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Dave's Blog for June 2010
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6/30/2010
Chicago Young "Republicans" -- Disappointing
It was brought to my attention that the Chicago Young Republicans (CYR), or at least a good number of the members of CYR, proudly marched in the Chicago "Gay Pride" parade this past Sunday. Pictures from their participation are on display on the front page of the CYR website.
Ironically, if one were to visit this website and navigate over to the FAQ section, you can find the following Q and A:Q: Does your club follow a particular "wing" of the Republican Party? What is your specific ideology?
A: Our club supports and advances the platform of the Republican Party. However, the specific political ideologies of our club members is as diverse as the various ideologies within the Republican Party. The one thing our members do share is a passion for Republican politics, and a desire to advance the platform in a positive and professional manner.[Emphasis added] This may come as a surprise to some of the CYRs, but homosexual activists, by way of their agenda and of which the "Gay Pride" parade celebrates, are unapologetically attempting to advance extreme liberal policies that radically alter marriage and family, redefine and marginalize Judeo-Christian traditions (and western cultural values in general).
Moreover, the Republican Party Platform -- of which the CYRs say they support and advance -- unequivocally embraces pro-life, pro-family, and pro-marriage values; while, the homosexual agenda is wholeheartedly pro-abortion, pro-counterfeit "marriage" (read same-sex), advocates special "rights" for homosexuals, and is openly hostile to traditional Judeo-Christian values.
Unfortunately, the CYRs who marched in the perversion parade have bought the politically correct lie that asserts that one's perceived sexual orientation is a civil right. As a result, they are unwittingly promoting liberal ideas, values and candidates who will undermine the foundation of values and institutions -- specifically marriage -- which undergird all of American society.
The CYRs (and every so-called "conservative" that embraces the extremist gay agenda) are displaying nothing but dismissive scorn for the truth about volitional homosexual behavior, the Republican platform, middle-American, and the conservative values embraced by the majority of Illinois Republicans.
Methinks they should change their name to Chicago Young RINOs or perhaps move to the other Party - the one that embraces these extreme liberal values.
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6/29/2010
Abortions at Military Bases
U.S. Representative Todd Akin (R-MO) has circulated a letter to his colleagues and Congressional leaders opposing legislative efforts to authorize the performance of abortions at U.S. military bases.
The Senate Armed Services Committee voted in late May to repeal a ban on abortions at medical facilities on both domestic and overseas military bases. The amendment was added to the 2011 Department of Defense authorization bill, and was offered by our own Illinois U.S. Senator Roland Burris.
Under current law, adopted by Congress in 1996, Department of Defense medical personnel and medical facilities may not be used for abortions except when the life of the mother is in danger or when the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest.
"Military treatment centers -- which are dedicated to healing and caring for life -- should not facilitate the taking of the most innocent human life: a child in the womb," Akin says in his letter.
Akin argues that if the Burris language is adopted, not only will taxpayer funded facilities be used to support abortion on demand, but resources will also be expended to recruit, hire, and transport medical personnel simply so that abortions can be performed. The Congressman says that women who wish to obtain abortions are already able to travel off base for the procedure.
"Expanding abortion in government owned and operated military medical facilities is simply unconscionable and morally unacceptable," says Akin. "Our military facilities should be a place of healing and life-saving. They should not be in in the business of destroying the unborn."
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6/28/2010
Home Depot exposes children to homosexuality in celebrated style
Home Depot is a willing participant in exposing children to unhealthy and risky homosexual events.
According to the Chicago Pride Parade website, and the Southern Maine Pride website, Home Depot signed on as a major sponsor of 2010 Gay Pride Parade events. But simply financing and marching in the parade wasn't enough for the big box chain.
In Maine, Home Depot also signed on as a "festival" vendor, conducting Kid's Craft Workshops for children in the midst of loud and boisterous gay activities.
To this end, Home Depot is basically encouraging the attendance of children at events which openly expose them to transvestites, cross-dressers, and homosexual activists.
Unfortunately, Home Depot's participation in the Chicago and Southern Maine Pride parade doesn't stand alone. It has also sponsored and participated in the 2010 Boston Gay Pride parade.
Gay pride events have a long track record for offensive public displays of homosexual conduct. Obviously, Home Depot is OK with the idea of exposing children to an unhealthy and risky environment. So much so, it is willing to also celebrate it by participating in its promotion, as demonstrated in these photos from the 2010 Maine and Boston events.
Send an email, letter or a fax to Home Depot and let them know you are opposed to their support and approval of children at homosexual events. If you are a customer, please add an additional personal line to our prepared letter to Home Depot.
