Today's Cultural Warfare Update
Apr. 27th, 2006 12:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdNew Presidential Spokesman Tony Snow has a history of misrepresenting evolutionary theory and promoting "intelligent design";
Seattle Times article on the Discovery Institute's attempt to spin the Dover decision as hard as possible;
I've never heard of the National Bible Reading Marathon, but they claim this is the 17th year. Basically they go out and read the bible cover-to-cover, out loud, around the clock, at government buildings;
Mission America and Linda Harvey are getting Focus on the Family plus for their anti-gay "homosexual activism" audits of public schools - warning you to watch for "code phrases" such as "safe schools" - and are clearly getting more sympathetic to the exodus idea of pulling students out of public schools that aren't sufficiently anti-gay;
Mission America's own statement on the matter quotes, without attribution, what appear to be several Paul Cameron figures I've seen before; items one and two on their lists of things to watch out for are anti-bullying programmes that include protection against bullying for GBLT students, and any anti-discrimination policy protecting GBLT students or teachers; in a separate list, any HIV/AIDS programme and/or safer-sex programme is considered a warning flag;
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to support Referendum 65 signature gathering; includes pointer to the Faith and Freedom Network website and instructions to download signature forms; they quote Tim Eyman as saying that if HB2661 stands, the courts will "impose" same-sex marriage;
FotF finds a movie Wal-Mart is carrying that they hate even more than Brokeback Mountain;
FotF runs story on Mitt Romney's abstinence-only education programme;
FotF attacks Missouri initiative to back stem-cell research, calling it "pro-cloning";
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM to urge veto of abortion-access bill in Hawai'i; it allows abortions to be performed in clinics;
Souther Baptist Convention to consider "exodus" from public schools again; the American Family Association is giving the idea friendly coverage;
LifeSite covers more anti-gay testimony in Massachusetts regarding marriage rights there, continuing the "gay parents are child abusers" theme;
American Family Association/Agape Press coverage of the school banning the anti-gay T-shirt; see previous CWUs for previous coverage and discussion of the short;
AFA/Agape Press celebrates cancellation of a Gay Pride parade in Charlotte Pride parade, talks about how they've forced it "back into the closet" through what appears to be consistent harassment of attendees; this story has appeared (with more detail) in previous CWUs and is, yes, the same story; this is the AFA version; they also claim to have gotten a local Gay-Straight Alliance club (not named, but I suspect this is what they mean) banned at local schools; describes the parade as "the gates of Hell";
AFA report supporting an Arlington County, Virginia business which actively discriminated against a lesbian employee; the county found that the business had acted in violation of county law; they're preparing a lawsuit;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight has a much longer story supporting the anti-gay business owner;
Concerned Women for America join "School Risk Audit" to examine schools; see above for details, but basically, if you support GBLT students in any way (inclusion in anti-bullying programmes, anti-discrimination protections, HIV/AIDS awareness, anything) then you are supporting the "Gay Agenda"; CWA's Robert Knight writes about the effort in this article;
Traditional Values Coalition links to the web-based Post-Chronicle's opinion column demanding a new "Greatest Generation" to ban abortion, homosexuality, and take on other issues;
TVC ACTION ITEM to demand veto of abortion bill in Hawai'i; it's the same bill as described above, the fundamentalist groups are unifying their times for greater effect;
TVC ACTION ITEM to support the Workplace Religious Freedom Act (WRFA), which requires employers take "reasonable accommodations" to adjust to religious needs of employees; also to demand a vote on the Broadcast Indecency Act (HR 310);
TVC article supporting anti-gay student T-shirt, condemning school for banning it as disruptive; see above, and discussion in earlier Cultural Warfare Updates;
REAL Women of Canada discuss PM Harper's promised re-vote on C-38 and marriage rights in Canada; they call it the "last opportunity to return the traditional definition of marriage to our country";
REAL plugs French Conservative report against marriage rights and reproductive rights for lesbian and gay couples; they are, of course, very supportive of it;
Faith and Freedom Network article supporting the Pope's Good Friday prayer condemning, well, all sorts of things, says God is angry about lesbian and gay marriage rights, more;
----- 1 -----
Tony Snow's evolutionary falsehoods
Fri, Aug 12, 2005 7:14pm EST
http://mediamatters.org/items/200508120008
In his August 12 nationally syndicated column, Fox News host Tony Snow equated evolutionary theory to "intelligent design" (commonly referred to as ID), claiming that "[e]volutionary theory, like ID, isn't verifiable or testable. It's pure hypothesis." Specifically, he falsely asserted that no fossil evidence exists in support of evolutionary theory. In fact, there is significant support for evolutionary theory in the fossil record, just one of many pillars of evidence supporting evolutionary theory.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
Seattle's Discovery Institute scrambling to rebound after intelligent-design ruling
By David Postman
Seattle Times chief political reporter
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/education/2002953668_id26m.html
When a federal judge stopped intelligent design from being taught in a Pennsylvania school district in December, the concept's chief advocates issued a quick and pointed response.
U.S. District Judge John Jones was an activist judge whose opinion shows he's misinformed and biased, said officials at the Discovery Institute, a Seattle think tank that promotes intelligent design as a challenge to Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.
The only comfort they found in the stinging rebuke was that the ruling would carry no weight beyond Dover, Pa.
They were right in that, without an appeal to higher court, the case sets no legal standard beyond the central Pennsylvania region where Jones' court has jurisdiction. But nearly five months after the ruling, the Discovery Institute is fighting to control fallout from the decision.
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Bible-Reading Marathon Kicks Off Sunday
Event culminates in the National Day of Prayer on May 4.
Focus on the Family
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0040272.cfm
Beginning Sunday morning, Christians will gather on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol -- and in front of public buildings and schools around the country -- to read the Bible out loud around the clock.
The National Bible Reading Marathon began 17 years ago, according to the Rev. Mike Hall, who coordinating the Washington, D.C., event.
[...]
One of the marathon's backers is the senior U.S. senator from Kansas, Republican Sam Brownback.
"I think it's a wonderful activity," Brownback said. "I've participated in it on the steps of the Capitol for a number of years. To put forward the Word of God in a vocal way in front of the United States Capitol is in keeping, I think, with the best traditions of the United States being a nation under God, of allowing a free expression of religion, and I'm delighted that people do it."
[More at URL]
----- 4 -----
Family Experts Suggest Risk Audits for Gay Activism in Schools
They say if the a school is cooperating with homosexual groups, take your kids out.
Focus on the Family
Citizenlink News
from staff reports
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0040273.cfm
Many of the nation's schools observed the pro-homosexual "Day of Silence" today, and family experts are recommending a "risk audit" to determine how actively your school administrators are pressing the gay agenda.
The survey is designed to assist Christian organizations, churches and parents in determining what schools are up to. It assesses catch-phrases such as "safe schools," "anti-discrimination codes" and "special teacher training classes" that are some of the jargon homosexual activists use to sneak in their agenda.
[...]
Peter Sprigg, vice president for policy at the Family Research Council, said parents need to be alert to the influence of activists.
"Their ultimate goal," he said, "is the complete acceptance of homosexual behavior as being just as morally valid as heterosexual behavior and heterosexual marriage."
[...]
"As Christian parents, we only have one chance to get our child's education right, there are no do-overs. And it's absolutely imperative that we know what's going on," he said. "If the school district is, in any way, collaborating with homosexual activists, we need to take our children out."
[More at URL]
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Risk Audit Project: Measuring Homosexual Activism in Local Schools
Mission America
Online as of April 26, 2006
http://www.missionamerica.com/agenda.php?articlenum=43
Introduction
Many Americans are aware of the growing visibility of homosexuality as an issue in our culture. Where it concerns our children, this visibility causes increased interest and possibly acceptance by them at a vulnerable age. Many people are frustrated, wondering: What can I do? How do parents get a firm fix on what their children are seeing and hearing?
