Free Republic

Appeals Court Denies Gay Marriage Supporters' Bid For Prop. 8 Communications December 11, 2009 A federal appeals court panel today denied gay marriage supporters' demands to see internal campaign communications among Proposition 8 supporters, ruling that to do so would violate the 1st Amendment's guarantee of freedom of association. Lawyers for two gay couples challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 8, the voter initiative in California that banned same-sex marriage after a five-month period last year when it was legal, had sought disclosure of e-mails and other communications to show that backers of the ballot measure had tried to create "discriminatory...

Public sex tents? Now there's an idea that should have been shot down the second it was announced from the mouth of a member of the "leather community" in response to complaints about public sex at Folsom Street Fair and its smaller sibling fair, Up Your Alley.

A Massachusetts man was fired from a national retail corporation because of his traditional beliefs on same-sex marriage. Peter Vadala was formally dismissed from his job as second deputy manager of the Brookstone store at Boston’s Logan Airport on August 12, 2009, after a supervisor reported him to Human Resources regarding an incident two days earlier.

President Barack Obama has admitted he has not completely given up smoking. BY PAUL THOMPSON Despite signing the toughest anti-tobacco bill in over 25 years, he confirmed that he still lights up – but never in front of daughters Malia and Sasha. "There are times where I mess up," Mr Obama said at a White House news conference. "As a former smoker I constantly struggle with it. Have I fallen off the wagon sometimes? Yes. Am I a daily smoker, a constant smoker? No. I don't do it in front of my kids. I don't do it in front of...

Here's another reason to quit fags - people who smoke and down more than seven drinks every week are vulnerable to bowel cancer, says a new study. An international team, led by the George Institute for International Health in Australia, has found that smokers who consume over seven drinks a week have nearly 60 per cent more risk of developing bowel cancer, compared with non-drinkers. Obesity and diabetes are also associated with a 20 per cent greater risk of developing bowel cancer which kills more than half a million people worldwide, the study has revealed. Lead researcher Rachel Huxley said:...

Hub bar and restaurant owners are burning up over the city’s sudden crackdown on puffing patrons on rooftop decks or in sidewalk cafes as part of the city’s tough new workplace smoking rules. “We used to have a patio full of people, smokers and others who don’t smoke but are socializing with them,” said George Lewis, owner of The Foundation Lounge at the Hotel Commonwealth in Kenmore Square. “Now it’s empty.” Lewis is among a group of tavern owners considering challenging the new smoking restriction in court. They fear the ban, coupled with an increased meals tax, will scare away...

April 28, 2009 Pupils aged 11 to learn about gay sex Campaigners say the sex education review for children needs to go farther Alexandra Frean, Education Editor Compulsory sex and relationships lessons for 11-year-old children are to include classroom discussions on gay unions and civil partnerships. Secondary pupils will learn about contraception and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), while primary school children will learn about their bodies and friendships, a review of sex education has concluded. The review was ordered in October after ministers announced that sex and relationships education (SRE) lessons should be made compulsory to help primary and secondary...

When the village store was gutted in a mystery fire, its owner Paul Sheriff was understandably less than chirpy. After all, his livelihood had gone up in flames as the blaze caused £250,000 worth of damage. But his shock turned to amazement when, after weeks of extensive investigations, his insurance company finally traced the cause of the fire - to a sparrow with rather an unusual taste in nest-building, not to mention a laissez-faire attitude to the perils of smoking. The bird had been taking advantage of all that the immediate surroundings of Crescent Stores in Leasingham, near Sleaford, Lincolnshire,...

“The Illinois Tobacco Quitline is just busting at the seams this month,” said Sherrill Keefe, director of American Lung Association of Illinois-Greater Chicago. “People say, ‘This is the year I’m going to quit smoking.’” But members of the LGBT (lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender) community are 35 to 200 percent more likely to be smokers than the general public, according to the National LGBT Tobacco Control Network based in Boston. Karyn Haney, a lesbian who quit smoking three years ago this January, is the project coordinator for Chicago's Howard Brown Health Center’s “It’s a Bitch to Quit” smoking cessation program. The center launched its...

