Today's Cultural Warfare Update
Apr. 17th, 2006 10:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdFox News reports GOP to run against gays, abortion rights, and flag burning in mid-term elections;
White House makes unannounced ticketing policy change to move gay families out of Easter Egg Hunt opening ceremonies and (therefore) out of media view; FamilyPride intelligently ducks controversy, saying they're just happy to be "a part of this national tradition";
Focus on the Family story/ACTION ITEM; they're starting a big church campaign, handing out one million postcards for congregations to sign. They're working with other fundamentalist and evangelical church groups on the effort;
FotF story pushing an attempt by anti-gay stockholders to force the company to drop GBLT employment protection; the company has a private policy of not allowing anti-gay discrimination in the workplace, FotF wants it gone;
FotF ACTION ITEM to demand passage of the "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act," which would dramatically raise fines for "indecency" on television;
FotF condemns participation by lesbian and gay families in White House easter egg roll; moving them out of camera range and keeping them out of the opening ceremony apparently wasn't enough, FotF says they shouldn't have been there at all;
Arizona passes bill mandating that parental-notification forms be notarised;
The ACLU earns a rare moment of appreciation from Focus on the Family for dropping support for HR5052, a bill intended to target misleading advertising by anti-abortion "pregnancy centres"; after going over the language of the bill as introduced, they oppose it on first amendment grounds;
Currently, in Alaska, four ounces of marijuana for personal use isn't illegal; there's abill to make it a misdemeanor; Focus on the Family urges passage of the bill;
Concerned Women for America's Janice Crouse writes an essay against independent women, uses this strange bear analogy to say that women raising children alone will produce "very deadly predators";
CWA's Robert Knight condemns the idea that respectable political figures shouldn't gaybash;
HealthDay: British medical journal The Lancet calls for wider use of condoms to prevent AIDS spread; the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports that the Bush administration approach (abstinence-primary) is causing major problems out in the field; Concerned Women for America condemns the report, saying the report is "more wedded to an ideology of pushing condoms than to actually saving lives";
CWA re-runs Linda Harvey's condemnation of the GLSEN/Christian Educators Association agreement on how to talk about GBLT issues, calling it a "victory for homosexual activists";
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM against California bill SB1437, which would require that lesson plans in public schools not be anti-GBLT; they make other claims, like saying it would censor "the Christian point of view"; see previous CWUs for more on this bill;
Family Research Council press release urging Colorado senator Salazar (of Colorado) to support the anti-marriage Federal amendment;
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM against California bill SB1437;
FRC ACTION ITEM to demand higher broadcast indecency fines; they applaud Howard Stern's decision to flee to satellite radio as an example of what "an empowered FCC can do";
FRC ACTION ITEM to support an anti-marriage-rights amendment in Pennsylvania; it's currently in the state House;
American Family Association/Agape Press story on the Kentucky college that receives state money but expelled a gay student for being gay; his boyfriend says that there are a _lot_ of GBLT students there, and also a lot of students having sex, which is also just as much a violation but isn't enforced at all; mostly I'm including it because of the amazingly gratuitous - and hilarious - scare-quotes around words like "boyfriend" and "dating";
AFA condemns church-state separation, friendly-quotes an anti-separation rally about how it's time to tear down the wall of separation between church and state; they have this amusing picture that does this lovely job of pretending the 14th amendment doesn't exist;
Jerry Falwell heaps praise on Senator McCain, attacks Rudy Guliani - apparently McCain's smoochies with the fundies are getting some traction. I am very sad. In other news, AFA friendly-quotes Americans for Truth's condemnation of gay and lesbian families "crashing" the White House easter-egg hunt;
Faith and Freedom Network's "Talking Points X" against marriage rights compares same-sex relationships to child rape, incest, says it will inevitably lead to polygamy. I include my usual set of rebuttals. Also, I got paper mail begging for donations; it's pretty much just a straight "we have to do this because God wants it, give us money" letter, so I'm not transcribing it.
----- 1 -----
GOP Campaign to Focus on Flag Burning, Gay Marriage, Abortion
FOXNEWS.COM > POLITICS
Sunday, April 16, 2006
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,191885,00.html
WASHINGTON — Protection of marriage amendment? Check. Anti-flag burning legislation? Check. New abortion limits? Check.
Between now and the November elections, Republicans are penciling in plans to take action on social issues important to religious conservatives, the foundation of the GOP base, as they defend their congressional majority.
In a year where an unpopular war in Iraq has helped drive President Bush's approval ratings below 40 percent, core conservatives whose turnout in November is vital to the party want assurances that they are not being taken for granted.
[...]
Former presidential candidate Gary Bauer agreed that the effort matters.
"If they get to these things this summer, which we expect that they will, that will go a long way toward energizing the values voters at the base of the Republican Party," said Bauer, head of Americans United to Preserve Marriage.
[...]
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and a possible presidential candidate in 2008, announced early this year that the Senate would consider those and the anti-gay marriage amendment that has failed in both chambers despite Bush's endorsement.
"When America's values are under attack, we need to act," Frist told the Conservative Political Action Conference in February.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
White House changes Easter Egg Roll admit process; LGBT families 'moved from front of the line'
by Michael Rogers
PageOneQ
http://pageoneq.com/news/2006/eggroll_041506.html
After waiting outside overnight to be among the first to enter this year's White House Easter Egg Roll, families in line were surprised to learn that the White House had changed the ticketing policy for the annual event, PageOneQ has learned.
The unannounced change means that the families who waited in line the longest, in one case for twenty-four hours, will not be among the visitors at the event's opening ceremonies. The first families in line, who were not part of the LGBT family group, received tickets with an 11:00am entrance time, two hours later than the opening time listed in the White House press release.
[...]
The Family Pride group, which was located approximately 150 people from the start of the line, received tickets with entry times of 11:30am and later.
[...]
When asked about the ticket time issue, Jennifer Chrisler, Family Pride Coalition's Executive Director stayed out of the controversy by telling PageOneQ that, "We're just so happy to be participating in this national event, and we are thrilled to be a part of this national tradition."
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Postcard Campaign Launched for Marriage Protection Amendment
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
by Pete Winn, associate editor
Pro-family groups ask churches to send the Senate 1 million postcards in support of MPA.
[Received in email; no URL]
Pro-family groups are reaching out to pastors and congregations nationwide in an effort to mobilize churches in the battle to preserve traditional marriage against attacks from radical liberal groups and activist courts.
Letters going out this week from Focus on the Family Founder and Chairman Dr. James Dobson ask thousands of pastors to get their congregations behind the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA), which faces a critical vote in Congress in June.
Dr. Dobson's April newsletter also urges reader to encourage their pastors to order enough postcards for each member of their congregation to send to their two senators.
The campaign is cosponsored by leaders from the Anglican Communion, Roman Catholic Church, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the Greek Orthodox Church and others -- evidence of broad-based support for traditional marriage in the religious community.
"We are engaged in a full-court press to make sure that we have passage of the Marriage Protection Amendment this year by the United States Senate and House of Representatives," said the ERLC's Dr. Barrett Duke. "Part of that is to mobilize pastors throughout the country to encourage our elected representatives to vote for passage of the amendment."
Duke, who is vice president for public policy and research for the commission, said many pastors and churches are already very supportive of the effort to protect marriage -- especially among the 43,000 churches in his denomination.
He said pastors will receive a letter asking them to communicate to their congregations the importance of the MPA -- which would codify the definition as the union of one man and one woman in the U.S. Constitution. The congregations, in turn, will then be encouraged to send in pre-printed postcards to their senators.
Amanda Banks, federal issues analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said the goal is to get the attention of senators in a fresh way.
"It is an aggressive campaign -- with the goal of generating 1 million postcards to Senate offices," she said. "If we can do that, senators will surely know that their grassroots -- their constituents -- care deeply about preserving the definition of marriage."
Banks said the amendment has picked up some support from the last time it was voted on, in 2004.
"If all senators maintain their positions from 2004, the last time a vote was taken on the MPA, we should have 53 votes in favor of marriage," she said. "That is a gain of five votes, coming from the freshman senators who were elected in 2004."
But it's not enough to pass the measure, since 67 votes are needed to secure the required two-thirds majority in the Senate and the House before the amendment can be sent to the states for ratification. Three-fourths of states must approve it for it to be ratified.
"Obviously, that is a steep hill to climb," Banks said. "But given that, since the last vote, a federal court has overthrown a state constitutional amendment and several other federal court cases are pending, I believe we could see significant gains in this year's vote."
The organizers of the postcard campaign urge concerned Americans to send their cards in by May 15, so they'll arrive in time for the scheduled early June vote on the amendment.
TAKE ACTION:
Pastors who want to order postcard sheets can do so by calling (866) 655-4545 or you may download and print as many as you like on your home computer through our new CitizenLink Action Center.
Pastors (and others) are also encouraged to use the Action Center to e-mail or call their senators urging them to support the MPA. We've not only made it easy for you to send a message via e-mail form, we've also given you talking points you can use in your conversation should you choose to call. Simply select which method of communication -- e-mail or phone -- you'd like to use when you visit the Action Center.
----- 4 -----
Ford Stockholders to Vote on Sexual-Orientation Clause
SEC stops the company from scratching a resolution.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
April 17, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Securities and Exchange Commission has ruled that the Ford Motor Co. must hear a resolution calling for a sexual-orientation clause to be removed from the automaker's non-discrimination policy at its upcoming shareholders meeting. The company is afraid that ending the benefit will bring a boycott from angry homosexuals.
