Today's Cultural Warfare Update (1 of 2)
Oct. 29th, 2006 11:33 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdA lot of today's update is about election stuff, but one of the items that most turns my stomach is Focus on the Family's happiness over the Oklahoma City school board removing GBLT students from the school system's anti-bullying policies. They say that GBLT students should not be protected from students, teachers, and administrators who "do not think homosexuality is part of God's design." This whole recent focus on making it easier to bully lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgendered teenagers and children at school is one of the most petty and revolting manifestations of the theocon hatred for GBLT people that I have seen - and I've seen a lot.
A second theme in all the get-out-the-vote articles is the idea that voting and voting, well, you know, GOP, is a religious mandate - that it's biblically required. Again, it's part of the intentional sectarianism push. Fun.
Anyway, today's news.
There have been a couple of theocon news items about this, but my latest Microsoft shareholder proxy paperwork has a shareholder initiative to remove sexual orientation from Microsoft's internal corporate anti-discrimination policy. I'm not sure that they're buying stock for the specific intent of introducing anti-GBLT stockholder resolutions, but if they have stock, they're introducing them. This one says that DP benefits endorses "relations [that] have been condemned by the major traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam for a thousand years or more"; he also references the ban on lesbian and gay people in the military while pretending it's not a full ban, and oh yeah, fags are diseased and DP benefits for GBLT people hurt marriage, and straights deserve protections queers don't;
Chief executive Bush campaigns against queers to rally the base in the final days of the 2006 campaign;
Andrew Sullivan goes on the Hugh Hewitt show to talk about conservatism and gets grilled for two hours about whether he's a real Christian or not; meanwhile, Hugh Hewitt gets an assortment of Constitutional law issues hysterically wrong;
Fundamentalist effort to "Save Wal-Mart from the Radical Homosexual Agenda" - this in response to Wal-Mart's support for the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce; remember, the "radical homosexual agenda" is the right to do anything, such as run a business;
G.O.P. nationally moves to gaybashing in the final week of the campaign;
Remember the story a year or so ago, with the Tennessee teenager who thought his parents loved him more than they loved their own sense of self-righteousness and shipped him off to an ex-gay conversion camp when he came out to them? And then Tennessee said, 'hey, you're running an unlicensed mental health care facility, you can't do that.' Well, the anti-gay Alliance Defense Fund fundamentalist legal team got Tennessee to back off, so the "Love in Action" ex-gay conversion therapy boot camp stays open;
New Jersey rejects Federal funding over abstinence-education funding rules;
Focus on the Family article condemns Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court case ruling that you couldn't make gay people illegal, in a story attacking law schools for putting too much emphasis on international law;
Focus "we are oppressed" on the Family get-out-the-vote article declaring themselves David vs. the "mocking, hostile and life-destroying culture" Goliath; the outcome of this election "matters to God, and it should matter to us";
Ohio fundamentalist takes Republican leaders to task for not bringing armageddon sooner and delaying the second coming of Jesus Christ;
Focus on the Family/Alliance Defense Fund update on two cases, one where an anti-abortion protester was charged with violating a city noise ordinance with amplified recording players outside a woman's health clinic, another where the ADF is suing to let a "home for troubled youth" receiving public funds continue to discriminate based on religion - both are being called "religious liberty" cases;
Comprehensive-abortion-ban backers in South Dakota are running commercials calling the complete ban an end to "abortion on demand," painting abortion as frivolous and casual;
It's not the main point of the article, but Focus on the Family quotes an Evergreen Freedom Foundation wonk saying, "[The Washington State Education Association] worked to fight a repeal of a ban on homosexual preferences in the workplace" in an article condemning the NDA. This would, as far as I can tell, be a reference to the GBLT civil rights bill passed last year and the failed attempt to get enough votes to get a repeal on the ballot. Note how "equal treatment" becomes "preferences," or preferential treatment, when applied to GBLT people; this is, of course, intentional;
Focus on the Family promotes 22 endorsement sheets ("voter's guides") for the upcoming election;
FotF quotes President Bush's condemnation of the New Jersey Supreme Court ruling stating that GBLT couples deserve equal legal treatment under the New Jersey constitution, and handing it to the legislature to figure out how to handle that (civil unions, marriage, whatever);
Focus on the Family likes celebrities when they're on their side;
***** Oklahoma City school officials remove GBLT students from the anti-bullying policy; Focus on the Family applauds, saying that GBLT students should not be protected from students, teachers, and administrators who "do not think homosexuality is part of God's design," claiming that a GBLT-inclusive anti-bullying policy discriminates against anti-gay fundamentalists; this whole recent focus on making it easier to bully lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgendered teenagers and children is one of the most petty and revolting manifestations of the theocon hatred for GBLT people that I have seen;
Focus on the Family blames the ACLU for child porn on the web;
FotF main article against the New Jersey ruling, claims the court wants to redefine marriage "out of existence";
Focus on the Family, National Day of Prayer get-out-the-vote and get-out-the-prayers call for this election, supporting chief executive Bush (and through implication his party);
FotF complains about people complaining about church and other 501(c)(3) political activities and endorsements;
Seattle Times article on theocon-backed Steve Johnson for Supreme Court and incumbent Justice Susan Owens is quoted as an endorsement by Faith and Freedom Network, calling out Steve Johnson's opposition to GBLT marriage rights;
Faith and Freedom Network's condemnation of the New Jersey ruling; the best part is where they say denying GBLT marriage rights isn't discrimination since GBLT people are free to marry opposite-gender partners. Presumably this is just like how banning the Star of David wouldn't be religious discrimination since Jews would be free to wear any crucifix they desired.
----- 1 -----
Microsoft 2006 Proxy Statement
Annual Meeting of Shareholders
on November 14, 2006
[Received in paper mail]
[Ed. Note: this is a stockholder proposal. It does not have the support of Microsoft corporate management. The board recommends a vote against the proposal.]
Shareholder Proposal No. 2
Mr. Thomas Strobhar, xxxx Upper Bellbrook Road, Xenia, Ohio 45385, has notified the Company that he intends to submit the following proposal at this year's Annual Meeting:
Whereas, our company seeks to hire the most qualified person and has never had a policy discriminating against any person, or group of persons, for any reason.
Whereas, it would be inappropriate and possibly illegal to ask a job applicant or employee about their sexual interests, inclinations and activities. [Ed. note: note here how there is no such thing as "orientation," which is consistent with the fundamentalist line that being GBLT is willful perversion.]
Whereas, it is similarly inappropriate and legally problematic for employees to discuss personal sexual matters while on the job.
Whereas, unlike the issues of race, age, gender and certain physical disabilities, it would be impossible to discern a person's sexual orientation from their appearance. [Ed. note: note "certain," and note the lack of inclusion of religious belief.]
Whereas, unless an employee chooses to talk about their sexual interests or activities while working, the issue of sexual orientation is, essentially moot. [Ed. note: note that there is no possibility of simple mention of your partner, as, again, being queer is solely about sex and of course there are no true relationships between people like us.]
