Today's Cultural Warfare Update
Feb. 10th, 2007 12:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdGetting caught up, one chunk at a time. There'll be more later this weekend again - that's what happens when you fall behind like that, I suppose. The first big deal in this update is that the Texas decision to include HPV in the standard vaccination set for schools is causing all kinds of theocon outrage - and to my surprise, apparently the school vaccinations in Texas are all opt-out, including this one, and that's not good enough. Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention speaks out against HPV vaccination as "a difficult issue" - all because of OMG WOMEN MIGHT HAVE MORE SMEXING IF THEY DON'T THINK THEY'LL DIE FROM CERVICAL CANCER!!1! and I only wish I was making that up. The second big deal is CWA attempting to turn a blog reader's comment - a comment which was deleted by the blog owner, I might add - into a possible conspiracy by "crazed ... homosexuals" to assassinate Christians. Oh, and lastly, CWA's Matt Barber floats the idea that Mitt Romney is "the father of 'gay' marriage." Funny!
Anyway, today's news:
Concerned Women for America spins a response on a blog into an attempt on someone's life; the blog owner did actually take down the comment once she found out about it; Matt Barber, Concerned Women for America's Policy Director for Cultural Issues, calls it "nothing short of cyber-terrorism" and demands legal action;
CWA calls the HPV vaccine, which prevents cervical cancer, "a sex virus vaccine" in condemning the Texas decision to require it as part of the school vaccination regime, which they call "an outrageous assault on girls and their parents";
CWA's Matt Barber up to bat again, condemning Israel's recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other countries;
CWA's Matt Barber up again, this time attacking Mitt Romney as the "Father of 'gay' marriage";
CWA's Mike Mears, director of state legislative relations, condemns Texas decision on the HPV vaccine;
CWA's Amelia Wigton condemns the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women;
CWA has a second (audio-only) article on the blog comment, this one headlined, "Homosexual Blog Puts Pro-Family Activist in the Crosshairs…Literally" - which is, of course, not just stupid, but incoherently wrong, as "literally" would mean that someone actually used something like a gunsight, when what actually happened is someone commented on a blog; also, their text summary implies that the blogger herself posted the comment, which is not true. The point of all this, of course, is to tie back to their semi-regular assertion that GBLT people are dysfunctional, violent, and otherwise unfit to be normal people; there's a lot about how GBLT people are "crazed" and hate all Christians;
CWA blames pr0n again for the Abu Ghraib torture scandal;
CWA condemns Portuguese attempt to legalise abortion within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy;
Richmond, Virginia story about a legislative proposal to prohibit state government from discriminating against GBLT in hiring for state jobs is opposed by CWA, who they report as saying it will "set a precedence [sic] of condoning illegal activities including sexually molesting children and bestiality";
The Southern Baptist Convention’s Richard Land talks about the HPV vaccine that prevents cervical cancer as "a difficult issue" and says "I don’t want the government to do anything that would encourage that kind of behavior" (meaning sex), but adds, "I don’t want premarital sexual intercourse to be a death sentence" - still, it's really neat watching the theocon movement be really unhappy with a cancer vaccine because the virus it prevents against can be spread sexually; Land even opposes the vaccine as a default, apparently - but can't quite bring himself to say he opposes it outright; according to this article's author and Richard Land both, the vaccine is opt-out in Texas, along with all other vaccines - but they're opposing even that;
Agape Press cranky about the Israeli recognition of a foreign same-sex marriage; oooh, this is cool; the article quote Concerned Women for America's Matt Barber as saying that this'll encourage Islamic terrorism so shouldn't have been allowed, and calls it "it’s just a step away from breaking out the golden calf";
Kansas Catholic Conference opposes HPV vaccination as part of school vaccination set in Kansas because it's "for a behavior that's not common on the playgrounds" - the news story itself just comes out and says the opposition comes from HPV being sexually transmitted;
Faith and Freedom Network condemns domestic partnership recognition in any form;
Faith and Freedom Network ACTION ITEM against "reciprocal benefits" legislation in Washington State, HB 1351; Gary Randall calls 1351 "one of the most discriminating bills the Washington legislature has seen in my lifetime" for... allowing same-sex partners to designate each other beneficiaries for certainly limited legal purposes;
FFN's blog against the WA-DOMA stunt initiative, which would have the justification for the ruling of the State Supreme Court against GBLT marriage rights applied equally to straight couples - and as such, would invalidate childless marriages. It's being done as a stunt to point out how asymmetrical (and stupid) that ruling was, and even he's aware of that, but he's still pissed off;
FFN puts out a PDF of their legislative agenda; the first is a bill to slow divorce proceedings (they're for it); the second and third are GBLT DP and marriage rights bills. (Obviously, they're against.)
----- 1 -----
CWA: Pro-Family Leader’s Life Threatened on “Gay” Web Site
Concerned Women for America
2/7/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12308/MEDIA/family/index.htm
Lesbian activist Pam Spaulding’s popular weblog Pam’s House Blend is known for its outrageous and controversial content. In addition to promoting anti-Christian bigotry, the North Carolina-based Web activist’s favorite pastime appears to be smearing pro-family leader and Americans for Truth president Peter LaBarbera with bizarre and hateful accusations and insults. However, House Blend’s typically intolerant and obscene content may have recently shifted from the absurd to the criminally violent.
In what was, at the very least, an apparent attempt to intimidate and frighten LaBarbera, who is married with children, “House Blend” published his home address in a January 13, 2007, thread titled, “Saturday this and that.” Shortly thereafter, someone identified as “Barry G. Wick” posted the following comments: “It’s across from a park in an area with cul de sacs. I’d bet it’s a residence … and across from a park. Snipers take note.” (emphasis ours) [Ed. note: No actual emphasis was in the web site.]
“Wick” later seemed to suggest that shooting LaBarbera would amount to an act of self-defense: “Self-defense for gay folks isn’t PC, is it? No, we have to be sure that we’re victims all the time. … When we start standing up for ourselves, we lose all the status of an under class. I refuse to be part of an underclass. I’m equal. And I’m gonna use any language, even outrageous language, to get my point across. … I’m a citizen … equal, proud, and willing to defend my way of life with my life. …”
Later in the same thread “Wick” made his true intent clear: “If I were Azerbaijani and living in Russia right now, I’d want to advocate violence against skinheads … [LaBarbera] and others like him ought to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, what future awaits them from a cadre of selected defenders willing to give up everything in order to protect the lives of gay and lesbian citizens. The greatest thing ever to happen to the [Martin Luther King] movement was the Black Panthers. Americans were shocked by an open display of firearms and Black Pride … Pushing back verbally … or with selected action isn’t dishonorable, it’s necessary.”
[...]
Concerned Women for America is deeply disturbed by this apparent threat to Peter LaBarbera’s life. Matt Barber, CWA’s Policy Director for Cultural Issues said, “This is nothing short of cyber-terrorism. There should be a thorough criminal investigation, and if it’s determined that a crime has occurred, the perpetrators should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
As of the time of this press release, the thread in question was still posted on Spaulding’s Web site.
[More at URL]
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CWA: Texas Governor Mandates STD Shot for Young Girls, Abuses Parental Rights
Concerned Women for America
2/5/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12293/MEDIA/life/index.htm
Washington, D.C. — In an extreme executive order that circumvents parents and the Texas legislature, Governor Rick Perry (R-Texas) has mandated that before entering the 6th grade girls must receive the HPV vaccine, a shot that prevents sexually active girls from becoming infected with an STD linked to cervical cancer. Concerned Women for America (CWA) believes that it is the right and responsibility of parents—not government—to choose whether or not their daughter receives the vaccination.
[...]
CWA President Wendy Wright said, “The Governor’s order forces little girls to be shot with a sex virus vaccine. He has circumvented debate on this controversial matter to the financial benefit of Merck, one of his campaign contributors. An opt-out provision puts parents in the position of having to resist forceful government officials, and puts the burden on parents when it should be on the vaccine maker.
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
CWA: Broken Promise in the Promised Land
Israel records homosexual “marriage” for first time
Concerned Women for America
2/1/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12286/MEDIA/family/index.htm
Washington, D.C. — For the first time in history, Jerusalem has recorded the “marriage” of a homosexual couple. Two men who wish to be identified as "Binyamin and Avi Rose" were “married” in Canada over the summer of 2006 and moved back to Israel where their marital status is now being recorded through the Interior Ministry’s Population Registry. Israel’s highest Court ruled in November that same-sex “marriages” that have been legally performed in foreign countries will now be included in Israel’s records. Concerned Women for America (CWA) prays that the nation of Israel will embrace and defend the Biblical definition of one man, one woman marriage and not go down the slippery slope that seeks to destroy traditional marriage.
