Today's Cultural Warfare Update
Mar. 12th, 2006 10:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdCatholic Charities in Boston decides to shut down its adoptive services rather than allow same-gender married couples to adopt; Mitt Romney announces he will push for an exemption from civil rights law for religiously-affiliated organisations;
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zarq has a good entry talking about the various studies showing that gay parents are pretty much the same as straight parents when it comes to childhood outcomes;
***** Faith and Freedom Network (a Pacific Northwest theoconservative organisation) has started mailing out links to a PDF of their anti-GBLT Washington State initiative;
Focus on the Family really has all guns blazing on this Dobson-tied-to-convicted-lobbyist Abramoff thing; this is an ACTION ITEM to bombard Campaign to Defend the Constitution with complaints; they include links to all kinds of talking points and action items and stuff - it must have them terrified;
A second ACTION ITEM in the same mailing to blast DefCon with complaint letters for daring to talk bad about James Dobson;
***** Not sure what this means: Focus on the Family report on the Christian Educator's Association working with GLSEN, which FotF and the other major theocon grouops have unremittingly condemned in the past, on a set of "common ground" recommendations on sexual orientation harassment in schools; they do not condemn this action, which is interesting; presumably being pro-bullying was playing badly and FotF has shifted its stance a bit, which is good news;
In the very next article, of course, they accuse the APA of "placing politics over science," mostly for not considering homosexuality and bisexuality to be mental illnesses anymore; I have a hard time reconciling the above story to all the other stories;
Maryland Del. Don Dwyer's attempt to get Judge M. Brooke Murdock removed from the bench over rulings he didn't like fails in committee;
FotF condemns Planned Parenthood programme to help minours seek legal redress in court over abortion issues; continues the accusation that PP is only interested in abortion rights because it wants to keep its "cash-cow abortion mills";
FotF considers Indiana likely to require clinics to tell women "life begins at conception" and "fetuses may feel pain" - funny how things like medical provider conscience don't matter when it's the other side's moral, ethical, and medical considerations;
Montana church violated state political spending laws - Alliance Defense Fund, a theoconservative anti-GBLT/anti-abortion legal action group, blasts the law as unconstitutional, vows challenge;
Yet ANOTHER FotF ACTION ITEM against DefCon over their ads linking James Dobson to Abramoff;
FotF rails against the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Freedom for asking Congress to increase international aid for family planning; even FotF has to note that this doesn't actually include abortion, tho' the groups do support abortion rights; Concerned Women for America condemns them for not having scripture to justify their position on their website, calling it "proof" they aren't really religious;
FotF starts whipping up political support for theoconservative candidates in 2006 already, saying it's "eight long months" between now and the election but that you have to get ready now, and that it's going to be a very ugly campaign - that part, I'm afraid, I agree with;
Still no news on Washington State Supreme Court decision on Washington State's DOMA;
FotF upset that Maryland seems to be moving towards supporting embryonic stem-cell research;
***** Tennessee Senate passes anti-abortion state Constitutional amendment;
YET ANOTHER alert from Focus on the Family about DefCon and the Abramoff allegations;
Faith and Freedom Network claims the Washington State Pharmacy Board is considering a right-of-refusal measure for anti-abortion pharmacists, condemns Planned Parenthood for opposing it;
Faith and Freedom Network condemns Washington State Democratic legislators for refusing to exempt anti-marriage actions from the normal legislative cutoff date for the now-expired 2006 legislative session; Rep. Holmquist (R-Moses Lake) had prepared an anti-marriage state constitutional amendment;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight addresses a "Call to Arms Pastors Conference" in Maine, calls it a "huge success"; talks about "great victories" such as South Dakota's new abortion ban; claims Christianity is going to be outlawed unless pastors get (even) more politically active;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight defends Focus on the Family, condemns DefCon's Dobson-Abramoff allegations;
CWA condemns National Center for Men lawsuit seeking a right to opt-out of child support;
Forbes: "Parent Notification Law Linked to Drop in Teen Abortions" - except there's a big asterisk, specifically that there's a big spike in later-term abortions caused by teenagers turning 18 and then having an abortion without having to tell their parents - in other words, waiting out the law;
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM pushing anti-marriage amendment in Iowa; it passed the House last year, it needs to pass the Senate this year to get to the ballot; it's currently being held in committee; they're having a big anti-marriage-rights rally on the 14th (that's Tuesday);
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM calling for help collecting signatures for anti-marriage state Constitutional amendment in Illinois;
American Family Association joins in the chorus condemning DefCon and sends out an ACTION ITEM to support James Dobson - this clearly hit a major nerve;
AFA's Agape Press starts talking about an anti-Wal-Mart campaign over their decision to carry emergency contraception in their pharmacies; also, the plaintiffs in the religious-harassment Air Force Academy case have amended their suit to include the new, Dobson-approved guidelines which they say put the old system back into place;
Jerry Falwell has 24 Soulforce members arrested by Liberty University Campus Police when SoulForce members set foot on campus (one at a time, single-file), helping make sure the group could not talk to Liberty University students;
The 700 Club to carry "a lengthy news statement" on the book The Marketing of Evil, which condemns GBLT rights as, well, evil;
Focus on the Family (Canada arm) claims evangelicals responsible for Tory win in recent elections.
----- 1 -----
Catholic Charities stuns state, ends adoptions
Gay issue stirred move by agency
By Patricia Wen, Globe Staff | March 11, 2006
http://zarq.livejournal.com/428075.html?mode=reply
In a stunning turn of events, Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley and leaders of Catholic Charities of Boston announced yesterday that the agency will end its adoption work, deciding to abandon its founding mission, rather than comply with state law requiring that gays be allowed to adopt children.
The Rev. J. Bryan Hehir, president of Catholic Charities of Boston, and Jeffrey Kaneb, chairman of the board, said that after much reflection and analysis, they could not reconcile church teaching that placement of children in gay homes is ''immoral" with Massachusetts law prohibiting discrimination against gays.
[...]
Almost immediately after the announcement, Governor Mitt Romney, who was in Tennessee speaking to a Republican group, issued a statement saying he would file legislation to exempt religious organizations that provide adoption services from the state's antidiscrimination laws.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
Because "every life is precious" -- as long as it's not an orphaned, abandoned or abused child...
Jon at Weird Is Relative
http://zarq.livejournal.com/428075.html?mode=reply
[...] Catholic Charities of Boston fears allowing homosexuals to have children so much that it is shutting down their adoption service -- rather than comply with Massachusetts state anti-discrimination laws. The Charities were founded as an adoption agency more than 100 years ago, but have opted to exercise their religious freedom to discriminate rather than continue to help children in need find homes.
No agency that does business with the state of Massachusetts or acts as an agent of the state may discriminate on the basis of (among other categories,) age, race, sex, sexual orientation or national origin. Adoption is a state-sanctioned activity. Religious freedom doesn't count as an excuse in this case, because all state governments must observe a separation of church and state. So, the Archdiocese and Catholic Charities of Boston had two choices: Allow gays to adopt, or get out of the adoption business. They chose the latter -- as they most certainly have a right to do. It's a clear statement about the Church's priorities.
[Much more at URL]
----- 3 -----
Referendum 65 Forms Now Available
Faith and Freedom Network
March 11, 2006
Referendum 65 petition forms are now available for all registered voters in Washington State on our website. You can download a pdf copy or request forms be mailed to you.
http://faithandfreedom.us/referendum/formmail.html
Thank you for your commitment to "Advancing Judeo Christian Values across America!" And please forward this Alert to your friends and family concerned about these issues!
God Bless You,
Gary Randall, President
Faith and Freedom Network
email: faithandfreedom@aol.com
phone: 425-486-6594
web: http://www.faithandfreedom.us
----- 4 -----
CITIZENLINK DAILY UPDATE
March 10, 2006
EDITOR'S NOTE:
More DefCon Board Members Need to Hear from You
Tell them to stop lying about Dr. Dobson
[Received in email; no URL]
Thousands of you have written in the last 24 hours to
demand that the liberal group Campaign to Defend the
Constitution (DefCon) stop lying about Focus on the Family
founder Dr. James Dobson. The group has created attack ads
trying to link Dr. Dobson to disgraced gambling lobbyist
Jack Ambramoff, even though its chief spokesman has
admitted there is "no proof, and I doubt there will ever
be any proof" of wrongdoing on Dr. Dobson's part.
There are still members of DefCon's advisory board who
need to hear from you. Visit the link below to compose a
message that will be sent to seven additional members of
the board. Even if you've already written to the first
batch of board members, please make sure the others know
you won't stand for their group's lies about Dr. Dobson.
http://www3.capwiz.com/fof/issues/alert/?alertid=8567946&type=CU
One last note: You may hear back from some board members
that you have your facts wrong -- or that they have no
involvement in the attacks on Dr. Dobson. To answer the
first charge, please read the fact sheet we've developed
addressing the ridiculous charges against Dr. Dobson at
the link below.
http://www.family.org/cforum/feature/a0039768.cfm
To respond to the second charge, please see the list of
DefCon Advisory Board members at the link below. Everyone
who receives one of your e-mails is a member of this board
-- and therefore is in a position to either approve or
disapprove of the group's scurrilous ads.
http://www.defconamerica.org/about-DefCon/advisory-board.html
And, please, share this entire editor's note with friends
and family so they can take a stand as well.
(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on the
Family is for informational purposes only. We do not
endorse the content of DefCon's Web site.)
----- 5 -----
FOCUS SUPPORTERS, PRO-FAMILY LEADERS DECRY 'SCURRILOUS' ADS
Chuck Colson compares attack against Dr. Dobson to McCarthyism.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
by Pete Winn, associate editor
March 10, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039822.cfm
Vicious print and TV ads attacking Focus on the Family
founder and Chairman Dr. James Dobson are drawing an angry
response. The ads -- produced by the Campaign to Defend
the Constitution (DefCon) -- attempt to link the
pro-family leader to now-disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff
and falsely claim Dr. Dobson accepted casino money to
fight gambling expansion.
Gary Schneeberger, director of media and constituent
communications at Focus on the Family Action, said Dr.
Dobson's radio listeners -- and CitizenLink readers
especially -- have turned outrage into action.
