Daily Archives: February 26, 2013

Chicago Phoenix: However, a vote on the marriage equality bill will likely still happen tonight, according to several advocates of the measure on the ground here.

AP: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has signed a bill legalizing Internet gambling, making his state the third in the nation to offer online betting.

The New Zealand Herald: A Parliamentary Select Committee has recommended that a bill to legalise same-sex marriage be passed into law

STLToday: Earlier this month, the chairman of the Illinois GOP warned that his party was on “the wrong side of history” in opposing gay marriage rights. Now, he may have ended up on the wrong side of his party.

Journal Star: Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers forced a vote Tuesday on the issue of discrimination based on sexual orientation with an amendment to an unrelated bill.

Reuters: The brief to be filed in the Proposition 8 case, a draft of which was obtained by Reuters, has been joined by such companies as Apple Inc, Nike Inc, Facebook Inc, Morgan Stanley, Intel Corp, Xerox Corp, AIG Inc and Cisco Systems Inc.

Washington Post: Chuck Hagel won confirmation Tuesday to become defense secretary over objections to his views on Middle East security and the administration’s handling of an attack on a U.S. consulate in Libya.

One News Now: “Well, I think that there [are] sort of public policy reasons for discouraging the repeal of the prohibition of adultery,” she notes. “And also, this bill includes the elimination of crimes against promoting sexual immorality, and the reasons for not wanting to repeal this language include disrupting families, promotion of prostitution and unwed pregnancies.”

Engage Family Minute: You can wear just about anything you want to school these days. You can even be a boy and dress in girls clothing, or vice versa. But if you dare to wear a shirt promoting abstinence, you will be asked to change it. The video below shares the story of one girl in Florida that had this experience. Click here for original article.

Citizen Link: The American Family Association (AFA) in Tupelo says the mandate violates its religious freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution and federal law. AFA faces mounting fines if it chooses not to comply.

Christianity Today: Escalating violence in northern Syria is forcing Christians to flee their homeland and take refuge in nearby regions of Armenia and Turkey.

Bloomberg BNA: Protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender workers continue to emerge, but still more can be done to stop discrimination, an Equal Employment Opportunity commissioner and others said Feb. 13 during an employment law webinar sponsored by the American Bar Association

Boston Globe: Late last year, the nation’s highest court said it would consider a legal challenge to patents that biotechnology company Myriad Genetics holds on genes linked to risk of breast cancer. Now, Eric Lander—a leader in the human genome project, a scientific adviser to President Obama, and the head of the Broad Institute in Cambridge—has weighed in, filing an amicus brief.

Christian Newswire: HB 481, The Ethical Treatment of Human Embryos Act, is designed to help bring biotechnological companies to Georgia by removing uncertainty for venture capitalists and companies. The measure has five co-sponsors.

NWA Online: Gov. Mike Beebe on Tuesday vetoed House Bill 1037, which would have banned abortions after 20 weeks of gestation.

Turtle Bay and Beyond: The Court establishes that the impossibility of second-parent adoption in a same-sex relationship is discriminatory when such adoption is possible for unmarried heterosexual couples, although the exclusion of the biological parent. The reasoning may be thus summarised: If the woman had been a man, the adoption would have been possible, so it must be possible in the name of non-discrimination according to sexual orientation while the woman is not a man.

Turtle Bay and Beyond: A letter from Republican lawmakers seeking an accounting for the millions of dollars flowing to Planned Parenthood and its affiliates was sent this week to the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

Christian Institute: Politicians are too frightened to admit family breakdown is causing major damage, a senior family lawyer has said.

Middle East Forum: It is a truism that the de-Baathification process in Iraq was turned into virtual “de-Sunnification” in many respects and thus helped to fuel the Sunni Arab insurgency in the period 2003-2005. However, one area that stands out as a notable exception is the judiciary.

WSPA.com: Which is why this board voted 3 to 2 to pass a new policy allowing a non-sectarian prayer, meaning it doesn’t favor any specific religion.

ACLU-TN: This week the Tennessee General Assembly will consider two bills that would allow the use of religion to discriminate, under the guise of protecting religious freedom.

MyFox28Columbus: The American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut says officials in a school district are reversing themselves and allowing a student to wear a T-shirt with an anti-gay message.

World Magazine: Nine years after approving a ban on same-sex “marriage,” Ohio voters may have to return to the ballot box to defend the measure. Gay advocacy group FreedomOhio claims it will have enough signatures to put a proposition overturning the 2004 ban on the November ballot.

ABC: A same-sex marriage bill could come to a vote in an Illinois House committee today.

My Fox Austin: Sen. Dan Patrick laid out Senate Bill 97 to the Senate Health and Human Services on Tuesday, the first step to passing the bill into law . . . Patrick’s bill would require doctors to only prescribe the drug known as Ru486 to women in the first seven weeks of her pregnancy and following a physical examination by the doctor. The woman must take the pill in a clinic.

