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1. Pro-Life Americans Urged to Support U.S. ‘Right to Life Act 2005’

2. Students hold Anti-Abortion Demonstrations at over 1,000 Campuses

3. Judiciary Committee Strips Hate-Crimes Amendment from Children’s Safety Act

4. Marriage and the Supreme Court

5. Activist Group Tries to Mislead Texas Voters about Proposition 2

6. Iranian President claims; Palestinians will wipe Israel off the face of the Islamic world

7. A pastor’s letter from a San Antonio jail

8. Lawsuit Charges Public Officials Violated Christian Activist's Free-Speech Rights

9. NASCAR Goes Pro-Life

10. Group Calls Christians to Flood Country with Nativity Scenes

11. Gay Marriage Meets Defeat in Granite State

12. Kansas Supreme Court's goes beyond U.S. Supreme Court's erroneous ruling in Lawrence v

13. Texas National Coalition Urges Citizens to Mark Pornography Awareness Week Oct. 30 -- Nov. 6

14. A growing number of African Christian leaders oppose accommodation of homosexual lifestyle

15. "No Exceptions" If you are serious about securing our borders

16. Congressmen Call for President to Defend Chaplains

17. The US Armed Forces has an Army of One-armed Bandits

18. Isn’t it time for some Fiscal control?

19. Building a Bridge to extraneous pork projects

20. Defining Society Down: Federal obscenity laws violate the Constitution

21. New group aims to protect freedom of religion

22. Court sides with 5-year-old after school censors Jesus

23. Small Town Fights to Preserve Historical Christian Symbol

24. No more "Christ" with a capital C in the Netherlands

25. Appeal Filed on Behalf of CA state Employee Suspended for Expressing Religious Beliefs

26. Hurricane postpones another homosexual party

WASHINGTON, On February 2, 2005, Congressman Duncan Hunter (R-CA) introduced the Right to Life Act of 2005, which, if passed, would amend the U.S. Constitution to provide for the right to life for each born and pre-born human person, according to an Operation Rescue (OR) news release. "This legislation would literally STOP abortion in America – all abortion – because the Constitution would guarantee the right to life for the pre-born," OR emphasized.

The proposed legislation to make abortion illegal has been introduced to Congress by Mr. Hunter every year since 1997 after he agreed to take over from former Orange County Rep. Bob Dornan, who introduced the measure each year throughout his tenure in the 1990s. The proposed bill, HR 552, aims, "To implement equal protection under the 14th article of amendment to the Constitution for the right to life of each born and pre-born human person."

Operation Rescue maintains that 2005 is different from past years because "The culture in America is undergoing a remarkable change and is increasingly uncomfortable with abortion on demand. The Pro-life Movement is especially making great gains among the younger generation, which is more pro-life that ever before. In fact, for the first time in decades, the majority of Americans consider their self pro-life!"

A Zogby poll released in January confirmed that, "by a 53% to 36% margin, the public supports the statement: "Abortion destroys a human life and is manslaughter."

"Political and cultural conditions are the most favorable they have ever been for legislation that would amend the Constitution and restore the legal protections of personhood to the pre-born," OR argues. "We must get America talking about the personhood of the pre-born and the all-important question of when life begins. This is a debate the abortion lobby fears more than anything because they know it is a debate we will always win!"

Operation Rescue calls on pro-life Americans to do three things:

* To contact your Congressman, encouraging him or her to sign on as a co-sponsor. "Currently there are 68 co-sponsors, more than there have ever been! But more are needed to give this bill the kind of respectability that will motivate Congressional action."

Click here for current list of co-sponsors: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:HR00552:@@@P  

Click here to contact your representative: http://www.house.gov/writerep/

* Contact Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) and ask him to schedule hearings on the Right to Life Act of 2005. Rep. Sensenbrenner is the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. It is within his power to schedule hearings or kill this bill through neglect. "It is guaranteed that he will not act UNLESS HE HEARS FROM US! Congress has reconvened this week, and all representatives at their Washington DC offices now."

Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner:
E-mail: sensenbrenner@mail.house.gov
Phone in Washington DC: (202) 225-5101

* Forward this message to your friends and family and ask them to do the same.

See the full text of the proposed bill:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c109:13:./temp/~c109XM1OBM::

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FREDERICKSBURG, Va., Today, students from over 1,000 campuses in the United States, Canada, the

Philippines, England and Germany took a vow of silence to express their contempt for the murderous act of abortion that has claimed one-third of their generation and continues to take the lives of over 4,000 babies per day in the United States alone.  The international event is sponsored by Stand True Ministries and known as the annual Students' Day of Silent Solidarity.