"By the time people read this, more than 21,000 e-mails
will have been sent to members of the board of directors
of DefCon, letting them know that they want the group to
stop lying about Dr. Dobson," he said.
Gary Bauer, president of American Values, spoke out in Dr.
Dobson's defense. He said the ads were, in reality, a
declaration of war against the entire pro-family movement.
[...]
TAKE ACTION: To see the DefCon ads and judge them for
yourself, visit the group's Web site.
http://www.defconamerica.org/
Then, let the members of DefCon's advisory board know what
you think about their ad campaign attacking Dr. Dobson.
You can send an e-mail to 14 of them through the
CitizenLink Action Center.
http://www3.capwiz.com/fof/issues/alert/?alertid=8564286&type=CU
----- 5 -----
Gay and Pro-Family Groups Develop Guidelines
SUMMARY: Schools get direction on sexual-orientation issues.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 10, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039819.cfm
Representatives of homosexual-activist groups, pro-family
education groups and other groups this week released the
results of their efforts to find some common ground on how
schools might deal with the topic of sexual orientation.
Finn Laursen, executive director of the Christian
Educators Association International, said he certainly
thought twice before sitting across from representatives
of the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN).
"It certainly was something I prayed about to make sure
that there was wisdom in doing that," he said.
Kevin Jennings, executive director of GLSEN, told Family
News in Focus he went in with a positive attitude.
"I was very optimistic from the start," he said, "because
I think educators of all backgrounds share a common belief
that our job is to make sure that every child should be
able to learn in our classrooms."
The recommendations, titled "Public Schools and Sexual
Orientation: A First Amendment framework for finding
common ground," are a product of the American Association
of School Administrators; Association for Supervision and
Curriculum Development; BridgeBuilders; Christian
Educators Association International; First Amendment
Center; and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education
Network.
The group ultimately found some ways to address divisive
issues like gay/straight alliances, Day of Truth T-shirts
and condom giveaways.
The participants produced seven general guidelines to
approach such issues, including establishing a "common
ground task force," encouraging participation from all
stakeholders, and avoiding the "us vs. them" mentality.
Charles Haynes of the First Amendment Center mediated the
discussions.
"If we use the First Amendment principles of rights and
responsibilities, and we treat everyone fairly in the
process," he said, " then I think we can find some ways to
work together in public schools on these issues."
Psychologist Warren Throckmorton said the process most
certainly did not guarantee an outcome that everyone would
be happy with, but it should reduce the rancor of the
debate.
"Nobody gave up anything on principle to form these
guidelines," he said. "The advocacy groups involved still
believe what they have always believed."
FOR MORE INFORMATION: To read the "Public Schools and
Sexual Orientation" full report, click on this link.
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/PDF/sexual.orientation.guidelines.pdf
[More at URL]
----- 6 -----
PSYCHIATRIC GROUP PLACING POLITICS OVER SCIENCE
Even the group's former president questions what's going on.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 10, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039818.cfm
Gay activists are being accused of infiltrating an
influential professional group to further their cause. In
the process, they're using bad science to support their
claims and turning groups like the American Psychological
Association (APA) into propaganda machines.
Dr. Nicholas Cummings, a former APA president, said he
takes exception to the group's stance on some very
political issues.
[...]
Dr. Jeffrey Satinover, a psychiatrist and a member of the
scientific advisory board for the National Association for
Research & Therapy of Homosexuality, said he thinks the
APA is at risk of becoming irrelevant by supporting a
political agenda over scientific inquiry.
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
Impeachment of Maryland Judge Dies in Committee
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
A Maryland lawmaker who was seeking to impeach the judge
that overturned the state's marriage law says the effort
has come to an end.
Del. Don Dwyer, who called for the removal of state court
Judge M. Brooke Murdock earlier this week, said the House
Judiciary Committee voted Thursday night to drop the
removal effort.
Dwyer had accused the judge of judicial activism, abuse of
power and a violation of the public trust.
"I have kept my commitment to the citizens of Maryland
that I would hold the court accountable," he said. "I have
done my duty to protect and defend the laws of Maryland
and I have carried the ball to the end."
----- 8 -----
Planned Parenthood Wants to Help Minors Seek Sympathetic Judges
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Planned Parenthood is asking the Florida Supreme Court to
let minors seeking an abortion choose which judge they see
when asking for a waiver of parental notification, The
Associated Press reported.
Galen Sherwin, attorney for Planned Parenthood, suggested
it might be more convenient for a young girl to go to
another court district because she might have relatives or
other support in the area.
Current law states that a minor's request for a waiver be
obtained in the appellate district in which the girl
lives, but Sherwin said there is no reason for that.
"The state hasn't shown any justification for it," he
said, "or shown any indication that it believes that it
was intended to prevent any particular evil."
Bruce Hausknecht, judicial analyst for Focus on the Family
Action, said just last February the U.S. District Court in
Florida ruled in the state's favor on the
parental-notification statute.
"The Florida statute's venue provision is not an undue
burden on minors seeking an abortion. It serves to keep
Florida minors from 'judge-shopping' for sympathetic
judges, which would undermine one of the purposes of the
statute," he said. "The fact that Planned Parenthood would
even challenge this provision shows the depths to which it
will sink in order to prevent even a hiccup in its
cash-cow abortion mills."
----- 9 -----
Pro-Life Law Considered in the Hoosier State
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Lawmakers in Indiana plan to reach a compromise by next
week on legislation that would require clinics to inform
abortion-minded women that life begins at conception and
that fetuses may feel pain, The Associated Press reported.
The state House and Senate are considering different
versions of the bill and a joint committee hopes to come
to a consensus on the language before the legislation goes
before the full House and Senate.
Lindsey Mintz, director of government affairs for the
Jewish Community Relations Council and an opponent of the
legislation, said there is not enough medical evidence to
prove a preborn child feels pain.
"The thought of a woman walking into a clinic at six weeks
and being told, 'We can perform the procedure but your
fetus may feel pain,' would be shocking to women," she
testified.
Republican Sen. Mike Delph said children need protection
from the moment of conception.
"This issue is the human-rights issue of our day," he
said. "It is our duty to protect innocent human life."
----- 10 -----
Montana Rules Against Church for Supporting Marriage Amendment
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Montana's commissioner of political practices released an
opinion this week declaring that East Helena Baptist
church violated the state's Campaign Finance and Practices
Act when it supported an amendment to define marriage.
Attorneys for the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) are
representing Canyon Ferry Road Baptist Church, which is
awaiting a ruling in a similar challenge. ADF attorney
Dale Schowengerdt said the state law runs afoul of the
U.S. Constitution.
"The First Amendment protects the right to speak out in
support of important social issues," he said. "Montana's
campaign finance and practice laws put a very heavy price
on any speech in support of a ballot issue like the
marriage amendment. The laws clearly violate the First
Amendment."
Schowengerdt said the complaint filed against the church
was a politically motivated attack designed to muzzle
marriage supporters.
"The law is so extreme that it can be triggered by
'anything of value' -- even a penny spent on the church
electric bill," he said. "Once triggered, the law demands
that the church register with the state, comply with
comprehensive reporting requirements, and jump through
state-mandated organization hoops, as would a political
committee."
----- 11 -----
CITIZENLINK DAILY UPDATE
March 9, 2006
EDITOR'S NOTE:
Don't Let the Left Get Away with Smearing Dr. Dobson
[Received in email; no URL]
You have probably heard of the attack-ad campaign launched
against Dr. James Dobson by a leftist group calling itself
the Campaign to Defend the Constitution (DefCon). The ads
attempt to tie Dr. Dobson to disgraced gambling lobbyist
Jack Abramoff, even though Dr. Dobson has never met or
spoken to the man; Focus on the Family fights gambling for
one reason and one reason only: the devastation it causes
families.
Strangely, the group has accused Dr. Dobson of impropriety
involving Focus on the Family's opposition to gambling
expansion in Louisiana -- despite the admission by a chief
spokesman that there is "no proof, and I doubt there will
ever be any proof" of wrongdoing on his part.
So, what's the campaign about? Trying to smear Dr. Dobson
because he is an influential evangelical leader who stands
for traditional values. The group is so desperate to
manufacture dirt they can throw at Dr. Dobson that one of
its allies, the Colorado-based Progress Now Action, has
created a Web site where they're pleading for "information
or tips on Dobson's or his associates' improper or
unethical behavior."
Won't you please take a moment to visit that Web site and
use the on-line form to leave a comment in defense of Dr.
Dobson? If you have ever been blessed by one of his books
or radio broadcasts, or if Focus on the Family has helped
you raise your children or strengthen your marriage or
learn how to love others as Christ loves us, please let
the folks at Progress Now Action know about it by clicking
on the link below.
http://www.progressnowaction.org/page/s/fod0306
You can also send a message directly to members of the
DefCon advisory board demanding that their organization
stop lying about Dr. Dobson. We've made it easy for you to
compose one e-mail message and send it, with the click of
a button, to seven members of DefCon's advisory board --
mostly liberal academics and advocates for abortion and
special rights for homosexuals. On Friday, we'll ask you
to send a message to seven other members of the board --
our Action Center couldn't handle all the traffic readers
like you would generate if we tried to have you e-mail all
14 at the same time.
To create your message, visit the CitizenLink Action
Center at the link below -- and please also consider
forwarding this entire editor's note to your family and
friends so that they can make their views known, too.
http://www3.capwiz.com/fof/issues/alert/?alertid=8564286&type=CU
----- 12 -----
PRO-ABORTION GROUP WANTS MORE FEDERAL MONEY
It says "reproductive freedom" is an essential element of religious liberty.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 9, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039785.cfm
The Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice is calling
on the president and Congress to address what it calls
urgent international women's health needs. Pro-family
analysts said it's just an effort to rake in more tax
dollars.
The coalition is comprised of members from the United
Church of Christ, Unitarian Universalist and United
Methodist denominations. The group claims reproductive
freedom -- a phrase that includes abortion -- is "an
essential element of religious liberty."
The coalition also argues that "barriers to abortion are
barriers to justice for women." Marjorie Signer, a
spokeswoman for the group, said there's a need for more
money.