CWA’s Policy Director for Cultural Issues Matt Barber said, “Christians, Jews and all people of faith from around the world will no doubt be saddened and shocked by this alarming development in Israel – as should anybody who recognizes the tremendous benefits conferred upon humanity by the institutions of legitimate marriage and family. It defies logic that the state of Israel would grant any official recognition to counterfeit ‘same-sex marriage.’
“God ‘made them male and female.’ The Biblical model irrefutably defines marriage as between one man and one woman. It provides that all sexual relations are to occur within the bounds of marriage.
“But this is not just a spiritual issue. Even within secular society, marriage has, by definition, joined male to female since time immemorial. Unless the Israeli government reverses course here, it has now inexplicably capitulated to the radical and destructive redefinition of marriage,” said Barber.
----- 4 -----
The Mitt Split - Conservatives Disagree on Romney
Concerned Women for America
2/6/2007
By J. Matt Barber
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12298/CFI/family/index.htm
Wearing his 2008 presidential aspirations on his sleeve and appearing the ever humble, yet iron-jawed and selflessly devoted, champion of the GOP's must-have conservative, pro-family base, outgoing Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney finds himself struggling to salvage his conservative credentials.
As first light of the 2008 presidential campaign casts its warm and gentle glow on those of us awake early enough to watch the sunrise, serious concerns are beginning to mount relative to the sincerity of Romney's commitment to traditional values.
On the central issues of abortion and so-called "same-sex marriage," he's cast himself as defender to the defenseless and guardian of the sacred. His handlers have portrayed him as the storybook knight, with wavy locks and sturdy armor unblemished - redeemed by a heartfelt conservative conversion.
But some leaders in pro-family circles have begun to test Sir Mitt's traditional values breastplate, and are questioning whether it may represent little more than a sheer conservative veneer, shielding an extensive and troubling liberal record. Many wonder whether his presidential aspirations may have sparked this eyebrow-raising political metamorphosis.
"I believe that abortion should be safe and legal. ..." - Mitt Romney, 1994
[...]
O.K. - you might say - that's fine. Romney was "pro-choice." This is America - people can change their opinion, right? Well, that may be true. Only one question - on the issues most important to conservative voters, why do Romney's opinions appear malleable, shifting in the wind as political expediency would seem to dictate?
In 2006, just four short years after he ran for governor and as his presidential ambitions were reaching a boiling point, Romney seemed to pull a 180.
Sounding as though he'd lost a bet to Rush Limbaugh on a Patriots/Steelers game, Romney completely changed his tune on abortion and Roe v. Wade saying, "Roe v. Wade does not serve the country well and is another example of judges making the law instead of interpreting the Constitution."
Was Governor Romney the "Father of 'gay' marriage?"
There's disagreement even within the pro-family legal community; however, there is a strong argument to be made that Romney, contrary to his pro-traditional marriage rhetoric, was chiefly responsible for unconstitutionally imposing "same-sex" marriage on Massachusetts and the rest of the country.
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
Texas Side Step
Mike Mears, Director of State Legislative Relations, CWALAC
Concerned Women for America
February 5, 2007
http://www.cwalac.org/article_457.shtml
On Friday, Texas Governor Rick Perry ordered all the young girls in his state to be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer. With this order, Texas becomes the first state in the country to mandate these controversial shots.
Merck, the maker of the vaccine, has pushed for laws requiring all school age girls to be vaccinated with their product. Merck is marketing the vaccine under the name Gardasil, a series of three injections at a cost of $350 for all three shots.
Gardasil can prevent many forms of cervical cancer caused by the human papillomavirus, or HPV. There are side effects to the drug, and long term effects of the vaccine are still untested.
Merck is pushing for legislation across the country that mandates every school age girl as young as eleven receive HPV vaccination shots. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last year approved the vaccine for girls aged nine.
News reports claim that if Merck is successful, they stand to make billions of dollars each year as a result of the requirement. Pro-family groups have been cautioning against mandates for any drug, especially one that guards against a disease that is caused by a sexually transmitted virus because such mandates undermine parental rights.
Tests on the new vaccine have been limited. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the vaccine can protect women from HPV for only five years. Since the long-term effect of the vaccine is not known at this time, Merck has indicated that a booster shot may be necessary, driving up the cost of the drug even further. Consequently, most girls would not be sexually active before the vaccine wears off. Parents and government will likely have to unnecessarily pay for the vaccine twice.
Critics of mandating the HPV vaccine have also pointed out that other vaccines (that are not required) will protect even more women and children. For example, the airborne flu virus is estimated to kill over 60,000 people every year in the United States, as opposed to 4,000 every year from cervical cancer, which is caused by the sexually transmitted HPV. The flu vaccine is not required.
Last week, Concerned Women for America sent out the following statement regarding the HPV vaccine and the many state bills mandating the vaccination of young girls:
“Concerned Women for America does not object to the new vaccine that protects against certain strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV, a sexually transmitted disease that can cause cervical cancer in women. Proponents of the vaccine, however, wrongly wish to compel every young girl from 9-11 years old to be vaccinated before she attends school.
“Concerned Women for America is committed to support, protect, and advocate the God-given right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children. Parents know what is best for their daughters and if given the information about this disease will make the best decision for the health of their child. Therefore, we urge lawmakers to resist mandating this vaccine.”
“Educate parents about all the risks of HPV and the vaccine. Enable parents in lower economic levels to have the vaccine available with government funding,” said Anne Hettinger of Concerned Women for America of Texas. But the Governor of Texas has gone far beyond that. With the stroke of his pen, parents have been coerced into compliance unless they can convince the bureaucracy otherwise. The burden of proof should not be on parents.”
In the Texas order, there is a so-called “Opt-Out” provision for parents who do not want their children to be given the shots for “religious and philosophical” reasons. This provision still demands that parents give government officials reasons as to why they object to the vaccine.
“I think everyone needs to be reminded that this is a disease that is not contagious,” said Michelle Newman of Concerned Women for America of Virginia. Virginia is facing legislation that will mandate that every young girl in the state be vaccinated. “You can’t get this by sneezing on someone.”
Merck has spent millions of dollars across the country in an effort to get its product into the bloodstreams of American children. According to Bloomberg News Service (BNS), Merck began its campaign to raise awareness of the vaccine among state lawmakers even before it gained approval last year and encouraged them to require the vaccine for children. BNS also reports that this new product is capable of generating as much $3 billion in annual sales for Merck and its shareholders. In just the fourth quarter of last year, revenue from Gardasil was reported to reach $155 million. The Associated Press (AP) reports that Governor Perry has received $6,000 from Merck’s Political Action Committee.
For his part, Governor Perry has been reported to say in the past that he sees no difference in the HPV vaccine and the one that protects children against polio. In an AP report, Governor Perry was quoted as saying, “If there are diseases in our society that are going to cost us larger amounts of money, it just makes good economic sense, not to mention the health and well being of these individuals, to have those vaccines available.”
With Governor Rick Perry’s order on Friday to mandate that every 11-12 year old girl in Texas be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted HPV virus, it appears that he has changed course and no longer believes it should be made available, but instead be forced upon Texas school children.
----- 6 -----
Project 535 Lobbies Against CEDAW
Amelia Wigton
Concerned Women for America
February 9, 2007
http://www.cwalac.org/article_460.shtml
On January 31, 2007, members of Project 535 descended on the Senate to lobby against the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Concerned Women for America’s President Wendy Wright spoke to the lobbyists in their morning briefing about the long battle with CEDAW and why it is so important to continue to fight the treaty.
CEDAW is a treaty that was proposed by the United Nations (U.N.) and signed by then-President Jimmy Carter in 1980. For the past 27 years, the treaty has failed to be voted out of committee. However, feminist activists have reportedly been putting pressure on members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to vote on CEDAW so that it can go before the full Senate for a vote. The Senate must have a two-thirds majority vote to ratify CEDAW.
The members of Project 535, CWA’s volunteer lobbying project, communicated to various Senators on Capitol Hill that approving the treaty would have a devastating impact on the United States. CEDAW would give an unelected and international body the power to interfere and dictate policies regarding social and gender issues within our country while allowing little oversight or objection.