What the Risk Audit Plan below offers local communities is knowledge. This plan provides a handy tool for measuring the promotion of homosexuality at any local public school district. Once the extent of the “homosexual agenda” directed to children is discovered, local parents, grandparents and citizens can alert the community, the media and notify the schools themselves. Parents will then clearly understand their responsibility: hold schools accountable for removing pro-homosexual material; and if this is not done, then move children to a different educational environment.
[...]
With homosexual behavior comes a whole host of very significant health and lifestyle risks. Whether high-risk conduct is a result of homosexual desires, or contributes to developing them, or some of both, is anyone’s guess. The fact remains that teens engaging in homosexual behavior are participating in a lifestyle that:
• reduces life expectancy at age twenty by at least 8 to 20 years
• increases by at least 500% the risk of contracting AIDS
• increases the risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease by nearly 900%
• increases by 4,000% the risk of developing anal cancer
• substantially increases the likelihood of smoking, having mental health disorders (other than same-sex attraction), being the victim of “domestic” violence, and being involved in alcohol and drug abuse.
• substantially increases the likelihood of contracting hepatitis and other gastrointestinal infections
• substantially increases the risk of contracting bacterial vaginosis, breast cancer, and ovarian cancer
• has high levels of participation in sadomasochism, coprophilia, sadomasochism, fisting, and other dangerous, deviant sex practices
• involves extraordinarily high levels of promiscuity
[...]
The first section of the questionnaire asks for information about current school policies that pertain to “sexual orientation.” The goal is to find out which of the following types of policies the school district has adopted. Here are the types of polices that need to be researched:
1. An anti-harassment, anti-bullying or “safe schools” policy that includes the category “sexual orientation”
The term “sexual orientation” may be included in a laundry list of other classifications, e.g., “...on the basis of race, religion, age, sex, nationality, sexual orientation...”
2. Non-discrimination policy based on “sexual orientation” (may also cover “gender identity”) for students and/or teachers, staff
[...]
HIV/AIDS and “safe sex” education programs. These lessons assume all students are at risk of AIDS; that all students need to be taught about use of condoms for “safe sex.” Acceptance of acts common to homosexuals, such as anal sex, is implicit in these so-called “neutral” programs.
[More at URL]
----- 6 -----
Washington: Stop Homosexuality from Becoming a Civil Right
The people must secure the right to decide the fate of a sexual-orientation law.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
Citizenlink
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0040275.cfm
A signature drive under way in Washington aims to put Referendum 65 -- that would repeal a new law that makes homosexuality a civil right -- on the November ballot.
[...]
Tim Eyman, co-sponsor of Referendum 65, said people deserve the chance to express their opinion.
"Government-imposed preferential treatment will only enhance suspicion and conflict between our citizens," he said. "Besides, our citizenry doesn't support same-sex marriage, something the courts will impose if HB 2661 stands. It's exactly what's happening in other states, most recently Maryland and Massachusetts."
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
Wal-Mart Offers Movie Containing Sex and Torture
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0040278.cfm
Many Wal-Mart stores are currently prominently displaying DVDs of Hostel, a grotesque and shocking movie.
Last month, the store raised eyebrows when it featured the homosexual-themed Brokeback Mountain. But that movie pales in comparison to the sick and twisted sex and torture portrayed in Eli Roth's Hostel.
According to a review in Focus on the Family's Plugged-In magazine, the entire movie focuses on drugs, explicit sex and graphic depictions of torture and violence.
[More at URL]
----- 8 -----
Massachusetts Governor Plans to Heavily Fund Abstinence Education
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0040276.cfm
Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has announced he intends to designate nearly $1 million in federal funding to teach middle-school kids about abstinence, the Family Research Council (FRC) reported.
The funding would not replace comprehensive sex-education, but instead would be added to the current program.
[More at URL]
----- 9 -----
Missouri: Pro-Life Groups Oppose Pro-Cloning Petition
A misleading initiative would make cloning a right.
by Dawn Vargo, bioethics research associate
Focus on the Family
Citizenlink
April 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0040259.cfm
In Missouri, the debate is heating up over a ballot initiative that would enshrine a right to cloning and embryonic stem-cell research in the state constitution.
The misleading initiative appears to "ban human cloning" but in reality it would make human cloning a protected constitutional right. Unless Missourians refuse to sign the "Missouri Cures" petition, it may soon find its way onto the November ballot.
The pro-cloning group, Missourians for Lifesaving Cures, would like you to believe this initiative is all about curing patients by using a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer. Using this phrasing -- which is simply a scientific description of the process involved in cloning -- is a thinly veiled attempt to protect human cloning through the state constitution. This amendment would give pro-cloning scientists access to Missouri taxpayer money to conduct unethical cloning experiments for embryonic stem-cell research.
[More at URL]
----- 10 -----
ACT NOW: Contact Governor Lingle and ask for a veto of abortion bill
Hawaii Governor Lingle ready to sign abortion bill HB 1242
Family Research Council
April 26, 2006 - Wednesday
Hawaii (more on this state)
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D16
Please call Governor Lingle TODAY. The Governor must make her decision on the abortion bill (HB 1242 HD1) by April 27, 2006. If you have not done so already, please contact her office by e-mailing the Governor or calling (808) 586-0034 and ask her to VETO the bill to protect women's health and safety.
This bill goes further than current constitutional case law requires, allowing late 2nd and 3rd trimester abortions in clinics - not hospitals. Allowing such later term abortions in an outpatient setting endangers women's health.
E-mail the Governor or call (808) 586-0034 today!
You can read the bill here.
----- 11 -----
New Proposal Urges SBC Action on Public School Exit Strategy
By Rusty Pugh and Jenni Parker
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 26, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/262006a.asp
(AgapePress) - Two years after a similar measure was blocked, Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) activists are again urging the denomination to remove its children from public schools.
The resolution calling for an "exit strategy" from public schools is co-sponsored by Texas lawyer Bruce Shortt and SBC Executive Committee member Roger Moran. The proposal asserts that recent federal court rulings have favored public schools "indoctrinating children with dogmatic Darwinism" and have limited parents' rights regarding what their children are taught, including what schools teach them on matters of sexuality.
Shortt recently spoke with the Associated Press about the resolution, saying he feels it is past time for Southern Baptists to start developing a plan for pulling their young people out of a public education system that keeps going from bad to worse. "As Christians, we are called to give our children a Christian education, not just some of the time but all of the time," he noted, "and the public schools have become, increasingly over the years, more and more antagonistic to Christianity."
[...]
According to a Christian Newswire report, Scarborough contends that public schools have long ceased to serve as a positive reinforcer of traditional values and today "are not even neutral on many crucial issues which are important to people of faith." He says public education has unfortunately been "hijacked by people who reject Biblical teachings on man's origin, the proper role of sex, and the acceptability of homosexuality."
[More at URL]
----- 12 -----
Quebecer tells Massachusetts Legislators of Danger to Children in Homosexual “Marriage”
by Hilary White
LifeSite
Wednesday April 26, 2006
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/apr/06042602.html
BOSTON, April 25, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Quebec resident, Louis DeSerres, added his testimony April 11, to that of Dawn Stefanowicz in hearings on homosexual “marriage” in Massachusetts. Stefanowicz had told legislators of her “traumatizing” upbringing in a homosexual household where her father introduced her to the gay subculture.
Most of the debates in Massachusetts over allowing homosexual partners to “marry” and adopt children have centred on talk of the “rights” of gay partners fully to imitate normal marriage. Little has been said by homosexual advocates on the protection or best interests of children.
[...]
Homosexual “marriage” he said, being based on transitory and unstable personal preferences and political motives, cannot provide children with the necessary identity that natural marriage gives.
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
Court Determines Christian Message on T-Shirt Offensive
Ninth Circuit Judge Delivers a Third Strike Against Traditional Values
By Jim Brown
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 26, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/262006b.asp
(AgapePress) - A constitutional attorney is denouncing a ruling by a three-judge panel of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that bars a San Diego high school student from wearing a T-shirt displaying Christians messages in opposition to homosexuality.