Whereas, according to the website of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the largest national lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender political organization, "an inclusive non-discrimination policy (one that refers to sexual orientation) is a key facet of the rationale for extending domestic partner benefits.' The HRC adds, "Establishing a benefits policy that includes your company's gay and lesbian employees is a logical outgrowth of your company's own non-discrimination policy..."
Whereas, domestic partner benefit policies pay employee benefits based on the employee engaging in unmarried, homosexual relations. These relations have been condemned by the major traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam for a thousand years or more.
Whereas, the Armed Forces of the United States is one of the largest and most diverse organizations in the world. They protect the security of us all while adhering to a "don't ask, don't tell policy" regarding sexual interests.
Whereas, our company does not discriminate against tobacco users when they apply for a job even though they are not protected by any employment clause. It also does not pay tobacco users special benefits based on the engaging in this personally risky behavior.
Whereas, those who engage in homosexual sex are at a significantly higher risk for HIV/ADS and other sexually transmitted diseases;
Whereas, marriage between heterosexuals has been protected and encouraged by a wide range of societies, cultures and faiths for ages.
Resolved: the shareholders request that Microsoft request that Microsoft form a committee to explore ways to formulate an equal employment opportunity policy which compiles with all federal, state and local regulations but does not make a reference to any matters related to sexual interests, activities or orientation. [Ed. Note: Ah! First note to orientation.]
Statement: While the legal institution of marriage between a man and a woman should be protected, the sexual interests, inclinations and activities of all employees should be a private matter, not a corporate concern.
----- 2 -----
Bush on late campaign blitz; gay-marriage stand draws big response
By Molly Hennessy-Fiske and James Gerstenzang
Los Angeles Times
Sunday, October 29, 2006
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003328791_bush29.html
SELLERSBURG, Ind. — At his first campaign rally this election season, President Bush on Saturday galvanized supporters in a packed high-school gym by pledging to oppose gay marriage, a theme Republican candidates have revived after a New Jersey court ruling in favor of gay couples.
"Activist judges try to define America by court order," Bush told the crowd of 4,000 at Silver Creek High School, flanked by local Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-Ind., who is running for re-election. "Just this week in New Jersey, another activist court issued a ruling that raises doubt about the institution of marriage. We believe marriage is between a man and a woman."
At that, the crowd went wild, members shouting "USA," stomping feet and shaking pompoms.
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Andrew Sullivan on The Conservative Soul
The Hugh Hewitt Show
10-25-06 at 11:58 PM
http://hughhewitt.townhall.com/Transcript_Page.aspx?ContentGuid=1f05feeb-8739-495d-befb-5617d890b118
HH: Joined now by Andrew Sullivan, author of The Conservative Soul: How We Lost It, How To Get It Back, in bookstores everywhere. I will link it at Hughhewitt.com a little bit later. We’ve got Andrew for the next hour and a half. Andrew Sullivan, welcome to the Hugh Hewitt Show.
AS: Thank you.
HH: Andrew, you’ve often been invited onto the program to debate about something, and you’ve always declined. Why?
AS: I think twice I’ve been invited, and said…because I just had better things to do, frankly, and I have a blog to fill all day long, and I don’t think that you’re necessarily always the fairest of interviewers.
[...]
HH: Okay, I just was wondering, because there’s a lot of Con Law in the book, and we’ll get to that. Are you a Christian?
AS: What kind of question is that?
HH: Well, you write a lot about your faith in here, and I would just…
AS: Well then, obviously I am.
HH: Well, I don’t know. I was going to ask. Do you think you are?
AS: Well, if you’ve read the book, you’ll surely know.
HH: Okay. Let me ask you this…
AS: Are you a Christian?
HH: Do you believe Jesus Christ rose from the dead?
AS: Yes.
HH: Okay. And you’re a Catholic…
[More at URL]
----- 4 -----
Help Save Wal-Mart from the Radical Homosexual Agenda
savewalmart.com
Online as of 27 October 2006
http://www.savewalmart.com/introduction.asp
Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart was born in 1918 to a family of farmers. While in the eighth grade, Mr. Walton became the youngest Eagle Scout in Missouri's history (as an adult he received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scout's of America).
[...]
In 1985, Mr. Walton began a program aimed at ending communism in Central America. He desired to promote capitalism and privatization throughout the world. Part of his vision, which later became a reality, was to offer scholarships to Central American students. These scholarships would bring these students to the United States and enroll them in Christian universities. He knew that Christianity was the only way to end communism.
The Walton's supported various charities around the United States. The Sam & Helen Walton Award was created in 1991 when the Walton’s gave a six million dollar gift to the Presbyterian Church. This gift included an endowment of three million dollars. This endowment provided annual awards to new church developments that were working in creative ways to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the local community. Not ashamed of being a Christian, Mr. Walton, through Wal-Mart also had a gospel group called "The Singing Truck Drivers" and a management singing group called "Jimmy Walker and the Accountants".
God blessed Wal-Mart because Sam Walton chose to honor God and run his business according to biblical principles.
Then Something Happened!
American businesses across the nation are being blackmailed by the devil himself. They are being forced by the "politically correct" dogma (abortion, homosexuality, etc) of our day to accept his terms. If one chooses to defy this dogma, he will be forever branded as a right-wing, bigoted fascist, bent on forcing his own religion (Christianity) down everyone else’s throat. If the Church or any business will not accept these terms, or truly honors God, there will be hell to pay!
Now Satan has Wal-Mart in his line of fire!
[Ed. Note: Bold as in original]
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
G.O.P. Moves Fast to Reignite Issue of Gay Marriage
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
The New York Times
Published: October 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/27/us/politics/27marriage.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
WASHINGTON, Oct. 26 — The divisive debate over gay marriage, which played a prominent role in 2004 campaigns but this year largely faded from view, erupted anew on Thursday as President Bush and Republicans across the country tried to use a court ruling in New Jersey to rally dispirited conservatives to the polls.
Wednesday’s ruling, in which the New Jersey Supreme Court decided that gay couples are entitled to the same legal rights and financial benefits as heterosexual couples, had immediate ripple effects, especially in Senate races in some of the eight states where voters are considering constitutional amendments to ban gay marriage.
[...]
“Yesterday in New Jersey, we had another activist court issue a ruling that raises doubts about the institution of marriage,” Mr. Bush said at a luncheon at the Iowa State Fairgrounds that raised $400,000 for Mr. Lamberti.
The president drew applause when he reiterated his long-held stance that marriage was “a union between a man and a woman,” adding, “I believe it’s a sacred institution that is critical to the health of our society and the well-being of families, and it must be defended.”
The ruling in New Jersey left it to the Legislature to decide whether to legalize gay marriage. Even so, the threat that gay marriage could become legal energized conservatives at a time when Republican strategists say that turning out the base could make the difference between winning and losing on Nov. 7. With many independent analysts predicting Republicans will lose the House and possibly the Senate, President Bush’s political team is counting on the party’s sophisticated voter turnout machinery to hold Democratic advances enough that Republicans can at least maintain control.
