Right Wing Testimonial

Then fill to me, the parting glass; goodnight and joy be to you all.

2008-04-08T00:01:00.002-04:00

I'm afraid I shall be absent from this humble blog for some indefinite time, tarrying amongst piles of biochemistry books and papers sent from inter-library loan.

Until I return, which I promise to do, I suggest browsing the archives, making tea, or composing a symphony. You might check back at the start of May.

Take care, my dear readers. God bless, and goodnight.

Fat-Bottomed Republicans

2008-02-07T01:01:00.001-05:00

To the Tune of Fat-Bottomed Girls, by Queen

Oh, you picked John McCain tonight
Ah, Dressed up in some red-hued lies
But his liberal side will soon come out
Republicans,
When he wins, the liberal’s coming out.

Hey I was just a politician
Never knew no truth from fiction
But I knew they just pick reds for the GOP
So I hid all my positions
And I hired rhetoricians
And my consultants made a Republican out of me.

Hey Hey!

Lobbyists across the land
Come to me with cash in hand
They know they can turn my vote which every way,
But my independent style
Will trick you voters for awhile,
Just long enough for me to win the pres’dency.

Oh, you picked John McCain tonight
Ah, Dressed up in some red-hued lies
But his liberal side will soon come out
Republicans,
When he wins, the liberal’s coming out.
Republicans,
When he wins, the liberal’s coming out

Hey listen here
Now you’ve mortgaged all your homes
deep in debt with all them loans
Aint no money left in this locality (I tell you)
Oh but I’ll still get my pleasure
I’ll still tax away your treasure
I’m only red until I win the pres’dency
Now get this

McCain is full of Lies!

Ooh, yeah them Republicans
Republicans
Yeah yeah yeah
He’s no Republican
No, no

Are you gonna take me home tonight
Ah down beside that red firelight
Are you gonna let it all hang out
Fat bottomed girls
You make the rockin' world go round

Hey I was just a skinny lad
Never knew no good from bad
But I knew life before I left my nursery
Left alone with big fat fanny
She was such a naughty nanny
Heap big woman you made a bad boy out of me

Hey hey!

I’ve been singing with my band
Across the wire across the land
I seen ev'ry blue eyed floozy on the way
But their beauty and their style
Went kind of smooth after a while
Take me to them dirty ladies every time

Oh won't you take me home tonight?
Oh down beside your red firelight
Oh and you give it all you got
Fat bottomed girls you make the rockin' world go round
Fat bottomed girls you make the rockin' world go round

Hey listen here
Now your mortgages and homes
I got stiffness in the bones
Ain't no beauty queens in this locality (I tell you)
Oh but I still get my pleasure
Still got my greatest treasure
Heap big woman you gonna make a big man out of me
Now get this

Oh you gonna take me home tonight
Oh down beside your red firelight
Oh you gonna let it all hang out
Fat bottomed girls you make the rockin world go round
Fat bottomed girls you make the rockin world go round

Get on your bikes and ride!

Oooh yeah them fat bottomed girls
Fat bottomed girls
Yeah yeah yeah
Fat bottomed girls
Yes yes

McCain...Prince of His Own Dream-Castle

2008-02-07T00:38:00.000-05:00

"...The storm outside, in the winter of our discontent, will allow of no idle building of dream-castles; the summer indolence of the age of optimism is long gone by. The conservative, if he knows his own tradition, understands that his appointed part, in the present forlorn state of society, is to save man from fading into a ghost condemned to linger hopeless in a rotten tenement."

- Russell Kirk, in Prospects for Conservatives, 1989

Wake up and smell the coffee before it turns cold, Republicans...

On Reagan's Birthday- -

2008-02-06T22:04:00.000-05:00

American conservatives across the nation awoke to find their party had left them. And now we are faced with one very important, very difficult question: where do we go from here? McCain has been unequivocally condemned by Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, the AFA, Dr. James Dobson, Tammy Bruce, and the near entirety of the blogosphere, talk radio, and the Conservative establishment.

In this primary, conservatives hopped from Gilmore, to Tancredo, to Hunter, to Thompson, and finally in desperation to Huckabee or Romney. But it seems we failed. And it appears our party will choose "an open-borders, anti-tax cut, anti-free speech, global-warming hysteric, pro-human experimentation 'Republican.'" Which is to say, a Democrat.

Short of a miraculous VP appointment, I will not vote for McCain. Believe me, I fully recognize the meaning of my decision. It means I am choosing to elect a Democrat--Hillary or Obama-- to the highest office in the land. It may mean lost SCOTUS seats. It may mean socialized medicine.

But if we dare elect this treacherous apostate the consequences will be far worse.

McCain is on record criticizing Justice Alito as "too conservative," promoting universal amnesty for twenty million fugitives in the largest affront to US sovereignty since the birth of this nation (McCain-Kennedy), cosponsoring the most egregious assault on free speech in the past two decades (McCain-Feingold), denouncing the Swift Boat Veterans and water-boarding of terrorists, and trying to raise taxes on gasoline 50 cents per gallon in a pie in the sky quest to placate the morons who believe in the theory of anthropological global warming (McCain-Lieberman). And what's worst, is that with an "(R)" after his name, the Republicans won't even fight him.

Ann Coulter lays out the choice in no uncertain terms:

If Hillary is elected president, we'll have a four-year disaster, with Republicans ferociously opposing her, followed by Republicans zooming back into power, as we did in 1980 and 1994, and 2000. (I also predict more Oval Office incidents with female interns.)

If McCain is elected president, we'll have a four-year disaster, with the Republicans in Congress co-opted by "our" president, followed by 30 years of Democratic rule.

It is clear that we cannot vote for McCain. I do not believe I can bring myself to vote for Hillary, as Coulter suggests, however. Nor could I simply stay at home and watch my countrymen dash over a cliff like so many droves of lemmings. So it seems my only choice left is to vote third party and pray the GOP learns its lesson.

McCain has not won the election yet. But I believe in this dark hour, the best we may hope for is a brokered convention.

I never believed it would come to this. But merely staying home and whining as Dr. Dobson seems to suggest would accomplish nothing but cowardice and sloth. As conservatives we have a duty to defend our nation and our principles regardless of party and regardless of the odds. "The fewer men, the greater share of honor." What could be more truly said of conservatives today?

When I cast my vote in November, it may not be for the most popular candidate-- but it will be for the right one. I will have cast a vote for which I will never be ashamed. And I believe my vote will have made a difference. I've always assumed I would vote Republican in my first presidential election. But I will not allow a slavish obedience to blind party loyalty force me to prostitute my principles.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Reagan. I'm sorry that traitor McCain dared to mention your name at CPAC.

We miss you down here...

Ronald Reagan, Addressing the first CPAC, in 1975:

Americans are hungry to feel once again a sense of mission and greatness.

I don ‘t know about you, but I am impatient with those Republicans who after the last election rushed into print saying, “We must broaden the base of our party”—when what they meant was to fuzz up and blur even more the differences between ourselves and our opponents.

It was a feeling that there was not a sufficient difference now between the parties that kept a majority of the voters away from the polls. When have we ever advocated a closed-door policy? Who has ever been barred from participating?

Our people look for a cause to believe in. Is it a third party we need, or is it a new and revitalized second party, raising a banner of no pale pastels, but bold colors which make it unmistakably clear where we stand on all of the issues troubling the people?

Let us show that we stand for fiscal integrity and sound money and above all for an end to deficit spending, with ultimate retirement of the national debt.

Let us also include a permanent limit on the percentage of the people’s earnings government can take without their consent.

Let our banner proclaim a genuine tax reform that will begin by simplifying the income tax so that workers can compute their obligation without having to employ legal help.

And let it provide indexing—adjusting the brackets to the cost of living—so that an increase in salary merely to keep pace with inflation does not move the taxpayer into a surtax bracket. Failure to provide this means an increase in government’s share and would make the worker worse off than he was before he got the raise.

Let our banner proclaim our belief in a free market as the greatest provider for the people.

Let us also call for an end to the nit-picking, the harassment and over-regulation of business and industry which restricts expansion and our ability to compete in world markets.

Let us explore ways to ward off socialism, not by increasing government’s coercive power, but by increasing participation by the people in the ownership of our industrial machine.

Our banner must recognize the responsibility of government to protect the law-abiding, holding those who commit misdeeds personally accountable.

And we must make it plain to international adventurers that our love of peace stops short of “peace at any price.”

We will maintain whatever level of strength is necessary to preserve our free way of life.

A political party cannot be all things to all people. It must represent certain fundamental beliefs which must not be compromised to political expediency, or simply to swell its numbers.
I do not believe I have proposed anything that is contrary to what has been considered Republican principle. It is at the same time the very basis of conservatism. It is time to reassert that principle and raise it to full view. And if there are those who cannot subscribe to these principles, then let them go their way.

And They Who Seek To Abolish Our Precious Strong Verbs

2008-02-05T00:41:00.001-05:00

Let them be Anathema.

As 24 States Vote, a Grab for Delegates, and an Edge

"No wonder that Mr. McCain sneaked a last-minute trip to California onto his schedule for Tuesday morning." -New York Times

More Aptly Stated

2008-01-27T22:09:00.001-05:00

“ ‘It’s my opinion that we have been the policemen of the world long enough. We policed the seas for pirates and slavers. Now we police the land for dervishes and brigands and every sort of danger to civilization. There is never a mad priest or a witch doctor, or a firebrand of any sort on this planet, who does not report his appearance by sniping the nearest British officer. Ones tires of it at last, If a Kurd breaks loose in Asia Minor, the world wants to know why Great Britain does not keep him in order. If there is a military mutiny in Egypt, or a jihad in the Sudan, it is still Great Britain who has to set it right. And all to an accompaniment of curses such as the policemen gets when he seizes a ruffian among his pals. We get hard knocks and no thanks, and why should we do it? Let Europe do its own dirty work.’

'Well," said Colonel Cochrane, crossing his legs and leaning forward with the decision of a man who has definite opinions, "I don’t at all agree with you, Brown, and I think that to advocate such a course is to take a very limited view of our national duties. I think that behind national interests and diplomacy and all that there lies a great guiding force – a Providence, in fact – which is forever getting the best out of each nation and using it for the good of the whole. When a nation ceases to respond, it is time that she went into hospital for a few centuries, like Spain or Greece – the virtue has gone out of her. A man or a nation is not placed upon this earth to do mmerely what is pleasant and what is profitable. It is often called upon to carry out what is both unpleasant and unprofitable, but if it is obviously right it is mere shirking not to undertake it."

-Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Tragedy of the Korosko, 1898

To Recall a Holocaust

2008-01-23T23:10:00.000-05:00

The infamous Roe v. Wade decision that turned our Constitution into a murder pact and our doctor's offices into execution chambers was handed down by the Supreme Court on January 22, 1973. Every year since, pro-life gatherings across the country are held on that day as a memorial. We had such a gathering on the steps of Central Hall last evening, as campus Christians met to pray for our nation and the unborn. As part of this year's observance, President Bush issued a National Sanctity of Human Life Day proclamation.

Additionally, the annual March for Life was held in Washington, D. C. yesterday, and President Bush invited a number of the event's leaders to the White House, where he delivered strong remarks defending the rights of the unborn.

You should read the President's proclamation as well as his comments to those gathered at the White House.

I hope you will join me in prayer on this somber day.

In Christ,
Daniel

Fresh from the Newsies

2008-01-21T21:45:00.000-05:00

Panic '08 ?

NYC Seeks Ban Ban On Pollution, Radiation Detectors

Bloomberg Proposes More High-Tech "Solutions" to Swell Government

Leader of Anti-Gun Group Was Selling Guns to Gangs (Pictures Here)

CIA Admits Cyberattacks Blacked Out Cities (?)

New Book Advocates Exit Strategy from Public Schools

More Stupid People From My State: MI Teens Who Ran Away for "Love" Found Safe in Louisiana

Why I've Decided Never to Use the Bathrooms On an Airplane: So Nobody's Watching the Movie Anymore?

A Split Decision on Super Tuesday?

Immunogenicity of a Tetravalent Meningococcal Glycoconjugate Vaccine in Infants: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Biological Link Between BRCA1 and Breast Cancer Detailed

SC Democrat debate: Punch, Judy, and Silky; Update: Squabbling, mud-slinging, the gloves are off!

This Is Quite Funny

Why I Love My Country: Gen. "Butt Naked" Confesses to 20,000 Murders In Liberia [Graphic]

Saline Nasal Wash Helps Improve Children's Cold Symptoms

From Ann Coulter:

Unluckily for McCain, snowstorms in Michigan suppressed the turnout among Democratic "Independents" who planned to screw up the Republican primary by voting for our worst candidate. Democrats are notoriously unreliable voters in bad weather. Instead of putting on galoshes and going to the polls, they sit on their porches waiting for FEMA to rescue them. Note: I Strenuously Disagree With Giving A Flip-Flop, Massachusetts-Liberal Pagan Who Literally Wants to be a God Our Party's Nomination

In the News

2008-01-07T20:07:00.000-05:00

Group looks at ways to open both Howell High, Parker
We warned them...

Liberalism, Conservativism in Cold War

Abortion Triples Incidence of Underweight Births

"'Need' now means wanting someone else's money. 'Greed' means wanting to keep your own. 'Compassion' is when a politician arranges the transfer." - Joseph Sobran

"There are two methods, or means, and only two, whereby man's needs and desires can be satisfied. One is the production and exchange of wealth; this is the economic means. The other is the uncompensated appropriation of wealth produced by others; this is the political means." - Albert Jay Nock

More Aptly Stated

2008-01-06T21:49:00.000-05:00

Than I Could, in C.S. Lewis' The Four Loves, which I am about to conclude presently.

Love has been communicated through prose, poetry, letters, plays, mythology, and songs through the centuries since time itself began. True love however, has become attenuated, adulterated and misconceived through these very mediums in their over-emphasis of love divorced from any other ideal and worshiped idolatrously alone. "Symptomatic of this” Lewis writes, "perhaps, is the odiousness of nearly all those treacly tunes and saccharine poems in which popular art expresses Affection. They are odious because of their falsity. They represent as a ready-made recipe for bliss (and even for goodness) what is in fact only an opportunity. There is no hint that we shall have to do anything: only let Affection pour over us like a warm shower-bath and all, it is implied, will be well."

New Evidence Refutes Current, Naturalistic Cosmology

2008-01-03T14:33:00.000-05:00

Amateur Stargazers Map a "Lop-Sided" Universe

"We've proved [sic] that random people are as good as professional astronomers," Dr Lintott said....

"'Preliminary results suggest that spiral galaxies seem to point clockwise,' he said, adding that that meant they rotate anticlockwise from our perspective. If this new finding turns out to hold true, 'you will have to throw away the standard model of cosmology.'"

If there isn't a God, I would like an explanation for how every galaxy observed rotates in the same direction from our perspective, because there is no physical reason for them to do so; from the other side of the galaxies, they would rotate in the opposite direction.

Big Bang, or Big Goof? Astronomer Challenges 'Seeds' Proof

"In other words, astronomers who mistook the "seeds" for objects on the edge of the universe are like someone who looks outdoors through a window and mistakes smudges on the glass for clouds in the sky."

Some shocking news for 2008

2008-01-01T10:54:00.000-05:00

Buddy Moorehouse, LCP&A

We've come down to the final two days of 2007, and I know what question is on your mind as 2008 comes into view: Dear God, will we have to endure another 12 months of bizarre stories about the Howell Public Schools?
The short answer, of course, is "yes." Livingston County's favorite soap opera isn't going away anytime soon, but just in case you're wondering, there WILL be several other stories that will be gobbling up headlines in 2008....

JAN. 25: Fresh off their success using drug-sniffing dogs at the Freshman Campus, Howell school officials announce that they will be using Bible-sniffing dogs in all schools to search for contraband religious materials. A sweep of the high school turns up two hymnals and a crumpled photo of Billy Graham.
FEB. 18: Livingston County officials announce that not only will they be building an outdoor ice rink on the lawn of the historical Livingston County Courthouse in Howell, but they will also be turning the county jail into a bowling alley.
MARCH 4: Michigan lawmakers discover a few things that haven't yet been taxed: walking the dog, sleeping on the couch after a big dinner, and using your fingers as quotation marks. They impose a 6 percent service tax on all of them....

Read Article

Happy New Year!!!

2008-01-01T00:03:00.000-05:00

As we begin this new year, remember what the Lord has said, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6

Don't just toast, please pray for, the coming year.

From the LCMS:

Dear Lord,
You are the God of time. Thank You for this gift of a new year. I know You hold all of my tomorrows in Your hands. Help me not to fear and worry about the future so that it robs me of today’s joy and peace. Keep my eyes focused on You and what You did for me on Calvary instead of the circumstances around me. Forgive me of all my sins as I begin each new day living for You having been cleansed by Your precious blood.

Guide my footsteps as I hold Your hand. Show me the path You want me to take in this new year. May all I am and do be to Your glory to bring people into Your kingdom. Strengthen my faith as You keep me in your grace. In Jesus’ precious and holy Name. Amen

And for what I'm sure we're all praying the New Year does not hold, Hillary buys us "free" Christmas gifts with our own money. I'm so glad she knows how to spend it better than us.

Universal pre-k? I'll be shot dead before the government gets their hands on my three-year-old.

Bogus Romney Holiday Card Cites Mormon Passages

2007-12-30T00:52:00.000-05:00

Howdy Folks!

But first, the quote of the day:

"Liberalism is a philosophy of consolation for Western Civilization as it commits suicide." - Dr. Jerry Pournelle

Read Romney Article

Columbia, S.C. — Many South Carolina Republicans got a bogus holiday greeting card this week, purported to be from White House hopeful Mitt Romney, that cites some controversial passages of the Book of Mormon.

The best part of this is that the greatest damage will be wreaked by the media, because unbiased or even pro-Romney coverage will still get the message out.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T19:39:00.000-05:00

Ronald Reagan wishes you a Merry Christmas:

May God bless you and yours.

"If we could condense all the truths of Christmas into only three words, these would be the words: "God with us." We tend to focus our attention at Christmas on the infancy of Christ. The greater truth of the holiday is His deity. More astonishing than a baby in the manger is the truth that this promised baby is the omnipotent Creator of the heavens and the earth!" - John F. MacArthur, Jr.

Today we celebrate the birth of my Savior, Jesus Christ. I pray he is yours, too.

OK Attorney Gen. Bans Christmas On Campus!!!

2007-12-20T14:29:00.000-05:00

EGREGIOUS VIOLATION OF CIVIL RIGHTS!!!!

Readers-- I told you so [my prediction goes further, and I still hold to it].

(Ht: Stop the ACLU)

Mark Tapscott reports on the "Okie Napolean".

I am not making this up (because I am from Oklahoma and this guy is an embarrassment).

Edmondson issued an advisory opinion to officials at Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford advising them that the word "Christmas" should not be spoken by any employee of the state school, not written in any official holiday decorations.

Matt Staver and Liberty Counsel issued the following statement on the Edmondson action:

"Southwestern Oklahoma State University (SWOSU), has issued a disturbing policy which requires all employees to refrain from using the word 'Christmas' in oral or written form. This directive was given by the university upon legal advice of the Oklahoma Attorney General, W.A. Drew Edmondson. Liberty Counsel sent a demand letter to SWOSU following a complaint from a university affiliate.