With a 2-1 decision, the Ninth Circuit upheld a lower-court ruling against Chase Harper, who was suspended by Poway High School for wearing a T-shirt displaying the messages: "Homosexuality is shameful" and "Our school embraced what God has condemned." Harper had worn the shirt -- without incident -- during an annual pro-homosexual event in 2004 known as the "Day of Silence." But when he wore it to school the next day and was ordered to remove it, he refused. The lawsuit emerged from that confrontation.
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
North Carolina Christians Take a Stand, Evil Flees
By Bill Fancher
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 25, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/252006b.asp
(AgapePress) - Christians in North Carolina have taken a stand against the pro-homosexual agenda -- and they're winning some of the battles.
Churches in the Charlotte area have taken on homosexual activists recently, and the results have been encouraging. Flip Benham of Operation Save America says he is elated. "As the Church comes out of the closet, we are finding out that many of the enemies of God are moving back into the closet," he says.
A case in point, Benham says, was the recent cancellation of the "Charlotte Pride" parade, a springtime gathering that in past years has featured transvestite dancers, homosexual comedians, and vendor booths pushing sadomasochism (S&M) merchandise. He credits the activist members of Operation Save America and their supporters with the turnabout.
"They just got so fed up with us that many of them left," he says. "And by the way, many of them came to know Christ through the witnessing of hundreds of Christians who came out in the street."
In another example 900 Christians showed up at a school board meeting where a proposal for a homosexual club in a local high school was denied -- because churches took a stand, says Benham.
[...]
The Bible is right, says Benham, adding that it is great to see the Church take a stand. "We've found out that it's true that when the church of Jesus Christ arrives at the gates of hell, the gates of hell cannot prevail against it," he exclaims.
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
Commentary & News Briefs
April 26, 2006
Compiled by Jody Brown
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/262006h.asp
...The leader of a pro-family group in Virginia says he considering legal action against Arlington County for its investigation into the business policies and practices of a local Christian businessman. Upon being asked to duplicate two pro-homosexual films, Tim Bono of Bono Film & Video politely refused the business, citing his company policy -- do not duplicate material it deems obscene, that may embarrass employees or tarnish the company's reputation, or that is contrary to Christian and ethical values. But the customer making the request was long-time lesbian activist Lillian Vincenz, who took her complaint to Arlington County officials, asking them to force Bono to duplicate her materials. The county's Human Rights Commission subsequently began an investigation into the Christian businessman's actions, even conducting a public hearing to discuss the alleged "discrimination." Those actions by the Human Rights Commission, says Joe Glover of the Family Policy Network, may warrant a lawsuit for what he sees a violation of the religious liberties of Christian business owners. He sees the response of Vincenz -- a so-called "gay pioneer" in the area who has been promoting homosexual behavior for more than four decades -- as an attempt to quash religious freedom. "With the help of Arlington County, this lesbian activist proves that [homosexual activists are] really out to publicly use the power of the government to destroy the religious liberties of decent people," says Glover. The county has reportedly decided that Bono's actions violate Arlington County code that prohibits "discrimination by a public accommodation ... on the basis of sexual orientation or perception thereof." Glover, however, is seeking out business people in the county who would be willing as anonymous plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the county. The county's involvement, he says, is an "anti-Christian, pro-homosexual witch-hunt" against all businesses in the area. "It's a heavy-handed threat to turn government against Christians who want to live their lives according to scripture," Glover adds, offering his thoughts on the potential outcome of the case. "Even if [the homosexual activists] can't win a case like this on the merits, they're out to strike fear in the hearts of Christians who want to live according to their faith.," he says. (See related article) [Jody Brown]
[More at URL]
----- 16 -----
Christian Shop Ordered to Duplicate Homosexual Activist Videos
4/25/2006
By Robert Knight
Concerned Women for America
Virginia duplicator refused the job, citing Biblical grounds.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10594/CFI/family/index.htm
In a case similar to a Canadian Christian printer’s punishment for declining a job for a homosexual activist group, an Arlington, Virginia, video duplicator has been ordered by the Arlington County Human Rights Commission to do a job for a lesbian activist.
The April 18 order follows a March 9 hearing in which Tim Bono of Bono Film and Video cited constitutional freedom of religion protection in refusing to duplicate two pro-homosexual films for lesbian activist Lillian Vincenz, according to the Family Policy Network (FPN), which is seeking clients for a class-action suit against the county.
Bono, a Christian, said he did not want to violate his Biblical values by assisting the promotion of homosexual behavior. Bono Film & Video informs potential customers that the firm does not duplicate material that the firm deems obscene, could embarrass employees, hurt the company’s reputation, or that runs counter to the company's Christian and ethical values, Bono told FPN.
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Groups Endorse ‘School Risk Audit’ to Expose ‘Gay’ Agenda in Schools
Concerned Women for America
4/25/2006
By Robert Knight
CWA is part of coalition urging parents to use new survey to alert their communities.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10593/CFI/family/index.htm
Are your local schools promoting homosexuality?
There’s a new way to find out.
A coalition of pro-family groups is urging parents to do a “School Risk Audit” to determine whether and how the schools have become conduits for homosexual activism.
Concerned Women for America (CWA) has joined with Mission America, American Family Association, Citizens for Community Values, Family Research Council, Eagle Forum, Americans for Truth, Exodus Mandate, and several state organizations (see below at end of article) to recommend a “School Risk Audit” inspired by a resolution passed in 2005 by the Southern Baptist Convention and developed by Mission America President Linda Harvey.
Parents can download the audit form and use any portion they wish or the entire document. The Audit includes recommendations for parental action in the wake of the survey, such as how to alert school authorities and how to issue a press release.
[More at URL]
----- 18 -----
Another Greatest Generation? A Call To Action -- It's Now Or Never
by Guy Adams
Post-Chronicle
Apr 20, 2006
http://www.postchronicle.com/commentary/article_21215335.shtml
The issues of our day. Every generation has had them. The "Greatest Generation", as Tom Brokaw appropriately labeled them, saved the world from Hitler and Tojo in World War II. They saved the world for Liberty. We owe them. Like the situation we face in America today, they did not choose the time and nature of their battle, but they rose to the occasion nevertheless.
Who will take their place?
[...]
And yet somehow, we seem unable to adequately grasp and solve the issues of our day. These include, but are not limited to: ending abortion, the perversion of homosexuality, stopping gay marriage and the naturally ensuing hate speech laws that can effectively silence the Church, out-of-control Judicial activism which is overturning the Constitution every other week, the out of control deficit, the war on terror, illegal immigration, the terrible plight of young black youth, and the legislating of "God" out of the Pledge and just about every other aspect of American life.
[...]
The mid and late 1960's saw the rise of the civil rights movement, which was long overdue. This movement has changed into a bizarre battle, not representing "civil rights" at all, but uncivil rights, such as the "right" of a baby to be prematurely aborted and murdered through no fault of its own. And the most unnatural form of human behavior, homosexuality, is actually being considered for legalization for the first time in history. Even an animal is smart enough to not defecate in its own bed, but polluting our culture and ignoring the many perils, we continue in this regard full steam ahead. No other time in man's history have people been so mad, so foolish, as to consider such a thing. Why now? One reason is because the homosexual lobby has managed to convince many Americans that their's is a struggle for "civil rights", that they are an oppressed minority that needs all sorts of special protections and extraordinary hate speech laws.
[...]
Christians and conservatives find themselves living in a culture overrun by forces that have forty years of momentum on their side, led by a generation of legal and legislative authorities who do not recognize God or His precepts. They ignore the Supreme Architect at their peril. However, we are convinced that the forces of good can prevail over the forces that want to reshape America into a socialist state. What will it take to win this war? Prayer and your action. Prayer to ask God to restore America to her original design, and sustained action on you part to put pressure on legislators and other influential leaders and policy makers, even Hollyweird. Let them know that you will not pay to see movies like Brokeback Mountain, and that you do not want to see a gay character in nearly every movie. Culture should be defined by the majority, not the one percent minority.
