BMAT
Moral Action Committee
Watchman Report
#52 10/07/2005BMAT
Moral Action Committee
Watchman Report
#52 10/07/2005
First Anniversary Edition of the Watchman Report
Click on an article to view OR scroll through the document:
1. Assisted Suicide Case Will Have Nationwide Impact
2. Free market Foundation statement on Prop. 2
3. Supreme Court to Hear Key Pro-Life Cases
4. Unwed Births Plague United States
5. Bill Kristol: Conservatives ‘Demoralized’ over Miers
6. Important information on the long time liberal leaning Supreme Court
7. Changing the Guard
8. Evolution/Creation Debate Now Science vs. Science not Science vs. Religion
9. Handling With CARE
10.Governor Schwarzenegger Vetoes Bill to Legalize California Same-Sex Marriage
11. Concerns Voiced About Text for Public School Bible Course
12. The city of Jerusalem was the target of a massive international prayer initiative Sunday
13. Conservatives Fight Tax Credits for Gulf Coast Casinos
14. State threatens to close Christian ministry
15.Romania: Concerns about draft religion law
17.Christian Leaders Calling for Conversion of New Orleans Post-Katrina
Canada’s “Religious Right” Has to Wake up and Face Reality Says Columnist19.Dutch Couple Contracts with Second Woman in Netherlands’ First Legal Polygam
20.Television Star 'Judge Judy' Scheindlin Backs Homosexual "Marriage"
Netherlands Set to Give Go-Ahead to Child Euthanasia22.Major breakthrough: Adult stem cells restore feeling to paraplegic patient paralyzed 19 years
24. U.S. Asks Israel to Practice Restraint
Assisted Suicide Case Will Have Nationwide Impact
(Pete Winn Citizen Link Oct 4 2005)
Case will determine whether states may opt out of federal laws.
Newly
installed Chief Justice John Roberts' first major case will come Wednesday when
the Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments in connection with the Oregon
assisted-suicide case.
Oregon's assisted-suicide law itself is not under review. At issue, though, is whether the U.S. Attorney General has the right to declare it is a violation of federal drug laws for doctors to prescribe a federally controlled drug to help someone commit suicide.
Mathew Staver, president of Liberty Counsel, filed a friend-of-the-court brief arguing that assisting suicide is not a "legitimate medical purpose"—as provided for in the federal drug law.
"Under the Controlled Substances Act," he said, "and that is under the federal government's jurisdiction, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can authorize new medications, restrict or withdraw medications for the purpose of healing or protecting life."
In this case, Staver said, Oregon wants to use controlled substances to terminate life.
"Clearly, it is within the purview of the federal government to say, 'We're not going to be complicit in the termination of a person's life,' " he said.
Oregon's Death With Dignity Act, passed in 1994 and in effect since 1997, allows physicians to prescribe medication to end the life of a terminally ill patient.
The case originally came about because a group of Oregon residents, including a doctor, a pharmacist and several terminally ill patients, sued then-U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft, who first instituted the rule.
Thus far, courts have not agreed with Ashcroft's interpretation. Both a federal district judge and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Oregon, prompting the federal government to appeal to the Supreme Court. The courts held that the attorney general was intruding into state's rights.
Staver disagrees.
"Obviously, I am deeply in favor of the autonomy of states and promoting state's rights," Staver, "but in this case, I don't believe it's a states' rights issue. This, in fact, is just like the FCC (Federal Communications Commission), which regulates the airwaves, or the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) which regulates the airline industry.
"We have the FDA that regulates medications. And for a very long time we've allowed the federal government—and, in fact, required the federal government—to be involved in this particular area. We don't want controlled substances to fall into the wrong hands or be used for the wrong purposes."
In fact, this is a case about whether the federal government has the right to enforce a federal drug law across all 50 states."
| QUOTEWORTHY: --"No abounding of material prosperity shall avail us if our spiritual senses atrophy. The foes of our own household will surely prevail against us unless there be in our people an inner life which finds its outer expression in a morality like unto that preached by the seers and prophets of God when the grandeur that was Greece and the glory that was Rome still lay in the future." -- Theodore Roosevelt |
Free market Foundation statement on Prop. 2
We encourage Texans to vote on November 8.
"Responsible citizenship is a virtue and participation in the political
process is a moral obligation. All believers are called to a faithful
citizenship. It is vital that they become informed, be active, and responsive
participants in the society in which they live. There should be no separation
between one's faith and life in either public or private realms. This is
particularly urgent in light of the need to protect the nature of marriage."
