Today's Cultural Warfare Update
Apr. 8th, 2005 09:30 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdWow, it's almost down to their traditional norms! I guess they wore themselves out earlier in the week. Or they've just gotten all their pieces into place for now and don't want to burn out the membership - they've got that 18-month timeline and all that, and this is only month one. But, here we go:
* Thursday's Family News in Focus relays an action item to flood Connecticut legislators with anti-civil-unions calls;
* Focus on the Family article on "pro-family" congressional legislation - judges, judges, "indecency" legislation, nibbling on the edges of abortion rights, and the Federal Marrage Amendment - includes action item;
* Today's Family News in Focus - no specific action item;
* Concerned Women for America scare-article on "The Homosexualists' Plan for Public Schools" - there are extensive quotes, but note that almost none of them are from an actual book that they're trashing, which appears to be on nondiscrimination policy in public school - most of them are from Robert Knight, CWA flak, interleaved with a tiny number of actual quotes. Knight's quotes are much scarier and are supposed to be paraphrases - the intent is clearly to make the source much scarier than it actually is - includes action item;
* Anti-gay "reparative therapist" Dr. Warren Throckmorton dropped by Magellan Health Services over his anti-gay activities; blames "gay activists." No action item.
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Family News in Focus
Thursday, April 07, 2005
Bob Ditmer
* The Senate votes to do away with a ban on tax dollars used to promote abortion overseas....but now the House will have a say.
3: Ban on aid to overseas clinics that offer referral services, information about, or actual abortion services, including UN population fund. "UNFDA works their wiley ways all across the globe..." "This is not a serious vote, because it's not going to last." "It always passes the senate, and the House is where we're able to hold our ground."
* Once again, comprehensive sex-ed Senators are trying to divert funds designated for "abstinence only" education.
4: Title 5 - abstinence-only education funding. Calls "abstinence plus" the "latex" option, claims that talking about birth control in any form increases teen pregnancy. "The other side gets most of the money anyway. Comprehensive sex education gets $12 for every $1 we get for abstinence until marriage."
* Native Americans are suffering from a host of problems – family breakdown looks like the cause.
6: Some native groups wanting more money - the main point of this story is that money isn't needed, better fathering is.
* While Americans deal with the wall of separation between Church and State, Israeli Christians are trying to cope with a real wall that cuts off their access to the Holy City.
7: Israel's separation wall - FotF calls it "a bid for peace" - story of a school whose student body is being separated off by the wall section on the Mount of Olives(?). "Making it difficult for locals to practice Christianity." Story ends questioning the value of the wall.
* Another overwhelming vote for marriage is more evidence that Americans value the institution and don’t want it changed.
1: 70% of Kansas voters voted for anti-marriage, anti-civil-unions. Spins a 30% turnout as "highest in state history," without mentioning that it's 30%. Three more states so far will vote in 2006.
* A disturbing bill is making its way through Connecticut’s legislature. The Civil Unions Bill promises to make Connecticut the first state to create civil unions for homosexuals without a court order.
2: Supporters claim enough votes - Family Institute of Conneticut. Urge to call state representatives - they're hoping to stop it in the house. Jodi Rell may sign it.
* Colorado Gov. Bill Owens has vetoed a controversial bill that would have required rape-victims to be told of emergency contraception.
5: "Catholic hospitals breathe a sigh of relief." Owens says bill did not "provide balanced information." Claims its part of a plot to force Catholic hospitals to offer abortion services.
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April 7, 2005
Congress Springs into Action
Focus on the Family
by Pete Winn, associate editor
http://family.org/cforum/feature/a0036128.cfm
There are many pro-family initiatives being discussed — and voted on — in the House and Senate before summer vacation.
Congress is back from Easter recess, and you can expect plenty of pro-family legislative action until members go home for the summer — especially from the Senate.
Part of the action will center on the problem of the courts. Arrogant, activist judges have become a major issue for lawmakers, and angered representatives in both chambers — especially so in the aftermath of the legal wrangling that took place in the Terri Schiavo case.
Dealing with the aftermath of the Schiavo case — in which the federal courts refused to hold new hearings on whether she should be starved and dehydrated to death, despite Congress passing a law authorizing them to do so — will be a top priority for some lawmakers. Legislation is possible, though the Republican congressional leadership seems conflicted over how it will respond to the judiciary's inaction.
On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist told reporters that he thought that the federal courts had acted fairly in the Schiavo case.
"I believe we have a fair and independent judiciary today," said Frist. "I respect that."
But House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican, promised action in response to Schiavo's court-imposed and -affirmed death sentence.