"Thousands of American babies are permanently silenced every day by the violent act of abortion," said Bryan Kemper, president of Stand True Ministries. "This day is in honor of those children, and we will stay silent as an act of solidarity with these innocent victims."

Students not only remained silent, but also wore red armbands and or red duct tape on their mouths and distributed educational flyers to anyone who asked why they were silent. Many home-schooled students also participated in the event by visiting local malls and other public areas to distribute flyers.

"This year's response to this event has been astounding," said Kemper. "I am honored to be part of an event that has brought out so many young people who are willing to stand up for the truth in such a courageous and impacting way."

"These students are excited to have a united opportunity to stand up for the babies with fellow students from around the country in a peaceful and effective manner," said Kemper. "We have received many e-mails from students thanking us for giving them this opportunity, and telling us how excited they are to promote the event."

The Senate Judiciary Committee has passed a new version of the Children's Safety Act — one without the hate-crimes amendment the House attached just before it sent the bill over to the Senate.

Bob Knight, director of the Culture and Family Institute, said Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, successfully stripped the amendment from the Children's Safety Act, and turned that bill into a new one — S. 1086, the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.

But the move does not mean an end to efforts by Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., to get hate-crimes legislation passed.

Kennedy, the prime mover behind the legislation, indicated he will try again to introduce an amendment when the bill comes to the Senate floor. No timeline has been given for a full Senate vote.

The Massachusetts liberal is also poised to add hate-crimes language to another, unrelated bill, S. 1088, the Streamlined Procedures Act of 2005.

"Mr. Kennedy may have gotten the word that many people have been warning the Senate not to add his amendment to the Senate version of the Children's Safety Act," Knight said, "so he appears to be trying to slip it in under the radar."

Alan Chambers, a former homosexual and president of Exodus International, said he has talked with many senators who have traditionally supported hate-crimes legislation — but who are starting to re-examine their positions.

"The main objection is, the current laws on the books are sufficient," he said. "We don’t need special laws and special protections to elevate a certain class of people higher than another. The point here is that we are all equal, and we are all equally protected under the law without adding special punishment for certain crimes."

Chambers has been treading the halls of the Capitol alongside other ex-gays and conservative activists, lobbying against hate-crimes legislation. He said the group has been well-received.

"We simply went to Washington, D.C., to let them know that, as people who used to be gay, we feel like hate-crimes legislation says that we were more valuable when we were gay people than when we changed," Chambers said. "And that shouldn't be."

Knight, meanwhile, said the new sex-offender registration bill is different in several ways from the House version, so there will likely be a fight on the Senate floor when it arrives.

TAKE ACTION:
Please contact your senators and ask them to oppose all attempts to attach hate-crimes language to any bill.

For help in contacting your lawmakers, visit the CitizenLink Action Center

Yesterday Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) held his third hearing on the need for a marriage amendment that would fix the definition of marriage as between one man and one woman in the U.S. Constitution. The hearings help to highlight why the debate over the Supreme Court vacancies is so important. When left up to the people there is overwhelming support for protecting the true definition of marriage. However, in states like Vermont, Massachusetts and Nebraska, agenda-driven judges have redefined the concept and benefits of traditional marriage. The penultimate straw happened this year when U.S. District Judge Joseph Bataillon of Nebraska struck down Nebraska's constitutional provision prohibiting gay marriage or civil unions.

This was a blatant display of judicial arrogance where a non-elected federal judge showed total disregard for what 70% of Nebraska voters affirmed, marriage is between one man and one woman. Senator Russ Feingold (D-NY) said at the hearing that the people are not interested in the issue of marriage. While that statement might ring true for some of Senator Feingold's Congressional colleagues, marriage is still of utmost importance to the American people, as witnessed by the numerous actions in the states to protect the institution. Senator Brownback deserves praise for recognizing the issue of marriage is important whether it is an election year or not.

Quoteworthy: -----"No country upon earth ever had it more in its power to attain these blessings than United America. Wondrously strange, then, and much to be regretted indeed would it be, were we to neglect the means and to depart from the road which Providence has pointed us to so plainly; I cannot believe it will ever come to pass." -- George Washington (letter to Benjamin Lincoln, 29 June 1788)

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Activist Group Tries to Mislead Texas Voters about Proposition 2

A phantom group launched a campaign Monday to trick Texans into voting against the state's marriage protection amendment—by falsely claiming that such a vote would actually protect marriage.

It's a particularly dire tactic, too, considering that early voting began Monday in the Lone Star State—so many Texans are already casting their ballots.