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
Homosexual Blog Puts Pro-Family Activist in the Crosshairs…Literally
Concerned Women for America
2/7/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12311/CWA/family/index.htm
Lesbian activist Pam Spaulding’s weblog Pam’s House Blend has always taken aim at pro-family Christians for their biblical stand on homosexuality. Recently, however, comments were posted that literally invited harmful action against Peter LaBarbera, head of the Illinois-based Americans for Truth. Along with posting LaBarbera’s home address, the comments by “Barry G. Wick” noted that the address was “across from a park. Snipers take note.” Martha Kleder spoke with LaBarbera and Matt Barber, CWA’s Policy Director for Culture and Family Issues, about this situation.
[Martha calls it "a very serious threat."
Matt Barber: "Well, Martha, there is a web blog, a lesbian activist by the name of Pam Spaulding operates a web blog out of North Carolina titled Pam's House Blend. And in addition to constantly bashing Christians and people of faith, Pam's favourite target is Peter LaBarbera. She and other members of her blog like to smear Pete with various and sundry insults and outrageous claims and so forth. But they've taken it a step too far this time. [Ed. Note: Note the "spreading" of the comment from a responder to the blog writer herself.] What has happened in addition to posting Peter's home address on the web site, one of the individuals there - member of the blog - has actually made a threat on Peter's life. Suggesting that sniper's take note as to Peter's residence."
Peter LaBarbera: [Talks about going up there, calls it a, "snipers take note article." Note again the spread from a commenter to an "article." "The same guy, who goes by the name Barry Wick - probably not his real name - but he was justifying taking acts against Christian leaders to further the homosexual cause. So it's pretty scary stuff..." "We're also asking that Christians pray for Pam Spaulding and these radical homosexual activists who unfortunately are really so consumed with hatred for us because we are simply defending God's design for human sexuality." Notes that Pam wrote him saying that she didn't notice the comment was on the site and has taken it down. "I appreciate that, and I take her at her word, but, you know, she also engages in some very hateful rhetoric, Matt and I have talked about this a number of times, and, you know, it's sad that they feel the need to really demonise Christians with some of these awful things like, one of her posts, she applauded a guy who compared African-American Christian leader who was defending marriage as between a man and a woman, compared that man to Jim Jones, the mass-suicide cultist."
Matt: [Reads the scare quotes printed a few times.] "How's your family holding up through all this, Pete?"
Peter: "It's a little nerve-wracking..." [But says it's okay. He's talked to the FBI and the Durham, NC police. And will also be reporting to Naperville, IL police.]
Matt: "When something like this happens, the inclination is to be afraid, to not do anything, but I think Pete's doing the right thing here... there is very very possible criminal activity here... this needs to be investigated... hopefully this individual will be brought to justice and prosecuted to the full extent of the law." Says this will be "national news" if a "Christian leader" said the same thing. "I think that it highlights who the haters are here. Christians, true Christians, don't advocate violence. Who are the real haters here? Who are the intolerant people here?"
Peter: "Exactly, Matt. We don't hate homosexuals. They say we do, but we don't. We oppose the sin, we oppose it like all sexual sin, it's just wrong. And we don't believe that people's essense is homosexuality, that's another key difference we have with the movement. ... if you hated people, you wouldn't want them to stop practicing dangerous behaviour, and you wouldn't want them to change and overcome it... you would just want them to wallow in their behaviour which is often very life-threatening, especially for male homosexuals. ... They think because we hate - and we don't, but they say we do - that they are justified in their rantings and their hateful utterances; I mean, Pam Spaulding herself calls me names, Porno Pete, and all these silly, ridiculous cheap shots, because they feel like they're justified in hating us because we oppose them." [Ed. note:
Matt: [Commenter claims self-defense rights. Matt calls this "utterly absurd."
Peter: "I think it's important to understand that there is this - amoung a portion of homosexual activists, there are these people who are just crazed, I don't know how else to describe it. When Mary Stocovich(?), the Catholic woman, was killed by a homosexual in Chicago, there were some blog postings... where they said that Mary Stackworth(?) had it coming to her!"
Peter: "When you're dealing with crazed individuals, you don't know who is exaggerating and who's going to take it seriously, or who's not exaggerating. We don't know who this guy Barry Wick is, obviously he's a very hateful individual. And as any of us - Matt Barber, Martha, you, me, Bob Knight [CWA's Culture and Family Institute head] - any of us who's standing for this age-old truth that homosexual behaviour is wrong, that men were not intended to have sex with men, or women with women, is gonna be vulnerable if you've got this fringe out there who is advocating this radical, radical action."
Matt: "You cannot incite violence... he's suggesting violence... he's suggesting that he, he feels justified in taking violent acts against you and... others who share you beliefs, so he opens it up to all Christians...."
Peter: Complains about having someone say they'd like to "push him into the street" at an anti-gay protest in Chicago some time ago.
Matt: [Promotes americansfortruth.org and promises more updates.]]
----- 8 -----
Budgeting Wars: Part I
Our military and our kids have a common enemy -- pornography.
By Jan LaRue, Chief Counsel
Concerned Women for America
2/8/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12320/LEGAL/pornography/index.htm
President George W. Bush released his 2008 budget on Monday, cashing in at $2.9 trillion dollars. It includes $481 billion for defense costs, plus another $142 billion to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. There's another $313.4 million for the U.S. Department of Justice "to address violence against children, including sexual exploitation through the Internet," according to the White House Office of Management and Budget. More on that in Part II.
Our troops and their families who are sacrificing themselves to save us from annihilation need and deserve all the moral support we can give them and all of the resources our national budget can bear. For that reason, government officials must make sure that none of our limited resources is spent in ways that harms rather than helps our troops and their families.
Members of Congress, including some in the President's own party, oppose the war in Iraq on philosophical and political grounds, as well as monetarily.
Many continue to cite abuses at the Abu Ghraib military prison in Iraq as an excuse to oppose the war. Certainly, the abuses at Abu Ghraib must not be repeated. But that requires a lot more than re-training guards and interrogators.
Much of what is depicted in the 279 photos and 19 videos taken at Abu Ghraib resembles behavior in hard-core pornography, which is readily available to our troops via the Internet, magazines and DVDs.
Porn peddlers feign patriotic support with phony offers of free porn to the troops. Our military chaplains are faced with the fallout.
[More at URL]
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Portugal To Vote on Abortion Referendum
Cara Cook
Concerned Women for America
February 9, 2007
http://www.cwalac.org/article_461.shtml
On February 11, Portuguese voters will cast their ballots on a referendum to legalize abortion-on-demand during the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. Portugal requires that 50 percent of registered voters cast ballots in order for a referendum to be valid.
However, Socialist Prime Minister Jose Socrates says that if the required number of voters do not show up, and a majority of those voting support liberalizing the abortion law, he will ignore the fact that the referendum is invalid and use his parliamentary majority to overturn current abortion restrictions. Thus, if only 30 percent of registered voters turn out to cast their ballots – instead of the required 50 percent – and a majority of that 30 percent favor legalizing abortion, Socrates will use parliament to make abortion a “right.”
A 1998 referendum on the same issue was ruled invalid after insufficient voter turnout. Back then, 51% of the voters who turned out supported current restrictions on abortion.
[More at URL]
----- 10 -----
Legislating Tolerance
A new Senate bill would expand state's anti-discrimination policy.
Lisa Chun
Richmond.com
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
http://www.richmond.com/news/output.aspx?Article_ID=4571937&Vertical_ID=23&tier=2&position=3
Capital News Service -- State employers will be forbidden from discriminating against people based on sexual orientation if a proposed Senate bill is passed.
The Code of Virginia currently grants hearings for discrimination based on race, color, religion, political affiliation, age, disability, national origin or gender. Sen. Jeannemarie Devolites Davis is patron of SB 820, which would add sexual orientation to that list.
"I think that as a public employer, it's very important that we open our doors for anyone who qualifies for any job and their hiring should be based on their ability to do the job and their qualifications only," Devolites Davis said.
[...]
Concerned Women for America of Virginia oppose the bill because they said it raises several doubts. The organization's information handouts state this bill will set a precedence of condoning illegal activities including sexually molesting children and bestiality.
The organization is concerned this bill might create conflicts such as forcing state agencies to partake in gay pride parades or requiring employees to undergo sensitivity training regardless of personal beliefs.
