Today's Cultural Warfare Update (1/2)
Jul. 14th, 2007 12:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solarbirdWorldNetDaily columnist Donald Hank calls GBLT rights "Big Sodomy," in one of the weirdest anti-GBLT screeds ever, saying that "ex-gays" will "bring down" queers the same way that the health dangers of smoking brought down "Big Tobacco," and suggests a class-action lawsuit against GBLT rights groups. Reframing a debate has never been so stupid. Link courtesy ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
elfs;
WorldNetDaily condemns GLAAD for speaking out against the Fox News/O'Reilly Report fake "story" alleging "hundreds" of lesbian gangs going around killing straight men; they note GLAAD's - correct - commentary that there was not one shred of evidence to support the story, then relies on former Concerned Women for America wonk Peter LaBarbera (now heading "Americans for Truth," an anti-gay organisation) as a "fact" source supporting the article. The "facts" mostly consist of assertions that queers are used to having it "their way" in the media, with no actual facts provided - only references back to the original stories that GLAAD pointed out were wrong, repeated as authoritative, "This isn't fraud! It says it's not!";
I'm... not sure what culture is in favour of this crap, but: judge bars use of the terms "rape," "sexual assault," and all other terms implying force in a rape trial; the victim will now be required to describe being raped as "sexual intercourse" or "sex," which, of course, imply permission. I don't see any theocrats being for this - and WorldNetDaily is even on the right side, for once - but because of the huge "what the hell?!" nature of this, I'm including it; link courtesykathrynt;
American Family Association protests prompt three Operation Save America (formerly Operation Rescue) activists to disrupt the first Senate opening prayer by a Hindu religious figure; they condemn it as "an abomination";
On the off chance you think that Operation Save America/Operation Rescue might have any complaints about this, here's their press release condemning the arrest, calling the Senate "violated" by the "false god of Hinduism" and praising the protesters as having "the courage to stand and proclaim, 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me'";
There is video of the incident, of course, hosted on YouTube;
Amnesty International statement on their position on abortion;
Mr. Bush's Surgeon General nominee denies being anti-gay and disclaims his 'homosexuality as a pathology' paper, even admitting it had no scientific basis; I don't trust him; this courtesy Queerty, a blog with which I have no experience but which was linked to by Andrew Sullivan;
Mike Gravel (Democratic presidential candidate) blasts Human Rights Campaign for not inviting him to their Democratic presidential candidate debate; he's the most vocally pro-GBLT of the candidates, according to many (including himself); HRC, however, wants Ms. Clinton to get the nomination. On the other hand, if you're wondering why the HRC has no Republican debate, it's because only one or two of the candidates even bothered answering their query letters, and even those were not willing to attend; the theoconservative base would destroy them for showing up with t3h qu33rz;
Time Magazine has a large article on "How the Democrats Got Religion." Yay, now everybody will be waving around their Jesus Penises; I can has new party nao plz?;
Box Turtle Bulletin is a three-person blog that monitors the same groups I do from an exclusive GBLT-issues related standpoint. They go into more depth within their focus; they don't provide quite as much original source, quoting from within articles rather than linking to articles in their entirety. That said, they're really good at what they do. Here are a few of their current articles:
Back on Mr. Bush's surgeon general nominee Dr. James Holsinger, Concerned Women for America calls questioning him about his anti-gay paper a "religious litmus test," saying that you can't oppose someone for public office for being anti-gay for that reason. (However, you can, obviously, support someone that way.) CWA's Matt Barber says that "Dr. Holsinger has objectively placed scientific substance over political correctness relative to the high-risk nature of homosexual behaviors," apparently just before Dr. Holsinger admitted that his paper had no scientific basis. They also praise Dr. Holsinger for describing GBLT people as "unnatural" and "unhealthy." "Essentially what these radical special interest groups and like-minded senators are saying is that Christians need not apply for public service. This is both hateful and discriminatory";
Focus on the Family: New Mexico Town Plans Tens Commandments Display, with help from the Alliance Defense Fund;
FotF displeased with Massachusetts governor for cutting "abstinence-only" sex ed. funding;
FotF has a quadruple-threat story about Plan B, the morning-after birth control pill; they falsely declare it, per usual, as a potential abortifacient; they note sales are expected to double next year; they declare it a health risk (via quoting the sockpuppet Family Research Council); and proclaim it has "the potential for abuse." I wonder what that abuse would be? Birth control, perhaps;
Focus on the Family claims abstinence-based sex education is the cause of a 7% drop in self-reported sex by high school students; somehow this is retroactive back to 1991, but hey;
At the ground level, Focus on the Family would really rather prefer that women stayed in the home; this shows up a lot of ways. One of the ways that this shows up is that they regularly rerun a variation on the same story, "More Moms Say They'd Rather Be Home," saying that women would rather not have to work. Gosh. I wonder how many man would rather not have to work for a living, either? But that, somehow, never shows up, and there's a reason for that;
Focus on the Family promotes "assets not connected to morally questionable activities" run by Stewardship Partners Investment Counsel. It's kind of like a commercial, but it's pretending to be a news story. I wonder if they got paid for it;
Focus on the Family newsbrief notes Ohio state rep. Tom Brinkman (Brinkman? Brinkmanship? Irony is so ironic) introduces a comprehensive abortion ban bill, including "the distribution of abortion-inducing drugs"; what's interesting about that is that as far as the fundamentalists are concerned, that includes emergency birth control (Plan B, which is not the same as RU-486) and, according to some fundamentalists, all forms of chemical birth control, and some which aren't. I wonder what definition is being used here;
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to support bans on "sexually explicit businesses," lists Troy, Michigan as an example, and! links to lawyer Scott Bergthold's web site where he offers services in helping draft such laws. Again, is this news, or a commercial? I don't know;
FotF condemns Florida library for accepting GBLT-themed collection that includes "pornographic" material. The collection will be restricted to adults only, but that's not good enough;
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to oppose adding GBLT people to Federal hate-crimes law, calling it, as they do, "special protections for homosexuals"; normally they use the phrase "special rights," so that's an interesting shift. I guess their polling has found that people respond more negatively to "special protections" for queers than "special rights";
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to complain to The Detroit Press that their coverage of an American Psychological Association committee's decision to consider whether it is possible to offer therapy - presumably "conversion" therapy :-p - to "patients who are dissatisfied living homosexually" is "bias, cut and dried" against ex-gay bullshit and for queers; according to the story below, it has mostly to do with considering religious beliefs of patients in therapy. In the article below, it's a theocon-based drive to get this considered; see more in Part 2 of today's CWU;
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Will ex-gays bring down 'Big Sodomy'?
Posted: July 7, 2007
By Donald Hank
WorldNetDaily
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56545
Remember how cool smoking was? If you're 45 or older, you do.
Whatever happened to that politically correct, cool, suave, debonair habit that was all the rage among college students, profs, teachers, Hollywood actors, big business and just about everyone purporting to have "intellect"?
In a nutshell, some scientists at the National Institutes of Health got together in the '60s, '70s and later and did some pioneering studies that proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that this cool habit could kill you.
Today, they're at it again. Only it isn't smoking. That's a dead issue, thanks to science and lawyers.
The activists then were Big Tobacco, supported by Hollywood, the advertising industry, the media and academe. Even politicians, like FDR, smoked and helped sell the image. But the activists were silenced by the nuclear option: lawsuits brought by the smokers, the victims themselves.
[...]
Of course, the promulgation of knowledge and data concerning the link between alternative sex and disease is hampered by the bullying tactics of the elite. Thus, only a few facts are known at all to some of the public (such as the results of a study in Scandinavia showing that men in same-sex marriages die 24 years earlier than their counterparts in the general population), and these facts aren't mainstream, thanks to the media blackout on this issue and the muzzling of opponents under color of law. [Editor's note: This is a lie. Specifically, a Paul Cameron lie. Amazing how he keeps getting recycled.] And that, in turn, is thanks to the activists.
[...]
If you have a friend or relative who has been persuaded by the media, big business, politicians, university programs, including courses of study, or any person or group to try this deadly lifestyle, and especially if your friend or relative is already suffering from a serious disease contracted as a result of it, talk to him or her at the first opportunity about the very real possibility of starting a class-action lawsuit against the group or groups that persuaded them to enter into the activity that did them in. If you happen to be in a care-giving profession, that is a shoe in the door.
[More at URL]
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Payback for exposé on 'dyke' gang rapes
Homosexual activists attack revelations of lesbian assaults
Posted: July 9, 2007
By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56577
Two news stories about hundreds of lesbian gangs attacking and raping young girls in schools and other public locations have prompted a backlash against the reporters by members of the homosexual community.
The broadcasts by Memphis television station WPTY and Fox News host Bill O'Reilly quoted law enforcement authorities, victims, and even some gang members to document the growing number of attacks on young girls by lesbian gang members.
"The Eyewitness News Everywhere" report in Memphis documented incidents of gangs known as GTOs, or "Gays" Taking Over, attacking schoolgirls. Two prison inmates affiliated with the gang told the station they had begun meeting to offer each other support, but a younger generation of members had taken their group over for violence and rape.
[...]
Peter LaBarbera, of Americans for Truth, an organization publicizing information about the impact of the "gay" lifestyle, contends pro-homosexual influences have so permeated many media organizations that the "gay" promoters are accustomed to having only their side reported.
For example, the Memphis report referenced young schoolgirls being hurt, but GLAAD's statement ignored those victims.
"All they wanted to do was shut down the story," LaBarbera told WND. "This epitomizes the selfishness of the gay activists."
Having heard over the years of the fast-growing influence of lesbian gangs and their tactics of intimidation, LaBarbera said the reports, including an estimate of 150 attack squads in the Washington, D.C., region alone, were no surprise.
[Ed. Note: this is fundamentaly wrong on almost every key level. For example, the "lesbians" in the DC case were men. DC police squads were asked by other parties and had no idea what the hell O'Reilly and others were going on about. And it gets worse from there.]
[...]
LaBarbera noted a prominent homosexual journalist has likened talking to Christians about "gay" issues to talking to the Klan about race issues.
"Obviously, this is their whole thing. They want to portray religious conservatives as analogous to the Klan," he said.
He noted even Fox News has contributed to the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association.
[...]
"Here's a lesbian gang story obviously affecting inner city schools. If there were any justice in the media this would be huge. There would be investigations kicking in," he said.
"This is really Orwellian. We've got gayspeak words," LaBarbera said.
"Here you have girls being raped by other girls, and somehow GLAAD manages to turn the homosexual lobby into the victims," he said.