"John Misak, the Director of Human Resources, recently visited various university departments and employee groups and informed everyone that any decorations featuring the word 'Christmas' in any work or public areas of the university must be immediately removed. He also instructed everyone to discontinue the use of the term 'Christmas' in their speech while on the job. This censorship specifically includes exchanging greetings of 'Merry Christmas' among employees or with non-employees, whether initiated by a non-university employee or not. Christmas remains a legal holiday for state employees, including those at SWOSU. The directive does not include any other legal holidays such as Thanksgiving or New Year’s.

"The announcements made by Misak are in direct violation of the United States Constitution and other federal law. The First Amendment prohibits government from being hostile to religion. Selecting one legal holiday for negative treatment and special restrictions solely because it has religious aspects clearly demonstrates hostility toward religion. Moreover, the free speech rights of employees at the university are infringed when their speech is censored solely because of a religious viewpoint or perceived religious viewpoint. A public employer like SWOSU also violates the Civil Rights Act when it prohibits its employees from saying 'Merry Christmas.'

"Liberty Counsel’s demand letter requests an immediate reversal of the university’s unconstitutional policy. Liberty Counsel’s Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign educates and, if necessary, litigates to insure that Christmas is not censored.

Mathew D. Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel and Dean of Liberty University School of Law, commented: 'Of all places, a public university should foster free expression. How can public university officials honestly believe that the state can prohibit its employees from saying 'Merry Christmas?' After all, Christmas is a state and federal legal holiday.'"

You can reach Mr. Edmonson via telephone at: 405-521-3921. Make sure to wish him a Merry Christmas while you are on the phone. Make sure to let the scrooge know just how ridiculous his politically correct oppresion of free speech is….politely if possible.

Also see Edmondson's arrest of Paul Jacobs. Here is an Examiner editorial on the case. Go here to the Free Paul Jacob web site put together by some of his supporters.

Lots of Bad News

2007-12-20T13:01:00.000-05:00

Nickelodeon Considers Spears Teen Pregnancy Special...Nickelodeon Considers Spears Teen Pregnancy Special [Hey, at least she's keeping the child.]

Archbishop of Canterbury says nativity 'a legend'

Bus driver solicits sex; students aboard

Mohammed now second most popular boys' name in Britain

VIDEO: Bush Dodges Huckabee Attack [Bush exhibits true selfless professionalism here. I'm very impressed.]

Time Person of the Year: Vladimir Putin

Have a Nice Day!
-Daniel

Howell Sex Ed Update: From a Parent's Perspective

2007-12-17T18:11:00.000-05:00

From local parents:

This new curriculum is for 10 and 11 year olds. With that established, I can honestly say that the article in today's Livingston County Press leads you to believe that they are merely updating a program that is outdated. They actually had a choice of which program to use and they chose one that gives these 10 & 11 year olds A LOT of information that goes beyond normal "how the body functions" information. At one point the older brother tells his 11 year old brother that the penis gets hard so that it will fit in the vagina. Yikes! Here we go again. I guess they want to see if they can run all of the conservative students away from HPS.

They could have chosen material that explains the changes that the male and female bodies go through at puberty, but no, Howell continues to choose more advanced material that delves into the sex as early as they can get away with. The class material even gives the teacher the direction that if they chose the more advanced material that students may ask how semen gets into the vagina. Remember - 10 & 11 year olds.

Here are some comments from parents who did take the time to preview this information:

Some areas of concern:
1. Both girl and boy were counseled by other than their parents. One of the lessons was activations about how to start a conversation with parents - from a very condescending attitude it seemed to me. A kid could get from the subtle approach that parents are the last people that a kid would go to. Parents are hard to talk to and wouldn't understand. Many kids could be able to talk to their parents with no problem, but after seeing these videos and the 'lesson', might not talk to them.

2. The idea put forth that all kids will feel awkward, clumsy, and embarrassed. Simply telling kids what is going on would be plenty for many or most kids to just accept this change as normal and not be bent out of shape. No mention of improved diet to help zits and cramps, etc. It seems like embarrassment is around every corner. Drugs were pushed to meet any physical problem. A lot of mention of body odor as horrid - the worst thing. I know of kids who were so worried about this. Why create un-necessary paranoia?

3. The emphasis on infatuation with the other sex. The idea that every kid goes through many relationships before being ready, mature enough for a deeper one. I don't like the pressure on girls to think only of having a boyfriend as their only gage of value. Girls should be learning and experiencing skills, etc., developing self-respect and ability for a long time before they think about a 'deep' boy/girl relationship. Why should this potentially harmful goal be pushed on vulnerable ten year olds. How many teen marriages last? And...marriage was never mentioned. The video said it was "normal" to have infatuation for a teacher. That doesn't seem normal or usual especially in a sex ed video. A kid can really respect and look up to a teacher but a ten year old should not be encouraged to sexual infatuation.

By contrast the HIV video was direct, simple and said the truth: Don't have sex.

Maybe so much info shouldn't be given to kids so young.

Send the ACLU a Christmas Card

2007-12-16T23:58:00.000-05:00

From Stop the ACLU:

Its become a popular yearly tradition now to send the Anti-Christian Liars Union grinches a Christmas card. I personally think its ineffective, and that the money you waste on a stamp for the organization to toss in the shredder would be better served towards a good cause. So, I encourage you to save that money, dig a little deeper, and contribute to an organization that fights the ACLU and defends Christmas. The Alliance Defense Fund, and the ACLJ are both great organizations that defend Christmas each year. The Alliance Defense Fund does it for free. Why not help groups like that out this year?

However, from experience last year…I know that many will insist on sending the ACLU a Christmas card. Afterall, it is tradition. If that is how you want to make your message…we have some great greeting cards and postcards available at our online store. Plenty of other great Christmas gifts too.

Send your Christmas card to the ACLU at:

ACLU
125 Broad Street
18th Floor
New York , NY 10004

Psalm 1

2007-12-16T21:08:00.000-05:00

29 Since they hated knowledge, and did not choose to fear the LORD, 30 since they would not accept My advice, and spurned My rebuke, 31 they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes. 32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; 33 but whoever listens to Me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.

This is the Word of the LORD.

Rumor: Chuck Breiner Gone for Good!

2007-12-13T16:16:00.000-05:00

Anyone know anything more about this than second-hand hear-say? The rumors must have started somewhere.

_______________________________________

Although Howell Schools Superintendent Chuck Breiner is on a leave of absence through mid-to-late December, rumors that he has cleaned out his office have been making their way across blogs and elsewhere for more than two weeks. Using the Freedom of Information Act, surveillance tapes were obtained from cameras at the Howell High School Freshman Campus, where the district’s administration offices are located. On Saturday, November 24th and then again on Sunday the 25th, Breiner and another man are seen entering the building and then leaving several times with boxes, using a dolly at one point to carry them out. Deputy Superintendent Lynn Parrish, who is carrying out most of Breiner's duties in his absence, told WHMI that while it would be easy to jump to conclusions based on the tapes, it should be noted that there is no evidence anything improper was removed by the superintendent nor is there any indication of what was in the boxes. WHMI called Breiner for comment, but has not received an answer as to the implications of his removing boxes of material from his office. School Board President Phil Westmoreland also didn't respond to our inquiries over the tapes nor did any other board member contacted by WHMI. (JK)

Today's Quote

2007-12-06T13:30:00.000-05:00

The thesis of "Godless" is: Liberalism IS a religion. The liberal religion has its own cosmology, its own explanation for why we are here, its own gods, its own clergy. The basic tenet of liberalism is that nature is god and men are monkeys. (Except not as pure-hearted as actual monkeys, who don't pollute, make nukes or believe in God.) Liberals deny, of course, that liberalism is a religion -- otherwise, they'd lose their government funding. "Separation of church and state" means separation of YOUR church from the state, but total unity between their church and the state.

--Ann Coulter

Students Flee California Schools En Masse in Organized Protest

2007-12-05T09:51:00.000-05:00

Disgusted by state-mandated indoctrination laws, California parents, churches, and activist groups organize to promote Private- and Home- Schooling.

Read Article

Excerpt:

"With the passing of SB 777, a Christian parent cannot, in good conscience, send their child to a public school where their child will be taught or coerced into a lifestyle or belief system that is contrary to the faith they hold dear," Kanter told WND.

"Fortunately, SB 777 has caught the attention of many churches and pastors here in California, and as they should, they are calling on their congregants to take their children out. To help in this endeavor, our ministry has sent and will continue to send out free packages directly to churches containing information on how they can encourage their congregants to homeschool their children, as well as how to create in-church parent led schools," she said.

"We hope our resources will encourage Christians to focus on the importance of not leaving Christ out of a child's education," she said.

Pledge AND Motto Challenged Again

2007-12-03T20:40:00.000-05:00

By the same plaintiff...

Newdow's challenges to the Pledge and Motto will be heard by 9th Circuit Tuesday.

The ACLJ will be fighting it:

In the complaint, the Plaintiffs allege that they "generally deny that God exists, and maintain that their constitutional and statutory rights are abridged when the school district Defendants participate in making the purely religious, Monotheistic claim that the United States is 'one nation under God.'" The Plaintiffs do acknowledge and stipulate that none of them are actually compelled to say the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance. They feel that they are being coerced, though, to participate simply because the Pledge is being given with the phrase "under God" as mandated by Congress. The lawsuit also alleges that the Student-Plaintiffs have been "forced to confront the government's claim that this is one nation under God as their public school teachers have repeatedly led them and their classmates in reciting the now religious Pledge of Allegiance in their classroom and at school assemblies."

We are going to be filing an amicus brief on behalf of the ACLJ and our members around the country in response to this most recent attack on the Pledge of Allegiance. You can join our Committee to Protect "Under God" in the Pledge by clicking here. I have assembled a senior research team to put our brief together on behalf of your members and concerned citizens throughout the United States. We will keep you posted.

Read Summary

Study: Democrats More Likely To Suffer Mental Illness

2007-12-01T17:04:00.000-05:00

Wish I could say I was surprised...

Read Report

Best Ad Campaign Ever

2007-11-23T21:55:00.000-05:00

The Broken Hearth

2007-11-23T19:25:00.000-05:00

San Fransisco Attempts to Ban Fireplaces

Recitations of "Chestnuts roasting on the open fire" rumored to be banned next.

Where is the research? The Chronicle reported that "government studies" indicate that 33 percent of all "particulate matter" comes from your fireplace and mine. With all the industry and all the cars in the Bay Area, does anyone actually believe that?

Shouldn't we be given more quantitative information such has, "How many fireplaces are there in the nine counties? How many are used each night? How many hours is each fireplace used? How much "particulate matter" is expelled from each fire? How many parts per million are in the air? How much dissipates into the atmosphere?"

Is this decision truly about air quality or global warming?

Eco Warrior Sterilized to Protect Planet

2007-11-23T19:09:00.000-05:00

'Having children is selfish'

Oh, yes, please! I'll foot the bill!

Read Article

I cannot help but wonder, morbidly, at the excuses liberals use to avoid real responsibility. They appear to possess an endless capacity for self-deception.

In all honesty the only demographic trend in conservatives' favor is the fact that we are having all the children. So, keep it up, moms and pops!

-------
After reading the article, it is horrific that she murdered her child, but as for sterilizing herself...

It makes me wonder what reason she would give for not killing herself, if she's OK killing innocent children.

The (Theologically) Good, Bad, and Ugly

2007-11-23T00:18:00.000-05:00

I stumbled upon this page a few minutes ago, and wanted to share with you the following description of the ELCA, a supposedly Lutheran organization that, by tarnishing the name of my denomination, has caused endless confusion amongst my fellow conservatives at college.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is very difficult to abbreviate. They want us to call them 'The ELCA', with each letter pronounced, rather than 'ELK-a' (even though they allow lodge membership) or 'elSA' (even though this feminine ending is quite appropriate because of their rejection of St. Paul's words concerning who is and is not to be a pastor, as well as his teaching concerning lesbianism/homosexuality, and their general 'sell-out' to militant feminism, including the permission of 'Goddess worship' in their conferences, writings of their professors, etc.).
Also, with their emphasis not being, truly, on the Gospel, but on 'social [in]justice' issues, the word 'Evangelical' slips from their name (*LCA) and because they have rejected the doctrine of the Lutheran Confessions by (among other things) linking their altars and pulpits to those who teach completely contrary to those Confessions (like the United Church of Christ, the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., and the Reformed Church in America), the 'Lutheran' slips away as well (**CA).
Since they are not really a 'church', but a federation of congregations committed to the promotion of false doctrine, the 'Church' seems a little odd, too (***A), and since they have routinely promoted (by teaching and by investments) 'liberation theology' that seeks to establish communist regimes to 'free the people', one wonders how they can claim 'America' in their title.

Oh well, enjoy your time at ****.org...!

A Blessed Thanksgiving to All

2007-11-22T11:40:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving, Old School Style

2007-11-22T11:29:00.000-05:00

It's been nearly 150 years since Thanksgiving was instituted in our country as an official holiday by Abraham Lincoln. In case any of you have forgotten why he has done so, here is his declaration, and all the wonderful Thanksgiving sentiments within it.

By the President of the United States of America.
A Proclamation.
The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.
By the President: Abraham Lincoln
William H. Seward,Secretary of State

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Thanksgiving Medley

2007-11-22T11:21:00.000-05:00

Which Bible translation did the Pilgrims prefer: Geneva version, older than King James, resurrected

China, after last-minute cancellation, allows US Carrier to land as promised under US pressure

Families eating out for Thanksgiving
(To each their own, but I'd be lying if I said this didn't seem a lamentable sign of the times.)

President Bush Plans Quiet Thanksgiving

Cost of Thanksgiving soaring, Merrill Lynch says

Pilgrim Edward Winslow described the Pilgrims' Thanksgiving in these words: "Our harvest being gotten in, our Governor sent four men on fowling [bird hunting] so that we might, after a special manner, rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as ... served the company almost a week ... Many of the Indians [came] amongst us .... And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet BY THE GOODNESS OF GOD WE ARE... FAR FROM WANT."

The Reality of Thanksgiving
"The Pilgrims’ triumph over hunger and poverty at Plymouth Colony can be traced to something more than the charitable gestures of a few local Indians. Rather, it involves their courageous decision to replace a failed, socialistic agricultural system with one informed by the free-market principle of private ownership of property"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CONSERVAPEDIA!!! Conservapedia was born November 22, 2006. Contribute to their essay about what they've learned and accomplished.

Psalm 100 (KJV)

A Psalm of Thanksgiving.

1 Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
2 Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
3 Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
5 For the LORD is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

Prayer for Thanksgiving Day

2007-11-22T11:07:00.000-05:00

Prayer of the Church
National Day of Thanksgiving
Thursday, November 22, 2007

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name; bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.

Almighty God, Lord of all creation, Giver of all that is good, on this day of thanksgiving, receive our praise, our gratitude, our thanksgiving and joy for the blessings of the abundant and rich life You graciously provide.

Your gifts are too numerous to count, O Lord. We thank You for all that You have made and continue to sustain. Your mighty hand stretches forth and it faithfully feeds and supplies our needs. Not one day passes without all of our needs being met. Thank You, Lord, for all that You have given us.

We especially remember the harvest of crops and produce that You permit the land to yield. Receive our thanks for all those whose occupation secures for the rest of us the fruits of the earth.

As we acknowledge that all good things come from You, dear Father, help us to use the bounty we enjoy wisely and carefully. Remind us that as You set Adam and Eve in the garden to tend and care for it, You would have us to live on this earth, caring and respecting what for You have made.

We remember those who serve our nation in the military. Wherever they are on this Thanksgiving Day, heavenly Father, continue to extend Your hand of protection over them. Equip faithful chaplains to remind our nation’s soldiers, sailors, airmen and women, that the God of might and power is also the God of love and grace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior.

Bless our nation, heavenly Father. Be with all our national leaders and their families this day. To our president, our congressional leaders and senators, all federal and state magistrates and all local civil servants, grant abundant wisdom, that they may govern properly and so secure a peaceful society where the Gospel of Christ Jesus may have free course and be preached to the joy and nurturing of all peoples.

As you fed Your people with manna throughout their pilgrimage in the wilderness, so nourish us this day with the body and blood of Your Son, the bread of heaven that does not perish.

We thank You, O God and Lord, for all of Your blessings on this day of thanksgiving. Especially do we praise You for the gift of the forgiveness of sins and the hope of heaven we have in Christ Jesus. Grant that through of this gift of gifts, we may continually give thanks for the daily bread and the bounties of this earth we receive through our Savior and Redeemer, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

--Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod

Today's Quote

2007-11-21T13:18:00.000-05:00

"Yet of all associations none takes higher rank, none is more secure, than when good men who are alike in character have joined in fellowship."

--Cicero, On Duties

A Thanksgiving Message from Chuck Norris

2007-11-19T20:03:00.000-05:00

Courtesy of WND

I was saddened this past week to read how our media will defend and honor 22,000 turkeys who "make the ultimate sacrifice" and yet hardly mention and even glibly glance over the true sacrifices of recent service men and women – "at least 3,866 members of the U.S. military [who] had died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003."

While the liberal press belittles our troops' selflessness, and their families try to cope with separation and loss again during the holidays, I felt the need to take a break from my endorsement series of Mike Huckabee to address an important question.

From the casualties of war to the droughts of Georgia and the fires of California, people across our country are asking, "How can we, particularly those who face adversity and suffer loss, be thankful this Thanksgiving?" That's not an easy question to answer, but I'd like to try. I believe there is help – and it came nearly 400 years ago to the shores of Plymouth Rock.

A 400-year-old example of thankfulness in crisis

The Pilgrims who landed in 1620, at what would become Massachusetts, discovered not only a new world but the power to give thanks even in the midst of calamity. Though they were strangers in a new land, the pilgrims were by no means foreigners to the territory of pain and difficulty. Did you know that half of their number died the first year they were here?

Ron Lee Davis recollects in his work, "Rejoicing in Our Suffering,"

The Pilgrims would not fully understand in their lifetime the reason for the suffering that beset them. The first official Thanksgiving Day occurred as a unique holy day in 1621 – in the fall of that year with lingering memories of the difficult, terrible winter they had just been through a few months before, in which scores and scores of babies and children and young people and adults had starved to death, and many of the Pilgrims had gotten to a point where they were even ready to go back to England. They had climbed into a ship and were in that harbor heading back to England, ready to give up. It was only as they saw another ship coming the other way, and on that ship there was a Frenchman named Delaware, and he came with some medical supplies and some food, that they had enough hope to go back and to try to live in the midst of those adverse sufferings. And yet they came to that first Thanksgiving with the spirit of giving and of sharing.

A pilgrim's progress in the Geneva Bible

The Pilgrims crossed the Atlantic and faced their first winter with the comfort of their Geneva Bible, a translation first published in 1560. In that Bible, they read the words that posed a great challenge, "In all things give thanks; for this is God's will in Christ Jesus toward you."

It's those words "all things" that must have been a huge obstacle for them, as it is for many of us. Yet in those words is also the remedy for their (as well as our) inability to be thankful. It doesn't say be thankful "for all things" but "in all things." And it doesn't say, "feel thankful," but "be thankful" or "give thanks." There is always something for which we can give thanks – though sometimes difficult to find.

