(NEWS) Today's Cultural Warfare Update
Feb. 7th, 2006 11:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdNot linked to, because it's not an article, is Faith and Freedom Network calling Washington State's civil rights bill "same-sex marriage legislation." It's on their front page, and will no doubt be part of their "repeal" campaign with Tim Eyman. The direct quote: "Why Faith & Freedom opposes HB 2661 and other same-sex marriage legislation." Watch out for this in upcoming months. Incidentally, I ran into an Eyman signature gatherer on the $30 tabs thing (to gut transportation funding again) at Albertson's; he was collecting only for the tabs and said he wouldn't take signatures for the anti-civil-rights initiative. He said this after I told him that I'd never vote for another Tim Eyman initiative, no matter what it was, even if I agreed with it, because of his anti-queer initiatives this year. He didn't look me in the eye on the way back out the grocery.
Meanwhile, here's today's news - or rather, Monday's and Tuesday's. Sorry I'm so late.
UK launches programme to counter US's anti-abortion stance overseas; I wonder what the fundamentalists will think of this?
Here's a first; I link to DailyKOS, which blogs about how Our Friends, the Saudis, blew the Danish cartoon series into an international crisis, in order to help deflect criticism of their government; I haven't linked to Juan Cole's Informed Comment, but he disagrees with portions of this analysis, pointing the finger more at the Syrian government; Omar, an Iraqi blogger at iraqthemodel.com also points at Syria, while also pointing at Iran;
Spiegel Online: Do not apologise, Denmark;
New York Press editorial staff quits en masse after publisher kills plans to run the 12 Danish cartoons as a protest;
Arabic youth set up apology site to Norway and Denmark for the actions of the fundamentalist Islamists; state they find the cartoons very offensive but condemn the violence in clear terms;
In the radical capital of the most liberal district of the most progressive city in the country, Capital Hill in Seattle, free-speech advocates have made the "bomb" cartoon into a symbol for the right to express unpopular opinions - Dan Savage blogs about it; I point this out because there's a meme going around Republican circles that lefties are pro-fundamentalist-Islamist on this one;
Focus on the Family: California group trying to get parental-notification initiative on the ballot;
FotF: Idaho State House passes anti-marriage amendment; moves now to Senate;
FotF's Citizen magazine runs scare-article against videogaming; particularly targets games like the Halo series, Doom, Quake - FPS in general; blames Resident Evil and Doom for the Columbine killings; etc, etc, etc;
FotF ACTION ITEM and article pushing anti-marriage amendment in New Hampshire;
Kansas Supreme Court rejects gubernatorial attempt to trawl through medical records of women who have had abortions, FotF spins it as a "complicated ruling" and claims partial victory; however, that's pretty much just spin;
Kentucky has 40 legislators signing on to an outright abortion ban, specifically to challenge Roe v. Wade;
FotF signals membership: don't vote for Bloomberg - he just donated significant money towards stem-cell research;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight whines about the "Baby Boomer decadence" of the Rolling Stones - it's pretty funny, and sad, so you should read it; the best part is when he recommends people read The Picture of Dorian Grey, clearly not aware that Oscar Wilde was as gay as a box of birds;
CWA reprints article by Tim Wilkins of Cross Ministry, who is of the so-called "ex-gay" movement; admits outright he still really wants men; compares Brokeback Mountain to offering alcoholics booze; refuses to see it;
Agape Press: "Thank God" that there are new justices on the Supreme Court, changing its makeup to suit fundamentalists; also, don't worry about that death penalty case, it was just whether to reverse a lower court's stay, it's not a sign Alito is flipping;
CWA's Jan LaRue talks about the Alito swearing-in ceremony; she was invited as a CWA rep;
Traditional Values Coalition: same-sex relationships "no different than tobacco or alcohol abuse"; pushes the usual lines about diseased fags spreading their filthy diseases and dying young; pushes "ex-gay" ministries;
TVC: American queers want to make "opposition to homosexual conduct" illegal; claims Europe is about to do so;
Family Research Council denounces Maryland Speaker of the House for stopping the anti-marriage bill there;
FRC ACTION ITEM to support anti-marriage efforts in New Hampshire;
American Family Association article with Canadian fundamentalist Brian Rushfeldt has Rushfeldt saying forget the free vote (because they'd lose it); now there should be a national referendum on marriage rights. Meanwhile, in another article I saw earlier, public support for reopening the issue runs against (meaning for the status quo) nearly 2:1;
AFA trumpets Southern Californian Episcopalian church leaving Episcopal Church USA for South American Diocese;
AFA: "Catholic Groups Protest Church Schools Supporting V-Monologues";
AFA claims victory, says they got a segment they consider "offensive" to Christians pulled from "Will and Grace"; NBC says the information was wrong to start with;
AFA ACTION ITEM to support anti-marriage "Marriage Protection Amendment" - they expect a Senate vote in MARCH;
Edmonton, Alberta paper columnist calls for Harper to use the Notwithstanding clause to void the Supreme Court decision on marriage which led to C-38;
Canada Family Action Coalition is clearly getting coaching from southern allies; talks now about the "medical consequences of [homosexuality]."
----- 1 -----
Britain defies US with funding to boost safe abortion services
· Attempt to replace lost dollars after 'global gag'
· 70,000 died last year in backstreet operations
Sarah Boseley
Monday February 6, 2006
The Guardian
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/development/story/0,,1703082,00.html?gusrc=rss
The British government will today publicly defy the United States by giving money for safe abortion services in developing countries to organisations that have been cut off from American funding.
Nearly 70,000 women and girls died last year because they went to back-street abortionists. Hundreds of thousands of others suffered serious injuries.
Critics of America's aid policy say some might have lived if the US had not withdrawn funding from clinics that provide safe services - or that simply tell women where to find them.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
Muslim Cartoon Controversy: What the Media Isn't Telling You
by Soj
Sun Feb 05, 2006 at 11:01:49 AM PDT
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/2/5/13149/60748
I had a friend over today who lives out of town and we switched on the traditional news media television and saw what most of you have probably seen - angry rioters protesting, burning flags and attacking various Danish embassies around the world.
Despite the spectaculor footage and a bevy of experts "weighing in" on the issue, I did not one single mention of what's actually going on. And so therefore, by my duty as a citizen journalist, I will now share it with all of you.
The issue has been framed by the traditional media as "Free Expression/Speech" in contrast with "Sensitivity to Religion". Do newspapers in democratic societies have the right to publish offensive images? Well that's something definitely worth debating, but it's overlooking an important step.
12 cartoons were published in the Danish newspaper Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, which you can see here. Some were very bland, others seem to be unquestionably offensive. Yet these cartons were published on September 30, 2005. What the traditional media has failed to explain is why the protests are occuring now.
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Spiegel Online
Democracy in a Cartoon
By Ibn Warraq
February 3, 2006
http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,398853,00.html
Best-selling author and Muslim dissident Ibn Warraq argues that freedom of expression is our western heritage and we must defend it against attacks from totalitarian societies. If the west does not stand in solidarity with the Danish, he argues, then the Islamization of Europe will have begun in earnest.
The great British philosopher John Stuart Mill wrote in On Liberty, "Strange it is, that men should admit the validity of the arguments for free discussion, but object to their being 'pushed to an extreme'; not seeing that unless the reasons are good for an extreme case, they are not good for any case."
The cartoons in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten raise the most important question of our times: freedom of expression. Are we in the west going to cave into pressure from societies with a medieval mindset, or are we going to defend our most precious freedom -- freedom of expression, a freedom for which thousands of people sacrificed their lives?
A democracy cannot survive long without freedom of expression, the freedom to argue, to dissent, even to insult and offend. It is a freedom sorely lacking in the Islamic world, and without it Islam will remain unassailed in its dogmatic, fanatical, medieval fortress; ossified, totalitarian and intolerant. Without this fundamental freedom, Islam will continue to stifle thought, human rights, individuality; originality and truth.
Unless, we show some solidarity, unashamed, noisy, public solidarity with the Danish cartoonists, then the forces that are trying to impose on the Free West a totalitarian ideology will have won; the Islamization of Europe will have begun in earnest. Do not apologize.
[More at URL]
----- 4 -----
NY Press Kills Cartoons; Staff Walks Out
New York Observer
FILE UNDER: Newspapers
http://thepoliticker.observer.com/2006/02/ny-press-kills-cartoons-staff-walks-out.html
The editorial staff of the alternative weekly New York Press walked out today, en masse, after the paper's publishers backed down from printing the Danish cartoons that have become the center of a global free-speech fight.
Editor-in-Chief Harry Siegel emails, on behalf of the editorial staff:
New York Press, like so many other publications, has suborned its own professed principles. For all the talk of freedom of speech, only the New York Sun locally and two other papers nationally have mustered the
minimal courage needed to print simple and not especially offensive editorial cartoons that have been used as a pretext for great and greatly menacing violence directed against journalists, cartoonists, humanitarian aid workers, diplomats and others who represent the basic values and obligations of Western civilization. Having been ordered at the 11th hour to pull the now-infamous Danish cartoons from an issue dedicated to them, the editorial group—consisting of myself, managing editor Tim Marchman, arts editorJonathan Leaf and one-man city hall bureau Azi Paybarah, chose instead to resign our positions.
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
To the People of Norway and Denmark
http://www.sorrynorwaydenmark.com/
In the middle of all the mayhem surrounding the Danish cartoons controversy, a group of Arab and Muslim youth have set up this website to express their honest opinion, as a small attempt to show the world that the images shown of Arab and Muslim anger around the world are not representative of the opinions of all Arabs. We whole-heartedly apologize to the people of Denmark, Norway and all the European Union over the actions of a few, and we completely condemn all forms of vandalism and incitement to violence that the Arab and Muslim world have witnessed. We hope that this sad episode will not tarnish the great friendship that our peoples have fostered over decades.