The Texas Catholic Conference: We ask Texans to vote in favor of
Proposition 2 to amend our state's constitution recognizing marriage as a union
between one man and one woman.
TOP
| MAC Quote: It is an immoral shame when Americans must propose an amendment to their state constitution in order to protect marriage from the courts. The sanctity of marriage is the foundation of moral civilization, for the family it’s essential, it should have never been in question. --- Howard Wilson |
Supreme Court to Hear Key Pro-Life Cases (staff reports Oct 4 2005 Citizen
Link)
Fall session should be closely watched.
Jennifer Brown of Legal Momentum, the National Organization for Women's legal defense fund, said they are gearing up for the fight over parental notification.
"This law very clearly does not meet one of the standards for abortion restrictions that have been with us since Roe," she said. "There has to be an exception to the restriction if an abortion is needed to protect the young woman's health or her life."
Brown said they will also press for abortion clinic protesters to be prosecuted under organized crime statutes "just to remind the Court that obstruction and violence continues to be a very genuine issue outside reproductive health facilities."
Tom Fitton of Judicial Watch told Family News in Focus the Supreme Court has been no friend to pro-lifers who go to the clinics.
"Abortion protestors have always had a tough time before the Supreme Court," he said. "It seems like the First Amendment has been walled off from them in certain respects and we'll see if that changes this term.
Fitton says the parental-notification case will be an early test for the new
Supreme Court.
"The question is whether the Supreme Court is going to be so radical on the
abortion issue as to prevent parents from being able to play any role or to even
be notified to any great extent over the abortion issue," he said
Unwed Births Plague United States (Prophecy Watch Oct. 6 2005)
Bill Kristol: Conservatives ‘Demoralized’ over Miers (Oct. 3, 2005 NewsMax.com)
Conservatives are "pretty demoralized" over President Bush’s surprise
nomination of Harriet Miers to the U.S. Supreme Court, says Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol.
Kristol noted, in an interview with Fox News, that with liberal Republican Sandra Day O’Connor leaving the court, Bush had a unique opportunity to put his conservative stamp on the Supreme Court.
Instead, Kristol suggests Bush "flinched."
"It looks like he capitulated," a pessimistic Kristol said. The conservative commentator noted she has absolutely no judicial record, and he fears she will be "another O’Connor, another Souter."
While O’Connor and current Associate Court Justice David Souter had served as judges, their judicial records were obscure at the time they were nominated for the Supreme Court.
Kristol sees Bush’s pick of Miers as a slap in the face to conservative women jurists.
"He has passed over conservative judges, including female judges, who have long and distinguished records on the federal and state supreme courts," Kristol said.
"Maybe he is right. Maybe she will be a first-rate justice, but you don't know that.
"This is not a Scalia, a Rehnquist or, for that matter, a John Roberts in terms of quality of pick," he added. "It's hard to interpret this as anything but flinching from a fight."
Kristol suggested the Bush administration may have feared a nomination fight with Democrats on judicial philosophy, which he said is a fight that most conservative Republicans would have welcomed.
"It sends a bad signal," Kristol said, Conservative judges,
particularly conservative women, that have been making the case for 5, 10 or 15
years.
TOP
Important information on the long time liberal leaning Supreme Court
Turmoil in conservative ranks continued today over the president's nomination
of Harriet Miers to fill the impending vacancy of Sandra Day O'Connor. We
received a massive amount of feedback overnight, and it continues to pour in.
Nearly 60% expressed disappointment with the nomination, 10% supported it, and
30% wanted to find out more about her. Numerous conservative talk shows and "blogs"
are reporting similar feedback from their listeners and readers.
Those who are supporting the Miers selection most often give as their rationale
that they "trust the president" to do the right thing. The majority of you who
are disappointed cited the fact that there are at least a dozen extremely
well-qualified individuals that the president could have appointed who have
clear records on the issues that matter the most. Any one of them would have
enjoyed 100% support from the large pro-family, pro-life, conservative movement
in this country.
The "Stealth Strategy's" History
Let's review a little history here to better understand how we got to this
place. In 1987, Ronald Reagan nominated Judge Robert Bork to the Supreme Court,
a man unmatched in his intellectual skills and with a clear conservative record.
He was "crucified" by the Senate liberals and nearly destroyed. I can tell you
that those of us working in the Reagan White House completely underestimated the
vehemence the Left was willing to use to win the battle.