[More at URL]
----- 6 -----
Victory for Ministry Love in Action
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042477.cfm
The Tennessee Department of Mental Health agreed today to allow a Christian ministry to continue its outreach to people who are unhappy with their homosexuality.
In 2005 the state health department determined Love in Action to be a "mental health supportive living facility" and told it to either obtain a license or face possible closure.
Nate Kellum, an attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), said after ADF filed a lawsuit on behalf of the nonprofit ministry, the state acknowledged the licensing requirement could not be properly applied to Love in Action as defined in the state's mental-illness statute.
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
New Jersey Rejects Abstinence Funding
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042478.cfm
New Jersey will not accept federal abstinence dollars since doing so requires teachers to say that sex within marriage is best, the Kaiser Network reported.
The state's health and education department sent a letter to the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that declines about $800,000 in abstinence-education funds -- the first time the state has declined such funds since 1997.
Fred Jacobs, the state health commissioner, said the requirements for schools to teach abstinence until marriage are too limiting.
[More at URL]
----- 8 -----
Colleges Stressing International Law
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042475.cfm
Harvard, Stanford and others spending more time on subjects that have nothing to do with the U.S. jurisprudence.
Some of America's leading law schools — Harvard, Stanford and the University of Michigan — are steeping first-year students in an education with a decidedly international bent.
Instead of establishing American basics of law like contracts and the Constitution, the schools are offering courses on global-law systems — in some cases before students are told about American law.
Harvard, for instance, modified its first-year curriculum to include global law because of the "imprint" the first year of study has on students. University officials argue that postponing classes on international law puts it in the category of an "add on."
That bothers David French, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund.
[...]
"We saw (Supreme Court) Justice Anthony Kennedy in the Lawrence v. Texas decision on sodomy look to Europe and some of the courts of human rights elsewhere to help him justify striking down a Texas law prohibiting sodomy," he said.
[More at URL]
----- 9 -----
Go Get Your Stone
Praying Scripture over the upcoming election is just as vital as casting a ballot.
by Carrie Gordon Earll
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042472.cfm
Are you praying for the November elections?
Like many Christians, I am.
Praying for elections is sometimes awkward because my allegiance isn't to a political party; it's to God. Yet, Scripture tells us to pray for those in authority (I Timothy 2:2), so pre-election prayer is more than a suggestion. It's arguably a command.
The outcome of an election is important: Who has authority over us (in the sense of elected or appointed public office) matters. It matters to God, and it should matter to us. Our elected leaders determine the laws and policies that impact our families, our religious liberties and our social climate. Issues we care deeply about — life, marriage and religious freedom — will be determined by these leaders. If we care about these and other issues, praying is not optional.
[...]
----- 10 -----
Preacher says GOP delaying 2nd coming
Monday, October 09, 2006
Becky Gaylord
Plain Dealer Reporter
http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/116038288540580.xml&coll=2
Voters should oust congressional Republican leaders because U.S. foreign policy is delaying the second coming of Jesus Christ, according to a evangelical preacher trying to influence closely contested political races.
K.A. Paul railed against the war in Iraq on Sunday before a crowd of 1,000 at the New Spirit Revival Center in Cleveland Heights, his first stop on what he hopes is a 30-city campaign.
The Houston-based preacher said he believes that the Bush administration has delayed the second coming because U.S. foreign policy has blocked Christian missionaries from working in Iraq, Iran and Syria.
[More at URL]
----- 11 -----
6th Circuit Considers Two Religious-Liberties Cases
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042461.cfm
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in two important religious-liberties cases this week.
In Teen Ranch v. Udow, the Michigan Family Independent Agency stopped placing young people with a home for troubled youth called Teen Ranch because it incorporated "faith-specific tenets" in its programs.
Joel Oster, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), said the state treated Teen Ranch as a second-class citizen.
"State officials, confused about the meaning of the First Amendment," he said, "decided that religious organizations helping children in need should not have the same opportunity to apply for public funding as other organizations.”
In Gaughan v. City of Cleveland, officials arrested a pro-life advocate outside an abortion clinic for playing a recording of a 9-1-1 call involving the clinic’s owner. The audiotape was of abortionist and clinic owner Martin Ruddock telling a 9-1-1 operator about a patient: "I just can’t stop the bleeding. I can’t see what I’m doing and I want her out of here."
The city said playing the tape violated a noise ordinance.
Jeff Shafer, senior legal counsel for ADF, said the city violated the pro-lifer's First Amendment Rights.
"City officials should not be able to use unconstitutional so-called ‘noise ordinances,’ " he said, "to silence the free speech of pro-life citizens."
----- 12 -----
Former Abortionist Backs S.D. Ban
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042464.cfm
Supporters of South Dakota’s abortion ban have unveiled a blockbuster TV commercial in their campaign to convince voters to affirm the legislatively enacted prohibition against ending preborn life.
The spot, which premiered Wednesday, features Dr. Patti Giebenk, an M.D. who once performed abortions for Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls.
[...]
"I don’t think (unfettered access to abortion) is necessary," she says in the commercial. "I think its time has passed."
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
Supreme Court to Weigh NEA Dues
Some teachers object to being forced to support liberal lobbying by the teachers union.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042459.cfm
In the upcoming fall term, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear an important case for pro-family teachers who don't want to be forced to hand money over to the National Education Association (NEA) to further its liberal political agenda.
[...]
Michael Reitz, an attorney with the Evergreen Freedom Foundation, said the political leanings of the NEA are abundantly clear.
"Just this year," he said, "they’ve been fighting a repeal of the estate tax, they worked to fight a repeal of a ban on homosexual preferences in the workplace and they’ve been doing a lot of other things that have really little to do with education."
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
Voter Guides Available from State Family Policy Councils
See what candidates think about the issues in 22 states.
by Stuart Shepard, managing editor
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042460.cfm
Many of the independent state-level family-policy councils associated with Focus on the Family have prepared voter guides for the upcoming election and made them available online.
The purpose of the guides is to help voters make informed decisions on Election Day based on where candidates stand on important issues. They are perfectly legal to share with family, friends or fellow church members.
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
Bush Decries N.J. Marriage Ruling
Former governor hopes to wed same-sex partner.
by Gary Schneeberger, editor
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042466.cfm
President Bush criticized the New Jersey Supreme Court today for ordering the state Legislature to grant homosexual couples the same rights as married couples – either by passing a law legalizing same-sex marriage or by creating civil unions.
"We believe in family values. We believe values are important," Bush said during a speech in Des Moines, Iowa. "And we believe marriage is a fundamental institution of civilization.
"Yesterday in New Jersey, we had another activist court issue a ruling that raises doubts about the institution of marriage. I believe that marriage is a union between a man and a woman, and I believe it's a sacred institution that is critical to the health of our society and the well-being of families, and it must be defended.
[More at URL]
----- 16 -----
Celebs Speak Out for Life in Missouri
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042454.cfm
While actor Michael J. Fox is appearing in TV ads trying to garner votes for candidates who support destructive embryonic stem-cell research, pro-life celebrities are countering the message with truth, LifeSiteNews reported.
Fox, who has Parkinson's disease, appears shaky in ads touting the need for more of the controversial research.
