percent.

The proportion of all abortions performed for women who already had a child increased from 46 percent in 1974 to 60 percent in 2004 . . .

Michael J. New, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Alabama who works with the Family Research Council, attributed the drop in teenage pregnancies to a combination of factors, including increased contraceptive use, more teenagers delaying sex and state laws requiring parental consent.

"The states with the most active pro-life laws have seen the biggest abortion declines," he said.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Archbishop: Abortion Law would Close Catholic Hospitals

The Roman Catholic Church in Australia is playing hardball with the legislature by threatening to close Catholic hospital wards if a new abortion measure becomes law.

-- From "Support for abortion bill looking shaky" posted at The Age 9/23/08

Victoria's controversial abortion legislation is at risk of being defeated in the upper house after the Catholic Church threatened to close some hospital wards if the bill is passed.

Archbishop Denis Hart has threatened to withdraw the maternity and emergency departments from Catholic hospitals if the bill is passed through the Legislative Council next month.

Key to the church's concerns is a clause in the Abortion Law Reform Bill requiring doctors with a conscientious objection to abortion to refer their patient to another doctor who doesn't have the same objection.

The bill, which passed through the lower house earlier this month, seeks to legalise abortion up to 24 weeks gestation, removing it as a crime from Victoria's Crimes Act.

"If, based on their religious beliefs, they don't want to perform an abortion that's fine, they shouldn't be compelled to," Liberty Victoria vice-president Anne O'Rourke told AAP.

"However, to then say they shouldn't be compelled to refer that woman on is taking it to an unnecessary degree."

The Catholic Church has 15 hospitals in Victoria, accounting for about a third of all births in the state.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Google's YouTube Shows Bias Against Pro-life

Here's yet another example of a liberal-minded powerful corporation exercising censorship of the American public.

-- From "YouTube Yanks Video Exposing Obama's Abortion Extremism" posted at LifeSiteNews.com 9/19/08

A video that was produced by a Kansas pro-life group and that exposed Sen. Barack Obama's extremist support for abortion was blocked by YouTube.com yesterday - the latest in a number of pro-life videos that have been blocked by the site.

The Kansas Coalition for Life, which partners with Operation Rescue on a number of pro-life projects, produced a video titled "Obama: WRONG Change for Children," which included information about Obama's voting record on abortion-related bills.

YouTube sent the group a generic message indicating that the video was being blocked because it did not meet a "Community Guideline."

"Political censorship is the only remaining explanation for YouTube blocking the KCFL Obama video," said Operation Rescue spokesperson Cheryl Sullenger. "Apparently, it is allowable to criticize political candidates on YouTube, as long as you do not criticize Obama on his abortion track record. It is unconscionable for YouTube to engage in this kind of political censorship in the middle of a battle for the future of America. We have posted this video to our web site to ensure that it will be easily accessible."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Pro-life Light Shining in Post-Soviet Russia

A fledgling antiabortion movement is beginning to stir in Russia. Driven by a growing discussion of abortion as a moral issue and, most of all, by a government worried about demographics; doctors and politicians are quietly struggling to lower what is believed to be one of the world’s highest abortion rates.

-- From "Abortion foes begin to make their case in Russia" by Megan K. Stack, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer 9/20/08

MOSCOW — Physician Marina Chechneva remembers the old-style Russian gynecologists who worked in state hospitals and churned out back-to-back abortions like Soviet factory workers. She remembers the women who "used to use abortion as a kind of vacation, because in the U.S.S.R., they got three days off from work."

Chechneva, head researcher at the Moscow region's Institute of Gynecology and Obstetrics, performs abortions as part of her medical practice. These days, she is writing magazine articles about fetus development in hope of raising public opposition to abortion. After years of handling fetuses, she explains, she has come to feel a responsibility toward them.

The women "should realize that what they're doing is already a murder," she said.

It's an uphill struggle. Doctors say contraceptive use remains unpopular and that many Russian women rely on abortion for birth control.

The government is desperate to persuade citizens to bear more children. Russians are dying faster than they're being born, a trend that has emerged as one of the most serious challenges faced by this sprawling, scantily populated land.

"This is the decision of a lifetime," gynecologist Natalia Smirnova said. "It's very important for me to show them the ultrasound picture of their fetuses. This stops most of them."

"There were cases when I myself called her mother in another town. By appealing to her mother, her partner, the future father, you can often succeed in making her change her decision and preserve her pregnancy," [Smirnova said.]

"You kill not only a child, a living being, but a part of yourself, something that was alive in you," said Irina, a 25-year-old Muscovite who has had three abortions. The young women who were interviewed declined to give their last names. "There's a trauma and a grief you suffer. You murder a child. It was much more difficult than I expected."

"It's like a conveyor belt," she said. "Women sit next to the abortion room in a line, and it happens very quickly."

"The spiritual position," said Natalia Karpovich, a leader of the State Duma committee focused on family, women and children, "should be that this is murder and the woman who does this commits a sin. Still, I want to stress it's a woman's choice."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Judicial Activism: ACLU Wins Transgender Employment Lawsuit

A former Army commander who underwent a sex change operation was discriminated against by the U.S. government, a federal judge ruled Friday in an important victory for transgenders claiming bias in the workplace.

-- From "Transsexual wins lawsuit against Library of Congress" by Bill Mears, CNN 9/19/08

Diane Schroer won her federal lawsuit against the Library of Congress after officials backed out of a 2005 job offer when told of her intention to become a transsexual. At the time of the job interview for a position as a senior terrorism research analyst, David Schroer was a male. He had been a onetime Army Special Forces commander.

U.S. District Court Judge James Robinson said Schroer's civil rights were violated.

"The evidence established that the Library was enthusiastic about hiring David Schroer -- until she disclosed her transsexuality," Robinson wrote. "The Library revoked the offer when it learned that a man named David intended to become, legally, culturally and physically, a woman named Diane. This was discrimination 'because of ... sex.' "

"It is especially gratifying that the court has ruled that discriminating against someone for transitioning is illegal," said Schroer in a statement from the ACLU, which represented her in court.

The ACLU said the ruling sends a "loud and clear" message to employers against firing or refusing to hire someone for changing their gender.

There was no immediate reaction from the library, which had claimed at trial that transgender people are not covered under federal anti-discrimination laws.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Liberal Media Wrongly Assume Most Women are Pro-abortion

ABC News morning anchor women press abortion issue with candidates' wives, thinking this issue will increase support for pro-abortion candidates.