Thanksgiving is a duty before it's a feeling or a festivity. It is commemorated once a year, but thanks-living was never intended to be bound up in a single day. As a friend told me, "Gratitude is a seasoning for all seasons. Thanks-living is a college from which we never graduate." Proof is that I'm still "in progress" to pass Mother Teresa's test, "The best way to show my gratitude to God is to accept everything, even my problems, with joy."

Giving thanks is still a choice, especially in times of adversity and suffering. Though it is definitely not easy, it is always possible to list our assets alongside our losses. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a prisoner and martyr under Hitler, wrote in his cell, "It is only with gratitude that life becomes rich."

The fact is, in difficult times, we must call up our reserves. We must choose to be thankful even if we don't always feel it. We must make a choice like Helen Keller, who said, "So much has been given to me, I have no time to ponder over that which has been denied." If she can say that, can't we?

A calling from yesteryear

Thanksgiving is still born in adversity. It is still a holiday for the courageous – those who face their fears and fight to remain thankful. So perhaps, for many of us, Thanksgiving will mean even more this year than in the past.

More than ever, I would encourage and challenge all of us to once again hear and respond to the call of William Bradford, the governor of Plymouth Colony, who said in 1623:

Inasmuch as the great Father has given us this year an abundant harvest of Indian corn, wheat, beans, squashes and garden vegetables, and has made the forests to abound with game and the sea with fish and clams, and inasmuch as He has protected us from the ravages of the savages, has spared us from pestilence and disease, has granted us freedom to worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience; now, I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye Pilgrims, with your wives and little ones, do gather at ye meeting house, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12 in the day time, on Thursday, November ye 29th of the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and twenty-three, and the third year since ye Pilgrims landed on ye Pilgrim Rock, there to listen to ye pastor, and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.

And before you eat your Thanksgiving meal, don't forget to thank God for our troops too. While they serve freedom for us, the least we can do is serve them a little honor and remembrance.

The Collegian (Foul Rag)

2007-11-15T23:36:00.000-05:00

I am tired of The Collegian, our campus paper here at Hillsdale College.

As "Michigan's Oldest College Paper," you would think the journalists would have too much professional responsibility to talk about their sex lives, or to publish naked photographs of streakers and laugh at their contemptible behavior, or to lambaste our "intolerant" students for their "narrow-mindedness" and inability to accept "diversity."

I've heard it all before, as readers of this blog know, and believe me, I do not want to hear it again.

These purveyors of pollution shamelessly malign our college and our students, and spit on the morals that set our school apart. I've always suspected they would be far happier at a public school, yet they seem more content to debauch Hillsdale, like a child who tramples his mother's flower-garden out of churlish rebellion.

I've put up with a lot from liberals over the course of my life, and I've always born it with charity and --if not a grin-- at least a smirk.

But here their slander hurts my fellow students.

Hillsdale may mean nothing more to them than four years in a "bubble shielded from the outside world" full of "dangerous uniformity." But it means a great deal to me by virtue of our student's relative accord. This substantial common ground makes true fellowship and discussion possible. It makes true collegiality possible.

So-- you liberals-- take the University of Michigan. Take State. Take Princeton, take Yale, take Dartmouth and Harvard and the University of Colorado.

But leave me Hillsdale.

Because, for no matter how shrill you whine, you will only succeed in proving yourself the fool.

There are good people here. They deserve better than to put up with you. They will not put up with you.

So wise up. Grow up. Put your sullied pen to rest, and leave my school alone.

US SETS RECORD IN NEW STD CASES!

2007-11-13T21:44:00.000-05:00

Read Article

ATLANTA (AP) - More than 1 million cases of chlamydia were reported in the United States last year - the most ever reported for a sexually transmitted disease, federal health officials said Tuesday.
"A new U.S. record," said Dr. John M. Douglas Jr. of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
More bad news: Gonorrhea rates are jumping again after hitting a record low, and an increasing number of cases are caused by a "superbug" version resistant to common antibiotics, federal officials said Tuesday.
Syphilis is rising, too. The rate of congenital syphilis - which can deform or kill babies - rose for the first time in 15 years.
"Hopefully we will not see this turn into a trend," said Dr. Khalil Ghanem, an infectious diseases specialist at Johns Hopkins University's School of medicine. ...

Hopefully... people will stop sleeping around! But they won't-- at least if my generation is any clue.

As long as people are willing to exchange their body fluids with more than one person, even the most advanced medicine available will be fighting a rear-guard action.

Bacteria do have mechanisms to exchange genetic data, these mechanisms will work against treatments even beyond antibiotics, and bacteria will ultimately develop resistances to whatever treatments we develop. That's the way the world works, folks.

Ultimately, for all our struggles and vain pretention, we cannot avoid this simple truth: God knows what's best for us. If we disobey His word, we will suffer consequences-- be they physical or otherwise.

Romans 1:24-28

24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

Today's Quote

2007-11-10T19:26:00.000-05:00

"We do not need more intellectual power, we need more moral power. We do not need more knowledge, we need more character. We do not need more government, we need more culture. We do not need more law, we need more religion. We do not need more of the things that are seen, we need more of the things that are unseen. ... If the foundation is firm, the superstructure will stand."

-- Calvin Coolidge

Helicopter Ben

2007-11-10T18:39:00.000-05:00

Helicopter Ben, noun: A derogatory nickname for Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. In 2002, when the word "deflation" began appearing in the business news, Bernanke gave a speech about deflation. In that speech, he mentioned that the government in a fiat money system owns the physical means of creating money. Control of the means of production for money implies that the government can always avoid deflation by simply issuing more money. (He referred to a statement made by Milton Friedman about using a "helicopter drop" of money into the economy to fight deflation.) Bernanke's critics have since referred to him as "Helicopter Ben" or to his "helicopter printing press". In a footnote to his speech, Bernanke noted that "people know that inflation erodes the real value of the government's debt and, therefore, that it is in the interest of the government to create some inflation." (Definition courtesy of Wikipedia.)

For why this is problematic (and for what is one of the best-- if slightly overblown-- explanations of our current economic debacle I've read) See Here

Also, President Sarkozy warns of ‘economic war’ as dollar falls to new low

Feds Ban Christmas Displays In Apartments Buildings

2007-11-08T22:23:00.000-05:00

I saw this one coming a long time back; it's a logical result of the expansion of government and the "Separation of Church and State. " The next thing to watch for is the banning of private religious displays by students at public universities or perhaps all "recipient institutions" (i.e., everywhere but Hillsdale and Grove City.

Read the article below. It's chilling.

The Plant City Living Center has told Mrs. Arnold, an 85-year-old grandmother in Florida, that federal law prohibits her from displaying any religious words or items associated with Christmas in the common area of her apartment building.

According to the Center, The Department of Housing nd Urban Development (HUD) issued a directive banning "any religious symbols or religious words associated with Christmas." Under the guidelines issued by HUD, the elderly grandmother cannot place a small Christmas tree outside her door (because that area is a "commons area") if it contains any religious symbols or religious words, even an angel!

If the residents want to have a Christmas party in their Community room, they cannot call it a Christmas party. The Center says HUD directs residents not to use the word "Christmas" but to use the word "Holiday."

A Sunday School class from a church near Mrs. Arnold's apartment comes every year to host a Hanging of the Greens and Christmas Party for all the residents. She said the highlight of their Christmas Party comes at the very end of The Hanging of the Greens when someone places the angel on top of their Christmas tree. Their tradition is now banned by the federal government.

The federal government is becoming increasingly active in banning Christianity from the public square. Earlier, the National Park Service removed the wording "Laus Deo" (Latin for "Praise be to God") from a replica of the cap of the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. and the Veterans Administration banned the script of the flag-folding ceremony mentioning "Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," and "Father, Son and Holy Ghost" at over 100 national cemeteries. Both of these were rescinded after AFA supporters sent emails to proper authorities.

To listen to the grandmother's conversation telling AFA about the situation, click here. To read about the HUD directive, click here.

(after listening to the audio file, click the "X" in the upper right hand corner of your browser window to return to the e-mail message)

_____

Take Action

* Send an e-mail to the Secretary of HUD and President Bush asking that HUD stop their policy. The role of the federal government is to defend our religious rights, not take them away. Click here to send your e-mail.

I Always Knew He Was Crazy

2007-11-07T10:29:00.000-05:00

Pat Robertson Endorses Rudy Giuliani

A Giuliani campaign aide said the Giuliani has known Robertson for a long time,
and their relationship was cemented on a flight back from Israel shortly
after Saddam Hussein was captured, where they discussed views on
Israel and domestic policies.

The Giuliani aide said that the two have shared goals despite some minor differences.

Minor differences? Like tax-payer funded, state-sanctioned infanticide? Like redefining (read: abolishing) the fundamental institution of civilization?

Good to know the differences between Rudy "Democrat-With-a-Red-Tie" Guilliani and (supposed) Christian Conservatives are "minor."

Martial Law in Pakistan

2007-11-07T10:02:00.000-05:00

See GoogleNews Collection of stories here

As most of you know, General Mussaraff has taken control of the Pakistani government due to a "state of emergency."

Below is StratFor's --a civilian intelligence agency-- analysis of the situation.

Pakistan and its Army
By George Friedman

Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency over the weekend, precipitating a wave of arrests, the suspension of certain media operations and the intermittent disruption of communications in and out of Pakistan. As expected, protests erupted throughout Pakistan by Nov. 5, with clashes between protesting lawyers and police reported in Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad and several other cities. Thus far, however, the army appears to be responding to Musharraf's commands. The primary issue, as Musharraf framed it, as the Pakistani Supreme Court's decision to release about 60 people the state had charged with terrorism. Musharraf's argument was that the court's action makes the fight against Islamist extremism impossible and that the judiciary overstepped its bounds by urging that the civil rights of the accused be protected.
Musharraf's critics, including the opposition's top leader, former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, argued that Musharraf was using the Supreme Court issue to protect his own position in the government, avoid leaving the army as promised and put off elections. In short, he is being accused of staging a personal coup under the guise of a state of emergency.
Whether Musharraf himself survives is not a historically significant issue. What is significant is whether Pakistan will fall into internal chaos or civil war, or fragment into smaller states. We must consider what that would mean, but first we must examine Pakistan's underlying dilemma --a set of contradictions rooted in Pakistani history.

When the British conquered the Indian subcontinent, they essentially occupied the lowlands and pushed their frontier into the mountains surrounding the subcontinent -- the point from which a relatively small British force, augmented by local recruits, could hold against any external threat. The eastern line ran through the hills that separated Bengal from Burma. The northern line ran through the Himalayas that separate China from the subcontinent. The western line ran along the mountains that separated British India from Afghanistan and Iran.
This lineation -- which represented not a political settlement but rather a defensive position selected for military reasons -- remained vague, driven by shifting tactical decisions designed to secure a physical entity, the subcontinent. The Britons were fairly indifferent to the political realities inside the line. The British Raj, then, was a wild jumble of states, languages, religions and ethnic groups, which the Britons were quite content to play against one another as part of their grand strategy in India. As long as the British could impose an artificial, internal order, the general concept of India worked. But as the British Empire collapsed after World War II, the region had to find its own balance.
Mahatma Gandhi envisioned post-British India as being a multinational, multireligious country within the borders that then existed -- meaning that India's Muslims would live inside a predominantly Hindu country. When they objected, the result was both a partition of the country and a transfer of populations. The Muslim part of India, including the eastern Muslim region, became modern Pakistan. The eastern region gained independence as Bangladesh following a 1971 war between India and Pakistan. Pakistan, however, was not a historic name for the region. Rather, reflective of the deeply divided Muslims themselves, the name is an acronym that derives, in part, from the five ethnic groups that made up western, Muslim India: Punjabis, Afghans, Kashmiris, Sindhis and Balochis.
The Punjabis are the major ethnic group, making up just under half of the population, though none of these groups is entirely in Pakistan. Balochis also are in Iran, Pashtuns also in Afghanistan and Punjabis also in India. In fact, as a result of the war in Afghanistan more than a quarter century ago, massive numbers of Pashtuns have crossed into Pakistan from Afghanistan -- though many consider themselves to be moving within Pashtun territory rather than crossing a foreign border.
Geographically, it is important to think of Pakistan in two parts. There is the Indus River Valley, where the bulk of the population lives, and then there are the mountainous regions, whose ethnic groups are deeply divided, difficult for the central government to control and generally conservative, preferring tradition to modernization. The relative isolation and the difficult existence in mountainous regions seem to create this kind of culture around the world.
Pakistan, therefore, is a compendium of divisions. The British withdrawal created a state called Pakistan, but no nation by that name. What bound its residents together was the Muslim faith -- albeit one that had many forms. As in India -- indeed, as in the Muslim world at the time of Pakistan's founding -- there existed a strong secularist movement that focused on economic development and cultural modernization more than on traditional Islamic values. This secularist tendency had two roots: one in the British education of many of the Pakistani elite and the second in Turkish founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who pioneered secularism in the Islamic world.
Pakistan, therefore, began as a state in crisis. What remained of British rule was a parliamentary democracy that might have worked in a relatively unified nation -- not one that was split along ethnic lines and also along the great divide of the 20th century: secular versus religious. Hence, the parliamentary system broke down early on -- about four years after Pakistan's creation in 1947. British-trained civilian bureaucrats ran the country with the help of the army until 1958, when the army booted out the bureaucrats and took over.
Therefore, if Pakistan was a state trying to create a nation, then the primary instrument of the state was the army. This is not uniquely Pakistani by any means, nor is it unprincipled. The point that Ataturk made -- one that was championed in the Arab world by Egypt's Gamal Abdul Nasser and in Iran by Reza Pahlavi -- was that the creation of a modern state in a traditional and divided nation required a modern army as the facilitator. An army, in the modern sense, is by definition technocratic and disciplined. The army, rather than simply an instrument of the state, therefore, becomes the guarantor of the state. In this line of thinking, a military coup can preserve a constitution against anti-constitutional traditionalists. If the idea of a military coup as a guarantor of constitutional integrity seems difficult to fathom, then consider the complexities involved in creating a modern constitutional regime in a traditional society.
Although the British tradition of parliamentary government fell apart in Pakistan, one institution the Britons left behind grew stronger: the Pakistani army. The army -- along with India's army -- was forged by the British and modeled on their army. It was perhaps the most modern institution in both countries, and the best organized and effective instrument of the state. As long as the army remained united and loyal to the concept of Pakistan, the centrifugal forces could not tear the country apart.

Musharraf's behavior must be viewed in this context. Pakistan is a country that not only is deeply divided, but also has the real capacity to tear itself apart. It is losing control of the mountainous regions to the indigenous tribes. The army is the only institution that transcends all of these ethnic differences and has the potential to restore order in the mountain regions and maintain state control elsewhere.
Musharraf's coup in 1999, which followed a series of military intrusions, as well as attempts at secular democratic rule, was designed to preserve Pakistan as a united country. That is why Musharraf insisted on continuing to wear the uniform of an army general. To remove the uniform and rule simply as a civilian might make sense to an outsider, but inside of Pakistan that uniform represents the unity of the state and the army -- and in Musharraf's view, that unity is what holds the country together.
Of course the problem is that the army, in the long run, reflects the country. The army has significant pockets of radical Islamist beliefs, while Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the military's intelligence branch, in particular is filled with Taliban sympathizers. (After all, the ISI was assigned to support the mujahideen fighting the Soviets in the 1980s, and the ISI and other parts of the army absorbed the ideology). Musharraf has had to walk a tightrope between U.S. demands that he crack down on his own army and his desire to preserve his regime -- and has never been able to satisfy either side fully.
It is not clear whether he has fallen off the tightrope. Whatever he does, as long as the army remains united and he controls the corps commanders, he will remain in power. Even if the corps commanders -- the real electors of Pakistan -- get tired of him and replace him with another military leader, Pakistan would remain in pretty much the same position it is in now.
In simple terms, the real question is this: Will the army split? Put more broadly, will some generals simply stop taking orders from Pakistan's General Headquarters and side with the Islamists? Will others side with Bhutto? Will ethnic disagreements run so deep that the Indus River Valley becomes the arena for a civil war? That is what instability in Pakistan would look like. It is not a question of civilian institutions, elections or any of the things we associate with civil society. The key question on Pakistan is whether the army stays united.
In our view, the senior commanders will remain united because they have far more to lose if they fracture. Their positions depend on a united army and a unified chain of command -- the one British legacy that continues to function in Pakistan.
There are two signs to look for: severe internal dissent among the senior generals or a series of mutinies by subordinate units. Either of these would raise serious questions as to the future of Pakistan. Whether Musharraf survives or falls and whether he is replaced by a civilian leader are actually secondary questions. In Pakistan, the fundamental issue is the unity of the army.
At some point, there will be a showdown among the various groups. That moment might be now, though we doubt it. As long as the generals are united and the troops remain under control, the existence of the regime is guaranteed -- and in some sense the army will remain the regime. Under these conditions, with or without Musharraf, with or without democracy, Pakistan will survive.

This report may be distributed or republished with attribution to Strategic Forecasting, Inc. at www.stratfor.com.

All People Who Make Generalizations Are Idiots

2007-11-01T00:38:00.000-04:00

Or are they? Greetings from Basil Guildersleeve, current guest writer for rightwingtestimonial. If you weren't able to guess from the title, the first thing I'd like to talk about is language, since language is what a blog revolves around, and the use of language is critical to communication and understanding. Lacking these things, the blog (or any other medium of communication) become pointless exercises.

So. Generalizations. They have crept into the language, slowly but surely. The average person uses them every day.
"Horror movies are scary!"
"Fruit is nasty."
"Alaska is always cold."
What say you to this? Are you guilty of the crime? Yet people are very quick to try and cast the first stone, because yes, stones are being cast. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and generalizations are being attacked at every turn. Sweeping generalizations, they're called, to cast a negative connotation about them. Why? Because generalizations stretch into grayer areas, areas that tend to push people's buttons.
"Women are physically weaker than men."
"People that don't go to college are less intelligent."
"Americans are rich arrogant snobs to the rest of the world."
Et cetera ad infinitum.

When these sorts of generalizations appear, people get defensive. They try to provide counter examples from their own life experience.
"I know a guy that never went to college, and he went on to found his own company! That proves you wrong!"
"There's a woman in my town that count bench more than any of the guys around. She proves you wrong."
"Charles Martel was a French general that didn't surrender. So don't go making broad generalizations like that."

People somehow feel that by digging up exceptions to the rule, they can prove the law wrong. But what people have to remember is a rule that actually comes from the sciences: "Anecdotal evidence is not data." And thus we come around to the point. Science operates not under the principle of facts (at least not the common definition of facts), but under probability. alpha is less than or equal to .05. Or in layman's terms, if there is a ninety five percent chance or greater of something being right, it's accepted as true.

Now, to put this in even more layman-esque terms, or to apply the principle to our area of language, we can make generalizations. Generalizations become popular or common for good reason. For instance, the generalization about women being physically weaker than men. Are some women stronger than some men? Yes. But the exceptions prove the rules, they don't negate them. We could do scientific studies to "prove" our point about the sexes relative strength, but we don't need to. The whole idea of a generalization is not to make a blanket statement (i.e. All men are stronger than all women), though colloquially the idea may be expressed that way, in which case a reprimand may be in order so that the weaker brother in the faith (so to speak) does not stumble and believe something untrue. Rather, the generalization does just what the name implies: it makes a statement of general truth.