The original Memphis TV report included stories of school washroom rapes of schoolgirls, assaults with sex toys, and the intimidation that comes from the threat of those attacks.
LaBarbera told WND he heard about the "lesbian bullying phenomenon" from former lesbian-turned-Christian evangelist Linda Jernigan, who was contacted by a teacher about speaking at a suburban Chicago where "this sick behavior was occurring."
[More at URL]
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Words 'rape,' 'sexual assault' won't be allowed at rape trial
By The Associated Press
Hosted by First Amendment Center
06.22.07
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=18707
LINCOLN, Neb. — When Pamir Safi is tried for sexual assault next month, prosecutors and witnesses won't be allowed to use the terms "sexual assault" or "rape" to describe what happened.
That's because Lancaster County District Judge Jeffre Cheuvront agreed to bar those words after defense attorneys argued the point. Prosecutors don't think the ban is needed, but they say they'll live with it.
But the woman accusing Safi of assault, Tory Bowen, says the judge's order forces her to change the way she describes events. It's not clear whether the restrictions played any role in the hung jury that derailed the 33-year-old Safi's first trial in November.
[More at URL]
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Senate Prayer Led by Hindu Elicits Protest
Associated Press
Friday, July 13, 2007; Page A07
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/12/AR2007071202007.html
A Hindu clergyman made history yesterday by offering the Senate's morning prayer, but only after police officers removed three protesters from the visitors' gallery.
Rajan Zed, director of interfaith relations at a Hindu temple in Reno, Nev., gave the prayer that opens each day's Senate session. As he stood at the lectern in a bright orange and burgundy robe, two women and a man began shouting "this is an abomination" and other complaints from the gallery.
Police officers arrested them and charged them disrupting Congress, a misdemeanor. The male protester said "we are Christians and patriots" before police led them away. Police identified the protesters as Ante Nedlko Pavkovic, Katherine Lynn Pavkovic and Christan Renee Sugar. Their home towns were not available.
For several days, the Mississippi-based American Family Association has urged its members to object to the prayer because Zed would be "seeking the invocation of a non-monotheistic god."
[More at URL]
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Theology Moved to the Senate and was Arrested
Theology has moved from the church house onto the floor of the United States Senate, and has been arrested.
Operation Save America Press Release
Contact: Dr. Pat McEwen, Operation Save America, 321-431- 3962
http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/575363635.html
WASHINGTON, July 12 /Christian Newswire/ -- Ante Pavkovic, Kathy Pavkovic, and Kristen Sugar were all arrested in the chambers of the United States Senate as that chamber was violated by a false Hindu god. The Senate was opened with a Hindu prayer placing the false god of Hinduism on a level playing field with the One True God, Jesus Christ. This would never have been allowed by our Founding Fathers.
"Not one Senator had the backbone to stand as our Founding Fathers stood. They stood on the Gospel of Jesus Christ! There were three in the audience with the courage to stand and proclaim, 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me.' They were immediately removed from the chambers, arrested, and are in jail now. God bless those who stand for Jesus as we know that He stands for them." Rev. Flip Benham, Director, Operation Save America/Operation Rescue
To Schedule Interviews with Rev. Benham:
Contact Pat McEwen: 321 431 3962
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Christian extremists disrupt Hindu Senate invocation
C-Span 2
Hosted on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZ9To30Hz7A
[Click for unedited video]
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AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL USA
July 6, 2007
http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?lang=e&id=ENGUSA20070706001
Most Reverend William S. Skylstad
Bishop of Spokane
President
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
3211 Fourth St. NE
Washington, DC 20017
Dear Bishop Skylstad:
I am writing in response to the July 2 statement from the U.S. Catholic Bishops on Amnesty International's (AI's) sexual and reproductive rights policy and its specific attention to aspects of abortion.
First, I believe strongly that we should not allow divergent views on any one issue to undermine our shared commitment to work together to end human suffering around the world. Through the years and despite differences of perspective, the Catholic church and Amnesty, though a secular organization, have stood as allies on fundamental questions of human dignity, especially in our shared opposition to the death penalty and our joint work to free prisoners of conscience jailed for their religious beliefs. We have accomplished a great deal together. It remains my fervent hope that we will continue to act upon our common devotion to these causes by working jointly on behalf of victims of abuse and torture, even though we cannot expect to agree on each and every issue.
In this spirit I wish to correct the misunderstanding conveyed in the bishops' statement which incorrectly asserted that AI has adopted a "pro-abortion stand." In fact, Amnesty International's policy on sexual and reproductive rights seeks to ensure that women and men can exercise their sexual and reproductive rights free from coercion, discrimination and violence. In doing so it responds to the human suffering caused by abuses of these rights. Defending the right of women to sexual and reproductive integrity in the face of grave human rights violations, AI does not promote abortion as a universal right but recognizes instead the right of women to be free of fear, threat and coercion as they manage the consequences of rape and other grave human rights violations.
AI will not advocate "abortion on demand," nor do we counsel individuals as to what choice they should make on abortion. We take no position as to whether abortion is right or wrong, nor on its legalization generally. Instead our position is focused on three areas of concern: opposition to imprisonment or other criminal sanctions for women or providers of abortion; support for medical treatment for women who suffer complications from unsafe abortions, and within reasonable gestational limits, support for women who seek abortion in cases of rape, incest or to preserve her life or when pregnancy poses a grave risk to her health.
[More at URL]
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Holsinger Says He Ain't Anti-Gay
Queerty
Online as of 13 July 2007
http://www.queerty.com/news/holsinger-says-he-aint-anti-gay-20070712/
Senator Ted Kennedy dug into Surgeon General Dr. James Holsinger during today’s Senate hearing. The senator from Massachusetts eschewed questions on obesity and tobacco, two of Holsinger’s medical missions, and instead asked the Kentucky based doctor about that now infamous anti-gay, United Methodist Church-backed paper, “Pathophysiology of Male Homosexuality”:
[...]
The bearded physician told the Senate:
Since my nomination on May 24, there have been several statements made about me. Questions have been raised about my faith and about my commitment to ensuring the health and welfare of all Americans, including gay and lesbian Americans.
I am deeply troubled by these claims, which do not reflect who I am, what I believe or the work I have accomplished in over 40 years of practicing medicine. … Let me be clear — I have a profound respect for the essential human dignity of all people regardless of background or sexual orientation.
[...]
Meanwhile, presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Chris Dodd, all of whom have questioned Holsinger’s medical merits, failed to show up to the hearing. They will, however, be appearing at HRC’s gay debate.
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Gravel Blasts HRC
Queerty
12 June 2007
http://www.queerty.com/news/gravel-blasts-hrc-20070712/
Mike Gravel may not be a front runner for the democratic presidential nomination, but he’s sure as hell the most outspoken of the candidates. Could it be his opinionated ways that led HRC to snub him for their gay debates?
Gravel certainly thinks so:
"…I think the real reason why HRC didn’t invite me is that I’m too vocal in my advocacy of gay rights. None of the top tier candidates would have been comfortable facing an opponent who consistently points out their refusal to embrace true equality for gays and lesbians. HRC simply bowed to the star factor. It’s just a shame that this travesty was perpetrated in the name of the LGBT community."
[More at URL]
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How the Democrats Got Religion
Thursday, Jul. 12, 2007
Time Magazine
By NANCY GIBBS AND MICHAEL DUFFY
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1642649-1,00.html
A president has to be a preacher of sorts, instructing, consoling, summoning citizens to sacrifice for some common good. But candidates are competitors, which means they seldom manage to talk about faith in a way that doesn't disturb people, doesn't divide them, doesn't nail campaign posters on the gates of heaven. Republicans have been charged with exploiting religious voters, Democrats with ignoring them: Hillary Clinton's voice gets tight as she recalls the mocking response she received when she first spoke in spiritual terms about the longing that people felt to invest in causes larger than self-interest. "I talked about my faith years ago and was pilloried for it," she says, and it is hard to tell if she is more impatient with the conservatives who presumed they held the patent on piety or with the liberals whose worship of diversity all but excluded the devout.
[...]
In this campaign season, if Clinton and Barack Obama and John Edwards are any measure, there will be nothing unusual in Democrats' talking about the God who guides them and the beliefs that sustain them. Clinton has hired Burns Strider, a congressional staffer (and evangelical Baptist from Mississippi) who is assembling a faith steering group from major denominations and sends out a weekly wrap-up, Faith, Family and Values. Edwards has been organizing conference calls with progressive religious leaders and is about to embark on a 12-city poverty tour. In the past month alone, Obama's campaign has run six faith forums in New Hampshire, where local clergy and laypeople discuss religious engagement in politics. "We talk about ways people of faith have gone wrong in the past, what they have done right and where they see it going in the future," says his faith-outreach adviser, Joshua DuBois. Speeches on everything from the budget to immigration to stem-cell research are carefully marinated in Scripture. "Science is a gift of God to all of us," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during a debate on increased embryo-research funding, "and science has taken us to a place that is biblical in its power to cure."
The Democrats are so fired up, you could call them the new Moral Majority. This time, however, the emphasis is as much on the majority as on the morality as they try to frame a message in terms of broadly shared values that don't alarm members of minority religions or secular voters. It has become an article of faith among party leaders that it was sheer strategic stupidity to cede the values debate to Republicans for so long; that most people want to reduce abortion but not criminalize it, protect the earth instead of the auto industry, raise up the least among us; and that a lot of voters care as much about the candidates' principles as about their policies. "What we're seeing," says strategist Mike McCurry, "is a Great Awakening in the Democratic Party."
[More at URL]
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Bill O’Reilly Broadcasts Cameron’s “Lifespan” Statistic Unchallenged
Jim Burroway
Box Turtle Bulletin
July 12th, 2007
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/12/544
A few weeks ago, Bill O’Reilly’s program became something of a laughingstock for raising the specter of 150 lesbian gangs wreaking havoc in Washington, D.C. O’Reilly’s guest, Rod Wheeler, who gave that scenario, has since apologized and O’Reilly has had to eat crow over it.
Just last night, O’Reilly’s program became a platform for another bogus statistic, this one from discredited “researcher” Paul Cameron, whose comparison of homosexuality to smoking made it on the air without challenge.
The segment on O’Reilly’s program focused on the San Diego Padres’ decision to hold a Gay Pride Night while giving away hats to children. Sandy Rios, formerly of the Concerned Women for America and currently of the Culture Campaign, took the anti-gay side. Ron Deharte of San Diego Pride defended the Padres’ decision. During the three-way interview, the screen showed numerous scenes of gay couples, some holding hands, hugging and kissing. O’Reilly exploded near the end of the segment, calling those scenes “exhibitionistic.” This was clearly the case of two against one, with the calm-spoken Deharte trying to make his points between the shouting.