-- From "Michelle Obama and Jill Biden Claim Keeping All Abortions Legal Key for Women" by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com Editor 9/19/08

In a spat among the wives of the candidates for president, Michelle Obama and Jill Biden say that keeping unlimited abortions legal is important. They disagree with Cindy McCain, who says she is pro-life but knows Americans are worried about the economy.

The skirmish started with an interview McCain gave to ABC's "Good Morning America" on Wednesday, in which she repeated her pro-life position.

While she agrees with her husband, the Arizona senator John McCain, on opposing abortion, Cindy McCain told Diane Sawyer that Americans are focusing on the economy and resisted the news anchor's repeated bias in her abortion questions.

The [liberals] also went after pro-life Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, saying women voters will not support her just because she is a woman.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Washington Post Scoffs at Christians AND The Almighty

The most widely syndicated political cartoonist in the world took aim at GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin recently, not for her politics, but for her faith.

-- From "Cartoon mocks Palin's faith" © 2008 WorldNetDaily 9/19/08

Cartoonist Pat Oliphant mocked Palin by depicting her speaking "in tongues," a believed spiritual prayer language sometimes practiced by members of Pentecostal congregations, such as Palin's former Assemblies of God church.

"The cartoon is despicable," said Dr. George O. Wood, General Superintendent for The General Council of the Assemblies of God to CBN News. "Millions of Christians today follow the example of first century Christians who prayed in other tongues. The Washington Post would not think of printing a cartoon that mocked members of the Muslim or Jewish faiths. It should be ashamed."

"Furthermore," said Wood, "Sarah Palin has to my knowledge never said she prays in other tongues."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

CA Gay Pride: Firefighters Sexually Harassed, Lesbian Fire Chief Admits

Fire Chief Tracy Jarman and the assistant chief who ordered four San Diego firefighters to attend last year's gay pride parade testified . . . that they understand how [the firefighters] could find the event offensive.

-- From "Fire chief recounts gay pride parade" by Tony Manolatos, San Diego Union-Tribune Staff Writer 9/19/08

The firefighters – John Ghiotto, Jason Hewitt, Alex Kane and Chad Allison – are suing the city for unspecified damages. They said they were sexually harassed at the parade and mistreated at work after filing complaints. The trial began Monday before Judge Michael Anello and is expected to last two more weeks.

The four men say they suffered emotional distress because of what they saw and heard: cat calls, simulated sex acts among men wearing nothing but briefs, and lewd comments and gestures.

Jarman and Assistant Chief Jeff Carle marched in last year's parade ahead of Engine 5, which carried the four firefighters. Neither Jarman nor Carle said they felt sexually harassed, but both testified that they can see why the parade would offend some people.

It's the biggest parade in the city, drawing more than 100,000 spectators to Hillcrest, home to a large gay population.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Friday, September 19, 2008

Pro-eugenics Libertarians: Palin's Duty to Kill Down Syndrome Baby

"Because a person afflicted with Down syndrome is only capable of being marginally productive (if at all) and requires constant care and supervision . . . [the parents] are essentially stranding the cost of their child's life upon others."

-- From "Libertarian Group Condemns Sarah Palin for Not Killing Disabled Baby in Abortion" by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com Editor 9/17/08

A writer for a libertarian group has written perhaps the most scathing attack on pro-life vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin since the Alaska governor was announced weeks ago as John McCain's running mate. Nicholas Provenzo condemns Palin for the birth of her baby Trig, who has Down syndrome.

Provenzo, who writes for the Center for the Advancement of Capitalism, not only bashes her for allowing Trig to be born, but says she should have made the so-called morally justifiable decision to kill him in an abortion.

"Given that Palin's decision is being celebrated in some quarters, it is crucial to reaffirm the morality of aborting a fetus diagnosed with Down syndrome (or by extension, any unborn fetus)—a freedom that anti-abortion advocates seek to deny," [Provenzo writes.]

While as many as 80-90 percent of unborn children diagnosed with Down syndrome become victims of abortion, Palin didn't let her child become a statistic. Palin, who has deeply-felt pro-life views, gave birth to her fifth child in April and the baby was diagnosed with the condition.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Justice Antonin Scalia vs. Judicial Activism

"Value-laden [moral] decisions ... should be made by an entire society ... not by nine unelected judges," Scalia said.

-- From "Reject 'living Constitution,' Scalia tells crowd at USU" by Aaron Falk, Deseret News 9/16/08

LOGAN — The legality of abortion, same-sex marriage and other controversial issues should be decided by the American people and not a panel of unelected judges, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia told students and faculty at Utah State University on Monday.

A shift in political practices in recent years, however, has left judges to legislate from the bench as they rewrite the Constitution, the judge said.

"A change occurred in the last half of the 20th century, and I'm sorry to say that my court was responsible for it," Scalia said. "It was my court that invented the notion of a living Constitution" to keep up with what some justices call "the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society."

The evolution of the Supreme Court's duties has occurred even as Scalia has served in his current position, the justice lamented. President Ronald Reagan nominated Scalia for the Supreme Court in 1986, and Scalia was confirmed by a 98-0 vote — something that may never happen again as politics continue to make their way into the nomination process.

"It seeped into the political consciousness of the people that what is going on is a refashioning of the Constitution from term to term," Scalia said. "We're conducting a mini-constitutional convention every time we select a new justice on the Supreme Court."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Roll-back of California Same-sex Marriage Not Likely

A constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage in California has lost support during the past two months and now trails by a 17-point margin.

-- From "Same-sex marriage ban losing steam in California" by Aurelio Rojas, Sacramento Bee 9/18/08

Just 38 percent of likely voters back Proposition 8, while 55 percent say they will vote against the Nov. 4 ballot measure, according to a new Field Poll. In July, the measure trailed by nine points.

Since then, the heading on the ballot summary -- which began with the words "Limit on Marriage" on petitions to gather signatures for the measure -- has been changed on voter pamphlets to read "Eliminates right of same-sex couples to marry."

Attorney General Jerry Brown decided to change the wording after the state Supreme Court in May overturned a ban on gay marriages in California.

While a majority of Protestants back Proposition 8, larger majorities of Catholics, those affiliated with other religions and those with no preference intend to vote "No," according to the poll.

To read the entire article, ClICK HERE.

Kentucky Court Rules Homosexuals Can't Adopt Partner's Kids

In a harshly worded opinion, the Kentucky Court of Appeals has barred judges from allowing lesbians to adopt as though they are a stepparent.