"We will look," he said, "at an arrogant, out-of-control, unaccountable judiciary that thumbed their nose at the Congress and president when given jurisdiction to hear this case anew."
Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., promised that, at the very least, the Schiavo situation will prompt hearings to investigate what he told CitizenLink was "a confrontation between the legislative and the judicial branches."
"Here the judicial branch just walked all over the legislative branch," he explained. "There was no effort . . . to determine what the legislative intent was. It was just that the court made up its mind, and we're the court and we can do it."
Brownback said there is now an actual battle between the legislative and judicial branches — and its effects will be unmistakable.
"This is something that's going to be going on for some period of time," he said. "It was highlighted in the Schiavo case, it has been highlighted for some time in terms of the life issue and the unborn, and it has come forth clearly in marriage. The legislative and executive branches need to reassert some of the balance of power here. I plan on holding hearings on that."
Judicial nominations
Dealing with an out-of-control judiciary is just one side of the courts issue for Congress. The other side, breaking Democrat filibusters against the president's judicial nominations, is about to heat up, as well.
Amanda Banks, federal issues analyst for Focus on the Family, said virtually everyone expects some movement in the next month on a GOP plan to end the blockades liberals have erected to stop the president's conservative nominees from receiving confirmation votes.
In late 2004, President Bush re-nominated seven of the 10 original nominees blocked by Senate Democrats — and a key vote is expected soon on Priscilla Owen's nomination. Owen, a Texas Supreme Court justice, was first selected in 2001 for a post on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals — but never received an up-or-down vote. Three cloture votes failed to break the Democratic filibuster and move her nomination to the floor of the Senate.
"In the past couple of years," Banks said, "the minority party, the Democrats, has obstructed the confirmation process with filibusters, blocking President Bush's judicial nominees from receiving up-and-down votes."
Banks said Frist is likely to institute "the constitutional option" — a procedural move to restore the tradition of 51-vote majorities for the confirmation of judicial nominees. In response, however, the Democrats are threatening to shut down the Senate, and block all legislation save for key issues like terrorism and defense.
"In effect the Senate wouldn't get anything done if they stay true to their word," Banks explained, "so we would see next to nothing out of the Senate."
Just this week, nearly 200 conservative leaders from across the nation sent a letter to Senate leadership asking them to invoke the constitutional option and to restore Senate tradition.
Pro-family legislation
In addition to dealing with the judiciary, Congress could take up several key pieces of pro-family legislation in the next few months.
"There's been word that (senators) will possibly take up the Child Custody Protection Act, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act and welfare reform," Banks said. "We're looking for some key votes out of the Senate in the next couple of months regarding pro-family legislation."
Pro-family members of Congress are also going to take another shot at passing the Child Custody Protection Act (S. 8) and a similar, but slightly different version in the House, called the Child Interstate Notification Act (H.R. 748).
"What this legislation would do," Banks said, "is prohibit the transportation of a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion, if doing so would circumvent their own state laws to notify parents."
Banks added that she's hopeful that this is the year for the legislation to pass.
Another bill which failed to pass but is back again is the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act (S. 193), sponsored by Sens. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., and Joe Lieberman, D-Conn. The House version, H.R., passed in February by a vote of 389-38.
The bill, which originally grew out of the nation's outrage over the infamous 2004 Super Bowl half-time show, during which singer Janet Jackson's breast was exposed, would increase Federal Communications Commission fines for broadcast indecency. Under the Senate version, fines would increase tenfold, to $325,000 per incident — with a cap of $3 million for any given broadcaster per day.
"This bill has bipartisan support, and is an issue which doesn't divide by party," Banks explained. "But it does get complicated and bogged down with detail, and that's what happened last year — with some members wanting to add certain provisions, and others wanting to subtract provisions, so we ended up at an impasse, going nowhere. Hopefully, they can work through those details this year."
Meanwhile, a third legislative hope, welfare-reform reauthorization, is something the Senate has been working on for months now.
"The two provisions in that bill that we're most concerned about are marriage-promotion funding — which is part of President Bush's original plan — and also abstinence education funding," Banks said. "Abstinence education is something that always requires quite a bit of work from the pro-family camp."
Current funding for "comprehensive sex education," which includes condom education, exceeds abstinence-education funding by a margin of 12 to 1.
"We simply want to maintain, and in future years increase, the amount of federal funding going to abstinence," Banks said. "We do expect efforts, though, to try to change the very definition of abstinence education — which would be extremely detrimental to the movement and would, in effect, end abstinence education funding through the federal government."
