Daily Archives: June 10, 2010

Daily Mail: “Prince Charles yesterday urged the world to follow Islamic ‘spiritual principles’ in order to protect the environment.
In an hour-long speech, the heir to the throne argued that man’s destruction of the world was contrary to the scriptures of all religions – but particularly those of Islam.”

The Christian Institute: “Terminally ill patients in Belgium are being subjected to euthanasia without their consent, according to a shocking study . . . The study, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), suggests that almost half of Belgium’s euthanasia deaths may be carried out on patients who have not asked for their lives to be ended.”

Boston Globe: “Two senior Republican senators criticized Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan Thursday for memos she wrote as a young law clerk to Justice Thurgood Marshall, saying the papers suggest she lets politics dictate her legal decisions.”

CNN: “Parents, beware of Tagged.com, says New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo threatened Thursday to sue the teen-targeted site for exposing children to graphic images of child pornography if it doesn’t develop a plan to change the way they monitor and respond to complaints of inappropriate conduct.”

Telegraph: “The prayer written in the cards asks God to send the Archangel Michael ‘to help defend Your servants Dmitry and Vladimir from enemies seen and unseen.’”

Federal News Radio 1500: “Being aware of the theory of ‘intelligent design’ as a conversation topic in the general populace: good idea. Trying to convince co-workers that your idea is the correct one: bad idea. Doing that while working at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California: you might wind up on Federal News Radio. A press release on a suit filed by the Alliance Defense Fund states David Coppedge worked ‘team lead’ technical specialist on JPL’s Cassini mission to Saturn.” | ADF News Release

The Desert Sun: “The legal team challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 8 said Thursday that they believed opposing trial witnesses helped buttress their argument that the gay marriage ban ‘creates and sanctions discrimination.’ Attorneys Theodore Olson and David Boies held a media teleconference this morning, taking questions about the federal challenge to Proposition 8, which had stripped gays and lesbians from their new-found right to marry in California.”

Vancouver Sun: “The Anglican Church of Canada has failed to put the debate over gay marriage to rest once and for all. On the second last day of General Synod, a tri-annual gathering of clergy and lay leadership aimed at setting church policy, members essentially agreed to disagree on the fractious issue that’s torn the church apart in recent years.”

Dayton Daily News: “City officials were mum Wednesday, June 9, on an American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio request that the city consider changing its definition of “family” in policies for discount membership passes at the Troy Aquatic Park.”

ACLU: ACLU Urges Troy Aquatic Center to Drop Narrow Definition of Family for Discounted Passes

ACLU Letter to Troy

Americans United for Separation of Church and State: “The Rev. H. Wayne Williams, pastor of Liberty Baptist Tabernacle, endorsed state Sen. Gordon Howie, who was seeking the Republican nomination for governor. Williams’ May 16 endorsement from the pulpit was reported in a press release by the Howie campaign and in the Rapid City Journal . . . In a letter to the IRS today, Lynn outlined the case against Liberty Baptist.”

The Times of India: “With amendments on the anvil to make divorce easier for Hindus, a similar move may be underway for Sikhs. The Cabinet on Thursday cleared amendments to the Hindu Marriage Act and the Special Marriage Act, allowing the provision of ‘irretrievable breakdown of marriage’ to be included as ground for divorce.”

NorwalkPlus.com: Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that the state has awarded $9.8 million in grants to support nearly two dozen stem cell research projects by scientists at the University of Connecticut and at Yale. The grants are part of the $100 million Stem Cell Research Fund, which was created by legislation that Governor Rell signed into law in 2005 making Connecticut just the third state in the nation to offer public funding for human stem cell research.” [The report provides more details on some of the projects which include embryonic stem cell research]

NewKerala.com: “The irretrievable breakdown of a marriage will be made an additional ground for divorce under an amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act and the Special Marriage Act approved by the cabinet Thursday.”

AP: “A Saudi court convicted a man and sentenced him to four months in prison and 90 lashes for kissing a woman in a mall, a government-owned daily reported Thursday.”