[...]
Jeff Suppan, a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, urges Missouri residents not to be deceived.
"Amendment 2 claims it bans human cloning," he says in the ad. "But in the 2,000 words you won't read, it makes cloning a constitutional right."
Kurt Warner, former quarterback for the St. Louis Rams, pointed out how it's been tried before.
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Sooner State School Officials Remove Sexual-Orientation Language
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042453.cfm
The Oklahoma City Public School District has removed language from an anti-bullying statute that listed sexual orientation as protected class, after concerned citizens pointed out the statute didn't fall in line with state and federal law, The Associated Press reported.
The state Legislature passed anti-bullying legislation after the 1999 shootings at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo. Soon after, the Oklahoma State Board of Education -- separate from the legislative move -- added the "sexual orientation" to the classes protected from discrimination.
[...]
All students should be protected from bullying, he said, but giving special recognition to students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered creates discrimination and intolerance directed toward students and faculty who do not think homosexuality is part of God's design.
[More at URL]
----- 18 -----
Child-Porn Sites Reported to the U.S. Rarely Shut Down
More than half of them appear to be hosted here.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042448.cfm
The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) says it has reported about 15,000 U.S.-based child-pornography Web sites to authorities over the last decade, but with little impact. The same group shared nearly identical information about sites hosted in the United Kingdom, and the problem was virtually eliminated there.
[...]
"We know where these sites are, and we know how to take them down. The real question is why aren't we taking these sites down that we know exist?" he asked. "Basically, because you have the ACLU arguing — and the federal government often agreeing — that it's unconstitutional to protect our kids online."
[More at URL]
----- 19 -----
New Jersey High Court Tells Lawmakers to Redefine Marriage
Conservatives say today's ruling in favor of same-sex unions must motivate values voters to get to the polls.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042450.cfm
The New Jersey Supreme Court today said it found no basis in the state constitution for limiting the benefits of marriage to one man and one woman. The court also told the state Legislature to create a legal union for gay couples within six months — either marriage or domestic partnerships.
Dr. James Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family, called the decision a "travesty."
"The New Jersey Supreme Court has blatantly and arrogantly ordered the state Legislature to rip up what marriage has meant for thousands of years," he said. "The justices have made clear their disdain and disrespect for the true decision makers in our democracy — the people — as well as for the institution of marriage."
[...]
"We only hope the residents of the eight states who will vote on such amendments on Nov. 7 recognize that their state may be only one court ruling away from being forced to accept gay marriage — just as we've seen in Massachusetts and New Jersey," he said. "Nothing less than the future of the American family hangs in the balance if we allow one-man, one-woman marriage to be redefined out of existence.
"And, make no mistake; that is precisely the outcome the New Jersey Supreme Court is aiming for with this decision."
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Don't Forget to Pray for Election Day
The National Day of Prayer Task Force urges all believers to petition God about the outcome of Nov. 7's races.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042421.cfm
The National Day of Prayer (NDP) Task Force is urging all American Christians to pray for the outcome of the upcoming midterm elections.
Jim Weidmann, vice chairman of the NDP Task Force, said the Pray for Election Day campaign is aimed at helping citizens understand their role in the electoral process.
"In a Christian nation, we have the biblical responsibility as well as the patriotic responsibility to cast our vote for those who govern us," he said. "We want people to spend time praying that those who are elected will align themselves with God's laws. We also want them to get out and vote so the Christian understanding is captured in the vote."
[...]
Some Christians may feel like Congress and President Bush haven't accomplished much in the way of legislation backed by values voters, but Weidmann said that means it is even more important to be involved in the process — especially with so many states voting on ballot measures on such important topics as protecting one-man, one-woman marriage.
"We're really trying to say, 'Don't be discouraged,' " Weidmann noted. "Let's try to get to the polls and encourage our friends to go to the polls and vote for those that align with what you believe."
[...]
President Bush is a prime example of the power of prayer for elected officials, he said.
"He is very, very open in talking about his dependence on those who pray for him," Weidmann said. "He tells us that he gets his strength to continue on with everything that he's had to deal with and his ability to think clearly from the prayers of the people that are praying for him."
[More at URL]
----- 21 -----
Churches Under Attack as Election Nears
Liberal groups looking to intimidate values voters into staying home Nov. 7.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 23, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042420.cfm
With Election Day just two weeks away, liberal activists are ramping up their efforts to silence Christians and keep churches from exercising their constitutional right to speak out on issues.
Among those under attack: churches in Wisconsin and Montana that commented on marriage-protection amendments and a pastor in Minnesota who personally endorsed a candidate.
[...]
Conservative commentator David Limbaugh told Family News in Focus if social conservatives fail to engage the electoral process, it could mean the redefinition of marriage, advances in abortion rights and a host of other cultural defeats.
"Don't be duped into staying at home," he said, "because if you do, you will have on your hands — on your conscience — the knowledge that you are contributing to the demise of this culture."
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
Thank You, Seattle Times
Faith and Freedom Network
Friday, October 27, 2006
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/10/thank-you-seattle-times.html
In a recent article entitled, “Supreme Court Race: Candidates’ Views Easy to Tell Apart,” the Seattle Times did the Puget Sound area, as well as the State of Washington, a valuable service.
Often voters have difficulty defining exactly what judicial candidates are all about. We have done all we could do to inform voters and now are grateful that the Times has used their influence to further inform in ways that and to an extent that we cannot.
The Times says, “Voters have a distinct choice in the Supreme Court race between incumbent Justice Susan Owens and State Sen. Steve Johnson.”
Indeed they do. And the Times endorses Johnson. The Times says that Owens has endorsements from labor unions, environmentalists, gay-rights groups and Democratic Party organizations, while Johnson, who has a solidly conservative track record in the legislature, is backed by the building industry, major business groups and social conservatives.
[Editor's Note: the article they are quoting is not an endorsement. It's an article outlining the contrasts between the two candidates. Here is a URL to the story they are quoting.]
[More at URL]
----- 23 -----
New Jersey Supreme Court Rules on Marriage
Faith and Freedom Network
Thursday, October 26, 2006
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/10/new-jersey-supreme-court-rules-on.html
New Jersey’s Supreme Court, in their ruling on marriage yesterday, not only mandated the state legislature to redefine marriage in that state, but set a dangerous and telling precedent by encouraging and instructing the plaintiffs.
In their 4-3 ruling, the majority said, “The legislature must either amend the marriage statutes to include same-sex couples or create a parallel statutory structure, which will provide for, on equal terms, the rights and benefits enjoyed and burdens and obligations borne by married couples.” And they told the lawmakers they have 180 days in which to complete the task and re-write the state marriage laws.
The four justices who ruled in favor of same-sex marriage or its equivalent, civil unions, said, “The issue is not about the transformation of the traditional definition of marriage.” But it is.
[...]
Homosexuals have the same access to marriage as everyone else. Any homosexual man or woman is free to marry. It’s just that marriage, as an institution, is biblically and historically defined as between a man and a woman. This is not only true in America, but is historically true with all major religions and cultures.