-- From "Appeals court rejects adoption by lesbian couple" by Andrew Wolfson, Louisville Courier-Journal 9/16/08

Ruling 3-0 in a Jefferson County case, the court said that stepparent adoptions are allowed only when the stepmother or father is married to the biological parent, and marriages between gays are forbidden by both statute and Kentucky's constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

"It is not this or any court's role to judge whether the legislature's prohibition of same-sex marriage ... is morally defensible or socially enlightened," Judge Glenn Acree of Lexington wrote for the court in the decision that criticized Garber and the lawyers involved.

"Nor is it this or any court's role ... to craft any means by which the legal consequences of such a prohibition may be negated or avoided."

. . . the court said "stepparent-like adoption" does not exist under the laws of Kentucky. "We wish to make this point perfectly clear."

The ruling was condemned by the American Civil Liberties Union, which says that children of same-sex couples deserve the protection of two parents just like any other child.

Ten states now recognize so called "stepparent-like adoptions," according to the ACLU, including most recently Colorado, which last year enacted a law allowing same-sex couples, as well as grandparents, aunts, uncles and other relatives, to jointly adopt children.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Univ. of Pittsburgh Opens Girls' Dorm to Cross-dressing Men

Spokesman confirms new policy applies to housing; wardrobe or appearance "isn't what most people would expect of their sex."

"Why can't the institutions of higher education stay within their academic goals and not seek to be agents of political correctness?"

-- From "Pitt tweaking gender discrimination policy" The Associated Press 9/12/08

The University of Pittsburgh is broadening its anti-discrimination policy to include the way people express their gender identity through clothes and appearance.

The vice president of the university's Rainbow Alliance, which advocates for gay, bisexual and transgender students, says the changes extend that policy to "anyone whose gender identity does not match their assigned sex at birth."

God's fingerprints can't be removed: Genital surgery can't change DNA

From "University opens women's dorms to men" © 2008 WorldNetDaily 9/16/08

"Student safety should be utmost in the minds of the University of Pittsburgh and other schools," said Diane Gramley, president of [American Family Association of Pennsylvania]. "The addition of 'gender identity' to their policies is anti-safety. This policy change opens the door for sexual assault of female students and lawsuits from concerned parents and students."

. . . "Since this policy also affects housing, what is to prevent a male who says he believes he's 'really a female' from requesting and obtaining housing in the women's dormitory? This policy indicates that will be acceptable and, additionally, this 'man who thinks he is a woman' will be permitted to shower and use the restroom in the women's dormitory."

The school's website diversity page boasts, "Within the Department of Residence Life at the University of Pittsburgh, we acknowledge that human difference takes many forms in the world including factors such as: race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, religion, spiritual tradition, political affiliation, age, and ability. We recognize that the knowledge we gain from interacting with and learning from one another has both educational and personal value. This knowledge will move our students and staff toward acceptance of others."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

KY: Planned Parenthood & ACLU Advocate Teen Sex

Sexual revolutionaries team up in Kentucky to terminate abstinence education, suggesting that Bristol Palin is their 'poster child'

-- From "No more abstinence education?" by Mary Meehan, Lexington Hearld-Leader 9/16/08

A coalition of six organizations is calling for Kentucky health departments to reject $820,000 in federal money spent annually to promote saving sex for marriage, saying that abstinence education is not the answer for youth.

The coalition's plea comes at a time when teen sex is in the news, with a vice presidential candidate's pregnant teen daughter on stage at the recent Republican National Convention and and pop star purity rings being mocked at the Video Music Awards last week.

The group, which includes the American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood of Kentucky, supports what it terms "medically accurate sexual education," which includes information about contraceptives. The group says abstinence programs are fear-based, promote gender stereotypes and aren't effective.

The federal dollars come with the condition that only abstinence be taught. And Greg Williams, director of Heritage of Kentucky, a Lexington-based non-profit focused on abstinence education, argues that according to his math, when you add up all the federal dollars that go to AIDS prevention programs and other health-related programs that promote contraception, the money spent on abstinence programs is relatively small.

A single point of agreement is that more teens are contracting sexually transmitted diseases. Both sides use terms like "horrific" to describe transmission rates, as recently reported by the CDC, that indicate that 26 percent of young women ages 14 to 19 have at least one sexually transmitted diseases. That's 3.2 million girls. And each side blames the other's education method for these numbers.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Cure for Pornography Urge: Internet Social Networking

A new survey has revealed that people are more interested in social networking sites than online pornography.

-- From "Social networking websites more popular than porn, says study" posted at The Telegraph 9/16/08

Bill Tancer, a self-confessed 'data geek' who analysed the search habits of more than 10 million web users, said that internet searches provide an up-to-date view of how society is changing.

"There are some patterns to our internet use that we tend to repeat very specifically and predictably, from diet searches to prom dresses to what we do around the holidays," said Mr Tancer in an interview with Reuters.

"As social networking traffic has increased, visits to porn sites have decreased," he said.

A decade ago, porn-related searches accounted for 20 per cent of all internet searches made, he noted. They now account for about 10 per cent, said Mr Tancer, who also found that web users aged between 18 and 24 were searching for less porn.

"My theory is that young users spend so much time on social networks that they don't have time to look at adult sites," he said.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Pope Benedict XVI Opposes Legalized Euthanasia

-- From "Pope: 'Accept Death at Hour Chosen by God'" by Angela Doland, Associated Press 9/15/08

Lourdes, France (AP) - Pope Benedict XVI urged ailing pilgrims to accept death "at the hour chosen by God," reasserting the Vatican's opposition to euthanasia on Monday at an open-air Mass for the sick.

In his homily, the pope said the ill should pray to find "the grace to accept, without fear or bitterness, to leave this world at the hour chosen by God." The Vatican vehemently maintains that life must continue to its natural end.

The message has special resonance in Europe. Belgium and the Netherlands have legalized euthanasia, and Switzerland allows counselors or physicians to prepare a lethal dose, though patients must take it on their own.

France permits patients to refuse treatment that can keep them alive but stops short of allowing euthanasia. The debate in France was revived this year with the death of a woman whose tumor burrowed through her head, leaving her with constant pain, hemorrhaging and difficulty eating.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

College Bans 'Christmas' and 'Easter'

The college's new calendar shows that both of the traditional holiday periods have now been re-branded as 'end of term breaks'.