Marriage Protection Amendment
Retaining funding for programs which promote marriage to welfare recipients is important, but perhaps the most important piece of legislation affecting marriage and family, the Marriage Protection Amendment (S.J. Res 1) — which last year was called the Federal Marriage Amendment — probably won't come up for a vote before July, Banks said.
"Whether it's this year, or in 2006, when the time is right we certainly anticipate another vote on the Marriage Protection Amendment," she said.
One good sign is the fact that the amendment today has more cosponsors than the legislation had last July, when senators voted on it — and failed to pass it.
The bill was given the number S.J. Res. 1 — an indication of its importance to Senate leadership, Banks said.
TAKE ACTION
Please take a moment to contact your congressman and U.S. senators and urge them to cosponsor the pro-family bills identified in this story. For contact information, including an easy-to-use e-mail form, visit the CitizenLink Action Center and type your ZIP code into the space provided.
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Family News in Focus
Focus on the Family
Friday, April 08, 2005
Terry Phillips
* The argument over what's to be done to break-up the filibuster barricade in the Senate continues to heat-up, with rallies and counter-charges.
1. "Activists from all over the country are coming to Washington DC..." "Coalition for a Fair Judiciary" demands changing filibuster rules; at "Constitutional Restoration Conference" the "Judeo-Christian Council for Constitutional Action" demands end to separation-supporting rulings in addition - have a five-item action item, including "impeaching activist judges" and "limiting the jurisdiction of the courts" to take all religion-and-government issues to the state level. (Basically undoing the 14th Amendment.) Consistent referral to Senate rules change as "the Constitutional option." State Supreme Court Justice Parker (missed state) will be lobbying.
* Children as young as eight years old are being pressed into military service in Africa.
3. Nearly 50,000 children have been abducted - are trained as terrorists in northern Uganda. "The Lord's Resistance Army" is the most significant culprit. Slavery and military training of the most brutal sort. Demands governments of Sudan and Uganda be further pressured to stop these atrocities. [Ed. Note: it's very weird being 100% on their side about something - this is an abomination I've read about elsewhere.] Sudanese government allows shelter to the LRA. World Vision in particular wants action from President Bush and Secretary of State Rice. Sen. Brownback led hearing showing the video.
* The Centers for Disease control says risky sex habits are leading to the deaths of thousands of Americans. HIV and the human papillomavirus are the big killers.
6. Risks are "three times higher" than "other industrialised countries." "Risky sex habits" cause 30,000 deaths a year - majority of deaths HIV in men, majority of long-term negative health impacts are heterosexual women. CDC encourages "so-called" safe sex - claims that condoms do not actually prevent disease transmission. Mostly focusing on HPV, which can cause cervical cancer. "The only true safe sex is monogamy."
* A watch-dog organization says alcohol ads are reaching far too many under-age readers. The study included a look at more than 10,000 magazines layouts costing one-billion dollars.
5. "Center on Alcohol Monitoring to Youth." Claims that despite some efforts by industry - some credit is given to industry attempts to avoid this but assert the changes being made in ad policies are happening too slowly - more kids than adults see many alcohol ads. "Individual companies have no intention of moving too far, too fast."
* The ACLU goes to bat for a high schooler's right to wear a gay-friendly tee-shirt.
4. Straight student in Missouri wore T shirt saying "I support the gay rights," was disciplined; is being sued. Another student in Ohio was similarly disciplined, ACLU has sent a letter. Alliance Defense Fund asks, "How many schools would allow a student to have that kind of pro-homosexual message, but will not allow a Day of Truth T-shirt? And I think that's going to be far, far more common."
* Executions in North Korea draw attention in Washington.
2. Video of executions shown in DC hearing - recent trials and executions of North Koreans. "These take place daily." Lots of executions for fleeing to China. Chinese government turns over refugees they can find.
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The Homosexualists' Plan for Public Schools
4/8/2005
Concerned Women for AMerica
By Lee Duigon
Book reveals strategy to indoctrinate kids, crush opposition.
([CWFA] Editor’s note: The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has slated April 13 as the Day of Silence. School kids who are sympathetic to their peers who are perceived as “gay” are supposed to remain silent the entire day, regardless of how disruptive this is for the other students. It’s part of a full-court press to use the schools to normalize homosexuality. In the commentary/book review below, Christian free-lance writer Lee Duigon gives us a glimpse of what they have in mind. A link to a CWA resource paper to counter the Day of Silence is at the bottom.)