After sending your email, make an extra effort to protect children by calling Home Depot personally. Brad Shaw is the Vice President of Public Relations. His direct number is 770-384-5350.
It is very important that you forward this alert to your friends and family members.
Frank Blake, Chairman Home Depot, Inc.
2455 Paces Ferry Rd.
Atlanta, GA 30339
Phone: 770-433-8211 or: 800-430-3376 Fax: 770-384-2356
E-Mail: Frank Blake (consumeraffairs@homedepot.com), Home Depot, Inc.
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6/24/2010
"Choose Life" license plates now available in MA
After a seven-year campaign, Massachusetts residents can now support crisis pregnancy centers and express their pro-life views on their license plates. The plates feature an illustration of a woman cradling an infant and cost drivers $90 every two years. The proceeds from the plates will go to organizations that encourage women with unwanted pregnancies to consider options other than abortion, such as adoption.
Any registered charitable organization can submit a special design to the RMV, but must also post a $100,000 bond to protect the state from financial loss, and obtain applications and fees from at least 1,500 drivers who want the new plates. The state will return the bond if more than 3,000 of the specialty plates are sold within two years.
Massachusetts joins with about two-dozen other states in offering "Choose Life" plates, which were first available in Florida a decade ago. Jim Finnegan, an Illinois Family Institute board member, tried to get a "Choose Life" plate here in the Prairie State, but the Secretary of State, Jesse White fought it in court. It was appealed up to the U.S. Supreme Court, but was denied in October 2009, allowing the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruling against Choose Life plates to stand, as handed down in November 2008.
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6/23/2010
Re: The Left
"Obama is dreamer in chief: He wants to take us to this green future 'even if we're unsure exactly what that looks like. Even if we don't yet precisely know how we're going to get there.' Here's the offer: Tax carbon, spend trillions and put government in control of the energy economy -- and he will take you he knows not where, by way of a road he knows not which. That's why Tuesday's speech was received with such consternation. It was so untethered from reality. The gulf is gushing, and the president is talking mystery roads to unknown destinations. That passes for vision, and vision is Obama's thing. It sure beats cleaning up beaches." ~columnist Charles Krauthammer
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6/21/2010
Pres. Obama recognizes sinful perversion as "family"  | Our radically liberal president embraces homosexual households as just another form of "family." We really shouldn't be surprised, this is just part of the "change" he promised on the campaign trail in 2008. |
President Barack Obama is sold out to the radical homosexual agenda. One needs no more proof than his most recent pro-homosexual gesture, recognizing homosexual partners raising children in the official White House Proclimation on Father's Day:Nurturing families come in many forms, and children may be raised by a father and mother, a single father, two fathers, a step father, a grandfather, or caring guardian. Yes, you read that right. The President of the United States of America went out of his way to pander to the homosexual community by recognizing two-daddy homes (read motherless) on Father's Day.
Obama also uses this cherished American holiday honoring fathers and fatherhood to make a statement about his views of when life begins. In the first few words, the Obama proclamation declares a father-child bond commencing "from the first moments of life." In so doing, Obama refuses to acknowledge that life begins at the moment of conception, when a unique human life, with unique human DNA begins. Nor does he acknowledge the fact that millions of fathers view their unborn children in ultrasound pictures well before they are birthed.
It is also interesting to note that Pres. Obama and his leftist friends aren't observing Gov. Mitch Daniel's foolish call for a truce on the social issues. Instead the Left is happy to shove them in our face.
While so-called "moderates" and fiscal conservatives shrug there shoulders, the morality of the people and nation suffer.
Charles Carroll, signer of the Declaration and member of Continental Congress warned us:"Without morals a republic cannot subsist any length of time; they therefore who are decrying the Christian religion, whose morality is so sublime and pure, which insures to the good eternal happiness, are undermining the solid foundation of morals, the best security for the duration of free governments." Reject the morality of Christian conservatives and get instead the morality of the godless Left.
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6/18/2010
Violating Illinois DOMA
Much has been said about the unseemly nature of Illinois politics -- where insiders and the connected get all the benefits and others suffer. This week it was no different as we witness our state Treasurer pander to a special interest group. we saw a development that marks real reform for families in Illinois.
On Sunday, the Illinois Treasurer announced an executive order that extends policies covering unpaid time off for family matters to homosexual employees of the Treasurer's Office. The Treasurer became the first constitutional officer or state agency to adopt such a policy -- an act that undermines and violates the spirit of Illinois' Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).
Under the State Treasurer's policy, bereavement leave and the protections contained in the federal Family and Medical Leave Act previously extended this benefit to married couples, recognizing the important role that natural family plays in the health of the society.
