Daily Archives: June 27, 2011

Baptist Press: The issue of religious liberty has been at the forefront of conservative concerns about “gay marriage.” After it was legalized in Massachusetts in 2004, Catholic Charities chose to get out of adoptions instead of being forced to place children in same-sex homes. While the language might prevent that from happening in New York, Alliance Defense Fund attorney Austin R. Nimocks says, it would not protect a husband-and-wife photography team from state action if they declined to take pictures at a same-sex “wedding.” It also would do nothing to prevent the teaching of “gay marriage” in New York schools. Alliance Defense Fund is a legal organization that fights for religious liberty. Following is a partial transcript of an interview with Nimocks . . .

Charisma: “No one should be allowed to decide that an innocent life is worthless. Abortionists have done this by telling women that a pre-born baby is just a batch of cells instead of what he or she actually is: a human being. This law ends that deception in Indiana,” says Alliance Defense Fund Senior Counsel Steven H. Aden. “All the court did was recognize the indisputable fact that a biological human life begins at conception. It is false to say anything else.”

The ADF Alliance Alert will not be published on Tuesday, June 28th through Thursday, June 30th. Regular publication will resume on Friday, July 1st. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

AP: Gay-marriage supporters in the Land of 10,000 Lakes will be working fervently to end a 31-state losing streak at the polls and defeat a proposed amendment on the 2012 ballot that would limit marriage to one-man, one-woman unions.

LifeSiteNews.com: An attorney for the Aid For Women (AFW) abortion clinic in Kansas City has told reporters that the facility has been denied a license to perform abortions.

LifeNews.com: The Texas state legislature has approved the Senate Bill 7 Conference Committee Report that would revoke the taxpayer funding for the Planned Parenthood abortion business. With the actions by the state House and Senate, the measure now heads to pro-life Gov. Rick Perry for his signature.

LifeNews.com: Gov. Betty Perdue, fresh from vetoing the state budget containing a provision de-funding the Planned Parenthood abortion business, has vetoed a pro-life bill to allow women a chance to see an ultrasound of their unborn children.

Assyrian International News Agency: A mob of nearly 200 Muslims torched eight Christian homes on Saturday morning in the Upper Egyptian village of Awlad Khalaf. The attack was initiated by a rumor that a house which is being built by Wahib Halim Attia will be turned into a church. Two Christians and one Muslim were injured, no fatalities were reported.

Catholic Culture: For the 2nd time this month, Chinese officials have abruptly abandoned plans for the ordination of a bishop—after the priest who was to have been consecrated as a bishop obtained the approval of the Holy See.

Judge places Indiana’s abortionist defunding provision on hold but agrees women can be told ‘human physical life’ begins at conception

The Volokh Conspiracy » Court Takes Public Employee Union Dues Case: Among the eleven (11) cases upon which the Court granted cert this morning is ZZ: Knox v. Service Employees Int’l Union Local 1000 . . .

A Forgotten Battleground: Sixteen states in particular face a greater battle in the fight against abortion than their fellows. This is an underappreciated aspect of the challenge we face. The courts of Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Tennessee, Vermont, and West Virginia have found abortion to be a right protected by the state constitution.

Seattlepi.com: A state district judge Thursday ordered an Alamogordo man to immediately take down a billboard that implies his ex-girlfriend had an abortion.

CNSnews.com: As New York enacted a law late Friday that legalizes same-sex marriage in the state, the Roman Catholic bishops of New York released a statement saying they now expect efforts to enact laws that go after churches that insist on teaching the “timeless truths” about marriage and family.

Catholic Culture: he bishops of New York State have issued a statement lamenting the State Senate’s 33-29 vote approving the legalization of same-sex marriage. Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Catholic, signed the measure into law.

Catholic Culture: Ireland’s largest teachers’ union has called for government policies that would restrict the religious character of denominational schools.

LifeSiteNews.com (includes video): On June 27, 2011, the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform (CCBR) will be driving home its message—literally. Starting Monday, CCBR will cruise Central Alberta highways and community streets (including Airdrie, Red Deer, Camrose, and Edmonton) with an 11-meter long box-bodied truck with billboards showing aborted human beings. Their week-long tour is called the “Reproductive ‘Choice’ Campaign.”

LifeSiteNews.com: After a lengthy process, the French Parliament has adopted a revision of the 1999 bioethics law, introducing several changes that will make embryo research and eugenic prenatal screening easier to perform. However, some of the worst aspects of the law as initially submitted by the government and specialized commissions of the National Assembly and the Senate were finally voted down after protracted discussions.