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/7872/CFI/family/index.htm
Sexual Orientation and School Policy by Dr. Ian K. Macgillivray
(Rowan and Littlefield, New York, 2004)
Is public education to be so "inclusive" that it excludes the majority?
According to a new book by James Madison University education professor Dr. Ian K. Macgillivray, yeah, sure, if that's what it takes for the homosexual movement to prevail in America.
Macgillivray is more than just a professor. He's an out-and-out advocate of homosexual militancy who has written many books and articles on the subject; a list is available at queertheory.com.
Revolutionaries always publish their plans in advance, and the rest of us always laugh them off. Europeans never took Hitler’s Mein Kampf seriously. America ignores the many documents in which the homosexualists outline their plans for this country and even reveal their tactics – as Macgillivray does in Sexual Orientation and School Policy.
For him, the public schools are to be used "to outwit or educate the opposition" (us), and to overthrow a conservative Christian value system that he considers "outdated" and "morally invalid."
As to the tactics, it's all very simple. First you set up a program or an organization and give it a name and a mission that nobody--least of all a Christian who's already shy about being pilloried as a hatemonger--will object to. Macgillivray likes a "Safe Schools Coalition." Everybody wants safe schools. No one wants to see kids bullied or assaulted because they happen to be "gay."
“By portraying homosexuality as a victim class, the activists put anyone with traditional values on the defensive,” said Robert Knight, director of Concerned Women for America’s Culture & Family Institute. “The approach is brilliant; it appeals to the best in us, the part that wants to defend the underdog. But increasingly, the ‘underdogs’ are becoming the bullies, using school programs and compliant bureaucracy.”
“We can and should teach civility without also promoting homosexuality, but parents and teachers are given a stark choice: go along with the pro-homosexual programs or be blamed for any incident involving a ‘gay’ kid.”
The school will also need a "non-discrimination policy," and no one will object to non-discrimination.
Now, how do we create safe schools where there's little evidence of discrimination? Work on the hearts and minds of those who are guilty of making schools unsafe, who practice discrimination — or, rather, work on the hearts and minds of their children. Turn them against the idea of "a heterosexual cultural norm." After all, as Macgillivray says, "Modernity is against moral conservatives."
Employ "restorative justice" in the classroom. It's not just about wiping out supposed violence against homosexuals; it's about "superseding a conservative heterosexual hegemony." (Don't hold your breath waiting for actual evidence of "violence" massively directed against "gays." That's one of those things you're supposed to take on faith.)
[More at URL]
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Doctor Suspects 'Gay' Activists Behind Advisory Panel Snub
Cybercast News Service
http://www.townhall.com/news/politics/200504/CUL20050408a.shtml
(CNSNews.com) - A Christian psychologist who advocates reparative therapy for homosexuals has been dropped from a prominent health advisory council following a documentary he made about ex-homosexuals. He tells Cybercast News Service that he believes political pressure from homosexual advocacy groups, upset over the film, led to his dismissal.
But no one either previously associated with Dr. Warren Throckmorton or opposed to his views is admitting responsibility for working to prevent Throckmorton's selection to the council.
Officials at Magellan Health Services, America's largest behavioral health care system, in September 2004 invited Throckmorton to serve on the company's developing National Professional Advisory Council, but in February 2005 rescinded the invitation, citing Throckmorton's views on the controversial therapy for homosexuals.
Throckmorton supports and provides what he calls "heterosexual affirming therapy," also known as reparative therapy, a form of counseling intended to change the sexual orientation of homosexuals who feel uneasy about their sexual preference.
Throckmorton, who is an associate professor of psychology at Pennsylvania's Grove City College, had served on a similar Magellan-sponsored council since 1999 called the National Providers Advisory Committee.
He told Cybercast News Service that he thinks he was removed from the council because of political pressure applied by homosexual advocacy groups who felt threatened by his 2004 film "I Do Exist," which documented the stories of several "ex-gays." His views were never an issue until after the release of the film, he said.
Throckmorton also wrote about the value of heterosexual affirming therapy in the Journal of Mental Health Counseling in 1998, before being invited to serve on the National Providers Advisory Committee.
In the article, "Efforts to Modify Sexual Orientation," Throckmorton stated that, "The available evidence supports ... that many individuals with a same-gender sexual orientation have been able to change through a variety of counseling approaches."
Throckmorton's 'potentially controversial views
Magellan spokeswoman Erin Somers confirmed that Throckmorton's invitation to the council was rescinded because of "certain of his publicly expressed views [that] could be potentially controversial to some of [Magellan's] stakeholders."