Written by one of the company's stockholders in Illinois, the motion forbids the company from promoting homosexual marriage. Despite Ford's efforts to get rid of the resolution, the SEC said stockholders will be able to vote on it.
The proposal, along with comments from the company, was included in the proxy statements mailed to shareholders last week. Results will be announced at the annual stockholders meeting in Wilmington, Del., on May 11.
Randy Sharp, a spokesman for the American Family Association (AFA), which spearheaded a boycott of Ford over gay-friendly advertising, said he hopes the stockholders will speak up.
"Hopefully, many people who own Ford stock will say we don't need a sexual-orientation clause in our non-discrimination policy," he told Family News in Focus.
Ford has expressed concern over reprisals from gay activists if the resolution passes, but Sharp said the company should be paying more attention to the 25 pro-family groups already boycotting the company.
"We did see in the month of March, Ford's overall sales dropped 5 percent," he said, "which could be attributed to a boycott."
Ford did not return calls for comment, but in statements the company has claimed that such a resolution would also hinder recruitment efforts, because some universities require companies to have a sexual-orientation clause in order to be included in the campus-recruitment process. Caleb H. Price, social research analyst with Focus on the Family, called that ridiculous.
"Darryl Herschaft with the Human Rights Campaign (a gay activist group) admitted last year that the good talent doesn't seem to care about gay rights when job hunting," he said.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has ruled that the Ford Motor Co. must hear a resolution calling for a sexual-orientation clause to be removed from the automaker's non-discrimination policy at its upcoming shareholders meeting. The company is afraid that ending the benefit will bring a boycott from angry homosexuals.
Written by one of the company's stockholders in Illinois, the motion forbids the company from promoting homosexual marriage. Despite Ford's efforts to get rid of the resolution, the SEC said stockholders will be able to vote on it.
The proposal, along with comments from the company, was included in the proxy statements mailed to shareholders last week. Results will be announced at the annual stockholders meeting in Wilmington, Del., on May 11.
Randy Sharp, a spokesman for the American Family Association (AFA), which spearheaded a boycott of Ford over gay-friendly advertising, said he hopes the stockholders will speak up.
"Hopefully, many people who own Ford stock will say we don't need a sexual-orientation clause in our non-discrimination policy," he told Family News in Focus.
Ford has expressed concern over reprisals from gay activists if the resolution passes, but Sharp said the company should be paying more attention to the 25 pro-family groups already boycotting the company.
"We did see in the month of March, Ford's overall sales dropped 5 percent," he said, "which could be attributed to a boycott."
Ford did not return calls for comment, but in statements the company has claimed that such a resolution would also hinder recruitment efforts, because some universities require companies to have a sexual-orientation clause in order to be included in the campus-recruitment process. Caleb H. Price, social research analyst with Focus on the Family, called that ridiculous.
"Darryl Herschaft with the Human Rights Campaign (a gay activist group) admitted last year that the good talent doesn't seem to care about gay rights when job hunting," he said.
----- 5 -----
TV Networks Sue to Be as Nasty as They Wanna Be
Focus on the Family
IN BRIEF
April 17, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Foul words that begin with the letters "F" and "S" are not indecent, at least according to court challenges filed by four broadcast television networks.
The Associated Press reports that ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox, along with their affiliate stations plus the Hearst-Argyle Television group, filed notices of appeal on Thursday and Friday in various federal courts, including those in Washington, D.C., and New York.
The networks are challenging the FCC's determination that profane language was used on The Early Show on CBS in 2004, plus the Billboard Music Awards shows broadcast by Fox in 2002 and 2003 and episodes of ABC's NYPD Blue in 2003.
The FCC did not issue fines in those cases because the incidents occurred before a 2004 ruling that virtually any use of certain expletives would be considered profane and indecent.
While none of the cases involved NBC, the network filed a petition to intervene on behalf of the other networks and stations.
The networks and affiliate groups issued a rare joint statement calling the FCC ruling "unconstitutional" and inconsistent with two decades of previous FCC decisions. They also claimed the FCC "overstepped its authority" and acted arbitrarily.
Brent Bozell, president of the Parents Television Council, called the networks' action "utterly shameless" and pointed out that the broadcast airwaves do not belong to the broadcasters, but to the American people.
"The broadcast networks are spitting in the faces of millions of Americans by saying they should be allowed to air the F-word and S-word on television," he said. "It's beyond preposterous that the networks would even propose that airing the F-word and S-word on television is not indecent. The networks' principles have now been unmasked for everyone to see. Their actions today are indecent in and of themselves."
Daniel Weiss, senior analyst, media and sexuality, at Focus on the Family Action, said the move makes clear that, short of crucial updates to federal law, the broadcast industry will continue to pollute the nation's airwaves.
"This suit proves that the TV industry is more concerned with expanding its lawless broadcasting practices than serving the viewing public," he said. "There isn't a national clamor for more F-words on network TV, but there is a growing outcry about the increasingly course, profane and indecent programming pumped into American living rooms.
TAKE ACTION:
Let your legislators knows that you support the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act. You can learn more in our new Action Center. Make sure to read the directions on getting properly registered on the home page, then look for the link under "Current Issues" concerning the bill.
----- 6 -----
Gays Crash Easter Egg Roll
Focus on the Family
IN BRIEF
April 17, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Gay activists, as promised, made a political statement at today's White House Easter Egg Roll.
About 100 homosexual men and women donned rainbow-colored leis to attend the event, an Easter tradition since the mid-19th century. Their intention, they said, was to make a point about the legitimacy of families headed by same-sex parents.
"We just wanted to come out to be visible and present and to let people see we are families, too," Alisa Surkis, 42, of Brooklyn, N.Y., told The Associated Press. She brought along her 3-year-old-daughter, Ella, and her partner.
Family advocates said the egg roll, attended by more than 16,000 people, is no place to push for the normalization of homosexuality.
"What a pity that the homosexual lobby had to tarnish a great tradition with this in-your-face political propaganda," said Peter LaBarbera, president of Americand for Truth. "Turning the Easter Egg Roll into gay propaganda represents a new low in the movement."
----- 7 -----
Pro-Life Bill Passes in Grand Canyon State
Focus on the Family
IN BRIEF
April 13, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Arizona lawmakers passed legislation Wednesday that would require parental-consent forms necessary for a minor to get an abortion to be notarized to ensure authenticity, Arizona Central reported.
Supporters of the bill said the new law would make certain that parents are involved in the decision and avoid the falsification of the documents.
The bill now heads to Gov. Janet Napolitano for signature. Napolitano vetoed a pro-life bill Tuesday that would have required doctors to inform abortion-minded women that their preborn babies can feel pain.
----- 8 -----
ACLU Drops Support of Anti-Pregnancy-Resource Center Bill
Group can't support government language police.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
April 13, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
A bill under consideration in Congress would penalize pregnancy-resource centers (PRCs) that "deceptively advertise abortion services," but the pro-abortion effort has lost a major supporter: the American Civil Liberties Union.
The Stop Deceptive Advertising for Women's Services Act maintains that it's illegal for PRCs to advertise as "clinics," but, in the last few years, more than 500 have gained legal status as medical clinics.
ACLU attorneys are reportedly looking over the legislation to see if it's constitutional and whether it agrees with the group's policy. The ACLU has indicated it can't support the idea of the government becoming language police, as the act would mandate.
Sydna Masse, president of pro-life Ramah International, said H.R. 5052 is unnecessary because most PRCs make it clear where they stand on the issue.
"Pregnancy centers rarely use anything that's not very obvious as far as what they're doing," she said, "and that is not referring for abortion, not providing any help for women who want to have an abortion.
Ironically, several years ago, pro-abortion groups pressured the Yellow Pages to create a special "abortion alternatives" section for PRCs. Tom Glessner, president of the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, said that plan backfired.
"Women were still coming to the pregnancy centers," he said, "because it (appeared) before 'abortion providers' in the Yellow Pages."
Glessner said in this latest case, the ACLU should be congratulated - at least for staying on message.
"You know, they're trying to be consistent," he said. "They don't agree with our pro-life stand, but they also believe we have every right to be in the public square."
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Visit Focus on the Family's Pregnancy Resource Ministry Web site.
----- 9 -----
Alaska Rolls Back Liberal Pot Laws
Possessing a currently legal amount would become a misdemeanor.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
April 13, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Alaska, the state with the most liberal drug laws, is trying to tighten up restrictions on marijuana possession.
Residents can legally possess up to 4 ounces of marijuana for any use, an amount that equals about 120 cigarettes. Assemblyman John Coghill told Family News in Focus that the policy hurts the state.
"In studying the potency of the newer marijuana," he said, "it became very apparent that we have been underestimating the societal cost of marijuana up here."
The potency of marijuana is increasing, as measured in terms of THC, the chemical that produces the high. In the 1970s the average marijuana cigarette had a THC content of about 1 percent. Today, it's in the range of 5 to 7 percent.
Under a bill supported by Gov. Frank Murkowski, possessing less than four ounces would become a misdemeanor. Possessing a greater amount would be a felony.
Allen St. Pierre, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, maintained the bill has no public support.
"So there's no impetus from the church, there's no impetus from social services," he said. "There's not impetus from anybody, really, than the Murkowski family."