The gay rights activists and their enablers sermonize that denying gays marriage, deprives them of equal protection. That argument is false because when we allow people of differing religion, race, gender or sexual orientation to participate and share in categories defined equally for all, discrimination does not exist.
[More at URL]
A second theme in all the get-out-the-vote articles is the idea that voting and voting, well, you know, GOP, is a religious mandate - that it's biblically required. Again, it's part of the intentional sectarianism push. Fun.
Anyway, today's news.
There have been a couple of theocon news items about this, but my latest Microsoft shareholder proxy paperwork has a shareholder initiative to remove sexual orientation from Microsoft's internal corporate anti-discrimination policy. I'm not sure that they're buying stock for the specific intent of introducing anti-GBLT stockholder resolutions, but if they have stock, they're introducing them. This one says that DP benefits endorses "relations [that] have been condemned by the major traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam for a thousand years or more"; he also references the ban on lesbian and gay people in the military while pretending it's not a full ban, and oh yeah, fags are diseased and DP benefits for GBLT people hurt marriage, and straights deserve protections queers don't;
Chief executive Bush campaigns against queers to rally the base in the final days of the 2006 campaign;
Andrew Sullivan goes on the Hugh Hewitt show to talk about conservatism and gets grilled for two hours about whether he's a real Christian or not; meanwhile, Hugh Hewitt gets an assortment of Constitutional law issues hysterically wrong;
Fundamentalist effort to "Save Wal-Mart from the Radical Homosexual Agenda" - this in response to Wal-Mart's support for the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce; remember, the "radical homosexual agenda" is the right to do anything, such as run a business;
G.O.P. nationally moves to gaybashing in the final week of the campaign;
Remember the story a year or so ago, with the Tennessee teenager who thought his parents loved him more than they loved their own sense of self-righteousness and shipped him off to an ex-gay conversion camp when he came out to them? And then Tennessee said, 'hey, you're running an unlicensed mental health care facility, you can't do that.' Well, the anti-gay Alliance Defense Fund fundamentalist legal team got Tennessee to back off, so the "Love in Action" ex-gay conversion therapy boot camp stays open;
New Jersey rejects Federal funding over abstinence-education funding rules;
Focus on the Family article condemns Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court case ruling that you couldn't make gay people illegal, in a story attacking law schools for putting too much emphasis on international law;
Focus "we are oppressed" on the Family get-out-the-vote article declaring themselves David vs. the "mocking, hostile and life-destroying culture" Goliath; the outcome of this election "matters to God, and it should matter to us";
Ohio fundamentalist takes Republican leaders to task for not bringing armageddon sooner and delaying the second coming of Jesus Christ;
Focus on the Family/Alliance Defense Fund update on two cases, one where an anti-abortion protester was charged with violating a city noise ordinance with amplified recording players outside a woman's health clinic, another where the ADF is suing to let a "home for troubled youth" receiving public funds continue to discriminate based on religion - both are being called "religious liberty" cases;
Comprehensive-abortion-ban backers in South Dakota are running commercials calling the complete ban an end to "abortion on demand," painting abortion as frivolous and casual;
It's not the main point of the article, but Focus on the Family quotes an Evergreen Freedom Foundation wonk saying, "[The Washington State Education Association] worked to fight a repeal of a ban on homosexual preferences in the workplace" in an article condemning the NDA. This would, as far as I can tell, be a reference to the GBLT civil rights bill passed last year and the failed attempt to get enough votes to get a repeal on the ballot. Note how "equal treatment" becomes "preferences," or preferential treatment, when applied to GBLT people; this is, of course, intentional;
Focus on the Family promotes 22 endorsement sheets ("voter's guides") for the upcoming election;
FotF quotes President Bush's condemnation of the New Jersey Supreme Court ruling stating that GBLT couples deserve equal legal treatment under the New Jersey constitution, and handing it to the legislature to figure out how to handle that (civil unions, marriage, whatever);
Focus on the Family likes celebrities when they're on their side;
***** Oklahoma City school officials remove GBLT students from the anti-bullying policy; Focus on the Family applauds, saying that GBLT students should not be protected from students, teachers, and administrators who "do not think homosexuality is part of God's design," claiming that a GBLT-inclusive anti-bullying policy discriminates against anti-gay fundamentalists; this whole recent focus on making it easier to bully lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgendered teenagers and children is one of the most petty and revolting manifestations of the theocon hatred for GBLT people that I have seen;
Focus on the Family blames the ACLU for child porn on the web;
FotF main article against the New Jersey ruling, claims the court wants to redefine marriage "out of existence";
Focus on the Family, National Day of Prayer get-out-the-vote and get-out-the-prayers call for this election, supporting chief executive Bush (and through implication his party);
FotF complains about people complaining about church and other 501(c)(3) political activities and endorsements;
Seattle Times article on theocon-backed Steve Johnson for Supreme Court and incumbent Justice Susan Owens is quoted as an endorsement by Faith and Freedom Network, calling out Steve Johnson's opposition to GBLT marriage rights;
Faith and Freedom Network's condemnation of the New Jersey ruling; the best part is where they say denying GBLT marriage rights isn't discrimination since GBLT people are free to marry opposite-gender partners. Presumably this is just like how banning the Star of David wouldn't be religious discrimination since Jews would be free to wear any crucifix they desired.
----- 1 -----
Microsoft 2006 Proxy Statement
Annual Meeting of Shareholders
on November 14, 2006
[Received in paper mail]
[Ed. Note: this is a stockholder proposal. It does not have the support of Microsoft corporate management. The board recommends a vote against the proposal.]
Shareholder Proposal No. 2
Mr. Thomas Strobhar, xxxx Upper Bellbrook Road, Xenia, Ohio 45385, has notified the Company that he intends to submit the following proposal at this year's Annual Meeting:
Whereas, our company seeks to hire the most qualified person and has never had a policy discriminating against any person, or group of persons, for any reason.
Whereas, it would be inappropriate and possibly illegal to ask a job applicant or employee about their sexual interests, inclinations and activities. [Ed. note: note here how there is no such thing as "orientation," which is consistent with the fundamentalist line that being GBLT is willful perversion.]
Whereas, it is similarly inappropriate and legally problematic for employees to discuss personal sexual matters while on the job.
Whereas, unlike the issues of race, age, gender and certain physical disabilities, it would be impossible to discern a person's sexual orientation from their appearance. [Ed. note: note "certain," and note the lack of inclusion of religious belief.]
Whereas, unless an employee chooses to talk about their sexual interests or activities while working, the issue of sexual orientation is, essentially moot. [Ed. note: note that there is no possibility of simple mention of your partner, as, again, being queer is solely about sex and of course there are no true relationships between people like us.]
Whereas, according to the website of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the largest national lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender political organization, "an inclusive non-discrimination policy (one that refers to sexual orientation) is a key facet of the rationale for extending domestic partner benefits.' The HRC adds, "Establishing a benefits policy that includes your company's gay and lesbian employees is a logical outgrowth of your company's own non-discrimination policy..."
