Free Republic

Sometimes the world is moving so fast you just want to hop off. I am tempted after hearing that the Olympics will no longer require men to have the one thing that has always pretty much determined whether you are a man or a woman. (snip) I don't know about you, but I strive to be tolerant, enlightened and avoid being considered a knuckle-dragging moron. But I have to admit, the IOC's move feels like a bridge too far. "It is an adaptation to a human rights issue," IOC medical commission chairman Arne Ljungqvist told the Associated Press. "This is...

A state commission recommended Monday that Marion County Circuit Judge Vance Day be ousted from his job for his refusal to marry same-sex couples and other ethical violations. The Oregon Commission on Judicial Fitness and Disability made its rare recommendation to the Oregon Supreme Court in a 48-page report. The high court ultimately will decide whether to remove Day from the bench.

The Edmonton Oilers became the first NHL team to use Pride Tape, a multicolored tape to promote inclusiveness in sports. The Oilers used the tape Sunday during their annual Skills Competition at Rexall Place. "Many view professional hockey players as role models and our team felt this was a great initiative to let every person know they're welcome in the game of hockey," defenseman Andrew Ference told the Oilers website. "We're all proud to play for a team and city that supports diversity and human rights." The Oilers' Twitter account posted photos of the players' sticks wrapped in the tape...

A family made famous by the reality show "Sister Wives" is calling on a Utah appeals court to uphold a ruling that essentially decriminalized polygamy, saying the state's historic ban on the practice raises constitutional issues about freedom of religion, association, and privacy rights of consenting adults. Kody Brown and his four wives - Meri, Jangle, Christine and Robyn - who began appearing on the TLC reality show in 2010, filed suit against the state of Utah challenging the state's ban.

Cruz 'Unequivocally' Stands with KY Clerk Who Refused to Issue Gay Marriage Licenses...

President Barack Obama says he wouldn't run for a third term even if he could. He says the presidency takes a toll on family life, and the office "should be continually renewed by new energy and new ideas." ...

Transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in the Olympics and other international events without undergoing sex reassignment surgery, according to new guidelines adopted by the IOC. International Olympic Committee medical officials told The Associated Press on Sunday they changed the policy to adapt to current scientific, social and legal attitudes on transgender issues. ...

Democrats in the Arizona Legislature want a law that requires judges to give preferences to married heterosexual couples in adoption stricken from the books. The legislation introduced in both the Senate and House removes current language giving preferences to a husband and wife over others in adoptions. Backers say the U.S. Supreme Court's decision last year legalizing same-sex marriage bans laws giving preferences to heterosexual couple over gay couples. Sen. Steve Farley, D-Tucson, also said single parents shouldn't be given second-tier status on adoptions so the proposal completely eliminates preferences for married couples. He said single parents are just as...

Two books relate how grace and the power of the Holy Spirit can overcome same-sex attraction Caleb Kaltenbach's new book, Messy Grace (WaterBrook Press, 2015), has a tantalizing subtitle: How a Pastor With Gay Parents Learned to Love Others Without Sacrificing Conviction. Kaltenbach states that "profound change is just as possible for a homosexual sin as it is for any other"-but it has to come through grace. Kaltenbach argues that Christians should emphasize a change of heart, and let that change then influence minds (and use of sex organs). It seems to me that churches should welcome but not affirm...

Let me be clear - I am pro-life. I support that position with exceptions allowed for rape, incest or the life of the mother being at risk. I did not always hold this position, but I had a significant personal experience that brought the precious gift of life into perspective for me. My story is well documented, so I will not retell it here. However, what I will do with the remaining space is express my feelings about life, and the culture of life, as we just marked the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade. I build things. There is...

On the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, many GOP presidential contenders were not silent. While Democrats Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton continue to defend the horrors of abortion, Republicans Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, Rick Santorum, Carly Fiorina, and Ben Carson took to social media. Recognizing the tragedy of over 58 million lives lost, these candidates explained why they stand for life. Donald Trump, however, has been silent on abortion, the March for Life, and Roe v. Wade all day. He is the only GOP front runner to avoid making a statement. Issues concerning Trump’s pro-abortion past continue...