"We are asking for the United States Congress to pass and
President Bush to sign a piece of legislation that would
increase the funding for international family planning,"
she told Family News in Focus.
While she maintained "family planning" does not include
abortion, the group's Web site makes clear that abortion
is the foundation of the group's platform concerning
women's health.
[...]
"The fact that on their Web site they don't even mention
one scripture to back up their viewpoint," she said,
"proves that they're just trying to use the shell of
religion."
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
It's Going to Get Ugly
by Stuart Shepard, managing editor
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 9,2006
SUMMARY: The impact of Values Voters is largely contingent
on keeping a cool head and staying together.
http://www.family.org/cforum/commentary/a0039783.cfm
The unsubstantiated allegations concerning Dr. James
Dobson trumped up in a negative-campaign-style ad this
week by the way-left group DefCon are not about what they
say they are about.
I know, it appears to be a bumbling attempt to tar Dr.
Dobson by hinting at the possibility of some kind of
coincidental link to the Jack Abramoff scandal. But it
became blindingly evident -- as I listened in on a DefCon
media teleconference Wednesday -- what the folks behind
the campaign are really mad about.
It's you.
The Values Voter.
They saw what you did in the last national election. You
increased the number of pro-family members of the House
and Senate. You rejected Sen. John Kerry's bid for the
White House.
They see President Bush signing the partial-birth abortion
ban -- and think of you.
They see Sen. Tom Coburn sitting on the Judiciary
Committee -- and curse you under their breath.
They see Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice
Samuel Alito on the Supreme Court -- and throw darts at
your picture.
So now they are trying to knock the support out from
underneath Dr. Dobson and Focus on the Family because they
see us as a rallying point for America's Values Voters. If
they can dupe you into believing that Dr. Dobson is
somehow a "base hypocrite," that he's "knee deep" in
scandal, that he's "selling out the millions" who believe
in him, then maybe you won't have the will to show up at
the polls. And if you do show up, maybe you won't feel
quite so compelled to vote for candidates who represent
your values.
Which means they make gains in '06 and '08.
Which gets them closer to advancing their hard-left
agenda, which includes slashing every restriction on
abortion, jackhammering the Ten Commandments from public
buildings, ripping the page defining marriage out of the
law books and packing the nation's courts with liberal
activist judges.
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
Still Waiting on Washington Gay-Marriage Decision
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 9, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Washington Supreme Court heard oral arguments in
January 2005 in a case which could decide whether the
state will have gay marriage forced upon it.
More than a year later, pro-family legal experts and the
public are still waiting for the court to make its
judgment -- though a decision had been expected to come
today at the latest.
"It is highly unusual to see any court take a year or more
to render a decision in a case," said Bruce Hausknecht,
judicial analyst for Focus on the Family.
"You would expect a certain amount of delay in
controversial cases," he said, "which may cause various
justices to write separate opinions to either concur with,
or dissent from, the majority holding. But this situation
goes far beyond such a delay."
Hausknecht speculates that the Washington Supreme Court is
going through some extreme internal problems of its own,
caused by the case.
If approved by justices, gay couples could come from
anywhere to be married in Washington, since the state has
no residency requirements.
----- 15 -----
Stem-Cell Research Funding Bill Advances in Maryland
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 9, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Maryland Senate passed a proposal today to fund
stem-cell research.
According to the Baltimore Sun, after about 90 minutes of
debate, the final vote was 29 to 18.
"We're about finding answers to find cures," said
Democratic state Sen. Paula Hollinger, the bill's sponsor.
The Senate bill would allow state funding but does not
mandate it. Lawmakers voted Wednesday to remove a
provision that would give controversial embryonic
stem-cell research priority over noncontroversial adult
stem-cell research.
Critics argued that the bill was flawed and registered
their opposition to embryonic stem-cell research. The
process of deriving cells from human embryos always
requires the destruction of life.
"It's a human life. It's a human embryo," said Sen. Nancy
Jacobs, a Republican.
The state House has already passed a similar proposal, but
will now consider the Senate version.
----- 16 ------
Volunteer State Senate Votes for Pro-Life Constitutional Amendment
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 9, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Tennessee Senate passed a proposal today to amend the
state Constitution so that it doesn't guarantee a woman's
right to an abortion, The Associated Press reported.
The 24-9 vote was the first step of many. If the General
Assembly approves it twice over the next two years, the
measure would then go to the voters.
The extreme measures are needed, because the state Supreme
Court has ruled that the Tennessee Constitution grants
women a greater right to abortion than the U.S.
Constitution.
Pro-abortion advocates attacked the measure as a stepping
stone to prohibiting all abortions in the state if the
U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.
Sen. David Fowler, a Republican sponsor of the bill,
proposed a similar resolution last year that cleared the
Senate but stalled in a House committee.
----- 17 -----
*** CITIZENLINK SPECIAL ALERT ***
Dr. Dobson's Broadcast Responds to False Allegations
Focus on the Family
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Dr. James Dobson, the founder and chairman of Focus on the
Family, devotes his national broadcast today to defusing
the outrageous claims of the liberal special-interest
group Campaign to Defend the Constitution, known as
DefCon.
----- 18 -----
Another Attack on Freedom
Faith and Freedom Network
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Washington State Pharmacy Board is trying to do the right thing. They are preparing to adopt a refusal policy that will permit pharmacists to refuse to fill prescriptions for abortion pills if it violates the pharmacist’s conscience.
But Planned Parenthood is leading on all-out, full- court press to kill the policy.
It’s ironic that the people who say they champion choice and give us endless lectures on freedom to choose are the very ones who are committed to taking choice away from the pharmacists.
As always, the secularists have a self-serving, misleading definition of choice, including taking away the right of pharmacists to act in accordance with their conscience.
The culture war continues on every front.
Thank you for your support in our efforts to advance Faith & Freedom in our society.
----- 19 -----
WA State Democrats Continue War on Marriage
Faith and Freedom Network
March 9, 2006
Long URL elided
Democrats in the House of Representatives turned down a motion by House Republicans to exempt the legislative cut-off dates for all bills and joint resolutions dealing with marriage. The vote was 56-42.
Representative Janéa Holmquist, from Moses Lake, had introduced two measures that seek constitutional protection in defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman.
Representative Holmquist said, “This motion comes in advance of the court decision to reassert our belief that it should be the people’s right to determine this issue – not the courts.”
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Call To Arms Pastors Conference in Maine a Huge Success
Concerned Women for America
3/10/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10293/FIELD/misc/index.htm
Bob Knight, Director of CWA’s Culture & Family Institute, has just recently addressed a conference for pastors and their wives, hoping to excite them about fighting the moral issues of our day. That conference, which was cosponsored by CWA of Maine, was a huge success!
[Robert Knight was a keynote speaker; "I think it couldn't have gone better... this was a pastor's call to arms weekend, really, for pastors and their wives..." "They were very receptive, even though in Maine they lost a vote on the sexual-orientation law last November, they are unbowed, they are not going away... I reminded them in my speech, there are no permanent victories..." "I think they saw the gravity of the situation and why they can't afford to just sit on the sidelines anymore." "Pastors are increasingly feeling under the gun under Canada..." Talks about the so-called "Philadelphia 11," claiming (again) that they were "arrested for spreading the gospel" and so on. "They were also encouraged by all the pro-life victories across the country." Very happy that the Supreme Court is going to "take up" so-called "partial birth" abortion again. "Victory after victory, out there, and of course, the big one, South Dakota's legislature, putting a law on the books that's the toughest in the country outlawing all abortions except in case of the life of the mother, and the governor just having signed it the other day." "If they don't, we may arriave at a day in which basic Christianity, basically sharing the gospel, will be something that is either against the law, or so discouraged that it'll be difficult to get the word out." Talks about setting up "Prayer Action Chapters" in Maine. "I would see this could be a great model for other states in getting pastors involved." The travel to the conference was subsidised by fundamentalist groups.]
----- 21 -----
Dr. Dobson Smeared in Full Page NY Times Ad
Concerned Women for America
3/9/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10292/CWA/misc/index.htm
The radical leftist group Campaign to Defend the Constitution, or DefCon, has placed a full page ad in The New York Times claiming that three conservative religious/political leaders have taken money from gambling interests. Those leaders are Ralph Reed, Rev. Lou Sheldon, and Dr. James Dobson. Bob Knight, Director of CWA’s Culture & Family Institute, has more on this baseless charge and the group that launched it. Click here to listen.
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
CWA Criticizes Male Form of Roe v. Wade
Concerned Women for America
3/10/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10295/MEDIA/life/index.htm
Washington, D.C. — Concerned Women for America (CWA) criticized today a recent lawsuit filed by The National Center for Men which argues that fathers should be able to opt out of financial responsibilities for “unwanted” babies. This deplorable proposition is an outrage to responsible women and men and to those who know the importance of family and father-child relationships.
"This is merely an attempt for these men to avoid their responsibilities if their 'girlfriends' shoulder their own duties and refuse to have an abortion,” said Dr. Janice Crouse, CWA’s Senior Fellow of the Beverly LaHaye Institute. “It is another way that The National Center for Men wants men to be able to have sex without consequences; they want men to live scot-free, with no accountability. They acknowledge that they won't win the suit they are filing, but they want to start a debate on the issue.
“Raising the issue to the level of public debate would make it appear to be less irresponsible for men to ignore their fatherhood and separate sex from accountability. The question remains -- what about the rights of the child?
[More at URL]
----- 23 -----
Parent Notification Law Linked to Drop in Teen Abortions
Forbes
03.08.06, 12:00 AM ET
http://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/health/feeds/hscout/2006/03/08/hscout531430.html
WEDNESDAY, March 8 (HealthDay News) -- Since January 2000, Texas state law has mandated that doctors notify the parents of any girl under the age of 18 seeking an abortion at least 48 hours before the procedure.
Similar laws, all hotly contested, exist in one form or another in 34 states.
Now, one of the most rigorously conducted studies to date on the issue of parental notification finds that the rate of teen abortions in Texas dropped by 11 percent among 15-year-olds, 20 percent among 16-year-olds, and 16 percent among 17-year-olds in the first two years after the bill was enacted.