We have dealt with objections from the angle of exceptions and explained how absurd it is to try and deal with disproving generalizations with them. But there are other objections, such as the objection of perspective. To put this into concrete terms, let's take a hypothetical example. Our generalization: "Antarctica is always so darn cold." But look, Gerald protests. "From most people's perspectives, that may be true, but my Aunt Susie's friend Darrel works as a scientist there, and he says it gets quite warm in the summer." Now, Gerald isn't exactly using an exception, but rather another man's perspective (though in this case it does happen to be going against majority opinion as well). But is it useful, we ask, to use the perspective of that man instead of our own for the purposes of our conversations back in our home town? Probably not. And that is important, because the whole reason we used the generalization in the first place was for its efficaciousness in making a point. For instance, take one of my own sentences from earlier in this post:
"People somehow feel that by digging up exceptions to the rule, they can prove the law wrong."
Do ALL people feel this way? Of course not. But if I had to bother to go through every single one of my generalizations and qualify them down to the individual level (which is what people that whine about exceptions are therefore asking for), that would defeat the point of trying to make a point through generalizations altogether. But if we don't use generalizations, then we can't get our point across. What a quandary...unless we accept that generalizations are not as harmful as they appear.

Then, of course, there's the third type of people that object to generalizations: because they just don't like them, usually because it reflects badly on them. "Drunkards act stupid." People easily get riled up about that one. I have little to say to this type of people other than suck it up. Either you can try to change the stereotype by actually going through and changing all the individuals (usually a highly unlikely proposition), or you can disassociate yourself from the stereotype. If you aren't willing to change yourself or others, you can take all the offense you want, but it won't change the generalization, and you taking offense is not enough to justify people not using the generalization. Actions have always had consequences--you just happen to be suffering some of the negative ones.

We've explained why we shouldn't not use generalizations...but why should we use them? We've sort of hinted at some of the reasons already, but here's a couple of reasons if the benefits are not already obvious:
1) Getting your point across easily. This is most easily done by generalizations--if one had to qualify every single statement one made that used to be a generalization, you'd take longer to say anything than the Ents did at their Entmoot. And that, we know, would have resulted in disaster for Rohan. Concise speech is a virtue.
2) Having strong language. No, not vulgar language, but strong language. In other words, having qualifiers weakens your speech. Eventually, it will seem like you are saying nothing at all. Sidestepping, equivocating, pussyfooting, whatever you wish to call it. Better to make generalizations than suffer the lack of charisma that comes from sounding like a wimp.

Now, of course, the natural reaction (ah, good products of the reactions of the times!) is to say, but Basil, what about the exceptions that actually are sweeping generalizations, and not only generalizations, but misleading generalizations? To that, I say that if I responded, I would be defeating the whole point of this post by giving in and qualifying my generalization of a post. Because yes, this post was just one big generalization. Yes, it is still true, and yes I still got my point across (hopefully). Why spoil such a good thing?

Or are you saying abuses mean that something shouldn't be used at all? But that will be another argument.

Comrade Mugabe and His Bloody Band of Fools

2007-10-27T19:05:00.000-04:00

I stumbled upon this website by Cathy Buckle describing her struggle to keep herself and her family alive in hyper-inflation Zimbabwe. Below is an excerpt. I recommend you check her out.
Dear Family and Friends,

I don't know what the colour of sadness is, but this October 2007 I think it must be purple. The streets in our suburbs, towns and cities are lined with Jacaranda trees and they are in full blossom, carpeting the roadsides with soft purple flowers. The Bougainvilleas are covered in flowers too - mauve, lilac and bright purple. It's hard to believe that with such tropical brilliance all around us this hot October, there is such sadness too. For three months or more everyone's been talking about the fact that there's no food in the shops because the government ordered prices to be cut to below production costs. Most of us have been so busy trying to find enough food to survive and support our families that we haven't really been looking at how other businesses are coping with absurdly low controlled prices. Well, to put it simply, they're not.

Huckabee Only 0.01% Behind Romney In Poll!

2007-10-26T18:58:00.000-04:00

Read Article

Powerful voting bloc
Christian conservatives carry a lot of clout within the Republican Party.
They vote in great numbers in the Republican primaries, especially in the crucial early presidential contest states of Iowa and South Carolina. That's one reason all of the GOP presidential candidates came to Washington to court their vote.
Coming into the Values Voters Summit, Christian conservatives appeared to have problems with all of the top-tier GOP White House hopefuls.
The front-runner in the national polls, thrice-married Giuliani, supports the legal right to an abortion.
Romney -- the leader in Iowa and New Hampshire, which will hold the first primary -- supported the legal right to abortions before changing his stance.
His Mormon faith may be a problem for some values voters.
Thompson -- who is second in most national polls -- is against a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. He believes the states should decide. Some top Christian conservative leaders have questioned Thompson's commitment to their core issues.
McCain also opposes a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, and he's had a rocky relationship over the years with Christian conservative leaders.
Huckabee could be considered the ideal candidate for evangelical voters -- he's the only minister.
But he's not well known, and regardless of his strong performances in the Republican presidential debates so far this year, few think he has a shot at winning the GOP nomination.
The other presidential hopeful who also saw eye-to-eye with the religious right is no longer a candidate. Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas dropped out of the race for the White House on Friday due to a lack of campaign cash.
While Giuliani received only polite applause from the audience after his comments, Huckabee won several ovations.
The former Baptist preacher called legalized abortion a "holocaust."
"Sometimes we talk about why we're importing so many people in our work force," he said.
"It might be for the last 35 years, we have aborted more than a million people who would have been in our work force had we not had the holocaust of liberalized abortion under a flawed Supreme Court ruling in 1973."

Huckabee also spoke adamantly of the need for conservative lawmakers to show no compromise on fighting for a constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

"I'm very tired of hearing people who are unwilling to change the Constitution, but seem more than willing to change the holy word of God as it relates to the definition of marriage," he said.

The Lamentable Truth

2007-10-23T23:13:00.000-04:00

Why I'm Glad I'm Not Charismatic

2007-10-23T20:53:00.000-04:00

Judaism established as the official religion of Florida

2007-10-18T21:11:00.000-04:00

At least that’s what the ACLU is claiming.

The implications of this case are, as whenever the ACLU enlarges the reach of their bloatedly engorged Establishment Clause, are starkly frightening. If the governor is forced to remove his mezuzah, then by the same argument, all public officials would be prohibited from free religious expression at the workplace. Likewise could the governor be prohibited from "religious endorsement" not only in his office but in all official circumstances. Is there a gap there? Certainly, the ACLU has (and with this case, is) bridged greater gaps before.
--Daniel Christianson

Via StopTheACLU: That would have to be what the ACLU means when it says Governor Crist has violated the Establishment Clause of the 1st Amendment, isn’t it?

TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Charlie Crist views it as a sign of respect, but, for some, the mezuzah hanging outside his Capitol office has morphed into a controversial symbol….By hanging the mezuzah outside his office, Crist has effectively granted the government’s endorsement of a religious symbol, [Florida ACLU director] Simon said. In order not to discriminate against other religions, Simon said, Crist is now obligated to display icons of other religions or even those representing atheism.

At least the Florida ACLU has finally cleared that up and admitted that atheism is a religion. That’s a positive.

Crist hung the mezuzah, made of Jerusalem stone, outside his office after receiving it as a gift from Rep. Adam Hasner, a Jewish Delray Beach Republican who accompanied the governor on a recent trade mission to Israel.

Hasner bought the mezuzah, which contains a sacred script from the Torah honoring the 10 Commandments, in Israel and presented it to Crist after they returned to Florida….

At least one other Jewish lawmaker doesn’t see what the fuss is all about.

“I know a lot of people, Jews and Christians and Muslims, who put these on their door. It’s a good luck sign. For some people it has religious meaning. But I don’t think there’s anything improper about it. I don’t think it’s intended to proselytize,” said Rep. Dan Gelber, D-Miami Beach, who also traveled with Crist to Israel. “I don’t think there’s anything inappropriate about it.”…

“Not really. No, candidly. I understand the notion of separation of church and state. But you have a freedom of religion, not a freedom from religion. All I’m doing is attempting to be respectful and grateful,” said Crist, adding that he has no intention of removing the mezuzah from his office doorway.

“That’s a little surprising given the fact that he used to be the attorney general,” Simon said, noting that the U.S. Supreme Court issued a series of recent rulings prohibiting courts from displaying the 10 Commandments and restricting governmental displays of religious symbols.

Simon says: the Supreme Court has prohibited this. I lose this round of Simon says, because I don’t read recent Supreme Court cases to do any such thing.

There is little point in noting that the ACLU’s positions on the Establishment Clause are getting absurd. They passed absurd a long time ago. One wonders if the Governor would be allowed to have the item inside his office. What about a photograph in his office in which a Star of David appears?

BREAKING NEWS: More Bus Exposure Allegations!

2007-10-18T20:09:00.000-04:00

One of my contacts from Howell forwarded me this just posted on the LCP & A's homepage:

Police, school officials investigate bus exposure

Howell Public Schools officials and police are investigating an allegation an 11th grade male student “exposed himself” to about 10 other students on a district bus Tuesday.

Superintendent Chuck Breiner said today that he was notified late Wednesday evening about the allegation. Principals are interviewing potential witnesses today.

Additional information was not immediately released.

Having ridden the bus for years, I can't say I'm surprised, but I can say I'm disappointed.

Across the community, leaders are calling for action. But when the problems come from the students themselves and not from HPS employees, the answer lies there as well. A solution requires changing the atmosphere of the student body. Much can and should be done by the school (i.e., stop advocating unrestrained sexual abandon), but we must realize that this is a cultural question that will not be fixed simply by turning on the bus lights or punishing offenders.

Debate Over "Sex Play" In Kindergarten!

2007-10-16T17:02:00.001-04:00

You can’t make this stuff up. Liberal academia is certainly not exclusive to the US….

Norwegians woke up Tuesday morning to news that a respected Oslo pre-school teacher, backed by child psychologists, thinks children should be allowed to openly express their own sexuality, not least through sex play and games in the local day care centers known as barnehager, or kindergartens.

Pia Friis, leader of the popular Bjerkealleen Barnehage in Oslo and a well-known pre-school educator, told newspaper Dagbladet on Tuesday that children should be allowed to express their own sexuality at day care centers. She doesn’t want to stifle what comes naturally.

Children, she said, should be able "to look at each other and examine each other’s bodies. They can play doctor, play mother and father, dance naked and masturbate.

"But their sexuality must also be socialized, so they are not, for example, allowed to masturbate while sitting and eating. Nor can they be allowed to pressure other children into doing things they don’t want to."

Rest here>>

From Reader Benjamin R.:

America isn’t too far behind!

Students who have parental permission to be treated at King Middle School’s health center would be able to get birth control prescriptions under a proposal that the Portland School Committee will consider Wednesday.

The proposal would build on the King Student Health Center’s practice of providing condoms as part of its reproductive health program since it opened in 2000, said Lisa Belanger, a nurse practitioner who oversees the city’s student health centers.

If the committee approves the King proposal, it would be the first middle school in Maine to make a full range of contraception available to some students in grades 6 to 8, said Nancy Birkhimer, director of teen health programs for the Maine Department of Health and Human Services. Most middle schoolers are ages 11-13.

Chapter Three of Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley (Warning: AS)

Outside, in the garden, it was playtime. Naked in the warm June sunshine, six or seven hundred little boys and girls were running with shrill yells over the lawns, or playing ball games, or squatting silently in twos and threes among the flowering shrubs. The roses were in bloom, two nightingales soliloquized in the boskage, a cuckoo was just going out of tune among the lime trees. The air was drowsy with the murmur of bees and helicopters. ...

‘That’s a charming little group,’ [the Director] said, pointing.

In a little grassy bay between tall clumps of Mediterranean heather, two children, a little boy of about seven and a little girl who might have been a year older, were playing, very gravely and with all the focussed attention of scientists intent on a labour of discovery, a rudimentary sexual game.

‘Charming, charming!’ the D.H.C. repeated sentimentally.

‘Charming,’ the boys politely agreed. But their smile was rather patronizing. They had put aside similar childish amusements too recently to be able to watch them now without a touch of contempt. Charming? but it was just a pair of kids fooling about; that was all. Just kids.

‘I always think,’ the Director was continuing in the same rather maudlin tone, when he was interrupted by a loud boo-hooing,

From a neighbouring shrubbery emerged a nurse, leading by the hand a small boy, who howled as he went. An anxious-looking little girl trotted at her heels.

‘What’s the matter?’ asked the Director.

The nurse shrugged her shoulders. ‘Nothing much,’ she answered. ‘It’s just that this little boy seems rather reluctant to join in the ordinary erotic play. I’d noticed it once or twice before. And now again to- day. He started yelling just now…’

‘Honestly,’ put in the anxious-looking little girl, ‘I didn’t mean to hurt him or anything. Honestly.’

‘Of course you didn’t, dear,’ said the nurse reassuringly. ‘And so,’ she went on, turning back to the Director, ‘I’m taking him in to see the Assistant Superintendent of Psychology. Just to see if anything’s at all abnormal.’

‘Quite right,’ said the Director. ‘Take him in. You stay here, little girl,’ he added, as the nurse moved away with her still howling charge. ‘What’s your name?’

‘Polly Trotsky.’

‘And a very good name too,’ said the Director. ‘Run away now and see if you can find some other little boy to play with.’

Religion Must Be Destroyed, Atheist Alliance Declares

2007-10-07T14:57:00.000-04:00

Via CNS News

Science must ultimately destroy organized religion, according to some of the leading atheist writers and intellectuals who spoke at a recent atheist conference in Northern Virginia. God is a myth, and children must not be schooled in any faith, they said, at the "Crystal Clear Atheism" event, sponsored by the Atheist Alliance International.

Some of the luminaries who spoke at the conference, held at the Crown Royal Hotel in Crystal City, Va., over the weekend, included Oxford professor Richard Dawkins, author Sam Harris and journalist Christopher Hitchens. The Atheist Alliance International describes itself as "the only democratic national atheist organization in the United States."

While most attendees on Friday night were adamant that God was a myth, the convention, attended by hundreds of people, brought into focus a divide among atheists as to their identity as a movement and the nature of the enemy they faced.

In his speech, Dawkins portrayed a black-and-white intellectual battle between atheism and religion. He denounced the "preposterous nonsense of religious customs" and compared religion to racism. He also gave no quarter to moderate or liberal believers, asserting that "so-called moderate Christianity is simply an evasion."

"If you've been taught to believe it by moderates, what's to stop you from taking the next step and blowing yourself up?" he said.

By contrast, Harris's speech was a more tempered critique of the atheist movement itself. While Harris said he believed science must ultimately destroy religion, he also discussed spirituality and mysticism and called for a greater understanding of allegedly spiritual phenomena. He also cautioned the audience against lumping all religions together.

"The refrain that all religions have their extremists is bull-t," Harris said. "All religions do not have their extremists. Some religions have never had their extremists."

Specifically, he noted that radical Islam was far more threatening than any radical Christian sect, adding that Christians had a right to be outraged when the media treated the two religions similarly.

Harris also criticized movement atheism and questioned the use of the word "atheist."

"Atheism is not a philosophy, just as non-racism is not," he said. "It is not a worldview, though it is frequently portrayed as one.

"Rather than declare ourselves atheists, I think we should emphasize reason," Harris added.

While the audience gave Dawkins a standing ovation, Harris received only polite applause. One questioner later declared herself "very disappointed" in Harris's talk.

But whatever differences the speakers had with each other, they were united in their contempt for religion and their belief that religious faith had to be challenged and ridiculed by secularism and reason.

"Religion is not the root of all evil, but it gets in the way of [determining] how we got here and where we find ourselves," Dawkins said. "And that is an evil in itself."

Dawkins was particularly critical of parents who raise their children as a "Catholic child" or "Protestant child." Children must not be labeled as subscribing to a particular religion, he said, and should be allowed to examine the evidence and determine their beliefs for themselves.

"If I said that's a post-modernist child, for example, you'd think I was mad," he quipped.

Other speakers at the convention included philosopher Daniel Dennett, evolutionary scientist Eugenie Scott, and Charles Darwin's great-great-grandson Matthew Chapman. There was also a performance by atheist rapper Greydon Square, who wore a shirt that read "The Black Carl Sagan."

Many of the attendees seemed to have developed an aversion to religion from conservative, Protestant Christians. Several of the atheists Cybercast News Service spoke to complained of living under fundamentalist parents who frowned upon any questioning of the Bible or any activity condemned in Scripture.

"It wasn't easy [telling my parents I was an atheist]," one said. "I still haven't entirely told them. I just say I'm a humanist, which they don't seem to mind."

Further emphasizing the attendees' distaste for conservative religion was the convention gift shop which, in addition to atheist materials, sold politically liberal-themed bumper stickers and pins, including "Impeach Bush" and "Stewart/Colbert '08."

A common decoration at the convention was the red letter "A," which was emblazoned on t-shirts and pins worn by several of the attendees. The "A," an allusion to Hester Prynne's punishment in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, is a symbol of the Out Campaign, a movement started by Dawkins to encourage Americans to proudly display their atheism.

Although Crystal Clear Atheism was well-attended, it received little publicity and media attention. The convention also experienced frequent technical difficulties, particularly during Dawkins' Powerpoint slideshow.

Atheists are still a small minority in America. A Newsweek poll earlier this year found that 91 percent of Americans believe in God. A more recent Pew Research Center poll found that atheists were among the most distrusted people in the nation, with 53 percent of Americans holding an unfavorable opinion of them.

But they are a proudly elitist and self-certain minority. When asked what the main difference between believers and atheists was, Dawkins had a quick answer: "Well, we're bright."

Vicki Fyke Submits Name for School Board Appointment!

2007-10-04T16:47:00.000-04:00

It has been my pleasure to have worked with Mrs. Fyke on a number issues important to our school district, and I would whole-heartedly support her appointment.

I pray the school board picks a candidate who can bring productive dialog to the table, rather than make snide comments and rubber stamp the decisions of the current majority-- the majority that got us into this mess because it refused to hold itself or its administration accountable for the mismanagement of our school.

-------------------------------------------

October 3, 2007

Howell Public Schools - Board of Education

411 N. Highlander Way

Howell, MI 48843

Dear Members of the School Board,

Please consider this my letter of interest in an appointment to the Board to temporarily fill the position vacated by the resignation of Mary Jo Dymond.

While it is my first choice that the Board honor the electorate and choose a candidate that has already faced the voters, if you decide that you would rather open the candidate choices up to the community, I submit my name as a candidate.

You are probably scratching your head at this point, and who would blame you, but I think the idea makes total sense. There is an old adage that says “Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer”. While I don’t consider myself an enemy of this school board, I know that many members of the Board do think so. I think it would be a perfect P.R. move to make me accountable for solutions rather than just to point out the problems, and you might be surprised at the sense some of my suggestions will make.

