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

[R'ykandar Korra'ti]

Two of the researchers whose research James Dobson misrepresented in  
Time Magazine takes him to task for lying about their work; one  
specifically requests that James Dobson never quote her again and  
requests an apology;

Not only is the Park Service still being required by the Bush  
administration to carry a Creationist book saying that the Canyon is  
only 6,000 years old, Public Employees for Environmental  
Responsibility is reporting that park employees have been told _not  
to say how old the Canyon actually is_, that the official response is  
now "no comment";

US safe from terror attacks; Pat Robertson predicts "mass killing" in  
late 2007. Given his track record, I think we can safely say we don't  
have much to worry about;

 From Andrew Sullivan; the Times of London reports on Anglican  
priests getting civil unions; African denominations are pissed, by  
which I mean angry, again;

Massachusetts legislature votes overwhelmingly _against_ an anti- 
marriage amendment (134-62), _but_ the amendment only needed 25% of  
votes to move to the next stage, which is a revote next year. If it  
wins next year, it's on to the state ballot; fundamentalists are  
jubilant, of course; note that the "No" percentage (68%) was better  
than a 2/3rds majority, but in the next article, you'll see how Focus  
on the Family proclaims that "the people's will triumphed";

Focus on the Family news story and ACTION ITEM against marriage  
rights in Massachusetts;

FotF ACTION ITEM against stem-cell research legislation;

Focus on the Family continues to build the Terrie Schievo mythos; it  
is important to note that an autopsy showed that most of her brain  
had been replaced by spinal fluid (by natural processes);

FotF: Oklahoma state Rep. Mike Reynolds introduces bill to ban all  
abortions upon overturn of _Roe v. Wade_;

FotF continues the "adult stem cells are just better stem cells" myth  
building; it's important to note that adult stem cells are not  
capable of the kind of de-differentiation that makes the whole stem- 
cell research line interesting - in biology terms, they are not  
totipotent, and are in fact only mildly pluripotent. They're useful  
and interesting but different at the DNA level; they're also  
attacking the credibility of polls showing support for embryonic stem- 
cell research in the US, on a suppositional basis;

FotF attacks ABC over the use of the typographical marker "[sic]",  
asserting it demonstrates an anti-religion slant; they also call it  
an "editorial comment" instead of a typographical marker. In my  
world, "[sic]" is used to mean "as in original" in instances when a  
particular element of quoted material appears to contain a mistake;

Faith and Freedom Network plans to wave the NAMBLA child-rapist  
banner at queers this year, and sets out their legislative agenda;  
they're also against sex-ed, any form of recognition of GBLT  
relationships, sex education that's anything other than abstinence- 
only, and so on;

FFN's position statement against any sexual education other than  
abstinence-only;

Focus on the Family promotes an "ex-gay" book;

FotF rails against the idea of allowing GBLT people to serve in the  
military - the occasion is a Clinton-era retired general saying he's  
changed his mind on the subject; Focus accuses "homosexual activists"  
of exploiting an old man who has had a stroke;

Focus on the Family calls a Canadian parental custody case creating  
"a third parent;" also, I really have to wonder whether the two  
lesbian women involved are married;, but Focus on the Family just  
calls them "partners."


----- 1 -----
Updated: Dobson slammed on "fiction[al]" anti-gay Time Mag column  
[VIDEO]
'I trust that this will be the last time my work is cited by Focus on  
the Family'
Posted by Evan Derkacz at 5:31 PM on December 21, 2006.
Alternet, but with original video footage

http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/45527/

NYU prof Carol Gilligan PhD, whose research was cited in Dr. Dobson's  
recent Time Mag column on Mary Cheney's pregnancy, sent a scathing  
letter to the head of right wing Christian outfit, Focus on the  
Family. You can read the letter, in full, below (Truth Wins Out  
video, right -- Digg it HERE for maximum exposure).

Truth Wins Out Exec Director Wayne Besen commented: "Dobson's group  
is a fib factory that should change its name to Focus on the  
Fallacies... This organization habitually lies and shamelessly  
mangles research to support its anti-gay agenda. Time Magazine should  
immediately withdrawal Dobson's column because it is so riddled with  
scientific errors that it is essentially fiction."

Dear Dr. Dobson:
I am writing to ask that you cease and desist from quoting my  
research in the future. I was mortified to learn that you had  
distorted my work this week in a guest column you wrote in Time  
Magazine. Not only did you take my research out of context, you did  
so without my knowledge to support discriminatory goals that I do not  
agree with. What you wrote was not truthful and I ask that you  
refrain from ever quoting me again and that you apologize for  
twisting my work.