The problem with media representation of such issues tends to be that the media only picks up the loudest voices, ignoring the rational ones that do not generate as much noise. Voices that seek tolerance, dialogue and understanding are always drowned out by the more sensationalist loud calls, giving viewers the impression that these views are representative of all the Arab public’s view. This website is a modest attempt at redressing this wrong. We would appreciate it if you could forward the word to as many of your friends as possible.
We will note that we find the cartoons to be incendiary, insulting and very abrasive. We also take issue with the general stance of the Danish Newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which has a reputation for publishing inflammatory material. Yet, it would be wrong to take away their freedom of expression, regardless of how horrid their material is. We affirm our belief in freedom of expression and people’s right to express whatever opinions they hold. However, at the same time there is a need to realize that freedom of expression is a responsibility that should not be used to gratuitously insult people’s beliefs.
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
Danish Cartoon On Display in Seattle—Finally!
Posted by DAN SAVAGE at 01:06 PM
http://www.thestranger.com/blog/archives/2006/02/05-11.php#a004183
Okay, it’s on Seattle’s light poles, and not in any of Seattle’s newspapers—yet—but I was pleased to find this flyer tacked up on Capitol Hill this morning.
[Image at URL]
I’m not sure where the quote is from, or if the person or persons behind the poster wrote it. Either way, I love it. I couldn’t agree more. Bravo. If the folks who did this are reading this blog, keep putting ‘em up!
[More at URL]
----- 6 -----
Petitioners Seek to Place Parental Notification on California Ballot
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 7, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
A drive for signatures aims to give voters in the Golden
State another chance to require parents to be notified 24
hours in advance if a minor daughter is seeking an
abortion, The Associated Press reported.
In a special election last November, a similar measure --
Proposition 73 -- failed to gain enough votes to pass.
Albin Rhomerg, spokesman for the Parents Right to Know and
Child Protection Initiative, said the turnout for that
special election was not representative of the people.
"The turnout was very high in the liberal areas of the
state and surprisingly low in some of the more
conservative areas," he said. "It would be foolish to not
put it before the voters in the larger general election."
Supporters of the new proposed ballot measure have until
July 3 to gather the 600,000 signatures required to place
it on the ballot.
----- 7 -----
Idaho One Step Closer to Preserving Marriage
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 7, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Idaho State House approved a proposed constitutional
amendment Monday that would define marriage as a union
between one man and one woman, The Associated Press
reported.
Rep. Lawerence Dennery, R-Midvale, sponsored the bill.
"You cannot make people moral by legislation, but all of
our social laws are legislated morally," he said. "If we
don't set boundaries -- and let everyone do what is right
in their own eyes -- we lose our entire structure. We have
chaos."
The amendment states that "a marriage between a man and a
woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid
or recognized."
The bill must still pass the Senate to be placed on the
November ballot.
----- 8 -----
Point. Click. Kill.
SUMMARY: A father asks that you forgive him for what he is about to tell you.
by Jeff Hooten
Focus on the Family
Citizen Magazine
February 2006
(This article appears in the February issue of Citizen
magazine.)
http://www.family.org/cforum/citizenmag/features/a0039289.cfm
Forgive me, for I have killed.
I have used swords and shotguns, handguns and grenades. I
have shot, stabbed and bludgeoned. I have crushed skulls
with golf clubs and hammers and baseball bats. I have
slaughtered men and women, drug dealers and crime bosses,
soldiers and secret agents, mad scientists and aliens,
zombies and the pizza guy. I have killed hundreds, even
thousands -- so many that I lost count long ago.
I have taken up machine guns, plasma rifles and chainsaws.
I have learned to aim for the head. I have partaken of the
drive-by, and I have gone postal. I have fired on fallen
corpses from point-blank range just to see what would
happen. I have watched the flesh fragments scatter and a
cloud of blood dust fill the air.
I have killed with XBox and GameCube, Playstation and PC.
I have killed with joystick, mouse and keyboard. I have
killed for hours at a time, on screens big and small; on
laptops and high-resolution monitors. I have killed in my
basement, in my living room, at the local arcade, at a
neighbor's house, with a co-worker's teenage son. I have
killed late into the night, until three or four in the
morning, because my adrenaline was surging, because my
kids were safely in bed, because I was simply on a roll.
Because I was winning and they were dying.
[...]
Science also tells me that practice makes perfect, that my brain will learn from its mistakes, that it will formulate standardized responses to what is happening on the monitor, and my muscles, in turn, will pay attention. Not only does repetition change brain activity, to the point that it will show up on a brain scan, it also alters behavior. Shoot enough jump shots and the motion becomes hard-wired. Play a video game long enough and your muscles recognize instinctively what to do. And programmed muscles, science tells me, are ready and waiting to be used at any time, ready and waiting to make the move from fantasy to reality.
[More at URL]
----- 9 -----
HELP PROTECT MARRIAGE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE
Constitutional amendment needed to define what marriage is.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
February 6, 2006
by Mona Passignano, state issues analyst
http://www.family.org/cforum/statenews/a0039444.cfm
A marriage amendment -- CACR 34 -- has been introduced in
the New Hampshire House and is in the Judiciary Committee.
But it is important that you get involved now by telling
your legislators how you feel about this issue.
The New Hampshire Legislature set up a commission in 2004
to study the debate over same-sex marriages. The
Commission looked at how marriage affects society while
also looking at the implications of same-sex marriages.
After 16 months, the Commission released its final report
on Dec. 1, 2005. A majority of members called for a
constitutional amendment protecting traditional marriage
in the state.
[...]
TAKE ACTION: To get contact information for your
legislators and for more information on what you can do to
help protect marriage in New Hampshire, go to Cornerstone
Policy Research and follow the instructions there.
Please consider attending the House Judiciary Committee
Hearing on the state marriage amendment, CACR 34. The
hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 7 in
Representatives Hall. To get there, take the south
elevator to the second floor of the State House. For more
information, visit Cornerstone Policy Research.
http://www.nhcornerstone.org
[More at URL]
----- 10 -----
Kansas May See Prosecution of Crimes Not Reported by Abortion Clinics
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 6, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Kansas Supreme Court on Friday ruled the state
attorney general cannot have complete access to the
medical records of women who had late-term abortions.
He had requested them to see whether crimes were
committed. The top court did order the lower court to
review records of concern to see if pursuit of prosecution
was warranted, The Associated Press reported.
The complicated ruling left both sides claiming victory,
but in the end it appears Kansas Attorney General Phill
Kline may get access to some clinic records -- records
which may contain evidence of crimes.
Kline originally asked a lower court for the records of 10
women who had late-term abortions in order to investigate
whether clinics were performing illegal abortions and to
determine whether clinics were failing to report crimes of
rape or incest. Upon further examination, the court
determined that the records of at least 90 individuals
merited further investigation. The abortion industry
refused to comply.
The case ended up before the state's high court, which
determined that Kline did have a right to pursue
prosecution of crimes, but that the records in question
would not include personal information until the lower
court could confirm that an investigation was justified.
David Gittrich, state development director for Kansans for
Life, said the abortion industry fought hard to keep
records from Kline.
"The abortion industry doesn't want to surrender the
records because they don't want people to know what they
are doing behind those closed doors," he said. "They've
been hiding these abortions on underage girls and they
didn't want Phill Kline to get his fingers on them."
He said that, despite the abortion industry's fight,
ultimately there will be prosecutions.
"He will gain access to some of those records where there
has got to be something wrong," Gittrich told CitizenLink.
"Those are the cases where probable cause will be enough
that the judge will turn them over to him. If you were a
judge and you saw that an 11-year-old girl was pregnant,
that in and of itself shows that there was some crime
committed."
----- 11 -----
Kentucky Lawmakers Eye Abortion Ban
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 6, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Nearly 40 members of the Kentucky House have signed on in
support of legislation that would ban abortion in the
state, The Associated Press reported.
Rep. Addia Wuchner, R-Burlington, is the sponsor of a bill
that would outlaw abortion and directly challenge the 1973
Supreme Court Roe v. Wade ruling.
"(To) create a challenge," Wuchner said, "is how change
begins -- and it begins right here at the state level."
----- 12 -----
Embryonic Stem-Cell Research Gets Boost From Bloomberg
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 6, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg donated $100 million
that he wants used for embryonic stem-cell research, CNN
reported.
President Bush limited federal funding of embryonic
stem-cell research to certain already existing lines in
August 2001.
The process to extract embryonic stem-cells always results
in the destruction of life.
Bloomberg, a billionaire, gave the donation to Johns
Hopkins University, where he is a former board chairman.
In endorsing the controversial research, he breaks from
his Republican counterparts.
Bloomberg, formerly a lifelong Democrat, switched to the
Republican Party in 2001 for the mayoral election.
----- 13 -----
The Best & Worst of Super Bowl XL
Concerned Women for America
2/7/2006
By Robert Knight
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10090/CWA/misc/index.htm
You call this ‘Satisfaction’?
This article was published on February 6, 2006, on WorldNetDaily.com.
Some people's idea of Hell consists of having to repeat a pattern for eternity, never to escape.
I thought about that while watching Mick Jagger dance around the giant lips and tongue cutout on the floor of Ford Field during the Super Bowl XL halftime.
I don't mean us, the audience, repeating the pattern. I mean Mick. He's boasted out loud of cutting deals with the Devil, and you have to wonder whether the Devil is starting to call in his chips, even before the Grim Reaper makes the scene.