Sandy Rios complained about the “mixing” of children with gay couples, saying it sent the wrong message:
Sandy Rios: But let me just give you another way to think about this. What if the San Diego Padres decided to celebrate a “smoking is fun” night, and they had a smoking men’s chorus performing. Now there are a lot of people that come to the game and they have a pack of cigarettes or whatever, maybe they can’t smoke there. But that’s different than celebrating smoking because we all know is that smoking is really harmful to your health. Well, what people don’t understand is that the homosexual lifestyle, especially for men, is deadly. It takes their life ten to twenty years earlier than straight men. That is not what we should be promoting before of our children… [Emphasis mine]
Bill O’Reilly: But that’s their decision…
The connection of homosexuality to the dangers of smoking and a reduced lifespan comes directly from discredited researcher Paul Cameron. He first claimed that gay men die at the average age of 42 and lesbians die at 44 in 1993. That claim, based on his “obituary study,” has been roundly discredited.
[More at URL]
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Contrasting National Ex-Gay Hype with Local Ministries
Timothy Kincaid
Box Turtle Bulletin
July 11th, 2007
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/11/542
For years we’ve heard tales of “former homosexuals just like me” touted by national spokesmen with a sincere delivery, a confident smile, and a wife and children hovering just within view of the cameras. That is the public face of the ex-gay movement, the one presented when politicians seek justification for denying civil equality to gay individuals or couples.
The Miami New Times featured a story today on their local ex-gay ministry, Worthy Creations. Those familiar with the movement will not read much new; it covers the history of the movement and its many embarrassments along with its wishes, dreams, and claims. But these stories that sporadically appear around the nation which highlight local ministries give a flavor that seems miles from the slick image that Exodus’ national office sells.
Although Exodus’ Randy Thomas claims an informal study in 2003 resulted in 11,000 weekly attendants at their 150 ministries (an average of 73), at the meeting attended by the reporter, there were only six strugglers – a number far more consistent with what we read in other local reports. And unlike the happily married ex-gays that show up to press conferences and White House events, the local ex-gay seems to be more like those described in this article:
[More at URL]
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Paul Cameron’s World
The SPLC said in 2005 that Cameron’s theories on homosexuality “echoes Nazi Germany.” They didn’t know the half of it. Cameron himself turned to a notorious concentration camp commandant to validate this theories.
Jim Burroway
May 14, 2007; revised May 22, 2007
The original version is available at Ex-Gay Watch
Box Turtle Bulletin
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/11/542
In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center described Paul Cameron’s theories on homosexuality this way: “Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany in that these disparaging descriptions of homosexuals are reminiscent of themes found in the ugly history of anti-Semitism…”. But as we shall see, Cameron does much more than just echo Nazi Germany in his theories on homosexuality. And the SPLC didn’s have to compare his theories to anti-Semitism to hear those echos. It turns out that Cameron himself is much more direct, employing a bit of holocaust revisionism to advance his cause. And the surprising thing is, this evidence has been right there all along on his web site, largely unnoticed for eight years.
But before we examine his retelling of the gay experience in Nazi Germany, let's take a few moments to explore a little bit about what goes on in Cameron’s world. And let’s begin with a recent e-mail exchange between Paul Cameron and Dr. Warren Throckmorton, associate professor of Psychology at Grove City College in northwestern Pennsylvania.
[More at URL]
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Paul Cameron’s Collaborators
These are just some of the people who provide oxygen for Paul Cameron’s self-documented Nazi-revisionist mission. Do they agree with Cameron’s “solutions”?
Jim Burroway
May 15, 2007, Revised May 18, 2007.
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/11/542
The Southern Poverty Law Center in 2005 made a passing reference to Paul Cameron’s theories “echoing Nazi Germany.” Unfortunately they missed the real story. In a chilling 1999 newsletter, Paul Cameron himself cited the mercurial observations of a notorious Nazi concentration camp commandant as evidence supporting his own theories on homosexuality. Those observations, in turn, provide a deeply disturbing context to Cameron’s obsession for those who — to use a phrase Cameron borrows from Rudolph Höss — live “parasitic lives.” And in his web site, he makes it plainly clear that it is his quest to bring his vision to fruition for the rest of us.
Paul Cameron is just one man. But when others associate themselves with his junk science to further their agenda, they provide him with the oxygen he needs to keep his quest alive. Otherwise, he would fade in irrelevance. And so the question must be asked of everyone who uses his “research”: Do you agree with Paul Cameron’s “Solutions”?
[More at URL]
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Paul Cameron's Footprint
And Another Stab At The “Homosexual Lifespan”
Jim Burroway
April 9, 2007
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/Articles/000,018.htm
Another “homosexual lifespan" study has hit the news. According to a flurry of press releases making rounds, married gays in Scandinavia die 24 years younger than everyone else:
Married Gays Die 24 Years Younger
Researchers Paul and Kirk Cameron reported at the Eastern Psychological Association convention that married gays and lesbians lived about 24 fewer years than their married heterosexual counterparts.1
Gays Die Sooner: Implications for Adoption
“The life span of gays is 20-plus years shorter than the life span of heterosexuals,” states Dr. Paul Cameron of the Family Research Institute, a Colorado-based think tank. “This shortened lifespan,” he warned, “has profound implications for adoption.”2
Discrimination Doesn’t Drive Gays To An Early Grave
Dr. Paul Cameron, of the Family Research Institute, a Colorado-based think tank, said “there was essentially no difference between the average age of death for homosexuals in accepting societies — Norway and Denmark — and the United States, which, according to gay rights activists, is still ‘a homophobic society’ since it still bans them from the military and giving blood.”3
Homosexuality More Dangerous Than Smoking
Studies have shown that years of smoking shortens the lifespan of the smoker from 1 to 7 years. But analysis of the age of death in Norway and Denmark for gays who are legally married suggests that engaging in homosexual behavior reduces the lifespan by 24 years!4
[More at URL]
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Can Anything Be Done to Stop Gay Rights?
Paul Cameron
Family Research Institute
Online as of 14 July 2007
http://www.familyresearchinst.org/Default.aspx?tabid=145
The West has produced the richest and most vital civilization ever to grace the planet, but our civilization is dying by slow degrees. Western nations are producing too few children to maintain their population. Most of our demographic decline is due to a mix of a self-centered reluctance to have children, birth control, wholesale abortion, and women in the workplace. The rise of militant homosexuality has also been a significant factor. It is both a symptom and a cause of our decline.
On one hand, the growing acceptance of homosexuality is symptomatic of a larger trend in Western society — the growing view of sexuality as “mere recreation,” a casual activity divorced from procreation and family. Gay rights is also a cause of civilization’s decline. Homosexuality is a unique manifestation of hedonism. Instead of producing children, it preys on them. Instead of keeping to itself, it proselytizes. Instead of promoting health and stability (as does marriage), it thrives on aggression, spreads disease, and destroys its practitioners, emotionally and physically.
Along with the promotion of birth control and abortion, the present bland acceptance of homosexuality signals the end of the religious and moral vision that made Western civilization coherent and functional. We had a forewarning of this social collapse in Germany following that nation’s defeat in World War I. During the Weimar Republic, homosexuality was acceptable and consequently rampant. The popular culture celebrated perversity. Kurt Weill’s songs portrayed pleasure-seeking men moving from one homosexual encounter to another. The first gay rights film, “Different From The Others,” appeared in Germany in 1919. This period of moral chaos spawned National Socialism and the rise to power of its sexually twisted leader, Adolph Hitler.
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Poisoning the Surgeon General Nominee
Concerned Women for America
7/12/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/13424/MEDIA/misc/index.htm
Washington, D.C. – This morning Senate hearings will begin for Dr. James Holsinger, President Bush’s nominee for Surgeon General. Holsinger’s nomination has become unfairly politicized due to both his medical findings on homosexual behavior and his religious beliefs. While Concerned Women for America (CWA) takes no position on his nomination, we do believe that it is inappropriate and unconstitutional to subject Dr. Holsinger to a religious litmus test.
Holsinger’s findings on male homosexual behaviors are medically sound and are supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). He has unapologetically stated that homosexual behavior is “unnatural” and “unhealthy” and runs counter to natural human biological design.
Matt Barber, CWA’s Policy Director for Cultural Issues, said, "It is both inappropriate and unconstitutional for the Senate to require that any nominee pass an anti-Christian religious litmus test based upon the demands of extremist left-wing special interest groups. In the past, Dr. Holsinger has objectively placed scientific substance over political correctness relative to the high-risk nature of homosexual behaviors. The determinations he and numerous other medical experts have reached are completely in line with the findings of the CDC. The CDC has documented that people who engage in homosexual behavior - by far - are at highest risk for devastating and often deadly sexually transmitted diseases. Will liberals now call for the CDC to be shut-down because the medical facts undermine their political agenda? Essentially what these radical special interest groups and like-minded senators are saying is that Christians need not apply for public service. This is both hateful and discriminatory."
For Information Contact:
Jennifer Fedor
(202) 488-7000
media.cwfa.org
----- 18 -----
New Mexico Town Plans Ten Commandments Display
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005047.cfm
The Bloomfield, N.M., City Council is moving forward with plans for a granite monument displaying the Ten Commandments outside City Hall, according to reports from The Associated Press.
The council approved a policy this week that allows monuments on city property that relate to the development of the law and government of the city, state or nation. The policy was drawn up with help from the Alliance Defense Fund.
[More at URL]
----- 19 -----
Massachusetts Governor Cuts Abstinence-Education Funding
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005048.cfm
On Thursday, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick vetoed $41 million in spending approved by the Legislature, including funding for an abstinence-only education program, The Boston Globe reports.
Among the cuts, Patrick excised a provision that would have allowed the state to spend $712,000 in federal money on abstinence ed. Massachusetts has received the grant since 1998, but public health officials in the administration decided they no longer want the money, because it can't be used to teach birth control.
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Sales of Morning-After Pill May Double in a Year
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005049.cfm
In August 2006, the Food and Drug Administration authorized the sale of the morning-after pill without a prescription to women 18 and older. Annual sales of Plan B are expected to double this year, The Washington Post reports.
"This is very concerning," Charmaine Yoest of the Family Research Council told The Post. FRC is among several groups suing the FDA to reverse the decision. "We think this is putting women's health at risk."