[More at URL]


----- 2 -----
HOW OLD IS THE GRAND CANYON? PARK SERVICE WON’T SAY — Orders to Cater  
to Creationists Makes National Park Agnostic on Geology
For Immediate Release: December 28, 2006
Contact: Carol Goldberg (202) 265-7337
Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility

http://www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row_id=801

Washington, DC — Grand Canyon National Park is not permitted to give  
an official estimate of the geologic age of its principal feature,  
due to pressure from Bush administration appointees. Despite  
promising a prompt review of its approval for a book claiming the  
Grand Canyon was created by Noah's flood rather than by geologic  
forces, more than three years later no review has ever been done and  
the book remains on sale at the park, according to documents released  
today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

“In order to avoid offending religious fundamentalists, our National  
Park Service is under orders to suspend its belief in geology,”  
stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch. “It is disconcerting that  
the official position of a national park as to the geologic age of  
the Grand Canyon is ‘no comment.’”

In a letter released today, PEER urged the new Director of the  
National Park Service (NPS), Mary Bomar, to end the stalling tactics,  
remove the book from sale at the park and allow park interpretive  
rangers to honestly answer questions from the public about the  
geologic age of the Grand Canyon. PEER is also asking Director Bomar  
to approve a pamphlet, suppressed since 2002 by Bush appointees,  
providing guidance for rangers and other interpretive staff in making  
distinctions between science and religion when speaking to park  
visitors about geologic issues.

In August 2003, Park Superintendent Joe Alston attempted to block the  
sale at park bookstores of Grand Canyon: A Different View by Tom  
Vail, a book claiming the Canyon developed on a biblical rather than  
an evolutionary time scale. NPS Headquarters, however, intervened and  
overruled Alston. To quiet the resulting furor, NPS Chief of  
Communications David Barna told reporters and members of Congress  
that there would be a high-level policy review of the issue.

According to a recent NPS response to a Freedom of Information Act  
request filed by PEER, no such review was ever requested, let alone  
conducted or completed.

[More at URL]


----- 3 -----
Pat Robertson predicts 'mass killing'
Associated Press
Wed Jan 3, 5:32 AM ET

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070103/ap_on_re_us/robertson_prediction

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - In what has become an annual tradition of  
prognostications, religious broadcaster Pat Robertson said Tuesday  
God has told him that a terrorist attack on the United States would  
result in "mass killing" late in 2007.

"I'm not necessarily saying it's going to be nuclear," he said during  
his news-and-talk television show "The 700 Club" on the Christian  
Broadcasting Network. "The Lord didn't say nuclear. But I do believe  
it will be something like that."

[More at URL]


----- 4 -----
Archbishop faces clash over gay marriages of 50 priests
Christopher Morgan
The Sunday Times
December 31, 2006

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-2524441,00.html

THE Church of England is facing a new rift over homosexual clergy  
with the disclosure that more than 50 gay or lesbian priests have  
“married” in civil partnership ceremonies.

Traditionalists and evangelicals opposed to gay clerics said this  
weekend they would force open debate of the issue at February’s  
meeting of the General Synod. Campaigners have criticised bishops for  
shying away from enforcing the church’s policy of ensuring gay clergy  
are celibate before they are given authorisation to enter civil  
partnerships.

Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, is also likely to face  
criticism from primates of the Anglican communion at a meeting in  
Tanzania in February. The summit was called to mend splits caused by  
the ordination of Gene Robinson, a gay bishop, in America in 2003.

[More at URL]


----- 4 -----
Same-Sex Marriage Setback in Massachusetts
By PAM BELLUCK
Published: January 3, 2007

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/03/us/03gay.html? 
_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

BOSTON, Jan. 2 — Massachusetts, the only state where same-sex  
marriage is legal, took a first step toward possibly banning it  
Tuesday when legislators voted to advance a constitutional amendment  
defining marriage as the union between a man and a woman.

The amendment now requires the approval of at least 50 legislators in  
another vote in the 2007-8 session. Then it would be placed on the  
November 2008 ballot as a referendum question.

[...]

The swiftness of the vote on Tuesday surprised people on both sides  
of the issue, taking place without any debate, just minutes after the  
constitutional convention had been gaveled into session. Proponents  
of the amendment needed just 50 of the legislature’s 200 lawmakers to  
support it; the final vote was 61 in favor of the amendment and 132  
opposed.

