Prayers Are Always In Order -- For All Of Us

Lucianne Goldberg's news roundup is one of our favorite spots on the web, usually the first one we visit every morning. She and her team provide important news stories, many of which would slide by unnoticed if lucianne.com wasn't there to post links to them.

Also, Lucianne's comments about the day's major stories frequently say more in 6 or 7 words than others say in paragraphs. And frequently she adds just the right touch of humor that will help keep you smiling even in the midst of every day's culture wars. She is a treasure.

And, oh yes -- did I mention her Photo of the Day (like the one shown above from her site) should never be missed? Lucianne.com -- bookmark it and make it a frequent stop in your own travels through cyberspace.

At Last, Victory & Vindication for the Godfather of the Pro-Life Movement

Our dear friend, mentor and hero Joe Scheidler has finally won his 20-year old case at the Supreme Court (again!) and, in doing so, has given all Americans a very important victory for freedoms of speech, assembly and religion. Congratulations to Joe, his family, attorney Thomas Brejcha and all of the team there at the Pro-Life Action League.

The story is at various places on the web today but the fullest and most accurate is at the Action League's site itself. In addition to Joe's press release, you'll find links there to the whole sordid history of the case.

Courage and Compassion in Kansas

In an effort to keep others from making the same tragic mistake that she did, State Representative Brenda Landwehr, a Republican from Wichita, admitted to undergoing an abortion several years ago. This confession came when Mrs. Landwehr was debating a bill on the house floor that would require health and safety inspection of abortion clinics in the state. She hadn't planned to do so but moved, as she later said by God, she emphasized her point that abortion “traumatizes women” by explaining to her colleagues there in the State Capitol that, “I live with that pain every single day because I killed a baby.”

The Kansas House passed the bill by one vote. It must now make it past the State Senate.

By clicking on the title of this post, you can go to the online news page of the local ABC-TV affiliate, KAKE, for the story. That page also has a link to a video presentation of the station's on-air report which includes a brief interview with Landwehr.

If you'd like to send along an encouraging thank-you to Representative Landwehr, you can do so by mailing her at the Kansas State Capitol, 300 SW 10th St., Topeka, Kansas 66612 or at this e-mail address.

Why Is Mike Adams Retiring from Writing Town Hall Columns?

What's this about the retirement of Mike Adams, the witty, insightful, and courageous UNC-Wilmington professor who keeps Town Hall readers "in the know" about what the leftist hooligans (usually professors) are up to on campus? You better check it out...right here.

Vatican Urges Muslims to Get a Grip

From ABC's web page comes a Reuters story that shows the Vatican's increasing frustration over Muslims who demand tolerance from others but then engage in the most grievous violence against their opponents. Read the whole story (and it's a good one) here but I will toss in a couple of teasers...

...After criticizing both the cartoons and the violent protests in Muslim countries that followed, the Vatican this week linked the issue to its long-standing concern that the rights of other faiths are limited, sometimes severely, in Muslim countries.

Vatican prelates have been concerned by recent killings of two Catholic priests in Turkey and Nigeria. Turkish media linked the death there to the cartoons row. At least 146 Christians and Muslims have died in five days of religious riots in Nigeria.

"If we tell our people they have no right to offend, we have to tell the others they have no right to destroy us," Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican's Secretary of State (prime minister), told journalists in Rome...

Vatican diplomats argue that limits on Christians in some Islamic countries are far harsher than restrictions in the West that Muslims decry, such as France's ban on headscarves in state schools.

Saudi Arabia bans all public expression of any non-Muslim religion and sometimes arrests Christians even for worshipping privately. Pakistan allows churches to operate but its Islamic laws effectively deprive Christians of many rights...

Iraqi Christians say they were well treated under Saddam Hussein's secular policies, but believers have been killed, churches burned and women forced to wear Muslim garb since Islamic groups gained sway after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003...

Belarussian Opposition Gets A Rare Chance To Be Heard

Alyaksandr Milinkevich, the united opposition candidate in the upcoming March 19 elections for the presidency of Belarus (elections which are undoubtedly well rigged by the corrupt Lukashenka regime) pledged in a televised address to voters a few days ago to radically change the style of governance and free his country from the grip of fear.

The address was one of the very few times Belarussians had to hear from anyone besides the Belarussian dictator Alexander Lukashenka (photo left) because of the heavy-handed state control of the press and media. "Authorities in a future Belarus will be elected, not appointed," Milinkevich said. "The person will be given priority over the state. The government will not rule the person, but the person will determine the country's policies.... Freedom will give people an opportunity to lead a decent life."

Milinkevich said the opposition is against staging a "colored revolution" in Belarus like those that followed elections in Georgia, Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan. But he added that if the authorities manipulate the votes, people will have the right to take to the streets to defend their votes. "If people take to the streets, we, on our part, will do everything so that this will be a peaceful demonstration as required by the constitution. And we hope very much that the authorities will act in the same manner and not use force," Milinkevich said.

If the first part of Milinkevich's hope; namely, that the frightened and oppressed people of Belarus will risk severe penalties to protest a rigged election, is wishful thinking, then the second part; namely, that Lukashenka would not retaliate with brutal force, is beyond the wildest imagination.

Meanwhile, one of the other opposition candidates, Alyaksandr Kazulin, was allowed a prerecorded TV address immediately after that of Milinkevich. Kazulin argued that incumbent President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has no right to be on the ballot for the March 19 presidential election because the Belarus constitution clearly disallowed anyone serving more than two terms in the office. He stressed that Lukashenka violated the constitution by calling
a referendum in 2004 to lift the limit -- another vote where the outcome was decided by Lukashenka long before the votes were counted (if they ever were counted).

Kazulin also pointed out to voters that Belarusian Television would not allow him to show his wife, Iryna, together with him in the studio. (Recent allegations by Belarusian Television, ever the instrument of Lukashenka, claimed that Kazulin is divorced and is lying when he tells the public that he is married.) Kazulin went on to contend that the nation has never seen the first lady, Halina Lukashenka, together with her husband over the entire course of his 12 years in office. Kazulin repeated the claims that many Belarussians in the know already realize that the womanizing Lukashenka lives with another woman -- whose mother is former Health Minister Lyudmila Pastayalka -- and has a son by her.

Oriana Fallaci Draws the Left's Hatred as Few Others

From The Book Den, here's an interesting entry dealing with liberalism's mean-spirited intolerance of even the most sensible moral arguments.

The post there also contains links to information about Oriana Fallaci, the Italian journalist, interviewer and author who is so fervently drawing the Left's disdain.