-- From "College bans 'Christmas' and 'Easter' from calendar for fear of offending ethnic students" by Daily Mail Reporter 9/15/08

Critics have complained that the decision by Yorkshire Coast College [UK] is nothing more than 'political correctness'.

Tory MP Robert Goodwill said: "We are a Christian country and, to be honest, religious tolerance in this country is about respecting other people's religious beliefs.

"They are petrified that they offend the minority but what they are doing is offending the majority."

The college, based in Scarborough, North Yorkshire offers a range of courses concentrating on training for 'life skills' such as Engineering, Motor Vehicle Training and IT.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Monday, September 15, 2008

Sharia [Muslim] Courts Operating in Britain

Sharia courts have been operating in Britain to rule on disputes between Muslims for more than a year, it has emerged.

-- From "Sharia Courts Operating in Britain" by Richard Edwards, The Telegraph Crime Correspondent 9/15/08

Five sharia courts have been set up in London, Birmingham, Bradford and Manchester and Nuneaton, Warwickshire. The government has quietly sanctioned that their rulings are enforceable with the full power of the judicial system, through the county courts or High Court. Previously, the rulings were not binding and depended on voluntary compliance among Muslims.

Lawyers have issued grave warnings about the dangers of a dual legal system and the disclosure drew criticism from Opposition leaders.

Muslim tribunal courts started passing sharia judgments in August 2007. They have dealt with more than 100 cases that range from Muslim divorce and inheritance to nuisance neighbours.
It has also emerged that tribunal courts have settled six cases of domestic violence between married couples, working in tandem with the police investigations.

The rulings of arbitration tribunals are binding in law, provided that both parties in the dispute agree to give it the power to rule on their case.

In July, Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, the Lord Chief Justice agreed that Muslims in Britain should be able to live according to Islamic law to decide financial and marital disputes.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

CA: Senior Episcopal Church Bishops Want Same-sex Marriage

The bishops say that acknowledging the rights of homosexuals to marry follows the Gospel: "We believe that this continued access [to same-sex marriage] promotes Jesus' ethic of love, giving and hope."

-- From "California's top Episcopal bishops oppose gay marriage ban" by Duke Helfand, Los Angeles Times Staff Writerm 9/11/08

California's six most senior Episcopal bishops Wednesday unanimously declared their opposition to a constitutional amendment on the statewide November ballot that would ban same-sex marriage.

. . . in a joint statement, issued Wednesday at the diocesan headquarters in Echo Park, the six bishops said that "society is strengthened when two people who love each other choose to enter into marriage, engaged in a lifetime of disciplined relationship building that serves as a witness to the importance of love and commitment."

The statement was signed by [Rt. Rev. J. Jon Bruno, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles,] and Bishops Marc Handley Andrus, Barry L. Beisner, Mary Gray-Reeves, Jerry A. Lamb and James R. Mathes. (Three assistant bishops -- Chester L. Talton, Sergio Carranza and Steven Charleston -- also signed.)

Gay marriage has strained the Episcopalians' international body, the Anglican Communion, with hundreds of bishops from Africa and elsewhere threatening to break away over attempts to change church doctrine and practice.

The issue has created theological fissures in other Protestant denominations, including Presbyterians and United Methodists, with some Methodist ministers in California pledging to perform wedding ceremonies in defiance of their national church.

To read more quotes from these 'bishops,' CLICK HERE.

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Largest Corporations Stampede to Support 'Gay Agenda'

The newly released Human Rights Campaign Foundation's Corporate Equality Index, which ranks hundreds of businesses on their "treatment" of employees who have chosen homosexual, lesbian, bisexual and transgender lifestyles, awards a record 259 corporations perfect scores, including newcomers Campbell's Soup and Target.

UPDATE 8/28/13: Walmart recognizes employees' domestic partnerships nationwide, regardless of legality

UPDATE 7/30/13: Betty Crocker Goes Gay - General Mills adds to its line of pro-homosexual brands

UPDATE 12/4/12: More corporations succumb to homosexualist pressure to torpedo Boy Scouts

-- From "Record 259 corporations honored for 'gay' support" by Bob Unruh © 2008 WorldNetDaily 9/13/08

The total in the 2009 report is up one-third from the 195 corporations so honored in 2008, according to the Human Rights Campaign, which explained that now an estimated nine million workers "are protected from employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression because of their employers' policies on diversity & inclusion, training, health care, and domestic partnership benefits."

The report [.PDF] notes that when the evaluation was begun in 2002, there were 13 corporations with such perfect scores – a total of 100 out of 100 possible – and that rose to 26 in 2003, 56 in 2004, 101 in 2005, 138 in 2006 and 195 in 2008.

"In the absence of federal law that prohibits workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression, it is up to employers to take the lead and implement policies that ensure all their employees are protected," [said Joe Solmonese HRC chief.]

The Human Rights Campaign seeks "fundamental fairness and equality" by advocating for the "rights" of people in alternative sexual lifestyles.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

To see the list of the largest supporters of the 'gay agenda,' CLICK HERE.

Loss of Employer Religious Liberty Draws Near for All

As more states pass employment nondiscrimination laws, and even the federal ENDA, the day when every Christian employer is forced to hire "men in drag" is visible on the horizon.

-- From "Smoother Transitions" by Lisa Belkin, New York Times 9/4/08

Across the country, particularly at larger companies, transgender workers are being protected and assisted in ways that were hardly imaginable a few years ago.

Currently, 125 of the Fortune 500 companies include “gender identity” in their nondiscrimination policies, compared with “close to zero” in 2002, according to Jillian T. Weiss, an associate professor of law and society at Ramapo College of New Jersey, and an expert on transgender workplace diversity.

The level of acceptance can also be measured by the efforts made to recruit transgender workers. At the Out and Equal Workplace Summit, a conference for the LGBT community, to be held in Austin, Tex., later this month, 400 of the Fortune 500 will be represented. At the second annual Transgender Career Expo, to be held in Atlanta in October, participants can meet with recruiters from sponsors such as General Motors, I.B.M., Ernst & Young and New York Life.

“It is a different world,” said Dr. Weiss, who attributes the change, in part, to the slow adoption of laws banning discrimination on the basis of gender identity (20 states and roughly 100 cities have such laws) . . .

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Sexual Deviants Given Green Light in Maryland

Court decides 900,000 petition signers can't challenge the controversial "gender identity" law allowing any man to use the women's shower by just claiming he felt like a woman at the time.