How long will the battle take?
[More at URL]
----- 19 -----
Hawaii: The Abortion Tourism State? Calls Needed on April 27
Traditional Values Coalition
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2701
April 27, 2006 -- Unless Hawaii’s Republican Governor Linda Lingle vetoes House Bill 1242 HD1, the Aloha state may become an abortion mill tourism destination. The pro-abortion lobby has pushed through legislation that removes residency requirements for anyone seeking an abortion. It also permits late term abortions in a clinic or physician’s office.
The Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, President of Human Life International has recently drawn national attention to House Bill 1242 and how it will impact Hawaii and the abortion industry.
According to Rev. Euteneuer, “If Hawaii’s Republican Governor fails to veto this radical abortion bill, Hawaii’s image will suffer irreparable damage. Hawaii will go from the Aloha State to the Abortion state in nine short days if Governor Lingle lets HB 1242 become law.”
The bill says this: “The legislature finds that the current definition of ‘abortion’ is outdated and that the existing residency requirement violates the United States Constitution’s privileges and immunities clause and is, therefore, unconstitutional and invalid.”
TVC Executive Director Andrea Lafferty is outraged by this new assault on the unborn. “The Hawaiian people must vigorously oppose this effort by pro-abortion legislators to expand the numbers of abortions that will be done in Hawaii. By removing residency requirements, the legislators are trying to lure pregnant women to the state so they can abort their children and apparently have a pleasant vacation afterward. This is a disgusting ploy that should be rejected by Governor Lingle.”
TAKE ACTION TODAY: If you live in Hawaii, contact Governor Lingle immediately and ask that she veto HB 1242! This bill will become law unless she vetoes it by April 27 th.
Contact Governor Linda Lingle:
Executive Chambers
State Capitol
Honolulu, Hawai`i
96813
Phone: 808-586-0034
Fax: 808-586-0006
e-mail: http://www.hawaii.gov/gov/contact/email
Contact State Representatives:
http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/site1/house/members/members.as...
Contact State Senators:
http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/site1/senate/members/members.a.
----- 20 -----
Congress Needs Pressure To Pass Key Legislation
Traditional Values Coalition
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2699
April 27, 2006 – Republican Senator Rick Santorum (PA) has introduced the Workplace Religious Freedom Act (WRFA). This legislation will establish the principle that employers must make reasonable accommodations for the religious needs of its employees—so long as it doesn’t impose an undue hardship upon the employer.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was designed to address the conflicts between religion and the workplace. Federal courts have ruled, however, that any “hardship” upon an employer is “undue,” thus leaving religious workers without meaningful protections.
In addition to TVC, the WRFA (S. 677) is supported by a broad spectrum of groups including the Christian Legal Society, Southern Baptist Convention, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, North American Council for Muslim Women, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and others.
TAKE ACTION: Contact your two U.S. Senators and ask that they sign on as co-sponsors of this important bill. Use CapWiz to contact your Senators.
Congress must also pass the Broadcast Indecency Enforcement Act (H.R. 310). This legislation will raise fines against TV and radio networks that use indecent language or images in their programming. Current fines are badly outdated and are ineffective against networks or with shock jocks like Howard Stern.
The Broadcast Indecency Enforcement Act will empower the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to levy huge fines against networks to punish them for using profanity and sexually explicit images on the public airwaves. It will allow the FCC to levy fines up to $500,000 for each violation! This will send a strong message to the networks that they cannot invade our homes with indecent materials.
On Good Friday, four major networks sued the FCC to prohibit this government agency from enforcing decency codes against profane language and sexually explicit content on public airwaves! The networks apparently want to pipe profanity (including the “f” word) and raunchy sexual content into our homes—without restrictions—during the “Family Hour.”
The Broadcast Indecency Enforcement Act was passed in the House in 2005, but is bottled up in the Senate Commerce Committee chaired by Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK). Sen. Stevens apparently doesn’t believe this legislation is needed.
Please contact your two U.S. Senators today and ask that they support passage of H.R. 310! Call the Capitol Hill Switchboard at: 202-224-3121 and ask to speak to your two Senators. Call Senator Stevens and ask him to support passage of H.R. 310. His number is 202-224-3004. Use CapWiz to write an email to your Senators.
----- 21 -----
9th Circuit Assaults Religion And Freedom Of Conscience
Traditional Values Coalition
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2698
April 27, 2006 – The 9th Circuit Court in San Francisco has issued another wacko ruling that violates free speech and religious expression. As usual, the radical opinion was written by Judge Stephen Reinhardt, a hard-core left Carter appointee, who has a long history of issuing rulings unrelated to the Constitution or the law.
The case is Harper v. Poway School District and involves a student who wore an anti-homosexual T-shirt to school to protest the homosexual-instigated Day of Silence on campus. The T-shirt called homosexuality “shameful” and included a Bible verse. School officials removed the student from his class and was threatened with suspension if he wore the shirt again.
The three-judge panel, headed by Reinhardt, used a series of pro-homosexual “studies” on alleged “bullying” of homosexual teens to reach its conclusion that homosexual students needed special protections in schools to avoid having their self-esteem damaged. On page 21 of the opinion, Reinhardt writes: “The demeaning of young gay and lesbian students in a school environment is detrimental not only to their psychological health and well-being, but also to their educational development.”
[More at URL]
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SAME-SEX MARRIAGE ISSUE RETURNS IN CANADA
REAL Women of Canada
March 2006
http://www.realwomenca.com/newsletter/2006_mar_apr/article_2.html
Prime Minister Harper stated, during the recent election campaign, that if he were elected Prime Minister, he would re-visit the issue of same-sex marriage in Parliament. Subsequent to the election, he stated that he would raise this issue, not right away, but "sooner, rather than later".
Although we do not know exactly when Mr. Harper will call for a vote on a motion to re-open the same-sex marriage issue in Parliament, we do know, from our analysis of the views of the MPs on the issue, that such a vote will be a very close one.
Our deep concern is that Mr. Harper will suddenly announce, without warning, that a vote on the same-sex marriage issue will be held, for example, the following week, and we will not be prepared for such a vote.
Even though we do not know the exact date of the vote, there are several facts that we do know:
[More at URL]
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FRANCE REJECTS SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
REAL Women of Canada
March 2006
http://www.realwomenca.com/newsletter/2006_mar_apr/article_1.html
France, along with other European nations, may be on the road to perdition with its extremely low birthrate and the resulting economic problems. Nonetheless, France obviously cares, and cares deeply, about those children that it does have. With a birth rate of only 1.76, France desperately wants to protect the children that have been born to them.
At the request of the President of the National Assembly, Jacques Chirac, a special 30 member multi-party "Information Mission" was created to propose changes in French law to better protect the rights of children and to reflect changes in the French family.
In carrying out this responsibility, the Mission traveled to Spain, the U.K., Belgium, The Netherlands and Canada. The visit to politically correct Canada must have given them quite a shock! These countries, with the exception of the U.K., have all made same-sex marriages legal.
[More at URL]
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Wednesday, April 26, 2006
I Agree with the Pope
Faith and Freedom Network
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/04/i-agree-with-pope.html
Although I am not a Catholic, I took time this past week to read a portion of Pope Benedict XVI Good Friday’s prayer.
[...]
"Surely God is deeply pained by the attack on the family. Today we seem to be witnessing a kind of anti-Genesis, a counter plan, a diabolical pride aimed at eliminating the family. There is a move to reinvent mankind, to modify the very grammar of life as planned and willed by God. But to take God’s place, without being God, is insane arrogance, a risky and dangerous venture.”