[More at URL]
----- 11 -----
Governor’s vaccination order buffeted by parental concerns
Feb 6, 2007
By Dwayne Hastings
Baptist Press
http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/bpnews.asp?ID=24906
DALLAS (BP)--Texas Gov. Rick Perry is receiving mixed reviews over his executive order requiring elementary school-age girls to receive the Gardasil vaccine targeting a sexually transmitted disease that can cause cervical cancer.
The governor’s Feb. 2 order, bypassing the Texas legislature, rankled many who say it tramples parents’ rights and might encourage premarital sex.
The governor took a step that should have been weighed by the people’s elected representatives, the legislature, said Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.
[...]
Like most states, Texas allows parents to opt out of the requirement to have their daughter vaccinated with the anti-HPV drug, or any other inoculation, if they have religious or philosophical objections. [Ed. note: This is the first I've seen of this. So that takes the whole "opt-out" argument and throws it away too!]
Land indicated it is a difficult issue. “While I certainly disapprove of premarital sex, and I don’t want the government to do anything that would encourage that kind of behavior, I don’t want premarital sexual intercourse to be a death sentence,” he said.
[...]
Land admitted he and his wife would have to seriously ponder the advisability of allowing their daughters to receive the vaccine if they were younger.
“If my daughter makes a wrong decision, if I can somehow protect her from that becoming a death sentence, then I would sit down with my wife and talk about it,” Land said. Yet he noted that ages 11-12 seem “awfully young” to be taking the vaccine.
[...]
“The idea that a governor is going to require this for a whole state even with a parental opt-out seems to me to seriously endanger the parent-child bond,” said Land, calling the governor’s order an “unwarranted intrusion by the governor into a role parents should play in these choices.”
[More at URL]
----- 12 -----
First same-sex ’marriage’ officially recorded in Jerusalem
By Chad Groening
Agape Press
http://www.spcm.org/Journal/spip.php?article6362
In November, Israel’s highest court ruled that same-sex "marriages" that were legally performed in other countries will be now included in Israel’s records. A spokesman for Concerned Women for America (CWA), the United States’ largest public policy women’s organization, calls this a “frightening” development.
Matt Barber, the CWA’s cultural issues policy director, is reacting strongly to the news that two men who were "married" in Canada over the summer of 2004 have moved back to Israel and had their union recorded through the Interior Ministry’s Population Registry.
[...]
The pro-family official’s concern, he explains, is that Israel’s acceptance of same-sex marriage will give ammunition to its Islamic enemies and fuel their propaganda. "It does provide them fodder — there’s no doubt about that,” he asserts. “They can now turn around and say, ’Look ; like we’ve been saying all along, Israel is the great infidel. They’re the heathen. Just look at what they’re doing now. They’re now recognizing gay marriage.’"
Unless Israeli government officials reverse their course, Barber laments, it would appear that they have now inexplicably capitulated to the radical and destructive redefinition of marriage. "For them to be recognizing so-called gay marriage officially in the Promised Land, the Holy Land, I think is just frightening, really,” he says, “and it’s just a step away from breaking out the golden calf.”
[More at URL]
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State Lawmakers Hold HPV Vaccine Hearing
FEATURED VIDEO
HPV Debate in Topeka
by Alana Rocha
Eyewitness 12 News - KBSD 6
http://www.kbsd6.com/Global/story.asp?S=6054863
It's a shot that's sparked emotional testimony in the statehouse. This afternoon lawmakers held a hearing on the HPV vaccine bill. The large turnout forced the committee to schedule the hearing for a second day.
It was standing room only as the House Health and Human Services committee learned about the HPV vaccine bill and what it would mean for Kansas girls. Representative Delia Garcia, Wichita-D, introduced the bill.
She says, "I'm really happy we had this many people show up and bottom line we have a vaccine that can prevent cancer."
The bill, if passed, would require all sixth grade girls entering public schools to get the vaccination. It's a move proponents say provides for more widespread protection.
The vaccine prevents cervical cancer in women caused by the genital human papillomavirus - a sexually transmitted disease.
That's at the source of the argument for many of the bill's opponents. Beatrice Swoopes, Kansas Catholic Conference says, "Our biggest concern is for a behavior that's not common on the playgrounds and to blanket immunize I think there's some question."
[More at URL]
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Domestic Partnerships: What To Do?
Monday, February 05, 2007
Faith and Freedom Network
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2007/02/domestic-partnerships-what-to-do.html
Anyone who follows the events in Olympia, Washington, or reads the Faith & Freedom website knows that the most recent campaign by those who seek to redesign the culture is the push for Domestic Partnerships. Click here to see a list of bills relating to gay marriage.
While the sponsors have assured both the press and the public that Domestic Partnerships or Civil Unions or Reciprocal Benefits, for that matter, are not really what they want, they continue their march to re-engineer our culture.
They want marriage for homosexuals.
So conservatives and the faith community are desperately looking for the appropriate response. While a majority of Washingtonians do not want gay marriage, there are many ideas out there as to how to handle the incremental step called DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIPS.
There is no amount of compromise, including Reciprocal Benefits, that will change the process. Not politically and certainly not ideologically.
This struggle is not about benefits for gays, grandparents, grandkids, or good friends, it's about authenticating a lifestyle and the political process is the vehicle.
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
HB 1351: Another Step Toward Gay Marriage
Faith and Freedom Network
Thursday, February 01, 2007
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2007/02/hb-1351-another-step-toward-gay.html
I did not attend the hearing yesterday on Washington State's HB 1351, but I listened carefully to the audio feed from Olympia.
Most of my thoughts were confirmed after speaking to those who were there.
From Representative McDermott’s opening comments explaining that this bill is about fairness and equality to the conclusion of the hearing, there was a tone set that this bill was a “done deal.”
In fact, the chairwoman commended two lesbians who spoke in favor of the bill in a tandem, evening news style.
The bill was extolled by wives of women, husbands of men, sympathetic heterosexuals and an old man who spoke of the struggle for gay rights as synonymous with the civil rights struggle of the 60’s and beyond.
There are many unintended consequences with this bill, from fiscal irresponsibility, to the loss of business that will surely leave the state if the full impact of the bill is laid out on the public. Perhaps the most surprising, but then again it shouldn’t be, aspect of this debate is the hypocrisy of the gay rights folks.
While they demand fairness and equality, they write, promote and hope to pass one of the most discriminating bills the Washington legislature has seen in my lifetime. And that's been several years.
[...]
First, call and write your Senators and Representatives. Please write, preferably a hand-written letter, expressing your opposition to the bill and ask them to oppose it. Follow up with a phone call to their office. The Legislation Hotline is: 1-800-562-6000. Click here for more contact information.
[More at URL]
----- 16 -----
Procreation or Annulment
Just when you think you’ve seen it all – you find you haven’t.
Friday, February 02, 2007
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2007/02/procreation-or-annulment.html
Last week an initiative was accepted by the Secretary of State’s office that if approved by voters will, among other things, require that couples married in Washington State file proof of procreation within three years of the date of the marriage or have their marriage automatically annulled.
That’s right. And the initiative, I-957, will also add the phrase, “Who are capable of having children with one another” to the legal definition of marriage.
This new organization is called WA-DOMA, clearly intending to be mistaken for the Defense of Marriage Act, which was upheld by the state Supreme Court last summer, but in this case DOMA represents Defense of Marriage Alliance rather than Act.
According to their own statement, they are saying that social conservatives have claimed that marriage exists solely for the purpose of procreation and that that was the basis for the Supreme Court upholding The Defense of Marriage Act or Andersen v. King County last summer. Therefore, they are now trying to enshrine in law the idea that if same-sex couples should be barred from marriage because they can not have children together, it should follow that all couples who cannot or will not have children together should equally be banned from marriage.
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Faith and Freedom Network
2007 Washington Legislation Newsletter
February 1, 2007
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/pdf/LegislativeNewsletter212007.pdf
Marriage
Support: SB 5470: Revising provisions concerning dissolution proceedings. (Slows the Divorce Process) This is a bipartisan bill which seeks to slow down the time frame of divorce proceedings and allow possible reconciliation to take place. Unfortunately, divorce is on the rise in our society, and divorce in the church is on pace with society at large. We must start looking at ways to help people think it over before they sever their marriage.
Oppose HB 1351 & SB 5336: Protecting individuals in domestic partnerships by granting certain rights and benefits. Domestic Partnerships create special rights for gays and seniors denied to others who cannot marry. Proponents admit Domestic Partnerships are intended to undermine the popular marriage limitation of one man and one woman. This bill will undermine marriage by creating an alternative to marriage for heterosexual seniors.
