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

[Dara (R'ykandar Korra'ti)]

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---- actual message starts here ----
	The war against GOP GBLT picks up, as the Family Research Council  
(which never does anything without Focus on the Family approval) and  
the Traditional Values Coalition both demand the GOP purge itself of  
t3h gay. As part of this, the TVC really rolls out the good  
old-fashioned 'fags are child rapists who want to rape your children'  
rhetoric, and Concerned Women for America's Robert Knight rolls out the  
"deadly lifestyle" rhetoric in support. It's nasty out there.

	Oh, and also interestingly, Focus on the Family's latest internal  
promotion of the "ex-gay" movement is _entirely theological_, and has  
apparently given up any pretense of psychology or science, which it has  
heretofore previously maintained. This is consistent with  
creationism/intelligent design; "and then a miracle occurred" being a  
valid step in science, it can be a "valid step" in psychology too,  
which is how you get things like the below, and is why fighting the  
whole creationism-is-a-science lie is so important to everybody.

	And now, today's news:

Fundamentalist favourite Senator Brownback (R-KS) puts a block on a  
judicial nomination because she d/o/e/s/n/'/t/ /h/a/t/e/ /t/3/h/  
/q/u/e/e/r/s/ presided in a commitment ceremony for a lesbian couple a  
few years ago;

In an earlier post, I talked about a feminist blogger who tried to get  
emergency contraception after her partner's condom broke, but was  
judged unworthy as she wasn't married or raped; the follow-up here is  
that she's pregnant, and, in response to her post and in email, is  
reportedly getting death threats;

Courtesy Andrew Sullivan ( http://andrewsullivan.com ), the Texas GOP  
has sent out a letter condemning a Democratic contender as an atheist,  
and more importantly, stating that no atheist can uphold "the laws an  
Constitution of Texas"; incidentally, said office contender says he's  
not an atheist, but the state party says he's lying and really is;

Andrew's on a roll, linking to a refutation of theocon claims that gay  
men are t3h child rapists - as usual, it's all about lying about other  
people's data;

***** Focus on the Family releases an "ex-gay" example DVD. That's not  
such a big deal by itself, but give me a second; this instance is the  
kind of thing that _feels_ like a bit of a watershed. Here's the sitch:  
the fundamentalist line for a long time has been trying to pretend that  
the "ex-gay" movement has something to do with psychology and science.  
They've gotten fundamentalist with doctorates saying that there's no  
scientific evidence for sexuality being a/n/y/t/h/i/n/g/ /o/t/h/e/r/  
/t/h/a/n/ /p/e/r/v/y/ /d/u/p/e/s/ /o/f/ /S/a/t/a/n/ fixed, innate, or  
otherwise part of a person - unless, of course, you're straight, in  
which case it is. You know the deal. Anyway, to get to the point:  
_Everything they're quoting here is theological conversion_. The title  
of this "Love Won Out" DVD is "Testifying to God's Grace," and the  
entire article is about _conversion to fundamentalist Christianity_.  
This isn't even pretending to be about anything else. I think that's  
important;

Focus on the Family rails about Massachusetts's "exposure to homosexual  
propaganda in the classroom," which I'm pretty sure from other sources  
means "acknowledging that GBLT people can get married in the state and  
that some parents of children may be lesbian or gay"; they, of course,  
want it stopped. This is yet another example of the fundamentalist  
language filter: _any mention of LBGT people which is not explicitly  
condemnational is 'promotion of homosexuality.'"_

Focus on the Family publicises "Morality in Media's" upcoming  
"Protection from Pornography Week" action which includes "a model  
letter to the editor and sermon examples;"

Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney continues to recruit the  
fundamentalist vote; he's sent his wife Anne Romney to introduce his  
video presentation to "Liberty Sunday," a big theoconservative  
political rally coming up on the 15th. And given the chance, Focus  
again pushes the idea that equality for GBLT people destroys religious  
liberty;

FotF note saying that the Supreme Court turned down an appeal to  
overturn _Roe v. Wade_ that even they admit had no legal standing;

FotF story celebrates the success in pressuring clinics which include  
abortion services out of business, notes that there used to be a lot  
more than there are now ("There were more than 2,000 abortion clinics  
in America in the 1990s — today there are a fewer than 750");

FotF update on various court rulings regarding DOMA; the most  
interesting part here is Focus on the Family blaming _Lawrence v.  
Texas_ for making queers all uppity; regular readers will remember that  
_Lawrence v. Texas (2003)_ was the Supreme Court decision which ruled  
that states could no longer make GBLT people _illegal by fiat_ - of  
course, the theoconservatives want it overturned so regularly take  
opportunities to blame it for things they oppose, as part of building  
the thematic "story" that _Lawrence v. Texas_ is evil - c.f. _Roe v.  
Wade_;

FotF worries that "born-again Christians" may not be as reliably  
Republican this year, thanks to the Congressional scandals which they  
call "relatively bipartisan," which is about as close as they'll come  
to criticising the Republican party as a whole. I'm also amused that  
it's "Media coverage of scandals" causing the problem - not the  
scandals themselves, which they don't mention because, well, I think  
you can figure it out;

FotF story on a lesbian Rhode Island couple getting married in  
Massachusetts; they were allowed because there's no specific RI law  
banning same-sex marriage, which means that the 1913 law being used to  
stop residents of other states from getting married in Massachusetts  
isn't triggered. The Massachusetts Family Institute, of course,  
condemns the 'activist judges' for, um, following the law;