Here's the truth: Voting "for" Proposition 2, the Texas Marriage Protection Amendment, is a vote for traditional man-woman marriage. Voting "against" the measure is a vote against traditional marriage—and in favor of radical experiments such as same-sex marriage.

The political action committee behind the sneaky campaign calls itself Save Texas Marriage and shares office space with the gay and lesbian groups that are working to defeat the Prop 2.

According to Kelly Shackelford, president of the pro-family Free Market Foundation of Texas, the opponents of traditional marriage are busy trying to telephone 2 million households.

"They are trying to mislead them and confuse them with a message about the initiative," Shackelford said. "It starts out from a so-called 'reverend,' who tells them that if they are for marriage, traditional marriage, then they need to vote against Prop. 2—which is a lie," Shackelford said. "Then they end it by saying, 'God Bless You.' "

In fact, Proposition 2 would enshrine the traditional man-woman definition of marriage in the state constitution. Remember, voting "for" the amendment would protect marriage from homosexual activism.

Shackelford said the faux marriage group is aiming its calls only at Christian and conservative households.

"Unfortunately, this is having an impact," he said. "We're getting calls from seniors and others who come from the polls and have been deceived. They call to check out the details after they vote -- and they found out that they voted the opposite way than they intended, and they just feel horrible."

Iranian President claims; Palestinians will wipe Israel off the face of the Islamic world

Oct. 27, 2005 CNSNews.com Senior Editor

At a conference in Tehran on Wednesday, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was quoted by state media as

saying that a new wave of attacks by Palestinians will wipe Israel off the face of the Islamic world.

The Iranian president also said anyone who recognizes Israel "will burn in the fire of the Islamic nation's fury"; and any Islamic leader who recognizes Israel "is acknowledging the surrender and defeat of the Islamic world."

Ahmadinejad was speaking to students at conference called "The World without Zionism."

"Let there be no further doubt, if ever there was, about Iran's intentions," said David A. Harris; executive director of the American Jewish Committee. "The Iranian president has made clear his views of Israel. In doing so, he has reaffirmed longstanding Iranian policy. Will the world react or turn a blind eye? Let's hope the Iranians get the right message, and fast."

AJC is asking all countries that host an Iranian embassy to summon the Iranian ambassador and make unequivocally clear that the views of the Iranian president are totally unacceptable, and a number of countries reportedly plan to do that.

It can't be "business as usual" with Iran, the AJC insisted.

"We specifically ask the United Nations to review the president's remarks and take appropriate action against Iran, a U.N. member, for openly calling for the destruction of another member state, Israel."

Harris said countries that support or ignore Iran's nuclear program must understand that they are helping Iran develop weapons designed to underscore Ahmadinejad's "chilling words" with action.

I went to the City Council as a citizen wanting to be heard on Proposition No. 2.  We had six minutes to speak and I told them that I had e-mailed them over a month ago and sent them individual letters, but that the letters were never acknowledged.  I spoke to them of the value of Proposition 2 and I asked them whether they would vote for or against it. Not a sound or a peep from any of them.  I said that as leaders in this city that they talk about the NFL Franchise, about bonds, about any other subject, but they wouldn't talk about the sanctity of marriage.  They answered other speakers on other issues, but were silent on this issue.

The Mayor said that they were not going to speak and that they didn't have to.  So I challenged them.  I told them: "If you won't tell us your position, I will not get down from this podium until I hear from our elected officials."  And though one man said I still had three minutes left, the mayor said, "Your time is up." He signaled for the San Antonio police officer and I was arrested. They didn't ask me to leave the podium. He didn't give me any warning. They just arrested me off the podium, but didn't read me my Miranda rights until four hours later and didn't charge me until the next day. Two large officers handcuffed me in front of the City Council and manhandled me so now I have cuts on my wrists and bruises on my back. They didn't have to do that. I wasn't resisting arrest. I've never been arrested before. I've never been in trouble with the law before. Now I've been charged with disrupting a public meeting.

I love the Church. I love God's people. It is inconceivable to me that we would have to change our church structure, the church the way we know it now.  The fact—I don't think we really fathom—the idea or the prospect of what could really, really, happen in these troubled and perilous times.  Not only will it change the scope of church history, it will also change the scope of government as we see it in these times.  I am on a hunger strike right now.   I am fasting and praying not just for this city, but for this Proposition 2 – the Sanctity of Marriage. I pray that the Church join me in this time of fasting and prayer – that the Body of Christ comes together.

I want City Council and every elected official to understand that they have got to be held accountable and I intend to hold them accountable for the righteous. And this is a moral proposition. It has nothing to do with politics.  It is a purely moral issue.  I never intended for this to happen.  I never intended to get arrested. I don't want to be here. I want Christians to call their representatives and let them know that what they did was wrong—not so much because it was me—but because this is the way they treat people at City Hall.  If this is what they do to me as a man of God, I can't imagine what they do to people that they don't regard. I want to hear from our elected officials. They need to be held accountable.

