New Show Starts tomorrow @ 3PM
If you tune in to 101.5 WORD FM (Pittsburgh, PA) at 3:00 pm tomorrow you will hear the first broadcast of our new show. It's now just hours away.
Many of you have emailed me asking what to expect. You can expect and fun, intelligent and challenging show. I think we are all going to learn much from each other. We will continue our journey of faith together. It will not be the type of show where the host is the teacher and the you are the student.
I think Christians of all denominations will discover a quality show. We have put a lot of work in to the program and will continue to develop it as we progress. Please help us spread the word and I invite you to tune to to first broadcast of "The Jerry Bowyer Show" 3:00 pm tomorrow on 101.5 WORD FM
Many of you have emailed me asking what to expect. You can expect and fun, intelligent and challenging show. I think we are all going to learn much from each other. We will continue our journey of faith together. It will not be the type of show where the host is the teacher and the you are the student.
I think Christians of all denominations will discover a quality show. We have put a lot of work in to the program and will continue to develop it as we progress. Please help us spread the word and I invite you to tune to to first broadcast of "The Jerry Bowyer Show" 3:00 pm tomorrow on 101.5 WORD FM
Waters rising in New Orleans
New Orleans was left with no power, no drinking water, dwindling food supplies, widespread looting, smoke rising on the horizon and the sounds of gunfire. Mayor Ray Nagin told CNN that at least 30 buildings had collapsed, but that no attempt had been made to determine a death toll.
Frustration was also rising among people who now find themselves refugees in their own city.
Thousands of people were being housed in the Louisiana Superdome, where toilets were overflowing and there was no air conditioning to provide relief from 90-degree heat.
Nagin estimated the number of people in the Superdome at between 12,000 and 15,000 people as of late Tuesday. He said they could be there for a week unless evacuated sooner.
National Guard troops moved into the downtown business district, and state police squads backed by SWAT teams were sent in to scatter looters and restore order.
New Powerball Show
For all you movers and groovers out there, it's the the latest edition of "The PowerBall Show" live from Rock-It Radio in Ventura, CA.
You can listen to the the good sounds anywhere in the world. Just click on the jukebox and let the good times roll. You don't even need dime.
If you need a DJ for your event, have Powerball host your party. Weddings, Dances, Corporate Events call Echo Productions at
724-986-6939
Katrina Arrives
Our thoughts and best wishes to the men and women keeping New Orleans radio on the air - and to the outside journalists doing their job in the area. May God protect everyone in Katrina's path.
Senate Seeking Able Danger Info
The Senate Intelligence Committee has contacted the White House asking whether it has a copy of a pre-9/11 chart put together by the Able Danger military intelligence team that identified lead hijacker Mohamed Atta as a terrorist threat.
Time magazine reports that the Committee "last week drafted a letter asking the White House for a copy" of the politically explosive chart, which Congressman Curt Weldon said he gave to then-Deputy National Security Advisor Hadley two weeks after the 9/11 attacks.
The Senate Intelligence Committee has also requested clearance from the Pentagon to interview all 11 members of the Able Danger team, including a so-far unidentified female data mining expert from California who first identified Atta as a terrorist threat.
NewsMax.com
Time magazine reports that the Committee "last week drafted a letter asking the White House for a copy" of the politically explosive chart, which Congressman Curt Weldon said he gave to then-Deputy National Security Advisor Hadley two weeks after the 9/11 attacks.
The Senate Intelligence Committee has also requested clearance from the Pentagon to interview all 11 members of the Able Danger team, including a so-far unidentified female data mining expert from California who first identified Atta as a terrorist threat.
NewsMax.com
Missing Able Danger 'Atta' Chart in 2002 Video
A copy of the Able Danger chart that identified lead 9/11 hijacker Mohamed Atta as a terrorist operating inside the U.S. a year before the 9/11 attacks is clearly visible in a video of a 2002 speech by delivered by Rep. Curt Weldon to the Heritage Foundation.
The Pentagon, the 9/11 Commission and the Senate Intelligence Committee are currently seeking evidence that the bombshell chart, featuring a photo Atta, ever existed - as claimed by three members of the Able Danger team, along with Rep. Weldon. But so far, no physical evidence of the controversial document has surfaced. Until now!
A third of the way through his May 23, 2002 address on data fusion techniques, the video shows Rep. Weldon unfurling a copy of the now missing document and displaying it to the Heritage audience.