At 62 years old, would you want to be gyrating like a sexually confused teen on steroids, singing the same adolescent-themed songs you've sung for 40 years? Hmmm. Way too many of you out there, especially you guys in gray ponytails, said, “Yes.” We recommend that you read Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray – now.
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
Why I won’t see “Brokeback Mountain”
Concerned Women for America
2/6/2006
By Tim Wilkins
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10080/CWA/family/index.htm
What is disturbing to me is that men and women with unwanted homosexual attractions are seeing the movie.
With eight Oscar nominations, more than any other movie this year, Brokeback Mountain continues to gain momentum. And with the momentum comes increasing interest by evangelicals to see it.
I will avoid the movie like a slug avoids an overturned saltshaker and, for the life of me, cannot understand why any evangelical would see it—though there appear to be many. But what is more disturbing to me is that many men and women I know with unwanted homosexual attractions are seeing the movie.
A reporter from The Christian Post asked my thoughts about the movie and I obliged. My comments as a former homosexual were made from the reviews I had read—comments that generated numerous e-mails to me from individuals arguing that I could not make an intelligent comment on a movie I had not seen.
They suggested that my viewing the movie would be beneficial in responding to the reporter’s questions. I told them and the reporter that my going to see Brokeback Mountain would be similar to asking a former alcoholic to go to a liquor store to buy his neighbor a toddy for the body.
Opponents of ex-gay ministries will immediately shout "Aha – so you are still tempted with same-sex attractions!" I do not deny it! Martin Luther said it this way, "If your head is made of butter, stay away from the fire."
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
Commentary & News Briefs
February 3, 2006
Compiled by Jenni Parker
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/32006h.asp
...Wendy Wright of Concerned Women for America (CWA) says it is not surprising that two appeals courts have rejected a ban on partial-birth abortion. Nevertheless, the pro-life advocate is optimistic that the new makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court could bring about a reversal of those lower court decisions. The 2nd and 9th U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals have ruled that the partial-birth abortion ban passed by Congress in 2003 is unconstitutional. "What we all had been hoping for when Congress passed the law and President Bush signed it," Wright says, "is that, by the time it ended up in front of the Supreme Court, there would be new justices on the court. Thank God -- thank God -- that is now true." Now, what pro-lifers are hoping, the CWA spokeswoman adds, is that a just ruling will be forthcoming from the Supreme Court -- a ruling "that will set the record straight that it is not constitutional and it's certainly not right to kill unborn babies by partially delivering them and sucking their brains out." The Bush administration is already appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court a similar decision by the 8th Circuit in St. Louis, Missouri. [Rusty Pugh]
[More at URL, including notes on anti-marriage efforts in Florida, other states]
----- 16 -----
Samuel A. Alito Sworn in as U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Concerned Women for America
2/1/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10041/LEGAL/scourt/index.htm
[Most of this text is from their frontpage, but has no direct link:]
Supreme Gathering
Jan LaRue, CWA's Chief Counsel, was present at the White House for the Swearing-In Ceremony of Associate Justice Samuel Alito. CWA was honored to be part of this great celebration after months of hard work in support of this great Justice. Click here [ http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10042/LEGAL/scourt/index.htm ] for a glimpse of CWA's involvement. Click here [ http://www.cwfa.org/play.asp?id=cw20060202a ] for an audio interview with Jan.
----- 17 -----
The Real Tragedy Of ‘Brokeback Mountain’
By Rev. Louis P. Sheldon
Chairman, Traditional Values Coalition
For Publication On Or After February 6, 2006
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2597
Washington, DC – The homosexual-themed film, “Brokeback Mountain” has received rave reviews from critics and is being showered with awards from various film groups. It has already received eight Oscar nominations. This is to be expected from a liberal/homosexual dominated film industry.
The self-selected and self-serving cabal who hand out awards know what they’re doing. They’re determined to normalize homosexuality by using every means possible—including creating sympathetic “cowboys” who are victims of “homophobia.”
What this film does not deal with is the dysfunctional nature and social consequences of the same-sex lifestyle. Homosexual behavior is no different than tobacco or alcohol abuse. All have serious emotional and physical consequences. Homosexual sex acts frequently result in the spread of STDs, including HIV. And, crystal meth drug use is epidemic among homosexual populations.
Of course, until forced to by the government, the tobacco industry never talked about cancer. The alcohol industry seldom discusses the dangerous consequences of alcohol abuse on families. And, Hollywood carefully avoids revealing the consequences of homosexual behaviors—which frequently include a painful death at a young age.
[More at URL]
----- 18 -----
European Union To Criminalize ‘Homophobia’
This resolution could impact American law through the Supreme Court.
Traditional Values Coalition
[Undated]
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2598
In January 2005, the European Union (EU) approved a resolution banning “homophobia” and urges the legalization of homosexual marriages throughout Europe.
The “Homophobia in Europe” resolution defines homophobia as “an irrational fear and aversion to homosexuality and of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people based on prejudice, similar to racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, sexism.”
The resolution urges action against European nations that do not implement programs that favor homosexuals.
Franco Frattini, the justice minister of the EU has stated: “Homophobia is a violation of human rights and we are watching member states on this issue and reporting on cases in which our efforts have been unsuccessful.” The report warns that “...the Commission and the European Parliament seek to make any refusal to grant homosexual couples the same rights as a married couple a crime of ’homophobia.’”
Catholics in Europe are particularly outraged by this European Union resolution and fear what it will do to the traditional family. The secretary of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences, Msgr. Aldo Giordano reported on Vatican radio on January 19, that: “Sometimes it seems there is the domination (within the European Parliament) of a certain ideology of pluralism which sees everything that exists as something good. There really is lacking a reflection on what is truly human, what is human richness, what is good and evil, what is truth.”
Giordano also observed: “It should be clear that certain subjects, especially those relating to the family, are not within the direct competence of the European Union but are the recognized competence of nations.”
The European Union statement against “homophobia” came after the governments of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Poland ruled against homosexual “marriage.” In fact, in October 2005, the Polish Prime Minister, Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, stated: “If anybody tries to contaminate others with his homosexuality, the state should intervene against such an infringement of liberty.”
The European Union reacted to these actions against homosexual marriage by posting the following notice on its web site: “Following a series of worrying events which has recently taken place in a number of EU member states, …. from banning gay pride or equality marches to leading political and religious leaders’ inflammatory/hate/threatening language, MEPs [Members of European Parliament] strongly condemn discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.”
‘Homophobia’ In the U.S.
The homosexual movement is determined to criminalize opposition to homosexual conduct as “homophobia” or to create a new mental illness of “homophobia” that will be adopted by the American Psychiatric Association for its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders (DSM).
[More at URL]
----- 19 -----
FRC Denounces Maryland House Speaker For Subverting Democratic Process
February 2, 2006 - Thursday
Family Research Council
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 2, 2006 CONTACT: J.P. Duffy or Bethanie Swendsen, (202) 393-2100
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=PR06B01
"The House Speaker's decision to block a vote on marriage now places the democratic process itself in jeopardy."
~ Peter Sprigg, Vice President for Policy, Family Research Council
Washington, D.C. - Earlier today, Maryland House Speaker Michael Busch recessed the House to block a vote on the Marriage Protection Act (HB 48). He took this extreme action apparently after learning that the amendment had received enough petition signatures to bring the measure to a floor vote. Last month, Baltimore Circuit Court Judge M. Brooke Murdock, struck down Maryland's marriage law as unconstitutional. Peter Sprigg, Family Research Council's Vice President for Policy, released the following statement:
"It is stunning that Maryland House Speaker Michael Busch has chosen to join a Baltimore circuit judge in subverting the democratic process. The House Speaker's decision to block a vote on marriage now places the democratic process itself in jeopardy.
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Marriage in New Hampshire needs your help!
February 2, 2006 - Thursday
New Hampshire (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06B01
To safeguard marriage as defined in New Hampshire law from activist judges like those in Massachusetts and most recently Maryland, we need a constitutional amendment that states: "A marriage between one man and one woman shall be the only legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this state."
The New Hampshire House Judiciary Committee will hear the Marriage Amendment CACR 34 on Tuesday, February 7, 2006 at 10:00 a.m. in Representatives Hall. Take the South elevator to the second floor of the State House.
To take action you can do the following:
--Attend the hearing if possible and sign in on the blue sheets. The blue sheets will ask you to indicate if you support or oppose the bill.
--Contact your representative and ask them to support CACR 34 and to sign the Marriage Protection Pledge. For a copy go to:
[More at URL]
----- 21 -----
Citizens' Ballot Could Be Canada's Best Hope for Repealing Same-Sex 'Marriage'
By Chad Groening
American Family Association
February 6, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/afa/62006d.asp
(AgapePress) - Canadian pro-family activist Brian Rushfeldt says he agrees with a recent survey that shows, despite the recent election of a new Conservative government, a vote to revoke the legalization of same-sex "marriage" would be a close one in Parliament.
Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper reports that a narrow majority of the current Members of Parliament (MPs) would agree to retain same-sex marriage, based on a tabulation of how returning members voted on the issue last June. Rushfeldt, co-founder and executive director of the Canada Family Action Coalition (CFAC), does not doubt the accuracy of the paper's predictions concerning how the national lawmakers would cast their ballots on homosexual marriage.
"If we leave it up to our Members of Parliament, I think we're going to have a fairly tight vote on it," the pro-family activist says. "We've got a number of new ones that we don't know where they stand. Certainly, of the ones that are already there, we know that there's 101 Liberals and 29 Nds [New Democrats] that definitely are all in support of homosexual marriage."
Because of this, Rushfeldt believes a people's referendum on same-sex marriage would be a better course of action. "Forget about the members of Parliament deciding on such a crucial issue," he urges. "Let's have a referendum of the voices of the Canadian people on this; because, if the members of Parliament voted in line with what the people of Canada wanted, I don't think this would be a close vote."