Center for Reproductive Rights: “On June 4, 2010, during the 14th session of the Human Rights Council, the United Nation’s Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, Anand Grover, presented reports on Poland and India. The report called on both countries to improve the situation for sexual and reproductive health and rights. The Center proactively participated in the preparation of these two reports and intervened orally before the Human Rights Council in support of his recommendations . . . ”

Orlando Sentinel: In the Orlando area today, Gov. Charlie Crist again all but pledged to veto a bill that would require women seeking abortions to first pay for an ultrasound . . . Lawmakers sent the bill, HB 1143, to the governor’s desk on Monday, giving him 15 days to sign it . . . Crist said he expects to address the issue by the weekend.”

ADF Attorney Erik Stanley writing at Speak Up Movement / Church: “[At a recent CLE presentation] I spoke on the history of the Johnson Amendment and how Lyndon Johnson got his amendment to the tax code passed with no legislative analysis, no committee hearings, and no debate. After the presentation, a professor at a local university told me that in West Virginia, what Johnson did with his amendment to the tax code would have been called a ‘fat opossum’ because it snuck through under cover of darkness. That’s a perfect tag line for the Johnson Amendment . . . It was a bill that got inserted into the tax code through back-room deals made by a powerful Senator who wanted to be able to seek reelection at any cost and, in the process, trampling freedom of speech and the free exercise of religion. We have grown up with a generation of chuch-goers that believe it is illegal for their pastor to address candidates and elections in light of Scripture or church doctrine when there is no valid justification for believing that.”

LifeSiteNews: “Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, Director of the Christian Defense Coalition, was arrested on Tuesday for praying on property where hundreds have prayed before – in front of the Washington, DC Planned Parenthood (PP) facility . . . ”

LifeNews: “As the FDA prepares for an advisory committee to meet on June 17 to consider whether the agency should approve a new drug called ulipristal (ellaOne), abortion advocates have ramped up their campaign to deny the drug causes abortions and are getting media help to do so.”

Interfax: “The organizers of a planned gay pride parade in St. Petersburg plan to seek support from the consulates in the city of European countries, Canada and the United States, the head of the parade organizing committee said.”

LifeNews: “Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels is seen as a potential 2012 presidential nominee to take on pro-abortion President Barack Obama. But, in an interview with the Weekly Standard, the potential candidate may have put is foot in his mouth by declaring a ‘truce’ on social issues like abortion.”

Interfax: “The European Court of Human Rights on Thursday ruled that the 2004 court ban on a Moscow Jehovah’s Witnesses community was illegal. The ban was in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights articles on freedom of thought, conscience, worship and assembly, the Strasbourg-based court said in a statement.” | Jehovah’s Witnesses of Moscow v. Russia (application no. 302/02)

KHQ (AP): “Rajan Zed read prayers from ancient Hindu scriptures late Tuesday at a Boise City Council meeting, a possible first for the city.”

Zee News: “UK’s crown Prince Charles has advocated greater adoption of birth control measures in developing countries, as he blamed ‘cultural pressures’ for resistance to such techniques and warned that it puts the planet at risk.”

LifeNews: “Add human cloning to abortion and assisted suicide as practices pro-life groups oppose but Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan supports. Files released from the Clinton library about Kagan’s time in the Clinton administration show her advocating cloning humans for dubious research.”

ADF attorney Kevin Theriot appeared on Reality Check Radio to discuss Equal Access Litigation and Conflicts. | MP3 11:49 mins | ADF Media: ADF seeks to end religious discrimination policies at more than 750 government-run facilities

Stephen Drake, research analyst for Not Dead Yet, writing in the Baltimore Sun: ” I think it’s important that readers – and the editors – know that Jerry Dincin misled readers on several points in his essay published on June 7 (“Death with dignity“). Mr. Dincin claims that authorities are ‘persecuting’ [Final Exit Network] members in Georgia and Arizona. That is a gross distortion. The authorities in Georgia and Arizona initiated investigations after complaints by concerned relatives that the apparent suicides of their loved ones were aided and encouraged by FEN members. That’s not ‘persecution’ — it’s ‘doing your job.’”