St. Pierre and a coalition of marijuana advocates have promised a lawsuit if the bill passes.
Doug Duffett, a pastor in Fairbanks, begged to differ.
"There are people that I have talked to who have used marijuana that cannot get free," he said. "They admit to me that it affects their thinking, but they cannot stop it - they're so dependent."
Tom Riley, a spokesman for the Office of National Drug Control Policy, said he sees the impact of liberal marijuana laws around the country "in terms of addiction, in terms of domestic violence, in terms of accidents on the highway, accidents at the workplace, in terms of lower academic achievement and all the other things that come along with marijuana use."
----- 10 -----
Power and Independence: At What Price?
Concerned Women for America
4/17/2006
By Janice Shaw Crouse
Power is fleeting and often an illusion.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10556/BLI/dotcommentary/index.htm
Two things about the billboard caught my attention. First, the woman, in her late 30s or early 40s, is a solitary figure whose image takes over the sign. Then, the caption is simple and bold: You Are Powerful.
The advertisement’s target audience is obvious. There is tremendous profit to be made by any company that successfully appeals to the more than 24 million unmarried women in the 20-44- year-old demographic. They make up 47 percent of all women in this age group (compared with only 19 percent that were unmarried in 1968). It is no wonder savvy marketers are targeting these women, since more than 71 percent of them are employed –– with significant disposable income and independent spending decisions.
[...]
Consider Exhibit A: First love’s joy and passion. What makes possible, in the beginning, the sheer and total other-centeredness of first love? To the onlooker, lovers’ total preoccupation with each other is absurd. But, if properly nourished it can grow, as it did in my case, into a mutual life-long commitment. The sexual pleasure of the married bed is nature’s bait to induce us to accept and enjoy our dependence. In time our dependence ceases to be an onerous complication. Instead, we learn that pride, ego, and the desire for independence are the mortal enemies of love. Left unchecked, they break the tender ties that not only connect us, but that provide the very strength we need to cope with our weaknesses.
[...]
Nature did not equip human females like she did the mighty female grizzly bear, which truly is powerful and independent. The mother bear is fully capable of raising her cub alone without any help, least of all from the male bear.
The human female, on the other hand, is eminently vulnerable, and the development of the human child takes years longer than in any other species.
With that in mind, we might recall exactly what becomes of the adorable, cuddly, playful bear cubs. The powerful, independent she-bear mother, in her solitary way, produces very deadly predators.
[More at URL]
----- 11 -----
The Price for a Place at the Table
Concerned Women for America
4/13/2006
By Robert Knight
The message is clear: If you want respectability, don’t work on a permanent solution to the assaults on marriage.
This article is published today, April 13, in WorldNetDaily.com.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10534/CFI/family/index.htm
Evangelical Christians are getting a lot of advice these days on politics from many quarters, but let me encapsulate what we’re told:
“You can be part of the process, so long as you don’t step on certain toes. You can oppose abortion, for instance, but any opposition to the organized homosexuality lobby will be regarded as ‘bigotry,’ and is off limits. If you want to remain in polite company, such as the good graces of the GOP, you will learn to shut up as homosexual activists radically redefine marriage, ply their message of acceptance to schoolchildren and construct ‘hate crime’ laws designed to crush resistance.”
[...]
In his column “Theocon Moment” (April 6), Mr. Douthat uses the same tactic on evangelicals to deter them from openly opposing homosexual activism. He ridicules the attempt to enact a federal marriage amendment and cartoonishly depicts the evangelical response to the homosexual cultural onslaught as an obsession with “gay Teletubbies.” The message is clear: If you want respectability, don’t dare work on a permanent solution to the ongoing assaults on marriage, and don’t oppose the campaign to sell homosexuality as a lifestyle to children. More
Robert Knight is Director of Concerned Women for America’s Culture & Family Institute and a drafter of the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
----- 12 -----
Journal Backs Condoms for HIV/AIDS Fight
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
http://www.wwaytv3.com/Global/story.asp?S=4769094&nav=menu70_8
THURSDAY, April 13(HealthDay News) -- The prestigious British medical journal The Lancet is calling for the widespread use of condoms as an effective way of preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS and as the best method to save lives.
The editorial, in the April 15 issue, also had harsh words for the Bush administration's abstinence-focused approach to battling the spread of HIV/AIDS.
"Health workers who have seen their patients, friends, and family die from this disease should not have to tip-toe around this ill-informed and ideologically driven policy," the editorial said.
[...]
Last week, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded in a report that this strategy is causing problems for health workers trying to deliver care.
[...]
"Don't trust the GAO report," said Wendy Wright, president of the Washington, D.C.-based conservative group Concerned Women for America. "You have to look at who they interviewed. The people they interviewed are people more wedded to an ideology of pushing condoms than to actually saving lives."
Wright doesn't think that condom distribution prevents the spread of HIV. She cited a failed condom program in South Africa and a successful abstinence program in Uganda.
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
Neutral’ School Agreement Is a Victory for Homosexual Activists
Concerned Women for America
4/6/2006
By Linda Harvey
A pact that appears to guarantee impartiality lets loose the wolves among the sheep.
This article, by the president of Mission America, ran on WorldNetDaily.com on April 1, 2006. Mrs. Harvey recently authored the paper Fairy Tales Don’t Come True for CWA’s Culture & Family Institute. For other CWA resources, see below.
A recent agreement between several national groups on how to handle "sexual orientation" in schools is unacceptable, misleading and may actually cause more problems than it purports to solve.
The document, "Public Schools and Sexual Orientation" was released by the First Amendment Center in conjunction with the Christian Educators Association International and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN).
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
California Education Bill Would Mandate Schools Endorse Homosexuality
by Mona Passignano, State Issues Analyst
Focus on the Family
ACTION ITEM
Action is needed to stop this biased bill in the California Senate.
http://www.focusaction.org/Articles/A000000190.cfm
Senate Bill 1437 has passed from the California Senate Judiciary Committee and can at any moment be voted on by the whole Senate. If signed into law, it would force all public school teachers to present to students a one-sided message about homosexuality, bisexuality and transgender issues.
The bill would ban lessons, discussions and activities that reflect adversely upon one's sexual orientation , which would end any open discussion about the issue of homosexuality in public classrooms and effectively silence the Christian voice on the issue.
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
FRC Urges Salazar to Support Marriage Protection Amendment
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 13, 2006
CONTACT: J.P. Duffy or Bethanie Swendsen, (202) 393-2100
Family Research Council
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=PR06D04
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ken Salazar (D-CO) was recently quoted in The Hill saying he supports the current definition of marriage even though he views enshrining traditional marriage in the Constitution as an act of "discrimination." Today, Tom McClusky, Family Research Council's Acting Vice President for Government Affairs, included some of the following comments in a letter to Senator Salazar urging his support for a marriage protection amendment to the U.S. Constitution:
"As I am sure you have been informed, in May 2005, a federal district court ruled unconstitutional Nebraska's state constitutional marriage protection amendment that had been approved with 70% popular support. The Nebraska amendment expressed precisely your view regarding the nature of marriage: the union between one man and one woman. Judge Joseph Battaillon discarded the states' interest of promoting families with both a mother and a father.
"One concludes from Judge Battaillon's decision that he believes the federal judiciary plays an important role in the debate. Our hope is the branch of government directly elected by the American people (the Congress in which your office resides) will engage the debate as well.
"As they crafted the powers of government in the Constitution, our founding fathers did 'ordain and establish' those granted powers as the expressed will of 'the People of the United States.' Their noble plan to 'promote the general welfare' is an inheritance we must preserve today. While many condemn traditional marriage as an institution of 'discrimination' which should not be 'enshrined' in our Constitution, it is our belief that no institution promotes greater welfare and prosperity than marriage between one man and one woman.
"In light of recent events and your stated support of traditional marriage and states' rights, we look forward to your vote this June."
To view the full letter, please visit www.frc.org.
-30-
----- 16 -----
Please contact your state senator to oppose homosexual indoctrination (SB 1437) in California public schools
Family Research Council
California Senate will soon vote on bill to promote homosexuality in public school curriculum
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
California (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D08
Senate Bill 1437, sponsored by Senator Sheila Kuehl, D-Los Angeles, would advance a deliberate biased message about homosexuality in California public schools and cease any open dialogue in the classroom on the issue of homosexuality. It would silence the Judeo-Christian worldview in the public schools. This so-called "tolerance" measure would hide the issue of homosexuality behind sexual identity and gender discrimination.
Specifically, SB 1437 would ban lessons, discussions and activities that reflect adversely upon one's sexual orientation under the guise of tolerance. While curriculum, instructional materials and teaching would be stripped of any negative messages about homosexuality, the teaching of traditional family views would not be tolerated.
[...]