Unlike outgoing Prime Minister Paul Martin, Canada's incoming national leader Stephen Harper would support the idea of a people's referendum, Rushfeldt contends. The current prime minister is more likely to understand that "politically, on this issue the right thing to do would be to let the Canadian people have a say, a free say," the pro-family activist insists.
"Steven Harper has promised a free vote, and that is one step in the right direction," Rushfeldt points out. "But a free vote does no good when you've got members of Parliament who are going to vote the way they want to vote, not the way their constituents want them to vote," he says.
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
ECUSA's Loss Is Gain for South American Diocese
By Jim Brown
February 7, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/afa/72006b.asp
(AgapePress) - Yet another conservative California parish has decided to leave the Episcopal Church USA over its rift with Anglicanism worldwide.
St. Anne's Church in Oceanside has left the Episcopal Diocese of San Diego and is now under the oversight of the bishop of the Diocese of Bolivia, Frank Lyons. The pastor of St. Anne's says his church has had a strong relationship with Bishop Lyons for years, having taken part in missions and healing missions in Bolivia once or twice a year.
Pastor Tony Baron says the overwhelming decision by his congregation to leave ECUSA came at the prompting of the Holy Spirit, as opposed to the prompting of the human spirit. "What it came down to is the Gospel -- the Good News," says Baron. "And it came down to [a question of] who is Jesus Christ -- and we believe that Jesus Christ is the one and only Lord and Savior."
[More at URL]
----- 23 -----
Catholic Groups Protest Church Schools Supporting V-Monologues
By Jim Brown and Jenni Parker
February 6, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/afa/62006e.asp
(AgapePress) - Some Catholic colleges are being denounced for hosting a vulgar feminist play on their campuses. By recent counts, some 20 Catholic institutions are allowing the controversial production, The Vagina Monologues, sometimes euphemistically referred to as "The V-Monologues," to be presented on their campuses this year.
Among other content problematic to critics, the infamous Monologues contains references to lesbianism, masturbation, and pedophilia as well as disparagement of Christians and Christianity. Protesting the offensive production are a number of conservative Catholic groups, including the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP) and the Cardinal Newman Society (CNS).
[More at URL]
----- 24 -----
Victory! NBC pulls offensive segment!
American Family Association
[Undated; first week February, 2006]
http://www.afa.net/nbc_victory.asp
Action by AFA Online supporters has caused NBC to pull the offensive segment scheduled for the April 6th episode of Will and Grace.
In an attempt to confuse the public, the network issued an intentionally misleading statement which left the impression that AFA had lied to our supporters. Here is the statement NBC sent to their affiliates for the affiliate to use in responding to emails and calls:
Some erroneous information was mistakenly included in a press release describing an upcoming episode of "Will & Grace" which, in fact, has yet to be written. The reference to "Cruci-fxins" will not be in the show and the storyline will not contain a Christian characterization at all.
NBC did not say that they (NBC) had issued the "erroneous information" but left the reader with the impression that AFA had issued the "erroneous information."
When NBC said that the script "has yet to be written," what they didn't tell you is that the "story board" had been completed and the offensive material was scheduled to be a part of the episode. The story board contains the outline of the program. That is the reason for the detailed description of the episode issued by NBC in their initial press release.
For a better understanding of this deception by NBC written by a third party, click here.
The bottom line is that the actions taken by AFA Online supporters like you caused them to rewrite the episode and remove the offensive segment!
Thanks for caring enough to get involved. If you think our efforts are worthy, would you consider making a small donation to help us continue. Please click here.
Sincerely,
Don
Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association
P.S. Please forward this e-mail message to your family and friends!
----- 25 -----
Senate To Vote On Homosexual Marriage Ban In Early March
Action Needed Today! Help Send U.S. Senate One Million Letters Supporting Marriage Protection Amendment
American Family Association
[Undated; first week February, 2006]
http://www3.capwiz.com/afanet/issues/alert/?alertid=8457061&type=CO
The U.S. Senate will vote on the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) in early March. This constitutional amendment will make marriage between one man and one woman the only legal marriage.
Your help is needed in sending one million emails to the Senate in support of the MPA.
Senators who vote against the MPA, or support a filibuster to avoid a vote on the MPA, are supporting homosexual marriage.
ACTION NEEDED TODAY!
Please enter your zip code above or below and click “GO” to send your two Senators an email, then forward this to your friends and family urging them to do the same. The “Tell A Friend” link found below is an easy way to pass this important message to your friends and family. Those favoring homosexual marriage are already contacting their Senators urging defeat of the MPA.
Time is short! Please send your letters of support today! Ask members of your Sunday School class and church to send an email in support of the MPA. Ask your pastor to put an announcement in the church bulletin and newsletter. They can send an email by clicking on AFA.net.
Simply enter your zip code above or below to send your emails to your two U.S. Senators. Remember, it is very important to forward this to friends and family if we are to reach our goal of one million. (Our system will not accept invalid email addresses.)
If you think our efforts are worthy, please help us promote traditional marriage with a small donation by clicking here.
Thanks for caring enough to get involved!
Sincerely,
Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association
----- 26 -----
Trudeau's law-and-order legacy:
Clearly, the notwithstanding clause is no Conservative plot to impose tyranny
The Edmonton Journal
15 Jan 2006, Page: A16
Byline: Lorne Gunter
http://www.familyaction.org/Articles/issues/2006election/trudeaus-law-and-order.htm
Pierre Elliot Trudeau -- Liberal saint and father of the Charter -- put troops on our streets.
Canadian cities. Soldiers with guns. In our cities. In Canada. I did not make this up.
Indeed, Trudeau is the only prime minister of Canada to declare martial law in peacetime.
During 1970's October Crisis, after a British diplomat and Quebec cabinet minister had been kidnapped by separatist terrorists -- and before one of them had been assassinated -- Trudeau invoked the War Measures Act and sent troops to occupy Montreal and several other Quebec cities.
Not even George Bush did that.
After 9/11.
After al-Qaeda killed 3,000 Americans.
But Trudeau did.
When asked about the arbitrary suspension of civil liberties and the arrest of some 450 Canadian citizens without warrants or even charges being laid, Trudeau shot back, famously, "There are a lot of bleeding hearts around who just don't like to see people with helmets and guns. All I can say is, go on and bleed, but it is more important to keep law and order in the society than to be worried about weak-kneed people."
Trudeau also took it for granted that Parliament would invoke the Charter's -- his Charter's -- notwithstanding clause from time to time to overrule Supreme Court decisions the federal government disagreed with.
[More at URL]
----- 27 -----
Should We Call Them Social Perverts?
By Stephen Gray
Canada Family Action Coalition
February 2, 2006
http://www.familyaction.org/Articles/issues/politics-law/government/sopervs.htm
We read and hear the label social conservatives, or socons, put upon people who are opposed to the killing of the child in the womb, against abnormal lifestyles, and in favour of the traditional family. During the election campaign many of the media were working itself into a frenzy because there were “social conservatives” running for the Conservative Party. One media “bureau chief” being interviewed by the “news” reader on one TV station (both of them from the same corporate conglomerate kennel) was practically crying on air because “social conservatives” and “right wing Christians” were running and might even win some seats. This twosome of twaddle were each lofting politically correct questions and answers to each other that appeared to denigrate anyone opposed to their liberal philosophy. This was the way it came across, though it was done under the banner of “election news.”
It is fashionable by the media and their camp followers to sneer at what they like to call “social conservatives” and “right wing Christians” and use derogatory words as weapons to put them down. Imagine what would happen if these so-called journalists, announcers and radio hosts used the words "radical homosexual" or "right wing Jew" to describe people running for public office in the same way they use the words “social conservatives” and “rightwing Christians.” Ah, but they would not dare! Yet, it appears they can smear social conservatives and Christians generally, with impunity. If decent and moral people are called “social conservatives” by the media and their liberal allies, and sneered at for standing up for decent and normal family values, what then should we call the opponents of normalcy, decency and truth? Should we call them Social Perverts or Sopervs?
Take, for example, abortion which is supported by much of the media.
Should we call those in the media in favour of abortion social perverts or sopervs? This atrocity is disguised as a “womans right to choose” by the media. “Choose what?” a thinking person might ask? Though "sopervs" never ever finish their sentence after the word “choose.” If they did they would then have to explain what is being chosen and its consequences. Since the so called “searchers of truth” in the media won’t do this, let me enlighten them on the act of abortion. The child in the womb is dismembered by being suctioned out or cut to pieces, or in the case of a partial birth abortion its head is pierced by a sharp medical instrument and its brains suctioned out. Some babies have even been born alive after abortion but are left to die. But hey, this is called “freedom of choice” by our “knowledgeable” media. Surely the mutilation, butchering, and killing of the innocent child in the womb qualifies to be called a social perversion. And are those supporting it entitled to be called social perverts or sopervs?
( Go to: http://www.AbortionNo.org and see the truth about abortion )
Another issue it is not politically correct to oppose is so called “same-sex marriage.” Social Conservatives or socons are lambasted, attacked and reviled for daring to even question this absurdity. Any sane person knows that marriage can only be between a man and a woman, except of course, for our conglomerate owned media, the judicial jackasses on the benches and many brain challenged politicians who are declaring this as a “right. So should we call those in favour of this nonsense social perverts or sopervs? Surely a man “marrying” a ma! n is a not only bizarre behaviour but a social perversion? And this behaviour if practiced is surely unhealthy to its practitioners. The medical consequences of this behaviour are many.
[More at URL]
Meanwhile, here's today's news - or rather, Monday's and Tuesday's. Sorry I'm so late.