*The title was selected reminiscent of the Letter from a Birmingham Jail written by Reverend Martin Luther King during the Civil Rights Movement, to indicate the comparison of the magnitude of the issue, preservation of marriage between one man and one woman as a fundamental right.

Clayton Trotter
8122 Datapoint, Suite 812
San Antonio, Texas 78229
Telephone: 210-614-7157
877-247-7582 (toll free)
Fax: 210-614-6656
E-Mail: info@TXJF.org

Officials in one Pennsylvania borough are being accused of violating the free-speech rights of a local Christian. The legal representative for a religious leader who was ejected from a public meeting after he tried to read from the Bible says his client is suing.

Last summer, Christian activist Michael Marcavage of the group Repent America attended a regularly scheduled meeting of the Lansdowne Borough Council. During the public discussion forum there, he attempted to speak about comments made by a homosexual council member.

However, when Marcavage tried to read a passage from the Bible, a council member told him he would not be allowed to do so because reading a biblical passage would be tantamount to hate speech. When the activist insisted on his right to read, the meeting was adjourned and he was forcibly removed and later criminally charged with disrupting a public meeting.

Ultimately, without the need even for a hearing, the Delaware County District Attorney's Office dismissed the criminal charges against Marcavage as being without merit. Ted Hoppe, an attorney for the Repent America leader, has filed a federal lawsuit against the Borough of Lansdowne on his behalf.

In addition to the complaint, Hoppe says he filed a Motion for a Preliminary Injunction seeking a temporary order so Marcavage can again attend Lansdowne Borough Council meetings. Marcavage's lawyer feels that people's access to publicly elected officials and freedom to address those officials about areas of concern should be considered constitutionally sacrosanct. "Those are things that are at the heart of our First Amendment right to free speech," he says.

Car in recent race carried "Charged for Life" campaign message for Interstate Batteries, which is helping pregnancy resource centers raise money.

Interstate Batteries sponsored a car in last weekend's NASCAR race in Martinsville, Va., that had more than just racing as a goal. It was used to kick off the "Charged for Life" campaign, a national fundraiser in which the battery company is giving half the proceeds from selected sales to pregnancy resource centers.

Dennis Brown of Interstate Batteries came up with the idea for the campaign that NASCAR driver Bobby Labonte made public on the track.

"The 'Charged For Life' campaign," he told Family News in Focus, "is a way for . . . Care Net . . . to raise funds . . . that provide products that are going to be high quality in use by the people that buy them . . . and generate significant revenue for . . . the Care Net center."

Getting the money to those in need will be easy, according to Kristen Hansen of Care Net.

"Pregnancy centers will have a form and be able to take that to their Sunday school, to their offices, and so on, and people order the batteries," she said. "Then pregnancy centers will send in the order, and then the batteries will be sent directly to the customer."

Hansen added that Interstate Batteries is a great role model for companies seeking to make a difference in their communities.

"Every year there are over a million abortions that take place," she said, "and while pregnancy centers are doing their best to reach women, there are so many women that go un-reached every year—and so they want to expand their ministries."

LAKELAND, Florida, Oct. 25 Dr. Charles Nestor, director of The Truth Matters, is announcing a project called "Operation Nativity" with the goal of having Christians across the country set up nativity scenes on their own property.

Mr. Nestor states, "It's that time of year again. We're not even out of October and already the forces are aligning to prohibit the public celebration of the birth of Jesus.

"December 25 is the day in our culture that is set aside to acknowledge and to celebrate that Jesus of Nazareth was born. For Christians it is more than a day of feasting and the exchange of gifts, it is a holy and solemn time to join our voices in unison as the angels proclaimed on the hillside to the shepherds, "Glory to God in the highest. "

"I am calling for Christians everywhere to join me in Operation Nativity. While we continue to support the public displays, let's flood the country with nativity scenes on our own properties!

"Think with me what could happen if on lawns in every community, on business property, on church lawns, at Christian schools, on empty land, and literally everywhere you looked, there was the depiction of the scene that recognizes the birth of Jesus.

Contact: Dr. Charles Nestor, director of The Truth Matters, 863-698-2270, Or for Email at: contact@thetruthmatters.com

New Hampshire's state commission on same-sex marriage voted not to present the legislature with a proposal to allow homosexual unions in the state, The Associated Press reported.

The panel, comprised of those who advocate for gay marriage and those who want to preserve traditional marriage, heard fiery testimony from both sides.