Later in the day, supporters of same-sex marriage persuaded lawmakers  
to reconsider the amendment, but the second vote, 62 to 134, only  
affirmed the results of the first.

[More at URL]


----- 5 -----
People's Will Triumphed in Bay State Marriage-Amendment Vote
A last-minute move by the Massachusetts Legislature that may allow  
voters to decide the definition of marriage is proof that your voice  
matters.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
01-03-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000003540.cfm

Family advocates determined to defend traditional marriage ultimately  
proved too strong for Massachusetts legislators to cross, pro-family  
analysts said today -- one day after Bay State lawmakers surprised  
just about everybody by voting to advance a marriage-protection  
toward the ballot.

The vote -- which brings the state one step closer to defining  
marriage as the union of one man and one woman in its constitution --  
came after three years of division, obstruction and strife. The  
Legislature must now approve the amendment -- again with at least 50  
votes -- in the 2007 legislative session before it will go to the  
2008 ballot.

[...]

Mona Passignano, state issues analyst for Focus on the Family Action,  
said the victory in the Legislature was in large part due to those  
who tirelessly sought to defend the family.

"After a 2003 Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court decision made the  
state the first to allow same-sex couples to marry," she said,  
"citizens immediately began the process of reversing what has been  
called one of the worst cases of judicial tyranny and legislating  
from the bench in United States history."

[...]

Mineau said he is extremely grateful for the long-term continued  
support for the battle for marriage in the state.

"The battle is far from over, but we're halfway there," he said.  
"It's like in the world series. There are four bases: The signature  
drive was first base; we slid into second yesterday; third base is  
another vote in the new legislative session; and home plate is the  
election of 2008."

TAKE ACTION
If you live in Massachusetts, urge your state lawmakers --  
representative and senator -- to vote again to let the people decide  
how marriage should be defined in the commonwealth. For contact  
information, visit the CitizenLink Action Center.

[More at URL]


----- 6 -----
Stem-Cell Bill Near Top of New Legislative Agenda
Amid calls for withdrawal from Iraq, House Democrats will push for a  
vote next week to expand federal support for destructive embryonic  
stem-cell research.
by Pete Winn, associate editor
Focus on the Family
01-05-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000003565.cfm

With Democrats now holding the reins of Congress, the new leadership  
has already begun work on a legislative agenda it hopes to pass in  
the first 100 hours.

Unfortunately, anti-life legislation will be one of the first bills  
out of the chute.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said Thursday that four  
major bills will be introduced today for consideration next week. One  
of those will deal with expanding federal funding of embryonic stem- 
cell research.

Carrie Gordon Earll, senior analyst for bioethics at Focus on the  
Family Action, said House Democrats will push for a quick vote Thursday.

[More at URL]


----- 7 -----
Not in Vain
One of Terri Schiavo's champions testifies to the unreported good  
that came from the fight for her life.
by Matt Kaufman
Focus on the Family

http://www.citizenlink.org/citizenMag/A000003514.cfm

It's no exaggeration to say that, for a time, the nation was riveted  
by the story of Terri Schiavo. And during that time, millions of  
people came to care deeply about saving her life, many of them  
praying fervently that her parents would succeed in preventing her  
court-ordered extinction. So you'd think there'd be a good-size  
audience for the tale of her attorney David Gibbs, who (with veteran  
Christian author Bob DeMoss) has written Fighting for Dear Life: The  
Untold Story of Terri Schiavo and What It Means for All of Us  
(Bethany House, 2006, 288 pages).

And maybe there will be. But maybe not nearly as large as it should  
be. After all, Terri's story was such an emotional rollercoaster. One  
day it looked like her life might be saved; the next, as if she were  
doomed. And it all ended so badly, so tragically. A lot of people may  
anticipate that reading the book would just mean reliving the outrage  
and the pain. And that just seems like too much to take.

That would be a pity, because there's a lot more to Gibbs' book.  
There's outrage and pain, to be sure. (How could it be otherwise?)  
But there's also inspiration and hope, from untold tales of  
commitment and love that warm the heart and uplift the soul.

[...]

But that's not even close to what he found. He found a young woman  
sitting in a chair, not hooked up to any machinery, not even a  
feeding tube (that was needed only at mealtimes). And a woman who was  
aware, active and loved her parents.

[...]

At the sound of her mother's voice, Terri squealed with delight,  
filling the air with a host of happy sounds. She had this excited  
animation about her that was part giggle and part sheer joy. In fact  
Terri could move, and she almost jumped out of the chair. She was  
clearly animated and very much alive. I was wishing some reporters  
could have been present to record the events of that day. If even one  
minute of this interchange had been seen by the public, there is no  
way Terri would have died.

