[Active-l] (NEWS) Today's Cultural Warfare Update

[Dara (R'ykandar Korra'ti)]

Faith and Freedom Network cranky at Seattle PI columnist talking about  
their effort to elect fundamentalist-friendly judicial slates across  
the state;

Faith and Freedom Network pushes their "educational" "voter's guide,"  
which is basically their judicial endorsement list;

Links to Faith and Freedom Network's endorsement list and the Focus on  
the Family ACTION ITEM to vote for fundamentalist judges in Washington  
State;

Faith and Freedom Network ACTION ITEM to download their endorsement  
list and vote for the judicial candidates they endorse;

Focus on the Family protests Illinois court decision upholding an  
anti-marriage initiative being kept off the ballot; Illinois law  
requires that no more than 5% of signatures be invalid, their  
initiative was well over that, so they sued and lost;

Liberty Council files suit filing lawsuits to overturn GBLT civil  
rights protections at the county level in Virginia; they plan to do so  
in several counties which have passed local antidiscrimination law;

FotF reports on a freethinker atheist group being formed at the Air  
Force Academy;

FotF happily reports on veto of GBLT educational bill in California;  
hoping Governor Schwarzenegger will veto antidiscrimination bills  
affecting schools;

Faith and Freedom Network ACTION ITEM to get out the fundamentalist  
vote for the primary;

Focus on the Family demands action on anti-abortion legislation;

Focus on the Family and several other fundamentalist leaders want to  
meet with President Bush to demand Federal obscenity prosecutions;

Focus on the Family reports on efforts to ban pr0n shops in Kentucky  
and Indiana;

FotF article on a lawsuit challenging Maryland's same-sex marriage ban;

Focus on the Family pushes their "ex-gay" "Love Won Out" agenda;

Focus on the Family Canada upset at Manitoba schools;

Focus on the Family happily reports on North Carolina's ban on  
Gay-Straight Alliance Clubs, violating the equal-access rule laid out  
by the Supreme Court several years ago, the same ruling that they rely  
on to make sure religious clubs have access; they loved the ruling when  
they could use it to sue schools to let religious clubs in, they hate  
it when queer kids use it too;

Focus on the Family complains about lack of anti-abortion-rights bills  
in Congress;

FotF reports on the Southern Baptist Convention effort to get a  
fundamentalist exodus from public schools;

Focus on the Family commentary outlines the war on terrorism as a  
religious war, with George Bush as the hero and everyone who criticises  
him as a Leftist Who Hates America;

Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM to support more of President Bush's  
judicial nominees;

"Psychologist Suspended for Ties to Pro-Family Organization"; I'd like  
to hear more details about this story;

Arizona anti-marriage amendment to be on ballot;

The so-called "Christmas Wars" generates a bunch of letters to Sam's  
Club, who says they will specifically refer to "Christmas" in future  
advertising; however, they refuse to refer _only_ to Christmas, which  
is what the American Family Association (one of the bigger groups  
behind this) has typically insisted upon;

Focus on the Family reports Vatican to give more consideration to  
creationism in the form of "intelligent design";

Faith and Freedom Network attacks the idea that the court system has  
any business protecting the rights of minourities and declares that  
majorities have absolute rule, rights be damned;

Focus on the Family continues to push "ex-gay" bullshit, claims APA is  
on the verge of recognizing "ex-gay" ministries;

Focus on the Family happy to report that there is "one less gay  
character on network TV" this fall;

Faith and Freedom Network declares GBLT people a Threat to Your  
Children;

Faith and Freedom Network: Americans have too much freedom, asks  
whether it will lead to death;

AFA works with Texas Ford dealers to get a large number of them to  
request that corporate Ford not advertise to GBLT customers any longer;

Focus on the Family outlines some of their fall campaign strategy.


----- 1 -----
Seattle PI Columnist Blasts Faith & Freedom
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Faith and Freedom Network

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/09/seattle-pi-columnist- 
blasts-faith.html

Columnist Joel Connelly at the Seattle P.I in his column published last  
Friday titled, Move to Push Our Courts to the Right, said, “In the most  
brazen claim so far in this election season, the judicial ‘guide’  
published by Faith and Freedom Network states, ‘Please use for  
educational purposes only. These are not endorsements.’”

