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(This is part 2 of an article.) Recently neo-fascists opposed to Sonia Sotomayor, Barack Obama’s nominee to the United States Supreme Court, have argued that she doesn’t respect the “sanctity” of the law and chooses instead to be guided by her personal beliefs. But if there is such a thing as “sanctity” of the law, why are so many Supreme Court cases decided by five-four votes split along ideological lines? Where is this concern when self-loathing Clarence Thomas uses his experiences at Yale University, not the law, to dismantle affirmative action programs, or when Antonin Scalia unethically hears cases where...

NOTE: Article is a cut-and-paste "interview-type" presentation. Here are excerpts: BOB ABERNETHY: Several recent best-selling books have sharpened the old debate between some scientists and some religionists over creation, evolution and, among other issues, stem cell research. We want to re-run today a story we carried this past summer about a man who is both a research scientist and an evangelical Christian, and sees no conflict between the two fields. He is Dr. Francis Collins, who led the massive effort to discover the human genetic code. His book is called "The Language of God." ... Dr. COLLINS (at Press Conference):...

The Eagle Times, a six-day-a-week newspaper that serves Claremont and surrounding towns, is publishing its last edition today, the owner told employees Thursday. In a four-paragraph memo distributed to workers, company president Harvey Hill said Eagle Publications will file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy Friday. Hill said his family is unable to continue underwriting the losses of the company, which also includes three weekly publications. "We did our best to continue the operations, but the economy and the changes in the newspaper industry have made it impossible to continue this business," the memo reads. He thanked the workers for their support...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- William West was asleep in his bed when he got an unusual call from his neighbor at 4:30 in the morning. "I called him back, and he was like, 'Somebody in your house right now. How asleep is you? They in your house right now," West's neighbor said. That's when West said he got up and armed himself with a 12-gauge shotgun, taking matters into his own hands. "I didn't really have time to think, you know what I'm saying," West said. "Didn't have time to think to be scared or not. I just know I had...

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 30% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-seven percent (37%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of –7

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 30% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-seven percent (37%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of –7. Overall, 51% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Forty-eight percent (48%) disapprove.

PARIS (AFP) – The eastern lobe of the disaster-struck Aral Sea seems to have shrunk by four-fifths in just three years, the European Space Agency (ESA) said on Friday. It released an overlay of photographs taken by one of its Earth observation satellites, Envisat, on July 1 2006 and July 6 2009. Once the world's fourth-largest inland body of water but now a byword for ecological calamity, the Aral Sea has been retreating over the last half-century after rivers that fed it were diverted for Soviet cotton irrigation projects. Around two decades ago, it split into the Small Aral Sea...

ATLANTA -- A quiet night in front of the television ended with a shoot-out in southwest Atlanta. A homeowner was in the hospital Thursday morning as police searched for the would-be robber. Officials said a homeowner will recover after suffering a gunshot wound to the ear during a gun battle when someone tried to break into his home. A shoot-out on Westmont Road between a homeowner and a would-be robber woke up several people in the neighborhood. "I guess I would say about 15 to 20 rounds was exchanged," said neighbor Otis Holliman. The homeowner told Channel 2 Action News...

Here is video of Sean Hannity's "Great American Panel" on July 9,2009 commenting on a photo captured in Italy of President Obama looking at the rear end of a woman as France's President Sarkozy looks on. . . . . (Watch Video)

I wrote earlier this week about hints in public polling that independent voters are having doubts about President Obama and the Democrats, so naturally the next poll out of one of the states I mentioned, Ohio, suggests the opposite. DailyKos's Research 2000 poll out yesterday has Obama at a very healthy 64% among independent voters; that's far above the Quinnipiac 48% job approval rating -- though it's worth keeping in mind those are different numbers, and Obama is personally consistently somewhat more popular than his actions. On the national polling front, Gallup's Frank Newport (looking at numbers I mentioned) also...