Please take action now and address your comments and opinions to your state senator. To find your state senator go to: www.senate.ca.gov/~newsen/senators/senators.htp
For more information about SB 1437, go to: www.californiafamily.org
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Contact your Senators to support HR 310, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005
Family Research Council
Senators: Support H.R. 310, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D06
Howard Stern, the shock jock who perpetually went over the line of broadcast decency, is facing a stern reality - the vast majority of his estimated 12 million listeners didn't go with him to satellite radio. While Stern operated for years with impunity from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), he found himself the subject of several regulatory actions since the FCC awakening. Stern jumped to satellite broadcasting where industry execs expected subscribers to pay to relish his vulgarity. Sirius, the satellite company that charges subscribers $13 a month for Stern, will not release numbers. But industry analysts believe Stern has managed to corral no more than 1-2 million members of his old audience. Stern's reality shows what an empowered FCC can do to keep the public airwaves decent for America's families. Despite the FCC's successes Congress has yet to give them the tools it needs to clean up broadcast television. A major obstacle is Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) who continues to resist get-tough broadcast decency legislation that FRC and its allies have been pressing for. All the while he has hailed his own efforts in the Senate Commerce Committee, which he chairs, as "family friendly" and even claims support from "faith-based" organizations. The reality is that the broadcast indecency measure has passed the House, has received almost unanimous support in the Senate, but the bill H.R. 310 is being held up by Sen. Stevens. Contact your Senators and ask them to give the FCC the tools to clean up America's public airwaves.
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Pennsylvania House to vote on marriage amendment the week of April 24th
Family Research Council
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
Pennsylvania (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D07
Now is the time to get involved so that the Pennsylvania Marriage Protection Amendment passes the state House of Representatives! Although Pennsylvania has a Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that defines marriage as between one man and one woman, that law is vulnerable to legal challenges from activist judges. Pennsylvanians deserve the same opportunity voters in 19 states have had to amend their constitution.
We strongly urge you to take action within the next few days.
Please call your State Representative and ask him or her to vote "yes" to pass House Bill 2381, the Marriage Protection Amendment.
If you know who your state Representative is, call the Capitol Switchboard at 717-787-2121 and ask to speak to that person.
If you don't know who represents you: click here or call the Pennsylvania Family Institute at 1-800-597-9605.
Now is the time to write and send a short letter to the editor of your local newspaper in defense of one man one woman marriage.
And most of all pray for laws that protect God's design for marriage.
For more information and bulletin inserts for your church, click here.
[More at URL]
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School Silent on Expulsion of Homosexual Student; 'Boyfriend' Not
By Jim Brown
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 17, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/172006e.asp
(AgapePress) - The "boyfriend" of a student who was kicked out of a Baptist college in Kentucky because of his homosexual lifestyle claims the majority of students enrolled at the school are homosexuals.
Sophomore Jason Johnson was recently expelled from the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg after school officials learned he was involved in a homosexual relationship. The school, which is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, has a policy that says it can expel a student who "promotes sexual behavior not consistent with Christian principles," including homosexuality.
But Johnson's "boyfriend," Zac Dreyer -- a freshman at Eastern Kentucky University -- argues the Christian school is employing a double standard. "What I've been told is that 65 percent of the student body is either gay or bi[sexual], and they have gay and lesbian professors down there on the campus," he claims.
As for Johnson, Dreyer maintains the university "had no proof that he was promoting -- as it says in the handbook -- homosexuality or anything." He suggests the school is not enforcing the policy consistently. "If they're going to kick people out for being gay or lesbian, then why aren't they kicking people out for premarital sex, like it also says in the same rule?" he asks.
Dreyer, who says he has been "dating" Johnson for six weeks, suggests the expulsion of his homosexual partner was handled "poorly." He contends the rule that was violated was not included in the school handbook until this year, after Johnson had already attended for one year. He also questions the timing of the announcement.
"He had three weeks of school left before finals and everything, and then they kicked him out," he notes. "And the whole way that they tried to do it, they tried to do it discreetly and do it under the table." In addition, Dreyer asserts that school officials did not care whether Johnson had a new place to stay. "They just wanted him off campus," he says.
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
'Freedom Rally' to Dispel Separation Myth
By Allie Martin
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 17, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/172006c.asp
(AgapePress) - Concerned Christians will gather in a Connecticut community on Tuesday for a rally to address the political, cultural, and religious impact of the so-called "separation of church and state."
The "Celebration of Freedom Rally" takes place in Danbury, which is where the phrase "separation of church and state" originated in a letter penned by President Thomas Jefferson in 1801 in response to Baptists' fear that the U.S. government was going to establish the Congregationalist Church as the official denomination of the new nation. Jefferson's reference stated that the government should have no say in the affairs of the church, and -- contrary to popular myth -- was never intended to keep God out of government.
Coach Dave Daubenmire is national director of Minutemen United and founder of Pass the Salt Ministries. He says the time has come to tear down the false wall of separation of church and state.
[More at URL]
----- 21 -----
Commentary & News Briefs
April 17, 2006
American Family Association/Agape Press
Compiled by Jenni Parker
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/172006h.asp
[...]
...Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth, says homosexual activists' crashing of the April 17 White House Easter Egg Roll is just the latest demonstration of selfishness by adult "gay" activists, who consistently place their agenda ahead of the best interests of children. Christian Newswire reports that the homosexual group known as the Family Pride Coalition is using the traditional annual White House event as a vehicle to showcase "lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) families" and boasts that over 100 LGBT-led "families" would attend the event, with adults and supporters wearing rainbow-colored Hawaiian leis. But LaBarbera says these homosexual activists should be ashamed for "exploiting an event designed solely to bring joy to young children" by staging " a crass publicity stunt to promote 'gay parenting.'" The Americans for Truth spokesman says a recurring motif runs throughout the homosexual agenda, whether activists are "redefining marriage to legitimate sexual sin, indoctrinating impressionable schoolchildren with pro-homosexual lesson plans, legally harassing the Boy Scouts, pushing 'gay adoption' ... or crashing a White House Easter Egg roll ... one common theme stands out: it's all about the 'gay' adults and their desperate need for approval of their lifestyle choice, not what's best for children." The Family Pride Coalition's publicity stunt "represents a new low in the movement for 'rights' based on aberrant sex," LaBarbera says. It is a pity, he adds, that the homosexual group had to "tarnish a great tradition" like the White House Easter Egg Roll with this "in-your-face political maneuver." [Jenni Parker]
[...]
...Rev. Jerry Falwell doubts that any Democrat will make inroads with evangelical Christians in the next presidential election because the party supports legal abortion and does not oppose same-sex "marriage." Falwell told CNN's "Late Edition" that former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani is unlikely to gain evangelical support for the same reason. He said, "As conservative Christians who take the Bible seriously, we have probably irreconcilable differences on life and family." But Falwell praised Senator John McCain as "pro-life" and "a strong conservative" whose "view on family is just where most conservative Christians' views are." McCain has agreed to speak at Falwell's Liberty University commencement next month. [AP]
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Talking Points: The Case for Marriage X
Faith and Freedom Network
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/04/talking-points-case-for-marriage-x.html
Denying same-sex couples the right to marry is discriminatory and violates basic principles of equality.
* It is discriminatory to deny the marriage of one man and three women? Was it discriminatory to deny Mary Letourneau the right to marry her 13 year-old lover? [Ed. note: Yes, because raping children is not the same thing as having an adult relationship.] As a society we have placed restrictions on who an individual can marry – without exceptions. You cannot marry a child, you cannot marry a blood relative, [Ed. note: Incest would still apply] you cannot marry someone who is already married, [Ed. note: right now, queers can't marry at all] you cannot marry someone of the same sex [Ed. note: saying a gay or lesbian person can "marry" anyone they want as long as they're the wrong gender for them is like banning the Star of David and telling Jews they can wear any cross they want.], and as a society, we reject the practice of polygamy. These restrictions apply to everyone equally – men and women.
* It makes no sense that same-sex advocates suggest they would oppose one standard of marriage – male and female – and yet assert another – that marriage should remain limited to two people. Many of the same groups that advocate for same-sex marriage also suggest group marriage is equally acceptable. [Ed. note: "If you allow lesbians and gay people to get married, you can't have ANY rules! You'll be marrying people to horses next!" is the same kind of BS pulled in the previous paragraph. Adults are not the same as children are not the same as animals. One can enter into consensual relationships. The others can't.]
* All individuals have value and should be treated with dignity. But same-sex marriage advocates do not have the right to redefine marriage for the entire society. [Ed. note: We aren't trying to redefine _your_ marriage, and this wouldn't do it.] This debate isn’t about equality or discrimination; it’s about changing marriage into something it has never been before. [Ed. note: it's not changing _your_ marriage in any way. None of _your_ rules change. We just get to play too.]
Same sex couples have the freedom to commit, and they are not being denied the “right” to marry. [Ed. note: and they're working to ban any effects of that relationship in state after state. Not one of these organisations supports DPs or CUs.] Their relationship is simply different than marriage.
These talking points were written by lawyer Kristen Waggoner in collaboration with some of her associates for Allies for Marriage. These talking points are also indexed on the "Talking Points" page of the website at: http://faithandfreedom.us/talking_points.html.