"Church of the Presidents" Heralds Same-Sex Marriage

From south Boston's newspaper, the The Patriot Ledger, comes this story:

The city’s defining historic landmark is about to be thrust into one of the most divisive modern political debates by means of a huge banner proclaiming support for same-sex marriage.

The United First Parish Church - widely known as The Church of the Presidents - has petitioned city officials for permission to hang a 34-foot-by-4-foot banner reading ‘‘People of Faith for Marriage Equality’’ above its main entrance on Hancock Street in the heart of downtown Quincy.

The church, a long-time Unitarian-Universalist congregation and home to the crypts of Presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams, needs city approval to hang the banner because its proposed size is more than twice that allowed under city code...

The Rob Reiner Scandal

Wanna' bet this never takes off?

So, quick -- while the story has at least briefly surfaced in the press (the San Francisco Chronicle, for crying out loud), take a peek at how the enlightened, far-left Rob Reiner "misused" about $23,ooo,ooo in taxpayer's money in his role as chairman of the First 5 California Children and Families Commission.

On Dead Voters And Other Election Frauds

Corruption and inefficiency are rampant in Michigan. And many other places.

One would think that the liberals' control of the MSM, the government bureaucracies, and the unjust advantages they were given by "campaign-finance reform" would be enough for them. But, no; even with these advantages, the left feels compelled to cheat at the grassroots level as well.

Isn't that a sweet thought as we look forward to the next elections?

Award-Winning Film Portrays Heroic Muslim Suicide Bomber

The post just previous to this one concerned the West ignoring the ongoing murders of innocents by fanatic Muslims. This one shows another element of Western culture's cooperation with the savages who would destroy it; namely, the glitzy glorification of a film which "stars" a Palestinian suicide bomber killing innocent Israelis.

Paradise Now has already won at the Golden Globes. Next stop? The Academy Awards.

And with all the positive hype being given by the Hollywood Left to the more illustrious, more expensive Munich by Steven Spielberg, another adamantly anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian film, who's to say that Paradise Now isn't set to bring home the Oscar?

And yet, knowing full well the extreme immorality and crazed political philosophy that Hollywood stands for, Americans (even American Christians) are spending their dollars and their hours at the movie theaters more than ever. Sigh.

Clicking on the title of this post takes you to a revealing story about Paradise Now from the (U.K.) Observer.

MSM Ignoring Muslim Savagery

It is an ugly, unfair and utterly irresponsible matter, this refusal of the mainstream media to tell the truth about the increasing floods of Islamic barbarity.

It is also clearly suicidal.

In this frightening piece, Mark Steyn shines a singular light on Muslims killing Jews in France -- brutal murders which are routinely ignored by the Western press.

Hwang's Violent Buddies

Let's see now -- he's an incompetent, unethical scientist dealing in an immoral field in which the tiny human beings used for research are actually killed.

And he's a proven liar that bilked his government out of millions of dollars.

Furthermore, he's a egotist of the lowest order who refused to apoligize even when caught red-handed in his crimes of fraud...a fraud which monstrously fueled the false hopes of millions of disabled and dying people.

And when this guy is finally fired from his government job, it is the lady who fired him who is brutally attacked?

Sigh. The inmates really are running the asylum.

Here's the story.

Modern Science is "Political" Science

Michael Fumento has a terrific column here dealing with the increasing dominance of social and political factors over true science. It is an important read.

But What About the Powerball Losers?

The Family Research Council's comments on the Nebraska winners of the Powerball windfall:

The media is giving front-page coverage to eight Nebraska meatpackers who each won more than $22 million in the latest Powerball lottery. What we don't learn from these stories is the high percentage of lottery winners who go bankrupt...

Gambling advocates don't tell you that odds of winning the lottery are less than those of being struck by lightning--twice. Many pro-lottery propagandists assure gullible voters that the money raised by the lottery will go to a good cause like education. I saw in my own state how the budgeters simply shifted existing funds out of education to cover other expenses, resulting in a zero net gain for education. It's a state-sponsored form of the old shell game.

We know from Scripture that the love of money is the root of many evils. We also know that we should pursue happiness by honest toil, not by expecting to get rich quick. The Nebraska winners included three immigrants from Vietnam and the Congo. One of them said: "This is a great country!" How sad that this is the message we send to would-be Americans. Gambling not only corrupts politicians and politics, but it also corrupts the American dream.

And while we're on the subject, take a look at this quick piece on the incredible power of gambling's Washington lobbyists...as in Washington's most powerful lobbyists!

"Bioethics" -- The Hoax of the Century?

The word "bioethics" has become the umbrella term for a whole host of unprincipled activities as well as a great deal of "science fiction" used to disguise the impracticality (or even worse, the sheer wickedness) of genetic manipulators. But then, distorting the language is simply the first sinster step towards distorting the morality of medical practice itself. Thus, a re-defintion of conception (clearly unscientific and inaccurate) to mean implantation rather than fertilization or the use of terms like "delayed personhood" are but the precursors to surgical abortion, the use of abortifacient chemicals and devices, the variety of in vitro fertilization techniques, cloning, physician-assisted suicide, living donor organ transplants, and other horrors.

It is this fraudulent science (inaccurate, immoral, and full of false promises and wishful thinking) that Dr. Dianne Irving and embryologist Dr. Ward C. Kischer referred to as "the hoax of the century" in their 1995 book, The Human Development Hoax. As Dr. Irving says, "We could have never [in 1995] imagined in our wildest dreams the explosion of false and decadent science that was to come in the human cloning and human embryonic stem cell research debates - what I would call 'the hoax of the millennium'. Enough is enough. This has got to stop."

Clicking on the title of this post will take you to Dr. Irving's comments on an article just published in Genetic and Engineering News about the connections between the Stanford Bioethics Consultants and the most brazen of the genetic manipulators.

Dr. Irving's professional activities include teaching positions at Georgetown University, Catholic University of America, and The Dominican House of Studies. She is a former career-appointed bench research biochemist/biologist (NIH, NCI, Bethesda, MD), an M.A. and Ph.D. philosopher (Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.), and Professor of the History of Philosophy, and of Medical Ethics. So, yes...Dr. Irving knows what she's talking about.

Dutch Bureaucrat Calls for Coerced Contraception and Abortion

You can. You should. You must.

That simple formula describes the course of decadence in modern society. First, the formerly unthinkable sins become allowed, sometimes still frowned upon, but yet allowed because of the greater good of individualism, free expression, skepticism over the legitimacy of moral authority, etc. Of monumental help here is the involvement of key authorities: educators, physicians, government leaders, film stars, and late-night comedians.