World leaders met Friday with African nations before an expected announcement of a new food security proposal that represents a fundamental shift in the way the West tackles world hunger, taking wisdom from the old proverb about teaching a man to fish. President Barack Obama is expected Friday to announce an up to $15 billion agriculture investment initiative, delegates attending the Group of Eight summit in Italy said. The initiative includes some $3 billion from Washington. The strategy seeks to enable poor farmers to produce more of their own food by improving productivity, shifting the focus from delivering aid. It...

Sydney, Australia (AHN) - The small town of Bundanoon in New South Wales, Australia has become the world's first community to ban bottled water to protect the environment. Residents voted 350-1 in favor of the ban during a public meeting at the town hall on Wednesday night. They said "huge amounts of resources are used to extract, package and transport bottled water" and "discarded plastic bottles then end up as litter or go into landfill sites," according to BBC. Residents and visitors to the town of 2,500 will be encouraged to use reusable containers or bottles in getting water from...

The G8 summit in Italy is the sixth time Angela Merkel and Barack Obama have met - yet it seems all is not quite right between the pair. Does the US President have a problem with the German Chancellor, or she with him? It all began a year ago with Obama’s speech in Berlin. The young White House candidate wanted to address the crowd in front of the prestigious Brandenburg Gate, but Merkel refused. She did not want to anger the then president, George W. Bush. Obama has not forgotten the snub… According to the 'Washington Post', Obama has "encountered...

Don’t know if this film is going to be good, but the trailer is creating a lot of buzz… Video Link

Sarah Palin's resignation gives Republicans a new opportunity to see her plain—to review the bidding, see her strengths, acknowledge her limits, and let go of her drama. It is an opportunity they should take. They mean to rebuild a great party. They need to do it on solid ground. Her history does not need to be rehearsed at any length. Ten months ago she was embraced with friendliness by her party. The left and the media immediately overplayed their hand, with attacks on her children. The party rallied round, as a party should. She went on the trail a sensation...

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - Police say a deadly shooting on Alliquippa Street in Baton Rouge was apparently the result of an attempted robbery gone bad. They say around 2:00 Wednesday morning two men rushed into a home attempting to rob the people inside. Police say an 18-year-old inside the home grabbed his gun and started shooting, but so did a 38-year-old robber. The robber died at the scene, while the 18-year-old remains hospitalized fighting for his life. The second suspect ran off. If you can help police find him, call Crime Stoppers at 344-7867. Related Stories:

During the almost 30 years since my late wife Hope and I published the results of our investigations on the trek of Lehi and Sariah, which we titled In Search of Lehi's Trail,1 a growing number of studies have appeared that have continued both to refine and broaden our understanding of that remarkable journey into the heated landscape of the Arabian desert. It is now possible to say that certain results are assured while others are virtually assured. Let us review some fixed points from Nephi's narrative.First, of course, we know where the Jerusalem of Lehi's day stood—in the same...

GM is finishing up its bankruptcy and will emerge today. Futures look to open modestly lower after Chevron warned about it's second quarter earnings. The Dow looks to be off 60 points, the NASDAQ 5, and the S&P 8. The Dow will likely test 8100 before the trading day is over.

As a disemboweled GOP struggles to marshal an effective opposition to President Barack Obama, it can at least take heart in a singular fact: Obama’s historic election as the first African American president, and even the possibility of such a candidacy, are direct legacies of the Republican Party. The GOP originated in the mid-19th century as a barely choate coalition of former Whigs, evangelical Christians, and New England intellectuals who had little in common save a loathing of slavery and a devotion to its demise — either by restricting its growth into the territories (the course favored by moderate Republicans)...

Another major multi-team trade might be looming in the NBA with the Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz and Chicago Bulls having discussed a deal that would be headlined by Carlos Boozer and Kirk Hinrich, according to NBA front-office sources. Sources stressed to ESPN.com that no deal was imminent Thursday and that both Portland and Utah are still evaluating additional trade scenarios. But two sources with knowledge of the three-team proposal confirmed that there have been substantive talks aimed at landing Boozer in Chicago, Hinrich in Portland and Tyrus Thomas in Utah.