Newsmax: "The same San Francisco federal judge who just overturned a federal law banning partial-birth abor-tions also approved of Muslim prayer in schools when federal rulings ban all other denominational prayers and activities. In a December 2003 decision, U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton decided that it was lawful for a California middle school teacher to require students to recite Muslim prayers, get down on their knees and role-play as Muslim adherents. As part of the class students were told to recite: "In the name of Allah, the Compas-sionate, the Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of Crea-tion, The Compassionate, the Merciful, King of Judgment -day! You alone we worship....'"

Daily Mail (UK) via Drudge Report: Babies "with conditions that can usually be corrected medically— such as deformed feet and cleft lips and palates—are instead being terminated. And the number of abor-tions of Down's syndrome babies now outstrips live births, despite the fact that those with the condition can live a long and fulfilling life. As screening tech-niques improve, the trend is likely to grow—horrifying pro-life campaigners. 'These figures are symptomatic of a eugenic trend of the consumerist society hell-bent on obliterating deformity—and at what cost to its own humanity?' said ethicist Jacqueline Laing, of London Metropolitan University."

Daily Press, Virginia: "The Rev. Todd Pyle thought it was the perfect spot to baptize 12 new members of his church—the river was calm and shallow and there was a shaded area offshore for people to stand. 'It was a very serene place,' he said. 'It was special.' But offi-cials at the Falmouth Waterfront Park just outside Fredericksburg, Va., weren't pleased. Officials tried to break up the religious ceremony, claiming it might be offensive to swimmers frolicking nearby or other people using the park. After Pyle finished the baptism, he was asked to leave. Now free-speech advocates are outrag-ed and are threatening to file a lawsuit if the park re-fuses to allow future gatherings by religious groups...."

1984 speech: "George Washington referred to religion's
...place in the heart of our nation...in his Farewell Add-ress in 1796. ...By 1796 the French Revolution had known the Reign of Terror. And Washington [doubted] that there could be a wise policy without a firm moral and religious foundation. He said, 'Of all the disposi-tions and habits which lead to political prosperity, reli-gion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man (call himself a patriot) who (would) la-bour to subvert these...props of the duties of men and citizens...let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion.'"

Crosswalk: Christian Action Network "has been work-ing for...years to raise awareness about Gay Days and to advocate for an end to the antifamily event. Members of the Christian group operate an additional activism site called StopGayDays.com, which...links to shock-ing photographic evidence of the public indecency [at] these events and listing similar Gay Days at theme parks and resorts all over North America.... [T]he group released an original video, 'Gay Days at Disney Gone Wild!'...document[ing] the first six [Disney] Gay Days celebration[s with] footage of public nudity, drug use, homosexual kissing, fondling, and sex acts—even Disney cast members in homoerotic performances."

Ireland Online: "The leader of Catholics in England and Wales issued a call today for human life to be protected from 'womb to tomb' as he launched a new set of moral guidelines for the faithful. Irish-born Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O‘Connor said Catholic moral teaching was about 'life, love and human flourishing' as he unveiled Cherishing Life, a new 100-page booklet produced by the Catholic bishops of England and Wales. The document deals with issues ranging from abortion to sex education, contraception, embryo research, cloning and euthanasia, as well as war and the use of force."  

Reuters: "MTV executives said they expect to launch the network in about 10 to 14 million homes [next] February, and has already received distribution com-mitments from Time Warner Cable in the New York area and Adelphia Communications Corp in Los An-geles..... The launch could complicate matters for par-ent company Viacom as it defends against indecency charges by the Federal Communications Commission related to radio broadcasts of...Howard Stern....'We don't think it's indecent,' said Tom Freston, MTV Net-works Chairman and CEO.... 'This will be mainstream programming...targeting lesbian[s] and gay[s].... We think it's a legitimate and growing community.'"

Washington Times: "'In fact, Reagan saved a Republican Party that was falling apart and actually transformed it into a party of ideas, with a vision of what America should look like in the future,' [Bob] Heckman [former Reagan political action committee organizer] said. At the same time, [media consultant Tom] Edmonds says, it is a mistake to typecast Mr. Reagan. 'Reagan didn't fall into a stereotypical cate-gory,' Mr. Edmonds said. "Most Reagan positions were conservative but he didn't just embrace them with a knee jerk. He had his own positions on all the issues of the day.'" 