Ultimately the group defeated a recommendation that would have begun the process to allow same-sex couples to marry.

The panel voted earlier this month to recommend a constitutional amendment that would define marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

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The Kansas Supreme Court has acceded to the pleading of the ACLU and has unanimously struck down the state's "Romeo and Juliet" law. That law provided lesser penalties for minors who engage in heterosexual relations. The ACLU argued in State v. Limon on Equal Protection grounds that the law unfairly stigmatized homosexuality. The 1999 Kansas law imposed lesser penalties for sexual relations between minors 14 to 19 years old where those minors are less than four years apart in age. But it sharply distinguished between homosexual conduct and heterosexual conduct. Kansas' Attorney General Phill Kline defended the law--as he was obliged to do. But Kline said when he was a state legislator: "I did not support the public policy of providing a lengthier sentence for same-sex exploitation as contrasted with opposite-sex exploitation." We agree. But what remains troubling about the Kansas Supreme Court's action is that it goes beyond even the U.S. Supreme Court's erroneous ruling in Lawrence v. Texas.

In that 2003 case, the nation's high court struck down Texas' sodomy law using a privacy rationale. Now, Kansas's top judges have used Equal Protection to undo the legislature's work. This raises concerns about Kansas voters' decision last spring to defend marriage. That measure was approved by a whopping 70 percent of Kansans, carrying 104 of 105 counties. This ruling also raises the stakes for filling vacancies on the U.S. Supreme Court. Activism on the high court doesn't just trickle down; it thunders down like Niagara.

Quoteworthy --- "The Judicial Branch may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment; and must ultimately depend upon the aid of the executive arm even for the efficacy of its judgments."-- Alexander Hamilton (Federalist No. 78, 1788)

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Oct 25 2005 Christian Wire Service

CINCINNATI, The National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families urges citizens to inform their communities about the issue of pornography during Pornography Awareness Week, which runs Oct. 30 through Nov. 6.

Following are ways citizens can mark Pornography Awareness Week:

-- Write your mayor and governor urging them to publicly declare Pornography Awareness Week.

-- Host a breakfast or luncheon where public officials would issue a proclamation.

-- Write your U.S. Attorney General and urge him or her to enforce federal obscenity laws that govern the mailing, interstate transportation, importing, broadcasting, cable casting, telephone transmission and computer transmission of obscenity.

-- Plan a series of events – like a rally, training session or public assembly – during the week to draw attention to the issue.

-- Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper explaining the harmful effects of pornography and mentioning the White Ribbon Campaign, which features citizens wearing and displaying white ribbons to heighten awareness of the cultural problem of pornography.

-- Write President Bush to tell him about Pornography Awareness Week.

-- Commend in writing or in person the proprietors of stores that do not carry pornography.

-- Publicly recognize people who work with sex abuse survivors – like rape crisis counselors. Initiate an appreciation meal in their honor.

-- Contact your local media outlets to let them know how you are observing Pornography Awareness Week.
 

The National Coalition provides written materials and resources, as well as consultation for citizens who want to get involved in their communities. For more information, call the National Coalition at: Francesca Jensen, Director of Communications for the National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families, 513-521-6227, ext. 111

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Nigeria's Anglican Archbishop, Peter Akinola, says that Christian missionaries to Africa a century ago "hardly saw anything valid in our culture, in our way of life." Now, however, the leader of Nigeria's 17.5 million Anglican Christians is pointing to a Western beam. He deplores the actions of liberal churchmen who are accepting the homosexual agenda. "Brother, there's some need for ... consistency here," says the lively cleric.

Archbishop Akinola is one of a growing number of African Christian leaders who oppose the increasing accommodation of the homosexual lifestyle. "All of us in Africa think the same way. We do not understand all these new doctrines," says Rev. Sunday Mbang, a leader of Nigeria's Methodists. "We will have to send evangelists [to the West] to change their craziness," he said. Archbishop Akinola was one of four African prelates who were recently honored by Kairos Journal for their witness in the world Anglican Communion. There are more Anglicans [Episcopalians in the U.S. and Canada] in Nigeria than in any other country except Britain. Let African voices be heard!

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"No Exceptions" If you are serious about securing our borders

American Values by Gary Bauer

Yesterday, the Bush Administration attempted to grapple with the controversial subject of immigration reform - another issue dividing the president's conservative supporters. On the positive side, Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff, testifying before the Senate, said, "Our goal at [the Department of Homeland Security] is to completely eliminate the 'catch and release' enforcement problem, and return every single illegal entrant, no exceptions. It should be possible to achieve significant and measurable progress to this end in less than a year." On the downside, why has this not been the goal from day one?