But Somers denied that Magellan was bowing to political pressure from homosexual advocacy groups. She said the company "had no discussion with anyone outside the organization about this matter.
[More at URL]
* Thursday's Family News in Focus relays an action item to flood Connecticut legislators with anti-civil-unions calls;
* Focus on the Family article on "pro-family" congressional legislation - judges, judges, "indecency" legislation, nibbling on the edges of abortion rights, and the Federal Marrage Amendment - includes action item;
* Today's Family News in Focus - no specific action item;
* Concerned Women for America scare-article on "The Homosexualists' Plan for Public Schools" - there are extensive quotes, but note that almost none of them are from an actual book that they're trashing, which appears to be on nondiscrimination policy in public school - most of them are from Robert Knight, CWA flak, interleaved with a tiny number of actual quotes. Knight's quotes are much scarier and are supposed to be paraphrases - the intent is clearly to make the source much scarier than it actually is - includes action item;
* Anti-gay "reparative therapist" Dr. Warren Throckmorton dropped by Magellan Health Services over his anti-gay activities; blames "gay activists." No action item.
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Family News in Focus
Thursday, April 07, 2005
Bob Ditmer
* The Senate votes to do away with a ban on tax dollars used to promote abortion overseas....but now the House will have a say.
3: Ban on aid to overseas clinics that offer referral services, information about, or actual abortion services, including UN population fund. "UNFDA works their wiley ways all across the globe..." "This is not a serious vote, because it's not going to last." "It always passes the senate, and the House is where we're able to hold our ground."
* Once again, comprehensive sex-ed Senators are trying to divert funds designated for "abstinence only" education.
4: Title 5 - abstinence-only education funding. Calls "abstinence plus" the "latex" option, claims that talking about birth control in any form increases teen pregnancy. "The other side gets most of the money anyway. Comprehensive sex education gets $12 for every $1 we get for abstinence until marriage."
* Native Americans are suffering from a host of problems – family breakdown looks like the cause.
6: Some native groups wanting more money - the main point of this story is that money isn't needed, better fathering is.
* While Americans deal with the wall of separation between Church and State, Israeli Christians are trying to cope with a real wall that cuts off their access to the Holy City.
7: Israel's separation wall - FotF calls it "a bid for peace" - story of a school whose student body is being separated off by the wall section on the Mount of Olives(?). "Making it difficult for locals to practice Christianity." Story ends questioning the value of the wall.
* Another overwhelming vote for marriage is more evidence that Americans value the institution and don’t want it changed.
1: 70% of Kansas voters voted for anti-marriage, anti-civil-unions. Spins a 30% turnout as "highest in state history," without mentioning that it's 30%. Three more states so far will vote in 2006.
* A disturbing bill is making its way through Connecticut’s legislature. The Civil Unions Bill promises to make Connecticut the first state to create civil unions for homosexuals without a court order.
2: Supporters claim enough votes - Family Institute of Conneticut. Urge to call state representatives - they're hoping to stop it in the house. Jodi Rell may sign it.
* Colorado Gov. Bill Owens has vetoed a controversial bill that would have required rape-victims to be told of emergency contraception.
5: "Catholic hospitals breathe a sigh of relief." Owens says bill did not "provide balanced information." Claims its part of a plot to force Catholic hospitals to offer abortion services.
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April 7, 2005
Congress Springs into Action
Focus on the Family
by Pete Winn, associate editor
http://family.org/cforum/feature/a0036128.cfm
There are many pro-family initiatives being discussed — and voted on — in the House and Senate before summer vacation.
Congress is back from Easter recess, and you can expect plenty of pro-family legislative action until members go home for the summer — especially from the Senate.
Part of the action will center on the problem of the courts. Arrogant, activist judges have become a major issue for lawmakers, and angered representatives in both chambers — especially so in the aftermath of the legal wrangling that took place in the Terri Schiavo case.
Dealing with the aftermath of the Schiavo case — in which the federal courts refused to hold new hearings on whether she should be starved and dehydrated to death, despite Congress passing a law authorizing them to do so — will be a top priority for some lawmakers. Legislation is possible, though the Republican congressional leadership seems conflicted over how it will respond to the judiciary's inaction.
On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist told reporters that he thought that the federal courts had acted fairly in the Schiavo case.
"I believe we have a fair and independent judiciary today," said Frist. "I respect that."
But House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican, promised action in response to Schiavo's court-imposed and -affirmed death sentence.
"We will look," he said, "at an arrogant, out-of-control, unaccountable judiciary that thumbed their nose at the Congress and president when given jurisdiction to hear this case anew."
Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., promised that, at the very least, the Schiavo situation will prompt hearings to investigate what he told CitizenLink was "a confrontation between the legislative and the judicial branches."
"Here the judicial branch just walked all over the legislative branch," he explained. "There was no effort . . . to determine what the legislative intent was. It was just that the court made up its mind, and we're the court and we can do it."
Brownback said there is now an actual battle between the legislative and judicial branches — and its effects will be unmistakable.
"This is something that's going to be going on for some period of time," he said. "It was highlighted in the Schiavo case, it has been highlighted for some time in terms of the life issue and the unborn, and it has come forth clearly in marriage. The legislative and executive branches need to reassert some of the balance of power here. I plan on holding hearings on that."
Judicial nominations
Dealing with an out-of-control judiciary is just one side of the courts issue for Congress. The other side, breaking Democrat filibusters against the president's judicial nominations, is about to heat up, as well.
Amanda Banks, federal issues analyst for Focus on the Family, said virtually everyone expects some movement in the next month on a GOP plan to end the blockades liberals have erected to stop the president's conservative nominees from receiving confirmation votes.
In late 2004, President Bush re-nominated seven of the 10 original nominees blocked by Senate Democrats — and a key vote is expected soon on Priscilla Owen's nomination. Owen, a Texas Supreme Court justice, was first selected in 2001 for a post on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals — but never received an up-or-down vote. Three cloture votes failed to break the Democratic filibuster and move her nomination to the floor of the Senate.
"In the past couple of years," Banks said, "the minority party, the Democrats, has obstructed the confirmation process with filibusters, blocking President Bush's judicial nominees from receiving up-and-down votes."
Banks said Frist is likely to institute "the constitutional option" — a procedural move to restore the tradition of 51-vote majorities for the confirmation of judicial nominees. In response, however, the Democrats are threatening to shut down the Senate, and block all legislation save for key issues like terrorism and defense.
"In effect the Senate wouldn't get anything done if they stay true to their word," Banks explained, "so we would see next to nothing out of the Senate."
Just this week, nearly 200 conservative leaders from across the nation sent a letter to Senate leadership asking them to invoke the constitutional option and to restore Senate tradition.
Pro-family legislation
In addition to dealing with the judiciary, Congress could take up several key pieces of pro-family legislation in the next few months.
"There's been word that (senators) will possibly take up the Child Custody Protection Act, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act and welfare reform," Banks said. "We're looking for some key votes out of the Senate in the next couple of months regarding pro-family legislation."
Pro-family members of Congress are also going to take another shot at passing the Child Custody Protection Act (S. 8) and a similar, but slightly different version in the House, called the Child Interstate Notification Act (H.R. 748).
"What this legislation would do," Banks said, "is prohibit the transportation of a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion, if doing so would circumvent their own state laws to notify parents."
Banks added that she's hopeful that this is the year for the legislation to pass.
Another bill which failed to pass but is back again is the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act (S. 193), sponsored by Sens. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., and Joe Lieberman, D-Conn. The House version, H.R., passed in February by a vote of 389-38.
The bill, which originally grew out of the nation's outrage over the infamous 2004 Super Bowl half-time show, during which singer Janet Jackson's breast was exposed, would increase Federal Communications Commission fines for broadcast indecency. Under the Senate version, fines would increase tenfold, to $325,000 per incident — with a cap of $3 million for any given broadcaster per day.
"This bill has bipartisan support, and is an issue which doesn't divide by party," Banks explained. "But it does get complicated and bogged down with detail, and that's what happened last year — with some members wanting to add certain provisions, and others wanting to subtract provisions, so we ended up at an impasse, going nowhere. Hopefully, they can work through those details this year."
Meanwhile, a third legislative hope, welfare-reform reauthorization, is something the Senate has been working on for months now.
"The two provisions in that bill that we're most concerned about are marriage-promotion funding — which is part of President Bush's original plan — and also abstinence education funding," Banks said. "Abstinence education is something that always requires quite a bit of work from the pro-family camp."
Current funding for "comprehensive sex education," which includes condom education, exceeds abstinence-education funding by a margin of 12 to 1.
"We simply want to maintain, and in future years increase, the amount of federal funding going to abstinence," Banks said. "We do expect efforts, though, to try to change the very definition of abstinence education — which would be extremely detrimental to the movement and would, in effect, end abstinence education funding through the federal government."
Marriage Protection Amendment
Retaining funding for programs which promote marriage to welfare recipients is important, but perhaps the most important piece of legislation affecting marriage and family, the Marriage Protection Amendment (S.J. Res 1) — which last year was called the Federal Marriage Amendment — probably won't come up for a vote before July, Banks said.