Mr. Connelly proceeds to say he sees a hi-jacking of his faith under  
way and that is harmful to church, state, and community, asks if our  
Judeo-Christian tradition is summed up in the narrow, exclusivist  
agenda of gay marriage, adoptions by gays and benefits for homosexual  
couples and asks what about church teachings on social justice and the  
passage from I Corinthians, “But now faith, hope, love, abide these  
three; but the greatest of these is love.”

He asks, “As the religious right storms the temple of justice in  
Olympia, where are the defenders of church-state separation?” He also  
asks “Where are the advocates of a Judeo-Christian tradition that  
embraces love, learning and social justice?”

[More at URL]


----- 2 -----
Public Wants to Know Judicial Candidates
Friday, September 01, 2006
Faith and Freedom Network

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/09/public-wants-to-know- 
judicial.html

Not that it directly affects us here in the Northwest, but the fact  
that a lawsuit has been filed in Florida seeking more transparency for  
judicial candidates, certainly tells us that people want to know more  
about the candidates and what they believe.

Four previous suits have been filed regarding judges sharing their  
views on judicial voter’s guides in Kentucky, Kansas, North Dakota, and  
Arkansas. All of those suits were decided in favor of the judge’s right  
to share their views.

[More at URL]


----- 3 -----
Links to Faith and Freedom Network and Focus on the Family ACTION ITEM  
on judicial voting
Online as of September 8, 2006
Faith and Freedom Network

Click here for Faith & Freedom Judicial Voter's Guide (PDF Format):
http://faithandfreedom.us/pdf/Voter_Education_Guide.pdf

Click here for Focus on the Family ACTION Judicial Voter's Guide (PDF  
Format):
http://faithandfreedom.us/pdf/frcvoterguide.pdf


----- 4 -----
WA Judicial Update
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Faith and Freedom Network

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/08/wa-judicial-update.html

Ballots for the Washington State primary election were sent out  
yesterday. As you know, much of the state will vote by mail. In fact, a  
number of counties exclusively vote by mail.

Focus on the Family ACTION released their judicial voter's guide  
yesterday as well. We have posted it on our website for your  
convenience.

Many will actually be voting by mail over the next few weeks. Please  
continue to contact friends and family and send the Voter Guide to as  
many as possible.

John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court  
said, "Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers,  
and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our  
Christian nation, to select and prefer Christians for their rulers."

As you vote, remember character counts. Vote your values.

________________
Gary Randall
President
Faith & Freedom


----- 5 -----
Illinois Voters Won't Be Allowed Say in Protecting Marriage
Focus on the Family
September 7, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041909.cfm

The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday agreed with the  
state of Illinois and a lower federal court in denying a marriage  
referendum a spot on the November ballot. The referendum would have  
requested the Illinois Legislature to consider amending the state  
constitution to define marriage between a man and a woman as "the only  
legal union" recognized under state law.

Marriage proponents gathered far more than the required 283,000  
signatures -- nearly 50,000 more -- to place the referendum on the fall  
ballot. But the state requires that, in a representative sampling of  
signatures, no more than 5 percent can be invalid. When told by the  
state that the petitions had not met this latter requirement and would  
not be placed on the ballot, Protect Marriage Illinois sued claiming  
their constitutional rights under the 1st and 14th Amendments had been  
violated.

[More at URL]


----- 6 -----
Christian Businessman Seeks to Overturn Sexual-Orientation Law
September 7, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041906.cfm

A Christian businessman in Virginia -- who was ordered to either do  
business with gay activists or cover their expenses at another company  
-- has filed a lawsuit seeking to have his county's sexual-orientation  
law struck down.

[...]

Though the commission dropped the complaint after Liberty Counsel filed  
suit on behalf of Bono, the law firm has vowed to continue the fight to  
overturn the county's sexual-orientation law in order to protect other  
businesses.

Rena Lindevaldsen, an attorney for Liberty Counsel, said the suit seeks  
to invalidate the county ordinance and other similar ordinances  
throughout the state.