Though Weldon never mentions Able Danger or Atta by name - and the video never zooms in on the chart to the point where Atta's photo is identifiable - it's clear from Weldon comments that the chart is the same one currently being sought.
Clowns Join the Circus
Cindy Sheehan still hasn't achieved a meeting with the president during her three-week-long war protest near his ranch, but she met a man who plays one on TV. Martin Sheen, who plays Democratic President Josiah "Jeb" Bartlet on NBC's "The West Wing," went to Sheehan's makeshift campsite Sunday.
"At least you've got the acting president of the United States," Sheen said as the crowd of more than 300 people cheered. "I think you know what I do for a living, but this is what I do to stay alive."
Then Sheen led anti-war demonstrators who are Roman Catholic in reciting the rosary.
Earlier Sunday, the Rev. Al Sharpton spoke at an interfaith service at the camp, saying he was compelled to meet Sheehan.
AP
"At least you've got the acting president of the United States," Sheen said as the crowd of more than 300 people cheered. "I think you know what I do for a living, but this is what I do to stay alive."
Then Sheen led anti-war demonstrators who are Roman Catholic in reciting the rosary.
Earlier Sunday, the Rev. Al Sharpton spoke at an interfaith service at the camp, saying he was compelled to meet Sheehan.
AP
By Request " 8 SIMPLE RULES FOR DATING MY DAUGHTER"
We read this on the show on Thursday and I have been flooded with requests for it. So here you go:
8 SIMPLE RULES FOR DATING MY DAUGHTER
by: W. Bruce Cameron
Rule One: If you pull into my driveway and honk you'd better be delivering a package, because you're sure not picking anything up.
Rule Two: You do not touch my daughter in front of me. You may glance at her, so long as you do not peer at anything below her neck. If you cannot keep your eyes or hands off my daughter's body, I will remove them.
Rule Three: I am aware that it is considered fashionable for boys your age to wear their trousers so loosely that they appear to be falling off their hips. Please don't take this as an insult, but you and all of your friends are complete idiots. Still, I want to be fair and open minded about this issue, so I propose this compromise: You may come to the door with your underwear showing and your pants ten sizes too big, and I will object. However, in order to ensure that your clothes do not, in fact, come off during the course of your date with my daughter, I will take my electric nail gun and fasten your trousers securely in place to your waist.
Rule Four: I'm sure you've been told that in today's world, sex without utilizing a "barrier method" of some kind will kill you. Let me elaborate: when it comes to sex, I am the barrier, and I will kill you.
Rule Five: In order for us to get to know each other, we should talk about sports, politics, and other issues of the day. Please do not do this. The only information I require from you is an indication of when you expect to have my daughter safely back at my house, and the only word I need from you on this subject is "early."
Rule Six: I have no doubt you are a popular fellow, with many opportunities to date other girls. This is fine with me as long as it is okay with my daughter. Otherwise, once you have gone out with my little girl, you will continue to date her until she is finished with you. If you make her cry, I will make you cry.
Rule Seven: As you stand in my front hallway, waiting for my daughter to appear, and more than an hour goes by, do not sigh and fidget. If you want to be on time for the movie, you should not be dating. My daughter is putting on her makeup, a process that can take longer than painting the Golden Gate Bridge. Instead of just standing there, why don't you do something useful, like changing the oil in my car?
Rule Eight: The following places are not appropriate for a date with my daughter: Places where there are beds, sofas, or anything softer than a wooden stool. Places where there are no parents, policemen, or nuns within eyesight. Places where there is darkness. Places where there is dancing, holding hands, or happiness. Places where the ambient temperature is warm enough to induce my daughter to wear shorts, tank tops, midriff T-shirts, or anything other than overalls, a sweater, and a goose down parka zipped up to her throat. Movies with a strong romance or sexual theme are to be avoided; movies which feature chain saws are okay. Hockey games are okay. Old folks homes are better.
You can visit the author's hilariously funny web site by clicking here: The Cameron Column
8 SIMPLE RULES FOR DATING MY DAUGHTER
by: W. Bruce Cameron
Rule One: If you pull into my driveway and honk you'd better be delivering a package, because you're sure not picking anything up.
Rule Two: You do not touch my daughter in front of me. You may glance at her, so long as you do not peer at anything below her neck. If you cannot keep your eyes or hands off my daughter's body, I will remove them.