This is just another step toward redefining marriage and family in Illinois.
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6/17/2010
View from within the Courtroom
Those who attended yesterday's hearing of closing arguments in Perry v Schwarzenegger, the trial against Proposition 8, filled Chief Judge Vaughn Walker's courtroom, as well as two overflow courtrooms. In the front half of Walker's courtroom sat more than 40 attorneys representing the plaintiffs and the defendant-intervenors. Attorneys representing Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown were also in attendance, but when asked by Judge Walker if they had any comments, they declined.
Charles Cooper, lead attorney for the defendant-intervenors and the people of California, accomplished a very difficult task with excellence. Mr. Cooper was equipped with details from dozens of previous cases that affirm in law the definition of marriage as only between a man and a woman. In addition, Cooper answered Judge Walker's many questions in commanding fashion.
In summary, it was the task of our attorneys to provide facts to Judge Walker on four issues:Responsible procreation and its societal benefits;
The rational basis by which California voters adopted Proposition 8;
Whether homosexuals are a "suspect" class, deserving of higher levels of legal protection; and
Whether sexual orientation is immutable, or changeable. In contrast, reasoning by the plaintiffs had much less to do with previous case law or established legal precedent. Although Judge Walker clearly stated that the "burden of proof" falls upon the plaintiffs to overturn the will of the people, the arguments put forth by Ted Olsen, closing arbiter for the plaintiffs, relied more on emotion. Mr. Olsen's arguments before the Court relied on a communication tactic that if an idea is repeated enough, over time, an uninformed population will accept it as truth.
Finally, as the day concluded, I had opportunity to speak briefly at the press conference, alongside general counsel Andy Pugno, Austin Nimocks from the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), and Chuck Cooper. In my time at the microphone I stated, "It is my privilege to thank Mr. Pugno and the attorneys of ADF and the Cooper and Kirk law firm for their excellent defense on behalf of the people. In addition, the executive committee thanks the tens of thousands of people who have financially supported this legal defense in the absence of our state's governor and attorney general's defense of California's Constitution."
Please continue to pray. Although the trial has now concluded, we seek a decision from Judge Walker that will uphold traditional marriage and the will of the people. And, the battle for the institution of marriage will undoubtedly next touch down in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
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6/16/2010
Melting Pot USA
I've heard reports recently that the U.S. Census is now showing that minorities in America increased by more than 2 percent, while the white population remained flat.
According to the Washington Post, minorities were increased by a surge in Hispanic births and more people who described themselves as multiracial, the Associated Press reported.
The nation's minority population now makes up 35 percent of the country.
But what exactly is a minority? I know quite a few "Gringos" (a.k.a. "White People") who have married men of Hispanic decent. Their children have the Hispanic last name, but they are what some call interracial. I prefer to just call them Americans who have merged in the melting pot. The Pew Research Center recently reported that one of every seven new marriages in 2008 was interracial or interethnic -- the highest percentage in U.S. history.
So my question is, are there really more minorities in the USA now, or are there simply more people who are integrating with others of different backgrounds and names to produce unions and children uniquely American?
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6/15/2010
Young girl rescued at sea -- foolish father?
By now we have all heard about the 16-year-old sailor Abby Sunderland who was rescued Saturday from her crippled boat in the southern Indian Ocean.
This young girl set out in her boat from Los Angeles Jan. 23rd, trying to become the youngest person to sail around the world solo and nonstop. She ran into trouble last Thursday, when she set off a distress signal after the mast collapsed.
The 16-year-old had to abandon her sailboat, Wild Eyes, when a French fishing vessel rescued her more than 2,000 miles from the western Australia coast.
In interviews with the media, Abby's parents defended the decision to allow their daughter to challenge the high seas, saying Abby's journey was no more dangerous than other activities that teenagers do and that she proved to them that she was up to the challenge.
"Let's face it, life is dangerous. How many teenagers die in car accident[s]?" Laurence Sunderland said. "This wasn't an easy decision make. It was done very carefully."
As a father myself, I cannot understand Mr. Sunderland's position here. Yes, too many teenagers die in car accidents every year, but that doesn't somehow excuse exposing your 16-year-old child -- female or male -- to an extreme situation well out of reach of your control or response! Every year, dozens of ships sink and dozens of professional sailors die as a result of terrible storms and rouge waves.
Moreover, while there are currently tens-of-thousands of teenagers and millions of former teenagers who have successfully navigated the treachery of the road -- there is no such record on the high seas.