White House makes unannounced ticketing policy change to move gay families out of Easter Egg Hunt opening ceremonies and (therefore) out of media view; FamilyPride intelligently ducks controversy, saying they're just happy to be "a part of this national tradition";
Focus on the Family story/ACTION ITEM; they're starting a big church campaign, handing out one million postcards for congregations to sign. They're working with other fundamentalist and evangelical church groups on the effort;
FotF story pushing an attempt by anti-gay stockholders to force the company to drop GBLT employment protection; the company has a private policy of not allowing anti-gay discrimination in the workplace, FotF wants it gone;
FotF ACTION ITEM to demand passage of the "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act," which would dramatically raise fines for "indecency" on television;
FotF condemns participation by lesbian and gay families in White House easter egg roll; moving them out of camera range and keeping them out of the opening ceremony apparently wasn't enough, FotF says they shouldn't have been there at all;
Arizona passes bill mandating that parental-notification forms be notarised;
The ACLU earns a rare moment of appreciation from Focus on the Family for dropping support for HR5052, a bill intended to target misleading advertising by anti-abortion "pregnancy centres"; after going over the language of the bill as introduced, they oppose it on first amendment grounds;
Currently, in Alaska, four ounces of marijuana for personal use isn't illegal; there's abill to make it a misdemeanor; Focus on the Family urges passage of the bill;
Concerned Women for America's Janice Crouse writes an essay against independent women, uses this strange bear analogy to say that women raising children alone will produce "very deadly predators";
CWA's Robert Knight condemns the idea that respectable political figures shouldn't gaybash;
HealthDay: British medical journal The Lancet calls for wider use of condoms to prevent AIDS spread; the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports that the Bush administration approach (abstinence-primary) is causing major problems out in the field; Concerned Women for America condemns the report, saying the report is "more wedded to an ideology of pushing condoms than to actually saving lives";
CWA re-runs Linda Harvey's condemnation of the GLSEN/Christian Educators Association agreement on how to talk about GBLT issues, calling it a "victory for homosexual activists";
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM against California bill SB1437, which would require that lesson plans in public schools not be anti-GBLT; they make other claims, like saying it would censor "the Christian point of view"; see previous CWUs for more on this bill;
Family Research Council press release urging Colorado senator Salazar (of Colorado) to support the anti-marriage Federal amendment;
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM against California bill SB1437;
FRC ACTION ITEM to demand higher broadcast indecency fines; they applaud Howard Stern's decision to flee to satellite radio as an example of what "an empowered FCC can do";
FRC ACTION ITEM to support an anti-marriage-rights amendment in Pennsylvania; it's currently in the state House;
American Family Association/Agape Press story on the Kentucky college that receives state money but expelled a gay student for being gay; his boyfriend says that there are a _lot_ of GBLT students there, and also a lot of students having sex, which is also just as much a violation but isn't enforced at all; mostly I'm including it because of the amazingly gratuitous - and hilarious - scare-quotes around words like "boyfriend" and "dating";
AFA condemns church-state separation, friendly-quotes an anti-separation rally about how it's time to tear down the wall of separation between church and state; they have this amusing picture that does this lovely job of pretending the 14th amendment doesn't exist;
Jerry Falwell heaps praise on Senator McCain, attacks Rudy Guliani - apparently McCain's smoochies with the fundies are getting some traction. I am very sad. In other news, AFA friendly-quotes Americans for Truth's condemnation of gay and lesbian families "crashing" the White House easter-egg hunt;
Faith and Freedom Network's "Talking Points X" against marriage rights compares same-sex relationships to child rape, incest, says it will inevitably lead to polygamy. I include my usual set of rebuttals. Also, I got paper mail begging for donations; it's pretty much just a straight "we have to do this because God wants it, give us money" letter, so I'm not transcribing it.
----- 1 -----
GOP Campaign to Focus on Flag Burning, Gay Marriage, Abortion
FOXNEWS.COM > POLITICS
Sunday, April 16, 2006
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,191885,00.html
WASHINGTON — Protection of marriage amendment? Check. Anti-flag burning legislation? Check. New abortion limits? Check.
Between now and the November elections, Republicans are penciling in plans to take action on social issues important to religious conservatives, the foundation of the GOP base, as they defend their congressional majority.
In a year where an unpopular war in Iraq has helped drive President Bush's approval ratings below 40 percent, core conservatives whose turnout in November is vital to the party want assurances that they are not being taken for granted.
[...]
Former presidential candidate Gary Bauer agreed that the effort matters.
"If they get to these things this summer, which we expect that they will, that will go a long way toward energizing the values voters at the base of the Republican Party," said Bauer, head of Americans United to Preserve Marriage.
[...]
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and a possible presidential candidate in 2008, announced early this year that the Senate would consider those and the anti-gay marriage amendment that has failed in both chambers despite Bush's endorsement.
"When America's values are under attack, we need to act," Frist told the Conservative Political Action Conference in February.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
White House changes Easter Egg Roll admit process; LGBT families 'moved from front of the line'
by Michael Rogers
PageOneQ
http://pageoneq.com/news/2006/eggroll_041506.html
After waiting outside overnight to be among the first to enter this year's White House Easter Egg Roll, families in line were surprised to learn that the White House had changed the ticketing policy for the annual event, PageOneQ has learned.
The unannounced change means that the families who waited in line the longest, in one case for twenty-four hours, will not be among the visitors at the event's opening ceremonies. The first families in line, who were not part of the LGBT family group, received tickets with an 11:00am entrance time, two hours later than the opening time listed in the White House press release.
[...]
The Family Pride group, which was located approximately 150 people from the start of the line, received tickets with entry times of 11:30am and later.
[...]
When asked about the ticket time issue, Jennifer Chrisler, Family Pride Coalition's Executive Director stayed out of the controversy by telling PageOneQ that, "We're just so happy to be participating in this national event, and we are thrilled to be a part of this national tradition."
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Postcard Campaign Launched for Marriage Protection Amendment
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
by Pete Winn, associate editor
Pro-family groups ask churches to send the Senate 1 million postcards in support of MPA.
[Received in email; no URL]
Pro-family groups are reaching out to pastors and congregations nationwide in an effort to mobilize churches in the battle to preserve traditional marriage against attacks from radical liberal groups and activist courts.
Letters going out this week from Focus on the Family Founder and Chairman Dr. James Dobson ask thousands of pastors to get their congregations behind the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA), which faces a critical vote in Congress in June.
Dr. Dobson's April newsletter also urges reader to encourage their pastors to order enough postcards for each member of their congregation to send to their two senators.
The campaign is cosponsored by leaders from the Anglican Communion, Roman Catholic Church, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the Greek Orthodox Church and others -- evidence of broad-based support for traditional marriage in the religious community.
"We are engaged in a full-court press to make sure that we have passage of the Marriage Protection Amendment this year by the United States Senate and House of Representatives," said the ERLC's Dr. Barrett Duke. "Part of that is to mobilize pastors throughout the country to encourage our elected representatives to vote for passage of the amendment."
Duke, who is vice president for public policy and research for the commission, said many pastors and churches are already very supportive of the effort to protect marriage -- especially among the 43,000 churches in his denomination.
He said pastors will receive a letter asking them to communicate to their congregations the importance of the MPA -- which would codify the definition as the union of one man and one woman in the U.S. Constitution. The congregations, in turn, will then be encouraged to send in pre-printed postcards to their senators.
Amanda Banks, federal issues analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said the goal is to get the attention of senators in a fresh way.
"It is an aggressive campaign -- with the goal of generating 1 million postcards to Senate offices," she said. "If we can do that, senators will surely know that their grassroots -- their constituents -- care deeply about preserving the definition of marriage."
Banks said the amendment has picked up some support from the last time it was voted on, in 2004.
"If all senators maintain their positions from 2004, the last time a vote was taken on the MPA, we should have 53 votes in favor of marriage," she said. "That is a gain of five votes, coming from the freshman senators who were elected in 2004."
But it's not enough to pass the measure, since 67 votes are needed to secure the required two-thirds majority in the Senate and the House before the amendment can be sent to the states for ratification. Three-fourths of states must approve it for it to be ratified.
"Obviously, that is a steep hill to climb," Banks said. "But given that, since the last vote, a federal court has overthrown a state constitutional amendment and several other federal court cases are pending, I believe we could see significant gains in this year's vote."
The organizers of the postcard campaign urge concerned Americans to send their cards in by May 15, so they'll arrive in time for the scheduled early June vote on the amendment.
TAKE ACTION:
Pastors who want to order postcard sheets can do so by calling (866) 655-4545 or you may download and print as many as you like on your home computer through our new CitizenLink Action Center.
Pastors (and others) are also encouraged to use the Action Center to e-mail or call their senators urging them to support the MPA. We've not only made it easy for you to send a message via e-mail form, we've also given you talking points you can use in your conversation should you choose to call. Simply select which method of communication -- e-mail or phone -- you'd like to use when you visit the Action Center.
----- 4 -----
Ford Stockholders to Vote on Sexual-Orientation Clause
SEC stops the company from scratching a resolution.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
April 17, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
The Securities and Exchange Commission has ruled that the Ford Motor Co. must hear a resolution calling for a sexual-orientation clause to be removed from the automaker's non-discrimination policy at its upcoming shareholders meeting. The company is afraid that ending the benefit will bring a boycott from angry homosexuals.
Written by one of the company's stockholders in Illinois, the motion forbids the company from promoting homosexual marriage. Despite Ford's efforts to get rid of the resolution, the SEC said stockholders will be able to vote on it.
The proposal, along with comments from the company, was included in the proxy statements mailed to shareholders last week. Results will be announced at the annual stockholders meeting in Wilmington, Del., on May 11.
Randy Sharp, a spokesman for the American Family Association (AFA), which spearheaded a boycott of Ford over gay-friendly advertising, said he hopes the stockholders will speak up.
"Hopefully, many people who own Ford stock will say we don't need a sexual-orientation clause in our non-discrimination policy," he told Family News in Focus.
Ford has expressed concern over reprisals from gay activists if the resolution passes, but Sharp said the company should be paying more attention to the 25 pro-family groups already boycotting the company.
