Free Republic

April 26, 2007 -- The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) was introduced by two homosexual activists Rep. Barney Frank, (D-MA) and Tammy Baldwin, (D-WI), as well as Deborah Pryce, (R-OH) and Chris Shays (R-CT). Yet another attack on Christians by the liberal controlled Congress, this anti-Christian legislation focuses on Christian employers. ENDA is based on the false premise that homosexuals are discriminated on in the workplace. This homosexual quota bill makes it illegal to fire, refuse to hire or refuse to promote an employee based on the person’s “sexual orientation” or “gender identity.” All of the same bizarre sexual behaviors protected...

HomeU.S.BusinessWorldEntertainmentSportsTechPoliticsElectionsScienceHealthMost Popular Secondary Navigation Local News Education Religion Politics Crimes and Trials Search: All News Yahoo! News Only News Photos Video/Audio Advanced -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Religious group attacks religion in U.S. healthcare By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor Tue Apr 24, 6:11 PM ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A coalition of religious leaders took on the Catholic Church, the U.S. Supreme Court and the Bush administration on Tuesday with a plea to take religion out of health care in the United States. ADVERTISEMENT They said last week's Supreme Court decision outlawing a certain type of abortion demonstrated that religious belief was interfering...

University of Wisconsin ignores the law, refuses to recognize Christian student organizationshttp://alliancedefensefund.org/news/pressrelease.aspx?cid=3820 ADF attorney calls university officials to account for discriminatory actions Monday, August 07, 2006, 5:15 PM (MST) ADF Media Relations | 480-444-0020 MADISON, Wis. — The director of the Alliance Defense Fund’s Center for Academic Freedom sent a letter to University of Wisconsin officials today warning them about the illegality of their continued de-recognition of Christian student groups. "Christian student groups shouldn’t be treated differently from other student organizations,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel David French, who wrote the letter. “The University of Wisconsin has decided to force...

More-moderate religious perspectives "do not have voice" within the media, says U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), and it's something he's working to change. "I think it is unfortunate any time the media does not accurately portray the true beliefs of the American people," Obama, a member of Trinity UCC in Chicago, told United Church News. "There are millions of religious Americans who are offended when their faith is used as a tool to attack and divide, and who see a positive role for the church in solving both social and moral problems.

Destroying Human Exceptionalism By Creating Human/Chimp HybridsI just don't understand the emotional stake some people invest in convincing us that humankind is nothing special in the universe. Indeed, some, such as University of Washington psychology professor David P. Barash, are willing to go to extraordinary lengths to knock us off the pedestal of exceptionalism. This includes, as he urges in this piece published in the LA Times, creating human/chimp hybrids to prove that we are just a bunch of apes. (This is not the first time I have seen such advocacy.) And, bonus of bonuses, Barash believes, such a hybrid...

Desperate times call for desperate measures. It took the looming closure of much-admired Cody's Books on Telegraph Avenue for Berkeley to finally get serious about cleaning up what's become a four-block showplace for urban decay, drug dealing and homelessness -- right on the doorstep of one of the nation's most prestigious universities. Responding to Cody's recently announced exit in July, the Berkeley City Council last week approved a package of measures submitted by Mayor Tom Bates that will provide for more cops and more social workers, streamline the permit process for new businesses and generally clean things up. "We've had...

Otto Jespersen, one of Norway's most controversial comedians, has caused another stir by burning pages from the Bible in the heart of a conservative West Coast city. Comedian Otto Jespersen seems to enjoy stirring up controversy.The city of Ålesund is already well-known for a fire that destroyed most of it at the beginning of the last century, and for rebuilding efforts that produced unique examples of Art Nouveau architecture.Now some flames have thrust Ålesund into the headlines again, after Jespersen lit a fire in the center of town. The burly, middle-aged Norwegian seems to have a thing for fires: He's...

From George Clooney to Orthodox rabbis, the list of those who have scathingly denounced Jack Abramoff seems endless. Given the admission of guilt by this Orthodox Jew and former super-lobbyist for Indian gambling tribes, is it possible to discover any grounds for sympathy with him? Actually, yes. But first a disclaimer. As I wrote in the Forward back in May, I am not unbiased. I've met Abramoff on two occasions, including 10 years ago when I was a guest in his home for Sukkot. I once worked for Toward Tradition, the conservative Jewish group for which, before my time, he...

A rule in Jewish law holds that when all the judges on the Jewish high court unanimously condemned an accused criminal, he must be set free. The very unanimity was suspicious and called into question the justice of the proceedings. Talk about unanimity. By now thousands of published articles, ranging from critical to hateful, have appeared about the famous Jack Abramoff — Orthodox Jew, former Washington super-lobbyist, product of an affluent Beverly Hills upbringing and future inmate of the Federal Bureau of Prisons. He has pleaded guilty to mail fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy. As Abramoff told The Jewish Journal...

I hadn't realized until recently that Stephen Harper was using "God Bless Canada!" as a tagline for his speeches. Some may think this a harmless, or even beneficent, expression for a politician to use, but for those with knowledge of history, nothing could be a more frightening. I do believe we all know to whom Harper is tipping his hat with these words. George Bush, author of two wars which have killed more than a hundred thousand innocent people and the champion of an ugly set of repressive laws in the United States, says "God Bless America!" every chance he...