LifeSiteNews.com: In accordance with a national school curriculum that seeks to fight the “stereotyping” of gender roles, a preschool in the Sodermalm district of Stockholm has incorporated a gender-free pedagogy that eliminates any reference to gender completely.

OneNewsNow.com: Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), calls it “a tragic day” for both New York and the United States. “The people of New York were robbed of the right to vote directly on this issue, and the legislature forced this on the state,” he tells OneNewsNow. “And really, the blame lies with the Republican Party

AP: Planned Parenthood filed a federal lawsuit Monday over a provision pushed by abortion opponents in Kansas’ next state budget that prevents the organization from receiving federal family planning dollars.

British Pakistani Christian Association: Mob of 2500 fanatics forced Police to use decoy to save an innocent Christian, who simply saved 8 year old nephew from blasphemy attack!

The Local: German state interior ministers are warning of a rise in radical Salafist Islam that poses a risk of home-grown terrorism, with one politician calling for changes to residency laws so “hate preachers” can be more easily deported.

Telegraph Blogs: But Wilders has every right to wish to preserve his national culture. And the very fact that he is going on trial for his views, and under permanent guard, is disturbing and disgraceful, and shows that that culture is in danger

How Appealing links to news reports and the ruling in Aids Healthcare Foundation v. Los Angeles Dept. of Public Health

AP: Chief Justice John Roberts says he’s concerned about the effect that having television cameras in the Supreme Court would have on lawyers and justices.

LifeNews.com: A U.S. House Committee last week voted for legislation funding the District of Columbia that retains a ban on taxpayer funding of abortions in the nation’s capital — a key provision Speaker John Boehner secured earlier this year.

LifeNews.com: Florida Gov. Rick Scott has signed two pro-life bills that would help stop abortions — including one that calls for tightening parental involvement laws on teen abortions and another that allows women to see an ultrasound of their baby before the abortion.

Jezebel: A May Alliance Defense Fund poll which claimed a 2.53% margin of error found that 62% of Americans think marriage should be defined “only as a union between one man and one woman.”

Catholic League: Catholic League president Bill Donohue explains why he is opposed to funding faith-based programs under President Obama . . .

Catholic League: Ultimately, this issue will not be resolved in the courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court: it will be decided by a constitutional amendment.

LifeNews.com: With pro-life Gov. Scott Walker signing the state budget into law in Wisconsin, the Badger State becomes the fourth to cut funding for the Planned Parenthood abortion business — following decisions by Indiana, North Carolina and Kansas to revoked funding entirely.

Engage Family Blog: What the outcome will be for West Virginia is not dependent upon what happened in New York, but there are lessons to be learned. One lesson ought to be painfully clear: what we have said from the beginning, what we have continued to predict would be the case has come true. Now is not the time for West Virginia’s lawmakers to ignore the issue. It is the duty of every lawmaker in West Virginia to secure the right of all West Virginians to vote on the definition of marriage.

University Faculty for Life : The NYT ran a front page article today on the passage of laws limiting abortion in recognition that an unborn child feels pain at 20 weeks. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/27/us/27abortion.html
While the article is better than most NYT pieces on abortion as far as trying to be even handed (I know this is faint praise), the reporter omits some important facts . . .

Religion Clause: Dutch right-wing politician Geert Wilders was acquitted by an Amsterdam court yesterday of charges of group defamation against Muslims, and incitement to hatred and discrimination against Muslims based on their religion and race . . . Now lawyers for those who filed complaints against Wilders are considering taking the case to the United Nations Human Rights Council or to the European Court.

Religion Clause: On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate, by a vote of 64-35, confirmed the nomination of Michael Simon as federal district judge for the district of Oregon.

Religion Clause: Explaining his mission, Fitzgibbons says: “charitable solicitation laws divert more than $500 million in donor money each year from its intended purposes.” A link to Charity Regulator Watch has been added to the Religion Clause sidebar.

The Supreme Court on Monday struck down a provision of a campaign financing system in Arizona that gives extra cash to publicly funded candidates who face privately funded rivals and independent groups.

SCOTUSblog: This morning the Court granted cert. in a whopping eleven cases. The complete order list from the June 23 Conference is available here. In FCC v. Fox, the Court granted cert. limited to one question: whether the FCC’s current indecency enforcement regime violates the First or Fifth Amendments . . .

AP: ecretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is celebrating New York’s legalization of same-sex marriage as a historic human rights victory that will give much-needed credibility and visibility to the international movement for equality for gays and lesbians.