Worried about another nasty fight, President Reagan eventually nominated Judge
Anthony Kennedy, a semi-stealth candidate, whom we, nonetheless, believed would
be a conservative vote. Kennedy was described as a devout Catholic, and his
family was involved with a crisis pregnancy center. That was 1988. In the years
since, Justice Kennedy has "grown," which in this city means he has moved to the
left. He now repeatedly cites international law as the basis of his opinions,
such as Lawrence v. Texas. He has voted to uphold Roe v. Wade.
In 1990, President George H. W. Bush nominated the stealthiest of all stealth
nominees to the Court -- Judge David H. Souter. I distinctly remember being
called to the White House to personally meet with the president's chief of
staff, John Sununu. Sununu implored me to support Souter, in spite of his
complete lack of a record. I refused to do so, but many other conservative
leaders fell in line. Souter was easily confirmed. He is now a Supreme Court
justice that Ted Kennedy or Hillary Clinton can be proud of --pro-abortion,
pro-homosexual rights, etc.
In 1991, President Bush nominated Judge Clarence Thomas, a strong conservative
whom I knew personally. The Left set out to "Bork" him. I quickly organized the
Citizen's Committee to Confirm Clarence Thomas and fought back. The battle was
horrendous, but Thomas emerged victorious in a 52-to-48 vote, and is a reliable
conservative pro-life vote on the Court.
Then came: the Clinton years. President Clinton nominated two openly liberal
justices to the court -- Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Ginsburg
believes the age of consent for sex should be lowered to 12!) Both were easily
confirmed -- indeed, the majority of Republicans senators voted for both of
them, unwilling to be as tough on liberal nominees as the other side is on
conservative nominees.
What Now?
That brings us to today. The demagoguery of the Left that began with the killing
of Robert Bork's nomination is still in the driver's seat. Instead of
confronting it, Republicans generally have bought into an ongoing "stealth
strategy" of nominating people with virtually no written record, so that liberal
senators won't be able to attack them. Sadly, in my view, many conservative and
religious leaders have also embraced this approach, even though the strategy,
for 20 years, has given us one bad Supreme Court justice after another. In
addition, the strategy sends a terrible message to every ambitious lawyer, judge
or advocate: "Don't be openly pro-life if you want to be a Supreme Court
justice!"
We shouldn't be surprised that it works out this way. If an individual goes his
or her whole life without writing or speaking about the horrid court decisions
-- abortion-on-demand, same-sex "marriage," removal of public displays of the
Ten Commandments -- why would they suddenly find their voice when they get on
the Supreme Court? Virtually no one comes to Washington and becomes more
conservative! In fact, everything in the Washington culture pulls virtually
everyone, except the strongest of character and beliefs, to the left.
The Better Way
President Bush is a good man. He was elected twice by millions of good people
who simply want him to stand and defend their values. The administration should
not fear the battle that nominating an open conservative will inevitably cause.
Just imagine a nominee that said to Schumer, Leahy, Feinstein, Kennedy, etc.:
"I am a conservative. I believe the carnage of one million abortions a year is
not required by our Constitution. I see nothing in our founding documents that
requires 'under God' to be removed from the Pledge of Allegiance. Our Founders
did not write a Constitution that requires us to permit men to 'marry' men. I
look forward to an open and frank discussion with the Judiciary Committee on
these matters."
The White House would have had millions of activists and average Americans on
the battlefield with them, instead of the division it has today.
Have we grown so timid and are we so lacking in confidence that we believe we
will lose such a debate? Great majorities of the county are with us on marriage
and on religious liberty. On abortion the divide is more narrow, but still very
winnable for our side. If Senate liberals were to block the president's nominee
on these issues, I believe the result would be a Senate with fewer liberals in
2006.
Instead, our "trumpet" is uncertain. Our strategy is "stealth," and our cause is
unclear. Even if Harriet Miers ends up being surprisingly good on the Supreme
Court, surely this isn't the way for men and women of God to change minds and
touch hearts. It isn't even the way for conservatives to be the governing
majority of the country.
That's why, for now, I'll sit the Miers fight out until I know with some
certainty that she is a vote for our values.
TOP
| QUOTEWORTHY: ---- "Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and mutual assistants. Indeed, these two sciences run into each other. The divine law, as discovered by reason and the moral sense, forms an essential part of both." -- James Wilson |
(Oct. 3, 2005 WorldNetDaily.com)
President Bush today nominated a Texas lawyer who serves as White House
counsel, Harriet Miers, to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme
Court – a pick that apparently was pre-approved by Senate Democratic leadership.
In choosing Miers, Bush tapped a person who has never been a judge and therefore has no judicial record for opponents to criticize.