The study, published in the March 9 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, uncovered another phenomenon: After Texas introduced the parental notification law, rates for late-term (after 12 weeks' gestation) abortion rose among girls who were a few months shy of their 18th birthday at the time of conception.
According to the study authors, this suggests that many were waiting till they reached that milestone so they could legally have the procedure without informing their parents.
[More at URL]
----- 24 -----
Protecting Marriage in the Hawkeye State
ACT NOW!
Family Research Council
March 10, 2006 - Friday
Iowa (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06C04
Iowa currently faces the first Midwestern challenge to a Defense of Marriage Act. In December, six homosexual couples filed a lawsuit directly challenging Iowa's law defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman. Iowa is now one unfortunate ruling away from same-sex marriage.
The means by which Iowans have to defend marriage from this challenge is a constitutional amendment. With the definition of marriage in the state constitution, no Iowa court will be able to rule the law unconstitutional.
The Iowa House passed the Iowa Marriage Amendment (IMA) last year. To keep the IMA alive, it must now pass in the Senate this year. Key Senators are blocking a vote on the amendment by holding it in committee. To get the IMA passed, we need your help.
Here's how you can help:
Join us March 14th at the state capitol to "Take a Stand for Marriage." The rally will take place on the West Steps of the Capitol at Noon. An overwhelming crowd is needed! Please plan to come, and if you live outside central Iowa but are still interested in coming call 1-877-866-IFPC.
Please contact key Senators and Senate Co-Majority Leader Mike Gronstal and ask them to allow the people a vote on the IMA. To contact Sen. Gronstal, call 515-281-3901. To email Gronstal and all the key Senators at once, go to: www.votervoice.net/groups/ifpc/?issueid=6368
Spread the word. Please forward this email to your friends and family in Iowa. Ask them to email key lawmakers to join the rally. Go to www.ifpc.org for more tools including bulletin inserts, talking points and key Senator contact information.
----- 25 -----
283,111 valid signatures needed in Illinois to put marriage amendment on ballot in November
Family Research Council
March 9, 2006 - Thursday
Illinois (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06C03
March 21st is Primary Election day and millions of citizens will be coming out to vote. It is a wonderful opportunity to collect more than 100,000 signatures of known registered voters, on this one day alone.
Please join the Illinois Family Institute. They need your help on Tuesday, March 21st!
If you are willing to help, please consider donating 2-3 hours of your time on Primary Election day to help them gather signatures to defend marriage.
How you can help:
Register to help on March 21st; you can also register to help by calling toll-free 1-877-787-8011
Download a Protect Marriage Illinois petition sheet and instructions.
Since political leaders in Springfield won't stand up to defend marriage as between one man and one woman, the people are taking it upon themselves to gather 500,000 signatures across Illinois to put this issue on the ballot in November.
For more information contact:
David E. Smith, Project Director
Illinois Family Institute
877-787-8011
630-790-9044 or by email: info@illinoisfamily.org
We must act now to permanently protect marriage in Illinois. Since the forced legalization of same-sex "marriage" in Massachusetts in 2004, fifteen states have adopted constitutional amendments preserving traditional marriage through ballot initiatives, averaging a winning percentage of over 70 percent. That brings the total to 19 states that have added marriage amendments to their state constitutions. Another 11 states are currently pursuing similar measures. Illinois does not want to become another Massachusetts.
Illinois citizens who want to permanently protect marriage have until April 20, 2006 to gather 283,111 valid signatures in order to put an Advisory Referendum on the ballot calling on political leaders in Springfield to pass a state constitutional amendment protecting marriage as between one man and one woman.
If we do not push for an Amendment to the Illinois State Constitution, liberal activist judges will redefine marriage forever. Thank you for standing with your fellow Illinois citizens in protecting traditional marriage in your state.
----- 26 -----
Leftwing group uses lies to slander Dr. James Dobson
American Family Association
Online as of March 12, 2006
http://afa.net/dobson_slander.asp
My friend Gary Bauer brought to my attention an ad which ran in Wednesday's New York Times. "These Religious Leaders Have A Serious Gambling Problem." The ad viciously attacks a very good friend of mine who is a leader in the pro-family movement—Dr. James Dobson. The "problem" is Jack Abramoff, and the ad goes to great lengths to connect Dr. Dobson to Abramoff.
Anybody who knows Dr. Dobson knows this is nothing more than a libelous charge of guilt by association. Dr. Dobson has opposed gambling all his life. He served on the congressionally mandated National Gambling Impact Study Commission in the late 1990s, which recommended a moratorium on gambling expansion. To date, no one has even demonstrated, much less proven, any connection between Jack Abramoff and Dr. Dobson – because there isn't one.
[More at URL]
----- 27 -----
Commentary & News Briefs
March 10, 2006
Compiled by Jenni Parker
American Family Association/Agape Press
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/3/afa/102006h.asp
[...]
...Plaintiffs suing the Air Force now want a federal judge to declare the service's new guidelines on religion unconstitutional. The original lawsuit had asked the court to bar illegal proselytizing throughout the Air Force and claimed that the Air Force Academy was imposing evangelical Christianity on cadets. The plaintiffs are now amending their suit to challenge the revised Air Force guidelines that were issued last month. They claim that the new guidelines let evangelicals promote their religion and allow senior officers to influence the religious choices of their subordinates. They are also seeking to add a new plaintiff -- an Air Force recruiter who alleges that he was asked by superiors to use Jesus Christ as a recruiting tool. [AP]
[...]
...Officials with Wal-Mart have announced the company will stock the emergency contraceptive drug known as the "morning-after pill" in all of its pharmacies throughout the U.S. starting March 20. Bill Johnson, president of the American Decency Association, feels this decision is only the latest in a series of family-unfriendly moves by the world's largest retailer's officials. "We have seen them in recent months making decisions like advertising on Desperate Housewives," he notes. "Now, with this move as well, this is truly significant. Many of us have desired to be able to look a Wal-Mart as a shopping alternative, a place that is family friendly. One person we talked with recently said that they're lately not family friendly, they're consumer friendly." That is why the decency advocate believes pro-family customers need to let the corporate giant know how they feel, as they have in the past. "A couple of years ago, when people would walk into their Wal-Mart, right in the doorway, there would be the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition facing them," Johnson notes. "We began to urge people to make telephone calls to Wal-Mart, and within a week's period of time, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition was at least taken down from the central place and tucked back into the magazine racks, which we considered a very significant victory." Massachusetts and Illinois had previously ordered Wal-Mart stores in those states to stock the morning-after pill. Now, effective March 20, all of Wal-Mart's more than 3,700 pharmacies nationwide will carry the ethically controversial drug also known as "Plan B." [Allie Martin]
[More at URL]
----- 28 ------
TESTING THE FAITH
24 homosexual-rights activists arrested at Falwell university
51-day Equality Ride targeting Christian colleges, military schools over no-'gay' admission policies
Posted: March 11, 2006
5:00 p.m. Eastern
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49225
On the first stop of a 51-day "gay-rights" bus tour aimed at bringing media attention to the non-admission policies for gays at 20 Christian colleges and military schools, 24 members of the Soulforce Equality Ride found themselves sitting in the Lynchburg, Virginia, jail, arrested for trespassing at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University and facing possible $2,500 fines and a year in jail.
The group of 35 gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, and straight 18- to 28-year-olds had been warned ahead of their arrival they would not be welcome on campus.
"It is now our firm belief that Soulforce is not acting in good faith and is simply trying to use such encounters on Christian college campuses as a media attraction and for their ultimate purpose of fundraising," Chancellor Falwell said in a written statement.
Liberty had been targeted by an earlier version of the Equality Ride last year and has a long history of dealings with Soulforce, the homosexual group started by Mel White, a writer who once worked for Falwell.
Equality Ride is modeled after the "freedom rides" of the 1960's civil rights movement and the group, many wearing buttons reading "Learn from history," says its cause is the same as ending racial discrimination was a generation ago.
"It just so happens that now the other and the outcast are [gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered] people," Monica Carmean, 20, a self-described Christian, straight ally from Northwestern University told the Richmond Times-Dispatch. "We want to come to the school today to say, 'Learn from history,'" Equality Ride's co-director, Jacob Reitan, 23, of Eden Prairie, Minn., told the crowd. "We have a right to be here, because this school teaches that being gay is being sick and sinful. We have a right to question and to show how we are children of God."
Their ranks swelled by local supporters, the 80 homosexual-rights demonstrators were met by a wall of campus police as they walked onto campus in single file, each reading from written statements. When they ignored Liberty campus police warnings to leave private property, 24 were handcuffed and arrested without incident. Two face additional charges of inciting to trespass.
[More at URL]
----- 29 -----
WND ON THE AIR
Kupelian tackles 'gay rights'
on '700 Club'
Watch 'Marketing of Evil' author
on top Christian TV show
Posted: March 10, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49198
WND Managing Editor David Kupelian will be featured today in a lengthy news segment exploring the marketing of homosexuality in Hollywood on the popular CBN television show, "The 700 Club."
With the "gay cowboy" film "Brokeback Mountain" winning a string of major awards, including best-director Oscar last Sunday, Kupelian discusses how the movie-makers are advancing the radical gay-rights agenda. Kupelian will be interviewed by CBN senior reporter Paul Strand.
[More at URL]
----- 30 -----
"Mobilized" Christians helped tories win
Today's Family News
Focus on the Family (Canada)
March 10, 2006
http://www.fotf.ca/tfn/misc/031006.html
A “dramatic” shift in voting patterns among Christians is being credited with helping to elect a minority Conservative government on January 23, a new poll has concluded.
By analyzing data collected on election day, Ipsos-Reid cent increase from the 2004 federal election.
“Clearly, a line has been crossed and a population mobilized,” wrote Ipsos-Reid senior vice-president Andrew Grenville in Faith Today.
In Quebec as well, regular churchgoing Catholics -– “for the first time in the history of polling,” according to Grenville -– abandoned a long-standing tradition of voting Liberal. Of those who attended church once a week, 42 per cent voted Conservative and 40 per cent Liberal. Those who attended church more than once a week were also the most likely to vote Conservative.
Grenville interpreted this decline in Liberal support among regularly attending Catholics as “an important indicator of intense discomfort. Committed Catholics clearly have felt pangs of conscience over social transgressions like corruption and moral issues such as same-sex marriage, and have swallowed hard and switched their vote.”