Whereas, domestic partner benefit policies pay employee benefits based on the employee engaging in unmarried, homosexual relations. These relations have been condemned by the major traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam for a thousand years or more.
Whereas, the Armed Forces of the United States is one of the largest and most diverse organizations in the world. They protect the security of us all while adhering to a "don't ask, don't tell policy" regarding sexual interests.
Whereas, our company does not discriminate against tobacco users when they apply for a job even though they are not protected by any employment clause. It also does not pay tobacco users special benefits based on the engaging in this personally risky behavior.
Whereas, those who engage in homosexual sex are at a significantly higher risk for HIV/ADS and other sexually transmitted diseases;
Whereas, marriage between heterosexuals has been protected and encouraged by a wide range of societies, cultures and faiths for ages.
Resolved: the shareholders request that Microsoft request that Microsoft form a committee to explore ways to formulate an equal employment opportunity policy which compiles with all federal, state and local regulations but does not make a reference to any matters related to sexual interests, activities or orientation. [Ed. Note: Ah! First note to orientation.]
Statement: While the legal institution of marriage between a man and a woman should be protected, the sexual interests, inclinations and activities of all employees should be a private matter, not a corporate concern.
----- 2 -----
Bush on late campaign blitz; gay-marriage stand draws big response
By Molly Hennessy-Fiske and James Gerstenzang
Los Angeles Times
Sunday, October 29, 2006
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003328791_bush29.html
SELLERSBURG, Ind. — At his first campaign rally this election season, President Bush on Saturday galvanized supporters in a packed high-school gym by pledging to oppose gay marriage, a theme Republican candidates have revived after a New Jersey court ruling in favor of gay couples.
"Activist judges try to define America by court order," Bush told the crowd of 4,000 at Silver Creek High School, flanked by local Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-Ind., who is running for re-election. "Just this week in New Jersey, another activist court issued a ruling that raises doubt about the institution of marriage. We believe marriage is between a man and a woman."
At that, the crowd went wild, members shouting "USA," stomping feet and shaking pompoms.
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Andrew Sullivan on The Conservative Soul
The Hugh Hewitt Show
10-25-06 at 11:58 PM
http://hughhewitt.townhall.com/Transcript_Page.aspx?ContentGuid=1f05feeb-8739-495d-befb-5617d890b118
HH: Joined now by Andrew Sullivan, author of The Conservative Soul: How We Lost It, How To Get It Back, in bookstores everywhere. I will link it at Hughhewitt.com a little bit later. We’ve got Andrew for the next hour and a half. Andrew Sullivan, welcome to the Hugh Hewitt Show.
AS: Thank you.
HH: Andrew, you’ve often been invited onto the program to debate about something, and you’ve always declined. Why?
AS: I think twice I’ve been invited, and said…because I just had better things to do, frankly, and I have a blog to fill all day long, and I don’t think that you’re necessarily always the fairest of interviewers.
[...]
HH: Okay, I just was wondering, because there’s a lot of Con Law in the book, and we’ll get to that. Are you a Christian?
AS: What kind of question is that?
HH: Well, you write a lot about your faith in here, and I would just…
AS: Well then, obviously I am.
HH: Well, I don’t know. I was going to ask. Do you think you are?
AS: Well, if you’ve read the book, you’ll surely know.
HH: Okay. Let me ask you this…
AS: Are you a Christian?
HH: Do you believe Jesus Christ rose from the dead?
AS: Yes.
HH: Okay. And you’re a Catholic…
[More at URL]
----- 4 -----
Help Save Wal-Mart from the Radical Homosexual Agenda
savewalmart.com
Online as of 27 October 2006
http://www.savewalmart.com/introduction.asp
Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart was born in 1918 to a family of farmers. While in the eighth grade, Mr. Walton became the youngest Eagle Scout in Missouri's history (as an adult he received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scout's of America).
[...]
In 1985, Mr. Walton began a program aimed at ending communism in Central America. He desired to promote capitalism and privatization throughout the world. Part of his vision, which later became a reality, was to offer scholarships to Central American students. These scholarships would bring these students to the United States and enroll them in Christian universities. He knew that Christianity was the only way to end communism.
The Walton's supported various charities around the United States. The Sam & Helen Walton Award was created in 1991 when the Walton’s gave a six million dollar gift to the Presbyterian Church. This gift included an endowment of three million dollars. This endowment provided annual awards to new church developments that were working in creative ways to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the local community. Not ashamed of being a Christian, Mr. Walton, through Wal-Mart also had a gospel group called "The Singing Truck Drivers" and a management singing group called "Jimmy Walker and the Accountants".
God blessed Wal-Mart because Sam Walton chose to honor God and run his business according to biblical principles.
Then Something Happened!
American businesses across the nation are being blackmailed by the devil himself. They are being forced by the "politically correct" dogma (abortion, homosexuality, etc) of our day to accept his terms. If one chooses to defy this dogma, he will be forever branded as a right-wing, bigoted fascist, bent on forcing his own religion (Christianity) down everyone else’s throat. If the Church or any business will not accept these terms, or truly honors God, there will be hell to pay!
Now Satan has Wal-Mart in his line of fire!
[Ed. Note: Bold as in original]
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
G.O.P. Moves Fast to Reignite Issue of Gay Marriage
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
The New York Times
Published: October 27, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/27/us/politics/27marriage.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
WASHINGTON, Oct. 26 — The divisive debate over gay marriage, which played a prominent role in 2004 campaigns but this year largely faded from view, erupted anew on Thursday as President Bush and Republicans across the country tried to use a court ruling in New Jersey to rally dispirited conservatives to the polls.
Wednesday’s ruling, in which the New Jersey Supreme Court decided that gay couples are entitled to the same legal rights and financial benefits as heterosexual couples, had immediate ripple effects, especially in Senate races in some of the eight states where voters are considering constitutional amendments to ban gay marriage.
[...]
“Yesterday in New Jersey, we had another activist court issue a ruling that raises doubts about the institution of marriage,” Mr. Bush said at a luncheon at the Iowa State Fairgrounds that raised $400,000 for Mr. Lamberti.
The president drew applause when he reiterated his long-held stance that marriage was “a union between a man and a woman,” adding, “I believe it’s a sacred institution that is critical to the health of our society and the well-being of families, and it must be defended.”
The ruling in New Jersey left it to the Legislature to decide whether to legalize gay marriage. Even so, the threat that gay marriage could become legal energized conservatives at a time when Republican strategists say that turning out the base could make the difference between winning and losing on Nov. 7. With many independent analysts predicting Republicans will lose the House and possibly the Senate, President Bush’s political team is counting on the party’s sophisticated voter turnout machinery to hold Democratic advances enough that Republicans can at least maintain control.
[More at URL]
----- 6 -----
Victory for Ministry Love in Action
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042477.cfm
The Tennessee Department of Mental Health agreed today to allow a Christian ministry to continue its outreach to people who are unhappy with their homosexuality.
In 2005 the state health department determined Love in Action to be a "mental health supportive living facility" and told it to either obtain a license or face possible closure.