[More at URL]


----- 8 -----
Oklahoma Lawmaker Seeks to Ban Abortion
Focus on the Family
01-05-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000003559.cfm

Oklahoma state Rep. Mike Reynolds has introduced a bill that would  
ban abortion in the state if the 1973 Supreme Court decision Roe v.  
Wade is overturned, LifeNews.com reported.

The law, known as a trigger law, would replace an old ban on abortion  
in Oklahoma that stood prior to the legalization of abortion because  
it is unclear if it could still be enforced.

"This legislation will ensure the state of Oklahoma acts immediately  
to save the lives of the unborn," said Reynolds, a Republican, "if we  
are given the chance."

Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco signed a similar law last June.

[More at URL]


----- 9 -----
Poll on Support for Stem-Cell Science Questionable
Results indicate evangelicals favor the research, but survey  
questions rarely tell the whole truth about how extracting embryos  
kills preborn life.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
01-05-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000003563.cfm

Family advocates are questioning the accuracy of a new poll  
suggesting a majority of evangelical Christians favor embryonic stem- 
cell research.

As Congress' new Democratic leadership readies a vote next week to  
expand federal funding of the destructive science, a poll from the  
Civil Society Institute claims 52 percent of evangelicals say they  
support embryonic stem-cell research.

Gail Pressberg, a senior fellow for the institute, said support has  
been growing since 2004.

"What is very clear in our latest poll is that Americans are looking  
for action for broader stem-cell research at the federal level," she  
said. "They aren’t going to be satisfied with excuses and Washington,  
D.C., classic stalling tactics."

[...]

Besides, he added, "the research that really will help patients"  
doesn't require the destruction of nascent human life. "Adult" stem- 
cell science -- involving cells extracted from sources such as  
umbilical cord blood -- has shown vastly more promise in the  
treatment of disease.

[More at URL]


----- 10 -----
Does ABC Think There's No Heaven?
Network used editorial comment indicating disbelief in afterlife in  
story on 3,000th Iraqi war death.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
01-05-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000003562.cfm

Media watchdogs contend ABC hurled religious insults in its coverage  
of death number 3,000 in the Iraq war by suggesting a comforting  
reference to the afterlife was an error.

Dustin Donica, the 3,000th fallen soldier, left behind a MySpace page  
that his friends have used to post their condolences to his family.  
ABC News featured one comment from that page that read, "All my love  
and prayers go to your family, and I’ll see you again." But the  
network added the editorial remark "sic" after the comment --  
indicating, "There was a mistake made here, but we didn't make it;  
the author did."

[...]

ABC told Family News in Focus it’s just a big mistake. A spokesman  
said the original posting left out the apostrophe in the contraction  
"I’ll" -- so the "sic" referred to that omission. The network  
corrected the word but said it mistakenly left in the editorial comment.

Finkelstein said that’s a plausible explanation, but added that the  
mainstream media’s history of hostility toward traditional beliefs  
leaves him skeptical.


----- 11 -----
Child Protection Project 2007
Friday, January 05, 2007
Faith and Freedom Network

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/weblog/2007/01/child-protection- 
project-2007.html

Faith & Freedom will be focusing on three specific issues during the  
Washington State 2007 legislative session. However, if other issues  
arise that we feel should be addressed, we will certainly address them.

The three issues of concern are related to children and their well- 
being. Psalms 127:3 says what most of use truly believe and embrace:

“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord.”

However, there is an unprecedented assault on our children by those  
who view them as something other than “a heritage from the Lord.”  
Groups ranging from Planned Parenthood to North American Man-Boy Love  
Association (NAMBLA) to the ACLU to public education to secular  
progressives in general, have targed our children as a vehicle to  
advance their own and sometimes perverted agenda.

[More at URL]


----- 12 -----
Faith and Freedom Network’s Position on:
Sex Education in Public Schools
Faith and Freedom Network
Online as of 7 January 2007

http://www.faithandfreedom.us/sex_ed_public.html

Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Rights Action League  
have requested a "medical-accuracy" bill and have acknowledged that  
the proposal is in part a reaction to the "abstinence-Only" movement.  
It is also true that having kids sexually active drives a great deal  
of the money for these organizations.