UK launches programme to counter US's anti-abortion stance overseas; I wonder what the fundamentalists will think of this?
Here's a first; I link to DailyKOS, which blogs about how Our Friends, the Saudis, blew the Danish cartoon series into an international crisis, in order to help deflect criticism of their government; I haven't linked to Juan Cole's Informed Comment, but he disagrees with portions of this analysis, pointing the finger more at the Syrian government; Omar, an Iraqi blogger at iraqthemodel.com also points at Syria, while also pointing at Iran;
Spiegel Online: Do not apologise, Denmark;
New York Press editorial staff quits en masse after publisher kills plans to run the 12 Danish cartoons as a protest;
Arabic youth set up apology site to Norway and Denmark for the actions of the fundamentalist Islamists; state they find the cartoons very offensive but condemn the violence in clear terms;
In the radical capital of the most liberal district of the most progressive city in the country, Capital Hill in Seattle, free-speech advocates have made the "bomb" cartoon into a symbol for the right to express unpopular opinions - Dan Savage blogs about it; I point this out because there's a meme going around Republican circles that lefties are pro-fundamentalist-Islamist on this one;
Focus on the Family: California group trying to get parental-notification initiative on the ballot;
FotF: Idaho State House passes anti-marriage amendment; moves now to Senate;
FotF's Citizen magazine runs scare-article against videogaming; particularly targets games like the Halo series, Doom, Quake - FPS in general; blames Resident Evil and Doom for the Columbine killings; etc, etc, etc;
FotF ACTION ITEM and article pushing anti-marriage amendment in New Hampshire;
Kansas Supreme Court rejects gubernatorial attempt to trawl through medical records of women who have had abortions, FotF spins it as a "complicated ruling" and claims partial victory; however, that's pretty much just spin;
Kentucky has 40 legislators signing on to an outright abortion ban, specifically to challenge Roe v. Wade;
FotF signals membership: don't vote for Bloomberg - he just donated significant money towards stem-cell research;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight whines about the "Baby Boomer decadence" of the Rolling Stones - it's pretty funny, and sad, so you should read it; the best part is when he recommends people read The Picture of Dorian Grey, clearly not aware that Oscar Wilde was as gay as a box of birds;
CWA reprints article by Tim Wilkins of Cross Ministry, who is of the so-called "ex-gay" movement; admits outright he still really wants men; compares Brokeback Mountain to offering alcoholics booze; refuses to see it;
Agape Press: "Thank God" that there are new justices on the Supreme Court, changing its makeup to suit fundamentalists; also, don't worry about that death penalty case, it was just whether to reverse a lower court's stay, it's not a sign Alito is flipping;
CWA's Jan LaRue talks about the Alito swearing-in ceremony; she was invited as a CWA rep;
Traditional Values Coalition: same-sex relationships "no different than tobacco or alcohol abuse"; pushes the usual lines about diseased fags spreading their filthy diseases and dying young; pushes "ex-gay" ministries;
TVC: American queers want to make "opposition to homosexual conduct" illegal; claims Europe is about to do so;
Family Research Council denounces Maryland Speaker of the House for stopping the anti-marriage bill there;
FRC ACTION ITEM to support anti-marriage efforts in New Hampshire;
American Family Association article with Canadian fundamentalist Brian Rushfeldt has Rushfeldt saying forget the free vote (because they'd lose it); now there should be a national referendum on marriage rights. Meanwhile, in another article I saw earlier, public support for reopening the issue runs against (meaning for the status quo) nearly 2:1;
AFA trumpets Southern Californian Episcopalian church leaving Episcopal Church USA for South American Diocese;
AFA: "Catholic Groups Protest Church Schools Supporting V-Monologues";
AFA claims victory, says they got a segment they consider "offensive" to Christians pulled from "Will and Grace"; NBC says the information was wrong to start with;
AFA ACTION ITEM to support anti-marriage "Marriage Protection Amendment" - they expect a Senate vote in MARCH;
Edmonton, Alberta paper columnist calls for Harper to use the Notwithstanding clause to void the Supreme Court decision on marriage which led to C-38;
Canada Family Action Coalition is clearly getting coaching from southern allies; talks now about the "medical consequences of [homosexuality]."
----- 1 -----
Britain defies US with funding to boost safe abortion services
· Attempt to replace lost dollars after 'global gag'
· 70,000 died last year in backstreet operations
Sarah Boseley
Monday February 6, 2006
The Guardian
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/development/story/0,,1703082,00.html?gusrc=rss
The British government will today publicly defy the United States by giving money for safe abortion services in developing countries to organisations that have been cut off from American funding.
Nearly 70,000 women and girls died last year because they went to back-street abortionists. Hundreds of thousands of others suffered serious injuries.
Critics of America's aid policy say some might have lived if the US had not withdrawn funding from clinics that provide safe services - or that simply tell women where to find them.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
Muslim Cartoon Controversy: What the Media Isn't Telling You
by Soj
Sun Feb 05, 2006 at 11:01:49 AM PDT
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/2/5/13149/60748
I had a friend over today who lives out of town and we switched on the traditional news media television and saw what most of you have probably seen - angry rioters protesting, burning flags and attacking various Danish embassies around the world.
Despite the spectaculor footage and a bevy of experts "weighing in" on the issue, I did not one single mention of what's actually going on. And so therefore, by my duty as a citizen journalist, I will now share it with all of you.
The issue has been framed by the traditional media as "Free Expression/Speech" in contrast with "Sensitivity to Religion". Do newspapers in democratic societies have the right to publish offensive images? Well that's something definitely worth debating, but it's overlooking an important step.
12 cartoons were published in the Danish newspaper Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, which you can see here. Some were very bland, others seem to be unquestionably offensive. Yet these cartons were published on September 30, 2005. What the traditional media has failed to explain is why the protests are occuring now.
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Spiegel Online
Democracy in a Cartoon
By Ibn Warraq
February 3, 2006
http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,398853,00.html
Best-selling author and Muslim dissident Ibn Warraq argues that freedom of expression is our western heritage and we must defend it against attacks from totalitarian societies. If the west does not stand in solidarity with the Danish, he argues, then the Islamization of Europe will have begun in earnest.
The great British philosopher John Stuart Mill wrote in On Liberty, "Strange it is, that men should admit the validity of the arguments for free discussion, but object to their being 'pushed to an extreme'; not seeing that unless the reasons are good for an extreme case, they are not good for any case."
The cartoons in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten raise the most important question of our times: freedom of expression. Are we in the west going to cave into pressure from societies with a medieval mindset, or are we going to defend our most precious freedom -- freedom of expression, a freedom for which thousands of people sacrificed their lives?
A democracy cannot survive long without freedom of expression, the freedom to argue, to dissent, even to insult and offend. It is a freedom sorely lacking in the Islamic world, and without it Islam will remain unassailed in its dogmatic, fanatical, medieval fortress; ossified, totalitarian and intolerant. Without this fundamental freedom, Islam will continue to stifle thought, human rights, individuality; originality and truth.
Unless, we show some solidarity, unashamed, noisy, public solidarity with the Danish cartoonists, then the forces that are trying to impose on the Free West a totalitarian ideology will have won; the Islamization of Europe will have begun in earnest. Do not apologize.
[More at URL]
----- 4 -----
NY Press Kills Cartoons; Staff Walks Out
New York Observer
FILE UNDER: Newspapers
http://thepoliticker.observer.com/2006/02/ny-press-kills-cartoons-staff-walks-out.html
The editorial staff of the alternative weekly New York Press walked out today, en masse, after the paper's publishers backed down from printing the Danish cartoons that have become the center of a global free-speech fight.
Editor-in-Chief Harry Siegel emails, on behalf of the editorial staff:
New York Press, like so many other publications, has suborned its own professed principles. For all the talk of freedom of speech, only the New York Sun locally and two other papers nationally have mustered the
minimal courage needed to print simple and not especially offensive editorial cartoons that have been used as a pretext for great and greatly menacing violence directed against journalists, cartoonists, humanitarian aid workers, diplomats and others who represent the basic values and obligations of Western civilization. Having been ordered at the 11th hour to pull the now-infamous Danish cartoons from an issue dedicated to them, the editorial group—consisting of myself, managing editor Tim Marchman, arts editorJonathan Leaf and one-man city hall bureau Azi Paybarah, chose instead to resign our positions.
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
To the People of Norway and Denmark
http://www.sorrynorwaydenmark.com/
In the middle of all the mayhem surrounding the Danish cartoons controversy, a group of Arab and Muslim youth have set up this website to express their honest opinion, as a small attempt to show the world that the images shown of Arab and Muslim anger around the world are not representative of the opinions of all Arabs. We whole-heartedly apologize to the people of Denmark, Norway and all the European Union over the actions of a few, and we completely condemn all forms of vandalism and incitement to violence that the Arab and Muslim world have witnessed. We hope that this sad episode will not tarnish the great friendship that our peoples have fostered over decades.
The problem with media representation of such issues tends to be that the media only picks up the loudest voices, ignoring the rational ones that do not generate as much noise. Voices that seek tolerance, dialogue and understanding are always drowned out by the more sensationalist loud calls, giving viewers the impression that these views are representative of all the Arab public’s view. This website is a modest attempt at redressing this wrong. We would appreciate it if you could forward the word to as many of your friends as possible.
We will note that we find the cartoons to be incendiary, insulting and very abrasive. We also take issue with the general stance of the Danish Newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which has a reputation for publishing inflammatory material. Yet, it would be wrong to take away their freedom of expression, regardless of how horrid their material is. We affirm our belief in freedom of expression and people’s right to express whatever opinions they hold. However, at the same time there is a need to realize that freedom of expression is a responsibility that should not be used to gratuitously insult people’s beliefs.