-- From "Anti-Bias Law Wins In Md.'s High Court" by Henri E. Cauvin and Ann E. Marimow, Washington Post Staff Writers 9/10/08

A Montgomery County law banning discrimination against transgender people took effect yesterday, county attorneys said, after the state's highest court rejected a petition effort that would have forced the issue to a referendum.

The measure, passed by the County Council in November, had been set to take effect in February, but it was blocked when some religious and conservative groups launched the petition effort.

The law prohibits discrimination based on gender identity in housing, employment, taxi service, cable service and public accommodations.

Opponents, including some parents and religious groups, said they were worried about how the law might be applied to public restrooms and health club locker rooms. They gathered thousands of signatures to force the issue to a vote in November.

Amy Smith, an attorney for Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative legal fund assisting opponents, called the decision "another example of an activist court hijacking democracy." She said her organization was waiting to review the court's full opinion before it determines whether to take further legal action.

"Hopefully, we can stop a political activist group from silencing the voice of an entire county," she said.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Catholic Bishops Correct Senator Biden on Life

The statement from Cardinal Justin Rigali and Bishop William Lori said Biden . . . is the latest case of the U.S. Catholic hierarchy correcting a Catholic politician.

-- From "Bishops criticize Biden's abortion statements" by The Associated Press 9/9/08

Two prominent U.S. Catholic bishops said Tuesday that Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Biden contradicted church teaching by saying in a weekend interview that determining when human life begins is a "personal and private" matter of religious faith he would not impose on others.

Asked on the program about when life begins, Biden said: "Look, I know when it begins for me. It's a personal and private issue. For me, as a Roman Catholic, I am prepared to accept the teachings in my church."

He added that while he believes life begins "at the moment of conception," it would inappropriate to impose that view on others in a pluralistic society.

The bishops said Biden was right to say human life begins at conception. But the church "does not teach this as matter of faith; it acknowledges it as a matter of objective fact," they said.

"Protection of innocent human life is not an imposition of personal religious conviction but a demand of justice," they added.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Media Bias Against Gov. Palin's Christianity

From "Media accused of creating controversy over Palin's faith" by Jim Brown - OneNewsNow - 9/8/2008

A conservative media analyst points out that it took the wire services and major television networks a year to discover who Reverend Jeremiah Wright was -- yet only 48 hours to begin running "sneering pieces" about Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin's religion. Tim Graham says that shows a glaring double standard.

The Associated Press has written an article claiming that Governor Palin's biography for the National Governor's Association "obscures" her "deep roots in Pentecostalism." According to the AP, Pentecostalism is "a spirit-filled Christian tradition that is one of the fastest growing in the world" and "often derided by outsiders and Bible-believers alike." (Read commentary on the AP report)

Although Palin attended a Pentecostal Assemblies of God church up until six years ago, she is currently a member of Wasilla Bible Church, an independent evangelical congregation.

Tim Graham of the Media Research Center says he finds it strange to see secular reporters trying to report on Sarah Palin's religious beliefs "when they don't seem to have any" themselves.

"For them to sort of suggest that Sarah Palin is an inauthentic Christian, that the churches she's belonged to are derided by Bible-believers -- it reads like opposition research; it doesn't read like news from a wire service," he remarks.

Graham says many Democrats in the media are still upset about the Jeremiah Wright story and are trying to "fictionalize a Jeremiah Wright scenario" in Palin's life. "You've already seen these leaked videos of Sarah Palin talking about how our soldiers are hopefully on a mission from God," he notes. "That is the sort of language that scares secular reporters and doesn't really bother Christians at all."

The first media attack on Palin's faith was launched by NBC News, which criticized her for once saying that the mission of U.S. troops in Iraq is a "task that is from God."

School Bans “In God We Trust,” Judge Disagrees

A California school district forced the removal of a teacher's posters in his classroom that presented a “Judeo-Christian” point of view, but the Judge disagrees saying the references to God are NOT about a divine entity.

-- From "Judge doesn't toss lawsuit by teacher" by Onell R. Soto, San Diego Union-Tribune Staff Writer 9/10/08

A federal judge has ruled that [Westview High School] officials shouldn't have made a Rancho Peñasquitos [San Diego, CA] math teacher take down classroom banners proclaiming “In God We Trust,” “God Bless America” and other sayings.

This lawsuit was filed by [teacher Brad] Johnson, who asked the judge to tell the school district the banners were OK.

In his 23-page decision issued Friday, U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez denied a motion by the Poway Unified School District to dismiss the case, but he didn't order it to do anything about Johnson or the banners.

Benitez noted that, according to Johnson and his lawyers, the school district allows other teachers to choose what they display on their walls, including Tibetan prayer flags and posters with Buddhist and Islamic messages.

“By squelching only Johnson's patriotic expression, the school district does a disservice to the students of Westview High School, and the federal and state constitutions do not permit such one-sided censorship,” he wrote.

In the ruling, Benitez said the banners aren't religious and “do not advocate” for the divine.

School board members will have to decide whether to continue to fight the case in front of Benitez, appeal the decision or settle the lawsuit, said their lawyer, Jack Sleeth.

Sleeth said the issue isn't as simple as Benitez made it sound.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

California Bans 'brides,' 'grooms'

You think making 'gay marriage' legal won't affect your Christian marriage?

UPDATE 3/15/12: Same-sex marriage laws eliminate terms "husband" and "wife" etc.

-- From "California bans 'brides,' 'grooms'" by Chelsea Schilling, © 2008 WorldNetDaily 09/08/08

ROSEVILLE, Calif. – "Brides" and "grooms" are no longer allowed to marry in the State of California.

That privilege is only extended to individuals who allow themselves to be called "Party A" and "Party B" on marriage licenses.

Pastor Doug Bird of Abundant Life Fellowship in Roseville, Calif., was alarmed to find the state now rejects the traditional terms after he officiated his first marriage ceremony last week . . .

The couple had written the words "bride" and "groom" next to "Party A" and "Party B" because they wanted to be legally recognized as husband and wife.

However, the Placer County marriage license was denied.

It was an "unacceptable alteration," the County Recorder's Office claimed the State Office of Vital Records determined.

"What's next?" Bird wrote in a Sept. 4 letter. "Will the State of California force [ministers] to use the terms "Party A" and "Party B" in the ceremony itself?"

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Archbishop Questions Pelosi Eligibility for Communion

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has accepted an invitation from San Francisco’s archbishop to discuss whether she should continue to receive communion at the Catholic Church in the wake of comments she made about abortion.