ADF attorney Matthew Sharp at The Desert Sun (6/22): It should be beyond dispute in America today that all citizens should be treated equally without regard to their race, color, gender or religion. Yet far too often, governments discriminate against people of faith because of the religious content of their speech.

ADF attorney Steven Aden at Townhall (6/24): As the fight for life over death continues, the battlefield has shifted to the states, where legislatures realigned politically as a result of the November 2010 mid-term elections are doing yeoman’s work in the defense of innocents. This work consists in defunding the mammoth tax-payer funded abortion provider, Planned Parenthood.

Religion Clause: In ZZ: Self Realization Meditation Healing Centre v. Charter Township of Bath, (MI App., June 21, 2011), a Michigan appellate court agreed with the state’s Tax Tribunal that a Self Realization Healing Centre is not entitled to either a charitable or a religious tax exemption.

. . . the video-game and software industries, filed a preenforcement challenge to a California law that restricts the sale or rental of violent video games to minors.

Marriage and Religion Research Institute: Three facts shape our on-going fiscal crisis: Government revenues come from the taxation of our economy. Our economic growth is and will continue to be a fraction of that of the pre-1960′s era (cf. Chart 1) because of the breakdown in marriage. All the while, more citizens are pushed into dependency on this government, again because of marriage breakdown.

Life Legal Defense Foundation: Life Legal Defense Foundation is pleased to announce the first presentation of its groundbreaking seminar on health care workers’ rights to conscientiously object to participating in specific medical practices. “DO NO HARM” is an informational course aimed at educating pharmacists who object to distributing drugs harmful to human life. Although this seminar focuses on the specific context of the pharmacy, the concepts discussed are analogous and transferable to other medical disciplines as well. Mark Your Calendars­the first-ever presentation of this seminar will be held live on Saturday, September 17, 2011 in Salem, Oregon. Attention Oregon supporters! Invite your friends and family to join us!

AP:
undreds of thousands of people dancing and wearing costumes are packing the streets of South America’s biggest city to celebrate gay pride and call for an end to homophobia.

Steve Malanga at the WSJ.com: While the national media has focused on state budget face-offs between government unions and governors such as Wisconsin’s Scott Walker, municipal officials like Mr. DeStefano are engaged in their own budget warfare. Wages and benefits account for 30% of state general fund expenditures, according to data from the National Governors Association. But U.S. Census surveys show that in the typical town or school district, employee pay and benefits can consume from 70% to 80% of the budget.

LATimes.com: Courtin is pregnant. Kate will soon have a sister, Phoebe, conceived from Eisenpresser’s egg and sperm from a donor — the same 6-foot-1 Harvard grad, who scored a 1580 on the SAT, who served as Kate’s donor.

AP: Is it unconstitutional to ban the sale or rental of ultraviolent video games to children? The Supreme Court plans to answer that question Monday . . .

Chet Brokaw at AP: The small sign outside the Alpha Center in Sioux Falls quietly announces a roster of available services: “Free pregnancy tests, abortion information, STD testing.”

A majority of Americans tell pollsters they do not want taxpayer dollars to subsidize abortions.

Toronto Sun: V personality Damian Goddard, who was fired after tweeting his support of the Catholic church’s stance on gay marriage, will file a complaint with the human rights commision against his former employer, Rogers Communications Inc.

AP: The Supreme Court is expected to rule Monday on an Arizona campaign finance law that gives extra cash to publicly funded candidates who face privately funded rivals and independent groups.

AP: China’s local governments have piled up debts of $1.6 trillion, the national audit agency announced Monday, amid mounting concern Chinese banks might be hurt if borrowers cannot repay loans.

AP: A Qatar sports center says it plans a women-only cinema that would be the latest no-men-allowed venture in the Gulf.

AP: The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, his son and his intelligence chief for crimes against humanity in the early days of their struggle to cling to power.

The Washington Post: Kennedy has now served on the court for nearly 25 years. In the event that Obama should not win reelection next year, it seems probable that a Republican president would attempt to replace Kennedy, who turns 77 in 2013, with a justice less receptive to gay equality.

OneNewsNow.com: An American-based corporation that designs and sells consumer electronics and provides communication services has allegedly fired one of its leadership consultants for his political and religious views on same-sex “marriage.” Dr. Frank Turek has gone public with his story.

AP: Lisa Miller’s path from lesbian in committed relationship to international fugitive started in 2003.