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
Danish Cartoon On Display in Seattle—Finally!
Posted by DAN SAVAGE at 01:06 PM
http://www.thestranger.com/blog/archives/2006/02/05-11.php#a004183
Okay, it’s on Seattle’s light poles, and not in any of Seattle’s newspapers—yet—but I was pleased to find this flyer tacked up on Capitol Hill this morning.
[Image at URL]
I’m not sure where the quote is from, or if the person or persons behind the poster wrote it. Either way, I love it. I couldn’t agree more. Bravo. If the folks who did this are reading this blog, keep putting ‘em up!
[More at URL]
----- 6 -----
Petitioners Seek to Place Parental Notification on California Ballot
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 7, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
A drive for signatures aims to give voters in the Golden
State another chance to require parents to be notified 24
hours in advance if a minor daughter is seeking an
abortion, The Associated Press reported.
In a special election last November, a similar measure --
Proposition 73 -- failed to gain enough votes to pass.
Albin Rhomerg, spokesman for the Parents Right to Know and
Child Protection Initiative, said the turnout for that
special election was not representative of the people.
"The turnout was very high in the liberal areas of the
state and surprisingly low in some of the more
conservative areas," he said. "It would be foolish to not
put it before the voters in the larger general election."
Supporters of the new proposed ballot measure have until
July 3 to gather the 600,000 signatures required to place
it on the ballot.
----- 7 -----
Idaho One Step Closer to Preserving Marriage
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 7, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Idaho State House approved a proposed constitutional
amendment Monday that would define marriage as a union
between one man and one woman, The Associated Press
reported.
Rep. Lawerence Dennery, R-Midvale, sponsored the bill.
"You cannot make people moral by legislation, but all of
our social laws are legislated morally," he said. "If we
don't set boundaries -- and let everyone do what is right
in their own eyes -- we lose our entire structure. We have
chaos."
The amendment states that "a marriage between a man and a
woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid
or recognized."
The bill must still pass the Senate to be placed on the
November ballot.
----- 8 -----
Point. Click. Kill.
SUMMARY: A father asks that you forgive him for what he is about to tell you.
by Jeff Hooten
Focus on the Family
Citizen Magazine
February 2006
(This article appears in the February issue of Citizen
magazine.)
http://www.family.org/cforum/citizenmag/features/a0039289.cfm
Forgive me, for I have killed.
I have used swords and shotguns, handguns and grenades. I
have shot, stabbed and bludgeoned. I have crushed skulls
with golf clubs and hammers and baseball bats. I have
slaughtered men and women, drug dealers and crime bosses,
soldiers and secret agents, mad scientists and aliens,
zombies and the pizza guy. I have killed hundreds, even
thousands -- so many that I lost count long ago.
I have taken up machine guns, plasma rifles and chainsaws.
I have learned to aim for the head. I have partaken of the
drive-by, and I have gone postal. I have fired on fallen
corpses from point-blank range just to see what would
happen. I have watched the flesh fragments scatter and a
cloud of blood dust fill the air.
I have killed with XBox and GameCube, Playstation and PC.
I have killed with joystick, mouse and keyboard. I have
killed for hours at a time, on screens big and small; on
laptops and high-resolution monitors. I have killed in my
basement, in my living room, at the local arcade, at a
neighbor's house, with a co-worker's teenage son. I have
killed late into the night, until three or four in the
morning, because my adrenaline was surging, because my
kids were safely in bed, because I was simply on a roll.
Because I was winning and they were dying.
[...]
Science also tells me that practice makes perfect, that my brain will learn from its mistakes, that it will formulate standardized responses to what is happening on the monitor, and my muscles, in turn, will pay attention. Not only does repetition change brain activity, to the point that it will show up on a brain scan, it also alters behavior. Shoot enough jump shots and the motion becomes hard-wired. Play a video game long enough and your muscles recognize instinctively what to do. And programmed muscles, science tells me, are ready and waiting to be used at any time, ready and waiting to make the move from fantasy to reality.
[More at URL]
----- 9 -----
HELP PROTECT MARRIAGE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE
Constitutional amendment needed to define what marriage is.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
February 6, 2006
by Mona Passignano, state issues analyst
http://www.family.org/cforum/statenews/a0039444.cfm
A marriage amendment -- CACR 34 -- has been introduced in
the New Hampshire House and is in the Judiciary Committee.
But it is important that you get involved now by telling
your legislators how you feel about this issue.
The New Hampshire Legislature set up a commission in 2004
to study the debate over same-sex marriages. The
Commission looked at how marriage affects society while
also looking at the implications of same-sex marriages.
After 16 months, the Commission released its final report
on Dec. 1, 2005. A majority of members called for a
constitutional amendment protecting traditional marriage
in the state.
[...]
TAKE ACTION: To get contact information for your
legislators and for more information on what you can do to
help protect marriage in New Hampshire, go to Cornerstone
Policy Research and follow the instructions there.
Please consider attending the House Judiciary Committee
Hearing on the state marriage amendment, CACR 34. The
hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 7 in
Representatives Hall. To get there, take the south
elevator to the second floor of the State House. For more
information, visit Cornerstone Policy Research.
http://www.nhcornerstone.org
[More at URL]
----- 10 -----
Kansas May See Prosecution of Crimes Not Reported by Abortion Clinics
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 6, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Kansas Supreme Court on Friday ruled the state
attorney general cannot have complete access to the
medical records of women who had late-term abortions.
He had requested them to see whether crimes were
committed. The top court did order the lower court to
review records of concern to see if pursuit of prosecution
was warranted, The Associated Press reported.
The complicated ruling left both sides claiming victory,
but in the end it appears Kansas Attorney General Phill
Kline may get access to some clinic records -- records
which may contain evidence of crimes.
Kline originally asked a lower court for the records of 10
women who had late-term abortions in order to investigate
whether clinics were performing illegal abortions and to
determine whether clinics were failing to report crimes of
rape or incest. Upon further examination, the court
determined that the records of at least 90 individuals
merited further investigation. The abortion industry
refused to comply.
The case ended up before the state's high court, which
determined that Kline did have a right to pursue
prosecution of crimes, but that the records in question
would not include personal information until the lower
court could confirm that an investigation was justified.
David Gittrich, state development director for Kansans for
Life, said the abortion industry fought hard to keep
records from Kline.
"The abortion industry doesn't want to surrender the
records because they don't want people to know what they
are doing behind those closed doors," he said. "They've
been hiding these abortions on underage girls and they
didn't want Phill Kline to get his fingers on them."
He said that, despite the abortion industry's fight,
ultimately there will be prosecutions.
"He will gain access to some of those records where there
has got to be something wrong," Gittrich told CitizenLink.
"Those are the cases where probable cause will be enough
that the judge will turn them over to him. If you were a
judge and you saw that an 11-year-old girl was pregnant,
that in and of itself shows that there was some crime
committed."
----- 11 -----
Kentucky Lawmakers Eye Abortion Ban
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 6, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Nearly 40 members of the Kentucky House have signed on in
support of legislation that would ban abortion in the
state, The Associated Press reported.
Rep. Addia Wuchner, R-Burlington, is the sponsor of a bill
that would outlaw abortion and directly challenge the 1973
Supreme Court Roe v. Wade ruling.
"(To) create a challenge," Wuchner said, "is how change
begins -- and it begins right here at the state level."
----- 12 -----
Embryonic Stem-Cell Research Gets Boost From Bloomberg
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
February 6, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg donated $100 million
that he wants used for embryonic stem-cell research, CNN
reported.
President Bush limited federal funding of embryonic
stem-cell research to certain already existing lines in
August 2001.
The process to extract embryonic stem-cells always results
in the destruction of life.
Bloomberg, a billionaire, gave the donation to Johns
Hopkins University, where he is a former board chairman.
In endorsing the controversial research, he breaks from
his Republican counterparts.
Bloomberg, formerly a lifelong Democrat, switched to the
Republican Party in 2001 for the mayoral election.
----- 13 -----
The Best & Worst of Super Bowl XL
Concerned Women for America
2/7/2006
By Robert Knight
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10090/CWA/misc/index.htm
You call this ‘Satisfaction’?
This article was published on February 6, 2006, on WorldNetDaily.com.
Some people's idea of Hell consists of having to repeat a pattern for eternity, never to escape.
I thought about that while watching Mick Jagger dance around the giant lips and tongue cutout on the floor of Ford Field during the Super Bowl XL halftime.
I don't mean us, the audience, repeating the pattern. I mean Mick. He's boasted out loud of cutting deals with the Devil, and you have to wonder whether the Devil is starting to call in his chips, even before the Grim Reaper makes the scene.
At 62 years old, would you want to be gyrating like a sexually confused teen on steroids, singing the same adolescent-themed songs you've sung for 40 years? Hmmm. Way too many of you out there, especially you guys in gray ponytails, said, “Yes.” We recommend that you read Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray – now.
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
Why I won’t see “Brokeback Mountain”
Concerned Women for America
2/6/2006
By Tim Wilkins
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10080/CWA/family/index.htm
What is disturbing to me is that men and women with unwanted homosexual attractions are seeing the movie.
With eight Oscar nominations, more than any other movie this year, Brokeback Mountain continues to gain momentum. And with the momentum comes increasing interest by evangelicals to see it.
I will avoid the movie like a slug avoids an overturned saltshaker and, for the life of me, cannot understand why any evangelical would see it—though there appear to be many. But what is more disturbing to me is that many men and women I know with unwanted homosexual attractions are seeing the movie.