Rule Three: I am aware that it is considered fashionable for boys your age to wear their trousers so loosely that they appear to be falling off their hips. Please don't take this as an insult, but you and all of your friends are complete idiots. Still, I want to be fair and open minded about this issue, so I propose this compromise: You may come to the door with your underwear showing and your pants ten sizes too big, and I will object. However, in order to ensure that your clothes do not, in fact, come off during the course of your date with my daughter, I will take my electric nail gun and fasten your trousers securely in place to your waist.
Rule Four: I'm sure you've been told that in today's world, sex without utilizing a "barrier method" of some kind will kill you. Let me elaborate: when it comes to sex, I am the barrier, and I will kill you.
Rule Five: In order for us to get to know each other, we should talk about sports, politics, and other issues of the day. Please do not do this. The only information I require from you is an indication of when you expect to have my daughter safely back at my house, and the only word I need from you on this subject is "early."
Rule Six: I have no doubt you are a popular fellow, with many opportunities to date other girls. This is fine with me as long as it is okay with my daughter. Otherwise, once you have gone out with my little girl, you will continue to date her until she is finished with you. If you make her cry, I will make you cry.
Rule Seven: As you stand in my front hallway, waiting for my daughter to appear, and more than an hour goes by, do not sigh and fidget. If you want to be on time for the movie, you should not be dating. My daughter is putting on her makeup, a process that can take longer than painting the Golden Gate Bridge. Instead of just standing there, why don't you do something useful, like changing the oil in my car?
Rule Eight: The following places are not appropriate for a date with my daughter: Places where there are beds, sofas, or anything softer than a wooden stool. Places where there are no parents, policemen, or nuns within eyesight. Places where there is darkness. Places where there is dancing, holding hands, or happiness. Places where the ambient temperature is warm enough to induce my daughter to wear shorts, tank tops, midriff T-shirts, or anything other than overalls, a sweater, and a goose down parka zipped up to her throat. Movies with a strong romance or sexual theme are to be avoided; movies which feature chain saws are okay. Hockey games are okay. Old folks homes are better.
You can visit the author's hilariously funny web site by clicking here: The Cameron Column
Planned Parenthood's "Plan B" Secret Deal
A pro-life group is charging Planned Parenthood with having a secret deal with the manufacturer of the "morning after" pill that would enable the nation's largest abortion provider to make millions of dollars in profits selling Plan B kits.
If the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) "gives a green light for over-the-counter distribution, Planned Parenthood stands to take in a minimum $100 million profit over a five-year period from sales of the Plan B 'morning-after' pill," said Jim Sedlak, executive director of American Life League's STOPP International.
Sedlak said the details of the business deal were exposed when internal emails of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) were made public during a California court case. These documents show how the organization worked out a secret arrangement with Barr Pharmaceuticals, the owner of the Plan B patent.
Under a five-year agreement, Planned Parenthood would be able to buy Plan B from Barr at bargain-basement prices, undercut local pharmacies and clear an average $20 profit on each Plan B kit, according to Sedlak.
CNSNews.com
If the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) "gives a green light for over-the-counter distribution, Planned Parenthood stands to take in a minimum $100 million profit over a five-year period from sales of the Plan B 'morning-after' pill," said Jim Sedlak, executive director of American Life League's STOPP International.
Sedlak said the details of the business deal were exposed when internal emails of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) were made public during a California court case. These documents show how the organization worked out a secret arrangement with Barr Pharmaceuticals, the owner of the Plan B patent.
Under a five-year agreement, Planned Parenthood would be able to buy Plan B from Barr at bargain-basement prices, undercut local pharmacies and clear an average $20 profit on each Plan B kit, according to Sedlak.
CNSNews.com
Terri's Watch: Doctors To Allow Baby to Die
The parents of Charlotte Wyatt, a seriously handicapped baby from Portsmouth, have failed in their latest attempt to overturn a judgment that allows doctors to withhold life-saving treatment from their daughter.
In today's hearing, Darren and Debbie Wyatt argued that the condition of Charlotte, who has serious brain, lung and kidney damage, has improved dramatically since last October, when a High Court judge gave doctors permission not to resuscitate her if she stops breathing.
Last year, Mr Justice Hedley gave doctors at St Mary’s Hospital in Portsmouth the right not to resuscitate Charlotte, who is 22 months old, because her brain and other organs were so seriously damaged that she had "no feeling other than continuing pain".
An initial appeal by Charlotte's parents, who are Christians, was dismissed in April. Mr Justice Hedley, hearing the case again, ruled that it would be "pointless and possibly inhumane" to aggressively try and prolong the infant's life.