But then (and often very quickly), the culture gets comfortable with the presence of the formerly unthinkable sins in their midst. The justifications for their practice begin to evolve into encouragement for a wider audience to join in. Freedom from past restraints! Experimentation with new thrills! Expansion of the possibilities of pleasure! Mere tolerance of the formerly unthinkable sins now morphs into a call for general participation.

And then the next phase -- developed primarily to deal with those retrogressive individuals clinging to outmoded ideals, tired religious values and the like -- coercion. It would have been preferable for such people to have been successfully re-educated in the new ways. It would have been so much easier for all concerned had they got with the new program and embraced the "You can and You should" objectives. But they didn't and now, whether the reason is cultural, religious or just plain stubborness, the enlightened powers of government must be utilized to force compliance. It's all for the good...trust us.

This is what's called "social progress" and in the last couple of generations, we have witnessed the "You can, You should, You must" progression in matters of immodesty, public indecency, premarital sex and cohabitation, adultery, drug use, homosexuality and other sexual deviancies, prostitution, eugenic abortion and sterilization, genetic manipulation, and more.

This story from Holland is but one more sad example of the trend.

Any Port in A Storm -- The Bush Death Wish

From every angle, from all considerations, the Bush decision to go down with the ship on the matter of selling our port authorities to the United Arab Emirates is an inexplicably bonehead play.

Here's Kathleen Parker with one of the clearest presentations yet made.

A Living Constitution or a Fixed Foundation? To the Democrats, It Depends on the Issue They're Pushing

Here's Jonah Goldberg with today's "slam dunk" read. Very, very good. Just click the (rather long) title of this post to go there.

Bill Clinton's "Domestic Spying" Targeted Pro-Life Advocates

From the "Lest We Forget" file, Front Page Magazine remembers when the Democrats were head over heels in love with their own "domestic spying" program.

...In 1994, Clinton administration Attorney General Janet Reno launched infiltrators, wiretaps, mail monitoring, and a wide range of other spying activities in a massive coordinated effort that included the FBI; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms; U.S. Postal inspectors; the U.S. Marshalls Service; and other Federal and local law enforcement agencies.President Bill Clinton had acted decisively to fight what he and First Lady Hillary Clinton deemed the most dangerous terrorist threat facing America: conservative Christians.

This huge Clinton surveillance scheme was VAAPCON, the Violence Against Abortion Providers Task Force. According to the U.S. Justice Department, VAAPCON “was charged with determining whether there was a nationwide conspiracy to commit acts of violence against reproductive health care providers.” The more than 900 targets of all this surveillance included the Christian Coalition, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Women’s Coalition for Life, Feminists for Life, Americans United for Life, the 600,000-member Concerned Women for America, the National Rifle Association, the American Life League, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, and even then-Roman Catholic Cardinal of New York John O’Connor...

Read the rest of the story here.

Perils of the Golden Theory

In a profound speech before the House International Relations Committee (which he chairs), the honorable 81-year old Illinois Republican, Henry Hyde, reminded the Committee members (and the meeting's special guest, Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice) of the dire necessity of maintaining a "clear-eyed and sober-minded understanding of this world" rather than the naive, wishful thinking that dominates the Democrat Party and has even influnced President George W. Bush in his passion to involve the United States in creating global democracy.

It is an important speech, despite the failure of the MSM to cover it at all. But the new technology frees us from the MSM's ineptness and prejudices. Thus via the internet you can actually see and hear Henry Hyde's speech ("The Perils of the Golden Theory") right here, or read the transcript here.

As an added bonus, I direct you to Terence Jeffrey's perceptive appreciation of the speech in this Town Hall column.

In Alabama, They're Chipping Away at the Philosophy of Roe

The Alabama District Attorneys Association changed its mind yesterday and announced its support for a bill making an unborn child a second victim when a pregnant woman is killed. This decision greatly increases the possibility that this bill will soon become Alabama law. It is already supported by the governor, the attorney general, and the majority of the state's population -- and the bill passed the House in a 97-0 vote!

The bill still needs to get out of the state's Senate Judiciary Committee where other pro-life bills have been defeated so prayers remain definitely in order. But Tuesday's announcement was a cause for significant hope.

Bills like this one in Alabama are proof that pro-life educators, activists, and intercessors have succeeded in keeping the sanctity of life banner held high despite the tremendous tragedy of Roe vs Wade over 30 years ago. Indeed, efforts like this one reveal the increasing power of the pro-life cause in state legislatures.

A Prediction About Partial-Birth Abortion: “The U.S. Supreme Court will correct a grave injustice”

In a news release yesterday, Don Stenberg, the former Nebraska Attorney General who is currently running for the U.S. Senate, said that he expects the U.S. Supreme Court to overrule the 2000 partial-birth abortion case that bears his name and outlaw the gruesome procedure.
Stenberg, who as Nebraska’s Attorney General in 2000 argued the partial birth abortion case, Stenberg v. Carhart, in the Supreme Court of the United States, said he was pleased the Court has agreed to reconsider that decision.

“In my opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court will correct a grave injustice, and will overrule Stenberg v. Carhart in a 5 – 4 decision,” Stenberg said.

Prior to Stenberg v. Carhart, thirty states, including Nebraska, had outlawed the barbaric practice of partial birth abortion.

“Partial birth abortion is an execution procedure in which a partially born child is killed by removing the child’s brain,” Stenberg said. “In today’s world, only the beheading of helpless captives by radical Islamic extremists comes close to matching the cruelty and unspeakable horror of a partial birth abortion.”

According to Stenberg, the Court gave two reasons for declaring Nebraska’s partial birth abortion statute unconstitutional in Stenberg v. Carhart:

1) That it could be interpreted to prohibit abortions other than partial birth abortions; and
2) There was no health exception for the mother.

“In my opinion, the Supreme Court, in a 5 – 4 decision, will uphold the federal ban on partial birth abortions by saying two things.

1) That the federal law bans only partial birth abortions; and
2) That no health exception is required because there is always a medically safe alternative to a partial birth abortion,” Stenberg said.

“If my prediction proves to be correct, it will underscore the enormous importance of the appointment and confirmation of Justices to the U.S. Supreme Court who will respect the Constitution and not legislate from the bench,” he said.

Stenberg noted a portion of Justice Scalia’s dissent in Stenberg v. Carhart: ‘“I am optimistic enough to believe that, one day, Stenberg v. Carhart will be assigned its rightful place in the history of this Court’s jurisprudence beside Korematsu and Dred Scott.”’