This morning, I stood in front of hundreds of Brighton College pupils in assembly and spoke about the experience of being a trans woman. In the past few days, they've found their school suddenly the focus of press interest, after headteacher Richard Cairns scrapped traditional male and female uniforms to accommodate the needs of transgender children. He made the decision to offer all pupils the option of trousers or a skirt, so that children with gender dysphoria can dress as the gender they feel they really are, rather than the one they were born into. Mr Cairns explained to me...

The U.S. Department of Education announced Wednesday it will publish detailed information about religious schools that receive federal permission to discriminate based on sex, gender identity and sexual orientation, despite receiving federal funds. That information is likely to put some religious schools in the hot seat for policies that aren't flattering in today's social climate -- including colleges in or near Portland. The decision came after a handful of senators -- including Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. -- called for greater transparency regarding Title IX exemptions.

TAMPA, Florida, January 21, 2015 (LifeSiteNews) – Is the procreative impossibility of homosexual activity the same as heterosexuals being biologically infertile? Stetson University law professor Joseph Morrissey is suing for a tax deduction of $36,538 for in vitro fertilization treatments and the cost of a surrogate to carry twin boys for himself and his male partner. In denying Morrissey's claim, the IRS explained that for tax deductions, the medical services must be provided to the taxpayer, his spouse, or his dependent. Therefore, a surrogate does not qualify, and neither does IVF for someone other than the filer, his spouse, or...

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden urged executives in Davos to use their influence to drive change in countries where lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people face repression, putting gay rights at the heart of this year's meeting. The issue is on the official agenda for the first time at the World Economic Forum, where political leaders from countries that discriminate against gay people, such as Nigeria and Russia, schmooze business leaders and billionaire investors. ... He said he and President Barack Obama privately raise the issue of repression of the LGBT community when they meet political leaders. "I have had...

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 20, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) - The nation's foremost homosexual and transgender political group has endorsed Hillary Clinton for president, saying she has made banning reparative therapy and allowing transgender military service "a pillar" of her presidential campaign. “All the progress we have made as a nation on LGBT equality -- and all the progress we have yet to make -- is at stake in November," said Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin. The HRC said that Clinton has made homosexual and transgender political advocacy "a pillar of her campaign and recently unveiled the most robust and ambitious LGBT...

A bill seeking to block the U.S. Supreme Court's gay marriage ruling in Tennessee has been defeated in a subcommittee of the state House over concerns about nullifying federal rulings. The five-member panel defeated the measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Mark Pody on a voice vote on Wednesday. Republican Rep. Mike Carter of Chattanooga said that while he disagrees with the high court's ruling, he considered the bill to turn back the ruling a step too far. In Carter's words: "I equate nullification with anarchy."

I think my father, who died 10 years ago, was gay or preferred men, but I have no proof. I base my suspicion mostly on the way he looked at people, some magazine subscriptions and one conversation. I came out to my parents in the 1970s, while home from college. That same night, my father took me aside and confided that before his marriage he had an affair with a man but got psychological help and was "cured." He hoped I would do the same. He said, "Promise not to tell your mother — it will break her heart." I...

Take note Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith: Getting political has its risks. After the actress declared Monday that she will be boycotting the Oscars after her husband was snubbed, Alexis Arquette took a major swing at the pair for what she alleges is hypocrisy. The transgender actress and gender-rights activist "outed" the married couple with a Facebook post that argued that Mr. and Mrs. Smith’s comments on race and the Oscars were invalid because they won't ’fess up about their alleged homosexuality. "When Jada comes out as Gay and her beard husband admits his first marriage ended when she...

The “inversion of the original meaning of liberty” in Obergefell v. Hodges, observed Justice Clarence Thomas in dissent, “will likely cause collateral damage to other aspects of our constitutional order that protect liberty . . . It appears all but inevitable that [civil and religious marriage] will come into conflict.”In Obergefell’s aftermath, it is possible that the government will ask religious institutions to choose between retaining their non-profit tax status and retaining their beliefs. But the “collateral damage” will not stop at their sanctuary doors. Many churches, synagogues, and mosques also operate schools, and they will be the next targets. Of the 30,000 private schools in...