"Whether it's this year, or in 2006, when the time is right we certainly anticipate another vote on the Marriage Protection Amendment," she said.
One good sign is the fact that the amendment today has more cosponsors than the legislation had last July, when senators voted on it — and failed to pass it.
The bill was given the number S.J. Res. 1 — an indication of its importance to Senate leadership, Banks said.
TAKE ACTION
Please take a moment to contact your congressman and U.S. senators and urge them to cosponsor the pro-family bills identified in this story. For contact information, including an easy-to-use e-mail form, visit the CitizenLink Action Center and type your ZIP code into the space provided.
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Family News in Focus
Focus on the Family
Friday, April 08, 2005
Terry Phillips
* The argument over what's to be done to break-up the filibuster barricade in the Senate continues to heat-up, with rallies and counter-charges.
1. "Activists from all over the country are coming to Washington DC..." "Coalition for a Fair Judiciary" demands changing filibuster rules; at "Constitutional Restoration Conference" the "Judeo-Christian Council for Constitutional Action" demands end to separation-supporting rulings in addition - have a five-item action item, including "impeaching activist judges" and "limiting the jurisdiction of the courts" to take all religion-and-government issues to the state level. (Basically undoing the 14th Amendment.) Consistent referral to Senate rules change as "the Constitutional option." State Supreme Court Justice Parker (missed state) will be lobbying.
* Children as young as eight years old are being pressed into military service in Africa.
3. Nearly 50,000 children have been abducted - are trained as terrorists in northern Uganda. "The Lord's Resistance Army" is the most significant culprit. Slavery and military training of the most brutal sort. Demands governments of Sudan and Uganda be further pressured to stop these atrocities. [Ed. Note: it's very weird being 100% on their side about something - this is an abomination I've read about elsewhere.] Sudanese government allows shelter to the LRA. World Vision in particular wants action from President Bush and Secretary of State Rice. Sen. Brownback led hearing showing the video.
* The Centers for Disease control says risky sex habits are leading to the deaths of thousands of Americans. HIV and the human papillomavirus are the big killers.
6. Risks are "three times higher" than "other industrialised countries." "Risky sex habits" cause 30,000 deaths a year - majority of deaths HIV in men, majority of long-term negative health impacts are heterosexual women. CDC encourages "so-called" safe sex - claims that condoms do not actually prevent disease transmission. Mostly focusing on HPV, which can cause cervical cancer. "The only true safe sex is monogamy."
* A watch-dog organization says alcohol ads are reaching far too many under-age readers. The study included a look at more than 10,000 magazines layouts costing one-billion dollars.
5. "Center on Alcohol Monitoring to Youth." Claims that despite some efforts by industry - some credit is given to industry attempts to avoid this but assert the changes being made in ad policies are happening too slowly - more kids than adults see many alcohol ads. "Individual companies have no intention of moving too far, too fast."
* The ACLU goes to bat for a high schooler's right to wear a gay-friendly tee-shirt.
4. Straight student in Missouri wore T shirt saying "I support the gay rights," was disciplined; is being sued. Another student in Ohio was similarly disciplined, ACLU has sent a letter. Alliance Defense Fund asks, "How many schools would allow a student to have that kind of pro-homosexual message, but will not allow a Day of Truth T-shirt? And I think that's going to be far, far more common."
* Executions in North Korea draw attention in Washington.
2. Video of executions shown in DC hearing - recent trials and executions of North Koreans. "These take place daily." Lots of executions for fleeing to China. Chinese government turns over refugees they can find.
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The Homosexualists' Plan for Public Schools
4/8/2005
Concerned Women for AMerica
By Lee Duigon
Book reveals strategy to indoctrinate kids, crush opposition.
([CWFA] Editor’s note: The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has slated April 13 as the Day of Silence. School kids who are sympathetic to their peers who are perceived as “gay” are supposed to remain silent the entire day, regardless of how disruptive this is for the other students. It’s part of a full-court press to use the schools to normalize homosexuality. In the commentary/book review below, Christian free-lance writer Lee Duigon gives us a glimpse of what they have in mind. A link to a CWA resource paper to counter the Day of Silence is at the bottom.)
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/7872/CFI/family/index.htm
Sexual Orientation and School Policy by Dr. Ian K. Macgillivray
(Rowan and Littlefield, New York, 2004)
Is public education to be so "inclusive" that it excludes the majority?