FotF promotes the anti-abortion student action "Day of Silent  
Solidarity," which basically photocopies the GBLT-rights oriented "Day  
of Silence" protest playbook, and is happy that the ADF intervened  
against a school which had tried to ban the action. This is pretty much  
the same set of action as "Day of Silence," but remember kids: when  
queers do it, it destroys religious liberty and disrupts learning, and  
when fundamentalists do it, it's free speech;

Focus on the Family roughly once a week tells its readership that it's  
not an option to be political; it's a Biblical Mandate. This is this  
week's edition, pushing a book on the topic; the inside front cover has  
quotes from noted theocons as as the Southern Baptist Convention's  
Richard Land ("Tom lays out a mandate for Christian activism that will  
grip the readers' minds and stir their souls") and the American Family  
Association's Donald Wildmon ("Christians are mandated by the Gospel to  
speak up and step out... this book will challenge any preconceived  
ideas you may have that Christianity and political involvement do not  
mix.");

_Human Events_ story has a whole boatload of theoconservatives urging  
fundamentalist voters not to sit out the election and to stick with the  
Republican party; Paul Weyrich said that Hastert should resign(!) but  
got whipped back onto the party line the next day and retracted his  
statement;

Faith and Freedom Network posts its Washington State  
endorsement/voter's guides for four districts (17, 26, 44, 48);

The Canada Family Action Coalition is well onboard the "lesbian and gay  
marriage destroys religious freedom and free speech" American theocon  
bandwagon at this point;

Traditional Values Coalition, always ready with the newtype blood  
libel, says that being gay is the same as being a pedophile, and  
asserts, "Republicans need to make a simple choice between the innocent  
children and radical homosexuals who prey on them," demanding the  
ouster of all GBLT people from the Republican party; I'm not sure what  
the sickest part of this is, but I'm putting my money on Rev. Sheldon  
quoting a NAMBLA co-founder as an authoritative source;

TVC blames Democrats for the Foley scandal, also George Soros; again  
equates gay and lesbian people with child molesters; "Predatory  
behavior is one of the end results of homosexuality. Plain and  
simple... This scandal has clearly brought into focus what lies at the  
very baseline of homosexuality - that it has a predatory component that  
is toxic, dangerous, and psychologically damaging to children" - and  
there's plenty more where that came from;

Third TVC article complains about Washington Post columnist's negative  
report on the TVC, reasserting again that queers are mostly pedophiles;

American Family Association reports Operation Rescue complaining about  
how persecuted fundamentalists are in America today, claiming that  
theocons are targeted by the IRS for "your views against child killing  
or even homosexuality"; I don't know whether that phrasing is  
significant or not, but strictly speaking, it implies that somebody  
thinks gayfolk are even worse than abortion rights;

AFA: Theocon favourite Senator Brownback (R-KS) wants a pornography  
crackdown and a new commission to investigate, um, pr0n;

AFA and Family Research Council worry about the GOP's chances in the  
fall; urges theocon voters to stick with the party;

AFA news report: "the secular world is stepping up efforts to force  
pluralism and tolerance on Evangelicals," urges "Christians to study  
God's Word so they can be ready to defend the exclusive claims of  
Christ"; a second story quotes Concerned Women for America's Robert  
Knight talking about the "deadly lifestyle" of GBLT people in their  
successful efforts to get Governor Schwarzenegger to veto a set of  
bills in California, at least two of which appeared to be mostly about  
preventing GBLT students from harassment at school;

Family Research Council ACTION ITEM to tell them how "your religious  
freedoms have been infringed by the homosexual agenda." This is one of  
the many elements of the theocon agenda: if they don't get to impose  
their religious beliefs upon you, then you're violating _their_  
"religious freedoms." From a libertarian, traditional conservative, or  
simple your-fist-my-nose standpoint, this is, of course, incoherent.  
But it makes sense if you're convinced there's only one legitimate way  
to live and you have it. The same arguments, of course, were made  
against racial equality movements specifically, but that's why they  
also try to pretend that there's no relationship ever between the civil  
rights movement and the GBLT rights movement;

Family Research Council's Tony Perkins blames a "network of gay  
staffers" for the Foley scandal; FRC joins TVC in demanding a  
Republican purge of queers from the party. "The GOP will have to decide  
whether it wants to be the party that defends the traditional moral and  
family values that our nation was built upon and directed by for two  
centuries. Put another way, does the party want to represent values  
voters or Mark Foley and friends?";

FRC press release advertising Ann Romney, wife of Massachusetts  
governor Mitt Romney, will be introducing a video of her husband  
addressing the theoconservative confab "Liberty Sunday" on the 15th. As  
of this press release, Mitt Romney is the _only_ Republican  
officeholder actually speaking; all the headliners are either preachers  
or heads of theocon organisations such as the FRC, Focus on the Family,  
the AFA, and so on.


----- 1 -----
Senator defers nomination of Mich. judge over same-sex ceremony
By Sam Hananel and Ken Thomas, Associated Press  |  October 7, 2006
The Boston Globe

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/10/07/ 
senator_defers_nomination_of_mich_judge_over_same_sex_ceremony/

WASHINGTON -- A judge's elevation to the federal bench could be  
derailed because she helped preside over a commitment ceremony for a  
lesbian couple four years ago.

Republican Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas has placed a hold on the  
nomination of Michigan Court of Appeals Judge Janet T. Neff, saying her  
presence at the 2002 Massachusetts ceremony raises questions about her  
judicial philosophy.

"It seems to speak about her view of judicial activism," Brownback said  
yesterday. "It's something I want to inquire of her further."