It is true that the overwhelming majority of folks coming across the border are here looking for jobs and a better life. But we undermine all of our laws when we allow our immigration laws to be so blatantly mocked. At the same time, it is undeniable that there are also tremendous numbers of gang members, drug dealers and OTMs ("other than Mexicans") coming across the border, too.

One gang in particular, Mara Salvatrucha or MS-13, has already attracted the attention of federal officials, who estimate there are as many as 10,000 MS-13 gang members in the United States. They are vicious thugs known for using machetes to hack off the hands of their victims. In February, one MS-13 leader, who was responsible for a bus bombing in Honduras that killed 28 people, was arrested in Texas! These thugs have not come to this country looking to better their families or to contribute to society. They are a threat to our homeland security.

There are deep divisions on Capitol Hill over the best way to proceed, and the administration is also suggesting that it wants a guest worker plan as part of any reform package. But, the first reaction to that suggestion from many conservatives in Congress and at the grass roots is that it's not going to be enough to promise progress on the borders in a year, while demanding immediate passage of a bill granting quasi-amnesty to illegal immigrants. If you are serious about securing your home, you don't leave your front door wide open while you consider other options. As a nation, if we are serious about homeland security, we should secure our borders first.

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Some members of Congress are fed up with constituent reports of religious censorship of military chaplains and want President Bush to step in and solve it quickly.

Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., who is leading the call to action, said the president should "use an executive order to guarantee the constitutional rights of our chaplains to speak freely, pray freely, in the military."

He said the president now has an opportunity to affirm the Constitution.

"He, being a man of God, which I don't think any of us question, can really show his belief that this nation is a nation under God," Jones said.

Family News in Focus reported that chaplains in all branches of the military have come forward with personal testimonies of how they have been discouraged from mentioning Jesus in prayer and ministry.

Rep. Mike McIntyre, D- S.C., said the government's role is to protect religious freedom.

"I thought our government was supposed to be about removing religious discrimination and removing hypocrisy," he said. "So we want to stand for the right things and let our chaplains do their job. Let's not inhibit them."

Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., said America was founded because of a yearning for religious freedom.

"It is very important that any free people recognize how they got to be free in the first place," he said. "If there is anything that characterizes the United States and the birth of this nation, it was that it was predicated on the pursuit and the desire to find religious freedom."

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Yesterday the New York Times reported on the sad case of Aaron W. Walsh, a 33-year-old man who recently lost his wife and his career due to a gambling addiction. The twist on the story was that this addiction was brought on and encouraged by his former employers . . . the United States Army. Slot machines have existed on some military bases since the 1930's. The one-armed bandits were temporarily removed from Army and Air Force bases in 1971 because of their "corruptive influence." The two branches returned to the easy sleazy money of gambling to pay for recreation programs. According to gambling expert Professor John Kindt of the University of Illinois, the four branches of the armed services operate about 8,000 slot machines located in 94 facilities overseas.

A 2001 Department of Defense survey concluded that 2.2 percent of military personnel had experienced at least three gambling- related problems in their lifetimes. Instead of seeking to help those soldiers who succumb to the addiction of gambling, the U.S. military neglects them, usually resulting in discipline and/or dishonorable discharge - but not counseling. The U.S. armed forces should ban these "crack cocaine machines of gambling" before they do further harm to our brave men and women and their families.

As reported here previously, I've witnessed firsthand the devastation wrought by the hurricanes on the Gulf Coast. However, I was taken aback by the huge promises of spending to rebuild coming from Washington - with no offsets to ensure fiscal discipline. If the federal government feels responsible for rebuilding areas that face natural disasters, that should not nullify its responsibility to taxpayers. With Hurricane Wilma now pointed toward the Florida coast, threatening even further government expenditures, the time is ripe for fiscal responsibility to return to the federal government (if it ever really existed).

This morning FRC Executive Vice President Chuck Donovan spoke at a press conference in support of an across-the-board reduction in discretionary spending, in addition to $50 billion in program cuts over five years. Representing thousands of families across America, we are concerned about out-of-control spending. Fiscal responsibility is a family value, for it is families who end up paying for government's largesse with our tax dollars. Families are forced to work within a budget; it is about time government did the same.