“Thanks to President Bush’s two Supreme Court appointments, Justice Scalia’s prediction is about to come true,” Stenberg said. “And it is important to remember, that if the Democrats, with Ben Nelson’s help, gain control of the U.S. Senate in this fall’s election that Justices like Roberts and Alito will not be confirmed in the future,” he said.

An Audio Primer on Embryonic Stem Cell Research

Here's an audio file of a Vital Signs Weekend radio program dealing with ESCR, covering such basic points in the controversy as in vitro fertilization, frozen embryos, exactly when does conception occur, and the failures of ESCR to produce the promised medical breakthroughs.

On Cancer, Aspartame and Other New York Times Fairy Tales

Here's an example of how journalists create newsworthy headlines -- without having any "newsworthy news" to back it up!

The story, written by Duane Freese and published in Tech Central Station, shows the New York Times (certainly no stranger to distortion, omission and invention masquerading as news) mis-reporting on the old aspartame scare. If even the non-scientific reader takes the TCS story slowly and carefully, the scam perpetuated by the Times becomes more than clear.

The Demise of Holiness

Has God called His people to holiness? Well, a careful reader of the Bible would certainly be forced to say a most definite "yes" to that question. Indeed, the commands of God are peppered throughout both Testaments that Christians should walk, think, pray and pursue holiness at all times.

So why then do less than half of America's "born-again" population believe that holiness is a neccesity?

Here's George Barna's recent findings about how the doctrine of holiness has been shrugged away by Americans...even by those who should know better.

In the Abortion Controversy, Which Side Is the One Afraid of Argument?

Southern Baptist theologian and educator, Dr. Al Mohler, considers this question in the current editorial on his excellent web site. Actually, he points primarily to the answer given in a recent article published in the new issue of Society, one of the nation's most influential social science journals. The author of that article is Jon A. Shields from the University of Virginia's Center on Religion and Democracy.

..."If the conventional wisdom is correct, the religious right is once again corrupting American democracy by pushing religious dogma over and against science and reason," Shields asserts. Nevertheless, he goes on to prove that the "conventional wisdom" is anything but wise.

"These critics . . . have got it almost nearly backwards," he argues. "Ironically, it is actually the secular left that has undermined a national discussion on vital bioethical questions--such as when a human organism deserves state protection--by depicting them as fundamentally religious and therefore beyond legitimate public debate." Another of Shields' assertions is likely to catch considerable attention: "Even more surprising, the religious right increasingly embraces sophisticated philosophical arguments in its effort to convince Americans from across the political spectrum that embryonic stem cell research and abortion are not religious issues." Or, that they are not merely religious issues...

For more, click on the title of this post.

The Politics of Stem Cell Research vs Hope for Real Cures

James Kelly, writing in the Seoul Times, has a most intriguing article about how the research community is tragically tied to the profit-oriented medical and pharmaceutical industries -- and how this hurts the cause of the most hopeful of medical treatments; i.e. the use of "adult" stem cells.

This from the Religion of Peace

Here's one photo from a Muslim protest that you will NOT see on your oh-so-sensitive to the feelings of religious groups (other than Christians and Jews) television news.

Cable TV Industry Still Fighting Morality, Fairness and Common Sense

Brent Bozell has a really fine column here, explaining how the cable "powers that be" are running out of ammunition in their fight against cable choice. I suggest you read Bozell's piece and then print it off to pass around to friends AND for use in letters to cable companies, the FCC, and your poltical representatives.

"Evangelical Climate Initiative" Funded by Pro-Abortion Foundation

You've seen the stories about evangelicals coming out against President Bush and his "failure" to address global warming issues? Well, what you haven't seen is where this leftist ploy received its initiative. How about $475,000 from the aggresively pro-abortion Hewlett Foundation. Check out the rest of the story here.

Wendy Wright, President of Concerned Women for America says “Hewlett Foundation is one of the most prodigious and unabashed funders of abortion causes, with much money going to make abortion acceptable. Its significant grant for this initiative, along with the controversial Rockefeller Brothers Foundation, reveals where this effort could lead. They would not fund something that contradicts their main missions.”

“The radical environmental, pro-abortion lobby has learned to adopt language to win over unsuspecting, well-intentioned people. I am sure that most of the evangelical leaders who signed on have no idea of the history and missions of the groups that have made this initiative possible with their financial backing,” said Wright.

But an obvious question must be, "Why would these evangelicals fall for the claptrap spouted by radical environmentalists in the first place?" The answer is one that fits so many others dealing with the evangelicals' surrender to modernism of all sorts -- they love being hip more than they love being right.

More ESCR Lying

A recent AP story headlined, "Stem Cell Potential Said to Be Undimmed," is a prime example of how the media allows scientists playing the stem cell game to go completely unchallenged by the evidence. But then, why bring up facts of any kind when obfuscation, errors and politically-correct fables take you where you want to go?

Here's how the AP "news" story begins...

The South Korean stem cell scandal has set back researchers and eroded public trust, but it has not undermined hopes for treatments for a wide variety of diseases, scientists said Friday.

"It does not dim the promise. It's just that we still have to do some basic things we thought we had done," said Sean Morrison, of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and University of Michigan.

Doesn't dim the promise? What promise? The established fact is that "patient-specific" stem cells cannot be successfully produced because of the foreign mitochondrial DNA from the oocyte used. Tests have demonstrated this time and again.

Nevertheless, because the embryonic stem cell myth pushes forward the frontiers of genetic manipulation, cloning, abortion and the dream of creating a production line of perfect people, the myth makers (be they scientists or journalists) continue bleating the lie that "stem cells" from cloned embryos will not cause immune rejection reactions when injected into the patients.

Lies and lots of money. That's what is fueling the ESCR madness. But the end results are doomed to be more dashed hopes, more deterioration of medical ethics, and more time wasted from finding real cures.

Australian Congress Caves In to Abortion Drug

From the e-mail updates sent by LifeSiteNews.com: Australia's protection against the deadly abortion drug RU-486 came to an end yesterday, as the House of Representatives voted to remove control of the drug from Health Minister Tony Abbott.

For the past ten years, Australia's health minister has held veto power over the drug. Mr. Abbott, a Roman Catholic strongly opposed to abortion, has kept it out of the country. A private member's bill to strip him of that control was raised in the house, and voted in by the Senate almost two weeks ago.

Control of the drug will now pass to the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). It has been suggested that chemical abortions will begin in Australia as early as next year...

...Despite this, abortion advocates are celebrating yesterday's vote as a victory for women to have "safe terminations." The four female senators who sponsored the bill have said this is only the beginning of their efforts to address women's reproductive health issues.