A reporter from The Christian Post asked my thoughts about the movie and I obliged. My comments as a former homosexual were made from the reviews I had read—comments that generated numerous e-mails to me from individuals arguing that I could not make an intelligent comment on a movie I had not seen.
They suggested that my viewing the movie would be beneficial in responding to the reporter’s questions. I told them and the reporter that my going to see Brokeback Mountain would be similar to asking a former alcoholic to go to a liquor store to buy his neighbor a toddy for the body.
Opponents of ex-gay ministries will immediately shout "Aha – so you are still tempted with same-sex attractions!" I do not deny it! Martin Luther said it this way, "If your head is made of butter, stay away from the fire."
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
Commentary & News Briefs
February 3, 2006
Compiled by Jenni Parker
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/32006h.asp
...Wendy Wright of Concerned Women for America (CWA) says it is not surprising that two appeals courts have rejected a ban on partial-birth abortion. Nevertheless, the pro-life advocate is optimistic that the new makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court could bring about a reversal of those lower court decisions. The 2nd and 9th U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals have ruled that the partial-birth abortion ban passed by Congress in 2003 is unconstitutional. "What we all had been hoping for when Congress passed the law and President Bush signed it," Wright says, "is that, by the time it ended up in front of the Supreme Court, there would be new justices on the court. Thank God -- thank God -- that is now true." Now, what pro-lifers are hoping, the CWA spokeswoman adds, is that a just ruling will be forthcoming from the Supreme Court -- a ruling "that will set the record straight that it is not constitutional and it's certainly not right to kill unborn babies by partially delivering them and sucking their brains out." The Bush administration is already appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court a similar decision by the 8th Circuit in St. Louis, Missouri. [Rusty Pugh]
[More at URL, including notes on anti-marriage efforts in Florida, other states]
----- 16 -----
Samuel A. Alito Sworn in as U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Concerned Women for America
2/1/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10041/LEGAL/scourt/index.htm
[Most of this text is from their frontpage, but has no direct link:]
Supreme Gathering
Jan LaRue, CWA's Chief Counsel, was present at the White House for the Swearing-In Ceremony of Associate Justice Samuel Alito. CWA was honored to be part of this great celebration after months of hard work in support of this great Justice. Click here [ http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10042/LEGAL/scourt/index.htm ] for a glimpse of CWA's involvement. Click here [ http://www.cwfa.org/play.asp?id=cw20060202a ] for an audio interview with Jan.
----- 17 -----
The Real Tragedy Of ‘Brokeback Mountain’
By Rev. Louis P. Sheldon
Chairman, Traditional Values Coalition
For Publication On Or After February 6, 2006
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2597
Washington, DC – The homosexual-themed film, “Brokeback Mountain” has received rave reviews from critics and is being showered with awards from various film groups. It has already received eight Oscar nominations. This is to be expected from a liberal/homosexual dominated film industry.
The self-selected and self-serving cabal who hand out awards know what they’re doing. They’re determined to normalize homosexuality by using every means possible—including creating sympathetic “cowboys” who are victims of “homophobia.”
What this film does not deal with is the dysfunctional nature and social consequences of the same-sex lifestyle. Homosexual behavior is no different than tobacco or alcohol abuse. All have serious emotional and physical consequences. Homosexual sex acts frequently result in the spread of STDs, including HIV. And, crystal meth drug use is epidemic among homosexual populations.
Of course, until forced to by the government, the tobacco industry never talked about cancer. The alcohol industry seldom discusses the dangerous consequences of alcohol abuse on families. And, Hollywood carefully avoids revealing the consequences of homosexual behaviors—which frequently include a painful death at a young age.
[More at URL]
----- 18 -----
European Union To Criminalize ‘Homophobia’
This resolution could impact American law through the Supreme Court.
Traditional Values Coalition
[Undated]
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2598
In January 2005, the European Union (EU) approved a resolution banning “homophobia” and urges the legalization of homosexual marriages throughout Europe.
The “Homophobia in Europe” resolution defines homophobia as “an irrational fear and aversion to homosexuality and of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people based on prejudice, similar to racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, sexism.”
The resolution urges action against European nations that do not implement programs that favor homosexuals.
Franco Frattini, the justice minister of the EU has stated: “Homophobia is a violation of human rights and we are watching member states on this issue and reporting on cases in which our efforts have been unsuccessful.” The report warns that “...the Commission and the European Parliament seek to make any refusal to grant homosexual couples the same rights as a married couple a crime of ’homophobia.’”
Catholics in Europe are particularly outraged by this European Union resolution and fear what it will do to the traditional family. The secretary of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences, Msgr. Aldo Giordano reported on Vatican radio on January 19, that: “Sometimes it seems there is the domination (within the European Parliament) of a certain ideology of pluralism which sees everything that exists as something good. There really is lacking a reflection on what is truly human, what is human richness, what is good and evil, what is truth.”
Giordano also observed: “It should be clear that certain subjects, especially those relating to the family, are not within the direct competence of the European Union but are the recognized competence of nations.”
The European Union statement against “homophobia” came after the governments of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Poland ruled against homosexual “marriage.” In fact, in October 2005, the Polish Prime Minister, Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, stated: “If anybody tries to contaminate others with his homosexuality, the state should intervene against such an infringement of liberty.”
The European Union reacted to these actions against homosexual marriage by posting the following notice on its web site: “Following a series of worrying events which has recently taken place in a number of EU member states, …. from banning gay pride or equality marches to leading political and religious leaders’ inflammatory/hate/threatening language, MEPs [Members of European Parliament] strongly condemn discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.”
‘Homophobia’ In the U.S.
The homosexual movement is determined to criminalize opposition to homosexual conduct as “homophobia” or to create a new mental illness of “homophobia” that will be adopted by the American Psychiatric Association for its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders (DSM).
[More at URL]
----- 19 -----
FRC Denounces Maryland House Speaker For Subverting Democratic Process
February 2, 2006 - Thursday
Family Research Council
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 2, 2006 CONTACT: J.P. Duffy or Bethanie Swendsen, (202) 393-2100
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=PR06B01
"The House Speaker's decision to block a vote on marriage now places the democratic process itself in jeopardy."
~ Peter Sprigg, Vice President for Policy, Family Research Council
Washington, D.C. - Earlier today, Maryland House Speaker Michael Busch recessed the House to block a vote on the Marriage Protection Act (HB 48). He took this extreme action apparently after learning that the amendment had received enough petition signatures to bring the measure to a floor vote. Last month, Baltimore Circuit Court Judge M. Brooke Murdock, struck down Maryland's marriage law as unconstitutional. Peter Sprigg, Family Research Council's Vice President for Policy, released the following statement:
"It is stunning that Maryland House Speaker Michael Busch has chosen to join a Baltimore circuit judge in subverting the democratic process. The House Speaker's decision to block a vote on marriage now places the democratic process itself in jeopardy.
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Marriage in New Hampshire needs your help!
February 2, 2006 - Thursday
New Hampshire (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06B01
To safeguard marriage as defined in New Hampshire law from activist judges like those in Massachusetts and most recently Maryland, we need a constitutional amendment that states: "A marriage between one man and one woman shall be the only legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this state."
The New Hampshire House Judiciary Committee will hear the Marriage Amendment CACR 34 on Tuesday, February 7, 2006 at 10:00 a.m. in Representatives Hall. Take the South elevator to the second floor of the State House.
To take action you can do the following:
--Attend the hearing if possible and sign in on the blue sheets. The blue sheets will ask you to indicate if you support or oppose the bill.
--Contact your representative and ask them to support CACR 34 and to sign the Marriage Protection Pledge. For a copy go to:
[More at URL]
----- 21 -----
Citizens' Ballot Could Be Canada's Best Hope for Repealing Same-Sex 'Marriage'
By Chad Groening
American Family Association
February 6, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/afa/62006d.asp
(AgapePress) - Canadian pro-family activist Brian Rushfeldt says he agrees with a recent survey that shows, despite the recent election of a new Conservative government, a vote to revoke the legalization of same-sex "marriage" would be a close one in Parliament.
Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper reports that a narrow majority of the current Members of Parliament (MPs) would agree to retain same-sex marriage, based on a tabulation of how returning members voted on the issue last June. Rushfeldt, co-founder and executive director of the Canada Family Action Coalition (CFAC), does not doubt the accuracy of the paper's predictions concerning how the national lawmakers would cast their ballots on homosexual marriage.
"If we leave it up to our Members of Parliament, I think we're going to have a fairly tight vote on it," the pro-family activist says. "We've got a number of new ones that we don't know where they stand. Certainly, of the ones that are already there, we know that there's 101 Liberals and 29 Nds [New Democrats] that definitely are all in support of homosexual marriage."
Because of this, Rushfeldt believes a people's referendum on same-sex marriage would be a better course of action. "Forget about the members of Parliament deciding on such a crucial issue," he urges. "Let's have a referendum of the voices of the Canadian people on this; because, if the members of Parliament voted in line with what the people of Canada wanted, I don't think this would be a close vote."
Unlike outgoing Prime Minister Paul Martin, Canada's incoming national leader Stephen Harper would support the idea of a people's referendum, Rushfeldt contends. The current prime minister is more likely to understand that "politically, on this issue the right thing to do would be to let the Canadian people have a say, a free say," the pro-family activist insists.
"Steven Harper has promised a free vote, and that is one step in the right direction," Rushfeldt points out. "But a free vote does no good when you've got members of Parliament who are going to vote the way they want to vote, not the way their constituents want them to vote," he says.
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
ECUSA's Loss Is Gain for South American Diocese
By Jim Brown
February 7, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/afa/72006b.asp
(AgapePress) - Yet another conservative California parish has decided to leave the Episcopal Church USA over its rift with Anglicanism worldwide.