[More at URL]


----- 2 -----
The hiatus will start after this post *smile*
Biting Beaver
Friday, October 06, 2006

http://bitingbeaver.blogspot.com/2006/10/hiatus-will-start-after-this- 
post.html

*sigh*. I haven't felt motivated to post for several days for obvious  
reasons. Indeed, when I put up a quick update this morning I had  
planned to go outside and do a bit of garden work to clear my mind.  
However, I decided to delay my trip so I could read a few of my  
favorite blogs.

Over at The Axe Forgets The Tree Remembers I read a post by "Z". It was  
a post in which she expressed frustration over how she hears fetuses  
being referred to in derogatory ways. Now, this post is not intended to  
attack Z, indeed, she makes a point that many would agree with, rather  
this post is intended as an explanation for the phenomenon that she has  
witnessed, at least on my part.

[...]

I am fucking angry as hell that around every corner I am faced with  
people who believe that the life of this fetus is worth more than MY  
life, or the lives of my children.

It becomes a question of how much shit can you take before you begin to  
actually hate the thing in your womb. Since the start of this I have  
been told repeatedly that I didn't deserve to live. I had a commenter  
tell me that if they ever met me they would rape me repeatedly before  
torturing me and murdering me in the most painful way they could (no,  
they didn't tell me exactly how they planned to do this, I guess that  
they wanted me to leave it up to my own imagination).

[More at URL]


----- 3 -----
GOP Raises Religion in Court Race, Calling Democrat an Atheist
Mary Alice Robbins
Texas Lawyer
October 9, 2006

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1160125527178

Religion has entered the political fray in a race for an appellate  
court bench in east Texas.

The Austin-based Republican Party of Texas played the religion card in  
a Sept. 21 online newsletter. As alleged in the newsletter, Texarkana  
solo E. Ben Franks, Democratic nominee for a seat on the 6th Court of  
Appeals, "is reported to be a professed atheist" and apparently  
believes the Bible is a "collection of myths.'"

But Franks says he has never professed to be an atheist and is not a  
member of any atheist organization. Franks says no one with the  
Republican Party ever asked him whether he professes to be an atheist.  
However, he says he's not surprised by the allegation.

[...]

The Republican Party notes in its recent newsletter that Article 16,  
§1(a) of the Texas Constitution prescribes the oath of office for all  
elected or appointed officials. The officeholder swears to faithfully  
execute the duties of the office and, to the best of his or her  
ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and laws of the  
United States and of this state "so help me God."

"I can take the oath," Franks says.

However, the state Republican Party questions whether Franks will  
uphold the law, stating in the newsletter: "Should Franks be elected in  
November, one would have to conclude that he will hold true to his out  
of touch 'atheist' belief system and ignore the laws and Constitution  
of Texas."

[More at URL]


----- 4 -----
Homosexuality and Child Sexual Abuse:
Science, Religion, and the Slippery Slope
by Mark E. Pietrzyk*

http://www.internationalorder.org/scandal_response.html

Executive Summary
In response to the scandal involving former Congressman Mark Foley, a  
number of conservative religious groups have claimed that homosexuals  
pose a substantially greater risk of committing sexual abuse against  
children than heterosexuals, and have issued papers citing a number of  
scientific studies to support these claims.  However, when one examines  
the studies cited in these papers, one finds that the religious right  
has engaged in some serious distortion of the works of others.  The  
scientists who authored the studies made no such claim about  
homosexuals posing a greater threat to children, and in fact in many  
cases argued the opposite.

In addition, many in the religious right have employed a version of the  
“slippery slope” argument, charging that the gay rights movement has  
led inevitably to tolerance for pedophilia by eroding all traditional  
norms of sexual behavior.  However, the “slippery slope” argument is  
based on the false premise that the protection of children from sexual  
activity is a long-standing part of the Judeo-Christian ethic, which  
has only recently come under assault as a result of the gay rights  
movement.  In fact, throughout most of history, the Judeo-Christian  
tradition tolerated and even approved of sexual relations between adult  
males and girls of twelve years of age or even younger.  The  
contemporary taboo against sex between adults and minors developed only  
in the late nineteenth century, as societies became increasingly  
committed to the ideals of individual rights and personal autonomy,  
which led to concern about the possibility of coercion and exploitation  
in adult-minor relationships.

[More at URL]


----- 5 -----
Love Won Out Testimonies Now on DVD
Hear stories of people who broke free from homosexuality.
by Stuart Shepard, managing editor
Focus on the Family
October 9, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042259.cfm

For the first time, the testimonies of three key Love Won Out speakers  
are available on DVD. They each have been personally impacted in  
different ways by one of the most controversial issues of our time.  
Their stories of redemption and hope are light-years distant from the  
gay-activist rants the news media often echo without qualification.

Focus on the Family's Love Won Out conferences have touched thousands  
of lives over the past eight years with the message that change is  
possible for people who are unhappy with homosexuality.

[...]

For months I went in circles with the Lord. I argued with Him, begged  
Him, ignored Him, fled from Him and rebelled against Him. One night  
with tears streaming down my face, I cried out, "God, being gay is all  
I've ever known. I feel like I've been born this way; it feels normal  
to me. But You say its wrong -- that it is sin. I don't understand!  
Help me!"

[...]

The seeds planted in my life prior to knowing Christ ultimately  
produced only thorns and thistles -- a life of confusion, heartache and  
bondage to my flesh. Thankfully, the roots of those seeds have been  
pulled from my heart and the subsequent poisonous fruit has withered  
and died. In exchange, my Heavenly Father has planted seeds that,  
through Christ's love and the power of the Holy Spirit, have blossomed  
into a harvest of abundant fruit -- a life of peace, joy and freedom.