Two California homosexuals have won a federal lawsuit, allowing both their names to be on their adopted son's Louisiana birth certificate. According to Chron.com, the state of Louisiana initially refused the request because homosexual adoption and same-sex "marriage" are illegal in that state. Oren Adar and Mickey Ray Smith then filed a lawsuit, which stated that leaving their names off the birth certificate "singles out unmarried same-sex couples and their adoptive children for the improper use of making them unequal to every one else." Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel and dean of Liberty University's law school, comments. "What, essentially,...

Attorney General Jerry Brown's legal challenge to California's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage marks the first time that the state's top lawyer has refused to defend a newly enacted ballot measure since 1964 - another epic discrimination case that eventually reached the U.S. Supreme Court. In November 1964, an overwhelming 65 percent majority of the state's voters approved Proposition 14, a constitutional amendment that overturned a fair-housing law and allowed racial discrimination in property sales and rentals.Attorney General Thomas Lynch - newly appointed to succeed Stanley Mosk, a Prop. 14 opponent who had just been named to the state Supreme...

Although a week has passed since California voters overturned that state's Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage, the state has felt numerous aftershocks as gay rights activists have mounted large-scale protests directed at supporters of Prop 8, specifically the Mormon church. ... Demonstrations outside Mormon temples were reported over the weekend throughout California and more are anticipated nationwide. The Mormon church, however, is not the only Prop 8 supporter coming under criticism for its role in the controversial election, as Catholics and Evangelical churches have seen protests, as well. An estimated 10,000 gay-rights protesters gathered in San Diego, Calif. outside...

Watch the entire video through to the end. This happened yesterday (Tuesday) and other than on YouTube, I saw no coverage locally. The elderly woman was being interviewed while holding her cross when the homosexual mob turned on her. The news camera continued rolling despite what looks like the news cameraman being shoved; homosexuals' "No on 8" signs being thrust at the elderly woman's head and at the news camera lens; someone turned off the news camera's lights but they came on again; and in the final seconds of the news video the mob attacks. It's disgusting, hideous and...

LANCASHIRE, United Kingdom, October 17, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Public homosexual activity in parks and public bathrooms must not be impeded by law enforcement officials except as a last resort, says a new set of draft guidelines for UK police.Deputy Chief Constable Michael Cunningham of Lancashire Police, who drew up the 21-page report, titled "Guidance on Policing Public Sex Environments", wrote, "In any event it is not for the police to take the role of moral arbiter." Rather than arresting those who have sex in public, the police should instead guard the "human rights of those people who frequent open...

A Michigan pro-family group has joined a nationwide boycott of a major greeting card company as a result of its promotion of the homosexual lifestyle. The American Family Association of Michigan has joined forces with several other pro-family groups around the country to boycott Hallmark over the company's new line of "same-sex couple" cards. AFA-Michigan's President Gay Glenn said, “Hallmark’s corporate position helps culturally legitimize and promote so-called homosexual ‘marriage,’ using its customers’ money to do so.” He added, “Each of us should ensure as a matter of conscience that Hallmark isn’t able to use any of our families’ money.”...

Formal approval has been granted for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transsexual personnel in HM Armed Forces to march in No.1 uniform (RN/RAF) No. 2 uniform (Army)through Central London on 5th July 2008, as part of the annual Gay Pride event. Whilst the Royal Navy has marched in uniform in previous years, Army and RAF personnel will also be marching in uniform for the first time this year. A large number of personnel have already committed to attend. Personnel will be considered to be on-duty for the uniformed element of the event. RAF personnel who wish to attend in uniform are...