Yesterday Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), good friend of FRC and the family, proved why he is so popular among the pro-family movement. Senator Coburn introduced a series of amendments that would have redirected taxpayer funds away from extraneous pork projects and to efforts to help rebuild areas hit by Hurricane Katrina. Unfortunately for taxpayers, the majority of the Senate stayed true to their belief that taxpayer's funds and patience are limitless and defeated the amendments. The most dramatic moment came when Senator Coburn tried to divert $453 million for two Alaska bridges that had been tucked into the recent highway bill. One of the bridges that received $223 million, called the "Bridge to Nowhere," would connect one small town to a tiny island with 50 residents (that breaks down to $4.4 million per an islander.) An informal poll of Alaskan citizens said they would willingly pass on taking the highway money to instead have it help hurricane victims.

This squared with what I am finding regarding relief efforts. While most politicians are unwilling to give up taxpayer money, across the USA people are going the extra mile to help their fellowman. One such example is Pastor Tommy Tenney and his group GodChasers. Pastor Tenney has organized an effort called "Adopt a Pastor" to encourage others to help pastors who have been hardest hit by the hurricanes this year. In addition, I work closely with PRC Compassion, the pastors' network that continues to help those dislocated by the storms.

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Does anyone have the right to define what is obscene? Or did our Founding Fathers, when writing the First Amendment, seek to protect depictions of unspeakable acts done to women including having their throats cut? Unbelievably, that is the question being argued this week in a federal court. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is hearing the case against Extreme Associates Inc., which is hiding behind the U.S. Constitution to deliver graphic and obscene videos across state lines. U.S. District Judge Gary L. Lancaster in January dismissed the indictment, saying that federal obscenity laws violate the Constitution. The basis for Judge Lancaster's decision was the 2004 Supreme Court case of Lawrence v. Texas, which legalized sodomy in all 50 states.

Judge Lancaster cited the Lawrence case, saying, "The government can no longer rely on the advancement of a moral code, preventing consenting adults from entertaining lewd or lascivious thoughts, as a legitimate, let alone compelling, state interest." Since the sodomy decision of 2004 Lawrence has been cited to legitimize numerous deviancies including "gay marriage," bigamy, and pedophilia. FRC has filed a brief in the case in favor of allowing communities to define obscenity and will be following the proceedings very closely.

Pittsburgh, A new group founded to protect freedom of religion in the U.S. is staging an unusual campaign--one to get atheism recognized as a religion. It’s symbol? nothing.

The Pennsylvania-based group, Defending Freedom Of Religion Inc. was founded in hopes of stopping acts like removing Ten Commandment Plaques from public places, returning prayer to public schools tackling other acts which they say infringe on the rights of the faithful.

The group says that one of its major objectives is getting "nothing" recognized as the official symbol of atheism.

Ken Whitaker, founder of DFOR, said that, "The separation of church and state is an impossible ideal. If you remove all religious symbols, and replace them all with Atheism's symbol [nothing], you are establishing Atheism as our official state religion."

The group argues that the answer is allowing all religious symbols to coexist alongside of each other. They said that the nation must "not ‘prohibit the free exercise thereof’ of any religion.

"Let's place a traditional Nativity scene on the courthouse steps," the group suggested in a recent statement," and a menorah, and other symbols from other religions, and let's reserve a big empty spot for the Atheists."

"The Atheists", they quipped, "can look at their empty spot and know that their symbol is there for all to see. But they can't force our spot to be empty."

The Supreme Court recently decided two cases, one in Kentucky and one in Texas regarding Ten Commandments displays in public places.

They decided that the Texas display was acceptable because it represented law within a greater historical context, but ruled that the Kentucky display was predominantly religious in nature, and had to be removed.

Court sides with 5-year-old after school censors Jesus Oct. 20 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

Court sides with 5-year-old after school censors Jesus

Officials at a New York state school may have violated the constitutional free-speech rights of a kindergarten student who included an image of Jesus in his homework assignment, according to an appeals court decision.

The three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in Manhattan remanded the case back to a federal district court Monday for further consideration.

Antonio Peck, who attended Catherine McNamara Elementary School in Baldwinsville, N.Y., as a kindergarten student during the 1999-2000 school year, included an image of Jesus and other religious elements in a poster created in fulfillment of a homework assignment on the environment.

The student reportedly was expressing his belief that God was the only way to save the environment.

School officials rejected one version of the poster and then obscured a portion of the second version when it was placed on display at an assembly, citing concerns over its "religious" nature.

Liberty Counsel, a Florida-based public-interest law firm, filed suit over the second poster.

"To allow a kindergarten poster to be displayed for a few hours on a cafeteria wall, along with 80 other student posters, is far from an establishment of religion," said Mathew D. Staver, president and general counsel of Liberty Counsel. "To censor the poster solely because some might perceive a portion of it to be religious is an egregious violation of the Constitution."

The case was funded by the Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund from 1999-2003.

The second version of the poster depicted a robed, praying figure of Jesus, a church with a cross, people picking up trash for recycling, children holding hands around a globe, clouds, trees, a squirrel and grass.