Sure, Abby's father should build a healthy sense of self-confidence in his children, but he should also instill in his children sound judgment, wisdom and shrewdness. A father should help them to use their brains like responsible adults: to frame questions and answers logically, to think ahead and foresee consequences, to weigh risk and reward, to make wise decisions, and to avoid foolishness.
In this latter point, I believe Mr. Sunderland failed his daughter, his wife and his family.
Thank God it didn't result in tragedy.
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6/10/2010
Federal judicial nominee goes easy on child-related sex crimes
Yesterday the Senate Judiciary Committee heard the nomination of district court judge Robert Chatigny to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Chatigny has been under fire because of his weak sentencing of sex crimes, especially child porn. He's reduced sentences for sex offenders for legally impermissible reasons like an abusive childhood, the person is an otherwise law-abiding citizen, and post-traumatic stress disorder brought on by the person's own prosecution and conviction.
Chatigny also encouraged a serial killer and rapist to appeal his death sentence, effectively handing him a "mental health" defense.
The Judiciary Committee voted 11-7 after a contentious meeting in which Republican members voiced concern that he was not fit to serve on the second-highest court in the country. All Republicans voted no, U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) passed, and the remaining Democrats voted yes. U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) took the lead in defending the nomination.
One of the points of disagreement between Senator Klobuchar and Committee Republicans, specifically U.S. Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ), was whether Judge Chatigny showed a skewed sense of empathy in the Ross and other sex crime cases, empathizing with the perpetrators, but not the victims. Senator Klobuchar said that to her it is clear that the judge empathizes appropriately with all parties to a criminal case. Senator Kyl strongly disagreed, saying in his view it was clear that the judge seems to think only of the defendant and not the victims.
Illinois U.S. Senator Dick Durbin is a ranking member of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. Durbin voted to send the Chatigny's nomination to the floor for a full Senate vote.
Read more: Senators Should Reject Obama's 'Empathy for Sadists' Judge
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6/9/2010
Obama declares June "LGBT Pride Month"
In yet another endorsment of homosexual activism, President Barack Obama has declared the month of June "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month." Obama has issued a formal Presidential proclamation calling upon all Americans to observe this month to honor "LGBT Americans."
President Obama says that "an unfinished story" in our nation's independence is the "movement for fairness and equality on the behalf of the LGBT community." In his proclamation, the President spells out what he thinks "equality and fairness" means.
The President renewed his pledge to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which protects states like Illinois from having to recognize homosexual so-called "marriage" licenses granted by other states. The President restated his support for redefining marriage to include homosexual unions, saying that "we must give committed gay couples the same rights and responsibilities afforded to any married couple."
Obama also declared his support for allowing homosexual "couples" to adopt children, for granting special employment rights to homosexuals, and for providing employment benefits to the homosexual "partners" of federal employees.
Andrea Lafferty, executive director of the Traditional Values Coalition, says the President has misplaced priorities. "We have a nation that's facing great unemployment and economic crisis, as well as the Gulf oil spill, and what is the President pushing? Gay transgender rights and gays in the military. These are not national priorities."
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6/8/2010
U.S. Senator Webb Critical of Repealing DADT
U.S. Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) has expressed concern over his party's rush to repeal the military's "Don't Ask Don't Tell" (DADT) policy before a review by military leaders.
The U.S. House approved the provision as part of a larger defense spending bill and the Senate Armed Services Committee also approved the measure. The legislation, if passed, would not take effect until the military's internal review is completed (expected in December). It also requires President Barack Obama, the Defense Secretary and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to sign off on the policy change. Some political pundits believe Democrats have pushed the repeal now because they fear they may not have enough votes to pass it after mid-term elections.
"I was really disappointed in - in the way that this process was accelerated," said Webb in an interview with CNN. "I was the only Democrat that voted against this in committee markup." Senator Webb is a Vietnam veteran and a former Secretary of the Navy, sits on the Senate Armed Forces Committee and is the Chairman of the Armed Forces Personnel Subcommittee.
Click HERE to read more.
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6/7/2010
Survey suggests that many teenagers are okay with single motherhood
A new survey from the National Center for Health Statistics has revealed that more teens think single motherhood is okay. The survey was discussed during a recent edition of NPR's "All Things Considered."
Unmarried teenagers between 15 and 19 were asked a wide array of questions about their behavior and attitudes about sex. Surveyors found that roughly half of the teens were sexually active.
One area of significant change was the attitude of teens regarding single motherhood. Between 2002 and 2008, the number of teen boys who approved of single motherhood grew from 50 to 60 percent. Among teen girls, the number who approved remained relatively steady at around 70 percent. Sarah Brown of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy expressed concern about survey results showing that nearly one-fourth of respondents said they would be pleased if they or their partner had a baby.