London, March 30: Puffing kills. But a new study, led by an Indian-origin researcher, claims that mobiles phones are more dangerous than fags. "Though mobiles can save lives in emergencies, there is a significant and increasing body of evidence for a link between mobile phone usage and certain brain tumours (which can lead to cancer). "It is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking," the study`s lead author Dr Vini Khurana was quoted by `the independent` newspaper as saying. Smoking kills some five million worldwide each year, according to the world health organisation....

MANAGUA, Nicaragua -- President Daniel Ortega, who led the 1979 revolution in Nicaragua, says Barack Obama's presidential bid is a "revolutionary" phenomenon in the United States. "It's not to say that there is already a revolution under way in the U.S. ... but yes, they are laying the foundations for a revolutionary change," the Sandinista leader said Wednesday night as he accepted an honorary doctorate from an engineering university. Ortega led a Soviet-backed government that battled U.S.-supported Contra rebels before he lost power in a 1990 election. He returned to office last year via the ballot box. In statements broadcast...

It has emerged that Barcelona customs officers seized a container from Chiwan in China on the 11th December that contained 370,000 packs of counterfeit Lambert & Butler cigarettes with a street value in Spain of more than one million euros, rising to nearly three times that amount had they reached the UK. The consignment consisted of 627 unprinted outer cases each containing 600 packs of 20, and was bound for an import-export company based in Arganda del Rey (Madrid).

LONDON, July 30, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In conflicts over same-sex couples staying in hotels run by religious believers, it is up to the owners to accommodate or close, the government says. In April, the Labour government passed the Sexual Orientation Regulations of the Equality Act 2006, drafted under the supervision of homosexual lobbyists, that make it illegal for Christian and other religious objectors to homosexual behaviour to refuse business to gay clientele.In the case of family owned bed and breakfast establishments, this requirement means that proprietors must allow homosexual partners to stay in the same room or be forced...

The top U.S. military officer, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, doesn't plan to apologize for telling a newspaper that homosexuality is immoral. Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Chicago Tribune on Monday that he supports the "don't ask, don't tell" policy banning openly gay people from serving in the U.S. armed forces. The general also compared homosexuality to adultery -- behavior that is prosecuted in the military, he said. "My upbringing is such that I believe that there are certain things, certain types of conduct that are immoral," Pace told the Tribune. "I believe that military members...

John Edwards showed us he is not a Christian and has no idea what Jesus "would" think. The main tenant of Christianity is that Jesus, the only Son or God, came to Earth to die for the sins of man and that he was raised from the dead and rose to sit at the right hand of God. So what does Edwards comment that "I think that Jesus would be disappointed in our ignoring the plight of those around us who are suffering and our focus on our own selfish short-term needs," mean? It means that if he was a...

Ann Coulter fired back at critics who demanded the conservative columnist apologize for comments she made during a speech in which she referred to Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards as a "faggot." "'Faggot isn't offensive to gays; it has nothing to do with gays," Coulter said on "Hannity and Colmes" Monday night. "It's a schoolyard taunt meaning 'wuss,' and unless you're telling me that John Edwards is gay, it was not applied to a gay person."

Bill Maher has stirred outrage once again, this time saying it would be better if Vice President Dick Cheney was dead. On his HBO show "Real Time," Maher and his guests were discussing the assassination attempt on Cheney last week, and the fact that the Huffington Post web site removed comments regarding readers' disappointment that Cheney had not been killed. According to NewsBusters.org, the conversation went like this: Maher: What about the people who got onto the Huffington Post – and these weren’t even the bloggers, these were just the comments section – who said they, they expressed regret that...

WASHINGTON, March 3 — Three of the leading Republican presidential candidates on Saturday denounced one of their party’s best-known conservative commentators for using an antigay epithet when discussing a Democratic presidential contender at a gathering of conservatives here. The remarks by Ann Coulter, an author who regularly speaks at conservative events, were sharply denounced by the candidates, Senator John McCain of Arizona, Rudolph W. Giuliani of New York and Mitt Romney of Massachusetts. Their statements came after Democrats, gay rights groups and bloggers raised a storm of protest over the remarks. Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference before an...