[More at URL]


----- 7 -----
"Freethinkers" hope to counterbalance Christian groups.
Atheist Group Forms at Air Force Academy
from staff reports
September 7, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0041905.cfm

In the aftermath of military chaplains being reprimanded for  
proselytizing, and atheists alleging religious discrimination and  
suing, the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., is permitting  
some cadets to start an atheist group on campus.

[More at URL]


----- 8 -----
Schwarzenegger Vetoes One — Two to Go
Remaining bills would bring gay agenda into schools.
by Pete Winn, associate editor
Focus on the Family
September 7, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0041902.cfm

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed SB 1437 on Wednesday, a  
major piece of legislation that was designed to promote and enforce the  
homosexual agenda in California schools. Pro-family leaders are  
thankful for the win, but they are encouraging people to keep  
contacting the governor concerning two other bills.

Mona Passignano, state issues analyst for Focus on the Family Action,  
said two other anti-family bills have passed the California  
Legislature, but Schwarzenegger has not yet announced whether he will  
sign or veto them.

[More at URL]


----- 9 -----
Help Needed to Get Out The Vote in Washington
Faith and Freedom Network
September 7, 2006

[Received in email; no URL]

There is an opportunity to do something constructive in this upcoming  
election and earn a few dollars.

Walk For Washington, an organization committed to electing  
pro-constitutional state supreme court justices are paying $10 per hour  
to people who will help with their get-out-the-vote phone bank  
operation.

Phone calls will be made to voters in King and Snohomish counties  
reminding people to turn in their mail-in absentee ballots.

The phone bank will start September 9th and continue through the  
primary vote on September 19th. The calling will be done from 4:00 p.m.  
until 8:00 p.m. each day.

There is also a need for volunteers to carry and wave signs.

Walk For Washington has many opportunities for those who wish to get  
more involved over the next few weeks.

Please contact Jon Russell, Faith & Freedom Network Field Director, at  
1-800-731-5328 or email at j.russell at faithandfreedom.us.


----- 10 -----
Message to Senate Dems: 'End Blockade of Parental-Rights Bill Now!'
by Pete Winn, associate editor
Focus on the Family
September 6, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0041890.cfm

A U.S. senator and leaders of 21 pro-family groups call on liberals to  
allow final negotiations on pro-life legislation.

Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., called on leaders of the Senate's  
Democratic Caucus today to stop blocking the Child Custody Protection  
Act.

Brownback called S. 403 "the most important pro-life legislation before  
the Congress today" and said the bill is being held hostage by Minority  
Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Reid has blocked the appointment of conferees  
to reconcile the House and Senate versions.

[More at URL]


----- 11 -----
Family Advocates Request Meeting with President About Obscenity  
Prosecution
September 6, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041893.cfm

In a letter to President Bush, 24 conservative leaders expressed a  
strong desire to meet and discuss the importance of a federal crackdown  
on obscene material.

"So-called 'adult' hardcore pornography continues to inflict  
incalculable damage on children and families, contributing to the  
destruction of marriage, the demeaning of both women and men, and the  
sexual exploitation of children and adults" the Sept. 1 letter reads.

[...]

TAKE ACTION:
Encourage President Bush to meet with these conservative leaders to  
talk about how to increase the prosecution of obscenity.

If you are a CitizenLink Daily Update subscriber, click on the blue  
"Take Action" button in the e-mail to be automatically logged in to our  
Action Center. Otherwise, click on this link.


----- 12 -----
People in Indiana and Kentucky Oppose Porn Shops
September 6, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041892.cfm

People in several Indiana and Kentucky towns are making it known they  
want to rid their communities of businesses that sell adult material,  
The Courier-Journal reported.

In Uniontown, Ind., protesters stood in front of the Lion's Den holding  
signs that read, "No porn in Uniontown."

Douglas Hoskins said of the store, "We will be here till that is gone."

A lawsuit against the Lion's Den has been filed in Jackson County  
Superior Court. Similar cases are pending in other Indiana counties as  
well as in Kentucky.

Richard Bryant, an attorney representing pornography businesses, said  
it isn't uncommon for local government to object to such  
establishments.