William Folger commentary in the Washington Dispatch: "The obvious public part of the 'Kerry / Holy Communion' problem begins quietly enough with his personal belief he is right to detach his political life from his faith beliefs. But then his public position on abortion so blatantly disrespects God’s Property Rights over fetal Creation, that Kerry scandalizes all Catholics by taking Communion. Simultaneously with Kerry’s problem re disrespect, the episcopal story is about why the bishops failed to effectively apply the concept of Respect to 'Pro-Life' for three decades following Roe."  

Doug Giles in TownHall.com: "The Xtreme sport of the Xtreme left is Christian-suppression, and man, are they getting good at it. Check it out: · Liberal, hypocrit-ical, social deconstructors have effectively removed Christianity from our public schools and universities. They have completely deleted the truth concerning the massive role the Christian faith played in our Founding Fathers’ formulating this great land. And God help you if you, Christian teacher or student, attempt to reintro-duce it. · Liberal, hypocritical Hollywood-en heads rou-tinely [depict] Christiansas cross-eyed morons who are repressed and offensive, buckle-shoed, GED killjoys sporting a 70-plus-pound Bible with a minus-70 IQ..."

SignOnSanDiego: "County supervisors have decided to remove a tiny cross from the county's official seal rather than face a potential lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union. The supervisors held an emo-tional debate Tuesday before deciding to replace the cross with another image—possibly a representa-tion of a Spanish mission or California's indigenous tribes. The cross has been on the county seal since 1957 in a panel with two stars above a depiction of the Hollywood Bowl. The Bowl was intended as a symbol of culture while one star represents film and the other television."

AP via ABCNews: "While Fox News' Bill O'Reilly says he's not necessarily conservative on many issues, his audience is. The Pew survey found 72 percent of 'The O'Reilly Factor" viewers described themselves as con-servative, and 4 percent said they were liberal. Mean-while, 22 percent of PBS' 'NewsHour' viewers describe themselves as conservative, and 71 percent say they are moderate or liberal, Pew said. Due largely to Fox, cable news continues to grow as a favored outlet for news while the broadcast networks' ratings are flat. The Inter-net is also growing as a news source, and bringing in more older and minority computer users, too, Pew said.'"  

AP via Newsday: "In a May column in The New York Observer ridiculing President George W. Bush's state-ment that freedom is God-given, Nicholas von Hoffman said, 'Remember St. Paul's injunction that slaves should obey their masters.' Paul's condemnations of lesbian and gay activity have received endless attention during recent church debates. But what are we to make of his words to slaves, which fell short of modern stan-dards, or his politically incorrect views about wives sub-mitting to husbands? Take a deep breath and give Paul a break, say two scholarly conservatives. Tom Wright, No. 4 bishop in the Church of England, explores these
...matters in Paul for Everyone: The Prison Letters...."

Tri-Valley Herald, Pleasanton, CA: Tyler Chase "Harper, 16, of Poway, is a sophomore at Poway High School. According to the suit, he is a Christian who believes that 'homosexual behavior is immoral, damaging to the practitioners and to human society in general, and is demonstrably contrary to the teachings of the Bible.' According to the suit, on April 21 he wore a T-shirt hand-lettered with the words 'I Will Not Accept What God Has Condemned' on the front and on the back it read 'Homosexuality is Shameful' and 'Romans 1:27,' a reference to a Bible passage."

AP: "'Rights are at times reduced to self-centered demands: the growth of prostitution and pornography in the name of adult choice, the acceptance of abortion in the name of women's rights, the approval of same sex unions in the name of homosexual rights,' he said. The Catholic Church forbids abortion and considers homo-sexual activity a sin." His remarks to bishops came on the same day he held a private audience with President Bush..."'Ambiguous moral positions ... are just some examples of a perspective of life which fails to seek truth itself and then abandons the search for the ultimate goal and meaning of human existence,' John Paul said."

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