Not all teens in the survey agreed, however. Of the half who said they were still virgins, their religion or moral values were the most often cited reason for them choosing to remain abstinent.
Parents, YOU must impress biblical truths and values on your children -- Dueteronomy 6:1-9 -- or the world will. (It has to be intentional on your part. And don't make the mistake of thinking that a couple of hours of Sunday School, children's church or AWANA is sufficient. It is NOT. Moreover, God directs you to pass on your faith -- it is not the youth pastor's job.)
Click HERE to read the transcript from "All Things Considered."
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6/4/2010
Don't Ask Don't Tell Repeal Underway
Last week, the House of Representatives voted 234-194 to repeal the military's ban on homosexuality, and the Senate Armed Services Committee passed similar legislation, which will now make its way to the full Senate. However, the Department of Defense (DoD) is still conducting a study about what repealing the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy might do to the military.
Congress' haste and disregard for the DOD is their attempt to push through the change irrespective of the impact on the military and is an attempt to lay the groundwork for protection of same-sex "marriage" in the future.
I'm not sure if it will do any good, but call Illinois Senators Durbin and Burris now to voice your opposition to repealing the military's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy!
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6/2/2010
Intolerance -- English preacher sues for wrongful arrest
A Christian street preacher in England has filed a lawsuit against a local police department after he was arrested for making public comments about homosexuality.
Dale McAlpine is suing the Cambria Police Department for wrongful arrest and false imprisonment. McAlpine was arrested in late April and held in a cell for several hours before being charged with a public order offense. The charges against McAlpine were recently dropped by local prosecutors.
McAlpine was handing out Ten Commandments tracts in the town of Workington when a woman approached him to discuss the Christian faith. During the conversation, he mentioned homosexuality as among the sins listed in the Bible. The woman then walked away and approached a nearby police officer and filed a complaint, saying he had used so-called "homophobic" language. The officer arrested him for using abusive and insulting language contrary to public order, and identified himself as the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Officer for the Cumbria police.
McAlpine says he believes the lawsuit is necessary to preserve the right to freedom of expression and freedom of religion in the United Kingdom. "As a Christian man, I forgive the police for their actions. However, I also want to protect others who may face similar problems in the future. This can't just be brushed under the carpet. Freedom of speech is too precious for that."
Melanie Phillips, a prize winning English journalist and author, had this to say about the incident: "Here we have an oppressive situation where a gentle, unaggressive Christian is arrested and charged simply for preaching Christian principles. It would appear that Christianity, the faith of this country on which its morality, values, and civilization are based, is effectively being turned into a crime."
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6/1/2010
Honoring a hero
On Friday, a funeral service was held for slain Chicago Police Officer Thomas Wortham IV. The 30-year-old officer and Iraqi veteran recently returned from a tour of duty was shot and killed on the mean streets of Chicago when several thugs tried to steal his new motorcycle.
As you have probably heard, Wortham's father -- a retired Chicago police officer -- came to his son's aid and shot two of the attackers, killing one of them. Thankfully, Illinois law allows retired police officers to keep their Second Amendment right to bear arms. As a result, at least two of these thugs will not harm anyone else ever again.
The fact that he survived the war zone in Iraq but not Chicago is deeply troubling.
With Memorial Day now behind us, I think it is important that today -- like every day -- we should pause and ask God to protect our soldiers in harms way, to protect our police officers who serve on mean city streets, and recognize the sacrifices they make for our freedom and safety.
The week before his death, Wortham talked to a Tribune reporter about a recent rash of shootings and robberies that had forced officials to take down Cole Park's basketball hoops. As president of the Cole Park advisory council, Wortham was leading an effort to combat the violence, to take back the park from the gangs and thugs.
"It's starting to feel like it's expected in this community," he said. "When people think of the South Side of Chicago, they think violence. In Chatham, that's not what we see. It's happened, and we're going to fix it, so it doesn't happen again."
His bravery on the battlefield against radical Muslim terrorists and at home against gang-baning domestic terrorists were evident to all.
Wortham's death is a tragic loss to his family, to the Chicago Police Department, to his neighborhood, to Chicago, and to the Nation he so bravely served.
His death is our loss.
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Illinois Family Institute
P.O. Box 88848
Carol Stream, Illinois 60188
Phone: (708) 781-9328
Fax: (708) 781-9376
Evil men don't understand the importance of justice,
but those who follow the Lord are much concerned about it.
~Proverbs 28:5
(NKJV)
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