[More at URL]


----- 13 -----
Maryland Marriage Law Under Fire
September 6, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041891.cfm

The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) filed a friend-of-the-court brief  
Tuesday with Maryland's highest court, the Court of Appeals, asking it  
to protect the definition of marriage.

The court is preparing to hear a case brought by nine same-sex couples  
who claim a law that defines marriage as the union of one man and one  
woman discriminates based on gender.

In January, Circuit Court Judge M. Brooke Murdock ruled in favor of the  
couples, declaring the 1973 marriage law unconstitutional.

[More at URL]


----- 14 -----
Liberal target: ex-gays
The Left hates the truth that same-sex desires can be overcome by  
spiritual redemption.
By the Citizen staff
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/citizenmag/features/a0041680.cfm

Go to “gay pride” day at school and you’ll hear words like “tolerance”  
and “understanding.” But listen to these same voices behind closed  
doors and you may hear a very different message.

Citizen heard some intolerant talk in April at a conference sponsored  
by one of the nation’s largest homosexual advocacy groups—the Gay,  
Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). The event, hosted by  
GLSEN’s Boston chapter, featured an entire training session devoted to  
combating “the effects of programs like Love Won Out.”

[More at URL]


----- 15 -----
Evangelical Fellowship of Canada wants apology from rights commission
Today’s Family News
Focus on the Family Canada
September 6, 2006

[Received in email; no functional URL; one was provided, but it returns  
a 404]

Manitoba’s Christian community deserves an apology from its province’s  
human rights commission for reportedly claiming that public schools  
that embrace Christian principles are fostering “a poisoned  
environment,” says Janet Epp-Buckingham, director of law and public  
policy with Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.

As CBC News reported, the Manitoba Human Rights Commission notified the  
Garden Valley School Board in Winkler last May that its reference to  
“Christian principles” in its mission statement and its practice of  
allowing religious exercises allegedly during school hours violated the  
human rights code. Garden Valley’s mission statement commits its ten  
schools to partner “with home, church and community to [provide] every  
student with the best possible education, based on clear expectations,  
positive and caring relationships [and] Christian principles. . . .”

The issue came to the commission’s attention last summer when a  
substitute teacher complained about what the Winnipeg Free Press called  
“the lack of separation of church and state in Winkler schools.”  
Winkler is a predominantly Mennonite community. Commission chair Janet  
Baldwin said that although the complaint was later withdrawn, the  
commission chose to exercise its authority to initiate its own  
complaint.

Baldwin told the Free Press that she gave the school division “a little  
lecture” on how the code protects all religions, including atheism –  
and warned it about creating “a poisoned environment” in its schools.

Such comments, according to Buckingham, suggest a “heavy-handed”  
attempt “to try to exclude Christian expression” that is “totally  
inappropriate.”

“It looks in some ways like some kind of ‘witch hunt,’ where the  
Christians become the witches that are being hunted,” she told Today’s  
Family News. “I mean, there’s no evidence that espousing Christian  
principles is, in any way, going to be demeaning or marginalizing of  
other groups.”

In a letter to Baldwin, Buckingham further noted that Baldwin’s choice  
of words “borders on being a discriminatory statement that demeans  
Christians. . . . It may also convey an impression to Christians and to  
the Christian community that their legitimate human rights will not be  
protected by the commission.”

Buckingham added, “We’ve asked [Baldwin] for an apology or at least a  
clarifying statement that espousing Christian principles is not  
creating a ‘poisoned’ atmosphere in schools.”

The school division has denied any wrongdoing, telling the Free Press  
that its religious activities, which usually involve a Bible reading, a  
short devotional and the Lord’s Prayer, last no more than five minutes  
and are over before the school day officially begins.

Manitoba’s Public Schools Act states that parents must petition a  
school board to have their children take part in voluntary religious  
exercises.

In Winkler’s case, Superintendent Dom Wilkins said not one family has  
indicated that it did not want its children taking part in religious  
activities. “As far as I know,” he said, “every single parent in the  
school division has requested it.”

“There is certainly an appearance of a very negative attitude towards  
Christians and the Christian faith,” said Buckingham. “I think even  
Christians in Manitoba should be letting the human rights commission  
know that they’re concerned.”