But today, David Wolfe, counsel for the Wyatts, told the Court of Appeal that Charlotte's health had enjoyed a remarkable improvement and that she can now smile and show "what may be enjoyment of things". She has gained weight, is being given pureed food, has grown and can now show "what may be enjoyment of things".
Times UK
In today's hearing, Darren and Debbie Wyatt argued that the condition of Charlotte, who has serious brain, lung and kidney damage, has improved dramatically since last October, when a High Court judge gave doctors permission not to resuscitate her if she stops breathing.
Last year, Mr Justice Hedley gave doctors at St Mary’s Hospital in Portsmouth the right not to resuscitate Charlotte, who is 22 months old, because her brain and other organs were so seriously damaged that she had "no feeling other than continuing pain".
An initial appeal by Charlotte's parents, who are Christians, was dismissed in April. Mr Justice Hedley, hearing the case again, ruled that it would be "pointless and possibly inhumane" to aggressively try and prolong the infant's life.
But today, David Wolfe, counsel for the Wyatts, told the Court of Appeal that Charlotte's health had enjoyed a remarkable improvement and that she can now smile and show "what may be enjoyment of things". She has gained weight, is being given pureed food, has grown and can now show "what may be enjoyment of things".
Times UK
Brothers in Holloway Case Re-Arrested
From ABC NEWS - Two brothers previously detained in the disappearance of missing student Natalee Holloway and one other man have been arrested in the case, ABC News has been told.Deepak Kalpoe, a 21-year-old Suriname national, his 18-year-old brother, Satish, and another man whose name has not been released have been arrested by Aruban authorities and are being turned over to Dutch investigators for questioning, Dave Holloway, Natalee's father, told ABC News. He said an FBI official close to the investigation called him and informed him of the arrests today. The Kalpoe brothers and the third person of interest will be questioned, but they have not been charged.
Abortion Doctors Exposed
No doubt you have heard the supposed "medical report" that claims babies do not feel pain before 7 months. The editor of the medical journal that published the report is Dr. Catherine DeAngelis, editor in chief of The Journal of the American Medical Association. She is (for the record) a self described staunch Roman Catholic and strongly opposes abortion, though she also supports women's right to choose.
The real suspicion over this report comes from those responsible for it. One of the five authors of the article is a University of California, San Francisco obstetrician who works at an abortion clinic and a second author - a UCSF medical student and lawyer - worked for several months at the advocacy group NARAL Pro-Choice America.
DeAngelis said the obstetrician's experience is not a conflict because performing abortions is often part of that job. She said she would have published the medical student's NARAL connection as a potential conflict of interest had she known about it in advance, but that not mentioning it does not mean that the article or journal are biased.
DeAngelis said she attends Mass at least weekly and is also a Eucharistic minister, which allows her to administer communion to fellow Catholics. I would suggest her parish priest sit down and have a discussion with her over the teaching of the Church on this matter.
The real suspicion over this report comes from those responsible for it. One of the five authors of the article is a University of California, San Francisco obstetrician who works at an abortion clinic and a second author - a UCSF medical student and lawyer - worked for several months at the advocacy group NARAL Pro-Choice America.
DeAngelis said the obstetrician's experience is not a conflict because performing abortions is often part of that job. She said she would have published the medical student's NARAL connection as a potential conflict of interest had she known about it in advance, but that not mentioning it does not mean that the article or journal are biased.
DeAngelis said she attends Mass at least weekly and is also a Eucharistic minister, which allows her to administer communion to fellow Catholics. I would suggest her parish priest sit down and have a discussion with her over the teaching of the Church on this matter.
Vatican Editor: John Paul II a 'Martyr'
The editor of the Vatican newspaper said Thursday that Pope John Paul II was a "martyr" even though he survived a 1981 assassination attempt - the latest official comment suggesting a speedy path to sainthood for the late pontiff.
Mario Agnes, editor-in-chief of the official Vatican daily L'Osservatore Romano, told an annual pro-Catholic political meeting that the stones in St. Peter's Square where John Paul's blood was shed should be preserved because it was the blood of "an authentic martyred pope."
Ever since Pope Benedict XVI announced May 13 that he was putting John Paul on the fast track for possible sainthood, questions have arisen about whether he could be declared a martyr. Doing so would remove the need for the Vatican to confirm that a miracle attributed to his intercession had occurred after his April 2 death for him to be beatified. The Vatican would still need to confirm a miracle occurred after his beatification for John Paul to be declared a saint.