I also think it is a good way to turn controversy into solution, and ill will into good will. So, if you decide to look to the community at large for a candidate, I would be honored to have your consideration.

I have been a business owner for the past 34 years and have vast experience with budgets, personnel issues, projections, and financial statements. I was a top producing Insurance Agent for almost 9 years, and have worked with kids on a voluntary basis for most of my life. I have coached, mentored, and sponsored many kids and have followed many of them from grade school through parenthood as we stay in touch even after my work with them is done.

I can inspire, motivate, and am a fierce defender of principle. All of these qualities will be needed as we move forward through some severe times of great crisis for our schools and our community. I think this could be an honorable end to some tough times for our school and I would be grateful for your careful consideration.

Sincerely,

Vicki L. Fyke

Christian Advertising Prohibited!

2007-10-01T21:32:00.000-04:00

Morningstar, One of the Largest Financial Information Companies, Rejects Ad that References "Christian"

Anti-Christian bias has become the norm in Hollywood and the media in recent years, and now there is evidence of this bigotry growing in the financial services industry, as well. We have learned that our friends at Faith Financial Planners were denied a paid advertisement on the website of Morningstar unless they removed the "Christian" content from their advertisement. Morningstar -- one of the largest providers of financial information on mutual funds, stocks, and portfolios for individual investors and institutions in the world -- told Faith Financial that the company had to "change the message completely and eliminate the Christian undertones." This is a clear example of bigotry just because Faith Financial represents a Christian message about values and investing. Faith Financial is a company that, through one of its subsidiaries, provides information for Christians to use in reflecting their values in their investments. The information alerts values-based investors to those companies that are involved in pornography, abortion, the homosexual agenda, etc. Faith Financial's website is faithfinancialplanners.com. Faith Financial is based in the Nashville, Tennessee area.

In an unprecedented move, after a contract had been signed by both parties, an ad sales agent for Morningstar informed Faith Financial that Morningstar had reversed its decision to accept the ad and decided that Faith Financial must censor the "Christian undertones" in order for the ad to be acceptable. American Family Association is asking you to let the leadership at Morningstar know that this kind of Christian bigotry is unacceptable.

You can send a message to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Joe Mansueto.

Click here to Take Action!

Sincerely,

Tim Wildmon, President
American Family Association

P.S. Please forward this e-mail message to your family and friends!

Amazing Quote

2007-09-29T19:51:00.000-04:00

"The general principles on which the founders achieved independence were... the general principles of Christianity." - John Adam

Hate Crimes Bill Passes

2007-09-29T19:20:00.000-04:00

Read Article: Passage of 'hate crimes' measure met with conservative disgust

A spokesman for the Family Research Council (FRC) says the "hate crimes" legislation passed by the Senate yesterday poses a major threat to Americans who publicly express their opposition to homosexuality. He is also denouncing the successful effort to attach that legislation to the Defense Authorization bill.

Yesterday, on a 60-39 vote, the Senate attached an amendment to the Defense Department's spending bill that would expand hate crime law to include crimes motivated by gender, "sexual orientation," or disability of victims. Sponsors of the measure, Senators Ted Kennedy (D-Massachusetts) and Gordon Smith (R-Oregon), argue their amendment helps "fights terrorism at home." But Senator John Kyl (R-Arizona) says his colleagues who tacked the hate crimes measure to the DoD bill demonstrated "an utter lack of seriousness about our national defense."

Tom McClusky, FRC's vice president of government affairs, says the measure does not belong in a Pentagon spending bill. He says he is disappointed it garnered 60 votes, but grateful that is not enough support to override a presidential veto.

"[Still] it's just shameful the way that the Democratic leadership is using the defense bill, [which is] a bill where there should be a debate about Iraq and about the spending of the war," says McClusky. "Instead, they're trying to turn the Defense Department and our armed forces into some sort of social experiment."

According to the FRC spokesman, the Kennedy-Smith amendment is an assault on free-speech. He points out that already, several websites -- he cites those of pro-homosexual groups Human Rights Campaign and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) as well as that of abortion advocate NARAL Pro-Choice America -- label groups like his as terrorist organizations.

"How soon are they going to be naming churches as terrorist organizations, and using a lot of these laws to put down Christian speech and calling the Bible 'hate speech'?" he asks. "We're seeing it not just in other countries, but we're also ... seeing it today in different cities and also on college campuses [in America]."

The White House has vowed to veto the DoD bill because of the inclusion of the "hate crimes" amendment.

Why I Study Science

2007-09-27T00:53:00.000-04:00

It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders

that the Most High God has performed for me.

How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders!

His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;

his dominion endures from generation to generation.

Daniel 4: 2-3

Hate Crimes Bill Update

2007-09-25T20:01:00.000-04:00

Democratic U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy just introduced an amendment to the hate crimes bill (H.R. 1585) that reveals what this is really about: silencing Christianity; see Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007. This amendment implies that the only protection from censorship will be what "substantially burdens any exercise of religion ..., speech, expression, or association." Other burdens on religion, speech, expression, or association will be imposed to censor speech disliked by liberals.

In The News

2007-09-25T19:52:00.000-04:00

Israeli commandos seized nuclear material of North Korean origin in raid on Syria on September 6th UK TimesOnline; Libs see neocon plot.

A noted graduate of the Columbia University School of Journalism tore up her diploma in protest to the visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the Columbia campus.

While Ahmadinejad visits NY, Iranian Officer arrested for smuggling roadside bombs into Iraq. Via Fox News

And during his speech, Ahmadinejad sidestepped the question as to whether or not Iran persecuted gays: "We don’t have homosexuals, like in your country," he answered. In Iran, they get hung!
New York Times backpedals again, says MoveOn.org ad may have violated own internal acceptability manual that states, “We do not accept opinion advertisements that are attacks of a personal nature.” New York Times

After first denying it, the New York Times now admits that it gave MoveOn.org a special discount for its liberal "General Betray Us" ad. "The public editor for The New York Times slammed his employer Sunday in a column, saying the newspaper violated its policies by cutting MoveOn.org a deal on a controversial ad criticizing the top U.S. military commander in Iraq."
Republican Newt Gingrich comes closer to declaring his candidacy for president, by saying that if there is $30 million in pledges for his campaign, he may run.
NBC Rains on Rate Cut: "Beware of the Downside of Any Economic Upturn".

Homosexuals Mock ‘Last Supper’ With Sex-Toys

2007-09-25T19:45:00.001-04:00

I wonder if the media will cover this like it did the Mohammed cartoons! I doubt it, unless you think Christians will hit the streets in riots burning everything in site.

Organizers of San Francisco’s Folsom Street Fair — sponsored by Miller Brewing Co. — have portrayed Christ and his disciples as half-naked homosexual sadomasochists in the event’s promotional advertisement, and the conservative group Concerned Women for America is complaining about the hypocrisy of it.

“The bread and wine representing Christ’s broken body and lifegiving blood are replaced with sadomasochistic sex toys in this twisted version of Da Vinci’s The Last Supper,” CWA said on its Web site.

“‘Gay’ activists disingenuously call Christians ‘haters’ and ‘homophobes’ for honoring the Bible, but then lash out in this hateful manner toward the very people they accuse,” said said Matt Barber, CWA’s policy director for cultural issues.

“In their version of The Last Supper, Christ, Who gave His life for our sins, is despicably replaced by sin itself as the object of worship.”

CWA is calling on California politicians — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sens. Feinstein and Boxer among them — to “publicly condemn this unprovoked attack against Christ and His followers.

“We further challenge the media to cover this affront to Christianity with the same vigor as recent stories about cartoon depictions of Mohammed and other items offensive to the Muslim community,” CWA said.

I think the only thing shocking is that groups keep thinking it is soooo artsy to mock Christ, yet culturally insensitive to mock Islam.

Update: 7 Year Old Boy Forced To Perform Oral Sex On Howell School Bus

2007-09-21T20:04:00.000-04:00

FROM RIGHT WING TESTIMONIAL CONTACT VICKI FYKE-- Howell, MI

You know I don't have much respect for most of the decisions the Howell School Board has made these past almost 3 years now, but I honestly believe they did not know of the sexual incident on the school bus that involved 3 elementary school boys last May. (a 7 year old victim who was bullied by a 9 year old to perform oral sex on him and an 11 year old observer). I believe also that Mr. Breiner did not know. I don't excuse any of them for not knowing of this incident. They have systematically created an environment whereby members of the Administration and Staff do not feel safe to come forward with any incidents of controversy or anything high profile. This Board and this Superintendent have continually and consistently thrown it's staff under the bus whenever there is controversy. We have had 6 principals at Howell High School in the last 8 years. That is a very telling record. They either stink at interviewing and selecting good candidates OR the pressure and stress is too much for them. The last principal was demoted to assistant principal of the middle school where she was allowed to accept less workload, but still gets paid $120,000 per year in salary. This is more than the principal of the school makes and certainly indicative of the disastrous financial decisions we have watched them make.

Mike Peterson is the Transportation Director. The same person that fired a bus driver and then gave her a letter of recommendation, an action which resulted in litigation for wrongful discharge and earned our district the honor of being awarded ONE OF THE TOP 4 WORST EMPLOYERS in the Country by Chicago.Com Magazine. Mike Peterson's actions in this bus episode were irresponsible as he made the decision that Mr. Breiner did not need to know about this event. He didn't notify the School Board of a possible litigious situation either. MIKE PETERSON SHOULD BE FIRED. Mr. Peterson's contact information has been taken down from the school web site.

Jill Hilla is the Principal at Southwest Elementary, where these kids attend school. She had the foresight to call the police, however, she did not notify up the chain of command either. I believe these two conspired to keep this event from Mr. Breiner. Decisions that should cost BOTH of them their jobs. Their negligence put the rest of the kids at risk and their decision to protect their careers at the expense of the safety of our kids is certainly more than enough reason for dismissal. I know I don't want them collecting any of my tax dollars.

Over the past day and a half, I have received about 71 emails of stories from parents whose children had awful experiences on the bus. This is apparently not a single incident, but one in a string of incidents that has spread out over many years. There is no indication that anything has been done to address the sexual abuse our children have been enduring on the bus, and whenever a parent would complain, the response seems to have been that the parents need to establish a better relationship with their children rather than to make any change to the sexual situations on the bus. Don't get me wrong, the bus is not the only place where incidents seem to be happening. Apparently the bathrooms, the playground, and the wooded area behind the schools have all been a cesspool of sexual activity at school or just shortly after. I gave this same information to Phil Westmoreland and Wendy Day today.

Today, the Board attempted to tell me that the incident was initially reported as a "bullying" incident and that is why no one was notified. I was told that I could email that information to you all as an explanation of why it was not reported higher up the management chain. Well, it didn't make sense to me and I decided NOT to send that email out. Good thing!! The Press had obtained a copy of the Police Report and we found out that it was reported as a sexual incident immediately back in May. The proposed lie now causes me to be a bit suspicious. I believe there is now, and will continue to be, a lot of CYA going on. It is apparent that avoiding a controversy is more important than the safety of our children.

A brilliant member of our group suggested an Angel Network of volunteers to sit on the buses each day and try to get some order going on. Another member suggested playing classical music to keep the activity level down and the kids quiet. Another member suggested moving the kids forward on the bus after every 2-3 stops to keep the back of the bus empty. I passed all of these suggestions on to Phil Westmoreland and Wendy Day (they are the only two school board members who will let me have their email addresses and I correspond with them both regularly). Apparently, Mr. Literski liked the Angel Network idea and will be willing to talk to us about it in greater detail. If you have any time that you could volunteer to sit on a bus route, would you let me know ASAP so that I can see if we have enough people available to man the buses on a volunteer basis?? Even though I do not have kids in the school, I will be first to step up to the plate to say I will give one day a week to sit on a bus. If that will help keep even one child from being raped on the bus, I will find the time. Will any of you join me??

Monday night the school board is trying to put together a town hall meeting which will start before the regular meeting. This early meeting would be to discuss the bus incident. I'm assuming there will be question and answer time, but we shall see how much courage they can muster. We should see something from them about that meeting soon. I understand that Monday night we will learn that the 30% limit on sacred text music is going away (yea!! although I can't understand why that took almost a year to decide). We are also going to learn that parents will be asked to sit on every curriculum committee approval process.

You may have noticed that I have been quiet on the story chat lately. I made a conscious decision not to cheapen the talk on this bus incident by letting it morph into being about me rather than about the kids. I notice that my venomous enemies on the story chat are mimicking my feelings exactly. I don't care who condemns this action, I just care that it gets condemned. For those of you who are worried that I have given up on being the bad guy, have no fear. I will step forward when I think I need to. Right now, I have threatened this board with causing a gigantic ruckus if they don't put some plans in place to assure the public that they will do everything possible to ensure the safety of our children. I will work as hard as I can to pressure them. What I need you to do, if you will, is to attend that meeting on Monday and let them know how irate you are and how badly you want them to DO something to make sure your kids are protected. If there is anything you want me to do, just let me know. I am not an expert on this stuff. I'm just a passionate advocate for kids and I have no fear of these morons. These are the things I think need to happen:

1. Chuck Breiner needs to be fired.
2. Mike Peterson needs to be fired.
3. Jill Hilla needs to be fired.
4. An aide needs to be put on every bus IMMEDIATELY.
5. The bathrooms need surveillance cameras and a non-school person needs to review the tapes daily. (not inside the toilet area, but the common areas).
6. We need a review of the interview and hiring policies so we won't continue to hire high paid incompetents
7. The 9 year old and the 11 year old need to be OFF the bus and OUT of school for now. They suspended a kid for starting a fire in a trash can because it destroyed school property, but we can't suspend a sex offender???
8. The Professors at LCC in Parker High School need to submit to fingerprints and background checks immediately. If they don't, I think we should consider a complaint to the attorney general. So far, their Union has refused.
9. LCC students must be restricted from free range access to the areas the high school students occupy. They are now in the library, in the store, coffee shop, hallways, and credit union. There is no restriction in their access to high school students. (danger, danger. Let's not have a life changing incident before we learn that lesson.)
10. We need some good candidates to run for school board. There will probably be at least 3 spots open in this next election.
11. Students should not be allowed to transport other children back to HHS for choir practice and any other classes that are being held back at HHS. The school can pay for the LETS bus if there is no other bus available for that service. They can use the money they are contemplating using for pay raises. I even believe it is against the law for minors to transport minors???

If there is anything else you think we should press for, please let me know. You have every right to a high comfort level that your children are safe when they are in the care, custody, and control of the schools. I will help you get there any possible way I can.

Have a Blessed Day,

Vicki

Get the Word Out!

2007-09-21T18:16:00.000-04:00

We cannot let the ACS misuse our money, time, and good names in this manner. Spread the word to your friends and family!

Permanent URL for my ACS Entry:

http://rightwingtestimonial.blogspot.com/2007/09/american-cancer-society-promotes.html

American Cancer Society Promotes Socialized Medicine!

2007-09-21T17:43:00.001-04:00

Relay For Life Organization Takes Unprecedented Veer to the Left!
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Hoping to force a public discussion of a "very broken" health care system in America and to "compel the new president in 2009 to act," the American Cancer Society has launched a nationwide campaign for access to quality health care.
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I am shocked and disgusted by this unabashedly partisan activity from an organization that has recieved my time, money, and effort in the past, and that of the individuals I lead in several clubs and other organizations. The ACS will never trick me again.

Read Article-- Entire Advertising Budget to be Spent In Largest Single-Issue Ad Campaign Ever!
Read Opinion for TimesWatch Here

TAKE ACTION!
Donate money instead to the Children's Cancer Research Fund or the National Foundation for Cancer Research. To my knowledge these groups are actually focused on activities related to finding a cure for cancer.

Email the ACS Here

ACS Phone #: 1-800-ACS-2345

Contact Your Local ACS Office Here

Complain on the ACS Forum Here

Contact for the ACS President:

Phone: (215) 955-2356 Richard.Wender@jefferson.edu

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I recieved this email below [Emphasis Mine]:

Dear Daniel,

You may have heard about a bold new effort by the American Cancer Society to do something about our nation's health care crisis. We want you, our supporter, to know what we are doing and why.

Earlier this year, the American Cancer Society proudly reported a decline in cancer deaths. Sadly, scientific evidence suggests that this progress won't continue unless all Americans gain access to quality health care. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that 47 million Americans have no health insurance and millions more don't have enough to cover costs. As a result, too many people can't afford medical care or screening tests that can prevent cancer or find it early - and too many die needlessly of cancers that are detected too late. Others end up losing everything they own because they cannot afford the cost of their cancer care [aww, sad face. I guess this means we should all go to Cuba for our cancer testing. Oh, wait...].

And so we cannot help but ask, is choosing between your life and financial ruin really a choice? [Is choosing between communism and liberty really choice? Anyone?]

With this new initiative, the American Cancer Society will do what we have historically done best - educate the public and move our country to action. When the Society confirmed the link between tobacco use and lung cancer more than 40 years ago, we worked hard to educate the public about the dangers of tobacco [Right, so a free market is essentially the same as sucking burning toxins into your lungs. I hope the difference is apparent. At least there was a proven link between cancer and smoking. I have yet to see a single anti-cancer treatment to come from a communist nation]. Years later, we led volunteers across the country to advocate for policy changes that led to increased tobacco taxes and thousands of smoke-free communities. This combination of public awareness and grassroots advocacy has led to the lowest smoking rates in decades and, best of all, decreased death rates from lung cancer. We have made similar strides in cervical, breast, and colon cancers [Humble, aren't they? It's good to know they always give credit where credit is due].

Now we plan to educate Americans about the need for greater access to quality health care through an aggressive public awareness campaign featuring real people telling their own very real stories [Translation: we will manipulate viewers' emotions rather than appeal on the basis of fact or logic]. Advertisements airing nationwide will encourage people to visit www.cancer.org/access to learn more. For those who want to be part of the nationwide grassroots movement to make this issue a priority for state and federal elected officials, our sister advocacy organization, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action NetworkSM (ACS CAN), will provide opportunities for volunteers to become an active part of this effort.

Of course, while we pursue this new effort, we will continue to do all of the things that you expect from your American Cancer Society. We will continue to be the nation's top private funder of cancer research, to educate Americans about reducing their cancer risk, and to be available 24 hours a day to those who need us for information and support.

We thank you for your continued support of our mission to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. To learn more, tell us what you think, or get involved, visit: www.cancer.org/access .

Richard C. Wender, MD
President
Anna Johnson-Winegar, PhD
Chair, National Board of Directors John R.
Seffrin, PhD
Chief Executive Officer

If this mail was an inconvenience to you, we apologize.

Call toll free 1-800-ACS-2345.

The American Cancer Society 250 Williams Street
Atlanta GA, 30303-1002

Copyright 2000-2007 © American Cancer Society

Giuliani Again Tries to Act Like a Conservative

2007-09-21T15:46:00.000-04:00

Read Article--Addresses NRA and Glosses Over Earlier Opposition to the Constitution.

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"Some people call it excessive," Giuliani said. "I thought it was intense. But the reality is I was trying to achieve a result, which is to reduce crime in New York. That is not necessarily what is needed now. It certainly isn't the interpretation that I think is the correct interpretation of the 2nd Amendment." [Emphasis mine].
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So, let me get this strait: You believe your action were "certainly" against the constitution, but you don't think they were excessive? You believe your actions were "certainly" against the constitution, but they are only "not necessarily" needed now?