ADF attorney Jordan Lorence appeared on Moody Radio to discuss the case of a NASA Specialist demoted for belief in Intelligent Design. | MP3 8:11 mins | ADF Media

‘We’ve been harassed so bad we’re not running (the B&B),’ said Lee Molnar, who lives with his wife Susan in the southern interior community of Grand Forks.

FRC: “Family Research Council Senior Fellow Peter Sprigg will testify before the Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability (ACBSA) of the Department of Health and Human Services. He will urge the advisory committee to maintain the current policy which permanently defers men who have had sex with men since 1977 as blood donors . . . ”

Pink News (“Europe’s largest gay news service”): “Conservative prime minister David Cameron is to hold a reception for the LGBT community ahead of London Pride. The event will be held at Number 10 ahead of Pride Fortnight, PinkNews.co.uk can reveal.”

Bloomberg: “The collapse of the financial system as we know it is real, and the crisis is far from over,” Soros said today at a conference in Vienna. “Indeed, we have just entered Act II of the drama.” . . .

France 24: “A French Muslim man [Lies Hebbadj] has been formally charged Wednesday for taking welfare benefits to which he wasn’t entitled only two months after French Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux accused him of polygamy.”

The Police News: “Concerned that owners of a sexually oriented businesses turned down by Clute might make their way to Lake Jackson, City Council decided no sexually oriented business can set up shop in the city for the next six months.”

Hindustan Times: “In a massive crackdown against internet pornography, Chinese authorities have warned 55 websites of tough action if they continue to disseminate porn materials.”

FRC: “A new Web site launched by the Family Research Council – www.frc.org/tracker – tracks state legislation related to issues of importance to families, including religious liberty, abortion, homosexuality, domestic violence, the sanctity of marriage, embryonic research, pornography and education . . . The website link is http://www.frc.org/tracker.”

Law.com: The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 11-7 today to advance the nomination of Judge Robert Chatigny for the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. All but one Democrat voted for the nomination and all Republicans against it, similar to the committee’s May 13 vote on the nomination of Goodwin Liu for the 9th Circuit. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., voted ‘pass’ on Chatigny but did not explain her vote. Both nominations are likely to be drawn-out fights on the Senate floor.

James Altucher writes at the Wall Street Journal: “Art Laffer posted an op-ed in the WSJ yesterday explaining that the deferring of taxes increases to Jan. 1, 2011, will cause companies to push profits into 2010, making 2010 appearing very good and making 2011 appear awful, perhaps even creating an economic collapse in 2011. Laffer may have missed a few twists . . . Eventually companies have to hire more with their profits. The people they hire then become spending consumers, buying houses, cars, etc. This creates a cycle until equilibrium is reached at about 5% unemployment, where history has generally shown the employment levels to be at a point where there is neither inflation or deflation of wages . . . ”

Arthur Leffer writes at the Wall Street Journal: “Consider corporate profits as a share of GDP. Today, corporate profits as a share of GDP are way too high given the state of the U.S. economy. These high profits reflect the shift in income into 2010 from 2011. These profits will tumble in 2011, preceded most likely by the stock market . . . The result will be a crash in tax receipts once the surge is past. If you thought deficits and unemployment have been bad lately, you ain’t seen nothing yet . . . ”

“A briefing for members of Congress and their staffs featuring lead researchers and an ex-porn star’s personal experience with pornography.”

New York Times: “[F]armers like Mr. Stoltzfus are facing growing scrutiny for agricultural practices that the federal government sees as environmentally destructive. Their cows generate heaps of manure that easily washes into streams and flows onward into the Chesapeake Bay. And the Environmental Protection Agency, charged by President Obama with restoring the bay to health, is determined to crack down. The farmers have a choice: change the way they farm or face stiff penalties.”

The Hill: ‘The man nominated as Democrats’ candidate for Senate in South Carolina might have been a ‘plant,’ a high-ranking Democrat suggested Thursday.”