Oppose HB 1350 & SB 5335: Addressing civil marriage equality. Any redefinition of
marriage would create significant problems for traditional families in our society. As the law now stands, traditional marriage is limited to one man and one woman. This is, of course, the only type of relationship that can produce children. The intent of the law is to provide incentives for a man and a woman to remain together as long as possible, to provide benefits to spouses and offspring and to define the process of dissolving those relationships if the marriage fails (custody and provision for the children.)
[More at URL]
Anyway, today's news:
Concerned Women for America spins a response on a blog into an attempt on someone's life; the blog owner did actually take down the comment once she found out about it; Matt Barber, Concerned Women for America's Policy Director for Cultural Issues, calls it "nothing short of cyber-terrorism" and demands legal action;
CWA calls the HPV vaccine, which prevents cervical cancer, "a sex virus vaccine" in condemning the Texas decision to require it as part of the school vaccination regime, which they call "an outrageous assault on girls and their parents";
CWA's Matt Barber up to bat again, condemning Israel's recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other countries;
CWA's Matt Barber up again, this time attacking Mitt Romney as the "Father of 'gay' marriage";
CWA's Mike Mears, director of state legislative relations, condemns Texas decision on the HPV vaccine;
CWA's Amelia Wigton condemns the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women;
CWA has a second (audio-only) article on the blog comment, this one headlined, "Homosexual Blog Puts Pro-Family Activist in the Crosshairs…Literally" - which is, of course, not just stupid, but incoherently wrong, as "literally" would mean that someone actually used something like a gunsight, when what actually happened is someone commented on a blog; also, their text summary implies that the blogger herself posted the comment, which is not true. The point of all this, of course, is to tie back to their semi-regular assertion that GBLT people are dysfunctional, violent, and otherwise unfit to be normal people; there's a lot about how GBLT people are "crazed" and hate all Christians;
CWA blames pr0n again for the Abu Ghraib torture scandal;
CWA condemns Portuguese attempt to legalise abortion within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy;
Richmond, Virginia story about a legislative proposal to prohibit state government from discriminating against GBLT in hiring for state jobs is opposed by CWA, who they report as saying it will "set a precedence [sic] of condoning illegal activities including sexually molesting children and bestiality";
The Southern Baptist Convention’s Richard Land talks about the HPV vaccine that prevents cervical cancer as "a difficult issue" and says "I don’t want the government to do anything that would encourage that kind of behavior" (meaning sex), but adds, "I don’t want premarital sexual intercourse to be a death sentence" - still, it's really neat watching the theocon movement be really unhappy with a cancer vaccine because the virus it prevents against can be spread sexually; Land even opposes the vaccine as a default, apparently - but can't quite bring himself to say he opposes it outright; according to this article's author and Richard Land both, the vaccine is opt-out in Texas, along with all other vaccines - but they're opposing even that;
Agape Press cranky about the Israeli recognition of a foreign same-sex marriage; oooh, this is cool; the article quote Concerned Women for America's Matt Barber as saying that this'll encourage Islamic terrorism so shouldn't have been allowed, and calls it "it’s just a step away from breaking out the golden calf";
Kansas Catholic Conference opposes HPV vaccination as part of school vaccination set in Kansas because it's "for a behavior that's not common on the playgrounds" - the news story itself just comes out and says the opposition comes from HPV being sexually transmitted;
Faith and Freedom Network condemns domestic partnership recognition in any form;
Faith and Freedom Network ACTION ITEM against "reciprocal benefits" legislation in Washington State, HB 1351; Gary Randall calls 1351 "one of the most discriminating bills the Washington legislature has seen in my lifetime" for... allowing same-sex partners to designate each other beneficiaries for certainly limited legal purposes;
FFN's blog against the WA-DOMA stunt initiative, which would have the justification for the ruling of the State Supreme Court against GBLT marriage rights applied equally to straight couples - and as such, would invalidate childless marriages. It's being done as a stunt to point out how asymmetrical (and stupid) that ruling was, and even he's aware of that, but he's still pissed off;
FFN puts out a PDF of their legislative agenda; the first is a bill to slow divorce proceedings (they're for it); the second and third are GBLT DP and marriage rights bills. (Obviously, they're against.)
----- 1 -----
CWA: Pro-Family Leader’s Life Threatened on “Gay” Web Site
Concerned Women for America
2/7/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12308/MEDIA/family/index.htm
Lesbian activist Pam Spaulding’s popular weblog Pam’s House Blend is known for its outrageous and controversial content. In addition to promoting anti-Christian bigotry, the North Carolina-based Web activist’s favorite pastime appears to be smearing pro-family leader and Americans for Truth president Peter LaBarbera with bizarre and hateful accusations and insults. However, House Blend’s typically intolerant and obscene content may have recently shifted from the absurd to the criminally violent.
In what was, at the very least, an apparent attempt to intimidate and frighten LaBarbera, who is married with children, “House Blend” published his home address in a January 13, 2007, thread titled, “Saturday this and that.” Shortly thereafter, someone identified as “Barry G. Wick” posted the following comments: “It’s across from a park in an area with cul de sacs. I’d bet it’s a residence … and across from a park. Snipers take note.” (emphasis ours) [Ed. note: No actual emphasis was in the web site.]
“Wick” later seemed to suggest that shooting LaBarbera would amount to an act of self-defense: “Self-defense for gay folks isn’t PC, is it? No, we have to be sure that we’re victims all the time. … When we start standing up for ourselves, we lose all the status of an under class. I refuse to be part of an underclass. I’m equal. And I’m gonna use any language, even outrageous language, to get my point across. … I’m a citizen … equal, proud, and willing to defend my way of life with my life. …”
Later in the same thread “Wick” made his true intent clear: “If I were Azerbaijani and living in Russia right now, I’d want to advocate violence against skinheads … [LaBarbera] and others like him ought to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, what future awaits them from a cadre of selected defenders willing to give up everything in order to protect the lives of gay and lesbian citizens. The greatest thing ever to happen to the [Martin Luther King] movement was the Black Panthers. Americans were shocked by an open display of firearms and Black Pride … Pushing back verbally … or with selected action isn’t dishonorable, it’s necessary.”
[...]
Concerned Women for America is deeply disturbed by this apparent threat to Peter LaBarbera’s life. Matt Barber, CWA’s Policy Director for Cultural Issues said, “This is nothing short of cyber-terrorism. There should be a thorough criminal investigation, and if it’s determined that a crime has occurred, the perpetrators should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
As of the time of this press release, the thread in question was still posted on Spaulding’s Web site.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
CWA: Texas Governor Mandates STD Shot for Young Girls, Abuses Parental Rights
Concerned Women for America
2/5/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12293/MEDIA/life/index.htm
Washington, D.C. — In an extreme executive order that circumvents parents and the Texas legislature, Governor Rick Perry (R-Texas) has mandated that before entering the 6th grade girls must receive the HPV vaccine, a shot that prevents sexually active girls from becoming infected with an STD linked to cervical cancer. Concerned Women for America (CWA) believes that it is the right and responsibility of parents—not government—to choose whether or not their daughter receives the vaccination.
[...]
CWA President Wendy Wright said, “The Governor’s order forces little girls to be shot with a sex virus vaccine. He has circumvented debate on this controversial matter to the financial benefit of Merck, one of his campaign contributors. An opt-out provision puts parents in the position of having to resist forceful government officials, and puts the burden on parents when it should be on the vaccine maker.
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
CWA: Broken Promise in the Promised Land
Israel records homosexual “marriage” for first time
Concerned Women for America
2/1/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12286/MEDIA/family/index.htm
Washington, D.C. — For the first time in history, Jerusalem has recorded the “marriage” of a homosexual couple. Two men who wish to be identified as "Binyamin and Avi Rose" were “married” in Canada over the summer of 2006 and moved back to Israel where their marital status is now being recorded through the Interior Ministry’s Population Registry. Israel’s highest Court ruled in November that same-sex “marriages” that have been legally performed in foreign countries will now be included in Israel’s records. Concerned Women for America (CWA) prays that the nation of Israel will embrace and defend the Biblical definition of one man, one woman marriage and not go down the slippery slope that seeks to destroy traditional marriage.
CWA’s Policy Director for Cultural Issues Matt Barber said, “Christians, Jews and all people of faith from around the world will no doubt be saddened and shocked by this alarming development in Israel – as should anybody who recognizes the tremendous benefits conferred upon humanity by the institutions of legitimate marriage and family. It defies logic that the state of Israel would grant any official recognition to counterfeit ‘same-sex marriage.’