[More at URL]
Seattle Times article on the Discovery Institute's attempt to spin the Dover decision as hard as possible;
I've never heard of the National Bible Reading Marathon, but they claim this is the 17th year. Basically they go out and read the bible cover-to-cover, out loud, around the clock, at government buildings;
Mission America and Linda Harvey are getting Focus on the Family plus for their anti-gay "homosexual activism" audits of public schools - warning you to watch for "code phrases" such as "safe schools" - and are clearly getting more sympathetic to the exodus idea of pulling students out of public schools that aren't sufficiently anti-gay;
Mission America's own statement on the matter quotes, without attribution, what appear to be several Paul Cameron figures I've seen before; items one and two on their lists of things to watch out for are anti-bullying programmes that include protection against bullying for GBLT students, and any anti-discrimination policy protecting GBLT students or teachers; in a separate list, any HIV/AIDS programme and/or safer-sex programme is considered a warning flag;
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to support Referendum 65 signature gathering; includes pointer to the Faith and Freedom Network website and instructions to download signature forms; they quote Tim Eyman as saying that if HB2661 stands, the courts will "impose" same-sex marriage;
FotF finds a movie Wal-Mart is carrying that they hate even more than Brokeback Mountain;
FotF runs story on Mitt Romney's abstinence-only education programme;
FotF attacks Missouri initiative to back stem-cell research, calling it "pro-cloning";
Family Research Council ACTION ITEM to urge veto of abortion-access bill in Hawai'i; it allows abortions to be performed in clinics;
Souther Baptist Convention to consider "exodus" from public schools again; the American Family Association is giving the idea friendly coverage;
LifeSite covers more anti-gay testimony in Massachusetts regarding marriage rights there, continuing the "gay parents are child abusers" theme;
American Family Association/Agape Press coverage of the school banning the anti-gay T-shirt; see previous CWUs for previous coverage and discussion of the short;
AFA/Agape Press celebrates cancellation of a Gay Pride parade in Charlotte Pride parade, talks about how they've forced it "back into the closet" through what appears to be consistent harassment of attendees; this story has appeared (with more detail) in previous CWUs and is, yes, the same story; this is the AFA version; they also claim to have gotten a local Gay-Straight Alliance club (not named, but I suspect this is what they mean) banned at local schools; describes the parade as "the gates of Hell";
AFA report supporting an Arlington County, Virginia business which actively discriminated against a lesbian employee; the county found that the business had acted in violation of county law; they're preparing a lawsuit;
Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight has a much longer story supporting the anti-gay business owner;
Concerned Women for America join "School Risk Audit" to examine schools; see above for details, but basically, if you support GBLT students in any way (inclusion in anti-bullying programmes, anti-discrimination protections, HIV/AIDS awareness, anything) then you are supporting the "Gay Agenda"; CWA's Robert Knight writes about the effort in this article;
Traditional Values Coalition links to the web-based Post-Chronicle's opinion column demanding a new "Greatest Generation" to ban abortion, homosexuality, and take on other issues;
TVC ACTION ITEM to demand veto of abortion bill in Hawai'i; it's the same bill as described above, the fundamentalist groups are unifying their times for greater effect;
TVC ACTION ITEM to support the Workplace Religious Freedom Act (WRFA), which requires employers take "reasonable accommodations" to adjust to religious needs of employees; also to demand a vote on the Broadcast Indecency Act (HR 310);
TVC article supporting anti-gay student T-shirt, condemning school for banning it as disruptive; see above, and discussion in earlier Cultural Warfare Updates;
REAL Women of Canada discuss PM Harper's promised re-vote on C-38 and marriage rights in Canada; they call it the "last opportunity to return the traditional definition of marriage to our country";
REAL plugs French Conservative report against marriage rights and reproductive rights for lesbian and gay couples; they are, of course, very supportive of it;
Faith and Freedom Network article supporting the Pope's Good Friday prayer condemning, well, all sorts of things, says God is angry about lesbian and gay marriage rights, more;
----- 1 -----
Tony Snow's evolutionary falsehoods
Fri, Aug 12, 2005 7:14pm EST
http://mediamatters.org/items/200508120008
In his August 12 nationally syndicated column, Fox News host Tony Snow equated evolutionary theory to "intelligent design" (commonly referred to as ID), claiming that "[e]volutionary theory, like ID, isn't verifiable or testable. It's pure hypothesis." Specifically, he falsely asserted that no fossil evidence exists in support of evolutionary theory. In fact, there is significant support for evolutionary theory in the fossil record, just one of many pillars of evidence supporting evolutionary theory.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
Seattle's Discovery Institute scrambling to rebound after intelligent-design ruling
By David Postman
Seattle Times chief political reporter
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/education/2002953668_id26m.html
When a federal judge stopped intelligent design from being taught in a Pennsylvania school district in December, the concept's chief advocates issued a quick and pointed response.
U.S. District Judge John Jones was an activist judge whose opinion shows he's misinformed and biased, said officials at the Discovery Institute, a Seattle think tank that promotes intelligent design as a challenge to Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.
The only comfort they found in the stinging rebuke was that the ruling would carry no weight beyond Dover, Pa.
They were right in that, without an appeal to higher court, the case sets no legal standard beyond the central Pennsylvania region where Jones' court has jurisdiction. But nearly five months after the ruling, the Discovery Institute is fighting to control fallout from the decision.
[More at URL]
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Bible-Reading Marathon Kicks Off Sunday
Event culminates in the National Day of Prayer on May 4.
Focus on the Family
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0040272.cfm
Beginning Sunday morning, Christians will gather on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol -- and in front of public buildings and schools around the country -- to read the Bible out loud around the clock.
The National Bible Reading Marathon began 17 years ago, according to the Rev. Mike Hall, who coordinating the Washington, D.C., event.
[...]
One of the marathon's backers is the senior U.S. senator from Kansas, Republican Sam Brownback.
"I think it's a wonderful activity," Brownback said. "I've participated in it on the steps of the Capitol for a number of years. To put forward the Word of God in a vocal way in front of the United States Capitol is in keeping, I think, with the best traditions of the United States being a nation under God, of allowing a free expression of religion, and I'm delighted that people do it."
[More at URL]
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Family Experts Suggest Risk Audits for Gay Activism in Schools
They say if the a school is cooperating with homosexual groups, take your kids out.
Focus on the Family
Citizenlink News
from staff reports
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0040273.cfm
Many of the nation's schools observed the pro-homosexual "Day of Silence" today, and family experts are recommending a "risk audit" to determine how actively your school administrators are pressing the gay agenda.
The survey is designed to assist Christian organizations, churches and parents in determining what schools are up to. It assesses catch-phrases such as "safe schools," "anti-discrimination codes" and "special teacher training classes" that are some of the jargon homosexual activists use to sneak in their agenda.
[...]
Peter Sprigg, vice president for policy at the Family Research Council, said parents need to be alert to the influence of activists.
"Their ultimate goal," he said, "is the complete acceptance of homosexual behavior as being just as morally valid as heterosexual behavior and heterosexual marriage."
[...]
"As Christian parents, we only have one chance to get our child's education right, there are no do-overs. And it's absolutely imperative that we know what's going on," he said. "If the school district is, in any way, collaborating with homosexual activists, we need to take our children out."
[More at URL]
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Risk Audit Project: Measuring Homosexual Activism in Local Schools
Mission America
Online as of April 26, 2006
http://www.missionamerica.com/agenda.php?articlenum=43
Introduction
Many Americans are aware of the growing visibility of homosexuality as an issue in our culture. Where it concerns our children, this visibility causes increased interest and possibly acceptance by them at a vulnerable age. Many people are frustrated, wondering: What can I do? How do parents get a firm fix on what their children are seeing and hearing?
What the Risk Audit Plan below offers local communities is knowledge. This plan provides a handy tool for measuring the promotion of homosexuality at any local public school district. Once the extent of the “homosexual agenda” directed to children is discovered, local parents, grandparents and citizens can alert the community, the media and notify the schools themselves. Parents will then clearly understand their responsibility: hold schools accountable for removing pro-homosexual material; and if this is not done, then move children to a different educational environment.