Nate Kellum, an attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), said after ADF filed a lawsuit on behalf of the nonprofit ministry, the state acknowledged the licensing requirement could not be properly applied to Love in Action as defined in the state's mental-illness statute.
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
New Jersey Rejects Abstinence Funding
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042478.cfm
New Jersey will not accept federal abstinence dollars since doing so requires teachers to say that sex within marriage is best, the Kaiser Network reported.
The state's health and education department sent a letter to the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that declines about $800,000 in abstinence-education funds -- the first time the state has declined such funds since 1997.
Fred Jacobs, the state health commissioner, said the requirements for schools to teach abstinence until marriage are too limiting.
[More at URL]
----- 8 -----
Colleges Stressing International Law
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042475.cfm
Harvard, Stanford and others spending more time on subjects that have nothing to do with the U.S. jurisprudence.
Some of America's leading law schools — Harvard, Stanford and the University of Michigan — are steeping first-year students in an education with a decidedly international bent.
Instead of establishing American basics of law like contracts and the Constitution, the schools are offering courses on global-law systems — in some cases before students are told about American law.
Harvard, for instance, modified its first-year curriculum to include global law because of the "imprint" the first year of study has on students. University officials argue that postponing classes on international law puts it in the category of an "add on."
That bothers David French, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund.
[...]
"We saw (Supreme Court) Justice Anthony Kennedy in the Lawrence v. Texas decision on sodomy look to Europe and some of the courts of human rights elsewhere to help him justify striking down a Texas law prohibiting sodomy," he said.
[More at URL]
----- 9 -----
Go Get Your Stone
Praying Scripture over the upcoming election is just as vital as casting a ballot.
by Carrie Gordon Earll
Focus on the Family
October 27, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042472.cfm
Are you praying for the November elections?
Like many Christians, I am.
Praying for elections is sometimes awkward because my allegiance isn't to a political party; it's to God. Yet, Scripture tells us to pray for those in authority (I Timothy 2:2), so pre-election prayer is more than a suggestion. It's arguably a command.
The outcome of an election is important: Who has authority over us (in the sense of elected or appointed public office) matters. It matters to God, and it should matter to us. Our elected leaders determine the laws and policies that impact our families, our religious liberties and our social climate. Issues we care deeply about — life, marriage and religious freedom — will be determined by these leaders. If we care about these and other issues, praying is not optional.
[...]
----- 10 -----
Preacher says GOP delaying 2nd coming
Monday, October 09, 2006
Becky Gaylord
Plain Dealer Reporter
http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/116038288540580.xml&coll=2
Voters should oust congressional Republican leaders because U.S. foreign policy is delaying the second coming of Jesus Christ, according to a evangelical preacher trying to influence closely contested political races.
K.A. Paul railed against the war in Iraq on Sunday before a crowd of 1,000 at the New Spirit Revival Center in Cleveland Heights, his first stop on what he hopes is a 30-city campaign.
The Houston-based preacher said he believes that the Bush administration has delayed the second coming because U.S. foreign policy has blocked Christian missionaries from working in Iraq, Iran and Syria.
[More at URL]
----- 11 -----
6th Circuit Considers Two Religious-Liberties Cases
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042461.cfm
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in two important religious-liberties cases this week.
In Teen Ranch v. Udow, the Michigan Family Independent Agency stopped placing young people with a home for troubled youth called Teen Ranch because it incorporated "faith-specific tenets" in its programs.
Joel Oster, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), said the state treated Teen Ranch as a second-class citizen.
"State officials, confused about the meaning of the First Amendment," he said, "decided that religious organizations helping children in need should not have the same opportunity to apply for public funding as other organizations.”
In Gaughan v. City of Cleveland, officials arrested a pro-life advocate outside an abortion clinic for playing a recording of a 9-1-1 call involving the clinic’s owner. The audiotape was of abortionist and clinic owner Martin Ruddock telling a 9-1-1 operator about a patient: "I just can’t stop the bleeding. I can’t see what I’m doing and I want her out of here."
The city said playing the tape violated a noise ordinance.
Jeff Shafer, senior legal counsel for ADF, said the city violated the pro-lifer's First Amendment Rights.
"City officials should not be able to use unconstitutional so-called ‘noise ordinances,’ " he said, "to silence the free speech of pro-life citizens."
----- 12 -----
Former Abortionist Backs S.D. Ban
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042464.cfm
Supporters of South Dakota’s abortion ban have unveiled a blockbuster TV commercial in their campaign to convince voters to affirm the legislatively enacted prohibition against ending preborn life.
The spot, which premiered Wednesday, features Dr. Patti Giebenk, an M.D. who once performed abortions for Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls.
[...]
"I don’t think (unfettered access to abortion) is necessary," she says in the commercial. "I think its time has passed."
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
Supreme Court to Weigh NEA Dues
Some teachers object to being forced to support liberal lobbying by the teachers union.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042459.cfm
In the upcoming fall term, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear an important case for pro-family teachers who don't want to be forced to hand money over to the National Education Association (NEA) to further its liberal political agenda.
[...]
Michael Reitz, an attorney with the Evergreen Freedom Foundation, said the political leanings of the NEA are abundantly clear.
"Just this year," he said, "they’ve been fighting a repeal of the estate tax, they worked to fight a repeal of a ban on homosexual preferences in the workplace and they’ve been doing a lot of other things that have really little to do with education."
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
Voter Guides Available from State Family Policy Councils
See what candidates think about the issues in 22 states.
by Stuart Shepard, managing editor
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042460.cfm
Many of the independent state-level family-policy councils associated with Focus on the Family have prepared voter guides for the upcoming election and made them available online.
The purpose of the guides is to help voters make informed decisions on Election Day based on where candidates stand on important issues. They are perfectly legal to share with family, friends or fellow church members.
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
Bush Decries N.J. Marriage Ruling
Former governor hopes to wed same-sex partner.
by Gary Schneeberger, editor
Focus on the Family
October 26, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042466.cfm
President Bush criticized the New Jersey Supreme Court today for ordering the state Legislature to grant homosexual couples the same rights as married couples – either by passing a law legalizing same-sex marriage or by creating civil unions.
"We believe in family values. We believe values are important," Bush said during a speech in Des Moines, Iowa. "And we believe marriage is a fundamental institution of civilization.
"Yesterday in New Jersey, we had another activist court issue a ruling that raises doubts about the institution of marriage. I believe that marriage is a union between a man and a woman, and I believe it's a sacred institution that is critical to the health of our society and the well-being of families, and it must be defended.
[More at URL]
----- 16 -----
Celebs Speak Out for Life in Missouri
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042454.cfm
While actor Michael J. Fox is appearing in TV ads trying to garner votes for candidates who support destructive embryonic stem-cell research, pro-life celebrities are countering the message with truth, LifeSiteNews reported.
Fox, who has Parkinson's disease, appears shaky in ads touting the need for more of the controversial research.
[...]
Jeff Suppan, a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, urges Missouri residents not to be deceived.
"Amendment 2 claims it bans human cloning," he says in the ad. "But in the 2,000 words you won't read, it makes cloning a constitutional right."