----- 16 -----
Gay-Straight Alliances Deemed Unacceptable for N.C. Schools
Focus on the Family
September 5, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041878.cfm

A North Carolina school district has successfully implemented a policy  
banning student clubs based on sexual activity or sexual orientation,  
the Salisbury Post reported.

The Rowan-Salisbury Board of Education adopted the policy after  
students at South Rowan High School formed a Gay-Straight Alliance  
(GSA) club last year. At the core of the unanimous decision to ban such  
clubs was the abstinence-only sex-education policy already in place.

[More at URL]


----- 17 -----
Pro-Family Legislation Still Waiting for Action in Congress
As November looms, getting any bill passed will take lots of work.
from staff reports
September 5, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0041874.cfm

As Congress reconvened today, lawmakers found a stack of pro-family  
bills waiting for their attention, ranging from those dealing with  
human cloning to fetal pain. With the election just around the corner  
and liberals dragging their feet, conservative lawmakers will have to  
work hard to pass any pro-family legislation this session.

Pro-life bills include the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act, the Human  
Cloning Prohibition Act and the Child Custody Protection Act.

David Christensen, director of congressional affairs at the Family  
Research Council, said it will take a lot of effort to move any of  
them.

[More at URL]


----- 18 -----
Christian Leaders Plead With Parents to Avoid Public School
Focus on the Family
September 5, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041877.cfm

As the public school system becomes more hostile toward religion,  
evangelical Christian leaders are urging parents to strongly consider  
pulling their kids out of school and finding education alternatives,  
The Associated Press reported.

Roger Moran, a member of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)  
executive committee, co-sponsored a resolution at the SBC annual  
convention asking the denomination to endorse a public-school pullout.  
Though the measure failed, the topic has not died.

"The courts say no creationism, no prayer in public schools," Moran  
said. "Humanism and evolution can be taught, but everything I believe  
is disallowed."

[More at URL]


----- 19 -----
Left Behind
9-11 was terrible for America. But it’s been devastating for liberals.
by Dennis Prager
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/citizenmag/coverstory/a0041657.cfm

For all its tragedy, at least one good thing came out of 9-11. It  
exposed the Left’s incapacity to deal with evil.

A defining characteristic—not merely an unfortunate aspect—of the Left  
is its inability to recognize evil and its opposition to confronting  
it.

To cite two major examples, the Left—including, from the mid-1960s,  
liberals—found it impossible to label the Soviet Union “evil.” That is  
easily documented by reading all the liberal editorials that condemned  
President Ronald Reagan’s characterization of the Soviet Union as an  
“evil empire.” Anyone with a functioning moral compass knew that this  
was an entirely accuratedescription of the Soviet Union, yet the  
liberal/Left excoriated Reagan for describing the obvious.

[More at URL]


----- 20 -----
Specter Tips His Hand on Judicial Nominees
Judiciary Committee chairman intends to place them on Thursday's agenda.
by Pete Winn, associate editor
September 5, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0041873.cfm

With Congress back in session, a key issue to be resolved is whether  
five judicial nominees renominated by President Bush last week will  
receive up-or-down votes in the Senate before lawmakers adjourn for the  
election.

Over the weekend, Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., chairman of the Judiciary  
Committee, clarified the picture a little. He told Chris Wallace on Fox  
News Sunday that he plans to move quickly on the nominations of  
Terrence Boyle, William Myers, Randy Smith, Michael Wallace and William  
Haynes for vacant positions on federal appeals courts.

[More at URL]


----- 21 -----
Psychologist Suspended for Ties to Pro-Family Organization
Focus on the Family
August 31, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041849.cfm

The Minneapolis Police Department has temporarily suspended use of a  
consulting psychologist because he served for several years on the  
board of directors of a family policy council associated with Focus on  
the Family.

[More at URL]


----- 22 -----
Arizona High Court Says State Will Vote on Marriage Amendment
Focus on the Family
August 31, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041850.cfm

The Arizona Supreme Court ruled today that a proposed constitutional  
amendment to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman will  
appear on the November ballot.