Self explanatory http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AE847UXu3Q

Conservative author Jennifer Rubin wondered this morning whether any Republican candidates would have the decency to do a little Sistah Souljah-ing here: It is not “caving” into political correctness to distance and indeed condemn such remarks as unworthy of a political event like CPAC… Excommunication is not being suggested, just a public rebuke. By clearly stating her comments are beyond the bounds of civil discourse and her presence not a welcome addition to a mature political party, the Republicans could do themselves a world of good. How often does a party have the opportunity to display some measure of dignity,...

After four years of legal wrangling in the clergy-abuse scandal, attorneys for Bishop Robert Brom filed for Chapter 11 protection last night, making San Diego the largest Roman Catholic diocese in the nation to declare bankruptcy. In a brief electronic filing just before midnight, the diocese said it had assets of more than $100 million and estimated debts of more than $100 million. Brom's action halts the first trial, set to start today, of about 150 lawsuits alleging sexual abuse of children by 60 priests in incidents dating back decades. Brom said in a statement: “We put money on the...

WRENTHAM, Mass.— A state senator and father of a former American Idol finalist read profanity-laced criticism posted online about him and his family in a talk to high school students in his district about his opposition to gay marriage. Sen. Scott Brown, R-Wrentham, defended his use of foul language during an assembly at King Philip Regional High School on Thursday by saying he was only repeating what had been written about him. The comments were posted on a Facebook.com page dedicated to a pro-gay rights history teacher at the school. "I hate scott brown" and "scott brown ascends from the...

"We are conducting a peaceful action. We want to show that we have the same rights as other citizens," Alexeyev told a news conference a few hours before events turned violent. The crowd opposed to gay rights and the rally included women who held up religious icons. They were joined by men in Cossack traditional dress — white sheepskin hats and black-and-red tunics. Police quickly moved in as the first half-dozen rally participants arrived carrying flowers. They were joined by about 100 religious and nationalist extremists who kicked and punched some of the activists. As Volker Beck, a Green member...

DELAND -- County Councilman Bill Long was arrested early this afternoon on a domestic violence charge after he was accused of striking former domestic partner Patrick Fulton and then damaging Fulton's DeBary home, a Volusia County Sheriff's Office spokesman said. An aggravated stalking complaint also has been referred to the State Attorney's Office by deputies. Long, 43, was arrested at about 2:20 p.m. and taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach for processing, the spokesman said. Bill Long Patrick Fulton The arrest grew out an incident the night before that began when Long is accused of striking...

Berkeley -- A company that was sued by a pair of gay skaters who alleged they were harassed for holding hands has agreed to hold monthly gay-straight skate nights, to sign an anti-discrimination pledge and to contribute $5,000 to two gay groups as part of a legal settlement. As part of the settlement announced late Wednesday, the skaters, John Manzon-Santos and Alan Lessik, also will get free admission for one year to the weekly "pairs preferred" skating sessions Berkeley Iceland plans to offer. East Bay Iceland, which owns the Berkeley rink and two others, also agreed to post placards advertising...

Syphilis rates in blacks, women and babies declined significantly between 1999 and 2004 but continued to rise overall, driven by a dramatic jump in infections among gay and bisexual men, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday. About 64% of all the new syphilis cases in 2004 were in men who had engaged in homosexual activity, according to the CDC. That group made up 5% of the syphilis cases in 1999. "Increases in gay and bisexual men are overshadowing the decreases," Dr. Kevin Fenton, director of the CDC's National Center for HIV, Sexually Transmitted Disease and Tuberculosis Prevention,...

Corporate America backs gay rights Plugged In: Gay rights are good business, no matter the politics. NEW YORK (FORTUNE) - This spring, shareholders at such big companies as ExxonMobil , Ford and American Express are voting on whether gay and lesbian people deserve protection against discrimination in the workplace. But even as battles over gay rights flare up in the corporate world, there's no doubt about who's winning the war. More than 80 percent of companies in the Fortune 500 now ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Some 249 of the Fortune 500 offer health and other benefits...