Plan B consists of higher doses of the hormones found in standard birth control pills. It is taken within 72 hours of sex and is intended to prevent pregnancy, but can sometimes cause an early abortion.
Dawn Vargo, associate bioethics analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said: "The increased use of Plan B increases the risk to women's health and has the potential for abuse."
----- 21 -----
Report Shows Lower Teen-Sex and Pregnancy Rates
Decline began with the introduction of abstinence education.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
07-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005052.cfm
Teen-sex and pregnancy rates are down, according to a National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) report released today. Experts say parents should take a closer look at the data to determine what the statistics show and how to keep kids healthy.
The NCHS study tracked trends among high school students from 1991 to 2005. In 1991, 54 percent of teens reported having had sexual intercourse. In 2005, that number dropped to 47 percent. The rate of teen pregnancy also showed a dramatic decline.
[...]
Linda Klepacki, analyst for sexual health at Focus on the Family Action, said 1991 is a significant marker for a reason.
"That's when we separated out abstinence education from contraceptive-based education," she said. "We have seen a continual decline since 1991, so we can infer that we've had an effect with abstinence education in our public schools."
Abma said Klepacki is on to something. While the study did not attempt to investigate cause, she said, efforts to educate teens about the risks associated with sexual intercourse have "increased and intensified" over the last decade.
"Given how many of those efforts are going on," Abma said, "it is probably making an impact on both abstinence and responsible sexual behavior."
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
More Moms Say They'd Rather Be Home
Juggling work and family is tough to pull of.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000005050.cfm
More and more working moms say full time is not ideal; they’d rather be at home with their kids. What’s more, 48 percent of stay-at-home moms say they wouldn’t change a thing, according to the Pew Research Center.
Colorado working mom Joanna Brown told Family News in Focus that finances make it necessary for her to work, but it would not be her first choice.
[More at URL]
----- 23 -----
Investors Search for Returns Without Regrets
'Values investments' consider morality as well as profits.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000005041.cfm
"Values investments" – assets not connected to morally questionable activities – are getting some conscientious investors a good return on their dollar.
Investing based on moral values is proving to many to be the ticket to good returns and a clean conscience. Rusty Leonard runs Stewardship Partners Investment Counsel, which has outperformed the S&P 500 by better than 26 percent.
[...]
The Timothy Plan offers a variety of mutual funds for people who oppose abortion, pornography, alcohol, tobacco and gambling. President Stephen Ally says although that limits quite a few successful companies, they've doing pretty well for their investors. One fund contains companies such as Bed, Bath and Beyond and Colgate Palmolive.
[More at URL]
----- 24 -----
Ohio Lawmakers Consider Abortion Ban
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005040.cfm
Ohio state Rep. Tom Brinkman introduced legislation Tuesday to outlaw all abortion, including the distribution of abortion-inducing drugs, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported.
[...]
Gov. Ted Strickland has promised to veto any bill that restricts abortion.
[More at URL]
----- 25 -----
Michigan City Restricts Sexually Oriented Businesses
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005039.cfm
Sexually explicit businesses, including strip clubs, book stores and video stores, now face strict licensing requirements, thanks to a vote by the Troy City Council. Troy is a suburb of Detroit.
According to the city's Web site, owners of these businesses must pass a criminal background check, provide a list of their employees, refrain from serving alcohol and install tip boxes.
The restrictions are meant as a deterrent, since Troy does not have any sexually oriented adult establishments.
Daniel Weiss, senior analyst for media and sexuality at Focus on the Family Action, said Troy is right in taking pre-emptive action.
"Even if no sexually oriented business exists in a town, it is crucial to set up these ordinances as soon as possible," he said. "We've seen these sex businesses intentionally locate in communities with no regulations in place. Once they're there, it's very hard to get rid of them. It's much better to proactively protect your community."
TAKE ACTION
Scott Bergthold, one of the nation's foremost experts in obscenity laws, can help your town draft an ordinance to regulate sexually oriented businesses.
(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on the Family is for informational purposes only and does not necessarily constitute an endorsement of the sites' content.)
----- 26 -----
Florida City Officials Allow Graphic Homosexual Material in Public Library
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005038.cfm
Despite objections from Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle, the City Commission voted to allow a collection of books and magazines depicting hard-core, homosexually oriented pornographic material to be placed in the city's public library, LifeSiteNews reported.
The Stonewall gay and lesbian book archive will be moved from the Gay and Lesbian Community Center to the county-run ArtSpace library.
Jack Rutland, executive director of the Stonewall Library and Archive, said his policy is that only people 18 and older can use the library, because of the graphic nature of the material depicting homosexual sex.
[More at URL]
----- 27 -----
U.S. Senate Prepares to Vote on Dangerous Hate-Crimes Bill
Vote could come Monday on amendment to create special protections for homosexuals.
by Jennifer Mesko, associate editor
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005043.cfm
Legislation to create a new category of crime for actions said to be motivated by prejudice based on specific characteristics, including “sexual orientation” and “gender identity,” could get a vote in the U.S. Senate as soon as Monday.
Democrats have attached an amendment to a Defense spending bill that would create federally protected “class status” for homosexuals, bisexuals, transvestites, “transgender” and “transsexual” people.
"You’re essentially creating a civil right based on immoral and changeable behavior, and that’s a bad precedent to set in the law," said Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth.
The House of Representatives passed an identical version of the legislation May 3 by a vote of 237 to 180.
On Monday, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council will join Focus on the Family's Dr. Bill Maier and Tom Minnery to discuss hate crimes on the Focus on the Family radio broadcast.
"This legislation is essentially a federal power grab," said Matt Barber, policy director for cultural issues at Concerned Women for America. "It circumvents the 10th Amendment, which guarantees states' rights, and the authority of state police power, and gives the federal government power to police and to govern and to monitor and to enforce crime at a municipal, or local level, which is really constitutionally dubious."
Ashley Horne, federal policy analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said Democrats are using a political tactic by tacking hate-crimes legislation onto Defense spending.
"The president has already indicated he would veto a hate-crimes bill," she said. "They’ve inserted this bill as an amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill, and that puts the president in a difficult position."
Horne and Barber are encouraging pro-family Americans to get involved.
"People should call the Senate," Barber said, "and let their senators know that this hate-crimes legislation is dangerous, that it can have a slippery slope effect, and really can oppress freedom of religion and freedom of speech. It's entirely unnecessary because the Constitution and 14th Amendment guarantee equal protection under the law."
TAKE ACTION
Urge your senators to oppose the hate-crimes amendment. If you are a CitizenLink subscriber, click the blue "Hate Crimes" button in the e-mail. Otherwise, click on this link.
----- 28 -----
Bias, Cut and Dried
Need proof that the mainstream news media lean to the left? Keep reading.
by Gary Schneeberger, vice president, media relations
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/clcommentary/A000005044.cfm
It’s one of the most blatant examples of media bias I’ve ever seen – and I’ve seen a lot of them.
It appeared in Wednesday’s Detroit Free Press, under the headline “Therapy to change gays’ orientation to be reviewed,” and was written – sort of – by Associated Press reporter David Crary. I say he sort-of wrote it because the Free Press ran only a portion of his piece – about how hundreds of psychological, educational and ministry groups are questioning the objectivity of an American Psychological Association (APA) committee considering whether it’s ethical to offer therapy to patients who are dissatisfied living homosexually.
[...]
Whoever edited the story there went beyond excising a few paragraphs toward the bottom; instead, he or she removed the comments of every one of the four people who expressed socially conservative views. The only sources directly quoted are two people on the other side of the debate – one of whom gets his quote from the story repeated in larger type (known in the news business as a “read-out” or “pull-quote”).
[...]
Fair enough – but I wouldn’t say far enough. It’s true that a skeletal summary of our side’s view is included, and there is a snippet from the letter Focus on the Family signed, but we were robbed of our opportunity to speak directly to readers. Not once, but four times. With all due respect to Mr. Andrews, it’s not about how many lines or words each side got to make its points; it’s about why his newspaper thought spokespeople on our side didn’t deserve to make their points at all.
[Editor's note: "robbed." Nice.]
[More at URL]
----- 29 -----
Psychologists to Review Policy on Homosexuality
Focus on the Family, others urge APA to consider faith of patients.
by Jennifer Mesko, associate editor
Focus on the Family
7-11-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005032.cfm
Beginning next week, a task force set up by the American Psychological Association (APA) will begin reviewing the organization's 10-year-old policy on homosexuality, which opposes counseling that treats same-sex attraction as a mental illness, but does not forbid various therapies that address unwanted same-sex attraction.
Focus on the Family has joined more than 250 pro-family organizations and individuals in urging the APA to recognize the religious beliefs of clients and to allow those who struggle with unwanted same-sex attraction to receive therapy. The letter is signed by the Southern Baptist Convention, Assemblies of God, Church of the Nazarene, the American Association of Christian Counselors, the National Board of Christian Clinical Therapists and more than 22 higher-education institutions.
"We believe that psychologists should assist clients to develop lives that they value, even if that means they decline to identify as homosexual," said the letter, which represents about 20 million Americans. It requests a meeting with APA leaders.
Warren Throckmorton, a psychology professor at Grove City College near Pittsburgh, was denied a seat on the task force.