In its opinion, the 2nd Circuit panel said the district court "overlooked evidence that, if construed, in the light most favorable to Peck, suggested that Antonio's poster was censored not because it was unresponsive to the assignment ... , but because it offered a religious perspective on the topic of how to save the environment."

In 2000, the federal trial court ruled the school had the right to censor the poster because of "church and state" concerns. In March 2001, a unanimous federal court of appeals reversed the decision and sent the case back to the trial court.

Last year, the same federal trial court again ruled for the school. Liberty Counsel noted the 2nd Circuit joined the 9th and the 11th Circuits in holding that viewpoint discrimination is forbidden, even in the public school classroom context.

However, the 1st and 10th Circuits hold that viewpoint discrimination in the public school context is permissible, making it likely the Peck case will end up in the Supreme Court.

Staver said, "I'm elated with the decision. Now Antonio will have his day in court. The school humiliated Antonio when the teacher folded his poster in half so that the cutout drawing of Jesus could not be seen."

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A tiny cross on its town seal has Tijeras, N.M., in a David-and-Goliath battle with the American Civil

Liberties Union (ACLU), World Net Daily reported.

Last year the ACLU forced the County of Los Angeles to remove a cross from its seal -- the county backed down because it did not want the expense of a lengthy court battle. But Tijeras, with fewer than 500 residents, enlisted help from the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) in order to preserve its historical seal which also contains a conquistador's helmet and sword, a scroll, a desert plant and a large Native American religious symbol.

Gary McCaleb, senior counsel at ADF, said the motives are clear.

"The ACLU is once more specifically targeting a cross while it ignores the Native American religious symbols," McCaleb said. "It reveals their desire to target all things Christian, regardless of the fact that the cross in the Tijeras seal is clearly an historic symbol and not an attempt to endorse any particular faith."

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Brussels, According to a new grammar rule in the Netherlands and Belgium, the name "Christ" will soon be written with a lower-case "c", as stipulated by an orthography reform published last Friday.

According to the Kath.net agency, the new spelling rules also will stipulate that the Dutch word for "jews" (joden) be spelled with a capital "J" when referring to nationality and with a lower-case "j" when referring to the religion. The changes will be mandatory starting in August 2006.

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Appeal Filed on Behalf of CA state Employee Suspended for Expressing Religious Beliefs

Oct. 25 2005 Pacific Justice Institute

Sacramento, CA—Attorneys with Pacific Justice Institute have filed an appeal with the California State Personnel Board on behalf of an employee who was harshly disciplined for sending an e-mail expressing her religious beliefs.

The employee, who works for a large state agency in Sacramento, read an article in a national magazine which featured a lesbian lawyer and her partner. The article quoted the lawyer as stating, "Hypocrisy occurs when religion is used to justify why two people should not be married." The employee was troubled by this statement and e-mailed the lawyer while at work to politely express her own beliefs concerning religion, homosexuality, and hypocrisy. She also quoted several verses from the New Testament.

Even though the magazine article addressed a controversial issue and had been published for an estimated readership of seven million people, the lesbian lawyer was greatly offended by this opposing viewpoint. She contacted the employee’s supervisors, as well as high-level state officials, demanding action against the employee for "harassing conduct and improper use of government resources." In particular, she cited the employee’s mention of Bible verses as being harassing. Supervisors at this agency have indicated in the past that employees may occasionally use their e-mail accounts for personal reasons; nevertheless, an investigation was launched and the employee was stunned to learn that she was being suspended thirty days without pay. She has just finished serving that suspension.

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For the second time this year, an Atlantic hurricane is forcing the postponement of a popular homosexual event filled with "unthinkable debauchery." 

The annual Fantasy Fest in Key West, Fla., had been slated to kick off today, but the threat of Hurricane Wilma is putting a damper on the festivities, delaying events until after the storm passes. 

"We've never had a hurricane interfere with Fantasy Fest, at least as long as I've been here," Harold Wheeler, director of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council for the past 10 years told the Key West Citizen. "In fact, it's just the opposite – Fantasy Fest has always been there to open up our season." 

As WorldNetDaily previously reported, another homosexual festival, Southern Decadence, was postponed in August as Hurricane Katrina approached New Orleans. . 

At least one state senator has attributed this year's hurricane devastation to the hand of God punishing the U.S. for its national breaking of biblical laws. 

"America has been moving away from God," said Alabama Sen. Hank Erwin, R-Montevallo. "The Lord is sending appeals to us. As harsh as it may sound, those hurricanes do say that God is real, and we have to realize sin has consequences."

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