A petition drive collected enough signatures to place the amendment on  
the ballot, but a group called Arizona Together challenged the proposed  
initiative. The group claimed the amendment violated the state's  
single-subject rule for voter initiatives.

[More at URL]


----- 23 -----
'Happy Holidays' Leads to Unhappy E-Mails for Retailer
Sam's Club hears from people who celebrate Christmas.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
August 31, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0041846.cfm

Sam's Club got an early reminder that just wishing someone "Happy  
Holidays" won't cut it this season.

The chain has already released its first "holiday ads" -- and therein  
lies the problem, according to Randy Sharp of the American Family  
Association (AFA).

"It contained pictures of Christmas wrapping paper, it contained  
Christmas balls for Christmas trees," he said, "but all through that  
article, Sam's Club never referred to 'Christmas.' "

AFA asked its members to contact the members-only retailer -- owned by  
Wal-Mart -- and ask for a change.

"Sam's Club got an earful," Sharp said, "and have told us that they  
will begin referring to Christmas as 'Christmas' in future  
advertising."

[More at URL]


----- 24 -----
Vatican Scholars to Include Intelligent-Design Theory in Meeting
Scientists and philosophers will gather in Rome this week to discuss  
the origins of life.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
August 30, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0041834.cfm

A group of scholars and advisors to Pope Benedict XVI will meet in Rome  
Sept. 1 to address the topic of evolution versus intelligent design.

Advocates of intelligent design argue the universe and living things  
are so complex they must be a product of intelligent design rather than  
natural selection.

Dominique Tassot, a Roman Catholic scientist, told the American  
National Catholic Reporter that this week's meeting is "to give a  
broader extension" to the debate.

"Most Catholic intellectuals today are convinced that evolution is  
obviously true because most scientists say so," he said. It will take  
time to change common belief, he added.

[More at URL]


----- 25 -----
Washington State Marriage Ruling Under Fire Again
August 30, 2006
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0041838.cfm

Nineteen gay and lesbian couples in Washington filed a petition with  
the state's high court asking it to reconsider its decision to uphold  
the state's Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) -- an act that declares  
marriage to be the union of one man and one woman, The Associated Press  
reported.

Last month, the state Supreme Court overruled two lower-court decisions  
that found the state's 1998 DOMA unconstitutional. In a 5-4 decision,  
the court said lawmakers acted reasonably in protecting marriage.

[...]

Joseph Fuiten, chairman of the Faith and Freedom Network, said the  
court will likely decline to hear the case again, because every  
conceivable legal argument has already been heard.

[More at URL]


----- 26 ------
Should Judeo-Christian Beliefs Be the Basis of US Law?
Faith and Freedom Network
Tuesday, August 29, 2006

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/08/should-judeo-christian- 
beliefs-be.html

I often hear people decrying the fact that people of faith are  
demanding that Biblical law be the basis for U.S. law. Or we hear stern  
warnings that judges may rule in favor of Christians and their beliefs  
now, but wait until they turn against you, then you'll know how we  
secularists feel.

I also hear that the U.S. and State Supreme Court is supposed to look  
out for the disenfranchised and the minorities, in case the majority  
creates laws that are unfair. This was not the original intent.

Other than establishing it, the Constitution (Article III of the U.S.  
Constitution) spells out neither the specific duties, powers, nor  
organization of the Supreme Court.

[More at URL]


------ 27 -----
APA President Signals Policy Change on Homosexuality
The message that gays can change may finally be getting through.
by Pete Winn, associate editor
August 25, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0041796.cfm

Ex-gay groups and organizations that counsel people with unwanted  
same-sex attractions say they are pleased, but puzzled, by recent  
remarks by the top official of the American Psychological Association.

At a town-hall meeting during the APA's convention in New Orleans, APA  
President Gerald P. Koocher responded to questions about the  
organization's pro-homosexual positions — and its lack of recognition  
of former homosexuals and their therapists.

[More at URL]


----- 28 -----
One Less Gay Character on Network TV
Fall shows will feature nine homosexuals.
from staff reports
Focus on the Familiy

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0041787.cfm

Out of 679 lead or supporting roles on network television this fall,  
only nine will be openly homosexual -- one less than last year.