According to a new book by James Madison University education professor Dr. Ian K. Macgillivray, yeah, sure, if that's what it takes for the homosexual movement to prevail in America.
Macgillivray is more than just a professor. He's an out-and-out advocate of homosexual militancy who has written many books and articles on the subject; a list is available at queertheory.com.
Revolutionaries always publish their plans in advance, and the rest of us always laugh them off. Europeans never took Hitler’s Mein Kampf seriously. America ignores the many documents in which the homosexualists outline their plans for this country and even reveal their tactics – as Macgillivray does in Sexual Orientation and School Policy.
For him, the public schools are to be used "to outwit or educate the opposition" (us), and to overthrow a conservative Christian value system that he considers "outdated" and "morally invalid."
As to the tactics, it's all very simple. First you set up a program or an organization and give it a name and a mission that nobody--least of all a Christian who's already shy about being pilloried as a hatemonger--will object to. Macgillivray likes a "Safe Schools Coalition." Everybody wants safe schools. No one wants to see kids bullied or assaulted because they happen to be "gay."
“By portraying homosexuality as a victim class, the activists put anyone with traditional values on the defensive,” said Robert Knight, director of Concerned Women for America’s Culture & Family Institute. “The approach is brilliant; it appeals to the best in us, the part that wants to defend the underdog. But increasingly, the ‘underdogs’ are becoming the bullies, using school programs and compliant bureaucracy.”
“We can and should teach civility without also promoting homosexuality, but parents and teachers are given a stark choice: go along with the pro-homosexual programs or be blamed for any incident involving a ‘gay’ kid.”
The school will also need a "non-discrimination policy," and no one will object to non-discrimination.
Now, how do we create safe schools where there's little evidence of discrimination? Work on the hearts and minds of those who are guilty of making schools unsafe, who practice discrimination — or, rather, work on the hearts and minds of their children. Turn them against the idea of "a heterosexual cultural norm." After all, as Macgillivray says, "Modernity is against moral conservatives."
Employ "restorative justice" in the classroom. It's not just about wiping out supposed violence against homosexuals; it's about "superseding a conservative heterosexual hegemony." (Don't hold your breath waiting for actual evidence of "violence" massively directed against "gays." That's one of those things you're supposed to take on faith.)
[More at URL]
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Doctor Suspects 'Gay' Activists Behind Advisory Panel Snub
Cybercast News Service
http://www.townhall.com/news/politics/200504/CUL20050408a.shtml
(CNSNews.com) - A Christian psychologist who advocates reparative therapy for homosexuals has been dropped from a prominent health advisory council following a documentary he made about ex-homosexuals. He tells Cybercast News Service that he believes political pressure from homosexual advocacy groups, upset over the film, led to his dismissal.
But no one either previously associated with Dr. Warren Throckmorton or opposed to his views is admitting responsibility for working to prevent Throckmorton's selection to the council.
Officials at Magellan Health Services, America's largest behavioral health care system, in September 2004 invited Throckmorton to serve on the company's developing National Professional Advisory Council, but in February 2005 rescinded the invitation, citing Throckmorton's views on the controversial therapy for homosexuals.
Throckmorton supports and provides what he calls "heterosexual affirming therapy," also known as reparative therapy, a form of counseling intended to change the sexual orientation of homosexuals who feel uneasy about their sexual preference.
Throckmorton, who is an associate professor of psychology at Pennsylvania's Grove City College, had served on a similar Magellan-sponsored council since 1999 called the National Providers Advisory Committee.
He told Cybercast News Service that he thinks he was removed from the council because of political pressure applied by homosexual advocacy groups who felt threatened by his 2004 film "I Do Exist," which documented the stories of several "ex-gays." His views were never an issue until after the release of the film, he said.
Throckmorton also wrote about the value of heterosexual affirming therapy in the Journal of Mental Health Counseling in 1998, before being invited to serve on the National Providers Advisory Committee.
In the article, "Efforts to Modify Sexual Orientation," Throckmorton stated that, "The available evidence supports ... that many individuals with a same-gender sexual orientation have been able to change through a variety of counseling approaches."
Throckmorton's 'potentially controversial views
Magellan spokeswoman Erin Somers confirmed that Throckmorton's invitation to the council was rescinded because of "certain of his publicly expressed views [that] could be potentially controversial to some of [Magellan's] stakeholders."
But Somers denied that Magellan was bowing to political pressure from homosexual advocacy groups. She said the company "had no discussion with anyone outside the organization about this matter.
[More at URL]
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Date: 2005-04-09 02:39 am (UTC)Can't "point and laugh" count as an action item in this case?