It its second chapter, NBC's controversial drama Book of Daniel averaged a 2.2rating/6 share in the Nielsen Fast Affiliate overnight ratings in the 18-49 demo Friday night. That is down significantly from the 2.9/9 the show recorded for its two-hour debut the Friday before. A handful of stations have dropped the limited series--8 episodes--over content concerns with the edgy drama about a prescription-drug addicted priest and his dysfunctional family. The top show of the night Friday was CBS drama Numbers at a 3.7/11, followed by the results show for ABC's Dancing With the Stars, which won its time period with...

Hi, I am the Founder of the Reed College Freethinkers, a college atheist, agnostic, humanist, liberal Christian, and Separation of Church and State group, based in Portland, Oregon. We noticed that the majority of freethinkers are liberals, or at least those who seem to speak out tend to be left-of-center. While I consider myself to be a moderate, I was wondering if anyone knows of any prominent (or fairly prominent) conservatives/Republicans who also espouse some brand of freethought? If so, could you please list the person and contact information, if possible. Or feel free to contact me directly at reed.freethinkers@gmail.com.

Sucias, Meet Lylah Alphonse. She is the "LA" who keeps blasting me on this blog. She used to work with me at the Boston Globe. She was a copy editor at the time, and the only solid thing I really remember about her is that she made her own coffee in a cute little desktop pot. ... I should say that Lylah eventually got a book published. It is called "Triumph Over Discrimination: The Life Story of Farhang Mehr." I haven't read it all the way through, mostly because I fell asleep after page...nine. The writing is passive, weak, bland,...

About 50 people rallied at the Mount Soledad cross yesterday in support of Proposition A, a measure on tomorrow's ballot aimed at preserving the symbol on public land. ... Attorney James McElroy says the transfer would be unconstitutional. He and his client, atheist and veteran Philip Paulson, want the cross moved. On Thursday, a judge said passage of Proposition A required more than a simple majority because the city charter requires two-thirds approval for any change in use of public parkland and Congress cannot guarantee that the memorial would remain in perpetuity. ...

It seems the L.A. Weekly wants to seek out and destroy Christianity itself instead of any particular sect thereof. I can say this because the newspaper has admitted as much in a recent column (go here). More on that later. This June 10 column has identified Christians as “Christers,” the kitschy new hate word created by anti-religionists in the U.S.A. to describe their foe: you and me. The Weekly uses this pseudo word some 16 times in the Op Ed even going so far as to make it appear as if the word was used in a Wall Street Journal...

Boy, parents say principal barred him from reading, discussing book at recess. A 10-year-old boy is taking his battle to study the Bible at recess to a federal courtroom. Karns Elementary School fourth-grader Luke Whitson, through his parents, has filed a civil rights lawsuit in U.S. District Court against the Knox County Board of Education, School Superintendent Charles Lindsey and Karns Elementary Principal Cathy Summa. Luke's parents, Samuel and Tina Whitson, contend Summa barred Luke from holding a Bible reading and discussion group at recess. Knox County Deputy Law Director Marty McCampbell, who handles school-related litigation, declined comment on the...

As worries mount over crumbling walls at California's 21 Spanish-era missions, one man says another historic wall deserves equal preservation. The Rev. Barry Lynn claims that spending $10 million in taxpayer money to renovate the structures would breach a constitutional barrier against government funding for religion. The hard-line advocate for church and state separation is locked in a legal battle that tests the constitutionality of federal legislation to fund renovations. Supporters say the money is a must to save monuments that are priceless windows on the West's past. Lynn realizes his challenge won't win many fans in the Golden State....

Each spring as high school graduation approaches, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sends out a letter to public schools warning them that no one can pray or make remarks referring to their faith at graduation. But the ACLU goes further than that. They typically demand that public schools censure any speech that might be viewed as having a religious tone. It is not enough that the school not sponsor prayer or religious activities, the ACLU believes government must prevent people from doing or saying anything that may have religious meaning. I sat on a public school board and saw...

The last time the writer filled up with gas, it cost $2.05 per gallon. During a recent visit to Greece, gasoline costs were $4 per gallon and up, and low when compared to the rest of Europe. Assuming Greece and the rest of the world buy oil on the world market, everyone pays much the same price for crude. The difference at the pump is in overhead, transportation, refining, taxes, and profit. It is widely known that the U.S. has sufficient oil reserves to satisfy its needs for years, many years, even without the “strategic reserves.” But some of the...

Far too few among the Christian community are willing to remain steadfast in their beliefs, in the face of the enormous pressures of liberal social change. Fortunately, Bruce N. Shortt exemplifies the meaning of such worthy resolve. Last year Shortt, along with T.C. Pinckney, made waves at the 2004 Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) by stating the obvious. America’s educational system has, over the past several decades, completely degenerated from any pretense of promoting academics. Instead, it is primarily focused on a program of indoctrinating students towards countercultural social transformation. Relentlessly working to eradicate any references to God or traditional morality,...