The numbers are from an annual report by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance  
Against Defamation (GLAAD), which decried the tally. The group did not  
return calls for comment, but has said the networks have "a long way to  
go" before they accurately reflect the "diversity of society."

[More at URL]


----- 29 -----
Children Under Assault
Friday, August 25, 2006
Faith and Freedom Network

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2006/08/children-under-assault.html

I have a growing concern that our children are being used, in an  
increasing way, to advance the agenda of the secular progressives –  
particularly that of the “special rights for homosexuals” and the  
pro-abortion groups.

Families were outraged when they learned that public school teachers  
from San Diego’s Cooperative Charter School took children with them to  
march in this summer’s Gay Pride Parade. A Catholic journalist, Allyson  
Smith, who covered the event, said she was appalled at what the kids  
were exposed to. She said they were exposed to “floats that advertised  
hard-core homosexual pornography.”

And then there is the “Day of Silence,” sponsored by the Gay, Lesbian  
and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). They claim they have 500,000  
students involved nationwide. The idea is that students say nothing –  
remain silent – during one full school day in recognition of the  
institutionalized “oppression” against gay students. Your children or  
grandchildren will face this again this coming school year.

[More at URL]


----- 30 -----
Will Too Much Freedom Give Us Death?
Friday, August 18, 2006
Faith and Freedom Network

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/archives/2006_08_01_archive.html

Judge Anna Diggs Taylor ruled yesterday that President Bush’s  
warrentless surveillance program is unconstitutional because it  
involved illegal searches.

She said, “There are no hereditary kings in America and no powers not  
created by the Constitution.”

However, Judge Taylor, in siding with the ACLU, missed the point. She’s  
dead wrong.

It’s not about genetics or monarchs. It’s not even about a power grab.  
It’s about survival.

[More at URL]


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Texas Car Dealers Ask Ford to Stop Gay Advertising
Letter asks company to "not offend or alienate the masses."
Focus on the Family
from staff reports
August 11, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0041606.cfm

Seventy-eight Texas Ford dealerships have written the Ford Motor  
Company and asked it to stop advertising in homosexual publications.  
The letter cited customer complaints and declining car sales, perhaps  
brought on by a boycott of Ford products by the American Family  
Association (AFA).

"It is vital that Ford Motor Company not offend or alienate the masses  
in order to placate a minority,” the letter, dated June 23, states.

Randy Sharp, director of special projects at AFA, said the boycott,  
which began last year, is aimed at shining a light on Ford's  
advertising in gay-oriented magazines. His group obtained a copy of the  
letter by The Texas Ford Dealers Advertising Fund.

[More at URL]


----- 32 -----
'Stand for The Family' Events Scheduled for Fall
Arena events set for September and October in Pittsburgh,  
Minneapolis/St. Paul and Nashville.
by Pete Winn, associate editor
Focus on the Family
August 15, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0041648.cfm

Focus on the Family Action Chairman Dr. James C. Dobson is slated to  
appear this fall with other Christian leaders at a series of "Stand for  
the Family" arena events — rallies designed to educate and motivate  
pro-family conservative Christians in three states where there are  
important races on November's ballot.

Tom Minnery, senior vice president of government and public policy at  
Focus on the Family Action, said the rallies will be held Sept. 20 in  
Pittsburgh, at the Mellon Arena; Oct. 3 in Minneapolis/St. Paul, at the  
Xcel Energy Center; and Oct. 16 in Nashville, at the Municipal  
Auditorium.

In addition to Dr. Dobson, the list of speakers includes Tony Perkins,  
president of the Family Research Council; Gary Bauer, president of  
American Values; Dr. Ken Hutcherson, senior pastor of Antioch Bible  
Church in Kirkland, Wash., and Dr. Richard Land of the Ethics and  
Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.

[...]

FOR MORE INFORMATION/TAKE ACTION
Tickets for the upcoming rallies will be available online at  
Ticketmaster.

If you would like to volunteer to help at one of the events, please  
call Focus on the Family at 1-800-531-1626. For other questions, please  
call 719-278-4413.

Additional information will soon be available on the Focus on the  
Family Action Web site.

[More at URL]


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