[More at URL]
zarq has a good entry talking about the various studies showing that gay parents are pretty much the same as straight parents when it comes to childhood outcomes;***** Faith and Freedom Network (a Pacific Northwest theoconservative organisation) has started mailing out links to a PDF of their anti-GBLT Washington State initiative;
Focus on the Family really has all guns blazing on this Dobson-tied-to-convicted-lobbyist Abramoff thing; this is an ACTION ITEM to bombard Campaign to Defend the Constitution with complaints; they include links to all kinds of talking points and action items and stuff - it must have them terrified;
A second ACTION ITEM in the same mailing to blast DefCon with complaint letters for daring to talk bad about James Dobson;
***** Not sure what this means: Focus on the Family report on the Christian Educator's Association working with GLSEN, which FotF and the other major theocon grouops have unremittingly condemned in the past, on a set of "common ground" recommendations on sexual orientation harassment in schools; they do not condemn this action, which is interesting; presumably being pro-bullying was playing badly and FotF has shifted its stance a bit, which is good news;
In the very next article, of course, they accuse the APA of "placing politics over science," mostly for not considering homosexuality and bisexuality to be mental illnesses anymore; I have a hard time reconciling the above story to all the other stories;
Maryland Del. Don Dwyer's attempt to get Judge M. Brooke Murdock removed from the bench over rulings he didn't like fails in committee;
FotF condemns Planned Parenthood programme to help minours seek legal redress in court over abortion issues; continues the accusation that PP is only interested in abortion rights because it wants to keep its "cash-cow abortion mills";
FotF considers Indiana likely to require clinics to tell women "life begins at conception" and "fetuses may feel pain" - funny how things like medical provider conscience don't matter when it's the other side's moral, ethical, and medical considerations;
Montana church violated state political spending laws - Alliance Defense Fund, a theoconservative anti-GBLT/anti-abortion legal action group, blasts the law as unconstitutional, vows challenge;
Yet ANOTHER FotF ACTION ITEM against DefCon over their ads linking James Dobson to Abramoff;
FotF rails against the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Freedom for asking Congress to increase international aid for family planning; even FotF has to note that this doesn't actually include abortion, tho' the groups do support abortion rights; Concerned Women for America condemns them for not having scripture to justify their position on their website, calling it "proof" they aren't really religious;
FotF starts whipping up political support for theoconservative candidates in 2006 already, saying it's "eight long months" between now and the election but that you have to get ready now, and that it's going to be a very ugly campaign - that part, I'm afraid, I agree with;
Still no news on Washington State Supreme Court decision on Washington State's DOMA;
FotF upset that Maryland seems to be moving towards supporting embryonic stem-cell research;
***** Tennessee Senate passes anti-abortion state Constitutional amendment;
YET ANOTHER alert from Focus on the Family about DefCon and the Abramoff allegations;
Faith and Freedom Network claims the Washington State Pharmacy Board is considering a right-of-refusal measure for anti-abortion pharmacists, condemns Planned Parenthood for opposing it;
Faith and Freedom Network condemns Washington State Democratic legislators for refusing to exempt anti-marriage actions from the normal legislative cutoff date for the now-expired 2006 legislative session; Rep. Holmquist (R-Moses Lake) had prepared an anti-marriage state constitutional amendment;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight addresses a "Call to Arms Pastors Conference" in Maine, calls it a "huge success"; talks about "great victories" such as South Dakota's new abortion ban; claims Christianity is going to be outlawed unless pastors get (even) more politically active;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight defends Focus on the Family, condemns DefCon's Dobson-Abramoff allegations;
CWA condemns National Center for Men lawsuit seeking a right to opt-out of child support;
Forbes: "Parent Notification Law Linked to Drop in Teen Abortions" - except there's a big asterisk, specifically that there's a big spike in later-term abortions caused by teenagers turning 18 and then having an abortion without having to tell their parents - in other words, waiting out the law;
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM pushing anti-marriage amendment in Iowa; it passed the House last year, it needs to pass the Senate this year to get to the ballot; it's currently being held in committee; they're having a big anti-marriage-rights rally on the 14th (that's Tuesday);
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM calling for help collecting signatures for anti-marriage state Constitutional amendment in Illinois;
American Family Association joins in the chorus condemning DefCon and sends out an ACTION ITEM to support James Dobson - this clearly hit a major nerve;
AFA's Agape Press starts talking about an anti-Wal-Mart campaign over their decision to carry emergency contraception in their pharmacies; also, the plaintiffs in the religious-harassment Air Force Academy case have amended their suit to include the new, Dobson-approved guidelines which they say put the old system back into place;
Jerry Falwell has 24 Soulforce members arrested by Liberty University Campus Police when SoulForce members set foot on campus (one at a time, single-file), helping make sure the group could not talk to Liberty University students;
The 700 Club to carry "a lengthy news statement" on the book The Marketing of Evil, which condemns GBLT rights as, well, evil;
Focus on the Family (Canada arm) claims evangelicals responsible for Tory win in recent elections.
----- 1 -----
Catholic Charities stuns state, ends adoptions
Gay issue stirred move by agency
By Patricia Wen, Globe Staff | March 11, 2006
http://zarq.livejournal.com/428075.html?mode=reply
In a stunning turn of events, Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley and leaders of Catholic Charities of Boston announced yesterday that the agency will end its adoption work, deciding to abandon its founding mission, rather than comply with state law requiring that gays be allowed to adopt children.
The Rev. J. Bryan Hehir, president of Catholic Charities of Boston, and Jeffrey Kaneb, chairman of the board, said that after much reflection and analysis, they could not reconcile church teaching that placement of children in gay homes is ''immoral" with Massachusetts law prohibiting discrimination against gays.
[...]
Almost immediately after the announcement, Governor Mitt Romney, who was in Tennessee speaking to a Republican group, issued a statement saying he would file legislation to exempt religious organizations that provide adoption services from the state's antidiscrimination laws.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
Because "every life is precious" -- as long as it's not an orphaned, abandoned or abused child...
Jon at Weird Is Relative
http://zarq.livejournal.com/428075.html?mode=reply
[...] Catholic Charities of Boston fears allowing homosexuals to have children so much that it is shutting down their adoption service -- rather than comply with Massachusetts state anti-discrimination laws. The Charities were founded as an adoption agency more than 100 years ago, but have opted to exercise their religious freedom to discriminate rather than continue to help children in need find homes.
No agency that does business with the state of Massachusetts or acts as an agent of the state may discriminate on the basis of (among other categories,) age, race, sex, sexual orientation or national origin. Adoption is a state-sanctioned activity. Religious freedom doesn't count as an excuse in this case, because all state governments must observe a separation of church and state. So, the Archdiocese and Catholic Charities of Boston had two choices: Allow gays to adopt, or get out of the adoption business. They chose the latter -- as they most certainly have a right to do. It's a clear statement about the Church's priorities.
[Much more at URL]
----- 3 -----
Referendum 65 Forms Now Available
Faith and Freedom Network
March 11, 2006
Referendum 65 petition forms are now available for all registered voters in Washington State on our website. You can download a pdf copy or request forms be mailed to you.
http://faithandfreedom.us/referendum/formmail.html
Thank you for your commitment to "Advancing Judeo Christian Values across America!" And please forward this Alert to your friends and family concerned about these issues!
God Bless You,
Gary Randall, President
Faith and Freedom Network
email: faithandfreedom@aol.com
phone: 425-486-6594
web: http://www.faithandfreedom.us
----- 4 -----
CITIZENLINK DAILY UPDATE
March 10, 2006
EDITOR'S NOTE:
More DefCon Board Members Need to Hear from You
Tell them to stop lying about Dr. Dobson
[Received in email; no URL]
Thousands of you have written in the last 24 hours to
demand that the liberal group Campaign to Defend the
Constitution (DefCon) stop lying about Focus on the Family
founder Dr. James Dobson. The group has created attack ads
trying to link Dr. Dobson to disgraced gambling lobbyist
Jack Ambramoff, even though its chief spokesman has
admitted there is "no proof, and I doubt there will ever
be any proof" of wrongdoing on Dr. Dobson's part.
There are still members of DefCon's advisory board who
need to hear from you. Visit the link below to compose a
message that will be sent to seven additional members of
the board. Even if you've already written to the first
batch of board members, please make sure the others know
you won't stand for their group's lies about Dr. Dobson.
http://www3.capwiz.com/fof/issues/alert/?alertid=8567946&type=CU
One last note: You may hear back from some board members
that you have your facts wrong -- or that they have no
involvement in the attacks on Dr. Dobson. To answer the
first charge, please read the fact sheet we've developed
addressing the ridiculous charges against Dr. Dobson at
the link below.
http://www.family.org/cforum/feature/a0039768.cfm
To respond to the second charge, please see the list of
DefCon Advisory Board members at the link below. Everyone
who receives one of your e-mails is a member of this board
-- and therefore is in a position to either approve or
disapprove of the group's scurrilous ads.
http://www.defconamerica.org/about-DefCon/advisory-board.html
And, please, share this entire editor's note with friends
and family so they can take a stand as well.
(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on the
Family is for informational purposes only. We do not
endorse the content of DefCon's Web site.)
----- 5 -----
FOCUS SUPPORTERS, PRO-FAMILY LEADERS DECRY 'SCURRILOUS' ADS
Chuck Colson compares attack against Dr. Dobson to McCarthyism.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
by Pete Winn, associate editor
March 10, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039822.cfm
Vicious print and TV ads attacking Focus on the Family
founder and Chairman Dr. James Dobson are drawing an angry
response. The ads -- produced by the Campaign to Defend
the Constitution (DefCon) -- attempt to link the
pro-family leader to now-disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff
and falsely claim Dr. Dobson accepted casino money to
fight gambling expansion.
Gary Schneeberger, director of media and constituent
communications at Focus on the Family Action, said Dr.
Dobson's radio listeners -- and CitizenLink readers
especially -- have turned outrage into action.
"By the time people read this, more than 21,000 e-mails
will have been sent to members of the board of directors
of DefCon, letting them know that they want the group to
stop lying about Dr. Dobson," he said.