ADF attorney Matt Bowman appeared on Point of View Radio to discuss Alaska’s Parental Notification Initiative. | MP3 8:25 mins | ADF Media: Alaska Supreme Court upholds petitions for parental notification initiative

ADF attorney Daniel Blomberg appeared on KFUO with Roland Lettner to discuss DADT and the effect of repeal on religious speech. | MP3: 24:27

ADF attorney Kevin Theriot appeared on the Michael Medved Show to discuss the case of a NASA specialist demoted for his views on Intelligent Design. | MP3 32:52 mins| related ADF Media

BBC: “The largest ever genetic study into autism has identified many more new genes involved in the disorder. Oxford researchers writing in the journal Nature hope now to establish whether genetic tests can help in making early diagnosis.”

Chicago Tribune: “The boys, born March 31, have lived longer than doctors predicted, but they are critically ill. Medical experts say they cannot be separated and are not candidates for a heart transplant because of their complicated anatomy. They cannot breathe without a ventilator and are fed through tubes. Periodically, the babies go into distress and must be resuscitated to prevent them from dying.”

“The U.S. Department of State is pleased to use the occasion of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Month to announce its new policy guidelines regarding gender change in passports and Consular Reports of Birth Abroad.”

How Appealing reports on and links to the decision in Nefedro v. Montgomery Co, MD, No. 84.

Excerpt:

The petitioner in this case, Nick Nefedro, wishes to open a fortunetelling business in Montgomery County. Montgomery County, however, has an ordinance (“the FortunetellingOrdinance”) that prohibits the acceptance of remuneration for fortunetelling. Nefedro has asked us to determine whether the Fortunetelling Ordinance violates his right to freedom of speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article 40 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights. Montgomery County argues that the Ordinance does not implicate those constitutional provisions or, in the alternative, that it is consistent with the federal and state constitutions. After reviewing the facts of the case and the relevant sources of law, we shall agree with Nefedro.

Penny Nance of CWA writes at the Washington Times: “Our president, Barack Obama, has decided that a man who actively empathizes with serial killers and rapists, sex offenders and child pornographers should be given a promotion to a lifetime job. Robert Chatigny, a U.S. District judge in Connecticut, has been nominated by Mr. Obama to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, a bench position that has led other judges right up the U.S. Supreme Court.”

CitizenLink: “U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker has released a list of 39 questions for lawyers to address ahead of next week’s closing arguments in the Proposition 8 trial, the challenge to California’s law protecting the definition of marriage . . . ‘I don’t think it gives any indication about how he will rule,’ [ADF Attorney Dale Schowengerdt] said. ‘The questions show that the judge has put a lot of thought into the issue and to the evidence presented in the case.’”

Medical News Today: “Allen County commissioners this week will consider whether to allow Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund — a group of Christian lawyers — to defend the county in a lawsuit challenging a local ordinance imposing restrictions on abortion providers, the AP/CNBC reports.”

Tom Temin and Amy Morris interview Bill Bransford, partner, Shaw, Bransford and Roth on 1500 AM Federal News Radio: “Everyone has opinions about the origin of life, but what happens when feds talk about those beliefs in the workplace? For one person at NASA’s jet propulsion laboratory in California, the answer was a demotion and a written warning. The Alliance Defense Fund has filed suit on behalf of a team lead for the lab’s Cassini mission to Saturn.”

OneNewsNow: “Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) hopes to intervene in a lawsuit filed in Minnesota state court to overturn that state’s law on marriage . . . ‘[The lawsuit is] requesting the courts to engage in judicial activism by twisting the state constitution to throw out the state marriage laws and to reject the great public policy benefits that come to a society that defines marriage as one man and one woman,’ [ADF Attorney Jordan Lorence] reports. ‘Children benefit best when they’re raised by their own father and mother.’” | ADF News Release

OneNewsNow: “[Joe Infranco], senior legal counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), reports that a lawsuit now has been filed in the case. ‘[Coppedge] was discussing intelligent design with willing co-workers, and intelligent design . . . deals with the scientific evidence for issues like the creation of universe and the creation of life,’ Infranco explains. ‘Although Mr. Coppedge was talking about intelligent design, he has been put in a position where he was discriminated against, because it was perceived by the employer he was speaking about religion.’” | ADF News Release

Religion Clause Blog: “The Mormon Church has agreed to pay a proposed $5,539 monetary penalty to California’s Fair Political Practices Committee (FPPC) for failing to properly report contributions of $36,968 (including staff time) it made in 2008 to support the passage of Proposition 8, California’s ban on same-sex marriage.”