"She has devoted her life to the rule of law and the cause of justice," Bush said, announcing his choice from the Oval Office with Miers at his side. "She will be an outstanding addition to the Supreme Court of the United States."
President Bush said: "She will strictly interpret our Constitution and laws. She will not legislate from the bench."
The Miers choice will likely be a disappointment to conservatives who hoped Bush would choose someone with a stronger "originalist" record.
"It looks like he flinched," commented Fox News analyst Bill Kristol. "It looks like a capitulation."
If Bush had nominated a jurist with a long "paper trail" of decisions and conservative writing, he would have faced a much tougher confirmation fight in the U.S. Senate.
"If confirmed, I recognize I will have a tremendous responsibility to keep our judicial system strong and to help insure the court meets their obligations to strictly apply the laws and Constitution," Miers said.
Miers apparently had the pre-approval of Democratic leaders.
AP reported Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., had urged the
administration to consider her, two congressional officials said. There was a
long list of staunchly conservative judges that Democrats were poised to fight,
Miers not among them.
TOP
A call for prayer (Free market Foundation)
Evolution/Creation Debate Now Science vs. Science not Science vs. Religion
(Oct. 6, 2005 LifeSiteNews.com)
As currently formulated, Intelligent Design is not science. It is not falsifiable and makes no predictions about future scientific discoveries," says Dr. Rana. "At Reasons To Believe our team of scientists has developed a theory for creation that embraces the latest scientific advances. It is fully testable, falsifiable, and successfully predicts the current discoveries in origin of life research."
Rana added, "With the creation model approach every perspective is encouraged to participate in the scientific process to see which theory best fits the emerging data. With this cutting edge program no philosophical or religious perspective is denied access. It holds the possibility of bringing to resolution the creation /evolution controversy once and for all."
The model has already impressed some scientists. After reading Dr. Rana's books, Nobel prize-winning chemist Dr. Richard Smalley had this to say: "Evolution has just been dealt its death blow. After reading Origins of Life, with my background in chemistry and physics, it is clear evolution could not have occurred."
"Recent scientific advances raise serious concerns for biological evolution," says Dr. Rana. "New discoveries indicate that the standard icons of human evolution fail to support the human evolutionary scenario."
"While many scientists are of the opinion that science and faith don't mix,"
says astrophysicist, Dr. Hugh Ross, founder and president of Reasons To Believe,
"the team of scientists at Reasons To Believe is dedicated to reaching the
scientific community with the understanding that science and Scripture firmly
support and even help advance one another. After all, science is the search for
truth. We must be willing to follow the trail of evidence wherever it leads."
TOP
Handling With CARE (Family Research Council Sept 29 2005)
Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) introduced S. 1780, the CARE Act, yesterday. The
bill would offer new incentives for charitable giving to organizations vital to
meeting the needs of the most vulnerable members of our communities. While the
recent national disasters exposed the frailty of government in dealing with
catastrophe it also revealed how charitable groups are truly "first responders"
in a crisis. Even after the news crews leave a devastated area, charitable
organizations continue to be a valuable presence. The legislation, cosponsored
by Senator Joe Lieberman (D-CT) in the Senate and newly elected Majority Leader
Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Congressman Harold Ford (D- TN) in the House, will
encourage more Americans to contribute to worthy causes. The services provided
by charities are desperately needed and the federal government should not be
pursuing policies that discourage support for these essential services. Please
contact your Senators and Representative to support this important legislation.
Governor Schwarzenegger Vetoes Bill to Legalize California Same-Sex Marriage
(Sept. 30, 2005, LifeSiteNews.com)
Same-sex marriage now being fought in the courts, regardless of the will
of the
people
SACRAMENTO, CA, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger fulfilled an earlier promise and vetoed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state.
Gov. Schwarzenegger’s reason for the veto stems from the fact that the bill, proposed by gay Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), contradicted Proposition 22, which said marriage was only between a man and a woman and had been approved by California voters in 2000.
A San Francisco Superior Court judge ruled that the ban is unconstitutional
and the case is now before a state appeals court and will most likely end up
being decided by the California Supreme Court.
"If the ban of same-sex marriage is unconstitutional this bill is not
necessary," Gov. Schwarzenegger said, "If the ban is constitutional this bill is
ineffective."
This is Gov. Schwarzenegger’s second highly controversial decision in the past
two weeks. Schwarzenegger, who is pro-abortion, came out in support of
Proposition 73 which requires parental notification 48 hours prior to a minor
undergoing an abortion procedure.