Gary Bauer, president of American Values, spoke out in Dr.
Dobson's defense. He said the ads were, in reality, a
declaration of war against the entire pro-family movement.
[...]
TAKE ACTION: To see the DefCon ads and judge them for
yourself, visit the group's Web site.
http://www.defconamerica.org/
Then, let the members of DefCon's advisory board know what
you think about their ad campaign attacking Dr. Dobson.
You can send an e-mail to 14 of them through the
CitizenLink Action Center.
http://www3.capwiz.com/fof/issues/alert/?alertid=8564286&type=CU
----- 5 -----
Gay and Pro-Family Groups Develop Guidelines
SUMMARY: Schools get direction on sexual-orientation issues.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 10, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039819.cfm
Representatives of homosexual-activist groups, pro-family
education groups and other groups this week released the
results of their efforts to find some common ground on how
schools might deal with the topic of sexual orientation.
Finn Laursen, executive director of the Christian
Educators Association International, said he certainly
thought twice before sitting across from representatives
of the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN).
"It certainly was something I prayed about to make sure
that there was wisdom in doing that," he said.
Kevin Jennings, executive director of GLSEN, told Family
News in Focus he went in with a positive attitude.
"I was very optimistic from the start," he said, "because
I think educators of all backgrounds share a common belief
that our job is to make sure that every child should be
able to learn in our classrooms."
The recommendations, titled "Public Schools and Sexual
Orientation: A First Amendment framework for finding
common ground," are a product of the American Association
of School Administrators; Association for Supervision and
Curriculum Development; BridgeBuilders; Christian
Educators Association International; First Amendment
Center; and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education
Network.
The group ultimately found some ways to address divisive
issues like gay/straight alliances, Day of Truth T-shirts
and condom giveaways.
The participants produced seven general guidelines to
approach such issues, including establishing a "common
ground task force," encouraging participation from all
stakeholders, and avoiding the "us vs. them" mentality.
Charles Haynes of the First Amendment Center mediated the
discussions.
"If we use the First Amendment principles of rights and
responsibilities, and we treat everyone fairly in the
process," he said, " then I think we can find some ways to
work together in public schools on these issues."
Psychologist Warren Throckmorton said the process most
certainly did not guarantee an outcome that everyone would
be happy with, but it should reduce the rancor of the
debate.
"Nobody gave up anything on principle to form these
guidelines," he said. "The advocacy groups involved still
believe what they have always believed."
FOR MORE INFORMATION: To read the "Public Schools and
Sexual Orientation" full report, click on this link.
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/PDF/sexual.orientation.guidelines.pdf
[More at URL]
----- 6 -----
PSYCHIATRIC GROUP PLACING POLITICS OVER SCIENCE
Even the group's former president questions what's going on.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 10, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039818.cfm
Gay activists are being accused of infiltrating an
influential professional group to further their cause. In
the process, they're using bad science to support their
claims and turning groups like the American Psychological
Association (APA) into propaganda machines.
Dr. Nicholas Cummings, a former APA president, said he
takes exception to the group's stance on some very
political issues.
[...]
Dr. Jeffrey Satinover, a psychiatrist and a member of the
scientific advisory board for the National Association for
Research & Therapy of Homosexuality, said he thinks the
APA is at risk of becoming irrelevant by supporting a
political agenda over scientific inquiry.
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
Impeachment of Maryland Judge Dies in Committee
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
A Maryland lawmaker who was seeking to impeach the judge
that overturned the state's marriage law says the effort
has come to an end.
Del. Don Dwyer, who called for the removal of state court
Judge M. Brooke Murdock earlier this week, said the House
Judiciary Committee voted Thursday night to drop the
removal effort.
Dwyer had accused the judge of judicial activism, abuse of
power and a violation of the public trust.
"I have kept my commitment to the citizens of Maryland
that I would hold the court accountable," he said. "I have
done my duty to protect and defend the laws of Maryland
and I have carried the ball to the end."
----- 8 -----
Planned Parenthood Wants to Help Minors Seek Sympathetic Judges
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Planned Parenthood is asking the Florida Supreme Court to
let minors seeking an abortion choose which judge they see
when asking for a waiver of parental notification, The
Associated Press reported.
Galen Sherwin, attorney for Planned Parenthood, suggested
it might be more convenient for a young girl to go to
another court district because she might have relatives or
other support in the area.
Current law states that a minor's request for a waiver be
obtained in the appellate district in which the girl
lives, but Sherwin said there is no reason for that.
"The state hasn't shown any justification for it," he
said, "or shown any indication that it believes that it
was intended to prevent any particular evil."
Bruce Hausknecht, judicial analyst for Focus on the Family
Action, said just last February the U.S. District Court in
Florida ruled in the state's favor on the
parental-notification statute.
"The Florida statute's venue provision is not an undue
burden on minors seeking an abortion. It serves to keep
Florida minors from 'judge-shopping' for sympathetic
judges, which would undermine one of the purposes of the
statute," he said. "The fact that Planned Parenthood would
even challenge this provision shows the depths to which it
will sink in order to prevent even a hiccup in its
cash-cow abortion mills."
----- 9 -----
Pro-Life Law Considered in the Hoosier State
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Lawmakers in Indiana plan to reach a compromise by next
week on legislation that would require clinics to inform
abortion-minded women that life begins at conception and
that fetuses may feel pain, The Associated Press reported.
The state House and Senate are considering different
versions of the bill and a joint committee hopes to come
to a consensus on the language before the legislation goes
before the full House and Senate.
Lindsey Mintz, director of government affairs for the
Jewish Community Relations Council and an opponent of the
legislation, said there is not enough medical evidence to
prove a preborn child feels pain.
"The thought of a woman walking into a clinic at six weeks
and being told, 'We can perform the procedure but your
fetus may feel pain,' would be shocking to women," she
testified.
Republican Sen. Mike Delph said children need protection
from the moment of conception.
"This issue is the human-rights issue of our day," he
said. "It is our duty to protect innocent human life."
----- 10 -----
Montana Rules Against Church for Supporting Marriage Amendment
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Montana's commissioner of political practices released an
opinion this week declaring that East Helena Baptist
church violated the state's Campaign Finance and Practices
Act when it supported an amendment to define marriage.
Attorneys for the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) are
representing Canyon Ferry Road Baptist Church, which is
awaiting a ruling in a similar challenge. ADF attorney
Dale Schowengerdt said the state law runs afoul of the
U.S. Constitution.
"The First Amendment protects the right to speak out in
support of important social issues," he said. "Montana's
campaign finance and practice laws put a very heavy price
on any speech in support of a ballot issue like the
marriage amendment. The laws clearly violate the First
Amendment."
Schowengerdt said the complaint filed against the church
was a politically motivated attack designed to muzzle
marriage supporters.
"The law is so extreme that it can be triggered by
'anything of value' -- even a penny spent on the church
electric bill," he said. "Once triggered, the law demands
that the church register with the state, comply with
comprehensive reporting requirements, and jump through
state-mandated organization hoops, as would a political
committee."
----- 11 -----
CITIZENLINK DAILY UPDATE
March 9, 2006
EDITOR'S NOTE:
Don't Let the Left Get Away with Smearing Dr. Dobson
[Received in email; no URL]
You have probably heard of the attack-ad campaign launched
against Dr. James Dobson by a leftist group calling itself
the Campaign to Defend the Constitution (DefCon). The ads
attempt to tie Dr. Dobson to disgraced gambling lobbyist
Jack Abramoff, even though Dr. Dobson has never met or
spoken to the man; Focus on the Family fights gambling for
one reason and one reason only: the devastation it causes
families.
Strangely, the group has accused Dr. Dobson of impropriety
involving Focus on the Family's opposition to gambling
expansion in Louisiana -- despite the admission by a chief
spokesman that there is "no proof, and I doubt there will
ever be any proof" of wrongdoing on his part.
So, what's the campaign about? Trying to smear Dr. Dobson
because he is an influential evangelical leader who stands
for traditional values. The group is so desperate to
manufacture dirt they can throw at Dr. Dobson that one of
its allies, the Colorado-based Progress Now Action, has
created a Web site where they're pleading for "information
or tips on Dobson's or his associates' improper or
unethical behavior."
Won't you please take a moment to visit that Web site and
use the on-line form to leave a comment in defense of Dr.
Dobson? If you have ever been blessed by one of his books
or radio broadcasts, or if Focus on the Family has helped
you raise your children or strengthen your marriage or
learn how to love others as Christ loves us, please let
the folks at Progress Now Action know about it by clicking
on the link below.
http://www.progressnowaction.org/page/s/fod0306
You can also send a message directly to members of the
DefCon advisory board demanding that their organization
stop lying about Dr. Dobson. We've made it easy for you to
compose one e-mail message and send it, with the click of
a button, to seven members of DefCon's advisory board --
mostly liberal academics and advocates for abortion and
special rights for homosexuals. On Friday, we'll ask you
to send a message to seven other members of the board --
our Action Center couldn't handle all the traffic readers
like you would generate if we tried to have you e-mail all
14 at the same time.
To create your message, visit the CitizenLink Action
Center at the link below -- and please also consider
forwarding this entire editor's note to your family and
friends so that they can make their views known, too.
http://www3.capwiz.com/fof/issues/alert/?alertid=8564286&type=CU
----- 12 -----
PRO-ABORTION GROUP WANTS MORE FEDERAL MONEY
It says "reproductive freedom" is an essential element of religious liberty.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 9, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0039785.cfm
The Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice is calling
on the president and Congress to address what it calls
urgent international women's health needs. Pro-family
analysts said it's just an effort to rake in more tax
dollars.
The coalition is comprised of members from the United
Church of Christ, Unitarian Universalist and United
Methodist denominations. The group claims reproductive
freedom -- a phrase that includes abortion -- is "an
essential element of religious liberty."
The coalition also argues that "barriers to abortion are
barriers to justice for women." Marjorie Signer, a
spokeswoman for the group, said there's a need for more
money.
"We are asking for the United States Congress to pass and
President Bush to sign a piece of legislation that would
increase the funding for international family planning,"
she told Family News in Focus.