-- From "Archbishop, Pelosi to talk about communion" by Jackie Kucinich and Ian Swanson, The Hill 9/8/08

San Francisco Archbishop George H. Niederauer said he had received letters and e-mails from “many Catholics” expressing dismay over Pelosi’s remarks, in which she said the matter of when life begins remained controversial within the church. He said many of them questioned whether she should be able to receive communion from the church.

Pelosi made the remarks in an Aug. 24 interview with “Meet the Press” host Tom Brokaw after Brokaw said that the Catholic Church believes strongly that life begins at conception.

Niederauer concludes that, based on Catholic Church statements, it is up to him as Pelosi’s pastor to address whether she may continue to receive communion. He then invites the Speaker “into a conversation with me about these matters.”

Niederauer said he wrote the article because it is his responsibility “to oppose erroneous, misleading and confusing positions when they are advanced.” He described Pelosi’s comments as “opposed” to church teaching.

“Authentic moral teaching is based on objective truth, not polling,” Niederauer wrote. He noted that in 1861, polls in different states showed different views on slavery, but this did not mean that slavery was moral in one state and not in another.

Washington Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl earlier had issued a statement criticizing the comments, which he said “were incorrect.”

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Monday, September 08, 2008

Christians Determined to Wrest from IRS the Freedom to Endorse Candidates

Christian legal team mounts challenge to the IRS gag rule of 1954, in effort to reinstate the freedom of speech that existed for the previous centuries of American history.

-- From "Ban on Political Endorsements by Pastors Targeted" by Peter Slevin, Washington Post Staff Writer 9/8/08

Declaring that clergy have a constitutional right to endorse political candidates from their pulpits, the socially conservative Alliance Defense Fund is recruiting several dozen pastors to do just that on Sept. 28, in defiance of Internal Revenue Service rules.

The effort by the Arizona-based legal consortium is designed to trigger an IRS investigation that ADF lawyers would then challenge in federal court. The ultimate goal is to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to throw out a 54-year-old ban on political endorsements by tax-exempt houses of worship.

"For so long, there has been this cloud of intimidation over the church," ADF attorney Erik Stanley said. "It is the job of the pastors of America to debate the proper role of church in society. It's not for the government to mandate the role of church in society."

The battle over the clergy's privileges, rights and responsibilities in the political world is not new. Politicians of all stripes court the support -- explicit or otherwise -- of religious leaders. Allegations surface every political season of a preacher crossing the line.

What is different is the Alliance Defense Fund's direct challenge to the rules that govern tax-exempt organizations. Rather than wait for the IRS to investigate an alleged violation, the organization intends to create dozens of violations and take the U.S. government to court on First Amendment grounds.

Such endorsements are prohibited by a 1954 amendment to the Internal Revenue Code that says nonprofit, tax-exempt entities may not "participate in, or intervene in . . . any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office."

-- From "Congress Refuses To Free Churches From Lyndon Johnson Gag Order" from Traditional Values Coalition, by Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, posted 10/8/02

Prior to 1954, churches and non-profits had no [IRS] restrictions on their freedom of speech or their right to speak out in favor or against political issues or candidates.

. . . In 1954, [Lyndon] Johnson was facing re-election to the Senate and was being aggressively opposed by two non-profit anti-Communist groups that were attacking Johnson’s liberal agenda. In retaliation, Johnson inserted language into the IRS code that prohibited non-profits, including churches, from endorsing or opposing candidates for political office. . . .

Organizations like Americans United for the Separation of Church and State continue to claim that this Johnson gag order must be upheld to protect “church/state separation.” This is irrational and fails to take into account the entire history of religious freedom in the United States.

Throughout our nation’s history—both before and after the American Revolution—our nation’s pastors freely spoke out on the political and moral issues of the day. It was their duty and their right under the Constitution to preach against immorality and corruption in the political and the moral realm. Historian James H. Hutson, writing in Religion and the Founding of the American Republic notes: “Preachers seemed to vie with their brethren in other colonies in arousing their congregations against George III.” And, as Hutson discovered, the House of Representatives sponsored church services in its chambers for nearly 100 years. These services only ended when convenient transportation was available to take Members of Congress home for the weekend.

It is interesting to observe that our Founding Fathers and our first elected officials didn’t have any notion of “church/state separation” so vehemently endorsed by Americans United and other modernist groups. Our Founders valued religion and wrote the First Amendment to protect the free expression of religious beliefs—and the freedom to speak out on the moral issues—including those involving politics and politicians.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Saturday, September 06, 2008

Maryland Pro-life Protesters Arrested for Loitering


Among the 18 arrested, three young women were heckled, imprisoned, shackled, and strip-searched twice.

-- From "Cops strip-search 'loitering' pro-lifers" by Bob Unruh © 2008 WorldNetDaily 9/5/08

The allegations in the case sound like a Third World dictatorship: Police officers talk over before the arrests what charges they'll use, there are no explanations when the arrests are made, the suspects are denied access to legal counsel while in custody, and cops subject suspects to semi-public strip-searches.

Only this was in Bel Air, Md., and the pro-life protesters subjected to the treatment now have brought a legal action against the officers and town for violating their Constitutional rights.

The lawsuit now alleges a multitude of violations of the U.S. Constitution in actions by police who first ordered the pro-lifers off of county property, and later when they complied and moved to city property, swooped down on them in seven marked police cars, shackled and jailed them, and performed the strip searches.

"This incident paints an ugly picture of the state of religious freedom and free speech in American today," Kevin Theriot, ADF [Alliance Defense Fund] senior counsel, said. "The state shouldn't prosecute Christians for expressing their beliefs on important social issues, nor deny them their constitutional rights."

"Plaintiffs were put in handcuffs and held alongside the heavily trafficked public road for over a half hour, making them appear to be criminals to the public, putting both them and their message into disrepute, and exposing them to shouted ridicule," the lawsuit said.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Librarians: We Must Expose Children to Erotic Books

"We [librarians] don't act in the place of the parent. Whether I personally agree with an item or not is besides the point. It's about having access."

-- From "Anti-porn group challenges library" by Amanda Palleschi, St. Louis Post-Dispatch 9/4/2008

A local group wants the libraries to make it more difficult for teens to have access to some books they think are unsuitable for reading without parental consent.

The libraries say that to comply with the group's requests would constitute censorship, and maintain that they already have a process in place to review materials.