“God ‘made them male and female.’ The Biblical model irrefutably defines marriage as between one man and one woman. It provides that all sexual relations are to occur within the bounds of marriage.
“But this is not just a spiritual issue. Even within secular society, marriage has, by definition, joined male to female since time immemorial. Unless the Israeli government reverses course here, it has now inexplicably capitulated to the radical and destructive redefinition of marriage,” said Barber.
----- 4 -----
The Mitt Split - Conservatives Disagree on Romney
Concerned Women for America
2/6/2007
By J. Matt Barber
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12298/CFI/family/index.htm
Wearing his 2008 presidential aspirations on his sleeve and appearing the ever humble, yet iron-jawed and selflessly devoted, champion of the GOP's must-have conservative, pro-family base, outgoing Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney finds himself struggling to salvage his conservative credentials.
As first light of the 2008 presidential campaign casts its warm and gentle glow on those of us awake early enough to watch the sunrise, serious concerns are beginning to mount relative to the sincerity of Romney's commitment to traditional values.
On the central issues of abortion and so-called "same-sex marriage," he's cast himself as defender to the defenseless and guardian of the sacred. His handlers have portrayed him as the storybook knight, with wavy locks and sturdy armor unblemished - redeemed by a heartfelt conservative conversion.
But some leaders in pro-family circles have begun to test Sir Mitt's traditional values breastplate, and are questioning whether it may represent little more than a sheer conservative veneer, shielding an extensive and troubling liberal record. Many wonder whether his presidential aspirations may have sparked this eyebrow-raising political metamorphosis.
"I believe that abortion should be safe and legal. ..." - Mitt Romney, 1994
[...]
O.K. - you might say - that's fine. Romney was "pro-choice." This is America - people can change their opinion, right? Well, that may be true. Only one question - on the issues most important to conservative voters, why do Romney's opinions appear malleable, shifting in the wind as political expediency would seem to dictate?
In 2006, just four short years after he ran for governor and as his presidential ambitions were reaching a boiling point, Romney seemed to pull a 180.
Sounding as though he'd lost a bet to Rush Limbaugh on a Patriots/Steelers game, Romney completely changed his tune on abortion and Roe v. Wade saying, "Roe v. Wade does not serve the country well and is another example of judges making the law instead of interpreting the Constitution."
Was Governor Romney the "Father of 'gay' marriage?"
There's disagreement even within the pro-family legal community; however, there is a strong argument to be made that Romney, contrary to his pro-traditional marriage rhetoric, was chiefly responsible for unconstitutionally imposing "same-sex" marriage on Massachusetts and the rest of the country.
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
Texas Side Step
Mike Mears, Director of State Legislative Relations, CWALAC
Concerned Women for America
February 5, 2007
http://www.cwalac.org/article_457.shtml
On Friday, Texas Governor Rick Perry ordered all the young girls in his state to be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer. With this order, Texas becomes the first state in the country to mandate these controversial shots.
Merck, the maker of the vaccine, has pushed for laws requiring all school age girls to be vaccinated with their product. Merck is marketing the vaccine under the name Gardasil, a series of three injections at a cost of $350 for all three shots.
Gardasil can prevent many forms of cervical cancer caused by the human papillomavirus, or HPV. There are side effects to the drug, and long term effects of the vaccine are still untested.
Merck is pushing for legislation across the country that mandates every school age girl as young as eleven receive HPV vaccination shots. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last year approved the vaccine for girls aged nine.
News reports claim that if Merck is successful, they stand to make billions of dollars each year as a result of the requirement. Pro-family groups have been cautioning against mandates for any drug, especially one that guards against a disease that is caused by a sexually transmitted virus because such mandates undermine parental rights.
Tests on the new vaccine have been limited. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the vaccine can protect women from HPV for only five years. Since the long-term effect of the vaccine is not known at this time, Merck has indicated that a booster shot may be necessary, driving up the cost of the drug even further. Consequently, most girls would not be sexually active before the vaccine wears off. Parents and government will likely have to unnecessarily pay for the vaccine twice.
Critics of mandating the HPV vaccine have also pointed out that other vaccines (that are not required) will protect even more women and children. For example, the airborne flu virus is estimated to kill over 60,000 people every year in the United States, as opposed to 4,000 every year from cervical cancer, which is caused by the sexually transmitted HPV. The flu vaccine is not required.
Last week, Concerned Women for America sent out the following statement regarding the HPV vaccine and the many state bills mandating the vaccination of young girls:
“Concerned Women for America does not object to the new vaccine that protects against certain strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV, a sexually transmitted disease that can cause cervical cancer in women. Proponents of the vaccine, however, wrongly wish to compel every young girl from 9-11 years old to be vaccinated before she attends school.
“Concerned Women for America is committed to support, protect, and advocate the God-given right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children. Parents know what is best for their daughters and if given the information about this disease will make the best decision for the health of their child. Therefore, we urge lawmakers to resist mandating this vaccine.”
“Educate parents about all the risks of HPV and the vaccine. Enable parents in lower economic levels to have the vaccine available with government funding,” said Anne Hettinger of Concerned Women for America of Texas. But the Governor of Texas has gone far beyond that. With the stroke of his pen, parents have been coerced into compliance unless they can convince the bureaucracy otherwise. The burden of proof should not be on parents.”
In the Texas order, there is a so-called “Opt-Out” provision for parents who do not want their children to be given the shots for “religious and philosophical” reasons. This provision still demands that parents give government officials reasons as to why they object to the vaccine.
“I think everyone needs to be reminded that this is a disease that is not contagious,” said Michelle Newman of Concerned Women for America of Virginia. Virginia is facing legislation that will mandate that every young girl in the state be vaccinated. “You can’t get this by sneezing on someone.”
Merck has spent millions of dollars across the country in an effort to get its product into the bloodstreams of American children. According to Bloomberg News Service (BNS), Merck began its campaign to raise awareness of the vaccine among state lawmakers even before it gained approval last year and encouraged them to require the vaccine for children. BNS also reports that this new product is capable of generating as much $3 billion in annual sales for Merck and its shareholders. In just the fourth quarter of last year, revenue from Gardasil was reported to reach $155 million. The Associated Press (AP) reports that Governor Perry has received $6,000 from Merck’s Political Action Committee.
For his part, Governor Perry has been reported to say in the past that he sees no difference in the HPV vaccine and the one that protects children against polio. In an AP report, Governor Perry was quoted as saying, “If there are diseases in our society that are going to cost us larger amounts of money, it just makes good economic sense, not to mention the health and well being of these individuals, to have those vaccines available.”
With Governor Rick Perry’s order on Friday to mandate that every 11-12 year old girl in Texas be vaccinated against the sexually transmitted HPV virus, it appears that he has changed course and no longer believes it should be made available, but instead be forced upon Texas school children.
----- 6 -----
Project 535 Lobbies Against CEDAW
Amelia Wigton
Concerned Women for America
February 9, 2007
http://www.cwalac.org/article_460.shtml
On January 31, 2007, members of Project 535 descended on the Senate to lobby against the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Concerned Women for America’s President Wendy Wright spoke to the lobbyists in their morning briefing about the long battle with CEDAW and why it is so important to continue to fight the treaty.
CEDAW is a treaty that was proposed by the United Nations (U.N.) and signed by then-President Jimmy Carter in 1980. For the past 27 years, the treaty has failed to be voted out of committee. However, feminist activists have reportedly been putting pressure on members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to vote on CEDAW so that it can go before the full Senate for a vote. The Senate must have a two-thirds majority vote to ratify CEDAW.
The members of Project 535, CWA’s volunteer lobbying project, communicated to various Senators on Capitol Hill that approving the treaty would have a devastating impact on the United States. CEDAW would give an unelected and international body the power to interfere and dictate policies regarding social and gender issues within our country while allowing little oversight or objection.
[More at URL]
----- 7 -----
Homosexual Blog Puts Pro-Family Activist in the Crosshairs…Literally
Concerned Women for America
2/7/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12311/CWA/family/index.htm
Lesbian activist Pam Spaulding’s weblog Pam’s House Blend has always taken aim at pro-family Christians for their biblical stand on homosexuality. Recently, however, comments were posted that literally invited harmful action against Peter LaBarbera, head of the Illinois-based Americans for Truth. Along with posting LaBarbera’s home address, the comments by “Barry G. Wick” noted that the address was “across from a park. Snipers take note.” Martha Kleder spoke with LaBarbera and Matt Barber, CWA’s Policy Director for Culture and Family Issues, about this situation.