Opposition to abortion among the general public is growing in Australia. A recent poll showed 87% of the general population would like to see a reduction in the number of abortions performed in the country. Australia has one of the highest abortion rates in the world - almost one quarter of all Australian pregnancies end in abortion.

The Ten Most Dangerous Professors in the U.S.

Yes, Angela Davis and Tom Hayden make David Horowitz's list but you'll be astounded at how tame they seem next to some of the others. For instance, there's Jose Angel Gutierrez: a former judge for Zavala County, Texas. Established the militant La Raza Unida (“the Unified Race”), an association dedicated to the belief that the Southwest does not rightfully belong to the U.S. Once said, “We have got to eliminate the gringo, and what I mean by that is if the worst comes to the worst, we have got to kill him.” Gutierrez teaches political science at the University of Texas, Arlington.

Check out the rest at Human Events Online here.

And while you're thinking about the evils these professors represent (i.e. treason; government misspending; injustice; the promotion of rape, terrorism, racism, etc. masquerading as free speech) why not take a peek at the David Horowitz book that the list comes from? It is The Professors: the 101 Most Dangerous Academics in America. You can read reviews of the book here at Front Page Magazine, and here at Town Hall. And at both places, you can place your order for the book.

The Non-Story of the Baptist Church Burnings

Jeff Jacoby has an important column on the story that the mainstream media has fumbled away badly...that is, when they've deigned to cover it at all. And the government's bias in refusing to view it as a "hate crime," because the victims are not in the politically-correct class, is almost as bad.

Here's the column.

Government Spending Continues to Fly High

Oh, the laughter never stops among those government bureaucrats who so enjoy spending your money. Here, compiled by the Republican Study Committee chaired by Mike Spence, are just a few of the recent examples.

My guess is that you won't find them quite so funny.

* Congress appropriated $10 million in FY03 for the Alaska Fisheries Marketing Board (AFMB), a non-profit organization, which since its inception has received $30 million in federal funding. Out of its federal funds, the AFMB gave Alaska Airlines a $500,000 grant to paint a Boeing 737 to look like a Chinook salmon.

* As part of their Katrina relief efforts, FEMA distributed $2,000 debit cards to many of the hurricane victims. However, as a recent New York Daily News article outlines, two Katrina evacuees will now be able to carry around their government debit cards in a brand new, $800 Louis Vuitton handbag.

* Following September 11, 2001, Northern Virginia received $13.4 million in FEMA funds, which they were used to pay for gardens and “healing spaces”, peace and anger management workshops, and other therapeutic activities for post-9-11 mental health.

* The Public Broadcasting Service, (PBS), mixed taxpayer dollars with funding from the Playboy Foundation when they accepted a donation from the Foundation to help pay for a movie which they recently aired entitled “The Education of Shelby Knox.” The movie detailed the life of Shelby Knox, who had personally pledged abstinence until marriage, but becomes an advocate for teaching teens about contraception and condom use through sex education. As part of her advocacy, Shelby allies herself with a group of gay students who have been denied the right to form a gay-straight alliance in school.

* According to a U.S Department of Agriculture Office of the Inspector General the report, USDA employees have significantly abused the use of their government credit cards, which are intended to be used for purchases while on government travel. With the credit cards, employees purchased items such as Ozzy Osbourne concert tickets, an automobile, and tattoos, all paid for on taxpayer credit.

For more, click on the title of this post to go to the RSC web page. Once there, hit the link to "Examples of Government Waste." And then? Well, then you might want to write a letter to your congressman and ask once again for the privilige of keeping some more of your own money. Remind him that you obviously can be trusted to spend your dollars in better ways than he is.

Lee Terry (and others) Promote Abstinence Education on Capitol Hill

A few days ago staff members of the Family Research Council went to Capitol Hill to lead an abstinence promotion to counter the ongoing (even though unreasonable) attacks on abstinence-only programs. New materials, a panel discussion, and talks by Republican Congressmen Ernie Istook from Oklahoma and Nebraska's own Lee Terry were all part of the event. Finally, the group of over 100 abstinence educators and teenagers gathered there heard Claude Allen, the White House Domestic Policy Advisor, encourage them before they took off to their respective political representatives to urge increased support of abstinence education.

Obviously, a call, letter or e-mail thanking Mr. Allen and Representatives Terry and Istook would be great. You can find the relevant information at Citizen Link. (Lee Terry can also be contacted via e-mail at talk2lee@mail.house.gov.)

Olasky on the "End of the Spear" Fiasco

Hi Denny,

Marvin Olasky's piece, on the troublesome aspect of the lead actor in the movie "End of the Spear" being gay, is very well examined and extremely thought provoking. You might want to consider it for your blog.

Cheers,

Quint

Okay, Quint. 'Nuff said. Find the Olasky column here.

Illegal Immigration & the War on Drugs: Stories of U.S. Capitulation

Click on the title of this post to read Phyllis Schlafly's blood-boiling column on how the U.S. has surrendered our southern border (and our national interests) to the violent drug lords of our "dear friend and ally," Mexico.

...Homeland Security sent a confidential memo in January to our Border Patrol agents warning that they could be the targets of assassins hired by alien smugglers. The alert states that the contract killers will probably be members of the vicious MS-13 Mara Salvatrucha street gang (whose 17-year-old killers will be protected from capital punishment by a recent U.S Supreme Court decision).

There is, indeed, a drug war going on between rival drug gangs, but the U.S. government seems to be just a bystander without manpower or weapons to take action. Are we going to continue to leave our Border agents sitting ducks for Mexican snipers?

Rep. Tom Tancredo reported that sheriff deputies spotted a military-style Humvee near El Paso, Texas, with a mounted .50-caliber machine gun escorting a caravan of SUVs bringing illegal drugs into our country. Our outgunned and outmanned sheriff deputies and state highway patrol couldn't do anything except take pictures...

For more on this critical issue, check out also the alarming report from World Net Daily right here.

The New Ken Doll: Out of the Closet?

If you want to know how Mattel is attempting to mold your daughter's prepubescent attitudes, check out the new effeminate Ken doll that's just out in time for Valentine's Day.

Here's CNN's report (don't miss the video story on that page). Over here is a more comic approach from author and one of David Letterman's key creative people, Merrill Markoe. And finally, the most telling perspective of all comes from conservative columnist/reporter, Debbie Schlussel.

I have a strong feeling that this glitzy "toy-boy" is not the one to win back Barbie's heart. So, G.I. Joe, please report for duty.