[More at URL]


----- 6 -----
National Gay Groups Fight Parents in Massachusetts
Focus on the Family
October 9, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042262.cfm

National gay-activist groups have joined a legal battle over whether  
Massachusetts parents have a right to shield their children from  
exposure to homosexual propaganda in the classroom, LifeSiteNews.com  
reported. The groups jointly filed a brief that attacks the parents’  
right to file suit.

David Parker and two other parents filed a federal civil rights lawsuit  
in April against school officials who refused to notify him about  
classroom material promoting homosexuality at his son’s elementary  
school.

[More at URL]


----- 7 -----
Campaigns Combating Pornography to Begin in October
Two campaigns against pornography get under way at the end of this  
month to increase public awareness of the dangers.
Focus on the Family
October 9, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042263.cfm

Protection from Pornography Week and the White Ribbon Against  
Pornography (WRAP) Campaign begin Oct. 29.

According to Agape Press, Morality In Media offers resources on its Web  
site including ways to combat pornography during Protection from  
Pornography Week, information on the WRAP Campaign, a primer on  
obscenity laws, a model letter to the editor and sermon examples.

[More at URL]


----- 8 -----
Massachusetts First Lady Joins Liberty Sunday Event
Focus on the Family
October 10, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042271.cfm

Ann Romney, the wife of Gov. Mitt Romney, will join the line up of  
speakers for "Liberty Sunday: Defending Our First Freedom," scheduled  
to be simulcast via TV, radio and the Internet from Tremont Temple  
Baptist Church in Boston on Oct. 15.

Ann Romney will introduce a video presentation by her husband.

[More at URL]


----- 9 -----
U.S. Supreme Court Turns Down Key Abortion Case
Focus on the Family
October 10, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042272.cfm

Members of the U.S. Supreme Court today turned down a request by the  
plaintiff in the 1973 Doe v. Bolton ruling to reopen the case that,  
together with Roe v. Wade, brought about abortion on demand.

Sandra Cano -- the "Doe" in Doe v. Bolton -- brought her case under a  
rule that allows those who have won a judgment to ask for the case to  
be reopened, if circumstances have changed substantially from when the  
decision was handed down and continued enforcement of the decision has  
become unjust.

[More at URL]


----- 10 -----
Abortion Clinic Reborn as Pro-Life Center
Operation Rescue is creating a headquarters in an unlikely spot.
from staff reports
Focus on the Family
October 10, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042269.cfm

A former abortion clinic in Wichita, Kan., is reopening — as a pro-life  
center.

When Central Women’s Services in downtown Wichita closed, Troy Newman,  
president of Operation Rescue, purchased it, gutted it and is turning  
it into a headquarters.

[,,,]

There were more than 2,000 abortion clinics in America in the 1990s —  
today there are a fewer than 750.

[More at URL]


----- 11 -----
Another Federal Victory for Marriage
At the state level, all eyes are on New Jersey
by Pete Winn, associate editor
Focus on the Family
October 10, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0042270.cfm

The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to hear a challenge to the  
federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) — the latest in a string of  
court decisions that have reinforced traditional marriage.

Mat Staver, president of Liberty Counsel, said the court effectively  
sided with U.S. District Judge Gary Taylor, who dismissed the case in  
2005. It was filed by a same-sex couple seeking to overturn  
California's definition of marriage — by overturning the federal DOMA.

[...]

There have been about 50 lawsuits on same-sex marriage since 2003, when  
the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Lawrence v. Texas — a decision  
that [Focus on the Family "judicial analyst" Bruce] Hausknecht said  
encouraged homosexual activists to file litigation seeking to undermine  
marriage.

[...]

Hausknecht said all eyes are now on the state courts. Just last week,  
in the California, a state appellate court ruled that legal efforts to  
create same-sex marriage violate Proposition 22, an initiative  
protecting marriage, which voters overwhelmingly passed in 2000. That  
ruling is on its way to the state Supreme Court.

[...]

For Staver, the fact that judges in New Jersey — or anywhere else —  
could unearth a previously undiscovered constitutional right to gay  
marriage underscores the need for a federal marriage-protection  
amendment to place in the U.S. Constitution the definition of marriage  
as the union of one man and one woman.

"The success in the courtrooms must become enshrined in our state and  
federal constitutions," Staver added. "So that we will never have to  
wonder whether some judge will undermine marriage with the stroke of a  
pen."

[More at URL]


----- 12 -----
Many Christians Undecided About Election Day
Media coverage of scandals may be having an impact.
from staff reports
October 11, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/news/a0042284.cfm

With the mid-term elections less than a month away, a growing number of  
born-again Christians are undecided about whom to back at the ballot  
box.

While you can typically count on born-again Christians to vote  
Republican, pollster John Zogby said that's not what he's seeing this  
time around. Many say they are simply undecided.

[...]


----- 13 -----
Massachusetts Judge OKs Same-Sex Wedding of Out-of-State Couple
Focus on the Family
October 11, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042288.cfm

A superior-court judge ruled a lesbian couple from Rhode Island should  
be allowed to marry in Massachusetts, because their state does not  
specifically prohibit such unions, The Associated Press reported.

Wendy Becker and Mary Norton applied for a marriage license in  
Massachusetts but were denied the request based on a 1913 law  
prohibiting out-of-state residents from marrying, if the union would  
not be recognized in their home state.

Becker and Norton challenged the law, arguing that same-sex marriage is  
not specifically prohibited in Rhode Island.

Superior Court Judge Thomas Connolly sided with the couple, writing  
that he saw no evidence of a "constitutional amendment, statute or  
controlling appellate decision" that prohibited same-sex marriage in  
Rhode Island.