[Editor's note: Warren Throckmorton is a former regular writer for Concerned Women for America, but has not been seen on their website lately, possibly because, to his credit, he doesn't like Paul Cameron's degree of fraud.]
elfs;WorldNetDaily condemns GLAAD for speaking out against the Fox News/O'Reilly Report fake "story" alleging "hundreds" of lesbian gangs going around killing straight men; they note GLAAD's - correct - commentary that there was not one shred of evidence to support the story, then relies on former Concerned Women for America wonk Peter LaBarbera (now heading "Americans for Truth," an anti-gay organisation) as a "fact" source supporting the article. The "facts" mostly consist of assertions that queers are used to having it "their way" in the media, with no actual facts provided - only references back to the original stories that GLAAD pointed out were wrong, repeated as authoritative, "This isn't fraud! It says it's not!";
I'm... not sure what culture is in favour of this crap, but: judge bars use of the terms "rape," "sexual assault," and all other terms implying force in a rape trial; the victim will now be required to describe being raped as "sexual intercourse" or "sex," which, of course, imply permission. I don't see any theocrats being for this - and WorldNetDaily is even on the right side, for once - but because of the huge "what the hell?!" nature of this, I'm including it; link courtesy
kathrynt;American Family Association protests prompt three Operation Save America (formerly Operation Rescue) activists to disrupt the first Senate opening prayer by a Hindu religious figure; they condemn it as "an abomination";
On the off chance you think that Operation Save America/Operation Rescue might have any complaints about this, here's their press release condemning the arrest, calling the Senate "violated" by the "false god of Hinduism" and praising the protesters as having "the courage to stand and proclaim, 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me'";
There is video of the incident, of course, hosted on YouTube;
Amnesty International statement on their position on abortion;
Mr. Bush's Surgeon General nominee denies being anti-gay and disclaims his 'homosexuality as a pathology' paper, even admitting it had no scientific basis; I don't trust him; this courtesy Queerty, a blog with which I have no experience but which was linked to by Andrew Sullivan;
Mike Gravel (Democratic presidential candidate) blasts Human Rights Campaign for not inviting him to their Democratic presidential candidate debate; he's the most vocally pro-GBLT of the candidates, according to many (including himself); HRC, however, wants Ms. Clinton to get the nomination. On the other hand, if you're wondering why the HRC has no Republican debate, it's because only one or two of the candidates even bothered answering their query letters, and even those were not willing to attend; the theoconservative base would destroy them for showing up with t3h qu33rz;
Time Magazine has a large article on "How the Democrats Got Religion." Yay, now everybody will be waving around their Jesus Penises; I can has new party nao plz?;
Box Turtle Bulletin is a three-person blog that monitors the same groups I do from an exclusive GBLT-issues related standpoint. They go into more depth within their focus; they don't provide quite as much original source, quoting from within articles rather than linking to articles in their entirety. That said, they're really good at what they do. Here are a few of their current articles:
Bill O'Reilly broadcasts a Paul Cameron statistic, this one being the "lifespan" stat claiming that queers live two and a half decades less than straights; it's fraud, of course, like all of his work. This comes on the heels of the "Lesbian Gangs" story, which was also bullshit;Here's Paul Cameron again, just for old time's sake, on his own Family Research Institute web site; the article is "Stop Gay Rights," condemning GBLT people being legal at all, as he does. He also blames "homosexuality" for the rise of Hitler in Germany - but will eventually go on (see above) to praise the Nazi regime's treatment of GBLT people. Yay;
BTB has a story on local-ministry "Ex-Gay" people, contrasting them to the national image presented by the large fundamentalist organisations;
BTB's article, "Paul Cameron's World," ties famous fraud Paul Cameron's writings on GBLT people - he's the author of The Death Penalty for Homosexuality, amoungst other missives - with Paul Cameron's own disturbingly favourable writings about the Nazi party's handling of queers in Germany during the Third Reich. He also points out direct parallels between Cameron's writing and Nazi writing on other details of GBLT people. Yikes;
BTB maintains a list of individuals and organisations citing Paul Cameron's work;
BTB documents the dissemination - often by fraud - of Paul Cameron's latest "study," the fraudulent "lifespan" study mentioned above - and the one cited without challenge on The O'Reilly Factor;
Back on Mr. Bush's surgeon general nominee Dr. James Holsinger, Concerned Women for America calls questioning him about his anti-gay paper a "religious litmus test," saying that you can't oppose someone for public office for being anti-gay for that reason. (However, you can, obviously, support someone that way.) CWA's Matt Barber says that "Dr. Holsinger has objectively placed scientific substance over political correctness relative to the high-risk nature of homosexual behaviors," apparently just before Dr. Holsinger admitted that his paper had no scientific basis. They also praise Dr. Holsinger for describing GBLT people as "unnatural" and "unhealthy." "Essentially what these radical special interest groups and like-minded senators are saying is that Christians need not apply for public service. This is both hateful and discriminatory";
Focus on the Family: New Mexico Town Plans Tens Commandments Display, with help from the Alliance Defense Fund;
FotF displeased with Massachusetts governor for cutting "abstinence-only" sex ed. funding;
FotF has a quadruple-threat story about Plan B, the morning-after birth control pill; they falsely declare it, per usual, as a potential abortifacient; they note sales are expected to double next year; they declare it a health risk (via quoting the sockpuppet Family Research Council); and proclaim it has "the potential for abuse." I wonder what that abuse would be? Birth control, perhaps;
Focus on the Family claims abstinence-based sex education is the cause of a 7% drop in self-reported sex by high school students; somehow this is retroactive back to 1991, but hey;
At the ground level, Focus on the Family would really rather prefer that women stayed in the home; this shows up a lot of ways. One of the ways that this shows up is that they regularly rerun a variation on the same story, "More Moms Say They'd Rather Be Home," saying that women would rather not have to work. Gosh. I wonder how many man would rather not have to work for a living, either? But that, somehow, never shows up, and there's a reason for that;
Focus on the Family promotes "assets not connected to morally questionable activities" run by Stewardship Partners Investment Counsel. It's kind of like a commercial, but it's pretending to be a news story. I wonder if they got paid for it;
Focus on the Family newsbrief notes Ohio state rep. Tom Brinkman (Brinkman? Brinkmanship? Irony is so ironic) introduces a comprehensive abortion ban bill, including "the distribution of abortion-inducing drugs"; what's interesting about that is that as far as the fundamentalists are concerned, that includes emergency birth control (Plan B, which is not the same as RU-486) and, according to some fundamentalists, all forms of chemical birth control, and some which aren't. I wonder what definition is being used here;
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to support bans on "sexually explicit businesses," lists Troy, Michigan as an example, and! links to lawyer Scott Bergthold's web site where he offers services in helping draft such laws. Again, is this news, or a commercial? I don't know;
FotF condemns Florida library for accepting GBLT-themed collection that includes "pornographic" material. The collection will be restricted to adults only, but that's not good enough;
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to oppose adding GBLT people to Federal hate-crimes law, calling it, as they do, "special protections for homosexuals"; normally they use the phrase "special rights," so that's an interesting shift. I guess their polling has found that people respond more negatively to "special protections" for queers than "special rights";
Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to complain to The Detroit Press that their coverage of an American Psychological Association committee's decision to consider whether it is possible to offer therapy - presumably "conversion" therapy :-p - to "patients who are dissatisfied living homosexually" is "bias, cut and dried" against ex-gay bullshit and for queers; according to the story below, it has mostly to do with considering religious beliefs of patients in therapy. In the article below, it's a theocon-based drive to get this considered; see more in Part 2 of today's CWU;
----- 1 -----
Will ex-gays bring down 'Big Sodomy'?
Posted: July 7, 2007
By Donald Hank
WorldNetDaily
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56545
Remember how cool smoking was? If you're 45 or older, you do.
Whatever happened to that politically correct, cool, suave, debonair habit that was all the rage among college students, profs, teachers, Hollywood actors, big business and just about everyone purporting to have "intellect"?
In a nutshell, some scientists at the National Institutes of Health got together in the '60s, '70s and later and did some pioneering studies that proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that this cool habit could kill you.
Today, they're at it again. Only it isn't smoking. That's a dead issue, thanks to science and lawyers.
The activists then were Big Tobacco, supported by Hollywood, the advertising industry, the media and academe. Even politicians, like FDR, smoked and helped sell the image. But the activists were silenced by the nuclear option: lawsuits brought by the smokers, the victims themselves.
[...]
Of course, the promulgation of knowledge and data concerning the link between alternative sex and disease is hampered by the bullying tactics of the elite. Thus, only a few facts are known at all to some of the public (such as the results of a study in Scandinavia showing that men in same-sex marriages die 24 years earlier than their counterparts in the general population), and these facts aren't mainstream, thanks to the media blackout on this issue and the muzzling of opponents under color of law. [Editor's note: This is a lie. Specifically, a Paul Cameron lie. Amazing how he keeps getting recycled.] And that, in turn, is thanks to the activists.
[...]
If you have a friend or relative who has been persuaded by the media, big business, politicians, university programs, including courses of study, or any person or group to try this deadly lifestyle, and especially if your friend or relative is already suffering from a serious disease contracted as a result of it, talk to him or her at the first opportunity about the very real possibility of starting a class-action lawsuit against the group or groups that persuaded them to enter into the activity that did them in. If you happen to be in a care-giving profession, that is a shoe in the door.
[More at URL]
----- 2 -----
Payback for exposé on 'dyke' gang rapes
Homosexual activists attack revelations of lesbian assaults
Posted: July 9, 2007
By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56577
Two news stories about hundreds of lesbian gangs attacking and raping young girls in schools and other public locations have prompted a backlash against the reporters by members of the homosexual community.
The broadcasts by Memphis television station WPTY and Fox News host Bill O'Reilly quoted law enforcement authorities, victims, and even some gang members to document the growing number of attacks on young girls by lesbian gang members.
"The Eyewitness News Everywhere" report in Memphis documented incidents of gangs known as GTOs, or "Gays" Taking Over, attacking schoolgirls. Two prison inmates affiliated with the gang told the station they had begun meeting to offer each other support, but a younger generation of members had taken their group over for violence and rape.
[...]
Peter LaBarbera, of Americans for Truth, an organization publicizing information about the impact of the "gay" lifestyle, contends pro-homosexual influences have so permeated many media organizations that the "gay" promoters are accustomed to having only their side reported.
For example, the Memphis report referenced young schoolgirls being hurt, but GLAAD's statement ignored those victims.
"All they wanted to do was shut down the story," LaBarbera told WND. "This epitomizes the selfishness of the gay activists."
Having heard over the years of the fast-growing influence of lesbian gangs and their tactics of intimidation, LaBarbera said the reports, including an estimate of 150 attack squads in the Washington, D.C., region alone, were no surprise.
[Ed. Note: this is fundamentaly wrong on almost every key level. For example, the "lesbians" in the DC case were men. DC police squads were asked by other parties and had no idea what the hell O'Reilly and others were going on about. And it gets worse from there.]
[...]
LaBarbera noted a prominent homosexual journalist has likened talking to Christians about "gay" issues to talking to the Klan about race issues.
"Obviously, this is their whole thing. They want to portray religious conservatives as analogous to the Klan," he said.
He noted even Fox News has contributed to the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association.
[...]
"Here's a lesbian gang story obviously affecting inner city schools. If there were any justice in the media this would be huge. There would be investigations kicking in," he said.
"This is really Orwellian. We've got gayspeak words," LaBarbera said.
"Here you have girls being raped by other girls, and somehow GLAAD manages to turn the homosexual lobby into the victims," he said.
The original Memphis TV report included stories of school washroom rapes of schoolgirls, assaults with sex toys, and the intimidation that comes from the threat of those attacks.
LaBarbera told WND he heard about the "lesbian bullying phenomenon" from former lesbian-turned-Christian evangelist Linda Jernigan, who was contacted by a teacher about speaking at a suburban Chicago where "this sick behavior was occurring."
