toledo was just another good stop along the good king's highway

Today's (Sunday's) miles: 1.3 Hello again, shops.
Miles out of Hobbiton: 1311.4
Miles out of Rivendell: 846.4
Miles out of Lothlórien: 391.4
Miles to Rauros Falls: 17.6

I have never seen so many people walking and biking Goat Trail Road as today. I don't even know how many people there were as I didn't think to count until we passed a group of nine people together mostly on foot, with a couple of kids on bikes. I think we passed 15 or so people on the trail, and there were I think three cars, maybe four, I forget.

It was a nice day but I have seen many other nice days and have never seen anything like that before. Also, I can walk balancing on curb bulbs again.

I didn't walk back up the hill; Anna was coming back that way from her chiropractic appointment anyway so she stopped by to pick us (me and risu) up. Soon, though, I hope. Still kind of dissociated in the outside, though; things seem distant and strange. I don't know what's causing that.

I've been working on the next CWU - I've had a lot of typing because the first two (large) articles exist only in physical print. Annoying!

Today's Cultural Warfare Update

Bothell-Kenmore Reporter story on Faith and Freedom Network's Joe Fuiten;

Faith and Freedom Network's letter and endorsement slate for the judicial races this fall; the plan is to get as much turnout as possible in the low-turnout primary and get several fundamentalist and fundamentalist-supportive judges past 50% in the primary so they don't even appear in the general election, where there is higher turnout and people pay more attention;

Concerned Women for America says the FDA "oversteps authority" by approving Plan B (the morning-after birth control pill) for over-the-counter sales to women over 18;

CWA's Janet LaRue: if President Bush doesn't get every judge on every court he wants, the terrorists win - no, really, that's literally what she's saying;

CWA again pitches the lie that birth control - specifically Plan B, but they do this for most forms of birth control - actually cause abortions;

CWA "talking points" against Plan B (emergency birth control);

Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight promotes the AFA boycott of Ford, talks about Ford's "homosexual advocacy";

Family Research Council files amicus brief against marriage rights in Maryland Court of Appeals;

FRC ACTION ITEM demanding South Carolina politicians support an anti-marriage constitutional amendment;

FRC ACTION ITEM calling for support for Idaho anti-marriage constitutional amendment vote;

FRC ACTION ITEM calling for support for Tennessee anti-marriage constitutional amendment vote;

FRC ACTION ITEM to download their Arizona voter's guide listing who supports the fundamentalist social agenda;

FRC demands immediate Senate approval of all Bush judicial nominees;

FRC ACTION ITEM to support Oregon parental notification initiative;

Sean Hannity (of "Hannity & Colmes") to speak at the fundamentalist political confab, the "Values Voters Summit" later this September in DC. It's a big Family Research Council/Focus on the Family/American Family Association/etc action confab to co-ordinate plans for the fall election;

American Family Association claims Wal-Mart is joining a "homosexual marriage group" by signing up with the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce; includes ACTION ITEM to condemn Wal-Mart for dealing in any way with lesbian and gay people;

AFA ACTION ITEM to continue Ford boycott, sign anti-Ford petitions, etc, all over Ford's advertising in publications that target lesbian and gay consumers;

AFA of Pennsylvania wants gay and lesbian professors banned from university campuses - the ban should be comprehensive, ala the Boy Scouts of America ban; the AFA's Agape Press runs article supporting it;

AFA/Agape Press: to be a real Christian, you _must_ fight in the culture wars;

Conservative Judaism considers allowing openly gay rabbis;

Institute for Canadian Values condemns sex-education book in Manitoba reportedly under consideration; no idea whether it actually is or what it actually says;

Canada Family Action Coalition reports that 45 American states have "banned homosexual marriage," so Canada should too.

( Articles and excerpts below )