St. Anne's Church in Oceanside has left the Episcopal Diocese of San Diego and is now under the oversight of the bishop of the Diocese of Bolivia, Frank Lyons. The pastor of St. Anne's says his church has had a strong relationship with Bishop Lyons for years, having taken part in missions and healing missions in Bolivia once or twice a year.
Pastor Tony Baron says the overwhelming decision by his congregation to leave ECUSA came at the prompting of the Holy Spirit, as opposed to the prompting of the human spirit. "What it came down to is the Gospel -- the Good News," says Baron. "And it came down to [a question of] who is Jesus Christ -- and we believe that Jesus Christ is the one and only Lord and Savior."
[More at URL]
----- 23 -----
Catholic Groups Protest Church Schools Supporting V-Monologues
By Jim Brown and Jenni Parker
February 6, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/2/afa/62006e.asp
(AgapePress) - Some Catholic colleges are being denounced for hosting a vulgar feminist play on their campuses. By recent counts, some 20 Catholic institutions are allowing the controversial production, The Vagina Monologues, sometimes euphemistically referred to as "The V-Monologues," to be presented on their campuses this year.
Among other content problematic to critics, the infamous Monologues contains references to lesbianism, masturbation, and pedophilia as well as disparagement of Christians and Christianity. Protesting the offensive production are a number of conservative Catholic groups, including the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP) and the Cardinal Newman Society (CNS).
[More at URL]
----- 24 -----
Victory! NBC pulls offensive segment!
American Family Association
[Undated; first week February, 2006]
http://www.afa.net/nbc_victory.asp
Action by AFA Online supporters has caused NBC to pull the offensive segment scheduled for the April 6th episode of Will and Grace.
In an attempt to confuse the public, the network issued an intentionally misleading statement which left the impression that AFA had lied to our supporters. Here is the statement NBC sent to their affiliates for the affiliate to use in responding to emails and calls:
Some erroneous information was mistakenly included in a press release describing an upcoming episode of "Will & Grace" which, in fact, has yet to be written. The reference to "Cruci-fxins" will not be in the show and the storyline will not contain a Christian characterization at all.
NBC did not say that they (NBC) had issued the "erroneous information" but left the reader with the impression that AFA had issued the "erroneous information."
When NBC said that the script "has yet to be written," what they didn't tell you is that the "story board" had been completed and the offensive material was scheduled to be a part of the episode. The story board contains the outline of the program. That is the reason for the detailed description of the episode issued by NBC in their initial press release.
For a better understanding of this deception by NBC written by a third party, click here.
The bottom line is that the actions taken by AFA Online supporters like you caused them to rewrite the episode and remove the offensive segment!
Thanks for caring enough to get involved. If you think our efforts are worthy, would you consider making a small donation to help us continue. Please click here.
Sincerely,
Don
Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association
P.S. Please forward this e-mail message to your family and friends!
----- 25 -----
Senate To Vote On Homosexual Marriage Ban In Early March
Action Needed Today! Help Send U.S. Senate One Million Letters Supporting Marriage Protection Amendment
American Family Association
[Undated; first week February, 2006]
http://www3.capwiz.com/afanet/issues/alert/?alertid=8457061&type=CO
The U.S. Senate will vote on the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) in early March. This constitutional amendment will make marriage between one man and one woman the only legal marriage.
Your help is needed in sending one million emails to the Senate in support of the MPA.
Senators who vote against the MPA, or support a filibuster to avoid a vote on the MPA, are supporting homosexual marriage.
ACTION NEEDED TODAY!
Please enter your zip code above or below and click “GO” to send your two Senators an email, then forward this to your friends and family urging them to do the same. The “Tell A Friend” link found below is an easy way to pass this important message to your friends and family. Those favoring homosexual marriage are already contacting their Senators urging defeat of the MPA.
Time is short! Please send your letters of support today! Ask members of your Sunday School class and church to send an email in support of the MPA. Ask your pastor to put an announcement in the church bulletin and newsletter. They can send an email by clicking on AFA.net.
Simply enter your zip code above or below to send your emails to your two U.S. Senators. Remember, it is very important to forward this to friends and family if we are to reach our goal of one million. (Our system will not accept invalid email addresses.)
If you think our efforts are worthy, please help us promote traditional marriage with a small donation by clicking here.
Thanks for caring enough to get involved!
Sincerely,
Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association
----- 26 -----
Trudeau's law-and-order legacy:
Clearly, the notwithstanding clause is no Conservative plot to impose tyranny
The Edmonton Journal
15 Jan 2006, Page: A16
Byline: Lorne Gunter
http://www.familyaction.org/Articles/issues/2006election/trudeaus-law-and-order.htm
Pierre Elliot Trudeau -- Liberal saint and father of the Charter -- put troops on our streets.
Canadian cities. Soldiers with guns. In our cities. In Canada. I did not make this up.
Indeed, Trudeau is the only prime minister of Canada to declare martial law in peacetime.
During 1970's October Crisis, after a British diplomat and Quebec cabinet minister had been kidnapped by separatist terrorists -- and before one of them had been assassinated -- Trudeau invoked the War Measures Act and sent troops to occupy Montreal and several other Quebec cities.
Not even George Bush did that.
After 9/11.
After al-Qaeda killed 3,000 Americans.
But Trudeau did.
When asked about the arbitrary suspension of civil liberties and the arrest of some 450 Canadian citizens without warrants or even charges being laid, Trudeau shot back, famously, "There are a lot of bleeding hearts around who just don't like to see people with helmets and guns. All I can say is, go on and bleed, but it is more important to keep law and order in the society than to be worried about weak-kneed people."
Trudeau also took it for granted that Parliament would invoke the Charter's -- his Charter's -- notwithstanding clause from time to time to overrule Supreme Court decisions the federal government disagreed with.
[More at URL]
----- 27 -----
Should We Call Them Social Perverts?
By Stephen Gray
Canada Family Action Coalition
February 2, 2006
http://www.familyaction.org/Articles/issues/politics-law/government/sopervs.htm
We read and hear the label social conservatives, or socons, put upon people who are opposed to the killing of the child in the womb, against abnormal lifestyles, and in favour of the traditional family. During the election campaign many of the media were working itself into a frenzy because there were “social conservatives” running for the Conservative Party. One media “bureau chief” being interviewed by the “news” reader on one TV station (both of them from the same corporate conglomerate kennel) was practically crying on air because “social conservatives” and “right wing Christians” were running and might even win some seats. This twosome of twaddle were each lofting politically correct questions and answers to each other that appeared to denigrate anyone opposed to their liberal philosophy. This was the way it came across, though it was done under the banner of “election news.”
It is fashionable by the media and their camp followers to sneer at what they like to call “social conservatives” and “right wing Christians” and use derogatory words as weapons to put them down. Imagine what would happen if these so-called journalists, announcers and radio hosts used the words "radical homosexual" or "right wing Jew" to describe people running for public office in the same way they use the words “social conservatives” and “rightwing Christians.” Ah, but they would not dare! Yet, it appears they can smear social conservatives and Christians generally, with impunity. If decent and moral people are called “social conservatives” by the media and their liberal allies, and sneered at for standing up for decent and normal family values, what then should we call the opponents of normalcy, decency and truth? Should we call them Social Perverts or Sopervs?
Take, for example, abortion which is supported by much of the media.
Should we call those in the media in favour of abortion social perverts or sopervs? This atrocity is disguised as a “womans right to choose” by the media. “Choose what?” a thinking person might ask? Though "sopervs" never ever finish their sentence after the word “choose.” If they did they would then have to explain what is being chosen and its consequences. Since the so called “searchers of truth” in the media won’t do this, let me enlighten them on the act of abortion. The child in the womb is dismembered by being suctioned out or cut to pieces, or in the case of a partial birth abortion its head is pierced by a sharp medical instrument and its brains suctioned out. Some babies have even been born alive after abortion but are left to die. But hey, this is called “freedom of choice” by our “knowledgeable” media. Surely the mutilation, butchering, and killing of the innocent child in the womb qualifies to be called a social perversion. And are those supporting it entitled to be called social perverts or sopervs?
( Go to: http://www.AbortionNo.org and see the truth about abortion )
Another issue it is not politically correct to oppose is so called “same-sex marriage.” Social Conservatives or socons are lambasted, attacked and reviled for daring to even question this absurdity. Any sane person knows that marriage can only be between a man and a woman, except of course, for our conglomerate owned media, the judicial jackasses on the benches and many brain challenged politicians who are declaring this as a “right. So should we call those in favour of this nonsense social perverts or sopervs? Surely a man “marrying” a ma! n is a not only bizarre behaviour but a social perversion? And this behaviour if practiced is surely unhealthy to its practitioners. The medical consequences of this behaviour are many.
[More at URL]
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-02-08 10:03 am (UTC)"UK launches programme to counter US's anti-abortion stance overseas; I wonder what the fundamentalists will think of this?"
"Hegemony" ... a word any good citizen would know. Again I say, " a word any good citizen would know". I'm always reminded of the paradigmatic US child crying "Mommy, why do they hate us?"
The book "Jihad vs. McWorld: How Globalism and Tribalism Are Reshaping the World (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0345383044?v=glance)" is not new. Neither is ignorance. The land of Disney is a punitive culture of dissipation. Is all.
BTW: your post is remarkably humungoid.
cheers
p.s. "Fire Dog" year begins tomorrow (for those who aren't single-mindedly and zenophobically Judeo-Christian. Oh-wooops, wrong ... even for them!)
They don't call it speed for nothing.
Date: 2006-02-09 06:39 pm (UTC)That's great. Whenever meth labs burned down, I always assumed the fire started with a bad batch. But maybe it's just friction. -Danny