[More at URL]
----- 3 -----
Words 'rape,' 'sexual assault' won't be allowed at rape trial
By The Associated Press
Hosted by First Amendment Center
06.22.07
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=18707
LINCOLN, Neb. — When Pamir Safi is tried for sexual assault next month, prosecutors and witnesses won't be allowed to use the terms "sexual assault" or "rape" to describe what happened.
That's because Lancaster County District Judge Jeffre Cheuvront agreed to bar those words after defense attorneys argued the point. Prosecutors don't think the ban is needed, but they say they'll live with it.
But the woman accusing Safi of assault, Tory Bowen, says the judge's order forces her to change the way she describes events. It's not clear whether the restrictions played any role in the hung jury that derailed the 33-year-old Safi's first trial in November.
[More at URL]
----- 4 -----
Senate Prayer Led by Hindu Elicits Protest
Associated Press
Friday, July 13, 2007; Page A07
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/12/AR2007071202007.html
A Hindu clergyman made history yesterday by offering the Senate's morning prayer, but only after police officers removed three protesters from the visitors' gallery.
Rajan Zed, director of interfaith relations at a Hindu temple in Reno, Nev., gave the prayer that opens each day's Senate session. As he stood at the lectern in a bright orange and burgundy robe, two women and a man began shouting "this is an abomination" and other complaints from the gallery.
Police officers arrested them and charged them disrupting Congress, a misdemeanor. The male protester said "we are Christians and patriots" before police led them away. Police identified the protesters as Ante Nedlko Pavkovic, Katherine Lynn Pavkovic and Christan Renee Sugar. Their home towns were not available.
For several days, the Mississippi-based American Family Association has urged its members to object to the prayer because Zed would be "seeking the invocation of a non-monotheistic god."
[More at URL]
----- 5 -----
Theology Moved to the Senate and was Arrested
Theology has moved from the church house onto the floor of the United States Senate, and has been arrested.
Operation Save America Press Release
Contact: Dr. Pat McEwen, Operation Save America, 321-431- 3962
http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/575363635.html
WASHINGTON, July 12 /Christian Newswire/ -- Ante Pavkovic, Kathy Pavkovic, and Kristen Sugar were all arrested in the chambers of the United States Senate as that chamber was violated by a false Hindu god. The Senate was opened with a Hindu prayer placing the false god of Hinduism on a level playing field with the One True God, Jesus Christ. This would never have been allowed by our Founding Fathers.
"Not one Senator had the backbone to stand as our Founding Fathers stood. They stood on the Gospel of Jesus Christ! There were three in the audience with the courage to stand and proclaim, 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me.' They were immediately removed from the chambers, arrested, and are in jail now. God bless those who stand for Jesus as we know that He stands for them." Rev. Flip Benham, Director, Operation Save America/Operation Rescue
To Schedule Interviews with Rev. Benham:
Contact Pat McEwen: 321 431 3962
----- 6 -----
Christian extremists disrupt Hindu Senate invocation
C-Span 2
Hosted on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZ9To30Hz7A
[Click for unedited video]
----- 7 -----
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL USA
July 6, 2007
http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?lang=e&id=ENGUSA20070706001
Most Reverend William S. Skylstad
Bishop of Spokane
President
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
3211 Fourth St. NE
Washington, DC 20017
Dear Bishop Skylstad:
I am writing in response to the July 2 statement from the U.S. Catholic Bishops on Amnesty International's (AI's) sexual and reproductive rights policy and its specific attention to aspects of abortion.
First, I believe strongly that we should not allow divergent views on any one issue to undermine our shared commitment to work together to end human suffering around the world. Through the years and despite differences of perspective, the Catholic church and Amnesty, though a secular organization, have stood as allies on fundamental questions of human dignity, especially in our shared opposition to the death penalty and our joint work to free prisoners of conscience jailed for their religious beliefs. We have accomplished a great deal together. It remains my fervent hope that we will continue to act upon our common devotion to these causes by working jointly on behalf of victims of abuse and torture, even though we cannot expect to agree on each and every issue.
In this spirit I wish to correct the misunderstanding conveyed in the bishops' statement which incorrectly asserted that AI has adopted a "pro-abortion stand." In fact, Amnesty International's policy on sexual and reproductive rights seeks to ensure that women and men can exercise their sexual and reproductive rights free from coercion, discrimination and violence. In doing so it responds to the human suffering caused by abuses of these rights. Defending the right of women to sexual and reproductive integrity in the face of grave human rights violations, AI does not promote abortion as a universal right but recognizes instead the right of women to be free of fear, threat and coercion as they manage the consequences of rape and other grave human rights violations.
AI will not advocate "abortion on demand," nor do we counsel individuals as to what choice they should make on abortion. We take no position as to whether abortion is right or wrong, nor on its legalization generally. Instead our position is focused on three areas of concern: opposition to imprisonment or other criminal sanctions for women or providers of abortion; support for medical treatment for women who suffer complications from unsafe abortions, and within reasonable gestational limits, support for women who seek abortion in cases of rape, incest or to preserve her life or when pregnancy poses a grave risk to her health.
[More at URL]
----- 8 -----
Holsinger Says He Ain't Anti-Gay
Queerty
Online as of 13 July 2007
http://www.queerty.com/news/holsinger-says-he-aint-anti-gay-20070712/
Senator Ted Kennedy dug into Surgeon General Dr. James Holsinger during today’s Senate hearing. The senator from Massachusetts eschewed questions on obesity and tobacco, two of Holsinger’s medical missions, and instead asked the Kentucky based doctor about that now infamous anti-gay, United Methodist Church-backed paper, “Pathophysiology of Male Homosexuality”:
[...]
The bearded physician told the Senate:
Since my nomination on May 24, there have been several statements made about me. Questions have been raised about my faith and about my commitment to ensuring the health and welfare of all Americans, including gay and lesbian Americans.
I am deeply troubled by these claims, which do not reflect who I am, what I believe or the work I have accomplished in over 40 years of practicing medicine. … Let me be clear — I have a profound respect for the essential human dignity of all people regardless of background or sexual orientation.
[...]
Meanwhile, presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Chris Dodd, all of whom have questioned Holsinger’s medical merits, failed to show up to the hearing. They will, however, be appearing at HRC’s gay debate.
----- 9 -----
Gravel Blasts HRC
Queerty
12 June 2007
http://www.queerty.com/news/gravel-blasts-hrc-20070712/
Mike Gravel may not be a front runner for the democratic presidential nomination, but he’s sure as hell the most outspoken of the candidates. Could it be his opinionated ways that led HRC to snub him for their gay debates?
Gravel certainly thinks so:
"…I think the real reason why HRC didn’t invite me is that I’m too vocal in my advocacy of gay rights. None of the top tier candidates would have been comfortable facing an opponent who consistently points out their refusal to embrace true equality for gays and lesbians. HRC simply bowed to the star factor. It’s just a shame that this travesty was perpetrated in the name of the LGBT community."
[More at URL]
----- 10 -----
How the Democrats Got Religion
Thursday, Jul. 12, 2007
Time Magazine
By NANCY GIBBS AND MICHAEL DUFFY
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1642649-1,00.html
A president has to be a preacher of sorts, instructing, consoling, summoning citizens to sacrifice for some common good. But candidates are competitors, which means they seldom manage to talk about faith in a way that doesn't disturb people, doesn't divide them, doesn't nail campaign posters on the gates of heaven. Republicans have been charged with exploiting religious voters, Democrats with ignoring them: Hillary Clinton's voice gets tight as she recalls the mocking response she received when she first spoke in spiritual terms about the longing that people felt to invest in causes larger than self-interest. "I talked about my faith years ago and was pilloried for it," she says, and it is hard to tell if she is more impatient with the conservatives who presumed they held the patent on piety or with the liberals whose worship of diversity all but excluded the devout.
[...]
In this campaign season, if Clinton and Barack Obama and John Edwards are any measure, there will be nothing unusual in Democrats' talking about the God who guides them and the beliefs that sustain them. Clinton has hired Burns Strider, a congressional staffer (and evangelical Baptist from Mississippi) who is assembling a faith steering group from major denominations and sends out a weekly wrap-up, Faith, Family and Values. Edwards has been organizing conference calls with progressive religious leaders and is about to embark on a 12-city poverty tour. In the past month alone, Obama's campaign has run six faith forums in New Hampshire, where local clergy and laypeople discuss religious engagement in politics. "We talk about ways people of faith have gone wrong in the past, what they have done right and where they see it going in the future," says his faith-outreach adviser, Joshua DuBois. Speeches on everything from the budget to immigration to stem-cell research are carefully marinated in Scripture. "Science is a gift of God to all of us," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during a debate on increased embryo-research funding, "and science has taken us to a place that is biblical in its power to cure."
The Democrats are so fired up, you could call them the new Moral Majority. This time, however, the emphasis is as much on the majority as on the morality as they try to frame a message in terms of broadly shared values that don't alarm members of minority religions or secular voters. It has become an article of faith among party leaders that it was sheer strategic stupidity to cede the values debate to Republicans for so long; that most people want to reduce abortion but not criminalize it, protect the earth instead of the auto industry, raise up the least among us; and that a lot of voters care as much about the candidates' principles as about their policies. "What we're seeing," says strategist Mike McCurry, "is a Great Awakening in the Democratic Party."
[More at URL]
----- 11 -----
Bill O’Reilly Broadcasts Cameron’s “Lifespan” Statistic Unchallenged
Jim Burroway
Box Turtle Bulletin
July 12th, 2007
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/12/544
A few weeks ago, Bill O’Reilly’s program became something of a laughingstock for raising the specter of 150 lesbian gangs wreaking havoc in Washington, D.C. O’Reilly’s guest, Rod Wheeler, who gave that scenario, has since apologized and O’Reilly has had to eat crow over it.
Just last night, O’Reilly’s program became a platform for another bogus statistic, this one from discredited “researcher” Paul Cameron, whose comparison of homosexuality to smoking made it on the air without challenge.
The segment on O’Reilly’s program focused on the San Diego Padres’ decision to hold a Gay Pride Night while giving away hats to children. Sandy Rios, formerly of the Concerned Women for America and currently of the Culture Campaign, took the anti-gay side. Ron Deharte of San Diego Pride defended the Padres’ decision. During the three-way interview, the screen showed numerous scenes of gay couples, some holding hands, hugging and kissing. O’Reilly exploded near the end of the segment, calling those scenes “exhibitionistic.” This was clearly the case of two against one, with the calm-spoken Deharte trying to make his points between the shouting.