While she maintained "family planning" does not include
abortion, the group's Web site makes clear that abortion
is the foundation of the group's platform concerning
women's health.
[...]
"The fact that on their Web site they don't even mention
one scripture to back up their viewpoint," she said,
"proves that they're just trying to use the shell of
religion."
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
It's Going to Get Ugly
by Stuart Shepard, managing editor
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
March 9,2006
SUMMARY: The impact of Values Voters is largely contingent
on keeping a cool head and staying together.
http://www.family.org/cforum/commentary/a0039783.cfm
The unsubstantiated allegations concerning Dr. James
Dobson trumped up in a negative-campaign-style ad this
week by the way-left group DefCon are not about what they
say they are about.
I know, it appears to be a bumbling attempt to tar Dr.
Dobson by hinting at the possibility of some kind of
coincidental link to the Jack Abramoff scandal. But it
became blindingly evident -- as I listened in on a DefCon
media teleconference Wednesday -- what the folks behind
the campaign are really mad about.
It's you.
The Values Voter.
They saw what you did in the last national election. You
increased the number of pro-family members of the House
and Senate. You rejected Sen. John Kerry's bid for the
White House.
They see President Bush signing the partial-birth abortion
ban -- and think of you.
They see Sen. Tom Coburn sitting on the Judiciary
Committee -- and curse you under their breath.
They see Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice
Samuel Alito on the Supreme Court -- and throw darts at
your picture.
So now they are trying to knock the support out from
underneath Dr. Dobson and Focus on the Family because they
see us as a rallying point for America's Values Voters. If
they can dupe you into believing that Dr. Dobson is
somehow a "base hypocrite," that he's "knee deep" in
scandal, that he's "selling out the millions" who believe
in him, then maybe you won't have the will to show up at
the polls. And if you do show up, maybe you won't feel
quite so compelled to vote for candidates who represent
your values.
Which means they make gains in '06 and '08.
Which gets them closer to advancing their hard-left
agenda, which includes slashing every restriction on
abortion, jackhammering the Ten Commandments from public
buildings, ripping the page defining marriage out of the
law books and packing the nation's courts with liberal
activist judges.
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
Still Waiting on Washington Gay-Marriage Decision
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 9, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Washington Supreme Court heard oral arguments in
January 2005 in a case which could decide whether the
state will have gay marriage forced upon it.
More than a year later, pro-family legal experts and the
public are still waiting for the court to make its
judgment -- though a decision had been expected to come
today at the latest.
"It is highly unusual to see any court take a year or more
to render a decision in a case," said Bruce Hausknecht,
judicial analyst for Focus on the Family.
"You would expect a certain amount of delay in
controversial cases," he said, "which may cause various
justices to write separate opinions to either concur with,
or dissent from, the majority holding. But this situation
goes far beyond such a delay."
Hausknecht speculates that the Washington Supreme Court is
going through some extreme internal problems of its own,
caused by the case.
If approved by justices, gay couples could come from
anywhere to be married in Washington, since the state has
no residency requirements.
----- 15 -----
Stem-Cell Research Funding Bill Advances in Maryland
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 9, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Maryland Senate passed a proposal today to fund
stem-cell research.
According to the Baltimore Sun, after about 90 minutes of
debate, the final vote was 29 to 18.
"We're about finding answers to find cures," said
Democratic state Sen. Paula Hollinger, the bill's sponsor.
The Senate bill would allow state funding but does not
mandate it. Lawmakers voted Wednesday to remove a
provision that would give controversial embryonic
stem-cell research priority over noncontroversial adult
stem-cell research.
Critics argued that the bill was flawed and registered
their opposition to embryonic stem-cell research. The
process of deriving cells from human embryos always
requires the destruction of life.
"It's a human life. It's a human embryo," said Sen. Nancy
Jacobs, a Republican.
The state House has already passed a similar proposal, but
will now consider the Senate version.
----- 16 ------
Volunteer State Senate Votes for Pro-Life Constitutional Amendment
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
March 9, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Tennessee Senate passed a proposal today to amend the
state Constitution so that it doesn't guarantee a woman's
right to an abortion, The Associated Press reported.
The 24-9 vote was the first step of many. If the General
Assembly approves it twice over the next two years, the
measure would then go to the voters.
The extreme measures are needed, because the state Supreme
Court has ruled that the Tennessee Constitution grants
women a greater right to abortion than the U.S.
Constitution.
Pro-abortion advocates attacked the measure as a stepping
stone to prohibiting all abortions in the state if the
U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.
Sen. David Fowler, a Republican sponsor of the bill,
proposed a similar resolution last year that cleared the
Senate but stalled in a House committee.
----- 17 -----
*** CITIZENLINK SPECIAL ALERT ***
Dr. Dobson's Broadcast Responds to False Allegations
Focus on the Family
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Dr. James Dobson, the founder and chairman of Focus on the
Family, devotes his national broadcast today to defusing
the outrageous claims of the liberal special-interest
group Campaign to Defend the Constitution, known as
DefCon.
----- 18 -----
Another Attack on Freedom
Faith and Freedom Network
March 10, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Washington State Pharmacy Board is trying to do the right thing. They are preparing to adopt a refusal policy that will permit pharmacists to refuse to fill prescriptions for abortion pills if it violates the pharmacist’s conscience.
But Planned Parenthood is leading on all-out, full- court press to kill the policy.
It’s ironic that the people who say they champion choice and give us endless lectures on freedom to choose are the very ones who are committed to taking choice away from the pharmacists.
As always, the secularists have a self-serving, misleading definition of choice, including taking away the right of pharmacists to act in accordance with their conscience.
The culture war continues on every front.
Thank you for your support in our efforts to advance Faith & Freedom in our society.
----- 19 -----
WA State Democrats Continue War on Marriage
Faith and Freedom Network
March 9, 2006
Long URL elided
Democrats in the House of Representatives turned down a motion by House Republicans to exempt the legislative cut-off dates for all bills and joint resolutions dealing with marriage. The vote was 56-42.
Representative Janéa Holmquist, from Moses Lake, had introduced two measures that seek constitutional protection in defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman.
Representative Holmquist said, “This motion comes in advance of the court decision to reassert our belief that it should be the people’s right to determine this issue – not the courts.”
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Call To Arms Pastors Conference in Maine a Huge Success
Concerned Women for America
3/10/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10293/FIELD/misc/index.htm
Bob Knight, Director of CWA’s Culture & Family Institute, has just recently addressed a conference for pastors and their wives, hoping to excite them about fighting the moral issues of our day. That conference, which was cosponsored by CWA of Maine, was a huge success!
[Robert Knight was a keynote speaker; "I think it couldn't have gone better... this was a pastor's call to arms weekend, really, for pastors and their wives..." "They were very receptive, even though in Maine they lost a vote on the sexual-orientation law last November, they are unbowed, they are not going away... I reminded them in my speech, there are no permanent victories..." "I think they saw the gravity of the situation and why they can't afford to just sit on the sidelines anymore." "Pastors are increasingly feeling under the gun under Canada..." Talks about the so-called "Philadelphia 11," claiming (again) that they were "arrested for spreading the gospel" and so on. "They were also encouraged by all the pro-life victories across the country." Very happy that the Supreme Court is going to "take up" so-called "partial birth" abortion again. "Victory after victory, out there, and of course, the big one, South Dakota's legislature, putting a law on the books that's the toughest in the country outlawing all abortions except in case of the life of the mother, and the governor just having signed it the other day." "If they don't, we may arriave at a day in which basic Christianity, basically sharing the gospel, will be something that is either against the law, or so discouraged that it'll be difficult to get the word out." Talks about setting up "Prayer Action Chapters" in Maine. "I would see this could be a great model for other states in getting pastors involved." The travel to the conference was subsidised by fundamentalist groups.]
----- 21 -----
Dr. Dobson Smeared in Full Page NY Times Ad
Concerned Women for America
3/9/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10292/CWA/misc/index.htm
The radical leftist group Campaign to Defend the Constitution, or DefCon, has placed a full page ad in The New York Times claiming that three conservative religious/political leaders have taken money from gambling interests. Those leaders are Ralph Reed, Rev. Lou Sheldon, and Dr. James Dobson. Bob Knight, Director of CWA’s Culture & Family Institute, has more on this baseless charge and the group that launched it. Click here to listen.
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
CWA Criticizes Male Form of Roe v. Wade
Concerned Women for America
3/10/2006
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10295/MEDIA/life/index.htm
Washington, D.C. — Concerned Women for America (CWA) criticized today a recent lawsuit filed by The National Center for Men which argues that fathers should be able to opt out of financial responsibilities for “unwanted” babies. This deplorable proposition is an outrage to responsible women and men and to those who know the importance of family and father-child relationships.
"This is merely an attempt for these men to avoid their responsibilities if their 'girlfriends' shoulder their own duties and refuse to have an abortion,” said Dr. Janice Crouse, CWA’s Senior Fellow of the Beverly LaHaye Institute. “It is another way that The National Center for Men wants men to be able to have sex without consequences; they want men to live scot-free, with no accountability. They acknowledge that they won't win the suit they are filing, but they want to start a debate on the issue.
“Raising the issue to the level of public debate would make it appear to be less irresponsible for men to ignore their fatherhood and separate sex from accountability. The question remains -- what about the rights of the child?
[More at URL]
----- 23 -----
Parent Notification Law Linked to Drop in Teen Abortions
Forbes
03.08.06, 12:00 AM ET
http://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/health/feeds/hscout/2006/03/08/hscout531430.html
WEDNESDAY, March 8 (HealthDay News) -- Since January 2000, Texas state law has mandated that doctors notify the parents of any girl under the age of 18 seeking an abortion at least 48 hours before the procedure.
Similar laws, all hotly contested, exist in one form or another in 34 states.
Now, one of the most rigorously conducted studies to date on the issue of parental notification finds that the rate of teen abortions in Texas dropped by 11 percent among 15-year-olds, 20 percent among 16-year-olds, and 16 percent among 17-year-olds in the first two years after the bill was enacted.
The study, published in the March 9 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, uncovered another phenomenon: After Texas introduced the parental notification law, rates for late-term (after 12 weeks' gestation) abortion rose among girls who were a few months shy of their 18th birthday at the time of conception.