Kurt Warner, former quarterback for the St. Louis Rams, pointed out how it's been tried before.
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Sooner State School Officials Remove Sexual-Orientation Language
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042453.cfm
The Oklahoma City Public School District has removed language from an anti-bullying statute that listed sexual orientation as protected class, after concerned citizens pointed out the statute didn't fall in line with state and federal law, The Associated Press reported.
The state Legislature passed anti-bullying legislation after the 1999 shootings at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo. Soon after, the Oklahoma State Board of Education -- separate from the legislative move -- added the "sexual orientation" to the classes protected from discrimination.
[...]
All students should be protected from bullying, he said, but giving special recognition to students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered creates discrimination and intolerance directed toward students and faculty who do not think homosexuality is part of God's design.
[More at URL]
----- 18 -----
Child-Porn Sites Reported to the U.S. Rarely Shut Down
More than half of them appear to be hosted here.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042448.cfm
The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) says it has reported about 15,000 U.S.-based child-pornography Web sites to authorities over the last decade, but with little impact. The same group shared nearly identical information about sites hosted in the United Kingdom, and the problem was virtually eliminated there.
[...]
"We know where these sites are, and we know how to take them down. The real question is why aren't we taking these sites down that we know exist?" he asked. "Basically, because you have the ACLU arguing — and the federal government often agreeing — that it's unconstitutional to protect our kids online."
[More at URL]
----- 19 -----
New Jersey High Court Tells Lawmakers to Redefine Marriage
Conservatives say today's ruling in favor of same-sex unions must motivate values voters to get to the polls.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
October 25, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042450.cfm
The New Jersey Supreme Court today said it found no basis in the state constitution for limiting the benefits of marriage to one man and one woman. The court also told the state Legislature to create a legal union for gay couples within six months — either marriage or domestic partnerships.
Dr. James Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family, called the decision a "travesty."
"The New Jersey Supreme Court has blatantly and arrogantly ordered the state Legislature to rip up what marriage has meant for thousands of years," he said. "The justices have made clear their disdain and disrespect for the true decision makers in our democracy — the people — as well as for the institution of marriage."
[...]
"We only hope the residents of the eight states who will vote on such amendments on Nov. 7 recognize that their state may be only one court ruling away from being forced to accept gay marriage — just as we've seen in Massachusetts and New Jersey," he said. "Nothing less than the future of the American family hangs in the balance if we allow one-man, one-woman marriage to be redefined out of existence.
"And, make no mistake; that is precisely the outcome the New Jersey Supreme Court is aiming for with this decision."
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Don't Forget to Pray for Election Day
The National Day of Prayer Task Force urges all believers to petition God about the outcome of Nov. 7's races.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042421.cfm
The National Day of Prayer (NDP) Task Force is urging all American Christians to pray for the outcome of the upcoming midterm elections.
Jim Weidmann, vice chairman of the NDP Task Force, said the Pray for Election Day campaign is aimed at helping citizens understand their role in the electoral process.
"In a Christian nation, we have the biblical responsibility as well as the patriotic responsibility to cast our vote for those who govern us," he said. "We want people to spend time praying that those who are elected will align themselves with God's laws. We also want them to get out and vote so the Christian understanding is captured in the vote."
[...]
Some Christians may feel like Congress and President Bush haven't accomplished much in the way of legislation backed by values voters, but Weidmann said that means it is even more important to be involved in the process — especially with so many states voting on ballot measures on such important topics as protecting one-man, one-woman marriage.
"We're really trying to say, 'Don't be discouraged,' " Weidmann noted. "Let's try to get to the polls and encourage our friends to go to the polls and vote for those that align with what you believe."
[...]
President Bush is a prime example of the power of prayer for elected officials, he said.
"He is very, very open in talking about his dependence on those who pray for him," Weidmann said. "He tells us that he gets his strength to continue on with everything that he's had to deal with and his ability to think clearly from the prayers of the people that are praying for him."
[More at URL]
----- 21 -----
Churches Under Attack as Election Nears
Liberal groups looking to intimidate values voters into staying home Nov. 7.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 23, 2006
http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042420.cfm
With Election Day just two weeks away, liberal activists are ramping up their efforts to silence Christians and keep churches from exercising their constitutional right to speak out on issues.
Among those under attack: churches in Wisconsin and Montana that commented on marriage-protection amendments and a pastor in Minnesota who personally endorsed a candidate.
[...]
Conservative commentator David Limbaugh told Family News in Focus if social conservatives fail to engage the electoral process, it could mean the redefinition of marriage, advances in abortion rights and a host of other cultural defeats.
"Don't be duped into staying at home," he said, "because if you do, you will have on your hands — on your conscience — the knowledge that you are contributing to the demise of this culture."
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
Thank You, Seattle Times
Faith and Freedom Network
Friday, October 27, 2006
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/10/thank-you-seattle-times.html
In a recent article entitled, “Supreme Court Race: Candidates’ Views Easy to Tell Apart,” the Seattle Times did the Puget Sound area, as well as the State of Washington, a valuable service.
Often voters have difficulty defining exactly what judicial candidates are all about. We have done all we could do to inform voters and now are grateful that the Times has used their influence to further inform in ways that and to an extent that we cannot.
The Times says, “Voters have a distinct choice in the Supreme Court race between incumbent Justice Susan Owens and State Sen. Steve Johnson.”
Indeed they do. And the Times endorses Johnson. The Times says that Owens has endorsements from labor unions, environmentalists, gay-rights groups and Democratic Party organizations, while Johnson, who has a solidly conservative track record in the legislature, is backed by the building industry, major business groups and social conservatives.
[Editor's Note: the article they are quoting is not an endorsement. It's an article outlining the contrasts between the two candidates. Here is a URL to the story they are quoting.]
[More at URL]
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New Jersey Supreme Court Rules on Marriage
Faith and Freedom Network
Thursday, October 26, 2006
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/10/new-jersey-supreme-court-rules-on.html
New Jersey’s Supreme Court, in their ruling on marriage yesterday, not only mandated the state legislature to redefine marriage in that state, but set a dangerous and telling precedent by encouraging and instructing the plaintiffs.
In their 4-3 ruling, the majority said, “The legislature must either amend the marriage statutes to include same-sex couples or create a parallel statutory structure, which will provide for, on equal terms, the rights and benefits enjoyed and burdens and obligations borne by married couples.” And they told the lawmakers they have 180 days in which to complete the task and re-write the state marriage laws.
The four justices who ruled in favor of same-sex marriage or its equivalent, civil unions, said, “The issue is not about the transformation of the traditional definition of marriage.” But it is.
[...]
Homosexuals have the same access to marriage as everyone else. Any homosexual man or woman is free to marry. It’s just that marriage, as an institution, is biblically and historically defined as between a man and a woman. This is not only true in America, but is historically true with all major religions and cultures.
The gay rights activists and their enablers sermonize that denying gays marriage, deprives them of equal protection. That argument is false because when we allow people of differing religion, race, gender or sexual orientation to participate and share in categories defined equally for all, discrimination does not exist.
[More at URL]