[...]
With homosexual behavior comes a whole host of very significant health and lifestyle risks. Whether high-risk conduct is a result of homosexual desires, or contributes to developing them, or some of both, is anyone’s guess. The fact remains that teens engaging in homosexual behavior are participating in a lifestyle that:
• reduces life expectancy at age twenty by at least 8 to 20 years
• increases by at least 500% the risk of contracting AIDS
• increases the risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease by nearly 900%
• increases by 4,000% the risk of developing anal cancer
• substantially increases the likelihood of smoking, having mental health disorders (other than same-sex attraction), being the victim of “domestic” violence, and being involved in alcohol and drug abuse.
• substantially increases the likelihood of contracting hepatitis and other gastrointestinal infections
• substantially increases the risk of contracting bacterial vaginosis, breast cancer, and ovarian cancer
• has high levels of participation in sadomasochism, coprophilia, sadomasochism, fisting, and other dangerous, deviant sex practices
• involves extraordinarily high levels of promiscuity
[...]
The first section of the questionnaire asks for information about current school policies that pertain to “sexual orientation.” The goal is to find out which of the following types of policies the school district has adopted. Here are the types of polices that need to be researched:
1. An anti-harassment, anti-bullying or “safe schools” policy that includes the category “sexual orientation”
The term “sexual orientation” may be included in a laundry list of other classifications, e.g., “...on the basis of race, religion, age, sex, nationality, sexual orientation...”
2. Non-discrimination policy based on “sexual orientation” (may also cover “gender identity”) for students and/or teachers, staff
[...]
HIV/AIDS and “safe sex” education programs. These lessons assume all students are at risk of AIDS; that all students need to be taught about use of condoms for “safe sex.” Acceptance of acts common to homosexuals, such as anal sex, is implicit in these so-called “neutral” programs.
[More at URL]
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Washington: Stop Homosexuality from Becoming a Civil Right
The people must secure the right to decide the fate of a sexual-orientation law.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
Citizenlink
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0040275.cfm
A signature drive under way in Washington aims to put Referendum 65 -- that would repeal a new law that makes homosexuality a civil right -- on the November ballot.
[...]
Tim Eyman, co-sponsor of Referendum 65, said people deserve the chance to express their opinion.
"Government-imposed preferential treatment will only enhance suspicion and conflict between our citizens," he said. "Besides, our citizenry doesn't support same-sex marriage, something the courts will impose if HB 2661 stands. It's exactly what's happening in other states, most recently Maryland and Massachusetts."
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
Wal-Mart Offers Movie Containing Sex and Torture
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0040278.cfm
Many Wal-Mart stores are currently prominently displaying DVDs of Hostel, a grotesque and shocking movie.
Last month, the store raised eyebrows when it featured the homosexual-themed Brokeback Mountain. But that movie pales in comparison to the sick and twisted sex and torture portrayed in Eli Roth's Hostel.
According to a review in Focus on the Family's Plugged-In magazine, the entire movie focuses on drugs, explicit sex and graphic depictions of torture and violence.
[More at URL]
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Massachusetts Governor Plans to Heavily Fund Abstinence Education
Focus on the Family
Newsbriefs
April 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0040276.cfm
Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has announced he intends to designate nearly $1 million in federal funding to teach middle-school kids about abstinence, the Family Research Council (FRC) reported.
The funding would not replace comprehensive sex-education, but instead would be added to the current program.
[More at URL]
----- 9 -----
Missouri: Pro-Life Groups Oppose Pro-Cloning Petition
A misleading initiative would make cloning a right.
by Dawn Vargo, bioethics research associate
Focus on the Family
Citizenlink
April 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0040259.cfm
In Missouri, the debate is heating up over a ballot initiative that would enshrine a right to cloning and embryonic stem-cell research in the state constitution.
The misleading initiative appears to "ban human cloning" but in reality it would make human cloning a protected constitutional right. Unless Missourians refuse to sign the "Missouri Cures" petition, it may soon find its way onto the November ballot.
The pro-cloning group, Missourians for Lifesaving Cures, would like you to believe this initiative is all about curing patients by using a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer. Using this phrasing -- which is simply a scientific description of the process involved in cloning -- is a thinly veiled attempt to protect human cloning through the state constitution. This amendment would give pro-cloning scientists access to Missouri taxpayer money to conduct unethical cloning experiments for embryonic stem-cell research.
[More at URL]
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ACT NOW: Contact Governor Lingle and ask for a veto of abortion bill
Hawaii Governor Lingle ready to sign abortion bill HB 1242
Family Research Council
April 26, 2006 - Wednesday
Hawaii (more on this state)
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06D16
Please call Governor Lingle TODAY. The Governor must make her decision on the abortion bill (HB 1242 HD1) by April 27, 2006. If you have not done so already, please contact her office by e-mailing the Governor or calling (808) 586-0034 and ask her to VETO the bill to protect women's health and safety.
This bill goes further than current constitutional case law requires, allowing late 2nd and 3rd trimester abortions in clinics - not hospitals. Allowing such later term abortions in an outpatient setting endangers women's health.
E-mail the Governor or call (808) 586-0034 today!
You can read the bill here.
----- 11 -----
New Proposal Urges SBC Action on Public School Exit Strategy
By Rusty Pugh and Jenni Parker
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 26, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/262006a.asp
(AgapePress) - Two years after a similar measure was blocked, Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) activists are again urging the denomination to remove its children from public schools.
The resolution calling for an "exit strategy" from public schools is co-sponsored by Texas lawyer Bruce Shortt and SBC Executive Committee member Roger Moran. The proposal asserts that recent federal court rulings have favored public schools "indoctrinating children with dogmatic Darwinism" and have limited parents' rights regarding what their children are taught, including what schools teach them on matters of sexuality.
Shortt recently spoke with the Associated Press about the resolution, saying he feels it is past time for Southern Baptists to start developing a plan for pulling their young people out of a public education system that keeps going from bad to worse. "As Christians, we are called to give our children a Christian education, not just some of the time but all of the time," he noted, "and the public schools have become, increasingly over the years, more and more antagonistic to Christianity."
[...]
According to a Christian Newswire report, Scarborough contends that public schools have long ceased to serve as a positive reinforcer of traditional values and today "are not even neutral on many crucial issues which are important to people of faith." He says public education has unfortunately been "hijacked by people who reject Biblical teachings on man's origin, the proper role of sex, and the acceptability of homosexuality."
[More at URL]
----- 12 -----
Quebecer tells Massachusetts Legislators of Danger to Children in Homosexual “Marriage”
by Hilary White
LifeSite
Wednesday April 26, 2006
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2006/apr/06042602.html
BOSTON, April 25, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Quebec resident, Louis DeSerres, added his testimony April 11, to that of Dawn Stefanowicz in hearings on homosexual “marriage” in Massachusetts. Stefanowicz had told legislators of her “traumatizing” upbringing in a homosexual household where her father introduced her to the gay subculture.
Most of the debates in Massachusetts over allowing homosexual partners to “marry” and adopt children have centred on talk of the “rights” of gay partners fully to imitate normal marriage. Little has been said by homosexual advocates on the protection or best interests of children.
[...]
Homosexual “marriage” he said, being based on transitory and unstable personal preferences and political motives, cannot provide children with the necessary identity that natural marriage gives.
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
Court Determines Christian Message on T-Shirt Offensive
Ninth Circuit Judge Delivers a Third Strike Against Traditional Values
By Jim Brown
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 26, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/262006b.asp
(AgapePress) - A constitutional attorney is denouncing a ruling by a three-judge panel of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that bars a San Diego high school student from wearing a T-shirt displaying Christians messages in opposition to homosexuality.