"We did see in the month of March, Ford's overall sales dropped 5 percent," he said, "which could be attributed to a boycott."
Ford did not return calls for comment, but in statements the company has claimed that such a resolution would also hinder recruitment efforts, because some universities require companies to have a sexual-orientation clause in order to be included in the campus-recruitment process. Caleb H. Price, social research analyst with Focus on the Family, called that ridiculous.
"Darryl Herschaft with the Human Rights Campaign (a gay activist group) admitted last year that the good talent doesn't seem to care about gay rights when job hunting," he said.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has ruled that the Ford Motor Co. must hear a resolution calling for a sexual-orientation clause to be removed from the automaker's non-discrimination policy at its upcoming shareholders meeting. The company is afraid that ending the benefit will bring a boycott from angry homosexuals.
Written by one of the company's stockholders in Illinois, the motion forbids the company from promoting homosexual marriage. Despite Ford's efforts to get rid of the resolution, the SEC said stockholders will be able to vote on it.
The proposal, along with comments from the company, was included in the proxy statements mailed to shareholders last week. Results will be announced at the annual stockholders meeting in Wilmington, Del., on May 11.
Randy Sharp, a spokesman for the American Family Association (AFA), which spearheaded a boycott of Ford over gay-friendly advertising, said he hopes the stockholders will speak up.
"Hopefully, many people who own Ford stock will say we don't need a sexual-orientation clause in our non-discrimination policy," he told Family News in Focus.
Ford has expressed concern over reprisals from gay activists if the resolution passes, but Sharp said the company should be paying more attention to the 25 pro-family groups already boycotting the company.
"We did see in the month of March, Ford's overall sales dropped 5 percent," he said, "which could be attributed to a boycott."
Ford did not return calls for comment, but in statements the company has claimed that such a resolution would also hinder recruitment efforts, because some universities require companies to have a sexual-orientation clause in order to be included in the campus-recruitment process. Caleb H. Price, social research analyst with Focus on the Family, called that ridiculous.
"Darryl Herschaft with the Human Rights Campaign (a gay activist group) admitted last year that the good talent doesn't seem to care about gay rights when job hunting," he said.
----- 5 -----
TV Networks Sue to Be as Nasty as They Wanna Be
Focus on the Family
IN BRIEF
April 17, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Foul words that begin with the letters "F" and "S" are not indecent, at least according to court challenges filed by four broadcast television networks.
The Associated Press reports that ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox, along with their affiliate stations plus the Hearst-Argyle Television group, filed notices of appeal on Thursday and Friday in various federal courts, including those in Washington, D.C., and New York.
The networks are challenging the FCC's determination that profane language was used on The Early Show on CBS in 2004, plus the Billboard Music Awards shows broadcast by Fox in 2002 and 2003 and episodes of ABC's NYPD Blue in 2003.
The FCC did not issue fines in those cases because the incidents occurred before a 2004 ruling that virtually any use of certain expletives would be considered profane and indecent.
While none of the cases involved NBC, the network filed a petition to intervene on behalf of the other networks and stations.
The networks and affiliate groups issued a rare joint statement calling the FCC ruling "unconstitutional" and inconsistent with two decades of previous FCC decisions. They also claimed the FCC "overstepped its authority" and acted arbitrarily.
Brent Bozell, president of the Parents Television Council, called the networks' action "utterly shameless" and pointed out that the broadcast airwaves do not belong to the broadcasters, but to the American people.
"The broadcast networks are spitting in the faces of millions of Americans by saying they should be allowed to air the F-word and S-word on television," he said. "It's beyond preposterous that the networks would even propose that airing the F-word and S-word on television is not indecent. The networks' principles have now been unmasked for everyone to see. Their actions today are indecent in and of themselves."
Daniel Weiss, senior analyst, media and sexuality, at Focus on the Family Action, said the move makes clear that, short of crucial updates to federal law, the broadcast industry will continue to pollute the nation's airwaves.
"This suit proves that the TV industry is more concerned with expanding its lawless broadcasting practices than serving the viewing public," he said. "There isn't a national clamor for more F-words on network TV, but there is a growing outcry about the increasingly course, profane and indecent programming pumped into American living rooms.
TAKE ACTION:
Let your legislators knows that you support the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act. You can learn more in our new Action Center. Make sure to read the directions on getting properly registered on the home page, then look for the link under "Current Issues" concerning the bill.
----- 6 -----
Gays Crash Easter Egg Roll
Focus on the Family
IN BRIEF
April 17, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Gay activists, as promised, made a political statement at today's White House Easter Egg Roll.
About 100 homosexual men and women donned rainbow-colored leis to attend the event, an Easter tradition since the mid-19th century. Their intention, they said, was to make a point about the legitimacy of families headed by same-sex parents.
"We just wanted to come out to be visible and present and to let people see we are families, too," Alisa Surkis, 42, of Brooklyn, N.Y., told The Associated Press. She brought along her 3-year-old-daughter, Ella, and her partner.
Family advocates said the egg roll, attended by more than 16,000 people, is no place to push for the normalization of homosexuality.
"What a pity that the homosexual lobby had to tarnish a great tradition with this in-your-face political propaganda," said Peter LaBarbera, president of Americand for Truth. "Turning the Easter Egg Roll into gay propaganda represents a new low in the movement."
----- 7 -----
Pro-Life Bill Passes in Grand Canyon State
Focus on the Family
IN BRIEF
April 13, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Arizona lawmakers passed legislation Wednesday that would require parental-consent forms necessary for a minor to get an abortion to be notarized to ensure authenticity, Arizona Central reported.
Supporters of the bill said the new law would make certain that parents are involved in the decision and avoid the falsification of the documents.
The bill now heads to Gov. Janet Napolitano for signature. Napolitano vetoed a pro-life bill Tuesday that would have required doctors to inform abortion-minded women that their preborn babies can feel pain.
----- 8 -----
ACLU Drops Support of Anti-Pregnancy-Resource Center Bill
Group can't support government language police.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
April 13, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
A bill under consideration in Congress would penalize pregnancy-resource centers (PRCs) that "deceptively advertise abortion services," but the pro-abortion effort has lost a major supporter: the American Civil Liberties Union.
The Stop Deceptive Advertising for Women's Services Act maintains that it's illegal for PRCs to advertise as "clinics," but, in the last few years, more than 500 have gained legal status as medical clinics.
ACLU attorneys are reportedly looking over the legislation to see if it's constitutional and whether it agrees with the group's policy. The ACLU has indicated it can't support the idea of the government becoming language police, as the act would mandate.
Sydna Masse, president of pro-life Ramah International, said H.R. 5052 is unnecessary because most PRCs make it clear where they stand on the issue.
"Pregnancy centers rarely use anything that's not very obvious as far as what they're doing," she said, "and that is not referring for abortion, not providing any help for women who want to have an abortion.
Ironically, several years ago, pro-abortion groups pressured the Yellow Pages to create a special "abortion alternatives" section for PRCs. Tom Glessner, president of the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, said that plan backfired.
"Women were still coming to the pregnancy centers," he said, "because it (appeared) before 'abortion providers' in the Yellow Pages."
Glessner said in this latest case, the ACLU should be congratulated - at least for staying on message.
"You know, they're trying to be consistent," he said. "They don't agree with our pro-life stand, but they also believe we have every right to be in the public square."
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Visit Focus on the Family's Pregnancy Resource Ministry Web site.
----- 9 -----
Alaska Rolls Back Liberal Pot Laws
Possessing a currently legal amount would become a misdemeanor.
Focus on the Family
Family News in Focus
April 13, 2006
[Received in email; no URL]
Alaska, the state with the most liberal drug laws, is trying to tighten up restrictions on marijuana possession.
Residents can legally possess up to 4 ounces of marijuana for any use, an amount that equals about 120 cigarettes. Assemblyman John Coghill told Family News in Focus that the policy hurts the state.
"In studying the potency of the newer marijuana," he said, "it became very apparent that we have been underestimating the societal cost of marijuana up here."
The potency of marijuana is increasing, as measured in terms of THC, the chemical that produces the high. In the 1970s the average marijuana cigarette had a THC content of about 1 percent. Today, it's in the range of 5 to 7 percent.
Under a bill supported by Gov. Frank Murkowski, possessing less than four ounces would become a misdemeanor. Possessing a greater amount would be a felony.
Allen St. Pierre, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, maintained the bill has no public support.
"So there's no impetus from the church, there's no impetus from social services," he said. "There's not impetus from anybody, really, than the Murkowski family."
St. Pierre and a coalition of marijuana advocates have promised a lawsuit if the bill passes.
Doug Duffett, a pastor in Fairbanks, begged to differ.
"There are people that I have talked to who have used marijuana that cannot get free," he said. "They admit to me that it affects their thinking, but they cannot stop it - they're so dependent."
Tom Riley, a spokesman for the Office of National Drug Control Policy, said he sees the impact of liberal marijuana laws around the country "in terms of addiction, in terms of domestic violence, in terms of accidents on the highway, accidents at the workplace, in terms of lower academic achievement and all the other things that come along with marijuana use."
----- 10 -----
Power and Independence: At What Price?
Concerned Women for America
4/17/2006
By Janice Shaw Crouse
Power is fleeting and often an illusion.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10556/BLI/dotcommentary/index.htm
Two things about the billboard caught my attention. First, the woman, in her late 30s or early 40s, is a solitary figure whose image takes over the sign. Then, the caption is simple and bold: You Are Powerful.