TOP
Concerns Voiced About Text for Public School Bible Course
(Jim Brown Oct. 3, 2005 Agape Press)
Last week, the Bible Literacy Project unveiled a new textbook called The Bible and Its Influence. According to a press release, the text is the first designed to meet constitutional standards for public school use, the first to be provide comprehensive coverage of the Bible's influence on literature, art, music, and rhetoric. It also accommodates Jewish sensitivities about the New Testament and avoids referring to miracles in the Bible as historical facts.
Elizabeth Ridenour is executive director of the National Council on Bible Curriculum in Public Schools, which itself has a program being implemented in more than 300 school districts. She admits she is concerned the Bible Literacy Project course does not use the Bible as its textbook.
"This is not a competition thing," she explains. "We do endorse other Bible curriculums around the country, and we're hoping that their textbook will be what it should be. But we do have these concerns of things that we've known and heard."
She also wants people to be aware of who is behind the new Bible course. One of the driving forces behind the textbook is Charles Haynes of the Freedom Forum, who she points out is on the board of directors of the Pluralism Project along with a "self-professed wiccan high priestess."
The textbook is also endorsed by liberal activist groups, among them the
American Civil Liberties Union, People for the American Way, the American
Federation of Teachers, and the National Education Association. Religious
organizations that have endorsed the text include the National Association of
Evangelicals, the American Jewish Congress, and the Baptist Joint Committee for
Legislative and Public Affairs.
TOP
The city of Jerusalem was the target of a massive international prayer
initiative Sunday
An international coalition of Christians united in advocacy for Israel on DPPJ Sunday —from Dr. Jack Hayford, Bishop T.D. Jakes, and Joyce Meyer in the U.S., to the many thousands of nameless and courageous Christians inside Muslim nations like Indonesia, Pakistan, and Turkey — all crying out for God’s peace to come to Jerusalem. See
www.daytopray.com for photos, reports, and testimonies.In these significant times, when Judeo-Christian Europe has all but embraced
the Islamic god Allah, the Jewish people have beheld from Mount Zion a world
increasingly shrinking back and denying the existence of the one true God. Now,
in the unprecedented alliance between Christians and Israel, as the world
witnessed this past Sunday, the Jewish people are finding in the global
Christian community their future's most loyal friend.
TOP
Conservatives Fight Tax Credits for Gulf Coast Casinos (Oct. 05, 2005 CNSNews.com)
Conservative advocacy groups say there's no reason to give federal tax
breaks to casinos located in hurricane devastated states.
In his economic package to help victims of Hurricane Katrina, President Bush has
included approximately half-a-billion dollars in tax credits for Gulf Coast
casinos, the American Family Association said. Casinos usually are excluded from
receiving special tax breaks.
The AFA is urging Americans to email their representatives -- "ask him or her to
support the effort by Rep. Frank Wolf of Virginia to strip the casino tax
credits from the Gulf Opportunity Zone legislation."
In a recent letter to President Bush, Rep. Wolf, a Republican, wrote, "With
budget deficits growing to historic levels, we need to make sure tax dollars are
going to those who truly need the government's help. Tax breaks for the gambling
industry do not make sense." Wolf said such an incentive for special interests
would be a "disgrace."
"We trust you will do the right thing and make sure federal resources go to the
poor, the needy and the vulnerable and not the gambling interests who already
have insurance to cover catastrophic events like hurricanes," Wolf said in his
letter.
The American Family Association said the casinos on the Mississippi Gulf Coast
don't need a windfall, since they were making $5 million a day before Katrina
hit and are planning to rebuild regardless.
"The Republicans have been courting the gambling industry for years, and this
appears to be an effort to bring that alliance even closer," the AFA warned in a
message to supporters.
"Bad move," agreed the Family Research Council, which insists that gambling is
not just another business, as Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said it was.
In the aftermath of Katrina, Barbour, a Republican, wants to change state law to
allow floating casinos to set up on dry land.
"Governor Barbour has done a fine job of hurricane relief, but surely this is a
misstep," said the Family Research Council, but "gambling interests should not
make a windfall profit from the tragedy of Katrina."
Rep. Frank Wolf is battling a move to treat gambling establishments "as any
other business" (allowing them to be moved from water to land.) Gambling is
not just another business. Call your Member of Congress. Ask your
representative to sign onto Mr. Wolf's "Dear Colleague" letter to block this
unwise move. Gambling interests should not make a windfall profit from the
tragedy of Katrina.
Contact Your Elected Officials
State threatens to close Christian ministry (Oct. 1, 2005 WorldNetDaily.com)
A Christian ministry filed a lawsuit yesterday in federal court against the state of Tennessee for forcing it to obtain a license in order to continue.