Religion Clause Blog: “Politics Daily reported yesterday on a new advertising campaign in Britain aimed at improving the public perception of Islam. Ads running on buses, in subway stations and on a fleet of cabs emphasize the way in which contemporary Muslims balance their religious traditions with human rights concerns and social responsibility . . . ”

Discovery Institute | Evolution News & Views: “Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), a national legal organization whose allied attorneys have logged over 100 million dollars worth of pro bono hours of legal work, has issued a statement backing David Coppedge’s lawsuit against Jet Propulsion Laboratory.” | ADF News Release

Religion Clause Blog: “Today’s New York Timesreports that in 2007, the court granted summary judgment to Craig, finding that the city had “utterly failed” to explain why it could not have accommodated Craig’s religious beliefs.”

AP: “Cuba and China are more peaceful than the United States, according to a global peace index published Thursday. The report, which says the world is becoming a more violent place, was prepared by the Sydney, Australia-based Institute for Economics and Peace . . . ”

Virtue Online: “‘We are disappointed with today’s ruling and will review it as we consider our options. This is not the final chapter in this matter. The court’s ruling simply involved one of our statutory defenses, and these properties are titled in the name of the congregations’ trustees, not in the name of the Diocese or The Episcopal Church. So we continue to be confident in our legal position as we move forward and will remain steadfast in our effort to defend the historic Christian faith,’ said Jim Oakes, chairman of the Anglican District of Virginia, which is the umbrella organization for the nine Anglican congregations.”

WorldNetDaily: “A college instructor who worked as a senior elections clerk for the city and county of Honolulu in 2008 is making the stunning claim Barack Obama was definitely not born in Hawaii as the White House maintains, and that a long-form, hospital-generated birth certificate for Obama does not even exist in the Aloha State . . . ”

“The California Supreme Court has decided to hear an Orange County church’s appeal to keep its beachfront church property, despite breaking away from the main Episcopal Church.”

AP: “The nation’s minority population is steadily rising and now makes up 35 percent of the United States, advancing an unmistakable trend that could render them the new American majority by midcentury.”

“As many as 10,000 protesters from across the country – including family members who lost loved ones on Sept. 11, 2001 – took to the streets in New York City Sunday to fight construction of a 13-story Islamic mosque . . . ”

The Telegraph: “With 88 per cent of the votes counted, published partial results showed the Liberals with 31 and Labour on 30. But the real victory went to Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom (PVV), which demands an end to immigration from Muslim countries and a ban on new mosques.”

Washington Times: “The Internet has become the great political equalizer, giving life this year to insurgent candidates who would never have been able to break through the near-complete control that political parties used to exercise over their nominations . . . ”

Washington Times: “When Ms. Kagan served as Mr. Clinton’s deputy domestic policy adviser, she was a feverish proponent of gun control. From gunlock mandates to gun-show regulations, she was instrumental in pushing anti-gun policies, according to the Los Angeles Times.”

The Hill: “Less than 24 hours after Alvin Greene’s surprise win in the South Carolina Democratic Senate primary, the state party has asked him to withdraw from the race because of a pending felony charge.”

The Hill: “Democratic leaders are scrambling to prevent the Senate from delivering a stinging slap to President Barack Obama on climate change.”

National Right to Life: “Summer brings three things to Washington: 90 degree days, tourists from around the world, and some of the country’s best and brightest college students for summer internships. Every year, National Right to Life hosts young men and women from across the country as part of both our college internship program and the National Right to Life Academy . . . This is the second year National Right to Life has participated in the program and we are thrilled to welcome Jon Scharfenberger, Mark Guillaudeu, and Jess Brown. Additionally, Wesley Robinson, a law student at Villanova University School of Law, will clerk in the Powell Center for Medical Ethics as part of the Alliance Defense Fund’s Blackstone Fellowship Program . . . ”