According to the study authors, this suggests that many were waiting till they reached that milestone so they could legally have the procedure without informing their parents.
[More at URL]
----- 24 -----
Protecting Marriage in the Hawkeye State
ACT NOW!
Family Research Council
March 10, 2006 - Friday
Iowa (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06C04
Iowa currently faces the first Midwestern challenge to a Defense of Marriage Act. In December, six homosexual couples filed a lawsuit directly challenging Iowa's law defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman. Iowa is now one unfortunate ruling away from same-sex marriage.
The means by which Iowans have to defend marriage from this challenge is a constitutional amendment. With the definition of marriage in the state constitution, no Iowa court will be able to rule the law unconstitutional.
The Iowa House passed the Iowa Marriage Amendment (IMA) last year. To keep the IMA alive, it must now pass in the Senate this year. Key Senators are blocking a vote on the amendment by holding it in committee. To get the IMA passed, we need your help.
Here's how you can help:
Join us March 14th at the state capitol to "Take a Stand for Marriage." The rally will take place on the West Steps of the Capitol at Noon. An overwhelming crowd is needed! Please plan to come, and if you live outside central Iowa but are still interested in coming call 1-877-866-IFPC.
Please contact key Senators and Senate Co-Majority Leader Mike Gronstal and ask them to allow the people a vote on the IMA. To contact Sen. Gronstal, call 515-281-3901. To email Gronstal and all the key Senators at once, go to: www.votervoice.net/groups/ifpc/?issueid=6368
Spread the word. Please forward this email to your friends and family in Iowa. Ask them to email key lawmakers to join the rally. Go to www.ifpc.org for more tools including bulletin inserts, talking points and key Senator contact information.
----- 25 -----
283,111 valid signatures needed in Illinois to put marriage amendment on ballot in November
Family Research Council
March 9, 2006 - Thursday
Illinois (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06C03
March 21st is Primary Election day and millions of citizens will be coming out to vote. It is a wonderful opportunity to collect more than 100,000 signatures of known registered voters, on this one day alone.
Please join the Illinois Family Institute. They need your help on Tuesday, March 21st!
If you are willing to help, please consider donating 2-3 hours of your time on Primary Election day to help them gather signatures to defend marriage.
How you can help:
Register to help on March 21st; you can also register to help by calling toll-free 1-877-787-8011
Download a Protect Marriage Illinois petition sheet and instructions.
Since political leaders in Springfield won't stand up to defend marriage as between one man and one woman, the people are taking it upon themselves to gather 500,000 signatures across Illinois to put this issue on the ballot in November.
For more information contact:
David E. Smith, Project Director
Illinois Family Institute
877-787-8011
630-790-9044 or by email: info@illinoisfamily.org
We must act now to permanently protect marriage in Illinois. Since the forced legalization of same-sex "marriage" in Massachusetts in 2004, fifteen states have adopted constitutional amendments preserving traditional marriage through ballot initiatives, averaging a winning percentage of over 70 percent. That brings the total to 19 states that have added marriage amendments to their state constitutions. Another 11 states are currently pursuing similar measures. Illinois does not want to become another Massachusetts.
Illinois citizens who want to permanently protect marriage have until April 20, 2006 to gather 283,111 valid signatures in order to put an Advisory Referendum on the ballot calling on political leaders in Springfield to pass a state constitutional amendment protecting marriage as between one man and one woman.
If we do not push for an Amendment to the Illinois State Constitution, liberal activist judges will redefine marriage forever. Thank you for standing with your fellow Illinois citizens in protecting traditional marriage in your state.
----- 26 -----
Leftwing group uses lies to slander Dr. James Dobson
American Family Association
Online as of March 12, 2006
http://afa.net/dobson_slander.asp
My friend Gary Bauer brought to my attention an ad which ran in Wednesday's New York Times. "These Religious Leaders Have A Serious Gambling Problem." The ad viciously attacks a very good friend of mine who is a leader in the pro-family movement—Dr. James Dobson. The "problem" is Jack Abramoff, and the ad goes to great lengths to connect Dr. Dobson to Abramoff.
Anybody who knows Dr. Dobson knows this is nothing more than a libelous charge of guilt by association. Dr. Dobson has opposed gambling all his life. He served on the congressionally mandated National Gambling Impact Study Commission in the late 1990s, which recommended a moratorium on gambling expansion. To date, no one has even demonstrated, much less proven, any connection between Jack Abramoff and Dr. Dobson – because there isn't one.
[More at URL]
----- 27 -----
Commentary & News Briefs
March 10, 2006
Compiled by Jenni Parker
American Family Association/Agape Press
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/3/afa/102006h.asp
[...]
...Plaintiffs suing the Air Force now want a federal judge to declare the service's new guidelines on religion unconstitutional. The original lawsuit had asked the court to bar illegal proselytizing throughout the Air Force and claimed that the Air Force Academy was imposing evangelical Christianity on cadets. The plaintiffs are now amending their suit to challenge the revised Air Force guidelines that were issued last month. They claim that the new guidelines let evangelicals promote their religion and allow senior officers to influence the religious choices of their subordinates. They are also seeking to add a new plaintiff -- an Air Force recruiter who alleges that he was asked by superiors to use Jesus Christ as a recruiting tool. [AP]
[...]
...Officials with Wal-Mart have announced the company will stock the emergency contraceptive drug known as the "morning-after pill" in all of its pharmacies throughout the U.S. starting March 20. Bill Johnson, president of the American Decency Association, feels this decision is only the latest in a series of family-unfriendly moves by the world's largest retailer's officials. "We have seen them in recent months making decisions like advertising on Desperate Housewives," he notes. "Now, with this move as well, this is truly significant. Many of us have desired to be able to look a Wal-Mart as a shopping alternative, a place that is family friendly. One person we talked with recently said that they're lately not family friendly, they're consumer friendly." That is why the decency advocate believes pro-family customers need to let the corporate giant know how they feel, as they have in the past. "A couple of years ago, when people would walk into their Wal-Mart, right in the doorway, there would be the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition facing them," Johnson notes. "We began to urge people to make telephone calls to Wal-Mart, and within a week's period of time, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition was at least taken down from the central place and tucked back into the magazine racks, which we considered a very significant victory." Massachusetts and Illinois had previously ordered Wal-Mart stores in those states to stock the morning-after pill. Now, effective March 20, all of Wal-Mart's more than 3,700 pharmacies nationwide will carry the ethically controversial drug also known as "Plan B." [Allie Martin]
[More at URL]
----- 28 ------
TESTING THE FAITH
24 homosexual-rights activists arrested at Falwell university
51-day Equality Ride targeting Christian colleges, military schools over no-'gay' admission policies
Posted: March 11, 2006
5:00 p.m. Eastern
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49225
On the first stop of a 51-day "gay-rights" bus tour aimed at bringing media attention to the non-admission policies for gays at 20 Christian colleges and military schools, 24 members of the Soulforce Equality Ride found themselves sitting in the Lynchburg, Virginia, jail, arrested for trespassing at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University and facing possible $2,500 fines and a year in jail.
The group of 35 gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, and straight 18- to 28-year-olds had been warned ahead of their arrival they would not be welcome on campus.
"It is now our firm belief that Soulforce is not acting in good faith and is simply trying to use such encounters on Christian college campuses as a media attraction and for their ultimate purpose of fundraising," Chancellor Falwell said in a written statement.
Liberty had been targeted by an earlier version of the Equality Ride last year and has a long history of dealings with Soulforce, the homosexual group started by Mel White, a writer who once worked for Falwell.
Equality Ride is modeled after the "freedom rides" of the 1960's civil rights movement and the group, many wearing buttons reading "Learn from history," says its cause is the same as ending racial discrimination was a generation ago.
"It just so happens that now the other and the outcast are [gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered] people," Monica Carmean, 20, a self-described Christian, straight ally from Northwestern University told the Richmond Times-Dispatch. "We want to come to the school today to say, 'Learn from history,'" Equality Ride's co-director, Jacob Reitan, 23, of Eden Prairie, Minn., told the crowd. "We have a right to be here, because this school teaches that being gay is being sick and sinful. We have a right to question and to show how we are children of God."
Their ranks swelled by local supporters, the 80 homosexual-rights demonstrators were met by a wall of campus police as they walked onto campus in single file, each reading from written statements. When they ignored Liberty campus police warnings to leave private property, 24 were handcuffed and arrested without incident. Two face additional charges of inciting to trespass.
[More at URL]
----- 29 -----
WND ON THE AIR
Kupelian tackles 'gay rights'
on '700 Club'
Watch 'Marketing of Evil' author
on top Christian TV show
Posted: March 10, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49198
WND Managing Editor David Kupelian will be featured today in a lengthy news segment exploring the marketing of homosexuality in Hollywood on the popular CBN television show, "The 700 Club."
With the "gay cowboy" film "Brokeback Mountain" winning a string of major awards, including best-director Oscar last Sunday, Kupelian discusses how the movie-makers are advancing the radical gay-rights agenda. Kupelian will be interviewed by CBN senior reporter Paul Strand.
[More at URL]
----- 30 -----
"Mobilized" Christians helped tories win
Today's Family News
Focus on the Family (Canada)
March 10, 2006
http://www.fotf.ca/tfn/misc/031006.html
A “dramatic” shift in voting patterns among Christians is being credited with helping to elect a minority Conservative government on January 23, a new poll has concluded.
By analyzing data collected on election day, Ipsos-Reid cent increase from the 2004 federal election.
“Clearly, a line has been crossed and a population mobilized,” wrote Ipsos-Reid senior vice-president Andrew Grenville in Faith Today.
In Quebec as well, regular churchgoing Catholics -– “for the first time in the history of polling,” according to Grenville -– abandoned a long-standing tradition of voting Liberal. Of those who attended church once a week, 42 per cent voted Conservative and 40 per cent Liberal. Those who attended church more than once a week were also the most likely to vote Conservative.
Grenville interpreted this decline in Liberal support among regularly attending Catholics as “an important indicator of intense discomfort. Committed Catholics clearly have felt pangs of conscience over social transgressions like corruption and moral issues such as same-sex marriage, and have swallowed hard and switched their vote.”
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