American Federation for Children: In approving the state budget, Walker enacted a significant expansion of the popular Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. The state’s 2011-2013 budget contains language that increases income eligibility for the program and removes the cap on the number of participants. The budget also allows children in Milwaukee to attend the private schools of their parents’ choice—anywhere in Wisconsin.

SCOTUSblog: The case also means that the Court has taken a sharp turn in favor of federal preemption, in effect turning the traditional presumption against so-called impossibility preemption toward a presumption in favor of federal preemption, at least under schemes that operate like the federal prescription drug laws here.

Adnkronos Religion: Hundreds of Muslim extremists surrounded a church in central Egypt and threatened to kill the local priest, the Assyrian International News Agency reported. The extremists began targeting the church in a village 7 kilometres south of the city of Minya in March after renovation work began, threatening to demolish the church.

Bloomberg: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said he is “not a fan” of same-sex marriage and wouldn’t follow neighboring New York’s lead by legalizing it.

NYPOST.com: One of the world’s oldest and largest gay pride parades turned into a carnival-like celebration of same-sex marriage Sunday as hundreds of thousands of revelers rejoiced at New York’s new law giving gay couples the same marital rights as everyone else.

Telegraph: It is in the interest of cash-rich China to help resolve the eurozone debt crisis, but Chinese premier Wen Jiabao, who is visiting Britain and Continental Europe, will want a share of the West’s buying power in return .

Christian Post (6/26): While a Gallup poll last month found that 53 percent of Americans believe gay marriage should be legalized, a poll by Alliance Defense Fund around the same time showed that 62 percent of Americans say marriage should be defined “only as a union between one man and one woman.”

Geoffrey A. Fowler and Carol E. Lee at WSJ.com: Opponents point to a May Alliance Defense Fund poll which claimed a 2.53% margin of error found that 62% of Americans think marriage should be defined “only as a union between one man and one woman.”

AZ Republic (6/25): Attorneys at the Alliance Defense Fund, a Scottsdale-based alliance of attorneys representing conservative Christian issues, said it was disappointing that legislators did not represent their constituents on the issue. “It’s not a circumstance where the expertise of legislators is required,” said Austin Nimocks, ADF senior legal counsel. “People know marriage. They live it and understand it, and they don’t need legislators to dictate to them the definition of marriage.”

LifeNews.com: Three pro-life legal groups have weighed in on the case — including the American Center for Law and Justice, Alliance Defense Fund and Thomas More Society — and they have said the law is constitutional.

OneNewsNow.com (6/25): ADF attorney Austin R. Nimocks says the law flies in the face of Wisconsin voters. “Marriage provides a strong foundation for a thriving society,” says Nimocks. “That’s why they approved a constitutional amendment that specifically protects marriage from all imitators. Politicians and activist groups should not be allowed to get around that — and we will appeal this decision because this domestic partnership scheme is precisely the type of marriage imitation that the voters intended to prevent.”

USATODAY.com (6/24): “The opposition has created an illusion of momentum but not a real base of support or track record of victory in the courts,” said Brian Raum, senior counsel with the conservative Alliance Defense Fund.

Christian Newswire (6/24): Today, on behalf of the adult stem researchers it represents, the Jubilee Campaign’s Law of Life Project and their co-counsel at the Alliance Defense Fund and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, following a second remand from the United States Court of Appeals, filed its “supplemental brief” asking the United States District Court to provide summary judgment on each of their clients’ claims based on the National Institute of Health’s clear violation of two separate laws: (1) the Dickey-Wicker Amendment that bars federal funding of any “research in which” human embryos are “knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death;” and, (2) the Administrative Procedure Act that prohibits a government agency, from patently ignoring or prejudging public comments submitted in opposition to unlawful agency action, like NIH has been and is doing in this case. [numerous hyperlinks available at the Christian Newswire site]

Hal Boyd at Deseret News (6/24): Most U.S. adults still support traditional marriage according to a new poll. The study, sponsored by the Alliance Defense Fund and conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, surveyed 1,500 adults and found that 62 percent agreed with the statement: “I believe marriage should be defined ONLY as a union between one man and one woman.”

Michael Foust at Baptist Press (6/24): Byron Babione, an attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund, has called Obama’s position on DOMA “nonsense.” “DOMA actually protects the right of states to determine social policy with respect to marriage,” Babione told Baptist Press. “It allows states the freedom to protect marriage between a man and a woman and not to have the same-sex marriages of other states imposed upon them…. Repealing DOMA actually does the opposite of protecting states’ rights…. Repealing of DOMA also would do untold damage to the benefits that marriage brings to society. It would open the way to defining marriage and its value out of existence.”