Kissing Can Be More Dangerous Than You Think

Meningitis isn't normally thought of as a sexually transmitted diesease. However, it certainly can be and, get this, the transmission need not even involve actual intercourse. For instance, researchers in Australia have just announced the results of a study showing that "French kissing" with multiple partners can quadruple a teenager's risk of developing meningitis. And, yes, meningitis can be fatal.

The lead researcher of the study group suggested that the findings certainly should warn young people off the practice of "party kissing" and other situations in which intimate kissing occurs between several partners -- even over the space of a couple of weeks. But, he said, it probably won't change their behavior at all.

Meningitis is an inflammation of the brain lining. Septicemia is a form of the disease involving blood poisoning. Neither is a pleasant thing to experience at whatever degree of virulence it hits. And when you figure that about one in every ten teenagers carries meningococcal bacteria, you can see the high risks involved.

The lead researcher, Robert Booy of Children's Hospital Westmead in Sydney, Australia, explained: "We all carry bacteria in our throats, and some of us will carry the meningococcal bacteria...They don't exist very well outside of the body. But if it can pass in saliva, from one person to the next, then it passes very easily."

Married Sex Is "Smart Sex"

A professor of economics at Yale and George Mason University writing about love, sex and marriage? Why not? Academicians fall in love too. Economists get married. And sex? Well, those baby intellectuals are coming from somewhere, right?

Actually, the professor in question here is Jennifer Roback Morse so her qualifications to comment cogently and compellingly on these matters are impeccable. Dr. Morse is an accomplished scholar, author and cultural critic whose work at the above universities as well as at the Hoover Institution has been first-rate. However, in her new book, Smart Sex: Finding Life-long Love in a Hook-up World, she writes from keen personal experience too as a successful wife and mother. (Her kids, by the way, come, respectively, via birth, adoption and foster care. Cool.)

In a very interesting interview from National Review Online, Kathryn Lopez discusses with Dr. Morse a few of the key tenets of the book. I'd suggest you give it a read. There is also an insightful review of the book over at the Homiletic and Pastoral Review which draws comparisons between Morse's book and G.K. Chesterton -- nice connection that!

And the book itself? Well, Smart Sex: Finding Life-long Love in a Hook-up World (with an introduction by Chuck Colson) can be ordered from Amazon, Spence Books, and many other places, including even D. James Kennedy's Coral Ridge Ministries.

Condi Doubts Russian Democracy

It seems like Washington is turning up the heat a bit on Russia, at least in the public relations battles over that country's much vaunted claims to build democracy. Last week it was the U.S. Ambassador to Russia expressing grave concerns. This week it's U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice who said in Washington two days ago that she is openly skeptical about the future of democracy in Russia. "We are very concerned, particularly about some of the elements of democratization that seem to be going in the wrong direction," she said. Rice recalled what was widely seen as Russia's recent use of gas supplies as a political tool against Ukraine, as well as new legislation to establish greater control over nongovernmental organizations. She added -- "the question is open as to where Russia's future development is going."

Condi could also have pointed to Russia's "fingerprints" on arms sales to terrorists, the return of dictatorial policies, the ongoing plunge of the government into corruption, and more. No, the Russian bear isn't at all healthy and, in its sickness, it poses a great danger to everybody else.

Nebraska's Defense of Marriage Act in Court on Monday

Nebraska's Defense of Marriage Amendment (DOMA) will be heard before the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals tomorrow (Monday, February 13) at 9:00 AM in the En Banc Courtroom in St. Louis, Missouri. Remember that over 70% of the people of Nebraska voted for this amendment to our state's constitution. However, U.S. District Judge Joe Batallion, a Democrat with a long history of commitment to liberal causes, ruled that this law was unconstitutional.

Obviously, prayers are in order for tomorrow's proceedings. Chief Judge James Loken, and Circuit Judges Lavenski Smith and Pasco Bowman will hear the case. Pray that God's wisdom, counsel, and righteousness be the standard for these judges. Pray that they will recognize that their decision is accountable to God.

Also keep in your prayers Nebraska Deputy Attorney General Matt McNair who will have 30 minutes to argue the case. Pray that he would speak with clarity, conviction, and persuasive power as he explains the clear constitutionality of this law to the judges.

"Stopping Bad Things" Is Job #1

There is a United States Senator (who is also a physician) and he's a man of principle, great courage, humility, faith and good humor.

And you're right -- it's not Bill Frist.

Take a look at George Will's column about Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn and learn how the maverick is making waves for fiscal responsibility-- even against the biggest pack of spendthrifts the world has ever seen. You go, Doc!

TV, Kids and Well-Funded Professional Research Projects

The "Stating the Obvious" File is always full here at Vital Signs Blog's Lowell Thomas Research Center and every once in awhile we let one slip out just to remind our visitors that common sense remains...well, sensible.

This one comes from the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics which reported on a study about kids watching TV. Here's the key sentence from the study's conclusions ---> Television viewing was associated with decreased homework time and decreased time in creative play.

Now how much effort and money do you think it took to reach that bombshell conclusion?

Another Example of the Left's "Selective Censorship"

From Life News comes this report:

An Illinois newspaper is coming under fire from pro-life advocates for censoring pro-life advertisements featuring babies and ultrasounds as "too graphic" to be allowed. In an interview, the Joliet Herald-News newspaper defends its decision. Will County Right to Life attempted to purchase ads on the January anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, but the newspaper told them no. When asked by the Cybercast News Service about the decision, the paper's advertising manager, Steve Vanisko, stood by the "too graphic" label. He said the newspaper reserves the right to deny any ad for any reason.

He first denied the term "too graphic" was used to reject the ads, but later admitted that's what he told the pro-life group. "That's not what I'm saying (that the term 'graphic' was never used)," Vanisko told CNS News. "I'm saying that the newspaper reserves the right, just like any other paper, to reject any ad for any reason. And that's what we did. Period. End of story."

Jill Stanek, an Illinois nurse who exposed life-birth abortions that led to legislation signed by President Bush protecting babies who survive botched abortions, condemned the refusal to run the ads. "Since when are ultrasounds "graphic," she asked. "In fact, these ultrasound photos are beautiful. Parents proudly display them on their refrigerators, for goodness sakes."

For more on this story, check out Jill Stanek's article right here. You'll also find there links to others who have picked up the story thanks to Jill's reporting. They include Fox News and Janet Folger.

The Superiority Complex of the Left

...if you're looking for accountability from the left for the inexcusable behavior of its leaders, get a Hubble telescope. It's not that they don't have the courage to discipline their own. It's that they agree with them, applaud them and encourage them to give it to us even harder next time...