[...]

"The people of Rhode Island can say, 'Thank you,' to the courts of  
Massachusetts," he said, "for throwing this grenade their way."

[More at URL]


----- 14 -----
Students' Pro-Life Speech Won't be Censored
Focus on the Family
October 11, 2006

http://www.family.org/cforum/briefs/a0042287.cfm

After the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) intervened, a Maryland  
high-school student who was banned from promoting a pro-life event on  
campus will be allowed to distribute and post material.

Hilary Humphrey and other pro-life students approached school officials  
for permission to publicize the "Day of Silent Solidarity" -- a  
student-led event designed to bring awareness to the issue of abortion.  
Officials at Northeast Senior High School denied the request, calling  
the topic too inflammatory.

[...]

"Students cannot be silenced simply because their speech is deemed to  
be controversial or unpopular," Raum said. "We are pleased the school  
chose to drop its unconstitutional ban on this type of student-led  
expression."


----- 15 -----
Why You Can't Stay Silent
A Biblical Mandate to Shape Our Culture
by Tom Minnery
Focus on the Family

http://www.family.org/resources/itempg.cfm? 
itemid=2741&refcd=CE06JCZL&tvar=no

Your Voice Needs To Be Heard

In Matthew 5, Jesus taught a simple parable comparing His believers to  
salt and light. What does this lesson mean to millions of Christians  
now? Tom Minnery, a Focus on the Family vice president, shares a  
compelling case from a biblical perspective on why Christians must  
actively address social issues within the culture.

[More at URL]


----- 16 -----
Social Conservatives: 'Values Voters' Must Stand by GOP
by John Gizzi
Human Events
Posted Oct 09, 2006

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=17427

Social conservative leaders last week seemed united in their demand for  
a full investigation of the scandal surrounding disgraced former Rep.  
Mark Foley (R.-Fla.), and also in the belief that “Values Voters”  
should nonetheless support the GOP in the midterm elections.

[...]

One member of the committee did call on Hastert to go, but reversed  
himself a day later following a call from the speaker. Free Congress  
Foundation Chairman Paul Weyrich had told Human Events: “I think  
Hastert should do the right thing and resign. What people tell me over  
and over again is that no one in Washington ever takes responsibility.  
If Hastert resigned, he would help the party.” But Weyrich told  
reporters the next day that Hastert called him and insisted he didn’t  
receive clear warnings from fellow leaders or aides about Foley’s  
e-mails. Calling the speaker “one of the more honest people I know,”  
Weyrich said, “I can take his word, and as a result, I told him I’d  
back him on it.”

[...]

Wendy Wright, president of Concerned Women for America, said, “Everyone  
should be judged by his or her own merits and not smeared by someone  
else’s scandal.”

The Rev. Don Wildmon, chairman of the American Family Association,  
said: “Should the voters sit out? I don’t think so. I would take the  
opposite view and think the voters need to turn out. You have to  
consider the options and the results of your actions. All of us are  
disgusted with this, but it may turn out to our benefit. I’m just not  
ready to say ‘sit it out’ because that’s precisely what the liberals  
want, and I think this whole thing has been orchestrated to accomplish  
this goal—the ‘values voters’ would simply say ‘to heck with it’ and  
‘forget it’ and ‘I’m sitting this one out.’ We could lose some good  
people if we do that.”

[More at URL]


----- 17 -----
Washington General Election
Targeted Voter Guides
Faith and Freedom Network
Online as of 11 October 2006

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

District 17 - Vancouver
District 26 - Kitsap County and Western Pierce County
District 44 - Snohomish County
District 48 - Bellevue and Kirkland

[More at URL]


----- 18 -----
Federal bill protecting religions to get rough ride: Similar  
legislation in Alberta has been stalled for months
Canada Family Action Coalition

http://www.familyaction.org/Articles/issues/freedoms/religious/federal- 
bill.htm

National Post
Oct. 5, 2006
By Kevin Libin
In a front page story by Mr.Libin the issue of the speculated Defense  
of Religions Act was reported. I am amazed at the anti-religious  
rhetoric that came from the speculation of such a federal Bill. Somme  
legal experts said it would violate the Charter. Some activists said it  
would allow gay bashing. Others cited it would turn back the marriage  
law and others turned to the old tirade that homophobes are behind this  
Bill. All these arguments are nonsense and all were crafted to silence  
people who oppose homosexual behavior. That is proof we need such a  
law. The Charter should protect those people who want to voice their  
opinion or belief, but it does not since judges tell us what they think  
the Charter says. Judges have given us reason to call for a new law.

[...]

A lesbian lawyer tried to argue that protections are already in the  
Charter to which I responded, "that might be the case in theory, said  
Brian Rushfeldt, executive director of the Canadian Family Action  
Coalition, a Calgary-based advocacy group. But in courtrooms, judges  
have ignored Charter protections for religious and speech freedoms in  
favor of gay rights, he said. "We've been getting judges in many cases  
in the last five years who say, 'Your freedoms aren't as important as  
somebody's rights,'" he said. He noted that some people might oppose  
the promotion of same-sex marriage for reasons that are more personal  
than religious. "I hope it's not just a religious freedom thing," Mr.  
Rushfeldt said of the possibility of federal legislation. "Because,  
really, the protection that needs to happen is much broader than just  
for religious people."

IT IS TIME for a new law in this nation of activists, judges and  
homosexuals alike - who want to silence ALL people who disagree with  
homosexual behavior.