WASHINGTON: Seven soldiers from the US Army’s elite 82nd Airborne Division have been charged with engaging in sex for money on an Internet website, the army said Friday. Three of the soldiers were charged with pandering, sodomy and “wrongfully engaging in sexual acts with another person while being filmed, with the purpose of broadcasting over the Internet for money”, the army said in a statement. The army gave no further details but the division had previously been reported to be investigating soldiers for engaging in sex on a gay website. The three face possible court-martial while four other soldiers received...

For the politically correct Bay Area parent, the "Curious George" children's books are a minefield of cultural horrors through which to tiptoe. Imperialism. Animal abuse. Bad parenting. Puh-leeeeze, George's defenders say. They're children's books, whose charm has not dimmed -- 25 million books and countless swag sold -- even if ideas about political correctness have evolved since the first George adventure was published in 1941. Sometimes a speechless, mischievous monkey is just that -- a monkey, not a metaphor. Besides, George's tales are no more un-PC than those of that royalist warmonger, Babar. Both camps are wondering how "Curious...

WASHINGTON - Republican Sen. Sam Brownback, a potential presidential candidate, said Monday he meant no offense to homosexuals when he used the word "fruits" in a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine. In a lengthy profile titled "God's Senator," the magazine quotes the Kansas Republican as criticizing countries like Sweden that allow civil unions between same-sex couples. "You'll know them by their fruits," Brownback said, quoting a biblical passage from Matthew 7:19. Rolling Stone writer Jeff Sharlet said in the story, appearing in the magazine's current issue, that Brownback appeared to be calling gay Swedes "fruits," a derogatory term for...

LILLE, France, January 26, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A court in Lille handed down its sentence on a French Parliamentarian Tuesday, fining him 3000 Euros and forcing him to pay an additional 6000 Euros to be split between three homosexual activist groups who brought the charges against the MP. Christian Vanneste, a member of the UMP representing the Lille region was found guilty in December on charges of violating a French law barring "hate speech" against homosexuals. However, Vanneste in the remarks upon which the charges were based and in his defence, was clear that he was not speaking against homosexual...

Five teachers at San Leandro High School have refused to comply with a school district order to display a rainbow-flag poster in their classrooms that reads, "This is a safe place to be who you are," because they say homosexuality violates their religious beliefs, ...The high school's Gay-Straight Alliance designed the poster, which includes pink triangles and other symbols of gay pride. In December the school board approved a policy requiring all district teachers to hang the posters in their classrooms. District officials said the poster is an effort to comply with state laws requiring schools to ensure students' safety...

Maryland Democrats concerned about the political fallout from last week's court ruling on same-sex marriage are considering a plan to block any final court ruling from taking effect until after the November elections. The proposal would be offered in legislation by Del. Luiz R.S. Simmons (D-Montgomery) that would freeze any decision from the state's highest court until the General Assembly has time to evaluate it. "What we're trying to do is see if we can craft a bill allowing the legislature to seek an injunction, at least until 2007, when we'll have the opportunity to consider a constitutional amendment" banning...

There is something manifestly, monolithically humourless about Roman Catholicism, even among other awesomely po-faced organised religions. Something stern and fearsome and unbending. You don't trifle with Roman Catholics. They've been around longer than you have, chum, and they've got the Pope on their side. South Park on the other hand, has been around for nearly eight years, so roughly 1992 years less than Roman Catholicism. It is an adult animated series which from its first episode gleefully set about upsetting people in the name of satire. And in the name of just being incredibly offensive. But the intelligent, philanthropic, sober...

BOSTON (Reuters) - Gay rights activists and liberal Catholics girded on Wednesday for a long battle over the Vatican's tougher stance on homosexuality, predicting the Church would lose thousands of followers in the United States.