[Martha calls it "a very serious threat."
Matt Barber: "Well, Martha, there is a web blog, a lesbian activist by the name of Pam Spaulding operates a web blog out of North Carolina titled Pam's House Blend. And in addition to constantly bashing Christians and people of faith, Pam's favourite target is Peter LaBarbera. She and other members of her blog like to smear Pete with various and sundry insults and outrageous claims and so forth. But they've taken it a step too far this time. [Ed. Note: Note the "spreading" of the comment from a responder to the blog writer herself.] What has happened in addition to posting Peter's home address on the web site, one of the individuals there - member of the blog - has actually made a threat on Peter's life. Suggesting that sniper's take note as to Peter's residence."
Peter LaBarbera: [Talks about going up there, calls it a, "snipers take note article." Note again the spread from a commenter to an "article." "The same guy, who goes by the name Barry Wick - probably not his real name - but he was justifying taking acts against Christian leaders to further the homosexual cause. So it's pretty scary stuff..." "We're also asking that Christians pray for Pam Spaulding and these radical homosexual activists who unfortunately are really so consumed with hatred for us because we are simply defending God's design for human sexuality." Notes that Pam wrote him saying that she didn't notice the comment was on the site and has taken it down. "I appreciate that, and I take her at her word, but, you know, she also engages in some very hateful rhetoric, Matt and I have talked about this a number of times, and, you know, it's sad that they feel the need to really demonise Christians with some of these awful things like, one of her posts, she applauded a guy who compared African-American Christian leader who was defending marriage as between a man and a woman, compared that man to Jim Jones, the mass-suicide cultist."
Matt: [Reads the scare quotes printed a few times.] "How's your family holding up through all this, Pete?"
Peter: "It's a little nerve-wracking..." [But says it's okay. He's talked to the FBI and the Durham, NC police. And will also be reporting to Naperville, IL police.]
Matt: "When something like this happens, the inclination is to be afraid, to not do anything, but I think Pete's doing the right thing here... there is very very possible criminal activity here... this needs to be investigated... hopefully this individual will be brought to justice and prosecuted to the full extent of the law." Says this will be "national news" if a "Christian leader" said the same thing. "I think that it highlights who the haters are here. Christians, true Christians, don't advocate violence. Who are the real haters here? Who are the intolerant people here?"
Peter: "Exactly, Matt. We don't hate homosexuals. They say we do, but we don't. We oppose the sin, we oppose it like all sexual sin, it's just wrong. And we don't believe that people's essense is homosexuality, that's another key difference we have with the movement. ... if you hated people, you wouldn't want them to stop practicing dangerous behaviour, and you wouldn't want them to change and overcome it... you would just want them to wallow in their behaviour which is often very life-threatening, especially for male homosexuals. ... They think because we hate - and we don't, but they say we do - that they are justified in their rantings and their hateful utterances; I mean, Pam Spaulding herself calls me names, Porno Pete, and all these silly, ridiculous cheap shots, because they feel like they're justified in hating us because we oppose them." [Ed. note:
Matt: [Commenter claims self-defense rights. Matt calls this "utterly absurd."
Peter: "I think it's important to understand that there is this - amoung a portion of homosexual activists, there are these people who are just crazed, I don't know how else to describe it. When Mary Stocovich(?), the Catholic woman, was killed by a homosexual in Chicago, there were some blog postings... where they said that Mary Stackworth(?) had it coming to her!"
Peter: "When you're dealing with crazed individuals, you don't know who is exaggerating and who's going to take it seriously, or who's not exaggerating. We don't know who this guy Barry Wick is, obviously he's a very hateful individual. And as any of us - Matt Barber, Martha, you, me, Bob Knight [CWA's Culture and Family Institute head] - any of us who's standing for this age-old truth that homosexual behaviour is wrong, that men were not intended to have sex with men, or women with women, is gonna be vulnerable if you've got this fringe out there who is advocating this radical, radical action."
Matt: "You cannot incite violence... he's suggesting violence... he's suggesting that he, he feels justified in taking violent acts against you and... others who share you beliefs, so he opens it up to all Christians...."
Peter: Complains about having someone say they'd like to "push him into the street" at an anti-gay protest in Chicago some time ago.
Matt: [Promotes americansfortruth.org and promises more updates.]]
----- 8 -----
Budgeting Wars: Part I
Our military and our kids have a common enemy -- pornography.
By Jan LaRue, Chief Counsel
Concerned Women for America
2/8/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/12320/LEGAL/pornography/index.htm
President George W. Bush released his 2008 budget on Monday, cashing in at $2.9 trillion dollars. It includes $481 billion for defense costs, plus another $142 billion to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. There's another $313.4 million for the U.S. Department of Justice "to address violence against children, including sexual exploitation through the Internet," according to the White House Office of Management and Budget. More on that in Part II.
Our troops and their families who are sacrificing themselves to save us from annihilation need and deserve all the moral support we can give them and all of the resources our national budget can bear. For that reason, government officials must make sure that none of our limited resources is spent in ways that harms rather than helps our troops and their families.
Members of Congress, including some in the President's own party, oppose the war in Iraq on philosophical and political grounds, as well as monetarily.
Many continue to cite abuses at the Abu Ghraib military prison in Iraq as an excuse to oppose the war. Certainly, the abuses at Abu Ghraib must not be repeated. But that requires a lot more than re-training guards and interrogators.
Much of what is depicted in the 279 photos and 19 videos taken at Abu Ghraib resembles behavior in hard-core pornography, which is readily available to our troops via the Internet, magazines and DVDs.
Porn peddlers feign patriotic support with phony offers of free porn to the troops. Our military chaplains are faced with the fallout.
[More at URL]
----- 9 -----
Portugal To Vote on Abortion Referendum
Cara Cook
Concerned Women for America
February 9, 2007
http://www.cwalac.org/article_461.shtml
On February 11, Portuguese voters will cast their ballots on a referendum to legalize abortion-on-demand during the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. Portugal requires that 50 percent of registered voters cast ballots in order for a referendum to be valid.
However, Socialist Prime Minister Jose Socrates says that if the required number of voters do not show up, and a majority of those voting support liberalizing the abortion law, he will ignore the fact that the referendum is invalid and use his parliamentary majority to overturn current abortion restrictions. Thus, if only 30 percent of registered voters turn out to cast their ballots – instead of the required 50 percent – and a majority of that 30 percent favor legalizing abortion, Socrates will use parliament to make abortion a “right.”
A 1998 referendum on the same issue was ruled invalid after insufficient voter turnout. Back then, 51% of the voters who turned out supported current restrictions on abortion.
[More at URL]
----- 10 -----
Legislating Tolerance
A new Senate bill would expand state's anti-discrimination policy.
Lisa Chun
Richmond.com
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
http://www.richmond.com/news/output.aspx?Article_ID=4571937&Vertical_ID=23&tier=2&position=3
Capital News Service -- State employers will be forbidden from discriminating against people based on sexual orientation if a proposed Senate bill is passed.
The Code of Virginia currently grants hearings for discrimination based on race, color, religion, political affiliation, age, disability, national origin or gender. Sen. Jeannemarie Devolites Davis is patron of SB 820, which would add sexual orientation to that list.
"I think that as a public employer, it's very important that we open our doors for anyone who qualifies for any job and their hiring should be based on their ability to do the job and their qualifications only," Devolites Davis said.
[...]
Concerned Women for America of Virginia oppose the bill because they said it raises several doubts. The organization's information handouts state this bill will set a precedence of condoning illegal activities including sexually molesting children and bestiality.
The organization is concerned this bill might create conflicts such as forcing state agencies to partake in gay pride parades or requiring employees to undergo sensitivity training regardless of personal beliefs.
[More at URL]
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Governor’s vaccination order buffeted by parental concerns
Feb 6, 2007
By Dwayne Hastings
Baptist Press
http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/bpnews.asp?ID=24906
DALLAS (BP)--Texas Gov. Rick Perry is receiving mixed reviews over his executive order requiring elementary school-age girls to receive the Gardasil vaccine targeting a sexually transmitted disease that can cause cervical cancer.
The governor’s Feb. 2 order, bypassing the Texas legislature, rankled many who say it tramples parents’ rights and might encourage premarital sex.
The governor took a step that should have been weighed by the people’s elected representatives, the legislature, said Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.
[...]