Sandy Rios complained about the “mixing” of children with gay couples, saying it sent the wrong message:
Sandy Rios: But let me just give you another way to think about this. What if the San Diego Padres decided to celebrate a “smoking is fun” night, and they had a smoking men’s chorus performing. Now there are a lot of people that come to the game and they have a pack of cigarettes or whatever, maybe they can’t smoke there. But that’s different than celebrating smoking because we all know is that smoking is really harmful to your health. Well, what people don’t understand is that the homosexual lifestyle, especially for men, is deadly. It takes their life ten to twenty years earlier than straight men. That is not what we should be promoting before of our children… [Emphasis mine]
Bill O’Reilly: But that’s their decision…
The connection of homosexuality to the dangers of smoking and a reduced lifespan comes directly from discredited researcher Paul Cameron. He first claimed that gay men die at the average age of 42 and lesbians die at 44 in 1993. That claim, based on his “obituary study,” has been roundly discredited.
[More at URL]
----- 12 -----
Contrasting National Ex-Gay Hype with Local Ministries
Timothy Kincaid
Box Turtle Bulletin
July 11th, 2007
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/11/542
For years we’ve heard tales of “former homosexuals just like me” touted by national spokesmen with a sincere delivery, a confident smile, and a wife and children hovering just within view of the cameras. That is the public face of the ex-gay movement, the one presented when politicians seek justification for denying civil equality to gay individuals or couples.
The Miami New Times featured a story today on their local ex-gay ministry, Worthy Creations. Those familiar with the movement will not read much new; it covers the history of the movement and its many embarrassments along with its wishes, dreams, and claims. But these stories that sporadically appear around the nation which highlight local ministries give a flavor that seems miles from the slick image that Exodus’ national office sells.
Although Exodus’ Randy Thomas claims an informal study in 2003 resulted in 11,000 weekly attendants at their 150 ministries (an average of 73), at the meeting attended by the reporter, there were only six strugglers – a number far more consistent with what we read in other local reports. And unlike the happily married ex-gays that show up to press conferences and White House events, the local ex-gay seems to be more like those described in this article:
[More at URL]
----- 13 -----
Paul Cameron’s World
The SPLC said in 2005 that Cameron’s theories on homosexuality “echoes Nazi Germany.” They didn’t know the half of it. Cameron himself turned to a notorious concentration camp commandant to validate this theories.
Jim Burroway
May 14, 2007; revised May 22, 2007
The original version is available at Ex-Gay Watch
Box Turtle Bulletin
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/11/542
In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center described Paul Cameron’s theories on homosexuality this way: “Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany in that these disparaging descriptions of homosexuals are reminiscent of themes found in the ugly history of anti-Semitism…”. But as we shall see, Cameron does much more than just echo Nazi Germany in his theories on homosexuality. And the SPLC didn’s have to compare his theories to anti-Semitism to hear those echos. It turns out that Cameron himself is much more direct, employing a bit of holocaust revisionism to advance his cause. And the surprising thing is, this evidence has been right there all along on his web site, largely unnoticed for eight years.
But before we examine his retelling of the gay experience in Nazi Germany, let's take a few moments to explore a little bit about what goes on in Cameron’s world. And let’s begin with a recent e-mail exchange between Paul Cameron and Dr. Warren Throckmorton, associate professor of Psychology at Grove City College in northwestern Pennsylvania.
[More at URL]
----- 14 -----
Paul Cameron’s Collaborators
These are just some of the people who provide oxygen for Paul Cameron’s self-documented Nazi-revisionist mission. Do they agree with Cameron’s “solutions”?
Jim Burroway
May 15, 2007, Revised May 18, 2007.
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2007/07/11/542
The Southern Poverty Law Center in 2005 made a passing reference to Paul Cameron’s theories “echoing Nazi Germany.” Unfortunately they missed the real story. In a chilling 1999 newsletter, Paul Cameron himself cited the mercurial observations of a notorious Nazi concentration camp commandant as evidence supporting his own theories on homosexuality. Those observations, in turn, provide a deeply disturbing context to Cameron’s obsession for those who — to use a phrase Cameron borrows from Rudolph Höss — live “parasitic lives.” And in his web site, he makes it plainly clear that it is his quest to bring his vision to fruition for the rest of us.
Paul Cameron is just one man. But when others associate themselves with his junk science to further their agenda, they provide him with the oxygen he needs to keep his quest alive. Otherwise, he would fade in irrelevance. And so the question must be asked of everyone who uses his “research”: Do you agree with Paul Cameron’s “Solutions”?
[More at URL]
----- 15 -----
Paul Cameron's Footprint
And Another Stab At The “Homosexual Lifespan”
Jim Burroway
April 9, 2007
http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/Articles/000,018.htm
Another “homosexual lifespan" study has hit the news. According to a flurry of press releases making rounds, married gays in Scandinavia die 24 years younger than everyone else:
Married Gays Die 24 Years Younger
Researchers Paul and Kirk Cameron reported at the Eastern Psychological Association convention that married gays and lesbians lived about 24 fewer years than their married heterosexual counterparts.1
Gays Die Sooner: Implications for Adoption
“The life span of gays is 20-plus years shorter than the life span of heterosexuals,” states Dr. Paul Cameron of the Family Research Institute, a Colorado-based think tank. “This shortened lifespan,” he warned, “has profound implications for adoption.”2
Discrimination Doesn’t Drive Gays To An Early Grave
Dr. Paul Cameron, of the Family Research Institute, a Colorado-based think tank, said “there was essentially no difference between the average age of death for homosexuals in accepting societies — Norway and Denmark — and the United States, which, according to gay rights activists, is still ‘a homophobic society’ since it still bans them from the military and giving blood.”3
Homosexuality More Dangerous Than Smoking
Studies have shown that years of smoking shortens the lifespan of the smoker from 1 to 7 years. But analysis of the age of death in Norway and Denmark for gays who are legally married suggests that engaging in homosexual behavior reduces the lifespan by 24 years!4
[More at URL]
----- 16 -----
Can Anything Be Done to Stop Gay Rights?
Paul Cameron
Family Research Institute
Online as of 14 July 2007
http://www.familyresearchinst.org/Default.aspx?tabid=145
The West has produced the richest and most vital civilization ever to grace the planet, but our civilization is dying by slow degrees. Western nations are producing too few children to maintain their population. Most of our demographic decline is due to a mix of a self-centered reluctance to have children, birth control, wholesale abortion, and women in the workplace. The rise of militant homosexuality has also been a significant factor. It is both a symptom and a cause of our decline.
On one hand, the growing acceptance of homosexuality is symptomatic of a larger trend in Western society — the growing view of sexuality as “mere recreation,” a casual activity divorced from procreation and family. Gay rights is also a cause of civilization’s decline. Homosexuality is a unique manifestation of hedonism. Instead of producing children, it preys on them. Instead of keeping to itself, it proselytizes. Instead of promoting health and stability (as does marriage), it thrives on aggression, spreads disease, and destroys its practitioners, emotionally and physically.
Along with the promotion of birth control and abortion, the present bland acceptance of homosexuality signals the end of the religious and moral vision that made Western civilization coherent and functional. We had a forewarning of this social collapse in Germany following that nation’s defeat in World War I. During the Weimar Republic, homosexuality was acceptable and consequently rampant. The popular culture celebrated perversity. Kurt Weill’s songs portrayed pleasure-seeking men moving from one homosexual encounter to another. The first gay rights film, “Different From The Others,” appeared in Germany in 1919. This period of moral chaos spawned National Socialism and the rise to power of its sexually twisted leader, Adolph Hitler.
[More at URL]
----- 17 -----
Poisoning the Surgeon General Nominee
Concerned Women for America
7/12/2007
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/13424/MEDIA/misc/index.htm
Washington, D.C. – This morning Senate hearings will begin for Dr. James Holsinger, President Bush’s nominee for Surgeon General. Holsinger’s nomination has become unfairly politicized due to both his medical findings on homosexual behavior and his religious beliefs. While Concerned Women for America (CWA) takes no position on his nomination, we do believe that it is inappropriate and unconstitutional to subject Dr. Holsinger to a religious litmus test.
Holsinger’s findings on male homosexual behaviors are medically sound and are supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). He has unapologetically stated that homosexual behavior is “unnatural” and “unhealthy” and runs counter to natural human biological design.
Matt Barber, CWA’s Policy Director for Cultural Issues, said, "It is both inappropriate and unconstitutional for the Senate to require that any nominee pass an anti-Christian religious litmus test based upon the demands of extremist left-wing special interest groups. In the past, Dr. Holsinger has objectively placed scientific substance over political correctness relative to the high-risk nature of homosexual behaviors. The determinations he and numerous other medical experts have reached are completely in line with the findings of the CDC. The CDC has documented that people who engage in homosexual behavior - by far - are at highest risk for devastating and often deadly sexually transmitted diseases. Will liberals now call for the CDC to be shut-down because the medical facts undermine their political agenda? Essentially what these radical special interest groups and like-minded senators are saying is that Christians need not apply for public service. This is both hateful and discriminatory."
For Information Contact:
Jennifer Fedor
(202) 488-7000
media.cwfa.org
----- 18 -----
New Mexico Town Plans Ten Commandments Display
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005047.cfm
The Bloomfield, N.M., City Council is moving forward with plans for a granite monument displaying the Ten Commandments outside City Hall, according to reports from The Associated Press.
The council approved a policy this week that allows monuments on city property that relate to the development of the law and government of the city, state or nation. The policy was drawn up with help from the Alliance Defense Fund.
[More at URL]
----- 19 -----
Massachusetts Governor Cuts Abstinence-Education Funding
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005048.cfm
On Thursday, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick vetoed $41 million in spending approved by the Legislature, including funding for an abstinence-only education program, The Boston Globe reports.
Among the cuts, Patrick excised a provision that would have allowed the state to spend $712,000 in federal money on abstinence ed. Massachusetts has received the grant since 1998, but public health officials in the administration decided they no longer want the money, because it can't be used to teach birth control.
[More at URL]
----- 20 -----
Sales of Morning-After Pill May Double in a Year
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005049.cfm
In August 2006, the Food and Drug Administration authorized the sale of the morning-after pill without a prescription to women 18 and older. Annual sales of Plan B are expected to double this year, The Washington Post reports.
"This is very concerning," Charmaine Yoest of the Family Research Council told The Post. FRC is among several groups suing the FDA to reverse the decision. "We think this is putting women's health at risk."