-- Brian Rushfeldt

[More at URL]


----- 19 -----
Mark Foley Pederasty Scandal Reveals Stark Double Standard
By Rev. Louis P. Sheldon
Chairman, Traditional Values Coalition

http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2883

October 11, 2006 - Disgraced Florida Republican Mark Foley’s sex  
scandal with congressional pages presents the Republican Party and  
Values Voters with historic teachable moments.

There are three significant lessons to be learned from the revelation  
that Foley was a closeted homosexual who was attracted to teenage boys.

First, the Republican Party needs to discuss how should it should deal  
with homosexuals inside the leadership of the Party Liberal Republicans  
constantly talk about the Republican Party being a “big tent open to  
everybody.”

As radical homosexuals have been welcomed into “the big tent,” it has  
become a less welcoming place for religious conservatives and a dark  
and dangerous place for children.

Today, Republicans need to take a long and hard look at what they have  
done by welcoming homosexuals into the GOP. Republicans need to make a  
simple choice between the innocent children and radical homosexuals who  
prey on them.

[...]

In 1998, David Thorstad, a founder of the North American Man-Boy Love  
Association (NAMBLA) told a group of homosexuals in Mexico City that  
“Pederasty is the main form that male homosexuality has acquired  
throughout Western civilization – and not only in the West! Pederasty  
is inseparable from the high points of Western culture—ancient Greece  
and the Renaissance.”

The next time a homosexual activist claims on TV that homosexuality has  
no connection to pedophilia, remember David Thorstad’s statement and  
the definition of pederasty.

[More at URL]


----- 20 -----
Homosexual Activists Use Mark Foley Scandal For Political Gain
Traditional Values Coalition

http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2881

October 9, 2006 – Recent reports in WorldNetDaily and Investor’s  
Business Daily are shedding new light on how homosexual activists, in  
cooperation with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee,  
worked together to time the release of information about Rep. Mark  
Foley’s sexually-charged emails and instant messages to congressional  
pages.

The exposure of Foley as a closeted homosexual and his fantasies about  
young boys, was timed to do maximum damage to the Republican Party just  
weeks before the November election.

[...]

New reports are surfacing that a George Soros front group called the  
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, DC, had copies of  
Foley’s emails back in July and sent them to the FBI for an  
investigation. The FBI said there was insufficient grounds to  
investigate.

[...]

The Big Tent?

Liberal Republicans constantly talk about the Republican Party being a  
"big tent open to everybody."

As radical homosexuals have been welcomed into "the big tent," it has  
become a less welcoming place for religious conservatives and a dark  
and dangerous place for children.

Today Republicans need to take a long and hard look at what they have  
done by welcoming homosexuals into the GOP. Republicans need to make a  
simple choice between the innocent children and radical homosexuals who  
prey on them.

[...]

We can't promote this child abuse mentality and expect that our kids  
will turn out ok as adults. They won't. And we shouldn't continue to  
poison our children's psychological and physical development with myths  
and lies, disguised as tolerance and acceptance, when in fact there is  
help for people with same sex attraction.

Our kids are being force-fed psychological poison, at critical times in  
their development, and are being coerced by homosexual organizations  
that prey upon our kids in schools through curriculums, through  
national coming out days, through websites, through seminars that teach  
adults how to prey upon young boys without getting caught.

[...]

Pederasty Part Of Homosexual Lifestyle

To understand Rep. Mark Foley’s attraction to teenage boys, one must  
realize that pederasty, the act of a homosexual to engage in sex with a  
teenage male is part of the overall homosexual lifestyle. Media reports  
have incorrectly referred to Foley’s attractions to teens as  
pedophilia. Pedophilia is sexual attraction to pre-teenagers.

Foley’s attraction to teenage boys is not considered abnormal within  
the homosexual activist community. In fact, efforts are being made by  
homosexual groups around the world to lower or abolish the age of  
sexual consent. In addition, homosexual web sites keep track of the age  
of consent for children in different countries where they travel to  
have sex with kids: Age of Consent - Sexual Consent Ages From Around  
The World.

TVC Chairman Rev. Louis P. Sheldon has observed: “Pederasty is an  
accepted part of homosexuality around the world. Most homosexuals will  
tell you that they were brought into homosexuality by an older male.  
This is evident in the Catholic priest scandal. There were plenty of  
other Catholic priests for illicit sex, yet they targeted children for  
seduction and recruitment.

“How do we prevent such socially unacceptable acts in our culture  
against children? Everyone knows that to eliminate such behaviors, you  
must not feed it with positive support. Unfortunately, the politically  
correct view is to accept homosexuality. If you oppose homosexuality,  
you’re considered a bigot. Mr. Foley did not think pederasty was wrong  
because it was part of the overall homosexual lifestyle.

“Unfortunately, the taboo against sex with children continues to erode  
in our culture—aided by radical academics and by homosexual activist  
organizations.”

Homosexuals have long made it their objective of using the public  
school systems to recruit children into the homosexual lifestyle. TVC’s  
report, “Homosexuals Target Public School Children” outlines this  
objective. TVC’s report on the high rate of child molestations by  
homosexuals also provides chilling statistics on this national tragedy.

Read and distribute the document, “Homosexuality and Pedophilia” to see  
the close association between the North American Man-Boy Love  
Association and the homosexual movement. “Pedophilia Chic Reconsidered”  
describes the effort to normalize adult/child sex in the homosexual  
movement.

TVC’s report, “Exposed: Homosexual Molesters” documents, for example,  
that the New York Post documented in its July 30, 2001 edition that an  
investigation of child molestations by New York City public school  
teachers revealed that nearly 20% of all molestations were committed by  
homosexuals against children.