With a 2-1 decision, the Ninth Circuit upheld a lower-court ruling against Chase Harper, who was suspended by Poway High School for wearing a T-shirt displaying the messages: "Homosexuality is shameful" and "Our school embraced what God has condemned." Harper had worn the shirt -- without incident -- during an annual pro-homosexual event in 2004 known as the "Day of Silence." But when he wore it to school the next day and was ordered to remove it, he refused. The lawsuit emerged from that confrontation.
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
North Carolina Christians Take a Stand, Evil Flees
By Bill Fancher
American Family Association/Agape Press
April 25, 2006
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/252006b.asp
(AgapePress) - Christians in North Carolina have taken a stand against the pro-homosexual agenda -- and they're winning some of the battles.
Churches in the Charlotte area have taken on homosexual activists recently, and the results have been encouraging. Flip Benham of Operation Save America says he is elated. "As the Church comes out of the closet, we are finding out that many of the enemies of God are moving back into the closet," he says.
A case in point, Benham says, was the recent cancellation of the "Charlotte Pride" parade, a springtime gathering that in past years has featured transvestite dancers, homosexual comedians, and vendor booths pushing sadomasochism (S&M) merchandise. He credits the activist members of Operation Save America and their supporters with the turnabout.
"They just got so fed up with us that many of them left," he says. "And by the way, many of them came to know Christ through the witnessing of hundreds of Christians who came out in the street."
In another example 900 Christians showed up at a school board meeting where a proposal for a homosexual club in a local high school was denied -- because churches took a stand, says Benham.
[...]
The Bible is right, says Benham, adding that it is great to see the Church take a stand. "We've found out that it's true that when the church of Jesus Christ arrives at the gates of hell, the gates of hell cannot prevail against it," he exclaims.
[More at URL]
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Commentary & News Briefs
April 26, 2006
Compiled by Jody Brown
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/4/afa/262006h.asp
...The leader of a pro-family group in Virginia says he considering legal action against Arlington County for its investigation into the business policies and practices of a local Christian businessman. Upon being asked to duplicate two pro-homosexual films, Tim Bono of Bono Film & Video politely refused the business, citing his company policy -- do not duplicate material it deems obscene, that may embarrass employees or tarnish the company's reputation, or that is contrary to Christian and ethical values. But the customer making the request was long-time lesbian activist Lillian Vincenz, who took her complaint to Arlington County officials, asking them to force Bono to duplicate her materials. The county's Human Rights Commission subsequently began an investigation into the Christian businessman's actions, even conducting a public hearing to discuss the alleged "discrimination." Those actions by the Human Rights Commission, says Joe Glover of the Family Policy Network, may warrant a lawsuit for what he sees a violation of the religious liberties of Christian business owners. He sees the response of Vincenz -- a so-called "gay pioneer" in the area who has been promoting homosexual behavior for more than four decades -- as an attempt to quash religious freedom. "With the help of Arlington County, this lesbian activist proves that [homosexual activists are] really out to publicly use the power of the government to destroy the religious liberties of decent people," says Glover. The county has reportedly decided that Bono's actions violate Arlington County code that prohibits "discrimination by a public accommodation ... on the basis of sexual orientation or perception thereof." Glover, however, is seeking out business people in the county who would be willing as anonymous plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the county. The county's involvement, he says, is an "anti-Christian, pro-homosexual witch-hunt" against all businesses in the area. "It's a heavy-handed threat to turn government against Christians who want to live their lives according to scripture," Glover adds, offering his thoughts on the potential outcome of the case. "Even if [the homosexual activists] can't win a case like this on the merits, they're out to strike fear in the hearts of Christians who want to live according to their faith.," he says. (See related article) [Jody Brown]
[More at URL]
----- 16 -----
Christian Shop Ordered to Duplicate Homosexual Activist Videos
4/25/2006
By Robert Knight
Concerned Women for America
Virginia duplicator refused the job, citing Biblical grounds.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10594/CFI/family/index.htm
In a case similar to a Canadian Christian printer’s punishment for declining a job for a homosexual activist group, an Arlington, Virginia, video duplicator has been ordered by the Arlington County Human Rights Commission to do a job for a lesbian activist.
The April 18 order follows a March 9 hearing in which Tim Bono of Bono Film and Video cited constitutional freedom of religion protection in refusing to duplicate two pro-homosexual films for lesbian activist Lillian Vincenz, according to the Family Policy Network (FPN), which is seeking clients for a class-action suit against the county.
Bono, a Christian, said he did not want to violate his Biblical values by assisting the promotion of homosexual behavior. Bono Film & Video informs potential customers that the firm does not duplicate material that the firm deems obscene, could embarrass employees, hurt the company’s reputation, or that runs counter to the company's Christian and ethical values, Bono told FPN.
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Groups Endorse ‘School Risk Audit’ to Expose ‘Gay’ Agenda in Schools
Concerned Women for America
4/25/2006
By Robert Knight
CWA is part of coalition urging parents to use new survey to alert their communities.
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/10593/CFI/family/index.htm
Are your local schools promoting homosexuality?
There’s a new way to find out.
A coalition of pro-family groups is urging parents to do a “School Risk Audit” to determine whether and how the schools have become conduits for homosexual activism.
Concerned Women for America (CWA) has joined with Mission America, American Family Association, Citizens for Community Values, Family Research Council, Eagle Forum, Americans for Truth, Exodus Mandate, and several state organizations (see below at end of article) to recommend a “School Risk Audit” inspired by a resolution passed in 2005 by the Southern Baptist Convention and developed by Mission America President Linda Harvey.
Parents can download the audit form and use any portion they wish or the entire document. The Audit includes recommendations for parental action in the wake of the survey, such as how to alert school authorities and how to issue a press release.
[More at URL]
----- 18 -----
Another Greatest Generation? A Call To Action -- It's Now Or Never
by Guy Adams
Post-Chronicle
Apr 20, 2006
http://www.postchronicle.com/commentary/article_21215335.shtml
The issues of our day. Every generation has had them. The "Greatest Generation", as Tom Brokaw appropriately labeled them, saved the world from Hitler and Tojo in World War II. They saved the world for Liberty. We owe them. Like the situation we face in America today, they did not choose the time and nature of their battle, but they rose to the occasion nevertheless.
Who will take their place?
[...]
And yet somehow, we seem unable to adequately grasp and solve the issues of our day. These include, but are not limited to: ending abortion, the perversion of homosexuality, stopping gay marriage and the naturally ensuing hate speech laws that can effectively silence the Church, out-of-control Judicial activism which is overturning the Constitution every other week, the out of control deficit, the war on terror, illegal immigration, the terrible plight of young black youth, and the legislating of "God" out of the Pledge and just about every other aspect of American life.
[...]
The mid and late 1960's saw the rise of the civil rights movement, which was long overdue. This movement has changed into a bizarre battle, not representing "civil rights" at all, but uncivil rights, such as the "right" of a baby to be prematurely aborted and murdered through no fault of its own. And the most unnatural form of human behavior, homosexuality, is actually being considered for legalization for the first time in history. Even an animal is smart enough to not defecate in its own bed, but polluting our culture and ignoring the many perils, we continue in this regard full steam ahead. No other time in man's history have people been so mad, so foolish, as to consider such a thing. Why now? One reason is because the homosexual lobby has managed to convince many Americans that their's is a struggle for "civil rights", that they are an oppressed minority that needs all sorts of special protections and extraordinary hate speech laws.
[...]
Christians and conservatives find themselves living in a culture overrun by forces that have forty years of momentum on their side, led by a generation of legal and legislative authorities who do not recognize God or His precepts. They ignore the Supreme Architect at their peril. However, we are convinced that the forces of good can prevail over the forces that want to reshape America into a socialist state. What will it take to win this war? Prayer and your action. Prayer to ask God to restore America to her original design, and sustained action on you part to put pressure on legislators and other influential leaders and policy makers, even Hollyweird. Let them know that you will not pay to see movies like Brokeback Mountain, and that you do not want to see a gay character in nearly every movie. Culture should be defined by the majority, not the one percent minority.