So, not only has Giulianni violated the constitution in the past because he thought such measures were "needed" "to achieve a result," he also is holding out the possibility for doing so in the future!

And this fence-sitter wants to be president.

I *can* promise you this: Giulianni won't get my vote.

Communist China Fears Civil Unrest

2007-09-21T15:33:00.001-04:00

Fearful of a repeat of the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests of 1989, which were brutally put down by the military and drew worldwide condemnation, the communist government of China has issued an order freezing the prices of state-controlled commodities until the end of the year in a bid to slow galloping inflation.

The Chinese Communist Party is afraid that growing unrest among workers may lead to protests to coincide with next month's Communist Party Congress, a meeting held every five years to reallocate senior party positions, a government decree this week suggests.

Click here to read more

Must-Read Essay Series Over the Courtship Movement

2007-09-18T20:24:00.000-04:00

Here is a very interesting online book that is a rebuttal to the courtship and betrothal movements. It is written by Robin Phillips, son of Michael and Judy Phillips, who are well-known in the courtship and betrothal communities for their writings, particularly Best Friends for Life. If you are an advocate of either betrothal or courtship, in whatever form, READ THIS BOOK!

It's. . . interesting. . . refreshing. . . largely true, to say the least. I appreciate Robin Phillips' perspective. He doesn't think "recreational dating" is a good practice, and he understands problems with our culture's general view and practices related to romance, but he also has some very good critiques of commonly-held views in courtship and betrothal circles, submitting the He attacks not all forms of courtship, but rather the abuses of what he understands is a well-intended effort by Christians to keep their hearts pure from the corruption of our culture. It's an excellent read.

Clinton Would Require Insurance To Be Permitted Work

2007-09-18T16:09:00.001-04:00

Read Article Here. Also note that she wouldn't introduce "punitive measures" "at this point."

She said she could envision a day when "you have to show proof to your employer that you're insured as a part of the job interview — like when your kid goes to school and has to show proof of vaccination," but said such details would be worked out through negotiations with Congress.

Earlier, Edwards said he would require periodic psychiatric evaluations as a stipulation for receiving the national health insurance plan. (Read Article Here) Such evaluations were how the Soviets imprisoned dissidents without having to provide evidence for a crime (I.e. Alexander Solzhenitsyn).

Does anyone else see how quickly this leads to a grave loss of freedom in this country?

Comments such as Clinton's and Edwards' are a sample of the authoritarianism that lies in wait for American citizens if we put our necks through the yoke to reach the nosebag of "free" health care. No American woman-- no righteous, dignified, chaste, upright wife or daughter of mine-- should be forced to submit to a mandatory mammogram. No free-born American citizen should have to submit himself to the indignity of a government-administered "mental health examination." What happens if someone fails this examination? And even more problematic, who decides the test criteria? It's not that these things are bad in and of themselves, but when they become required to receive equal protection of the law, then we rightfully proud Americans are no longer citizens but subjects, mere sheep, cared for and fleeced by our hopefully benevolent state.

Nothing costs dearer than that which is free. America was founded upon the principle of Citizenship, of individual responsibility, of independence. The loss of these is the cost of socialism. Liberals speak of defending the "dignity" of the common man. Now, which vision is more dignified? Choose, O people!

This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.
-- Deuteronomy 30:19

Choose life, and choose to live a free life! It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. All people, and especially we blessed Americans, are born to more than subjugation. We are called to live our lives with the same liberty Christ won for our consciences on the cross, so that we may then act to serve the dictates of our consciences-- to serve Christ.

"Liberty means not only that the individual has both the opportunity and the burden of choice; it also means that he must bear the consequences of his actions...liberty and responsibility are inseparable." --Friedrich Hayek

In Britain, Converts from Islam Face Death

2007-09-18T15:54:00.001-04:00

Muslim "apostates" to Christianity risk being killed by their friends. Pray for them, and pray for the state of religious liberty in Great Britain.

UPDATE: Boy, 7, says pair forced sex while on bus

2007-09-18T11:38:00.000-04:00

UPDATE: The Detriot News Has a More Detailed Report

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The school administrators refuse to allow Bible Study's to meet during school hours, tell students they are nothing more than hairless apes with a will to power, explain how to perform oral and anal sex in school, hang Gay Pride flags, take them away from their parents for eleven hours a day or more, advocate in every class a philosophy of determinism, naturalism, and the shameless, wanton pursuit of pleasure, and then lock them in the bus for two hours, and they wonder why the unspeakable happens.

In the good, sweet, Hometown, USA of Howell, Michigan, thousands of parents open up their papers this morning after sending their children off to school, and they must wonder what will happen to their children today.

Dear God, I pray-- help us all.

-----------------------------
By Lisa Roose-Church
DAILY PRESS & ARGUS

Two Howell elementary school boys — ages 9 and 11 — have been charged with criminal sexual conduct for allegedly making a 7-year-old boy perform oral sex while on a school bus last May.

The father of the 11-year-old boy, however, said his son merely witnessed the attacks and was himself a victim of a similar attempted sexual assault by the 9-year-old. He questioned the safety of students on Howell buses.

"We take it for granted our children are safe," the 38-year-old father said Monday. "We're worried about predators coming up to the bus stop, not being on the bus. How can you think our children are safe? The school should be accountable for what happens on the bus."

The Daily Press & Argus is not identifying any of the children because of their age and the sexual nature of the allegations.

Although the events happened at the end of the prior school year, Superintendent Chuck Breiner said he just learned of the alleged sexual assaults on Monday when the 11-year-old boy's father called him to inquire about why his son was questioned by the school principal and a police officer without his knowledge.

Breiner said the district is working to correct why the incident was not immediately reported through the usual chain of command.

"It was turned over to police in a quick and fluid way," Breiner said. "The assumption inside the organization was once police had it, it was outside our area."

Police reports indicate that the 7-year-old reported that on several occasions he was forced to perform a sex act on the 9-year-old boy. The incidents are alleged to have taken place toward the end of the after-school bus route when there were few students on the bus.

School buses have cameras but a video tape is inconclusive, said Breiner.

"The transportation office indicates that a review of the tape does not conclude any sexual assault occurred," he said.

The police report, however, says that from the tape "one can make the assumption" that one boy forces the another's head into his lap. In a second incident, police conclude the 11-year-old "is involved trying to conceal the act."

Juvenile court records indicate the 9- and 11-year-old boys are each charged with first- and second-degree criminal sexual conduct. First-degree CSC, which means penetration, is a felony that for adults carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.

The two older boys are also charged with gross indecency between males.

If convicted as charged, both boys also would have to register as sex offenders for life.

The older boy has said he witnessed what happened on the bus, but did not participate. He said all he did was urinate in a bottle because the 90-minute bus ride home was too long to wait to use the bathroom. He said he told police that the other boy committed the sex act.

A police report states the older boy admitted to participating in a sex act.

The incident came to the attention of adults in late May, when the 7-year-old's father caught him attempting to simulate a sex act with his brother in the bathroom of their home.

The boy eventually told police that a 9-year-old forced him to perform the act on the school bus.

Prosecutors initially charged the 7-year-old for the attempted act upon his brother, but those charges were dismissed in juvenile court on Friday.

The 9-year-old boy's mother has refused to allow police to interview her child.

The 11-year-old boy has been withdrawn from Howell schools by his father. The two younger boys are still attending school but are not riding the same bus, Breiner said.

School board President Phil Westmoreland did not learn of the incidents until Monday when he was contacted by reporters.

"The school does what it can to protect its students," he said.

Breiner agreed, noting that safety is of importance and is achieved by having professionally licensed drivers who are vigilant in monitoring student behavior.

He also said that the height of school bus seats, which are designed that way for safety in the event of a crash, can hinder the effectiveness of video surveillance cameras.

PUTIN DISSOLVES THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT!!!

2007-09-12T10:00:00.000-04:00

Read The Article

Today the Russians have taken the final step away from freedom and plunged themselves into back into the darkness of tyranny they escaped not even two decades ago. Not a child amongst them has ever been raised free-- and now, how long will it be before one is ever born free again?

The spectre of tyranny-- whether czarism, communism, despotism, or any other lie that seeks to deny men their God-given rights-- will never fail to rear its head where men breath free and reap rewards from the sweat of their own labor. It must always be gaurded against, always opposed, never appeased. We must be ever vigilant and determined. We must fight and never slack. We must, or one day we will have to answer our children, as the Russians now must answer theirs, when they ask us "Where were you, when our country lost its freedom?"

Requiem

2007-09-11T16:58:00.000-04:00

In Remembrance:

Remembrance Ceremony

Central Hall, Hillsdale College

September 11, 2007

In times of trials and tribulations, Americans often turn to God. Americans always have been, after all, a religious people. George Washington believed the American Revolution and the ensuing experiment in self government were guided by the hand of Providence, because he thought God on the side of freedom. Abraham Lincoln, in his Second Inaugural Address—a work no less theological and philosophic than political and poetic—interpreted the horrors of the Civil War as divine retribution for the sin of slavery.

Americans of old understood what is right. They believed God would shine His blessings on the nation who lived rightly. And they feared Him when they strayed. They understood that God is good, that God favors freedom over tyranny, justice over injustice. They understood that the principles of America are good — that it is the first country in human history founded on the "laws of nature and of nature's God" — and that their patriotic duty to their country is connected to their duty to God.

Today we feel less comfortable speaking this way. Many Americans have succumbed to modern ideas that blur, if not erase, the distinctions between right and wrong, justice and injustice, good and evil. These ideas have come to dominate our halls of worship, as they dominate our legislative halls and halls of education. Many of our churches, schools, and legislatures today fail to teach patriotism because they no longer know what is right, and they are no longer confident that America is right.

But on 9-11, six years ago, we saw the face of evil up close. Evil was thrust upon us. If anything good is to come from those terrible events, we must mark them as reminders of the principles of right and the duties of citizenship. God and our Constitution demand it. Our slain countrymen—all 2,973 of them who perished that day—deserve it.

One way to help us remember these things is to recall the sermons delivered during the American Founding. These sermons represent a religion that knew right from wrong, as clearly as it knew day from night, because it understood that the principles of right are made available to man by divine revelation. Consider, for example, this Revolutionary sermon by Samuel Davies:

Nothing can be more agreeable to the God of Peace than to see universal harmony and benevolence prevail among His creatures. "Follow peace with all men," is one of the principal precepts of our holy religion. And the great Prince of Peace has solemnly pronounced, "Blessed are the peacemakers."

But when, in this corrupt, disordered state of things, where the lusts of men are perpetually embroiling the world with wars and fighting and throwing all into confusion; when ambition and avarice would rob us of our property, for which we have toiled and on which we subsist; when they would enslave the freeborn mind and compel us meanly to cringe to usurpation and arbitrary power; when they would tear from our eager grasp the most valuable blessing of Heaven, [our freedom of conscience]; when they invade our country, formerly the region of tranquility, ravage our frontiers, butcher our fellow subjects, or confine them in a barbarous captivity in the dens of savages; when our earthly all is ready to be seized by rapacious hands, and even our eternal all is in danger by the loss of our religion; when this is the case, what then is the will of God?

Must peace then be maintained? No. In such a time even the God of Peace proclaims by His providence, "To arms!" Then the sword is, as it were, consecrated to God; and the art of war becomes a part of our religion. Then happy is he that shall reward our enemies, as they have served us. Blessed is the brave soldier; blessed is the defender of his country and the destroyer of its enemies.

...Some [Americans] lie dead, mangled with savage wounds, consumed to ashes with outrageous flames, or torn and devoured by the beasts of the wilderness, while their bones lie whitening in the sun and serve as tragic memorials of the fatal spot where they fell. Others have been dragged away captives and made the slaves of imperious and cruel savages. Others have made their escape and live to lament their butchered or captivated friends and relations. Our frontiers have been drenched with the blood of our fellow subjects.

Will this violence cease without a vigorous and timely resistance from us? No. We have no method left but to repel force with force, and to give them blood to drink in their turn who have drunk ours...

...The cause in which these brave men, and our army in general, are engaged is not so much their own as ours. Divine Providence considers them not so much in their private, personal character as in their public character as the representatives and guardians of their country; and, therefore, they will stand or fall, not so much according to their own personal character as according to the public character of the people whose cause they have undertaken. Be it known to you, then, their success depends upon us even more than upon themselves.

Our enemies who attacked us on 9-11 believe their political cause — the cause of Islamic tyranny — is good. We believe the cause of free society, religious liberty, and constitutional government is good. Both sides believe God to be on their side. But this cannot be. The truth proclaims equal rights for all men, government by consent, and justice under the rule of law. Any religion that contradicts these simple dictates of morality — any religion that denies the rights of all men to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness with which we are endowed by our Creator — is untrue, and must be opposed the forces of good, or it will fester us, against us, and among us.

If the enemies of freedom wish to discuss these things, we will demonstrate why their position is unreasonable, unjust, and evil. But if our enemies refuse to talk, if they refuse to heed the counsels of reason, and choose instead to make war, we will make sure that war is what they get.

In these terrible times we face today, let us follow the Abraham of America, our great Civil War President, having faith that "right makes might, and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty.

-----------------------------------------------

What the BBC Is Telling Our Kids

The way America has got involved in conflicts in regions like the Middle East has made some people very angry, including a group called al-Qaeda - who are widely thought to have been behind the attacks.

In the past, al-Qaeda leaders have declared a holy war - called a jihad - against the US. As part of this jihad, al-Qaeda members believe attacking US targets is something they should do.

When the attacks happened in 2001, there were a number of US troops in a country called Saudi Arabia, and the leader of al-Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden, said he wanted them to leave.

What a Difference a Colon Makes

2007-08-31T21:55:00.000-04:00

( 'Tis but a jest, my friend )

( Of This However I Am Quite Certain)

Have a great labor day!

Think Christians aren't persecuted in America? Think again!

2007-08-24T10:43:00.001-04:00

Family Will Appeal Wolf Ruling

Massachusetts man handcuffed and hauled to jail after he objected to a public school teaching his kindergarten-age son about homosexuality has gone to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals seeking justice.
The man, his wife and another family are battling what they describe as a court order for segregation, after a judge ruled if they didn't like the school's advocacy for homosexuality, they could take their children and leave.
They also are arguing that U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf's statement that "as it is difficult to change attitudes … after they have developed, it is reasonable for public schools to attempt to teach understanding and respect for gays and lesbians," actually is unconstitutional.
The appeal is in the case brought by David and Tonia Parker and Joseph and Robin Wirthlin, who have children of school age in Lexington, Mass. They alleged district officials and staff at Estabrook Elementary School violated state law and civil rights by indoctrinating their children to approve homosexuality, which they, as Christians, teach is immoral.

Previously:

Judge orders 'gay' agenda taught to Christian children

'State interest' argued in teaching homosexuality

'Gay' groups: We have rights to your children!

Families file federal suit over 'gay' readings

Teacher reads 2nd-graders story about 'gay' wedding

Quote of the Day

2007-08-17T17:35:00.000-04:00

"The Secret of Success.-- To be successful means to do something that every one wants done and to do it to perfection. No matter how humble the employment may have been originally, perfect mastery of it ennobles it and makes success in it certain. This can only be attained by patient, hard work."

From my copy of The Adviser: A Manual of Useful Information for the Farmer, Mechanic, and Business Man, published in 1904.

Howell Again Making National News Amidst Liberal Foolery

2007-08-17T11:51:00.000-04:00

In an article published August 14, the New York Resident accused, by implication, Howell community leader Vicki Fyke and the LOVE group of "censorship" when they requested that several sexually explicit books be removed from the tenth grade English curriculum. (The article is available here). In making that assertion, the Resident not only echoes the hysterics unleashed against LOVE at the time of the conflict, but reveals its own inability to comprehend the very nature of censorship or of freedom of speech.

Howell parents never suggested that such books should not be allowed to be published or read-- that would be censorship. They simply asked that appropriate, and, dare I say, genuine literature be taught in their children's English class, as opposed to pornographic depictions of oral sex, incest, and child-rape.

It is not censorship to contribute to the educational curriculum of your own children, and it is not freedom of speech when liberal school teachers, entrenched behind countless union and bureaucratic protections, use your own government to undermine your beliefs. In fact, that is the very opposite of freedom of speech.

Liberals like those at the Resident cannot comprehend this because they fail to recognize three more fundamental truths:

1) Property Rights

Because liberals do not believe in property rights, they do not recognize the fact that by funding the public educational system, the public has a right to decide the content of that education. Liberal teachers believe that our money is not our own, that they (liberalspeak= the children) deserve as much of it as they can get their hands on, and that they alone may determine how to spend it (which makes me wonder what happened to the "core democratic value" of "popular sovereignty" that liberals are always raving about). The only way cries of censorship make sense in the recent conflict is if liberals believe teachers have a right to use our tax dollars to expose our children to whatsoever they deem fit-- as, in fact, they do believe. Otherwise, it is simply a case of citizens making an decision on how to spend their own money.

2) Parental Rights

Liberals do not recognize the right of parents to raise their own children. Forget in loco parentis; liberals believe that only the formally indoctrinated-- excuse me, certified-- "professionals" have a right to shape impressionable young minds. This is why they push programs like latch-key, school breakfasts, and HeadStart. Their refusal to recognize the rights of parents is akin to their refusal to recognize the sacred institution of marriage, the humanity of unborn children, or that sexual license is a characteristic of apes, not a civilized society (though, to be fair, most apes are far less promiscuous than many liberals I have known).

3) Freedom of Speech

For some reason, liberals believe that refusing to listen to someone is the same as censoring them. The Dixie Chicks serve as a prominent example of this common liberal folly. The mostly conservative country audience was finally disgusted by their anti-American rhetoric and refused to buy their music. Of course, what do the liberals cry out? Censorship. It seems that they believe that, along with teachers and in contrast to the rest of society, liberal "artistes" should not have to earn their bread by actually proving their worth in the free market-- which would explain their obsession with the NEA-- no, not the National Educators Association, the National Endowment for the Arts. Any rational person can look at this situation and realize that the only alternative to the Dixie Chicks "censorship" is to force people to buy Dixie Chicks CD's against their will. Now which situation actually violates someone's rights?

Given the patent absurdity of claiming a right to force people to do what you want them to, one might wonder where this bizarre idea came from. To be honest, I'm too young and not enough of a historian to venture a guess myself, but a friend of mine who's a philosophy major isn't. I had an interesting conversation with him a few months back where he described to me a movement on which he was writing his thesis called the Theatre of the Oppressed. The founder of this movement (which, though small, was apparently highly influential in some circles), Augusto Boal, redefined oppression not as the violation of real, tangible rights by the government, but as the refusal of individuals to reiterate the message of the "oppressed." That the logical extension of this, of course, is that there is no right to freedom of speech and unless everyone agrees, everyone is oppressed, apparently never dimmed Boal's enthusiasm.

I personally have no idea if the Theatre of the Oppressed actually influenced modern liberals or if it was simply another symptom of some common cause, but the analysis holds true nonetheless. Liberals do believe they have a right to force us to sit down, shut up, and listen to their tirades. This behavior does violate our right to free speech, and, through the public schools, every other fundamental right along with it.