In 1987, Dr. Stephen Rubin of Whitman College did a ten-state study of  
child molestations. He found that 32% of the cases were homosexuals  
molesting children. [Ed. Note: see above for how they're lying about  
the study's contents to present this information.]

[More at URL]


----- 21 -----
Washington Post Columnist Attacks TVC
Traditional Values Coalition

http://www.traditionalvalues.org/modules.php?sid=2879

October 9, 2006 -- Eugene Robinson, a columnist for The Washington Post  
attacked the Traditional Values Coalition in the October 6 issue.  
Robinson claims that the GOP has attempted to demonize homosexuals and  
that TVC is one of the most rabid proponents of the belief that  
homosexuals recruit children into the lifestyle.

According to Robinson:

“One of the central tenets of anti-homosexual doctrine is the notion of  
‘recruitment’ -- that adult gay people lure young people into  
homosexuality as a way of increasing their numbers. The most extreme  
anti-gay activists perceive a full-fledged conspiracy. The Traditional  
Values Coalition, a group whose homophobia can only be called rabid,  
goes so far as to claim that, after being enticed into sexual acts, the  
‘young ”initiates” into the strange world of homosexuality are to be  
trained to reject the moral beliefs of their parents."

[...]

Robinson is misinformed about the nature of the homosexual movement and  
its goals as well as the research on same-sex attractions. His claim  
that homosexuality is more nature than nurture has never been proved.  
In fact, homosexual researchers continually come up empty when they  
attempt to prove that there is a biological cause for homosexual  
behaviors.

In addition, research and news reports over the past decades show  
clearly that homosexuals molest children at far higher rates than do  
heterosexuals.

[More at URL]


----- 22 -----
Pro-Life Group Considers Suing Over 'Truth Truck' Drivers' Oklahoma  
Arrest
By Bill Fancher and Jenni Parker
American Family Association/Agape Press
October 10, 2006

http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/10/afa/102006d.asp

(AgapePress) - An Operation Rescue "truth truck" and two drivers were  
taken into custody by Oklahoma City Police this past weekend for  
driving through a wealthy neighborhood where an abortionist lives. The  
two pro-life workers were placed under citizen's arrest by an  
influential neighbor of abortion doctor Nareshkumar Patel and were  
taken into police custody, jailed, and held overnight.

Operation Rescue's Truth Trucks are part of a campaign by the pro-life  
organization to raise awareness of the inhumane and brutal nature of  
abortion. These panel trucks, covered with graphic, billboard-sized,  
full-color images of aborted fetuses, have been driven across the U.S.  
and have often appeared in conjunction with various pro-life events and  
demonstrations.

[...]

Newman says it is getting difficult to be a pro-life advocate these  
days due to the hatred aimed at those expressing religious values.  
"It's getting very tough to express your views," he asserts,  
"particularly when they fly in the face of the prevailing political  
opinions of the day."

Nowadays, the Operation Rescue spokesman notes, "When you express your  
views against child killing or even homosexuality, you find yourself at  
odds with the IRS, the local law enforcement agencies, sometimes even  
federal law enforcement agencies." Nevertheless, he says his group will  
continue to conduct these kinds of pro-life events, "even though there  
is often persecution that accompanies them."

[More at URL]


----- 23 -----
Brownback: Time to Crack Down on Porn Distributors
By Bill Fancher and Jody Brown
American Family Association/Agape Press
October 10, 2006

http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/10/afa/102006e.asp

(AgapePress) - Senator Sam Brownback thinks the time has come to bear  
down on those who are distributing pornography throughout America, so  
he's calling for an investigative commission.

[More at URL]


----- 24 -----
Bauer Less Than Optimistic About GOP's Post-November Majority Status
By Chad Groening
American Family Association/Agape Press
October 10, 2006

http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/10/afa/102006g.asp

(AgapePress) - Pro-family activist Gary Bauer says it's a real "dicey"  
situation right now as to whether Republicans will be able to maintain  
their majority status in Congress this fall.

In the ongoing wake of the scandal surrounding former Republican  
Congressman Mark Foley, political pundits continue to speculate about  
the potential effect it could have upon conservatives heading to the  
polls next month -- if indeed they decide to vote at all.  
Pro-Democratic analysts predict their party will benefit from a  
backlash of voters who now question whether the GOP is as  
"values"-oriented as it claims, while pro-Republican observers are  
willing to concede their party may lose a few congressional seats  
because of the Foley matter but not enough to lose their majority  
status.

[...]

Simply put, says the American Values president, "there will be  
real-life implications, no matter how unhappy some people may be with  
the Republican Party, if the Senate and the House switch to the liberal  
side."

[More at URL]


----- 25 -----
Commentary & News Briefs
October 11, 2006
American Family Association/Agape Press
Compiled by Jody Brown

http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/10/afa/112006h.asp

[...]

...A Baptist preacher from Tennessee says Christians must be ready to  
defend the exclusive claims of Christ in today's secular humanist  
culture. During a recent Worldview Weekend conference in Collierville,  
Tennessee, Dr. Chuck Herring said the secular world is stepping up  
efforts to force pluralism and tolerance on Evangelicals. Herring  
encouraged Christians to study God's Word so they can be ready to  
defend the exclusive claims of Christ. He claimed that many Christians  
-- clergy and laity alike -- are "straddling the fence" when it comes  
to cultural issues. "They've got one foot in the world, and they're  
listening to the tolerance police, and they're caving in left and  
right," he said. "They've got the other foot in the 'kingdom of God,'  
and they're trying to straddle that fence. I'll tell you what, folks:  
it's time to get on one side of that fence or the other." Herring said  
the exclusivity of Jesus is defended by revelation. "The Bible that I'm  
holding in my hand is truth without any mixture of error," he told the  
gathering. "Paul wrote of the authority and the authenticity of the  
Bible in 2 Timothy 3:16. He said this: 'All scripture is inspired' --  
God-breathed -- 'is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for  
reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.'" Herring is  
pastor of First Baptist Church in Collierville. [Allie Martin]