How long will the battle take?
[More at URL]
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Hawaii: The Abortion Tourism State? Calls Needed on April 27
Traditional Values Coalition
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2701
April 27, 2006 -- Unless Hawaii’s Republican Governor Linda Lingle vetoes House Bill 1242 HD1, the Aloha state may become an abortion mill tourism destination. The pro-abortion lobby has pushed through legislation that removes residency requirements for anyone seeking an abortion. It also permits late term abortions in a clinic or physician’s office.
The Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, President of Human Life International has recently drawn national attention to House Bill 1242 and how it will impact Hawaii and the abortion industry.
According to Rev. Euteneuer, “If Hawaii’s Republican Governor fails to veto this radical abortion bill, Hawaii’s image will suffer irreparable damage. Hawaii will go from the Aloha State to the Abortion state in nine short days if Governor Lingle lets HB 1242 become law.”
The bill says this: “The legislature finds that the current definition of ‘abortion’ is outdated and that the existing residency requirement violates the United States Constitution’s privileges and immunities clause and is, therefore, unconstitutional and invalid.”
TVC Executive Director Andrea Lafferty is outraged by this new assault on the unborn. “The Hawaiian people must vigorously oppose this effort by pro-abortion legislators to expand the numbers of abortions that will be done in Hawaii. By removing residency requirements, the legislators are trying to lure pregnant women to the state so they can abort their children and apparently have a pleasant vacation afterward. This is a disgusting ploy that should be rejected by Governor Lingle.”
TAKE ACTION TODAY: If you live in Hawaii, contact Governor Lingle immediately and ask that she veto HB 1242! This bill will become law unless she vetoes it by April 27 th.
Contact Governor Linda Lingle:
Executive Chambers
State Capitol
Honolulu, Hawai`i
96813
Phone: 808-586-0034
Fax: 808-586-0006
e-mail: http://www.hawaii.gov/gov/contact/email
Contact State Representatives:
http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/site1/house/members/members.as...
Contact State Senators:
http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/site1/senate/members/members.a.
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Congress Needs Pressure To Pass Key Legislation
Traditional Values Coalition
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2699
April 27, 2006 – Republican Senator Rick Santorum (PA) has introduced the Workplace Religious Freedom Act (WRFA). This legislation will establish the principle that employers must make reasonable accommodations for the religious needs of its employees—so long as it doesn’t impose an undue hardship upon the employer.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was designed to address the conflicts between religion and the workplace. Federal courts have ruled, however, that any “hardship” upon an employer is “undue,” thus leaving religious workers without meaningful protections.
In addition to TVC, the WRFA (S. 677) is supported by a broad spectrum of groups including the Christian Legal Society, Southern Baptist Convention, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, North American Council for Muslim Women, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and others.
TAKE ACTION: Contact your two U.S. Senators and ask that they sign on as co-sponsors of this important bill. Use CapWiz to contact your Senators.
Congress must also pass the Broadcast Indecency Enforcement Act (H.R. 310). This legislation will raise fines against TV and radio networks that use indecent language or images in their programming. Current fines are badly outdated and are ineffective against networks or with shock jocks like Howard Stern.
The Broadcast Indecency Enforcement Act will empower the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to levy huge fines against networks to punish them for using profanity and sexually explicit images on the public airwaves. It will allow the FCC to levy fines up to $500,000 for each violation! This will send a strong message to the networks that they cannot invade our homes with indecent materials.
On Good Friday, four major networks sued the FCC to prohibit this government agency from enforcing decency codes against profane language and sexually explicit content on public airwaves! The networks apparently want to pipe profanity (including the “f” word) and raunchy sexual content into our homes—without restrictions—during the “Family Hour.”
The Broadcast Indecency Enforcement Act was passed in the House in 2005, but is bottled up in the Senate Commerce Committee chaired by Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK). Sen. Stevens apparently doesn’t believe this legislation is needed.
Please contact your two U.S. Senators today and ask that they support passage of H.R. 310! Call the Capitol Hill Switchboard at: 202-224-3121 and ask to speak to your two Senators. Call Senator Stevens and ask him to support passage of H.R. 310. His number is 202-224-3004. Use CapWiz to write an email to your Senators.
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9th Circuit Assaults Religion And Freedom Of Conscience
Traditional Values Coalition
http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2698
April 27, 2006 – The 9th Circuit Court in San Francisco has issued another wacko ruling that violates free speech and religious expression. As usual, the radical opinion was written by Judge Stephen Reinhardt, a hard-core left Carter appointee, who has a long history of issuing rulings unrelated to the Constitution or the law.
The case is Harper v. Poway School District and involves a student who wore an anti-homosexual T-shirt to school to protest the homosexual-instigated Day of Silence on campus. The T-shirt called homosexuality “shameful” and included a Bible verse. School officials removed the student from his class and was threatened with suspension if he wore the shirt again.
The three-judge panel, headed by Reinhardt, used a series of pro-homosexual “studies” on alleged “bullying” of homosexual teens to reach its conclusion that homosexual students needed special protections in schools to avoid having their self-esteem damaged. On page 21 of the opinion, Reinhardt writes: “The demeaning of young gay and lesbian students in a school environment is detrimental not only to their psychological health and well-being, but also to their educational development.”
[More at URL]
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SAME-SEX MARRIAGE ISSUE RETURNS IN CANADA
REAL Women of Canada
March 2006
http://www.realwomenca.com/newsletter/2006_mar_apr/article_2.html
Prime Minister Harper stated, during the recent election campaign, that if he were elected Prime Minister, he would re-visit the issue of same-sex marriage in Parliament. Subsequent to the election, he stated that he would raise this issue, not right away, but "sooner, rather than later".
Although we do not know exactly when Mr. Harper will call for a vote on a motion to re-open the same-sex marriage issue in Parliament, we do know, from our analysis of the views of the MPs on the issue, that such a vote will be a very close one.
Our deep concern is that Mr. Harper will suddenly announce, without warning, that a vote on the same-sex marriage issue will be held, for example, the following week, and we will not be prepared for such a vote.
Even though we do not know the exact date of the vote, there are several facts that we do know:
[More at URL]
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FRANCE REJECTS SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
REAL Women of Canada
March 2006
http://www.realwomenca.com/newsletter/2006_mar_apr/article_1.html
France, along with other European nations, may be on the road to perdition with its extremely low birthrate and the resulting economic problems. Nonetheless, France obviously cares, and cares deeply, about those children that it does have. With a birth rate of only 1.76, France desperately wants to protect the children that have been born to them.
At the request of the President of the National Assembly, Jacques Chirac, a special 30 member multi-party "Information Mission" was created to propose changes in French law to better protect the rights of children and to reflect changes in the French family.
In carrying out this responsibility, the Mission traveled to Spain, the U.K., Belgium, The Netherlands and Canada. The visit to politically correct Canada must have given them quite a shock! These countries, with the exception of the U.K., have all made same-sex marriages legal.
[More at URL]
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Wednesday, April 26, 2006
I Agree with the Pope
Faith and Freedom Network
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/04/i-agree-with-pope.html
Although I am not a Catholic, I took time this past week to read a portion of Pope Benedict XVI Good Friday’s prayer.
[...]
"Surely God is deeply pained by the attack on the family. Today we seem to be witnessing a kind of anti-Genesis, a counter plan, a diabolical pride aimed at eliminating the family. There is a move to reinvent mankind, to modify the very grammar of life as planned and willed by God. But to take God’s place, without being God, is insane arrogance, a risky and dangerous venture.”
[More at URL]
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-04-27 09:22 pm (UTC)I wonder what they do when they get to Song of Solomon.
North Carolina Christians Take a Stand, Evil Flees
By Bill Fancher
"lol we crasshed the queers party!! WE'RE COOL!!!1" e_e