A very good column today from David Limbaugh. Don't miss it.

Who Is Co-Sponsoring S.193?

S. 193 is the Senate number for the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005 introduced by Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas. The House version is H.R. 310. Here's the brief description of the bill:

Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to provide that, if the violator of the terms and conditions of any Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license, permit, or certificate is either a broadcast station licensee or permittee or an applicant for a broadcast license, permit, or certificate, and such violator is determined by the FCC to have broadcast obscene, indecent, or profane language, the amount of forfeiture penalty shall not exceed $325,000 for each violation or day of such violation, to a maximum of $3 million for any single act or failure to act.

Passage of this bill wouldn't solve the entire problem of indecency on the TV and radio airwaves, of course, but it is an important start -- one that the FCC Chairman understands is quite necessary to start cleaning up what has become a very large mess.

S. 193 (and its counterpart, H.R. 310) are common sense improvements and are certainly the type of legislative efforts that conservative political representatives promise their constituents to enact. So where does the Nebraska delegation stand? Though there are 27 Senate co-sponsors from both parties (Thune, Lieberman, Santorum, Coburn, Martinez, McCain, Inhofe, Graham, Dole, et al) and 67 co-sponsors in the House, the only Nebraskans to sign on have been Senator Chuck Hagel and Congressman Tom Osborne.

Letters of thanks and encouragement are in order for these gentlemen as are letters requesting Senator Nelson, Representative Terry, and Representative Fortenberry to climb on board soon.

For quick info on addresses and phone numbers, check out Citizen Link right here.

Belarussian Dictator Next In Complaining of "Birth Dearth"

As we've been mentioning here in recent weeks, several European governments (and Japan) have seemed to suddenly wake up to the economic and social crises they face from the effects of the sexual revolution, abortion and the contraceptive mentality. Now from RFE comes the news that even the corrupt Communist President of Belarus is expressing alarm.

Alyaksandr Lukashenka said on February 8 that every Belarusian family should have at least three children, a far cry from the abortion-heavy practice of women in that country for decades.

"The most global problem that the country is now facing is that only 10 million people live on our pretty large territory," Lukashenka said at a cabinet meeting. "We may not speak about security if there's no one to protect this land." The Belarusian president said he is sure that Belarus "can feed 30 million people," adding that the government should find ways to support families with three or more children.

"We should say clearly: If a family has three children, it has the right to buy an apartment at half the price, for instance. Special baby food stores will be opened. Third, a family should have enough money to maintain children."

Progressive Technology vs Decadent Morality: Computer Crime Costs $67 Billion A Year

Dealing with viruses, spyware, PC theft and other computer-related crimes costs U.S. businesses a staggering $67.2 billion a year, according to the FBI.

The FBI calculated the price tag by extrapolating results from a survey of 2,066 organizations. The survey, released Thursday, found that 1,324 respondents, or 64 percent, suffered a financial loss from computer security incidents over a 12-month period...

Read the rest of this story from CNet News by clicking on the title of this post.

Ford's Funding of Homosexual Agenda Continues

Before Christmas, Ford Motor Company agreed to discontinue what had become an aggressive promotion of the homosexual political agenda (including Ford's public support of same-sex marriage laws). The decision to change direction came after stern protests of Ford's policies were made by many pro-family leaders. The specific points of Ford's "conversion" were:

1. Ford would not renew current promotions or create future incentives that give cash donations to homosexual organizations based on the purchase of a vehicle.

2. Ford would stop giving cash and vehicle donations or endorsements to homosexual social activities such as Gay Pride parades.

3. Ford would not make corporate donations to homosexual organizations that, as part of their activities, engage in political or social campaigns to promote civil unions or same-sex marriage.

4. Ford would cease all advertising in homosexual websites and media outlets (magazines, television, radio) in the U.S. with the exception of a small amount to be used by Volvo. The Volvo ads would be the same ads used in the general media and not aimed at the homosexual community specifically.

Well, it is not yet even spring but Ford has already broken their pledge thus making your letters and your participation in a boycott of Ford products very much in order.

To find out more about Ford's broken promises and to see the subsequent letter of protest sent by Don Wildmon of the American Family Association (co-signed by such folks as Jim Dobson, Bev LaHaye, D. James Kennedy, Tony Perkins, Judie Brown, and many other pro-life, pro-family champions), check out these pages on the AFA website -- page one... and page two.

Why Can't Ann Coulter Get Arrested?

Ann Coulter is witty, wise and winsome -- and she writes with as deft a pen as any conservative around. Here is one of her latest columns (published in RealClearPolitics) that shows how her humor is one of the best weapons the Right possesses.

Adult Stem Cells Give New Hope to Arthritis Sufferers

From Health Day News (via Forbes online magazine) comes yet another example of how promising is the field of "adult" stem cell research...

Researchers say they have turned adult muscle stem cells into cartilage, and used them in animals to heal the kind of damage caused by arthritis. That is potentially good news for the many people who now face joint-replacement surgery because there is no available technique to repair cartilage damage from osteoarthritis, the wear-and-tear condition that afflicts many older people.

The transformed cells have successfully replaced damaged cartilage in rats for as long as 24 weeks, much longer than has been reported in studies using other methods, according to a report in the February issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.

Experiments aimed at extending the benefit to 48 weeks are in the planning stage, with an eye out for human trials, said study leader Johnny Huard, director of the Growth and Development Laboratory at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.

"Over the years, a lot of people have tried to use cells to repair cartilage, which doesn't repair by itself," said Huard. "So far, nobody has been able to repair cartilage with those cells. In this study, we found a population of stem cells in skeletal muscle that we give a boost with a protein so they differentiate into cartilage cells. Then we can repair cartilage damage in our animal model."

One Sorry Mess of a Party

...Clinton's Wal-Mart refund is a perfect illustration not merely of her hypocrisy but of the quicksand she is now in. She thinks it's a winning message to say she's too good for Wal-Mart's money but not Hollywood's. That's not exactly red-state savvy....

Jonah Goldberg examines a few of the latest acts of hypocrisy and pettiness of the Democrats. It isn't pretty.

Here is his Los Angeles Times column.

An Uneven Playing Field

If you thought the Seattle Seahawks were blasted by a series of bad calls (and they were), take a look at a couple of examples of how conservative journalists are being hounded by bad calls of a much more sinister kind.

Here's Michael Fumento's story.