And so no matter how loud liberals scream about freedom of speech, no matter how viciously they denounce conservative "censorship" while brainwashing our children, remember that neither censorship nor freedom means anything to a true liberal. To them it is only a word used for rhetorical effect, to pull the wool over the eyes of the American people and fool us into continuing to submit our children to their reckless social experiments.

And so when liberals plot behind closed doors and lie to the paper and the public, I thank God for courageous citizens like Vicki Fyke and the members of the Livingston Organization for Values in Education. They are fulfilling their duty-- as parents, as citizens, as Christians-- to stand up for truth and confront evil where it breeds, to fight the good fight, to run the race, to keep the faith.

And so I ask this one question:

Are you?

"Be strong and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The LORD will do what is good in his sight." --1 Chronicles 19:13, NIV

Important Developments

2007-08-16T12:55:00.000-04:00

You need to watch this video:

Shocking religious persecution in England is a sample of what can happen as a result of S. 1105, the "hate crimes" bill. Though this battle was won, the mere fact that such an egregious violation of the Britons' civil rights was perpetrated by their local police is a testament to the deteriorating state of our culture, and a warning that we had best fight it within the legal system while we still can.
Click here to watch the video

Click here to read more about the "hate crimes" bill

Verdict Reached in Padilla Case:

Stay tuned, the verdict will be read at 2 p.m. Eastern!

http://stoptheaclu.com/archives/2007/08/16/verdict-reached-in-padilla-terror-case/

Bravo for Hillsdale College

Hillsdale College takes another stance against public funding.

Church in Dallas refuses to bow down to homosexual pressure

There is a battle taking place in Dallas. It is a battle to force a church to lower their Scriptural standards to meet homosexual demands.

When High Point Church refused to allow their building to be used in a memorial service celebrating homosexuality, the homosexuals became very upset and started a campaign of harassment and public ridicule aimed at High Point.

If those pushing the homosexual agenda get their "hate crimes" bill passed into law, this is only a sample of what churches, pastors and Christians can expect.

Click here to read the news article about this situation.

Click here to read the church's statement regarding their refusal to bow down to the homosexual demands.
Click here to sign the Petition of Support

Howell High School Custodians Continue to Fight for Jobs

NEA Teachers Help Fund Pro-Homosexual Groups, Training

NEA Union Dues Support Homosexual Groups

'Gay' Training Workshops at NEA Poorly Attended

NASA Nears Decision on Shuttle Repair

Stocks Plunge Again; Dow Drops 300

Iowa Straw Poll Results!

2007-08-11T22:51:00.001-04:00

Via Conservapedia:

The Ames Straw Poll, known more widely as the Iowa Straw Poll, is the most prominent Republican presidential straw poll. The Straw Poll, sponsored by the Iowa GOP, is held at Iowa State University the August before any Republican presidential primary. Although the straw poll is a non-binding political activity, it has been used as a measuring stick of the viability of candidates presidential bid. The Ames Straw Poll, which charges $35 for each admission, also acts as a fund raising event for the Iowa Republican party. Voting is open to all party affiliations^[1]. Along with the straw poll, attendants are invited to somewhat of a carnival; including barbecues, inflatable playground equipment for kids, music, and supporters rallying for their candidates^[2].

Because of the significance of the straw poll, primary candidates have spent large sums of money purchasing pre-paid ballots for supporters. In 2004, Steve Forbes and George W. Bush each spent over $2 million on tickets and activities for the Iowa Straw Poll^[3]. The Iowa Straw Poll has also been a hive for media, with over 250 news organizations on hand during the 1999 straw poll.

The Iowa Straw Poll has acted as a means of narrowing down Republican primary contestants. Lower tier candidates are forced to place high in the straw poll in order to keep up funding from supporters. In 1999, Lamar Alexander ended his primary campaign just two days after the Iowa Straw Poll. In October of the same year, Elizabeth Dole also cut short her campaign after not living up to her supporters expectations in the Iowa Straw Poll^[4].

The 2007 Iowa Straw Poll was won by former Massachusetts' Governor Mitt Romney. Conservative Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, placed second in the straw poll of over fourteen thousand Iowa voters.

Read The Rest Here

Redbook magazine endorses hedonistic sex

2007-08-09T12:11:00.000-04:00

"Sex, titillation, and yawning at immoral behavior have always sold magazines. But they used to be the kind that came in brown wrappers, not the kind that sit on kitchen tables and in doctors' waiting rooms."

This from Marcia Segelstein, a former producer for CBS News and a freelance writer, after she picked up a copy of Redbook Magazine, a prominent women's publication. Read the rest of her column here.

Below is the email I recieved from the AFA:

August 9, 2007

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your entire email list of family and friends.

Dear Daniel,

Redbook has become the new Playgirl. The sex advice they are giving throws all traditional values out the window and encourages a pagan, hedonistic lifestyle.

Recently, Marcia Segelstein wrote a guest column for OneNewsNow.com. I plead with you to read her article . It will open your eyes to what our children and teens are facing in a culture swimming in the moral sewer. After you read the article, please take the suggested action. Redbook operates on the philosophy that parents and grandparents don't care enough to get involved.

I urge you to spend a little time on Redbook's Web site at Redbookmag.com. Click on the "Love Life" section.

Take Action

Send an e-mail to Redbook expressing your complete disgust with the magazine.
Redbook is owned by Hearst Corporation. If you subscribe to Redbook, call and ask that your subscription be canceled immediately. Demand a refund for the unused part of your subscription. If you subscribe to any of the other Hearst magazines, ask for a number to call to cancel that subscription [Note: Popular Mechanics tends to be towards the conservative side, but maybe I just think that because I enjoy the copies my neighbor lends me]. The number to call to cancel your subscription is 1-800-888-0008. The address:

Hearst Customer Service
P.O. Box 7190
Red Oak, Iowa 51591.

Forward this to friends and family and ask them to participate.

Here is a list of Hearst magazines:

Cosmopolitan
CosmoGIRL!
Country Living
Esquire
Good Housekeeping
Harper's BAZAAR
House Beautiful
Marie Claire
O at Home
O, The Oprah Magazine
Popular Mechanics
Quick & Simple
Redbook
Seventeen
SmartMoney
TEEN
Town & Country
Town & Country TRAVEL
Veranda

Click Here to Email Redbook Now!

Thank you for caring enough to get involved.

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your family and friends.

Sincerely,

Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association

China Threatens US With Act of War

2007-08-07T20:54:00.000-04:00

This is the first honestly disturbing news I've heard about the economy in a long time. Regular readers know I recommend an aggressive stance against China, but we must do so realizing that the Great Depression was kicked off by the Hawley-Smoot Tariff.

Via The Telegraph:

The Chinese government has begun a concerted campaign of economic threats against the United States, hinting that it may liquidate its vast holding of US treasuries if Washington imposes trade sanctions to force a yuan revaluation.

Two officials at leading Communist Party bodies have given interviews in recent days warning - for the first time - that Beijing may use its $1.33 trillion (£658bn) of foreign reserves as a political weapon to counter pressure from the US Congress. Shifts in Chinese policy are often announced through key think tanks and academies.

Described as China’s “nuclear option” in the state media, such action could trigger a dollar crash at a time when the US currency is already breaking down through historic support levels.

And then there's this:

Via: Times Online:
Russian and Chinese troops are joining forces this week in the first military exercises by an international organisation that is regarded in some quarters as a potential rival to Nato.

Thousands of soldiers and 500 combat vehicles will take part in “Peace Mission 2007”, organised by the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in the Chelyabinsk region of Russia. Russian officials have also proposed an alliance between the SCO and a body representing most of the former Soviet republics.
Scores of Russian and Chinese aircraft begin joint exercises tomorrow before a week of military manoeuvres from Thursday that will include Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. At least 6,500 troops are involved in what is described as an anti-terror exercise.

China in bed with Russia, Russia with Chavez, Chavez with Iran, and Iran with whatever Muslim terrorist organizations it can manipulate to flaunt the United States and it's allies.

The Nations are Gathering folks, and the Kings of the Earth are making their Stand.

We best pray they plot in vain, and ready ourselves.

Foreign "Men" Are Wimps

2007-08-02T18:26:00.000-04:00

"Now, I could be politically correct, blah blah blah, and expound upon that statement, and make my invariable concessions, and explanations, but you know what? I don't have to, and I won't." -- A Good Friend

So Say We All.

Via Reuters:

ROME (Reuters) - A Sicilian mother took away her 61-year-old son's house keys, cut off his allowance and hauled him to the police station because he stayed out late.
Tired of her son's misbehavior, the retiree in the central Sicilian city of Caltagirone turned to the police to "convince this blockhead" to behave properly, La Sicilia, one of Sicily's leading newspapers, reported on Thursday.

The son responded by saying his mother did not give him a big enough weekly allowance and did not know how to cook.

"My son does not respect me, he doesn't tell me where he's going in the evenings and returns home late," the woman was quoted as saying. "He is never happy with the food I make and always complains. This can't go on."

Police helped the squabbling duo make up and the two returned home together, with the son's house keys and daily allowance restored.

Most Italian men [Ha!] still live at home late into their 30s, enjoying their "mamma's" cooking, washing and ironing.

BREAKING NEWS I-35W bridge collapses over Mississippi River

2007-08-01T21:08:00.000-04:00

Minneapolis: 9 Vehicles Fall into Mississippi After I-35W Bridge ShortNews.com

Bridge collapses into Mississippi BBC News

Minneapolis Minnesota Interstate Bridge over Mississippi River Cherry Creek News

WCCO - Stop the ACLU:

Minneapolis The Interstate 35W Mississippi River bridge near University Avenue has collapsed into the river.

Both the northbound and southbound lanes of 35W are lying in the Mississippi River.

There are multiple cars in the river and a couple cars on fire. According to one witness, there was a school bus full of children on the bridge.

Cars are still on the bridge.

Tons of concrete have collapsed and people are injured. Survivors are being carried up the riverbank.

Some people are stranded on parts of the bridge that aren’t completely in the water.

A tractor-trailer is on fire at the collapse scene.

“It is just horrific,” said witness Marilyn Franzen, who saw the bridge collapse. Franzen said she saw a school bus that managed to stop before the going over the edge of the bridge that she said was carrying 20-30 children.

The road has been under construction since the beginning of the summer.

Stay tuned to WCCO.com and WCCO-TV for more information on this breaking news story.

FOX NEWS is reporting that there were bike riders and pedestrians on the bridge.

Major disaster…please keep all involved in your prayers.

UPDATE: 3 Sections have collapsed and a 4th section on the East side is in danger of collapse.

Bridge was 1950 feet long and 64 feet high.

Dept of Homeland Security is monitoring and says it does not appear to be an act of terrorism.

1 confirmed death and an estimated 30-50 people in the water.

Abortion Centers Misuse Heart Drug Digoxin to Peform Illegal Partial-Birth Abortions

2007-07-31T20:55:00.000-04:00

Detroit, MI (LifeNews.com) — After the Supreme Court upheld the national ban on partial-birth abortions, some abortion businesses are so desperate to continue performing second-trimester abortions that they are willing to put women’s health at risk by misusing a drug for heart conditions to do the abortions.

The partial-birth abortion ban made it clear that abortion practitioners can’t mostly deliver an unborn child before doing the abortion and killing her. To get around the ban, they are using the drug digoxin to kill the baby inside the mother’s womb and then cause the mother to miscarry the dead baby’s body. Digoxin is widely used in the treatment of various heart conditions such as atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter and congestive heart failure.

But abortion practitioners admitted to the Detroit News in various interviews that they are misusing the drug in off-label use to do the second-trimester abortions.

Renee Chelian, executive director of Northland Family Planning Centers, said the three Michigan abortion centers under that name use digoxin. The drug is administered with a long needle inserted into the abdomen and it has normal side effects such as nausea, vomiting or diarrhea. However, the drug can also cause premature delivery and there is a risk of infection.

Read the complete story.

NEA begins massive drive to promote homosexuality in public schools

2007-07-31T19:06:00.000-04:00

Is it time for a school voucher program?

Without allowing members to vote on the matter, the executive committee of the National Education Association (NEA) decided to advance aggressively the homosexual agenda. The decision was made at the association's annual meeting in Philadelphia.

First, the committee voted to put the weight of the NEA behind an effort to pass federal hate crimes legislation, a measure that would greatly expand federal power and lead to the silencing of moral opposition.
Second, the executive committee voted to boost the NEA's Web site to "include all resources" devoted to homosexual causes.
The third resolution urged NEA members to push to make sexual orientation training a requirement for earning a license to teach.

They continued their financial support of homosexual groups.

Click here for report from OneNewsNow.com.

Click here for the report of the NEA Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Caucus.

It matters little to the NEA that Johnny may be unable to read and write, as long as he learns to support same-sex marriage.

Thank you for caring enough to get involved.

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your family and friends.

Sincerely,

Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association

Putin Runs Sex Camps Designed to Impregnate Russian Girls

2007-07-31T16:25:00.001-04:00

Photo Courtesy of the DailyMail

Via the DailyMail

In what is perhaps the most disturbing news to make it out of Russia over the past few months, Putin is establishing vast camps of jugend with the stated goal of getting young single girls (really, any girls) pregnant.

Remember the mammoths, say the clean-cut organisers at the youth camp's mass wedding. "They became extinct because they did not have enough sex. That must not happen to Russia".

Obediently, couples move to a special section of dormitory tents arranged in a heart-shape and called the Love Oasis, where they can start procreating for the motherland.

With its relentlessly upbeat tone, bizarre ideas and tight control, it sounds like a weird indoctrination session for a phoney religious cult.

But this organisation - known as "Nashi", meaning "Ours" - is youth movement run by Vladimir Putin's Kremlin that has become a central part of Russian political life.

No consideration is given to moral standards, STD’s, or the appalling consequences of raising a generation of children without so much as the name of their father.

But, as desperate as the situation may be, there is an even more sinister side to the Nashi:

The idea that Russia's anarchic, apathetic youth would ever be attracted into a disciplined mass movement in support of their president - what critics called a "Putinjugend", recalling the "Hitlerjugend" (German for "Hitler Youth") - seemed fanciful.

How wrong we were. Life for young people in Russia without connections is a mixture of inadequate and corrupt education, and a choice of boring dead-end jobs. Like the Hitler Youth and the Soviet Union's Young Pioneers, Nashi and its allied movements offer not just excitement, friendship and a sense of purpose - but a leg up in life, too.

Nashi's senior officials - known, in an eerie echo of the Soviet era, as "Commissars" - get free places at top universities. Thereafter, they can expect good jobs in politics or business - which in Russia nowadays, under the Kremlin's crony “capitalism,” are increasingly the same thing.

I’ve said for months that Russians have lost their freedom, perhaps for a very long time. But like many, I never really thought Putin and his cronies possessed the skill to manipulate their people as skillfully as they have. Westerners reading this article may be tempted to shrug off Nashi as a bunch of teenagers using an excuse to hook up, comparing it to the anti-establishment sexual liberation of the sixties. But therein lies the difference. In the sixties, when students acted this way, it was against the condemnation of the greater culture. But in Russia, the “establishment”—the government itself—imposes this sort of foolery. It truly is a page out of Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World.

By organizing these brigades of youth "storm troopers," Putin hopes to disrupt any major demonstrations which may develop in the future. Already, according to the article in the Telegraph, two outsiders who attempted to infiltrate a meeting of the Nashi have been beaten up:

Andrei Pointkowsky, director of the Centre for Strategic Studies, said: "Putin is behind this. Scared by the Orange Revolution in Ukraine, the Kremlin is trying to form a Putin Jugend to suppress future opposition.

"Putin has had a catastrophic loss of authority. People are finally beginning to realise that the emperor has no clothes." Ilya Yashin, youth leader of the opposition party Yabloko and one of the two liberals who gatecrashed the conference, said: "Our apprehensions about the Kremlin's intentions to form assault units to fight the opposition have been confirmed. Under the Nashi slogan the Kremlin is forming brigades of storm-troopers so that they can use force against the opposition."

Mr Yashin gave two examples where opposition activists were beaten by unknown assailants with shaved heads after attending anti-government rallies.

This more than irresponsible. It is more than strange. It is sinister—it is starkly frightening.

Russia may be on the outskirts of the west, but it is not the only country with pessimistic demographic trends. Russians are not the only people whose natural rights are threatened by an increasingly controlling government no longer setting its course by any manner of a moral compass.

If there is one thing history has taught us, it is that evil can never be ignored for long. It cannot be left alone. It will either be confronted with all the force and integrity of brave, good men, or it will spread until it ravages our homes and slips the yoke of tyranny on the shoulders ourselves and our posterity.

The following except is from Ronald Reagan, when he spoke at my college years ago:

I know a lady, who, twice in her life has lost her country. She lost it the first time as a very young woman when, in Czarist Russia, the Bolshevik Revolution occurred and she barely escaped with her life. She came to Cuba, started again from scratch, once again built up a very successful competence, and was doing very well. And this time, as an elderly woman, again, she lost her country at the time Castro took over. Now, losing one's country once would be enough for most of use, I suppose. Losing one's country twice would be enough for the toughest person in the house -- but not for this very indomitable lady. She came to the United States where again she started from scratch and again built up a very successful company.

And now as a very elderly person, I've heard her tell this story on more than one occasion and invariably someone in the audience, when she is finished, will say, "You poor, unlucky woman. How you have suffered. What an ordeal you have been through.” And her answer is always the same: "I, unlucky? Ah, no. I am one of the luckiest women who ever lived. Twice I have lost my country. Twice I have had a country to which I can go. When you Americans lose your country, where will you go?” I've heard her ask the question more than once. I've never heard a convincing answer.

Where will we go? We must wake up, or our nation, like Russia, will become nothing more than a byword and a whispered sigh of false hope—a nation that won the greatest gift of freedom only to give it up for the feed trough and switch tyranny.

People, we live in a world plagued by the effects the Fall. Sin and unchristian thought have effects that echo out far beyond any individual. Actions have consequences. Ideas have consequences. And as Christians we are called to fight evil not only within ourselves, but in our community and the larger world. Fight the good fight. Finish the race. Keep the faith. And to my fellow Hillsdale students, remember: Virtus Tentanime Guadet.

Virtue Rejoices in the Challenge.

Let’s roll.

Quote of the Day

2007-07-29T17:03:00.000-04:00

"A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man, a debt which he proposes to pay off with your money." - G. Gordon Liddy

It’s interesting but before the more hard-line communists took over, there was an abundance of pro-American propaganda in Russia.

Take this poster from 1917, for example. It says: “Friends-Democrats -|- Uncle Sam and Ivan”.

I guess the commies had more foresight than us regarding the direction of our country.

George S. Patton On the War On Terror

2007-07-25T14:02:00.000-04:00

--Via Fox News

Maybe the White House should roll out "Old Blood and Guts" the next time it tries to explain why the U.S. is fighting in Iraq.

A video posted on YouTube features the well-known scene from the movie "Patton," with George C. Scott standing in front of an enormous American flag.

This time, however, the famous World War II general isn't urging his troops to defeat the Nazis on the eve of the Allied invasion of France — this version features the voice of comedian Mike Kaminski delivering a Patton-like explanation of why the U.S. is fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan, against Al Qaeda, and the danger posed by an Iran possessing nuclear weapons.