The advertisement’s target audience is obvious. There is tremendous profit to be made by any company that successfully appeals to the more than 24 million unmarried women in the 20-44- year-old demographic. They make up 47 percent of all women in this age group (compared with only 19 percent that were unmarried in 1968). It is no wonder savvy marketers are targeting these women, since more than 71 percent of them are employed –– with significant disposable income and independent spending decisions.
[...]
Consider Exhibit A: First love’s joy and passion. What makes possible, in the beginning, the sheer and total other-centeredness of first love? To the onlooker, lovers’ total preoccupation with each other is absurd. But, if properly nourished it can grow, as it did in my case, into a mutual life-long commitment. The sexual pleasure of the married bed is nature’s bait to induce us to accept and enjoy our dependence. In time our dependence ceases to be an onerous complication. Instead, we learn that pride, ego, and the desire for independence are the mortal enemies of love. Left unchecked, they break the tender ties that not only connect us, but that provide the very strength we need to cope with our weaknesses.
[...]
Nature did not equip human females like she did the mighty female grizzly bear, which truly is powerful and independent. The mother bear is fully capable of raising her cub alone without any help, least of all from the male bear.
The human female, on the other hand, is eminently vulnerable, and the development of the human child takes years longer than in any other species.
With that in mind, we might recall exactly what becomes of the adorable, cuddly, playful bear cubs. The powerful, independent she-bear mother, in her solitary way, produces very deadly predators.
[More at URL]
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The Price for a Place at the Table
Concerned Women for America
4/13/2006
By Robert Knight
The message is clear: If you want respectability, don’t work on a permanent solution to the assaults on marriage.
This article is published today, April 13, in WorldNetDaily.com.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10534/CFI/family/index.htm
Evangelical Christians are getting a lot of advice these days on politics from many quarters, but let me encapsulate what we’re told:
“You can be part of the process, so long as you don’t step on certain toes. You can oppose abortion, for instance, but any opposition to the organized homosexuality lobby will be regarded as ‘bigotry,’ and is off limits. If you want to remain in polite company, such as the good graces of the GOP, you will learn to shut up as homosexual activists radically redefine marriage, ply their message of acceptance to schoolchildren and construct ‘hate crime’ laws designed to crush resistance.”
[...]
In his column “Theocon Moment” (April 6), Mr. Douthat uses the same tactic on evangelicals to deter them from openly opposing homosexual activism. He ridicules the attempt to enact a federal marriage amendment and cartoonishly depicts the evangelical response to the homosexual cultural onslaught as an obsession with “gay Teletubbies.” The message is clear: If you want respectability, don’t dare work on a permanent solution to the ongoing assaults on marriage, and don’t oppose the campaign to sell homosexuality as a lifestyle to children. More
Robert Knight is Director of Concerned Women for America’s Culture & Family Institute and a drafter of the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
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Journal Backs Condoms for HIV/AIDS Fight
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
http://www.wwaytv3.com/Global/story.asp?S=4769094&nav=menu70_8
THURSDAY, April 13(HealthDay News) -- The prestigious British medical journal The Lancet is calling for the widespread use of condoms as an effective way of preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS and as the best method to save lives.
The editorial, in the April 15 issue, also had harsh words for the Bush administration's abstinence-focused approach to battling the spread of HIV/AIDS.
"Health workers who have seen their patients, friends, and family die from this disease should not have to tip-toe around this ill-informed and ideologically driven policy," the editorial said.
[...]
Last week, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded in a report that this strategy is causing problems for health workers trying to deliver care.
[...]
"Don't trust the GAO report," said Wendy Wright, president of the Washington, D.C.-based conservative group Concerned Women for America. "You have to look at who they interviewed. The people they interviewed are people more wedded to an ideology of pushing condoms than to actually saving lives."
Wright doesn't think that condom distribution prevents the spread of HIV. She cited a failed condom program in South Africa and a successful abstinence program in Uganda.
[More at URL]
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Neutral’ School Agreement Is a Victory for Homosexual Activists
Concerned Women for America
4/6/2006
By Linda Harvey
A pact that appears to guarantee impartiality lets loose the wolves among the sheep.
This article, by the president of Mission America, ran on WorldNetDaily.com on April 1, 2006. Mrs. Harvey recently authored the paper Fairy Tales Don’t Come True for CWA’s Culture & Family Institute. For other CWA resources, see below.
A recent agreement between several national groups on how to handle "sexual orientation" in schools is unacceptable, misleading and may actually cause more problems than it purports to solve.
The document, "Public Schools and Sexual Orientation" was released by the First Amendment Center in conjunction with the Christian Educators Association International and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN).
[More at URL]
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California Education Bill Would Mandate Schools Endorse Homosexuality
by Mona Passignano, State Issues Analyst
Focus on the Family
ACTION ITEM
Action is needed to stop this biased bill in the California Senate.
http://www.focusaction.org/Articles/A000000190.cfm
Senate Bill 1437 has passed from the California Senate Judiciary Committee and can at any moment be voted on by the whole Senate. If signed into law, it would force all public school teachers to present to students a one-sided message about homosexuality, bisexuality and transgender issues.
The bill would ban lessons, discussions and activities that reflect adversely upon one's sexual orientation , which would end any open discussion about the issue of homosexuality in public classrooms and effectively silence the Christian voice on the issue.
[More at URL]
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FRC Urges Salazar to Support Marriage Protection Amendment
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 13, 2006
CONTACT: J.P. Duffy or Bethanie Swendsen, (202) 393-2100
Family Research Council
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=PR06D04
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ken Salazar (D-CO) was recently quoted in The Hill saying he supports the current definition of marriage even though he views enshrining traditional marriage in the Constitution as an act of "discrimination." Today, Tom McClusky, Family Research Council's Acting Vice President for Government Affairs, included some of the following comments in a letter to Senator Salazar urging his support for a marriage protection amendment to the U.S. Constitution:
"As I am sure you have been informed, in May 2005, a federal district court ruled unconstitutional Nebraska's state constitutional marriage protection amendment that had been approved with 70% popular support. The Nebraska amendment expressed precisely your view regarding the nature of marriage: the union between one man and one woman. Judge Joseph Battaillon discarded the states' interest of promoting families with both a mother and a father.
"One concludes from Judge Battaillon's decision that he believes the federal judiciary plays an important role in the debate. Our hope is the branch of government directly elected by the American people (the Congress in which your office resides) will engage the debate as well.
"As they crafted the powers of government in the Constitution, our founding fathers did 'ordain and establish' those granted powers as the expressed will of 'the People of the United States.' Their noble plan to 'promote the general welfare' is an inheritance we must preserve today. While many condemn traditional marriage as an institution of 'discrimination' which should not be 'enshrined' in our Constitution, it is our belief that no institution promotes greater welfare and prosperity than marriage between one man and one woman.
"In light of recent events and your stated support of traditional marriage and states' rights, we look forward to your vote this June."
To view the full letter, please visit www.frc.org.
-30-
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Please contact your state senator to oppose homosexual indoctrination (SB 1437) in California public schools
Family Research Council
California Senate will soon vote on bill to promote homosexuality in public school curriculum
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
California (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D08
Senate Bill 1437, sponsored by Senator Sheila Kuehl, D-Los Angeles, would advance a deliberate biased message about homosexuality in California public schools and cease any open dialogue in the classroom on the issue of homosexuality. It would silence the Judeo-Christian worldview in the public schools. This so-called "tolerance" measure would hide the issue of homosexuality behind sexual identity and gender discrimination.
Specifically, SB 1437 would ban lessons, discussions and activities that reflect adversely upon one's sexual orientation under the guise of tolerance. While curriculum, instructional materials and teaching would be stripped of any negative messages about homosexuality, the teaching of traditional family views would not be tolerated.
[...]
Please take action now and address your comments and opinions to your state senator. To find your state senator go to: www.senate.ca.gov/~newsen/senators/senators.htp
For more information about SB 1437, go to: www.californiafamily.org
[More at URL]
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Contact your Senators to support HR 310, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005
Family Research Council
Senators: Support H.R. 310, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D06
Howard Stern, the shock jock who perpetually went over the line of broadcast decency, is facing a stern reality - the vast majority of his estimated 12 million listeners didn't go with him to satellite radio. While Stern operated for years with impunity from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), he found himself the subject of several regulatory actions since the FCC awakening. Stern jumped to satellite broadcasting where industry execs expected subscribers to pay to relish his vulgarity. Sirius, the satellite company that charges subscribers $13 a month for Stern, will not release numbers. But industry analysts believe Stern has managed to corral no more than 1-2 million members of his old audience. Stern's reality shows what an empowered FCC can do to keep the public airwaves decent for America's families. Despite the FCC's successes Congress has yet to give them the tools it needs to clean up broadcast television. A major obstacle is Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) who continues to resist get-tough broadcast decency legislation that FRC and its allies have been pressing for. All the while he has hailed his own efforts in the Senate Commerce Committee, which he chairs, as "family friendly" and even claims support from "faith-based" organizations. The reality is that the broadcast indecency measure has passed the House, has received almost unanimous support in the Senate, but the bill H.R. 310 is being held up by Sen. Stevens. Contact your Senators and ask them to give the FCC the tools to clean up America's public airwaves.