Texas voters Tuesday overwhelming approved a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, making their state the 19th to take that step. In Maine, however, a proposal to repeal a new gay-rights law was trailing in early returns. The contest in Texas was decided quickly _ the ban was receiving more than 74 percent of the votes in early returns. Like every other state except Massachusetts, Texas didn't permit same-sex marriages previously, but the constitutional amendment was touted as an extra guard against future court rulings. The campaign had been enlivened over the past week because of a controversial tactic by the...

Three Stillwater ministers discussed homosexuality from a positive, biblical standpoint Thursday. “It is important for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered persons to know that God is love,” said Lucy Wilke, president of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. The Sexual Orientation Diversity Association and the Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays organized the spirituality and sexuality panel. The Rev. Gordon Edwards of the First Presbyterian Church, the Rev. Stan Warfield of the First United Methodist Church and Anne Collins of the Quakers spoke on the panel Thursday and in the panel in 2003. About 60 percent of the...

This is for all the marbles. Game 5. Winner goes on to treat the White Sox harshly... Mussina vs. Colon Does the Moose have one more good start in him? Will Colon be unhittable, or will the Yankees break through? Will the massive payroll win out over the scrappy role players? Will A-Rod look like a fairy when crossing home plate again? All these questions and more will be answered in a few short hours... First Pitch 8:15 EST

17,000 blinded by fags By EMMA MORTON MORE than 17,000 Britons have gone blind because they SMOKE, it was revealed yesterday.  The shock statistic shows the link between fags and sight loss is as strong as that between cigs and lung cancer.The cigarettes cause a form of blindness called Age-Related Macular Degeneration, known as AMD.Smoke destroys cells in an area at the back of the eye named the macular. And smokers do not absorb nutrients from food essential for good eyesight.Cigarette puffers are four times more likely to develop AMD or lung cancer than those who shun the weed. And...

This is what the homosexual movement (and the sign company, ClearChannel) thinks of the American Flag. This advertises a pornographic homosexual website for "hooking up." But it's more than that. We warned you: Legally sanctioned gay "marriage" is the green light to push this in your face -- in the schools, government, businesses, and the public square. This is also about desensitizing you and your family to homosexuality. When will you and your children drive by this in your neighborhood? This is just the beginning. The sign company (making money thru social decay): Clear Channel Communications Stoneham, Massachusetts (Regional Office)...

The Episcopal Church Self-Destructs over Homosexuality Episcopalians Defend the Consecration of a "Gay" Bishop By Allan Dobras The Episcopal Church has been flirting with a disastrous schism for the last thirty-five years, and now a formal breakup seems inevitable following an unapologetic June 17–22, 2005, appearance before the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) in Nottingham, England. The purpose of the meeting was to hear the church's defense of its consecration of "gay" Bishop V. Gene Robinson. Over the years, the denomination continued to hang together as it blundered through several divisive issues while causing its rolls to plummet by about 1.3...

'Infinitely gay' celebration of same-sex marriage erupts in Spain's capital MADRID, Spain (AP) - Jubilant over a new law legalizing gay marriage, hundreds of thousands of people packed the torrid streets of Madrid on Saturday, banging drums, dancing to booming techno music and crying victory over discrimination. "This is infinitely gay," Ivan Sanchez, a 26-year-old pharmacist, said in the din of a throng snaking its way through Spain's capital. "There are no words to express it. We are all equal." "The constitution itself says so. Both men and women are equal," he said on the day the law cleared its...

Parliament legalized gay marriage Thursday, defying conservatives and clergy who opposed making traditionally Roman Catholic Spain the third nation to allow same-sex unions. Gay activists cheered the vote and blew kisses to lawmakers. The measure passed the 350-seat Congress of Deputies by a vote of 187-147 with four abstentions. The bill also lets gay couples adopt children and inherit each others' property. The bill is now law. The Senate, where conservatives hold the largest number of seats, rejected the bill last week. But it is an advisory body and final say on legislation rests with the Congress of Deputies. After...