...Getting involved in the debates of the day can make a difference --  
even in places where liberal views dominate the landscape. California  
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently vetoed the final two of three  
pro-homosexual education bills passed by the State Legislature. Bob  
Knight of the Institute on Culture and Family explains why the governor  
terminated the bills. "The governor was getting an enormous amount of  
input from citizens, from faxes and e-mails to calls," Knight explains,  
"[and] people were outraged at the sweeping homosexual agenda in the  
schools." The message from the public, he says, was essentially "don't  
mess with our kids." And he believes the governor heard the message  
loud and clear. "I don't know so much that he agrees with the parents,"  
Knight continues, "but I think he's a good enough politician that when  
there's this much of an uproar and outrage, that he would ignore it at  
his own peril." The bills would have designated tax dollars to promote  
the homosexual lifestyle, mandated pro-homosexual lessons, and  
prohibited any negative comments about homosexuals or their deadly  
lifestyle. Knight says people can make a difference if they decide to  
take action. [Bill Fancher]

[More at URL]


----- 26 -----
Liberty Sunday First Amendment Freedoms Watch Project
Tell us how your religious freedoms have been infringed by the  
homosexual agenda.
October 10, 2006 - Tuesday
Forward to a Friend!

http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=AL06J03&f=PG03I03

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or  
prohibiting the free exercise thereof."  So begins the Bill of Rights  
with the first amendment to our Constitution -- one that guarantees a  
God-given freedom.  For over 200 years the light of the church has  
illuminated this freedom, but now a radical agenda seeks to extinguish  
that flame.  The expansion of anti-discrimination laws, including  
family law, to include homosexuality inevitably constricts Americans'  
right to express and act on their religious beliefs.

FRC is tracking these incidents as they occur throughout the country.   
Now we need your help.   We are compiling stories from across the  
nation on how the homosexual agenda has threatened religious liberty.   
You can help us show America that government sponsorship of the  
homosexual agenda is a threat to the freedoms we value the most.

Have you been forced to attend pro-homosexual "diversity" training at  
work?  Have your children been subjected to pro-homosexual books or  
rhetoric in school?  If your religious liberties have been affected in  
these or other ways, we want to hear from you.  Send us your stories -  
the where, the when, and the what.  With your permission, we will  
publish and publicize these incidents so that all will know these are  
not random events, but the inevitable result of a clash of basic  
beliefs that puts religious freedom on a course of extinction.

Then, join us as we address these issues at Liberty Sunday: Defending  
our First Freedom, a live simulcast this Sunday, October 15, 2006 from  
Boston, Massachusetts.

To submit a story to FRC's First Amendment Freedoms Watch Project,  
please fill out our online form at:  
http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=LK06J19.

[More at URL]


----- 27 -----
Party of Whose Values?
Family Research Council President Tony Perkins
October 9, 2006 - Monday

http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=WU06J06

The ricochets of the Foley scandal continued to whistle overhead this  
weekend. As a guest on Fox News Sunday I again raised last week's  
report by CBS's Gloria Borger about anger on Capitol Hill that "'a  
network of gay staffers and gay members protect[ed] each other and did  
the Speaker a disservice'" in the Foley scandal. On Friday, an internet  
site quoted a "gay politico" observing that "[m]aybe now the social  
conservatives will realize one reason why their agenda is stalled on  
Capitol Hill." Sunday's New York Times revealed that a homosexual  
former Clerk of the House of Representatives, Jeff Trandahl, was "among  
the first to learn of Mr. Foley's" messages to pages. The Clerk's job  
is described as a "powerful post with oversight of hundreds of staffers  
and the page program." This raises yet another plausible question for  
values voters: has the social agenda of the GOP been stalled by  
homosexual members and or staffers? When we look over events of this  
Congress, we have to wonder. This was the first House to pass a  
pro-homosexual hate crimes bill. The marriage protection amendment was  
considered very late in the term with no progress toward passage.  
Despite overwhelming popular approval, the party seldom campaigns as  
the defender of marriage. The GOP will have to decide whether it wants  
to be the party that defends the traditional moral and family values  
that our nation was built upon and directed by for two centuries. Put  
another way, does the party want to represent values voters or Mark  
Foley and friends?


----- 28 -----
Massachusetts First Lady Joins Liberty Sunday Simulcast
October 10, 2006 - Tuesday
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT: J.P. Duffy or Bethanie Swendsen, 866-FRC-NEWS

http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=PR06J03&f=PG03I03

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Family Research Council is pleased to announce that  
Ann Romney, the First Lady of Massachusetts, will be joining the  
line-up of distinguished speakers at a live nationwide simulcast,  
Liberty Sunday- Defending Our First Freedom. The event will broadcast  
on October 15 from Tremont Temple Baptist Church in Boston,  
Massachusetts. Mrs. Romney will also introduce a video presentation by  
her husband, Governor Mitt Romney, which will air during the event.

This nationwide event comes from Boston in response to the legal  
battles over marriage taking place in Massachusetts. These battles are  
destined to have an impact not only on marriage, but also on the free  
speech and freedom of religion rights of all citizens. Prior to the  
event at a 3 pm press conference, FRC President Tony Perkins will  
reveal details of a special FIRST AMENDMENT FREEDOMS WATCH PROJECT.

[More at URL]


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