Ken Connor at Christian Post: The message our culture now sends is clear: An unintended pregnancy, particularly for a young person, is a virtual death sentence – at least it was in a pre-Roe America. Thanks to that landmark ruling, however, your youngster’s momentary lapse in judgment need not have life-altering consequences. A quick trip to the friendly neighborhood Planned Parenthood is all that’s needed

Christian Post: A pro-life group has launched a nationwide campaign seeking to revoke the medical license of infamous abortion practitioner Dr. Leroy Carhart in response to the death of a New York kindergarten teacher.

Gay Star News: When asked if he agreed with former Utah governor Jon Huntsman that it was time for the GOP to push for marriage rights for gay couples and families, Jindal replied no.

The Morning Call: Women in Pennsylvania who use the health insurance exchange to be established under the federal health care reform law would not have coverage for abortion even if their health was at stake, according to a bill under consideration in Harrisburg.

Washington Times: A group of 72 lawmakers have revived an effort to ask the government’s watchdog agency to scrutinize taxpayer dollars going to Planned Parenthood and five other organizations who provide family-planning services.

Front Page Magazine: A Christian pastor was recently slaughtered in the Muslim-majority African nation of Tanzania. While butchering Christian minorities is becoming increasingly common in that part of the Muslim world, the context for this latest slaughter is somewhat different than the usual forms of Christian persecution under Islam—such as allegations of “blaspheming” the name of Muslim prophet Muhammad.

WorldNetDaily: The Sudanese regime of Omar al-Bashir has detained approximately 55 Christians without charge, perhaps to curry favor with Islamic forces in his country, reports the advocacy group Christian Solidarity Worldwide.

Haaretz: ctively revising the three monotheisms’ archaic homophobic legacy may not be 100% historically honest, but it is certainly necessary for reframing more tolerant versions of these religions.

Anthony Bradley at LifeSiteNews: Brittney C. Cooper, Assistant professor of Women’s and Gender studies and Africana Studies at Rutgers University, writes at Ebony Magazine.com that President Obama is being unfair to the black community by pointing out that many of the violence-related pathologies in inner cities are a result of fatherlessness

LifeSiteNews: A former Ohio congressman has appealed his lawsuit holding the Susan B. Anthony List responsible for “loss of livelihood” when voters defeated him in 2010.

LifeSiteNews: “Pick up the phone right now and ask a Conservative MP to stand up for our women and girls by voting against the Gender/Bathroom Bill C-279,” an organization to promote Christian principles in Canadian society is urgently asking concerned citizens.

World Net Daily: In a letter, David A. Cortman and other attorneys in the Alliance Defending Freedom told the North Carolina High School Athletics Association it has “a constitutional duty to protect students’ First Amendment right to freedom of speech and freedom of religion.” . . . “We do not believe that the NCHSAA fulfilled that duty in this case and we find the comments made by Mr. Whitfield in support of the NCHSAA referee’s actions deeply troubling,” said the ADF letter. ADF has given the North Carolina group until March 6 to answer whether it will take steps “to ensure that students’ right to express their faith at school athletic events is respected in the future.”

World Net Daily: They’re targeting 12 key states: Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Alaska, Arkansas, Nevada, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia and West Virginia. The strategy was profiled Monday by David Brody of CBN News. Brody said the groups – led by the American Renewal Project – are planning briefings for evangelical pastors, voter-registration drives and other events in an attempt “to restore American to its Judeo-Christian heritage.”

CNSNews: The assertion came in the case of Tyndale House Publishers v. Sebelius, a challenge to the Obama administration’s regulation requiring health-care plans to cover sterilizations, contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs . . . “Consistent with the religious beliefs of Tyndale and its owners, Tyndale’s self-insured plan does not and has never covered abortions or abortifacient drugs or devices such as emergency contraception and intrauterine devices,” Tyndale said in its legal complaint, prepared by the Alliance Defending Freedom.

Bryan A. Garner at ABA Journal: I’ve been trying, in other words, to say that lawyers on the whole don’t write well and have no clue that they don’t write well. Now, thanks to an erudite lawyer friend of mine in Atlanta, Scott Killingsworth, I’ve discovered that there’s a scientific explanation for this phenomenon: the Dunning-Kruger effect. In 1999, two Cornell psychologists—David Dunning and Justin Kruger—conducted a series of studies . . .

NewsOK: The Oklahoma City magistrate judge’s confirmation was delayed by politics for nearly nine months before he was unanimously approved by U.S. Senate

National Post: Canada’s controversial 20-year-old legal definition of hatred is set to be updated or even overturned on Wednesday, as the Supreme Court of Canada rules in the case of William Whatcott, a born-again anti-gay pamphleteer who ran afoul of Saskatchewan’s Human Rights Code.

Yahoo News: North Carolina high school wrestling official issued a warning to a Wake Forest-Rolesville (Wake Forest, N.C.) High competitor for praying prior to a match, eventually costing him a point and leading to a 3-0 loss, according to the Raleigh News & Observer.