Click here to view the video on YouTube. [Warning! He cusses like Patton, too]

"This war on terror, as well as our presense int th middle easts is necc. and inevitable. To those who can't understand that, you need to spend more time on the History Channel and less time on the ******* chat rooms! In this time of nuclear weaponry, we cannot afford to wait for the fight to come to us. You need to understand that! This political correctness stuff is a bunch of crap. This generation is so ******** spoiled and lazy, they wouldn't know a real threat to their freedom, until it interrupted the power source to their XBOX and killed half a million people! The complacency of fools will destroy them. ...."

FDR and the Fall of the American Republic

2007-07-24T15:16:00.001-04:00

Or quite nearly. We survived, but only after harrowing decades of depression. I believe it's useful to look back on the past. In this case, it should be both hopeful and sobering. Hopeful, because we've survived rough times in the past, and sobering because it shows how dark a nation, even America, can become. And certainly we aren't in any better political shape nowdays.

The following quotation is from President Roosevelt in a letter to the Ways and Means Committee:

In a message to the Congress on April 27, 1942, I stated:
"Discrepancies between low personal incomes and very high personal incomes should be lessened; and I therefore believe that in time of this grave national danger, when all excess income should go to win the war, no American citizen ought to have a net income, after he has paid his taxes, of more than $25,000 a year."
Thereafter the Treasury advised the committee:
"To implement the President's proposal, the Treasury now recommends the enactment of a 100 percent war supertax on that part of the net income after regular income tax which exceeds a personal exemption of $25,000 .

The following analysis is from Mark Leff, The Limitss of Symbolic Reform: The Newe Deal and Taxation, 1933-1939 (London and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1984), pp. 290-91.

FDR was a past master at the use of taxation to convey the image of the hour. He explained at one point that he would prefer "to see a tax which would tax all income above $100,000 at the rate of 99.5%" This even shocked his budget director, but the president's joking comeback was a revealing one: "Why not? None of us is ever going to make $100,000 a year. How many people report on that much income?" Roosevelt in fact wen even further than this. In 1942 and again in 1943, he proposed that all income above $25,000 ($50,000 for families) be taxed away, saying that "all excess income should go to win the war." Inequities, he warned, "seriously affect the morale of soldiers and sailors, farmers and workers, imperiling the efforts to stabilize wages and prices, and thereby impairing the effective prosecution of the war. When this income limit got nowhere in Congress, FDR acted on his own, handing down an executive order limiting after-tax salaries to $25,000 plus certain allowances, only to have his action indignantly repealed by Congress.

Why not? Nothing is more revealing than that short question, not only of FDR, but of the mindset of the left, because they have no answer to it.

Of interest, read "Roosevelt's or Reagan's America: A Time for Choosing," from Hillsdale College's monthly Imprimis.

Review of the Democratic Presidential "Debate"

2007-07-24T14:32:00.000-04:00

--Christine Lamech Reporting

Ah yes, I had the distinct pleasure of listening to CNN’s Democratic Presidential Debate. Watching them discuss issues was like observing fish flopping about in a quickly-drying tide pool. Every question seemed to bring the opportunity for each presidential candidate to say that Washington needs to change. This “change” sure sounds great, but where exactly is this transformation going to take place?

This was the first YouTube debate, which made an interesting combination with the candidates in the spotlight. Questions ranged from asking about action on Darfur to grilling Senator Obama as to whether he is “black enough.” The only person who appeared willing to employ more than diplomacy in Darfur was Senator Biden. Others who half-heartedly agreed with Sen. Biden kept saying that American troops don’t belong in Darfur. They suggested using U.N. troops. I couldn’t help but wonder which country provides the majority of U.N. troops. As for Sen. Obama, I must applaud his ability to dance around questions. His finesse at avoiding the core substance of questions was nearly inspiring.

Stealing more than her share of the limelight was Sen. Clinton. Capitalizing on her “femininity,” Clinton looked simply stunning in a pink blouse and two inches of solid make-up. During one question, Clinton stated she was proud to be running as a woman. She still seemed confident as she assured a voter that she would command respect from Muslim states that view women as second-class citizens. I hope the Muslim states share her sentiments.

There were plenty of other savory tidbits to garner from the debate, coming from nearly across the panel. Sen. Edwards was proud to boast of his work championing universal health care coverage. He didn’t mention one of his courtroom cases in which he channeled a dead girl’s spirit. I’m glad to know that he thinks outside of the box. Sen. Gravel made sure his voice was heard in the debate over having women join the draft. He said that women owe their country just as much as men do and left us with his own question regarding men and women, “What’s the difference?”

Wrapping up, my mind kept drifting back to some of the scintillating questions posed to the candidates. One such question was posed by a girl who asked, “Who was your favorite teacher and why?” However, in all seriousness, I was pleasantly surprised by some of the questions presented. It’s a good sign when you actually see the wheels turning in the candidates’ minds. The problem comes in when the wheels seem to be losing traction in the oppressive slime of politicians being politically correct.
------------------------

Thanks Christine!

Don't Forget to Register Republican!

2007-07-23T10:51:00.000-04:00

Don't forget to register GOP if your state has a closed primary.

For your state requirements, click here.

A quote on acedia (or sloth): "In the world it is called Tolerance, but in hell it is called Despair: the sin that believes in nothing, cares for nothing, seeks to know nothing, interferes with nothing, enjoys nothing, hates nothing, finds purpose in nothing, lives for nothing, and remains alive only because there is nothing for which it will die."

An Action Alert, a Quote, and the Morning News

2007-07-19T12:32:00.000-04:00

"Perhaps the greatest disservice of Hollywood movies is their cartoonish villains. In real life, I promise you, the devil will look more like Julia Roberts than Snidely Whiplash. Evil does not arrive with a flashing neon sign: MEPHISTOPHELES! LUCIFER! SATAN! FOR ETERNAL DAMNANTION, APPLY HERE! Evil arrives packaged as a winsome movie about a long-legged brunette who manages to marry a rich, handsome bachelor and live happily ever after -- all by turning tricks on Hollywood Boulevard! There's a reason Beelzebub is known as the prince of lies."
-- Ann Coulter

-----------------------------------

New Russian Assassination Attempt Foiled!

Russia Expels Four British Diplomats

Amidst Outcry, New Zealand Outlaws Political Satire

-----------------------------------

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your entire email list of family and friends.

Senate could vote on the "hate crimes" bill as early as today

Urgent: Your phone call to your senators needed today!

The Senate will be voting, as early as today, on S.1105, the so-called "hate crimes" bill. Under S.1105, acts of crime committed against members of certain protected classes - including those who identify themselves by their "actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity" - would warrant more intense prosecution and greater penalties than the very same acts committed against heterosexuals.

It would establish homosexuals as a special class of people and give them special rights.

It is no stretch to argue that S. 1105, if enacted, will embody a national policy that will likely lead to the criminalization and civil sanction of the biblical view of homosexuality.

Read these two stories - The tragic story of Jesse Dirkhising and Woman's death at hands of 'gay' her fault, says lawyer - to see how homosexuals murdered heterosexuals but were not charged with a hate crime. Had the roles been reversed - the victims homosexual and the perpetrators heterosexual - they could have been charged. Under S.1105, homosexuals are a "protected class" while heterosexuals are not.

It is vitally important for you to call your two senators today and tell them to vote against S.1105, the "hate crimes" bill.

Take Action

Click the link below to be shown the phone number for your Senator's office and an appropriate suggested message (talking points) in opposition to S.1105, the "hate crimes" bill. This is urgent -- please act today!

Please forward this to your friends and family, and especially your pastor.

Click Here for Your Senator's Phone Number Now!

If you think our efforts are worthy, would you please support us with a small gift? Thank you for caring enough to get involved.

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your family and friends.

Sincerely,

Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association

P.S. Please forward this e-mail message to your family and friends!

Catching Up On The News

2007-07-18T17:03:00.000-04:00

Top al-Qaida Iraqi Captured!

Outrage: An Arab Public School in America!

NY Mayor Bloomberg's Launches "Guns=Prison" Campaign (surely that was what the Founding Fathers meant when they wrote: "the Right of the People to keep and bare arms shall not be infringed")

Flip-Flop Charges Against Romney Continue

Dow Highest Ever for Second Day In a Row

ZOGBY: CONGRESS RATING HITS ALL TIME LOW

College Student Start Movement to Allow Guns On Campus

D.C. Assault on the Second Ammendment

NRA Supports Police Safety More Than NYC

Despite Disarming Citizens, Violent Crimes in England On The Rise, Hidden

Two-Thirds of British Believe They Have Lost Their Right to Free Speech

UK: 'Big Brother' plan for police to use new road cameras

Hillary event changed from gay B&B to traditional inn

Lawsuit Filed for Clinton Library Records concerning Hillary

Alaska Pol: Taxpayers cash is 'my money'

Syphilis emergency in Madagascar

'Male' prostitute held in HIV case

Bloomberg Now Wants to Outlaw Squirtguns!

2007-07-18T16:19:00.000-04:00

Or so it would appear, judging by his reaction to the inventor of "Streetwars," a game of sorts in which participants 18 and up compete to "assassinate" other competitors by getting them wet.

But the game we all played in the neighborhoods as children has a more sinister side, according to Bloomberg. "He [the creator of Streetwars] could use some psychiatric help...we'll try to arrange that", Bloomberg told reporters. " It's not something that is appropriate on the streets of this city."

Mr. Bloomberg, I think there's quite a few fifth-graders who would disagree.

Perhaps Bloomberg would support forcing all prospective squirtgun owners to undergo psychiatric evaluation, but if you ask me, I cannot help but question the Mayor's own sanity.

Driven to the edge by their deterministic worldview, liberal politicians like Bloomberg are forced to attribute violence not to the evil within the hearts of criminals, but to all the harmless inanimate objects around us. They fear our frippery in a fashion that is nothing less than paranoid.

We see this most clearly with liberals' obsessive-compulsive hatred of firearms-- and it is no coincidence that Mayor Bloomberg is leading the charge to ravish our Second Amendment rights. Blind to the existence of true evil, he assaults the rights of those he is put in office to protect, while criminals side-step the punches backed by the force of law and rejoice that their victims are left defenseless.

Mothers, guard your children carefully. After all, if adults cannot be trusted with squirtguns, then certainly we must protect our innocent young from their destabilizing influence.

God save us.

Read the story here.

A Note Ex Fidelitas

2007-07-05T18:47:00.000-04:00

My Dear Readers,

Recent events have kept me away from my blog for the past few weeks. I apologize; working a summer job and trying to push the Huns back out of my school district seems to have taken up whatever free time I had left.

As it is, I’m going to try to post more frequently again. I have a few ideas for blogposts, and barring some catastrophe, you’ll be seeing them throughout the following week.

But for now, my dear, faithful readers, I bid you adieu.

Duty calls.

Arizona to Record DNA for all Arrested, Not Just Those Convicted

2007-06-23T16:04:00.000-04:00

Yet another step forward to the Brave New World of Post-Christian America.

But Daniel, this measure will make it easier to track those who break the government's laws!

So would putting a camera in every home.

But we shouldn't do that!

Given your logic, why not?

------------------------------

Via: Arizona Republic:

State lawmakers voted Tuesday to expand the state’s DNA database dramatically by requiring all people arrested for certain crimes to provide DNA samples for state records whether they are convicted or not.

Conservative and liberal lawmakers alike raised alarms that the measure would violate the civil liberties of people never convicted of a crime and set a dangerous precedent for government collection of sensitive genetic information.

“I think it is egregious,” Rep. Eddie Farnsworth, a conservative Republican from Gilbert and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said on the House floor Tuesday. “It tramples on the liberties and freedom of the people.”

Supporters say the move provides an expanded crime-solving tool for law enforcement and compared taking a DNA sample to taking a mug shot or fingerprints at the time of arrest. Current law requires DNA samples only after a person is convicted of certain felonies.

…

Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Phoenix, called it a “radical change” in law that would disproportionately affect minorities and presume everyone arrested is guilty.

“I believe this is a very, very scary step toward a Big Brother state,” she said on the House floor.

When Chemistry is Oulawed, Only the Outlaws Will Do Chemistry

2007-06-18T16:39:00.000-04:00

I sincerely hope I'm not the only one seriously disturbed by the degree of government incursion here. I guess I get to be on yet another government watchlist. Not to mention the poor home school parents and garage hobbyists. (Sigh...)

Via Make Magazine Blog:

In an attempt to curb the production of crystal meth, more than 30 states have now outlawed or require registration for common lab equipment. In Texas, you need to register the purchase of Erlenmeyer flasks or three-necked beakers. The same state where I do not have to register a handgun, forces me to register a glass beaker. In Portland, Oregon, even pH strips are suspect. Modern off the shelf "chemistry" sets are sold without any of the questionable chemicals or equipment. For example, when a current company tried re releasing a kit based on the one marketed by Mr. Wizard himself back in the 1950s, they found that they could only include five of the original chemicals in the set. The rest of the items were replaced with inane things like super balls and balloons. Even a non neutered modern chemistry set like the C3000 from Thames and Kosmos is forced to ship without many key chemicals, suggesting to their customers that they acquire the missing ingredients elsewhere.

When chemistry is outlawed, only outlaws will do chemistry.

Under Mask of Peace, Chinese Prepare For War With US

2007-06-14T16:50:00.001-04:00

US military prepared for ‘worst’ with China

China Appears to Confront U.S. Defense of Taiwan-- Is Suspected of Shooting Down U.S. Satellite

China Slams Bush Over Remarks on Communism

US Defense Department says China's military budget understated

China trying to unseat U.S. as lead cyberpower

A bill in Congress makes it a crime for pastors and churches to speak against homosexuality

2007-06-14T16:21:00.000-04:00

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your entire email list of family and friends.

Message to pastors and other Christians: Just keep your mouth shut

Dear Daniel,

If pastors and other Christians don’t aggressively oppose a bill now in Congress, in the near future they will be subject to huge fines and prison terms if they say anything negative about homosexuality.

The proposed law would make it a crime to preach on Romans Chapter 1 or I Corinthians Chapter 6. Or even to discuss them in a Sunday School class. If churches and individuals want to keep the government from telling them what they can and cannot preach and teach about homosexuality, they better get involved now!

House bill H.R. 1592 and Senate bill S. 1105 would make negative statements concerning homosexuality, such as calling the practice of homosexuality a sin from the pulpit, a “hate crime” punishable by law. This dangerous legislation would take away your freedom of speech and your freedom of religion. Consider what has already happened:

A California lawsuit which is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court would make the use of the words “natural family,” “marriage” and “union of a man and a woman” a “hate speech” crime in government workplaces. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has already ruled in favor of the plaintiffs!

CNN and The Washington Post both reported that General Peter Pace, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was fired because he publicly expressed moral opposition to homosexual behavior.

For the Alliance Defense Fund’s summary of this bill, click here.

Take Action

We are looking for one million Americans willing to take a stand and not allow a small group of homosexual activists to take away our freedoms. Can we count on you? Click on the link below to sign our Petition to Congress in Defense of Religious Freedom.

Please forward this to others, especially your pastor, and ask them to get involved in protecting our freedoms of speech and religion. This threat to our religious freedoms is real!

Sign the Petition to Congress Today

If you think our efforts are worthy, would you please support us with a small gift? Thank you for caring enough to get involved.

Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your family and friends.

Sincerely,

Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman
American Family Association

P.S. Please forward this e-mail message to your family and friends!

Happy Flag Day!

2007-06-14T16:05:00.001-04:00

Happy Founding of the U.S. Army, too.

Music Video: How to Take a Life

2007-06-14T15:53:00.000-04:00

I appreciate how Malkin and Prespon place the furor over the Dutch cartoonists in the proper context. The issue was not about "tolerance" or "understanding Muslim culture," but about whether we would allow the Islamofacists to intimidate us and vitiate our western rights to free speech. That is what was at stake-- and that is what is at stake in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, and around the world every day-- and it it is high time these donkeys (I could think of another word) in congress realize it!

Definitely worth three minutes of your time:

Sing along.

Right Wing Testimonial

Then fill to me, the parting glass; goodnight and joy be to you all.

Fat-Bottomed Republicans

McCain...Prince of His Own Dream-Castle

On Reagan's Birthday- -

And They Who Seek To Abolish Our Precious Strong Verbs

More Aptly Stated

To Recall a Holocaust

Fresh from the Newsies

SC Democrat debate: Punch, Judy, and Silky; Update: Squabbling, mud-slinging, the gloves are off!

In the News

More Aptly Stated

New Evidence Refutes Current, Naturalistic Cosmology

Some shocking news for 2008

Happy New Year!!!

Bogus Romney Holiday Card Cites Mormon Passages

Merry Christmas!

OK Attorney Gen. Bans Christmas On Campus!!!

Lots of Bad News

Howell Sex Ed Update: From a Parent's Perspective

Send the ACLU a Christmas Card

Psalm 1

Rumor: Chuck Breiner Gone for Good!

Today's Quote

Students Flee California Schools En Masse in Organized Protest

Pledge AND Motto Challenged Again

Study: Democrats More Likely To Suffer Mental Illness

Best Ad Campaign Ever

The Broken Hearth

Eco Warrior Sterilized to Protect Planet

The (Theologically) Good, Bad, and Ugly

A Blessed Thanksgiving to All

Happy Thanksgiving, Old School Style

Thanksgiving Medley

Psalm 100 (KJV)

A Psalm of Thanksgiving.

Prayer for Thanksgiving Day

Today's Quote

A Thanksgiving Message from Chuck Norris

The Collegian (Foul Rag)

US SETS RECORD IN NEW STD CASES!

Today's Quote

Helicopter Ben

Feds Ban Christmas Displays In Apartments Buildings

I Always Knew He Was Crazy

Martial Law in Pakistan

All People Who Make Generalizations Are Idiots

Comrade Mugabe and His Bloody Band of Fools

Huckabee Only 0.01% Behind Romney In Poll!

The Lamentable Truth

Why I'm Glad I'm Not Charismatic

Judaism established as the official religion of Florida

BREAKING NEWS: More Bus Exposure Allegations!

Debate Over "Sex Play" In Kindergarten!

Religion Must Be Destroyed, Atheist Alliance Declares

Vicki Fyke Submits Name for School Board Appointment!

Christian Advertising Prohibited!

Click here to Take Action!

Amazing Quote

Hate Crimes Bill Passes

Read Article: Passage of 'hate crimes' measure met with conservative disgust

More Problems for Evolutionists

Why I Study Science

Hate Crimes Bill Update

In The News

Homosexuals Mock ‘Last Supper’ With Sex-Toys

Update: 7 Year Old Boy Forced To Perform Oral Sex On Howell School Bus

Get the Word Out!

American Cancer Society Promotes Socialized Medicine!

Giuliani Again Tries to Act Like a Conservative

Communist China Fears Civil Unrest

Must-Read Essay Series Over the Courtship Movement

Clinton Would Require Insurance To Be Permitted Work

In Britain, Converts from Islam Face Death

UPDATE: Boy, 7, says pair forced sex while on bus

PUTIN DISSOLVES THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT!!!

Requiem

What a Difference a Colon Makes

Think Christians aren't persecuted in America? Think again!

Quote of the Day