Plan B consists of higher doses of the hormones found in standard birth control pills. It is taken within 72 hours of sex and is intended to prevent pregnancy, but can sometimes cause an early abortion.
Dawn Vargo, associate bioethics analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said: "The increased use of Plan B increases the risk to women's health and has the potential for abuse."
----- 21 -----
Report Shows Lower Teen-Sex and Pregnancy Rates
Decline began with the introduction of abstinence education.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
07-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005052.cfm
Teen-sex and pregnancy rates are down, according to a National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) report released today. Experts say parents should take a closer look at the data to determine what the statistics show and how to keep kids healthy.
The NCHS study tracked trends among high school students from 1991 to 2005. In 1991, 54 percent of teens reported having had sexual intercourse. In 2005, that number dropped to 47 percent. The rate of teen pregnancy also showed a dramatic decline.
[...]
Linda Klepacki, analyst for sexual health at Focus on the Family Action, said 1991 is a significant marker for a reason.
"That's when we separated out abstinence education from contraceptive-based education," she said. "We have seen a continual decline since 1991, so we can infer that we've had an effect with abstinence education in our public schools."
Abma said Klepacki is on to something. While the study did not attempt to investigate cause, she said, efforts to educate teens about the risks associated with sexual intercourse have "increased and intensified" over the last decade.
"Given how many of those efforts are going on," Abma said, "it is probably making an impact on both abstinence and responsible sexual behavior."
[More at URL]
----- 22 -----
More Moms Say They'd Rather Be Home
Juggling work and family is tough to pull of.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
7-13-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000005050.cfm
More and more working moms say full time is not ideal; they’d rather be at home with their kids. What’s more, 48 percent of stay-at-home moms say they wouldn’t change a thing, according to the Pew Research Center.
Colorado working mom Joanna Brown told Family News in Focus that finances make it necessary for her to work, but it would not be her first choice.
[More at URL]
----- 23 -----
Investors Search for Returns Without Regrets
'Values investments' consider morality as well as profits.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000005041.cfm
"Values investments" – assets not connected to morally questionable activities – are getting some conscientious investors a good return on their dollar.
Investing based on moral values is proving to many to be the ticket to good returns and a clean conscience. Rusty Leonard runs Stewardship Partners Investment Counsel, which has outperformed the S&P 500 by better than 26 percent.
[...]
The Timothy Plan offers a variety of mutual funds for people who oppose abortion, pornography, alcohol, tobacco and gambling. President Stephen Ally says although that limits quite a few successful companies, they've doing pretty well for their investors. One fund contains companies such as Bed, Bath and Beyond and Colgate Palmolive.
[More at URL]
----- 24 -----
Ohio Lawmakers Consider Abortion Ban
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005040.cfm
Ohio state Rep. Tom Brinkman introduced legislation Tuesday to outlaw all abortion, including the distribution of abortion-inducing drugs, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported.
[...]
Gov. Ted Strickland has promised to veto any bill that restricts abortion.
[More at URL]
----- 25 -----
Michigan City Restricts Sexually Oriented Businesses
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005039.cfm
Sexually explicit businesses, including strip clubs, book stores and video stores, now face strict licensing requirements, thanks to a vote by the Troy City Council. Troy is a suburb of Detroit.
According to the city's Web site, owners of these businesses must pass a criminal background check, provide a list of their employees, refrain from serving alcohol and install tip boxes.
The restrictions are meant as a deterrent, since Troy does not have any sexually oriented adult establishments.
Daniel Weiss, senior analyst for media and sexuality at Focus on the Family Action, said Troy is right in taking pre-emptive action.
"Even if no sexually oriented business exists in a town, it is crucial to set up these ordinances as soon as possible," he said. "We've seen these sex businesses intentionally locate in communities with no regulations in place. Once they're there, it's very hard to get rid of them. It's much better to proactively protect your community."
TAKE ACTION
Scott Bergthold, one of the nation's foremost experts in obscenity laws, can help your town draft an ordinance to regulate sexually oriented businesses.
(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on the Family is for informational purposes only and does not necessarily constitute an endorsement of the sites' content.)
----- 26 -----
Florida City Officials Allow Graphic Homosexual Material in Public Library
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000005038.cfm
Despite objections from Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle, the City Commission voted to allow a collection of books and magazines depicting hard-core, homosexually oriented pornographic material to be placed in the city's public library, LifeSiteNews reported.
The Stonewall gay and lesbian book archive will be moved from the Gay and Lesbian Community Center to the county-run ArtSpace library.
Jack Rutland, executive director of the Stonewall Library and Archive, said his policy is that only people 18 and older can use the library, because of the graphic nature of the material depicting homosexual sex.
[More at URL]
----- 27 -----
U.S. Senate Prepares to Vote on Dangerous Hate-Crimes Bill
Vote could come Monday on amendment to create special protections for homosexuals.
by Jennifer Mesko, associate editor
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005043.cfm
Legislation to create a new category of crime for actions said to be motivated by prejudice based on specific characteristics, including “sexual orientation” and “gender identity,” could get a vote in the U.S. Senate as soon as Monday.
Democrats have attached an amendment to a Defense spending bill that would create federally protected “class status” for homosexuals, bisexuals, transvestites, “transgender” and “transsexual” people.
"You’re essentially creating a civil right based on immoral and changeable behavior, and that’s a bad precedent to set in the law," said Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth.
The House of Representatives passed an identical version of the legislation May 3 by a vote of 237 to 180.
On Monday, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council will join Focus on the Family's Dr. Bill Maier and Tom Minnery to discuss hate crimes on the Focus on the Family radio broadcast.
"This legislation is essentially a federal power grab," said Matt Barber, policy director for cultural issues at Concerned Women for America. "It circumvents the 10th Amendment, which guarantees states' rights, and the authority of state police power, and gives the federal government power to police and to govern and to monitor and to enforce crime at a municipal, or local level, which is really constitutionally dubious."
Ashley Horne, federal policy analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said Democrats are using a political tactic by tacking hate-crimes legislation onto Defense spending.
"The president has already indicated he would veto a hate-crimes bill," she said. "They’ve inserted this bill as an amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill, and that puts the president in a difficult position."
Horne and Barber are encouraging pro-family Americans to get involved.
"People should call the Senate," Barber said, "and let their senators know that this hate-crimes legislation is dangerous, that it can have a slippery slope effect, and really can oppress freedom of religion and freedom of speech. It's entirely unnecessary because the Constitution and 14th Amendment guarantee equal protection under the law."
TAKE ACTION
Urge your senators to oppose the hate-crimes amendment. If you are a CitizenLink subscriber, click the blue "Hate Crimes" button in the e-mail. Otherwise, click on this link.
----- 28 -----
Bias, Cut and Dried
Need proof that the mainstream news media lean to the left? Keep reading.
by Gary Schneeberger, vice president, media relations
Focus on the Family
7-12-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/clcommentary/A000005044.cfm
It’s one of the most blatant examples of media bias I’ve ever seen – and I’ve seen a lot of them.
It appeared in Wednesday’s Detroit Free Press, under the headline “Therapy to change gays’ orientation to be reviewed,” and was written – sort of – by Associated Press reporter David Crary. I say he sort-of wrote it because the Free Press ran only a portion of his piece – about how hundreds of psychological, educational and ministry groups are questioning the objectivity of an American Psychological Association (APA) committee considering whether it’s ethical to offer therapy to patients who are dissatisfied living homosexually.
[...]
Whoever edited the story there went beyond excising a few paragraphs toward the bottom; instead, he or she removed the comments of every one of the four people who expressed socially conservative views. The only sources directly quoted are two people on the other side of the debate – one of whom gets his quote from the story repeated in larger type (known in the news business as a “read-out” or “pull-quote”).
[...]
Fair enough – but I wouldn’t say far enough. It’s true that a skeletal summary of our side’s view is included, and there is a snippet from the letter Focus on the Family signed, but we were robbed of our opportunity to speak directly to readers. Not once, but four times. With all due respect to Mr. Andrews, it’s not about how many lines or words each side got to make its points; it’s about why his newspaper thought spokespeople on our side didn’t deserve to make their points at all.
[Editor's note: "robbed." Nice.]
[More at URL]
----- 29 -----
Psychologists to Review Policy on Homosexuality
Focus on the Family, others urge APA to consider faith of patients.
by Jennifer Mesko, associate editor
Focus on the Family
7-11-2007
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005032.cfm
Beginning next week, a task force set up by the American Psychological Association (APA) will begin reviewing the organization's 10-year-old policy on homosexuality, which opposes counseling that treats same-sex attraction as a mental illness, but does not forbid various therapies that address unwanted same-sex attraction.
Focus on the Family has joined more than 250 pro-family organizations and individuals in urging the APA to recognize the religious beliefs of clients and to allow those who struggle with unwanted same-sex attraction to receive therapy. The letter is signed by the Southern Baptist Convention, Assemblies of God, Church of the Nazarene, the American Association of Christian Counselors, the National Board of Christian Clinical Therapists and more than 22 higher-education institutions.
"We believe that psychologists should assist clients to develop lives that they value, even if that means they decline to identify as homosexual," said the letter, which represents about 20 million Americans. It requests a meeting with APA leaders.
Warren Throckmorton, a psychology professor at Grove City College near Pittsburgh, was denied a seat on the task force.
[Editor's note: Warren Throckmorton is a former regular writer for Concerned Women for America, but has not been seen on their website lately, possibly because, to his credit, he doesn't like Paul Cameron's degree of fraud.]
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-07-15 01:18 am (UTC)The decline in rates of teen sex and pregnancy since abstinence-only education began info flies in the face of some other studies I've seen; you have any handly links for opposing views on that?
The Dems on religion are seriously creeping me out; they seem to have sort of an idea that it's wrong to let the Republicans claim they are the party of values, but only a half-assed idea of how to say we are the party of values w/out claiming the same values as the Republicans . . .
The anti-gay stuff is just loopy; I suppose the right wing thinks that and anti-Mexican xenophobia and a possible new terrorist attack/Osama video telling people to vote for Democrats are their best hope for getting votes next time (which is a horribly sad commentary on american voters, in and of itself)?
I posted something on the Nebraska case in a community I belong to; I may post more in my l.j. and include a link here . . .
no subject
Date: 2007-07-15 04:34 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-15 06:03 am (UTC)Wait, whut?
Date: 2007-07-15 02:28 pm (UTC)Since when has Big Tobacco been "broght down"?
Re: Wait, whut?
Date: 2007-07-15 04:40 pm (UTC)Yeah, well...