The local group, organized into a loose coalition by a local chapter of Citizens Against Pornography, began questioning books found in all [St. Louis] county library branches in August after Ellisville parent Laura Kostial approached some of the anti-pornography group's members. Kostial had visited the Daniel Boone branch several times with her 12-year-old daughter and found material she thought "shocking."

Kostial said she hadn't seen books aimed at teens with "erotic" passages at the county's Daniel Boone Library before a visit last year. The books in question range from non-fiction titles such as "The Little Black Book for Girlz, A Book on Healthy Sexuality" and "Growing up Gay in America" to contemporary series like the "Gossip Girl" books and a series of books with a protagonist named Alice by Phyllis Naylor ("Alice on Her Way" is one of them).

The group objects to passages in the books that range from suggested sexual activity to detailed descriptions of sex acts. Many are fiction. Some are non-fiction [how to have sex] guides.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Thursday, September 04, 2008

Abortionist Criticizes Gov. Palin Mothering


Abortion proponent, Gloria Feldt, with no factual information whatever, says that the Palins are preventing their daughter access to abortion.

-- From "Former Planned Parenthood President Says Sarah Palin Forcing Daughter to Keep Baby" by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com Editor 9/3/08

"She probably feels powerless right now," Feldt said on Tuesday responding to the news about Bristol Palin.

"Because of her family's attitude she probably doesn't feel that she has a choice in terms of what will happen to her," Feldt said.

“In Gloria Feldt’s bizarre world, families that cherish children are toxic. If the goal is to reduce the number of abortions, surely the first step is to allow families to love and embrace their children, not reject the weak and inconvenient,” [said Wendy Wright, the head of Concerned Women for America]

“She seems to hope that Bristol, who grew up in a Christian family that clearly cherishes children and even recently embraced a special needs child, would choose abortion and be proud of it,” Wright added. “It may be difficult for Gloria to understand that people could love an unexpected child, a welcome surprise. But to project her contempt for babies onto others, and refuse to allow that a teenager could want a baby is narcissistic.”

Wright said Feldt’s comments make Planned Parenthood’s agenda and mindset about women and children clear.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Wednesday, September 03, 2008

McDonald's Employee Group Indoctrinates Gay Agenda


An employee group called McDonald’s Gay Lesbian Allies Network (MGLAN) has been headed by McDonald's administrators, including Darwin Choy, Regional Administrative Manager, San Francisco Bay Area. Choy also does fundraising for gay youth housing, health services (also known as recruiting).

Want to sound off to McDonald's? CLICK HERE to E-mail or call them.

-- From "McDonald’s: With a Fresh Serving of Respect and Acceptance" by Bob Witeck, CEO, Witeck-Combs Communications, Inc., posted at Echelon Magazine, The source for GLBT Business Professionals - 6/14/08

[Liz Winfeld, McDonald’s gay agenda indoctrinaire, said] “Consider McDonald’s startling pace since 1998 when Pat Harris, Chief Diversity Officer for McDonald’s, urged the adoption of their first inclusive non-discrimination language, followed by adoption of domestic partner benefits in 2002. Like a snowball rolling down a very big mountain, momentum has been won. All sorts of corporate leaders are learning to gauge the speed of progress and to jump on board.”

Winfeld also credits one of McDonald’s most senior executives for tackling this leadership: Brian Unger, Senior Vice President responsible for company store operations in the corporation’s West Division . . .

McDonald’s began offering equal same-sex partner health benefits in 2002, which was a very encouraging sign. However, Brian Unger and like-minded colleagues felt the company had to invest more of its internal education and understanding in connecting its LGBT [homosexual advocate] workforce face-to-face –- not an easy task given such a highly decentralized company with thousands of worksites, and varied needs of its many employees.

He hit upon a strategy to launch regionally focused MGLAN groups throughout the West Division to get the ball rolling. And rather than have senior management tell them how to respond or how to effect change, they decided to make this a far more organic and authentic process. Unger understood that real change and acceptance occurs when there is genuine buy-in and employee involvement. After all, who knows better about their own life experiences, households and aspirations than the employees themselves?

That is why, this past January, MGLAN was breathed into life with fully paid travel and accommodations for the first-ever conference, held in San Diego. Bringing fifty six LGBT [homosexual advocate] and allied employees together to talk, to learn, and to celebrate one another, Unger and his team decided to call the groundbreaking event a “Pioneer Summit.” His planning team consisted of gay and lesbian employees from the West Division and the company’s headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois. This group played a very large role and shared many insights that helped Unger move the process and avoid minefields.

Looking back at their first summit, Unger observed, “It was truly inspiring to see MGLAN members come together to share heartfelt, personal stories about their journeys, challenges and personal reflections. Better understanding these journeys, which reflect the mindset of our LGBT customers, will help us better grow our people in the restaurants and across the company. Most importantly, of course, it also helps us better understand and serve all our diverse customers across the United States.”

Given this inspirational and necessary launch, the McDonald’s mandate now is to discover how to make internal education [indoctrination] a reality throughout the corporation, how to properly add gender identity and expression to the company’s non-discrimination policies and how to handle transitions among their workforce. The exciting moment occurred, according to Winfeld and Unger, when all of McDonald’s management discovered how important, and how easy it is to put a human face on these questions – and then to set reachable and practical goals that can be modeled throughout the company in the years ahead.

As Winfeld noted too, more McDonald’s Divisions are taking notice. In addition to the contributions of Richard Ellis, Pat Harris and Jesse Pamperin, more leaders are emerging including Unger’s Central Division peer, Jim Johannesen and his team. Champions and allies in the corporate offices include Marcia Vargas, VP of Diversity, and Gus Viano and Kevin Bradley, Directors in McDonald’s Corporate Diversity office who are adept at challenging long-held beliefs that a company as deeply embedded in the American consciousness as McDonald’s must tread lightly into this aspect of workforce and workplace diversity.

“It is incredibly important that all of these people get their due because they are, in large part, sticking their necks into uncharted territory,” said Liz Winfeld. “What McDonald’s is doing, in fact, mirrors the marketplace – if you do something first, faster, better then you will win. MGLAN throughout the regions is a winning strategy.”

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 9/09/08 - Read this article, also.

Chicago Homosexual High School Proposed

New York City already has such a high school (Harvey Milk High School), predicated not only on sheltering students from bullying and harassment, but also celebrating all sexual identities and behaviors.

Chicago residents: To give your opinion on the proposed "Pride Campus," there is a CPS community hearing Thursday, 9/18/08, 6-8pm, at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted.