Last month, the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities designated the non-profit group
Love in Action a "mental health supportive living facility" and informed the ministry it must cease operations by Sept. 30 if it didn't apply for a license or comply with the department's demands."This is harassment, pure and simple," said Nate Kellum, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, which represents the group.
"There is no legitimate state interest here," he said. "There's no health or safety violation, and there's no fire code or overcrowding concern."
Kellum argues Love in Action's ministry has nothing to do with mental health as defined by law.
He claims the state is "trying to turn a Christian ministry into a state-regulated mental hospital."
"By the state's reasoning, a homeless shelter would become a medical clinic if a homeless person were taking antibiotics for some minor infection," Kellum said.
"Do we want the state to shut down private organizations that are helping
people who are struggling?"
TOP
Romania: Concerns about draft religion law (Forum 18 Oct. 6 2005)
Proposals to replace the communist-era 1948 religion law have been discussed for 15 years, but Mihai Agafitei of the State Secretariat for Religious Denominations told Forum 18 that parliament will adopt the new law "by the end of this year."
Much concern - from Adventists, Baptists and other Protestants, Greek Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses and Baha'is – surrounds proposals to divide religious communities into three categories with widely differing rights, and Baptists are particularly concerned that parliament could worsen the draft law's provisions.
Agafitei told Forum 18 that "all the representatives of each community
approved the draft," but both the Greek Catholics and Jehovah's Witnesses have
told Forum 18 they did not approve the draft law.
TOP
Operation Offset (Sept. 22, 2005 American Values by Gary Bauer)
Fortunately, there are some members of Congress who understand that there is
another solution to Washington's fiscal problems. Instead of raising taxes, Rep.
Mike Pence (R-IN) and the Republican Study Committee offered up some tremendous
ideas for cutting the federal budget in order to free up funds for the victims
of Hurricane Katrina. In case you missed their press conference I want to
highlight just a few of their suggestions:
Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO) recommended selling off a small portion of federally
owned lands - not our national parks, but other lands that are currently unused.
According to Rep. Tancredo, returning just 15% of federally owned lands to the
private sector could raise almost $150 billion.
Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) suggested eliminating taxpayer funding for the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting. In a era of satellite and digital TV with
500 channels, one wonders why taxpayers are subsidizing government television in
the first place. Rep. McHenry noted that the $400 million annual budget - a drop
in the bucket by Washington's standards - is enough to rebuild 40 schools
damaged or destroyed in New Orleans, Biloxi or other hard-hit areas of the Gulf
Coast. It's just a question of priorities - schools for kids or welfare for Big
Bird.
Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ) recommended that we reprioritize first responder
grants from the Department of Homeland Security so that money is allocated based
on a risk assessment analysis, instead of the current formula that guarantees
every state, whether needed or not, a certain percentage of Homeland Security
funding. That would save nearly $7 billion over ten years.
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) suggested legislation known as the "United Nations
Voting Accountability Act," that would cut foreign aid to any nation that votes
in the UN against the United States 50% of the time or more. Gohmert said, "We
don't have to pay you to hate us."
Other suggestions included delaying the Medicare prescription drug benefit for
just one year; eliminating the pork from the highway bill; cutting taxpayer
money for Planned Parenthood; eliminating taxpayer funding for the National
Endowment for the Arts; eliminating funding for Americorps (Bill Clinton's
"novel" idea of paid volunteerism); eliminating free parking for federal
employees; ending automatic congressional pay raises; and much, much more. All
told, House conservatives identified $500 billion in potential savings over the
next ten years - IF Congress can muster the will to act.
TOP
Christian Leaders Calling for Conversion of New Orleans Post-Katrina
(Oct. 6, 2005 LifeSiteNews.com)
Franklin Graham gave the other half of the message in an interview Tuesday with CNN, saying that the physical devastation left by Katrina is a call to conversion.
Graham told CNN, "As a minister of the gospel, there are a lot of people in New Orleans that are praying that God will bring a stronger, moral fiber to this city than this city has ever had before."
Shortly after the storm hit New Orleans, Graham said, "There's been Satanic worship in New Orleans. There's been sexual perversion. God is going to use that storm to bring a revival. God has a plan. God has a purpose."
Archbishop Emeritus Philip J. Hannan, 92, in an interview on the same day to the Catholic news website Spirit Daily, said "I think it's up to us to preach very strongly and candidly and directly to say that this was a chastisement from God."