"Medical Accuracy" is really about controlling the content of  
abstinence education materials. If unchecked, this bill will  
eliminate "abstinence until marriage" education because it will  
eliminate funding on both the federal and state levels. The results  
will be loss of parental control or input on curriculum. It does not  
define who will review the "fact" in establishing curriculum and does  
not cover the cost of re-reviewing all the materials that are  
presently being used in public schools.

Recently, Planned Parenthood held an "Free EC Day" with more than 350  
of their centers nationwide handing out doses of emergency  
contraceptives, aka "Morning After Pill."

Planned Parenthood has become extremely active on the internet -  
particularly on the social-networking site, myspace.com. In this  
environment, they are advancing their pro-abortion rhetoric and  
pushing "emergency contraception."

[More at URL]


----- 13 -----
'We Need to React with Christ's Heart and His Compassion'
Alan Chambers, a former homosexual, passionately lays a foundation  
for effective ministry to those who experience same-sex attraction.
by Wendy Cloyd, assistant editor
Focus on the Family
01-04-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000003552.cfm

In God's Grace and the Homosexual Next Door, Alan Chambers -- along  
with the leadership team at Exodus International -- explore and  
explain the issue of homosexuality with the express purpose of  
helping Christians understand and minister to gay men and women.

CitizenLink spoke with Chambers, Exodus' executive director, about  
his book and his heart for reaching a group that is largely  
misunderstood by Christians.

Q. This was truly a book I looked forward to reading during my quiet  
time every day. Though I work in public policy and am constantly  
immersed in this issue, I learned so much. Tell me, who is the  
intended audience -- for whom did you write this book?

A. I wrote it for the church.

We as Christians are really uninformed about this issue, yet it's  
something we talk about a whole lot. We talk about people and what  
they should do, yet we don't even understand where they're coming from.

So this book was written for the church to understand people and to  
really develop Christ's heart from them.

You very graciously point out that we are all sinners and that God  
does not have a scale that rates one sin worse than another. Why is  
it, do you think, that people do think of homosexuality as one of the  
"worse" sins?

Number one, I think it's because people are ignorant about it and I  
don't say that to call names or to point fingers. But we don't  
understand it. When we look at the issue of homosexuality, because we  
don't understand it -- the roots of it -- and because it seems so out  
of the realm of possibility for the majority of us, we think it it's  
got to be the worst.

We look at biblical stories and oftentimes when a sin is preached  
about a lot, it's homosexuality. And there're so many stories that  
have been told over the years from the pulpit that we think that  
because our pastor has spent so much time condemning that issue, that  
God condemns it more than He condemns something else. I think that's  
why people think it's much worse. Plus, no one wants to equate their  
sin as being as ugly as homosexuality or another type of sexual sin.

[More at URL]


----- 14 -----
Clinton's Top General Flip-Flops on Military Gays
Pro-family analysts say open homosexuals serving is still bad for  
American fighting forces.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
01-04-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000003547.cfm

Family advocates say gay activists have exploited the retired general  
who served as the nation's senior military officer when the "don't  
ask, don't tell" policy governing homosexuals serving in the armed  
forces was established.

Gen. John Shalikashvili, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff during  
the Clinton administration, wrote in a recent New York Times op-ed  
that that he no longer opposes allowing gays to serve openly in the  
military.

That's a far cry from his views of more than a decade ago, when he  
argued that allowing homosexuals to be overt would hurt troop morale.

Military analyst and retired Army Lt. Col. Bob Maginnis said the  
general's flip-flop appears to be motivated, at least in part, by  
lobbying from homosexual activists who may be trying to take  
advantage of Shalikashvili as he recovers from a stroke.

[...]

"Our military is supposed to fight and win our nations wars," he told  
Family News in Focus. "What best constitutes that fighting force?  
Those are the questions I would hope that the leaders in our country  
would be asking, not what social construct can we engage to make our  
fighting forces socially acceptable?"

Maginnis agreed.

"Certainly not at a time of war," he said, "where we have all sorts  
of problems, is it time to reintroduce a very contentious social issue."

[More at URL]


----- 15 -----
Canadian Court Says Lesbian Can be Third Parent
The Ontario Court of Appeals has determined a same-sex partner is  
entitled to the same parental rights as a child's biological parents,  
the Globe and Mail reported.
Focus on the Family
01-04-2007

http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000003545.cfm

The child, a 5 year-old boy, now has three parents: his mother and  
her partner – with whom he lives – and his father, who visits twice a  
week.

In its decision, the court also ruled that the Children's Law Reform  
Act -- drafted in the 1970s to protect the rights of children born  
out of wedlock -- no longer provides for the best interests of children.

[More at URL]