CBS Decides What's "News" On the Basis of Viewer's Comfort: Abortion Story Axed

In the middle of an interesting review of ABC's Nightline (post-Ted Koppel) came this bombshell from Mark Joseph:

...I was traveling abroad when the Casey abortion decision was handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court. At the time one of the networks in the country I was visiting had an agreement with CBS whereby they would broadcast the first three stories on the CBS Evening News for the benefit of their viewers. Hearing elsewhere that a decision had been handed down, I tuned in to hear the details only to see that on this particular day the broadcast skipped the top story-Casey, and proceeded with stories 2, 3 and 4. Confused, I called the network and asked why story #1 was missing.

To my astonishment the producer said that it was the lunch hour, and since many housewives were home and would be upset by a story about abortion, they had thus decided not to broadcast the story.

"But your job isn't to decide who will be upset by news," I argued back. "It's to report the news." He didn't disagree but stood by their decision...

Coburn Exposes Government Junket Spending

My respect for Tom Coburn, the august conservative Senator from Oklahoma, continues to grow. Yesterday, the "pork-hunting" maverick revealed for the American taxpayers just how much of their donations to the federal government are being used to finance politicians and bureaucrats going on junkets, fact-finding trips and other "Gee, I'm going to a conference in a really cool foreign place" trips. Want a figure? Just since 2000, the amount is nearing $1 and a half billion. That's b (as in boondoggle, bloated, bamboozle and bilk) billion.

Michelle Malkin has a summary in her Town Hall column today.

You will also find it worthwhile to take a visit to Senator Coburn's own web page to learn more about his dedication to fight wasteful government spending. Especially relevant there is his "Pork Busters" category. You'll see that the good Doctor (truly exceptional among politicians) is practicing what he preaches.

Be It Super Bowl or Super Mission Trip, the Holmgren Family Serves the Lord

This report from an e-mail update prepared by the Family Research Council...

Coach Mike Holmgren led his Seattle Seahawks to the Super Bowl last Sunday. The team lost on the field, but key members of Coach Holmgren's family missed the game. Coach Holmgren's wife, Kathy, and Calla, one of their four daughters, were half a world away, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Kathy Holmgren had been a medical missionary to Africa when the couple married, 35 years ago. Coach Holmgren gave his wife and daughter the trip as a birthday present. The Holmgrens are very active in the Evangelical Covenant Church. Kathy and Calla, a nurse and an obstetrician, respectively, are volunteering with the Northwest Medical Teams, a Portland, Ore., faith-based mission group.

Hundreds of millions tuned in to see Coach Holmgren's team perform at Ford Field, but his wife and daughter will perform for an audience of 300,000--the number of Congolese served by the medical center where the Holmgrens are working. Coach Holmgren was not swayed by all the media hype of "Super Sunday." "If I didn't have a foundation in my faith with Christ to keep me through the highs and lows of this week--and every week--this job would be very hard." As for his beloved wife and daughter missing Super Sunday, Mike Holmgren wasn't upset. He fully supports their life-affirming trip. "It's more important."

Superman To Stand In for Jesus in British Schools

Modern religious educators are frequently so "progressive" that they outdistance common sense, let alone serving to discredit the foundations of the very religion they are trying to promote. Believing that the Holy Spirit needs their help, such teachers are ever on the make to develop newer, hipper methods to communicate religious truth than those stodgy old things like Scriptural authority, careful indoctrination in the Bible's teaching, and a spirituality which emphasizes obedience and faith over personal happiness and church growth.

Here's a news story describing one of the latest tricks being tried by the religious education teachers in some U.K. schools -- an effort to make Jesus more exciting by linking Him to Superman. Hmmm. Superman is certainly an admirable fellow; at least he was in the relatively wholesome form he took in the 40's and 50's. But to imagine that Jesus -- the incarnate Word; He Who holds all things together by the word of His power; He Who tasted death for all men in order to pay for their sins against Him; the sinless lamb of God Whose next physical appearance will be as the Lion of Judah Who will judge the quick and the dead -- to imagine that Jesus needs elevation by a comparison to Superman!

British religious educators (like those ultra-moderns in America's churches) need to simply teach the truth of God in its principled, liberating beauty instead of scrambling for help from the comics.

Britain Steps Up International Abortion Funding

...And urges other countries to do the same. Here's the story from LifeNews.

Is Europe Finally Waking Up to the Islamic Threat?

...As long as Muslim demonstrators only shouted "Death to America" and "Death to Israel," Europe (and the rest of the world's Left) found reasons either to ignore the Nazi-like evil inherent in those chants (and the homicidal actions that flowed from them) or to blame America and Israel for the hatred.

But like the earlier Nazis, our generation's fascists hate anything good, not merely Jews and Americans. And now the Damascus embassy of Norway, a leading anti-Israel "peace at any price" country, has been torched. And more and more Norwegians, and Brits, and French, and Dutch, and Swedes, and the rest of the European appeasers who blamed America for 9-11 and blamed Israel for Palestinian suicide bombings, are beginning to wonder whether there just might be something morally troubling within the Islamic world.

Some on the Left here and in Europe are beginning to reassess whether America and Israel or their Islamic enemies are at fault...

Read the entirety of Dennis Prager's judicious column right here.

Another "Quality Control" Explosion in MSM Publishing

Amid the other recent scandals in the "mainstream media" publishing world -- the fake memoir of Oprah Winfrey protoge' Jim Frey; the "Navahoax" in which PEN Award winner Nasdijj was revealed to be anything but a Native American, and proofs of plagarism from several of the MSM's journalists and reporters -- here comes yet another.

It turns out that the Hollywood glitterati that have gone crackers over the work of the young, cross-dressing male prostitute named JT LeRoy have been suckered but good. LeRoy's works have been international best-sellers; they've been taught in university courses; they are the basis of a new film starring Asia Argento, Peter Fonda and Marilyn Manson.

But who really is JT Leroy?

A messy divorce and child custody fight has exposed JT Leroy to be, in reality, a 40-year old white woman who completely invented the persona because her work wasn't getting any attention from publishers on its own. So what was a failed author to do? Well, what Laura Albert did was to come up with an angle that pushed sleaze to new levels and played upon liberals' fascination with sexual deviancy. She came up with JT LeRoy and...voila...found publishing nirvana.

But will the leftist literary circles who gave such undeserving success to JT LeRoy be embarassed at being victims of the hoax? I doubt it. Lets face it -- if you admit to actually admiring an HIV-infected, transvestite prostitute with who provides kinky kicks to strangers -- you're not going to be embarassed easily. In fact, the MSM's attitude can be seen in the fact that only now is the scandal breaking in the American press. The story broke in England over a month ago.