Responding to the question of the prevalence of the homosexual culture in New Orleans, Graham said, "I certainly hope that the gospel of Jesus Christ will be preached. I want to see men and women converted… I would certainly pray that the gay and lesbian movement, the people that have this lifestyle, will come to know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and savior and experience their sins being forgiven."
Graham and the Archbishop’s comments echoed similar opinions expressed last week at the first meeting of the New Orleans City Council since the hurricane.
Rev. Robert Guste of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Kenner said that the lewd homosexual festival, Southern Decadence, the rampant pornography and gambling and the brazenly blasphemous activities surrounding the annual Mardi Gras, a festival renowned for its mockeries of Christian symbols, may have suggested divine punishment.
"Does this not invite divine judgment?" Guste, 78, asked. When he was asked if New Orleans will ever be the same, he replied, "I hope not. I hope and pray it will be a better city."
On Sunday, New Orleans' historic St. Louis Cathedral held its first Sunday
Mass since the hurricane, and Archbishop Alfred C. Hughes said in his homily
that he hoped the new New Orleans would be a city of stronger moral thread, free
of racial tension and rampant self-indulgence.
TOP
Canada’s "Religious Right" Has to Wake up and Face Reality Says Columnist
(Sept. 30, 2005, LifeSite.net)
In his lengthy, hard-hitting article Gunter makes many sobering claims that most leaders of Canada’s life and family defending organizations would regrettably largely agree with. All of them, to varying degrees have suffered from the indifference, short term commitments, weak efforts or even betrayal from other religious or social conservative Canadians that has many times lost them victories that were otherwise theirs to be had.
Jim Hughes, president of Campaign Life Coalition Canada, disagrees with
Gunter’s relatively pessimistic view of what Canada’s religious conservatives
can still achieve. Hughes says that through a long overdue, united and sustained
effort "we will knock the socks off those who have stolen the country away from
us these past 40 or so years."
TOP
Dutch Couple Contracts with Second Woman in Netherlands’ First Legal Polygamy
(Sept. 30, 2005 LifeSiteNews.com)
A Dutch man and two women have been given a license for their three-way "marriage" by the government. Victor de Bruijn, 46, from Rosendaal, and his wife Bianca, 31, have signed a "co-habitation contract" with a woman, Mirjam Geven, who abandoned her marriage for the new arrangement.
The man claims that the arrangement is justified because there is no jealousy. "There is no jealousy because both women are bisexual. If they had been both hetero, it would be more difficult." The arrangement was given government sanction after it was confirmed before a notary who duly registered it as a legal civil union.
The development would seem like a joke and a mere oddity if it were not for the fact that it was precisely this that was warned about in legislatures in Canada and the US from those opposed to the legal demolition of marriage. When the same-sex "marriage" bill was being debated in Canada’s Parliament, Liberal MP Tom Wappel warned that the next logical step was the legalization of polygamy.
"Those who argue in favor of polygamy will say, ‘How can we end
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in marriage but continue to
permit discrimination on the basis of religious beliefs in marriage?’" said
Wappel.
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Television Star 'Judge Judy' Scheindlin Backs Homosexual "Marriage"
(Oct. 6, 2005 LifeSiteNews.com)
Asked by Larry King about "gay marriage", Sheindlin replied, "Who is it
hurting? You know, my grandmother used to say who is it hurting? So, I ask you,
Larry, if you have two adults and they happen to both be of the same sex and
they love each other; 'Judge Judy' continued, "So if it works, it works. If it
doesn't, it doesn't. And if it's important for them to use the word marriage,
rather than civil union or whatever other language that some people would prefer
that they use I ask you it's not hurting me. It doesn't impact on my life.
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| QUOTEWORTHY: "[T]he propitious smiles of Heaven, can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right, which Heaven itself has ordained." -- George Washington (First Inaugural Address, April 1789) |
Netherlands Set to Give Go-Ahead to Child Euthanasia
(Sept. 30, 2005 LifeSiteNews.com)
The governing Christian Democrats said they will approve the Groningen Protocol, the child euthanasia guidelines named after the euthanistic doctors from Groningen University Medical Centre. The protocol suggests that euthanasia be permitted when a child is terminally ill with no hope of recovery and in pain, and that parents are in agreement with the opinions of two doctors.
The government plans to set up a commission that will review that all the conditions have been met, or else a public prosecutor will become involved. So far no doctors committing child euthanasia have been prosecuted, even though it is still illegal.