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Pennsylvania House to vote on marriage amendment the week of April 24th
Family Research Council
April 13, 2006 - Thursday
Pennsylvania (more on this state)
Forward to a Friend!
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D07
Now is the time to get involved so that the Pennsylvania Marriage Protection Amendment passes the state House of Representatives! Although Pennsylvania has a Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that defines marriage as between one man and one woman, that law is vulnerable to legal challenges from activist judges. Pennsylvanians deserve the same opportunity voters in 19 states have had to amend their constitution.
We strongly urge you to take action within the next few days.
Please call your State Representative and ask him or her to vote "yes" to pass House Bill 2381, the Marriage Protection Amendment.
If you know who your state Representative is, call the Capitol Switchboard at 717-787-2121 and ask to speak to that person.
If you don't know who represents you: click here or call the Pennsylvania Family Institute at 1-800-597-9605.
Now is the time to write and send a short letter to the editor of your local newspaper in defense of one man one woman marriage.
And most of all pray for laws that protect God's design for marriage.
For more information and bulletin inserts for your church, click here.
[More at URL]
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School Silent on Expulsion of Homosexual Student; 'Boyfriend' Not
By Jim Brown
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 17, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/172006e.asp
(AgapePress) - The "boyfriend" of a student who was kicked out of a Baptist college in Kentucky because of his homosexual lifestyle claims the majority of students enrolled at the school are homosexuals.
Sophomore Jason Johnson was recently expelled from the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg after school officials learned he was involved in a homosexual relationship. The school, which is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, has a policy that says it can expel a student who "promotes sexual behavior not consistent with Christian principles," including homosexuality.
But Johnson's "boyfriend," Zac Dreyer -- a freshman at Eastern Kentucky University -- argues the Christian school is employing a double standard. "What I've been told is that 65 percent of the student body is either gay or bi[sexual], and they have gay and lesbian professors down there on the campus," he claims.
As for Johnson, Dreyer maintains the university "had no proof that he was promoting -- as it says in the handbook -- homosexuality or anything." He suggests the school is not enforcing the policy consistently. "If they're going to kick people out for being gay or lesbian, then why aren't they kicking people out for premarital sex, like it also says in the same rule?" he asks.
Dreyer, who says he has been "dating" Johnson for six weeks, suggests the expulsion of his homosexual partner was handled "poorly." He contends the rule that was violated was not included in the school handbook until this year, after Johnson had already attended for one year. He also questions the timing of the announcement.
"He had three weeks of school left before finals and everything, and then they kicked him out," he notes. "And the whole way that they tried to do it, they tried to do it discreetly and do it under the table." In addition, Dreyer asserts that school officials did not care whether Johnson had a new place to stay. "They just wanted him off campus," he says.
[More at URL]
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'Freedom Rally' to Dispel Separation Myth
By Allie Martin
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 17, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/172006c.asp
(AgapePress) - Concerned Christians will gather in a Connecticut community on Tuesday for a rally to address the political, cultural, and religious impact of the so-called "separation of church and state."
The "Celebration of Freedom Rally" takes place in Danbury, which is where the phrase "separation of church and state" originated in a letter penned by President Thomas Jefferson in 1801 in response to Baptists' fear that the U.S. government was going to establish the Congregationalist Church as the official denomination of the new nation. Jefferson's reference stated that the government should have no say in the affairs of the church, and -- contrary to popular myth -- was never intended to keep God out of government.
Coach Dave Daubenmire is national director of Minutemen United and founder of Pass the Salt Ministries. He says the time has come to tear down the false wall of separation of church and state.
[More at URL]
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Commentary & News Briefs
April 17, 2006
American Family Association/Agape Press
Compiled by Jenni Parker
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/172006h.asp
[...]
...Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth, says homosexual activists' crashing of the April 17 White House Easter Egg Roll is just the latest demonstration of selfishness by adult "gay" activists, who consistently place their agenda ahead of the best interests of children. Christian Newswire reports that the homosexual group known as the Family Pride Coalition is using the traditional annual White House event as a vehicle to showcase "lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) families" and boasts that over 100 LGBT-led "families" would attend the event, with adults and supporters wearing rainbow-colored Hawaiian leis. But LaBarbera says these homosexual activists should be ashamed for "exploiting an event designed solely to bring joy to young children" by staging " a crass publicity stunt to promote 'gay parenting.'" The Americans for Truth spokesman says a recurring motif runs throughout the homosexual agenda, whether activists are "redefining marriage to legitimate sexual sin, indoctrinating impressionable schoolchildren with pro-homosexual lesson plans, legally harassing the Boy Scouts, pushing 'gay adoption' ... or crashing a White House Easter Egg roll ... one common theme stands out: it's all about the 'gay' adults and their desperate need for approval of their lifestyle choice, not what's best for children." The Family Pride Coalition's publicity stunt "represents a new low in the movement for 'rights' based on aberrant sex," LaBarbera says. It is a pity, he adds, that the homosexual group had to "tarnish a great tradition" like the White House Easter Egg Roll with this "in-your-face political maneuver." [Jenni Parker]
[...]
...Rev. Jerry Falwell doubts that any Democrat will make inroads with evangelical Christians in the next presidential election because the party supports legal abortion and does not oppose same-sex "marriage." Falwell told CNN's "Late Edition" that former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani is unlikely to gain evangelical support for the same reason. He said, "As conservative Christians who take the Bible seriously, we have probably irreconcilable differences on life and family." But Falwell praised Senator John McCain as "pro-life" and "a strong conservative" whose "view on family is just where most conservative Christians' views are." McCain has agreed to speak at Falwell's Liberty University commencement next month. [AP]
[More at URL]
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Thursday, April 13, 2006
Talking Points: The Case for Marriage X
Faith and Freedom Network
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/04/talking-points-case-for-marriage-x.html
Denying same-sex couples the right to marry is discriminatory and violates basic principles of equality.
* It is discriminatory to deny the marriage of one man and three women? Was it discriminatory to deny Mary Letourneau the right to marry her 13 year-old lover? [Ed. note: Yes, because raping children is not the same thing as having an adult relationship.] As a society we have placed restrictions on who an individual can marry – without exceptions. You cannot marry a child, you cannot marry a blood relative, [Ed. note: Incest would still apply] you cannot marry someone who is already married, [Ed. note: right now, queers can't marry at all] you cannot marry someone of the same sex [Ed. note: saying a gay or lesbian person can "marry" anyone they want as long as they're the wrong gender for them is like banning the Star of David and telling Jews they can wear any cross they want.], and as a society, we reject the practice of polygamy. These restrictions apply to everyone equally – men and women.
* It makes no sense that same-sex advocates suggest they would oppose one standard of marriage – male and female – and yet assert another – that marriage should remain limited to two people. Many of the same groups that advocate for same-sex marriage also suggest group marriage is equally acceptable. [Ed. note: "If you allow lesbians and gay people to get married, you can't have ANY rules! You'll be marrying people to horses next!" is the same kind of BS pulled in the previous paragraph. Adults are not the same as children are not the same as animals. One can enter into consensual relationships. The others can't.]
* All individuals have value and should be treated with dignity. But same-sex marriage advocates do not have the right to redefine marriage for the entire society. [Ed. note: We aren't trying to redefine _your_ marriage, and this wouldn't do it.] This debate isn’t about equality or discrimination; it’s about changing marriage into something it has never been before. [Ed. note: it's not changing _your_ marriage in any way. None of _your_ rules change. We just get to play too.]
Same sex couples have the freedom to commit, and they are not being denied the “right” to marry. [Ed. note: and they're working to ban any effects of that relationship in state after state. Not one of these organisations supports DPs or CUs.] Their relationship is simply different than marriage.
These talking points were written by lawyer Kristen Waggoner in collaboration with some of her associates for Allies for Marriage. These talking points are also indexed on the "Talking Points" page of the website at: http://faithandfreedom.us/talking_points.html.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
Speaking of strange analogies...
Date: 2006-04-18 04:38 pm (UTC)And right after reading that I leafed through an issue of the Spiegel, which compared children raised by single moms to cars with two wheels. (o.O) This apparently in rebuttal to some report that said children of single moms generally were selfconfident, had high self-esteem and coped well with life, as long as the moms had a positive outlook on the situation. (From the article, I got the impression they don't have single fathers in Germany at all :P)
Offensiveness to single moms aside, the truly scary part of that article was when they went on about how single-parent children would be easy prey for muslim children who had lots of brothers and cousins to back them up in terrorising and blackmailing the sibling-less ones. The 'proof' being verbose description of some fiction movie about a boy with an unemployed single mom who got beat up by immigrant gangs.
Re: Speaking of strange analogies...
Date: 2006-04-18 06:16 pm (UTC)Talking Points
Date: 2006-04-20 09:20 pm (UTC)--I'd like to remind these wackos that polygamy is well-documented in the Bible they continually thump.
[Ed. note: it's not changing _your_ marriage in any way. None of _your_ rules change. We just get to play too.]
--Amen, sister!
Re: Talking Points
Date: 2006-04-22 05:40 pm (UTC)This is the only topic on which I have ever heard them talk about tribal behaviour of ancient Hebrew peoples as a separate thing from God's Will. The only thing - even though there are multiple kinds of verbs used throughout Leviticus, and the whole "men shouldn't sleep with men and women shouldn't sleep with women" thing is expressed as a tribal law, not a divine law, by their choice of verbs.
Or so I have been told by people who can actually read ancient Hebrew.