--From "Gay High School Proposed" by Amy Wooten, Windy City Times writer, 9/3/08

An LGBTQA Chicago Public Schools (CPS) high school has been proposed and, if given the green light, the school would join the likes of New York's Harvey Milk High School in becoming a national model in providing a welcoming, safe education for queer and questioning youth and their allies.

The Greater Lawndale Little Village School for Social Justice submitted the proposal to the CPS Office of New Schools for a Social Justice High School-Pride Campus. This project has been in the works since spring of this year. If approved, Pride Campus, a voluntary public high school that would implement a college prep curriculum in all subject areas, would open in 2010. It would serve LGBTQA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, questioning and allied) students from all over the city.

CPS will announce its decision by the end of October. Until then, a CPS community hearing will be held Sept. 18 at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted. There, the public can learn more about the proposed school.

Bill Greaves, director and community liaison of the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations' Advisory Council on LGBT Issues and a member of the proposed school's design team, told Windy City Times that the community forum will be the “last hurdle” in the process. The CPS Office of New Schools has already twice interviewed the design team, made up of veteran teachers and administrators, a member of About Face Theater, CPS Office of Student Development staff and others. On Aug. 26, the delegate principal, Chad Weiden (the current assistant principal at the Greater Lawndale Little Village School for Social Justice) , was interviewed.

A location for the Pride Campus has not yet been chosen, and the team has pledged to work with CPS in finding an appropriate location.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Study: 40% of Men Get Free Pass for Adultery

Sexual revolutionaries hype gene research claiming men may be born to be, or not to be, monogamous -- just one more attack on marriage

-- From "Study Links Gene Variant in Men to Marital Discord" by Shankar Vedantam, Washington Post Staff Writer 9/2/08

Men are more likely to be devoted and loyal husbands when they lack a particular variant of a gene that influences brain activity, researchers announced yesterday -- the first time that science has shown a direct link between a man's genes and his aptitude for monogamy.

The finding is striking because it not only links the gene variant -- which is present in two of every five men -- with the risk of marital discord and divorce, but also appears to predict whether women involved with these men are likely to say their partners are emotionally close and available, or distant and disagreeable. The presence of the gene variant, or allele, also seems predictive of whether men get married or live with women without getting married.

The finding set off a debate about whether people should conduct genetic tests to find out whether potential mates are bad marriage prospects. Several independent scientists called the discovery remarkable and elegant but disagreed over whether such information ought to be used in making personal decisions about love and marriage.

. . . if a man's culture, religion and family background each have a seat at the conference table that determines his attitudes toward marital fidelity and monogamy, his genes might well sit at the head of the table.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

YouTube Censors Criticism of Planned Parenthood following D.C. Media Focus

Taking donations to exterminate African Americans seen as not politically correct. "It isn't the first time YouTube has shut down a pro-life message."

-- From "Planned Parenthood targets blacks" Washington Times Editorial 8/25/08

. . . blacks are disproportionately impacted by abortion. Is Planned Parenthood deliberately acting to reduce the black population? Is it practicing a form of eugenics?

According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit organization focused on sexual and reproductive health research, 13 percent of the U.S. population is black, but 37 percent of all abortions are performed on black women. More than 10 million black babies have been aborted since 1973. Black women are 4.8 times as likely as white women to have an abortion. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also indicates that one out of every five white pregnancies ends in abortion, whereas one out of every two black pregnancies ends in abortion.

Fortunately, Miss [Alveda] King and others . . . are bringing attention to Planned Parenthood's deliberate focus on minority neighborhoods. One-third of all abortions performed by Planned Parenthood in 2007 were on blacks, and a majority of Planned Parenthood's clinics are in minority neighborhoods.

A recent video on YouTube showed a Planned Parenthood development director eagerly taking money specifically to be earmarked for the elimination of black children. One caller said he wanted to do this because there are "definitely too many black people in Ohio." And the receptionist simply said, "O.K." Similar incidents in seven other states have sparked a call for a congressional investigation of Planned Parenthood - and we concur.

Margaret Sanger, who founded what is now Planned Parenthood, wrote a letter in 1939 to Clarence Gamble, with whom she was partnering to promote birth control and abortions in the black community: "We should hire three or four colored ministers, preferably with social service backgrounds, and with engaging personalities. The most successful educational approach to the Negro is through a religious appeal. We do not want the word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population, and the minister is the man who can straighten out that idea if it ever occurs to any of their more rebellious members."

-- From "YouTube censors criticism of Planned Parenthood" by Bob Unruh © 2008 WorldNetDaily 9/2/08

. . . YouTube has decided to censor several audio recordings that had been posted by pro-life activists documenting the corporation's willingness to accept donations on the basis of race.

That's the word from Live Action Films, a pro-life student organization whose officials confirmed that not only did YouTube block four of their postings, YouTube has refused to respond to a request from Live Action to unblock the videos and explain the actions.

"It is discriminatory for YouTube to selectively censor material that clearly does not contain inappropriate content," said Live Action President Lila Rose, who also edits The Advocate, and whose work to document Planned Parenthood activities previously was reported by WND.

The posted recordings had generated wide interest from the national media, and Live Action Media Director David Schmidt said, "These four videos have received over 160,000 YouTube views in total with the oldest video having been public on YouTube for over seven months. Why are these videos being removed now?"

Monday, September 01, 2008

Prayer at Civic Meetings Defended as Constitutional

"Public officials throughout our country need to be encouraged and reminded that they can and should resist the increasingly radical demands of secularist groups with regard to invocations before public meetings."

-- From "Legal team defends invocations after Freethinkers raise challenge" by Bob Unruh © 2008 WorldNetDaily 8/30/08

Officials in Mesa County, Colo., who have been warned by atheists and "freethinkers" that they are being watched, have been told they will get help if they are sued over a policy that allows invocations to open public meetings in the Western Colorado region.

The offer of help comes from Alliance Defense Fund . . . senior legal counsel, Mike Johnson . . .

The organization's offer to Mesa County includes any challenge to such activities if the commissioners adopt a model prayer policy that has been written specifically to meet the requirements of the U.S. Constitution.

The activist law firm said the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed such an interpretation, and indeed, that very court opens with the words, "God save the United States and this honorable court."

"Our country's Founding Fathers opened their meetings with prayer," Johnson said. "Those who oppose Christian invocations are essentially arguing that the Founders were violating the Constitution as they were writing it."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.