Charlotte Observer: Wake Forest-Rolesville’s coach said he will ask for clarification of a rule that led an official to give one of his wrestlers a warning for taking a kneel to pray on the mat before his match Tuesday. Sam Hershey, though, said he has no plans to report the official’s decision to the N.C. High School Athletic Association for wrongdoing.

Todd Starnes at Fox News: It’s been a season-long tradition for Nicholas Fant to drop to one knee and offer a two-second prayer before his wrestling matches. But on Tuesday, that two-second prayer got the Wake Forest-Rolesville High School student in trouble.

Buzz Feed: The Alliance Defending Freedom is urging prayers for the lawyers fighting to uphold Proposition 8 and DOMA for them, their families, and their “service on behalf of the just and worthy cause of protecting marriage.” Lawyers opposing the laws get prayers “that God would manifest His goodness in [their] life.” In addition to the prayer effort, the Alliance Defending Freedom is also putting forth an education effort — similar to action being advanced by groups seeking to have DOMA and Proposition 8 struck down.
Here is ADF’s DOMA video . . . | Alliance Defending Freedom Marriage Page

David Hacker at Speak Up Movement: Most people think student fees pay things like services in the student union, the gym, and occasional funding of student groups conducting a service project. But universities have turned these mandatory fees in campus slush funds for the left . . . What can you do? It’s unlikely mandatory student fees will go away anytime soon. But the best answer to bad speech is good speech. If you’re part of a student group on campus, apply to get student fees for your own events that promote decency and respect life.

UK Supreme Court: Lord Neuberger, President of the Supreme Court, today welcomes the announcement of three appointments to the Court.

Mike Norton appeared on the Zeb Bell Show to discuss this: New lawsuit: Planned Parenthood forced, botched abortion. | MP3 audio 11:26 mins

Tony Perkins at Townhall: Bullying knows no boundaries. It’s not just boys on the playground or people at work; it can even be organizations on the national stage as was revealed in a federal court room on February 6th.

Religion Clause Blog: The Forward reported yesterday on the unique problems of religious accommodation in complying with the federal Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 faced by ultra-Orthodox Jewish schools. Under the Act and implementing regulations, federal assistance for a school’s food program is available only if the school’s menus meet specified nutritional guidelines.

AP: A lawsuit brought by a lesbian Army veteran and her wife over the denial of disability benefits can move forward over the objections of the Department of Justice, a federal judge in California ruled Monday.

AP: Responding to Dutch assertions that the legislation may be contrary to Russia’s international obligations, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said there . . .

AP: A Dutch appeals court has upheld a (EURO)60 ($90) fine against an Orthodox Jew who refused to show police an identity card, citing religious reasons.

AP: Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said Tuesday that Nigeria must do more to alleviate the extreme poverty across the nation’s predominantly Muslim north in order to halt the wave of bombings, shootings and kidnappings by Islamic extremists there.

News from the Missouri Family Policy Council: “Silencing religious voices in public schools tells students that faith is something to be ashamed of,” says Jeremy Tedesco of the Alliance Defending Freedom, which is representing the student in the case. “The First Amendment does not allow public schools to require students to put a lid on their expressions of faith.”

Scott Yenor at Public Discourse: Jonathan Last’s new book attributes population decline and the birth dearth to two trends that started in the Enlightenment era–first, an effort to limit death; second, an effort to control birth. Both trends are guided by a desire to control nature.

NY Times: Dozens of prominent Republicans — including top advisers to former President George W. Bush, four former governors and two members of Congress — have signed a legal brief arguing that gay people have a constitutional right to marry, a position that amounts to a direct challenge to Speaker John A. Boehner and reflects the civil war in the party since the November election.

Election Law Blog: Via SCOTUSBlog comes the news that the Supreme Court, without comment, has denied cert. in Danielczyk v. U.S.,The decision not to hear the case is significant, because it means the Supreme Court majority, which has shown hostility to campaign finance limits, has decided not to move as aggressively as it could in further deregulating the campaign finance system.

The United States Commission on Civil Rights announces that it will hold a briefing to examine recent legal developments concerning the intersection of nondiscrimination principles with those of civil liberties. The briefing will take place on Friday, March 22, 2013 at 9:30 AM EST in the Commission’s new headquarters office at 1331 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20425. The offices are accessed using the F Street NW entrance. Interested members of the public are invited to attend.

James Taranto at the Wall Street Journal: That’s a lesson one might draw from yesterday’s extraordinary column by Patrick Pexton, the veteran journalist who, according to the Post’s website, “represents readers who have concerns or complaints” about “accuracy, fairness, ethics and the newsgathering process.” One such reader wrote to both Pexton and a Post reporter to complain that the paper’s coverage of same-sex marriage gives “short shrift” to “the conservative, pro-family side of the argument.”