Like most states, Texas allows parents to opt out of the requirement to have their daughter vaccinated with the anti-HPV drug, or any other inoculation, if they have religious or philosophical objections. [Ed. note: This is the first I've seen of this. So that takes the whole "opt-out" argument and throws it away too!]
Land indicated it is a difficult issue. “While I certainly disapprove of premarital sex, and I don’t want the government to do anything that would encourage that kind of behavior, I don’t want premarital sexual intercourse to be a death sentence,” he said.
[...]
Land admitted he and his wife would have to seriously ponder the advisability of allowing their daughters to receive the vaccine if they were younger.
“If my daughter makes a wrong decision, if I can somehow protect her from that becoming a death sentence, then I would sit down with my wife and talk about it,” Land said. Yet he noted that ages 11-12 seem “awfully young” to be taking the vaccine.
[...]
“The idea that a governor is going to require this for a whole state even with a parental opt-out seems to me to seriously endanger the parent-child bond,” said Land, calling the governor’s order an “unwarranted intrusion by the governor into a role parents should play in these choices.”
[More at URL]
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First same-sex ’marriage’ officially recorded in Jerusalem
By Chad Groening
Agape Press
http://www.spcm.org/Journal/spip.php?article6362
In November, Israel’s highest court ruled that same-sex "marriages" that were legally performed in other countries will be now included in Israel’s records. A spokesman for Concerned Women for America (CWA), the United States’ largest public policy women’s organization, calls this a “frightening” development.
Matt Barber, the CWA’s cultural issues policy director, is reacting strongly to the news that two men who were "married" in Canada over the summer of 2004 have moved back to Israel and had their union recorded through the Interior Ministry’s Population Registry.
[...]
The pro-family official’s concern, he explains, is that Israel’s acceptance of same-sex marriage will give ammunition to its Islamic enemies and fuel their propaganda. "It does provide them fodder — there’s no doubt about that,” he asserts. “They can now turn around and say, ’Look ; like we’ve been saying all along, Israel is the great infidel. They’re the heathen. Just look at what they’re doing now. They’re now recognizing gay marriage.’"
Unless Israeli government officials reverse their course, Barber laments, it would appear that they have now inexplicably capitulated to the radical and destructive redefinition of marriage. "For them to be recognizing so-called gay marriage officially in the Promised Land, the Holy Land, I think is just frightening, really,” he says, “and it’s just a step away from breaking out the golden calf.”
[More at URL]
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State Lawmakers Hold HPV Vaccine Hearing
FEATURED VIDEO
HPV Debate in Topeka
by Alana Rocha
Eyewitness 12 News - KBSD 6
http://www.kbsd6.com/Global/story.asp?S=6054863
It's a shot that's sparked emotional testimony in the statehouse. This afternoon lawmakers held a hearing on the HPV vaccine bill. The large turnout forced the committee to schedule the hearing for a second day.
It was standing room only as the House Health and Human Services committee learned about the HPV vaccine bill and what it would mean for Kansas girls. Representative Delia Garcia, Wichita-D, introduced the bill.
She says, "I'm really happy we had this many people show up and bottom line we have a vaccine that can prevent cancer."
The bill, if passed, would require all sixth grade girls entering public schools to get the vaccination. It's a move proponents say provides for more widespread protection.
The vaccine prevents cervical cancer in women caused by the genital human papillomavirus - a sexually transmitted disease.
That's at the source of the argument for many of the bill's opponents. Beatrice Swoopes, Kansas Catholic Conference says, "Our biggest concern is for a behavior that's not common on the playgrounds and to blanket immunize I think there's some question."
[More at URL]
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Domestic Partnerships: What To Do?
Monday, February 05, 2007
Faith and Freedom Network
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2007/02/domestic-partnerships-what-to-do.html
Anyone who follows the events in Olympia, Washington, or reads the Faith & Freedom website knows that the most recent campaign by those who seek to redesign the culture is the push for Domestic Partnerships. Click here to see a list of bills relating to gay marriage.
While the sponsors have assured both the press and the public that Domestic Partnerships or Civil Unions or Reciprocal Benefits, for that matter, are not really what they want, they continue their march to re-engineer our culture.
They want marriage for homosexuals.
So conservatives and the faith community are desperately looking for the appropriate response. While a majority of Washingtonians do not want gay marriage, there are many ideas out there as to how to handle the incremental step called DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIPS.
There is no amount of compromise, including Reciprocal Benefits, that will change the process. Not politically and certainly not ideologically.
This struggle is not about benefits for gays, grandparents, grandkids, or good friends, it's about authenticating a lifestyle and the political process is the vehicle.
[More at URL]
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HB 1351: Another Step Toward Gay Marriage
Faith and Freedom Network
Thursday, February 01, 2007
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2007/02/hb-1351-another-step-toward-gay.html
I did not attend the hearing yesterday on Washington State's HB 1351, but I listened carefully to the audio feed from Olympia.
Most of my thoughts were confirmed after speaking to those who were there.
From Representative McDermott’s opening comments explaining that this bill is about fairness and equality to the conclusion of the hearing, there was a tone set that this bill was a “done deal.”
In fact, the chairwoman commended two lesbians who spoke in favor of the bill in a tandem, evening news style.
The bill was extolled by wives of women, husbands of men, sympathetic heterosexuals and an old man who spoke of the struggle for gay rights as synonymous with the civil rights struggle of the 60’s and beyond.
There are many unintended consequences with this bill, from fiscal irresponsibility, to the loss of business that will surely leave the state if the full impact of the bill is laid out on the public. Perhaps the most surprising, but then again it shouldn’t be, aspect of this debate is the hypocrisy of the gay rights folks.
While they demand fairness and equality, they write, promote and hope to pass one of the most discriminating bills the Washington legislature has seen in my lifetime. And that's been several years.
[...]
First, call and write your Senators and Representatives. Please write, preferably a hand-written letter, expressing your opposition to the bill and ask them to oppose it. Follow up with a phone call to their office. The Legislation Hotline is: 1-800-562-6000. Click here for more contact information.
[More at URL]
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Procreation or Annulment
Just when you think you’ve seen it all – you find you haven’t.
Friday, February 02, 2007
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2007/02/procreation-or-annulment.html
Last week an initiative was accepted by the Secretary of State’s office that if approved by voters will, among other things, require that couples married in Washington State file proof of procreation within three years of the date of the marriage or have their marriage automatically annulled.
That’s right. And the initiative, I-957, will also add the phrase, “Who are capable of having children with one another” to the legal definition of marriage.
This new organization is called WA-DOMA, clearly intending to be mistaken for the Defense of Marriage Act, which was upheld by the state Supreme Court last summer, but in this case DOMA represents Defense of Marriage Alliance rather than Act.
According to their own statement, they are saying that social conservatives have claimed that marriage exists solely for the purpose of procreation and that that was the basis for the Supreme Court upholding The Defense of Marriage Act or Andersen v. King County last summer. Therefore, they are now trying to enshrine in law the idea that if same-sex couples should be barred from marriage because they can not have children together, it should follow that all couples who cannot or will not have children together should equally be banned from marriage.
[More at URL]
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Faith and Freedom Network
2007 Washington Legislation Newsletter
February 1, 2007
http://www.faithandfreedom.us/pdf/LegislativeNewsletter212007.pdf
Marriage
Support: SB 5470: Revising provisions concerning dissolution proceedings. (Slows the Divorce Process) This is a bipartisan bill which seeks to slow down the time frame of divorce proceedings and allow possible reconciliation to take place. Unfortunately, divorce is on the rise in our society, and divorce in the church is on pace with society at large. We must start looking at ways to help people think it over before they sever their marriage.
Oppose HB 1351 & SB 5336: Protecting individuals in domestic partnerships by granting certain rights and benefits. Domestic Partnerships create special rights for gays and seniors denied to others who cannot marry. Proponents admit Domestic Partnerships are intended to undermine the popular marriage limitation of one man and one woman. This bill will undermine marriage by creating an alternative to marriage for heterosexual seniors.
Oppose HB 1350 & SB 5335: Addressing civil marriage equality. Any redefinition of
marriage would create significant problems for traditional families in our society. As the law now stands, traditional marriage is limited to one man and one woman. This is, of course, the only type of relationship that can produce children. The intent of the law is to provide incentives for a man and a woman to remain together as long as possible, to provide benefits to spouses and offspring and to define the process of dissolving those relationships if the marriage fails (custody and provision for the children.)
[More at URL]