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia pediatrician and ethicist Dr. Chris Feudtner told the AP he vehemently opposes the Dutch government’s decision. "I categorically do not endorse ending people's lives with the argument that it's alleviating their suffering," he said. "I think too often the impulse is to resort to extreme measures because we're not being effective enough in the management of pain. If you allow it to occur, it will occur in cases where it is not ethical, period," he added.
The vice-president of the Pontifical Academy for Life roundly condemned the
Dutch proposal to extend euthanasia to children under the age of 12 last year.
Bishop Elio Sgreccia said that with this policy, "the final boundary will have
been crossed."
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Major breakthrough: Adult stem cells restore feeling to paraplegic patient
paralyzed 19 years
(September 28, 2005 WorldNetDaily.com)
The research, published in the peer-reviewed journal Cythotherapy, centered on a woman had been a paraplegic 19 years due to an accident.
After an infusion of umbilical cord blood stem cells, stunning results were recorded:
"The patient could move her hips and feel her hip skin on day 15 after transplantation. On day 25 after transplantation her feet responded to stimulation."
Umbilical cord cells are considered "adult stem cells," in contrast to embryonic stem cells, which have raised ethical concerns because a human embryo must be destroyed in order to harvest them.
The report said motor activity was noticed on day 7, and she was able to maintain an upright position on day 13. Fifteen days after surgery, she began to elevate both lower legs about one centimeter.
The study's abstract says not only did the patient regain feeling, but 41 days after stem cell transplantation, testing "also showed regeneration of the spinal cord at the injured cite" and below it.
The scientists conclude the transplantation "could be a good treatment method" for paraplegic patients.
Bioethics specialist Wesley J. Smith, writing in Lifesite.com, expressed enthusiasm about the apparent breakthrough, but also urged caution.
"We have to be cautious," said Smith, a senior fellow at the Seattle-based Discovery Institute and a special consultant to the Center for Bioethics and Culture. "One patient does not a treatment make."
The authors of the study note, writes Smith, that the lamenectomy the patient received might have offered some benefit.
"But still, this is a wonderful story that offers tremendous hope for paralyzed patients," he said.
The fact that the patient has a very old injury, Smith added, makes the
results even more dramatic.
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World Wide (Web) Takeover (Sept. 28 2005 National Review)
The United Nations wants the Internet.
Zhao, a director of the U.N.'s International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and a former senior Chinese-government official, is a leader in the United Nation's effort to supplant the United States government in the supervision of the Internet. At a series of conferences called the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), held under the aegis of the ITU, and set to culminate in Tunis this November, the U.N. has floated a series of proposals for doing exactly that.
The U.N.'s professed goals, which include expanding Internet access in
developing countries and fighting spam, are laudable. However, the substance of
its proposals — shifting Internet governance from the U.S. to a U.N. body —
would produce an Internet in which regulations smother free speech, strangle
net-driven economic growth, and threaten America's online security, in other
words a typical U.N. enterprise.
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U.S. Asks Israel to Practice Restraint (Oct 4 2005 Jerusalem’s Watchman update)
Yet even in light of these realities, the American response to the violence in Gaza contains elements of denial. "We understand the situation Israel is in, and support its right to defend itself," said Sean McCormack, a spokesman for the Secretary of State, according to a Ynet news report in Washington last week. "However, we hope that any decision made by Israel will take into account the effect on the overall objective we share."
The shared "objective" cited by the State Department alludes to the road map
to peace that the U.S. hopes to administer in the Middle East along with Russia,
the United Nations, and the European Union.
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| Quoteworthy: If we ally ourselves with the enemies of Israel, we will be standing against God Almighty. And that's a place I don't want us to be. ---------- Pat Robertson |
Avian influenza is a public health concern that will continue to be a topic of interest.
In its leadership role in pandemic influenza planning, CDC is a ready source of detailed information for those interested in extending their understanding of this important public health topic.
CDC’s
Avian Flu site provides·
·
Outbreak Information·
Travel Advice·
Professional Guidance
The Watchman Report is one year old (Howard Wilson)
I feel God has blessed in both the effort and result, throughout this first year of the Watchman Report.
I will endeavor to improve the focus and the aesthetics in the report. It is my intention for the collected articles appearing in the Watchman Report to "bring to light" topics of interest that may otherwise go unnoticed. I appreciate your interest, comments or recommendations and as always, your prayers are especially welcome.
I would also like to extend my gratitude to Justin Neal ‘Chairman of the BMAT
Moral Action Committee and to ‘BMAT Webmaster’ Randy Sessions for all their
efforts and support.
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Howard Wilson
hwilson@texasmoralaction.org