Church officials had initially rejected outright any suggestion that the 1981 assassination attempt could be the basis for a martyrdom declaration since John Paul lived for 24 years after it.
The Associated Press
Mario Agnes, editor-in-chief of the official Vatican daily L'Osservatore Romano, told an annual pro-Catholic political meeting that the stones in St. Peter's Square where John Paul's blood was shed should be preserved because it was the blood of "an authentic martyred pope."
Ever since Pope Benedict XVI announced May 13 that he was putting John Paul on the fast track for possible sainthood, questions have arisen about whether he could be declared a martyr. Doing so would remove the need for the Vatican to confirm that a miracle attributed to his intercession had occurred after his April 2 death for him to be beatified. The Vatican would still need to confirm a miracle occurred after his beatification for John Paul to be declared a saint.
Church officials had initially rejected outright any suggestion that the 1981 assassination attempt could be the basis for a martyrdom declaration since John Paul lived for 24 years after it.
The Associated Press
Where There's A Camera: Al Sharpton Joins Cindy Sheehan
In a press release issued by Sharpton's office, Bid Al said he'll be traveling to Crawford, Texas on Sunday, where he'll use the occasion to "mark the 42nd anniversary of the historic march on Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King's 'I have a dream' speech."
I don't get it. Does anyone else?
I don't get it. Does anyone else?
UPDATE: No Shame - Pinko Commies Target Wounded Heros
Update: Thanks to CNS News for breaking this story. The Media is begining to pick up on this. To see a video report from CNS News click here.
The Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., the current home of hundreds of wounded veterans from the war in Iraq, has been the target of weekly anti-war demonstrations since March. The protesters hold signs that read "Maimed for Lies" and "Enlist here and die for Halliburton."
The Pinko Commies , who obtain their protest permits from the Washington, D.C., police department, position themselves directly in front of the main entrance to the Army Medical Center, which is located in northwest D.C., about five miles from the White House. Among the props used by the Pinko Commies are mock caskets, lined up on the sidewalk to represent the death toll in Iraq.
Code Pink Women for Peace (Pinko Commies) , one of the groups backing anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan's vigil outside President Bush's ranch in Crawford Texas, organizes the protests at Walter Reed as well.
On Aug. 19, as the Pinko Commies chanted slogans such as "George Bush kills American soldiers," Cybercast News Service observed several wounded war veterans entering and departing the gates of Walter Reed, some with prosthetic limbs. Most of the demonstrations have been held on Friday evenings, a popular time for the family members of wounded soldiers to visit the hospital.
Code Pink, the group organizing the anti-war demonstrations in front of the Walter Reed hospital, has a controversial leader and affiliations. As Cybercast News Service previously reported, Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin has expressed support for the Communist Viet Cong in Vietnam and the Nicaraguan Sandinistas.
CNSNews.com
The Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., the current home of hundreds of wounded veterans from the war in Iraq, has been the target of weekly anti-war demonstrations since March. The protesters hold signs that read "Maimed for Lies" and "Enlist here and die for Halliburton."
The Pinko Commies , who obtain their protest permits from the Washington, D.C., police department, position themselves directly in front of the main entrance to the Army Medical Center, which is located in northwest D.C., about five miles from the White House. Among the props used by the Pinko Commies are mock caskets, lined up on the sidewalk to represent the death toll in Iraq.
Code Pink Women for Peace (Pinko Commies) , one of the groups backing anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan's vigil outside President Bush's ranch in Crawford Texas, organizes the protests at Walter Reed as well.
On Aug. 19, as the Pinko Commies chanted slogans such as "George Bush kills American soldiers," Cybercast News Service observed several wounded war veterans entering and departing the gates of Walter Reed, some with prosthetic limbs. Most of the demonstrations have been held on Friday evenings, a popular time for the family members of wounded soldiers to visit the hospital.
Code Pink, the group organizing the anti-war demonstrations in front of the Walter Reed hospital, has a controversial leader and affiliations. As Cybercast News Service previously reported, Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin has expressed support for the Communist Viet Cong in Vietnam and the Nicaraguan Sandinistas.
CNSNews.com
Breaking News: Metcalfe Severs Ties with Commonwealth Caucus Over Pay Raise
Representative Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler) issued the following letter today to Representative Sam Rohrer (R-Berks) announcing his decision to resign from the Commonwealth Caucus:
The Commonwealth Caucus was originally formed as a group of legislators who agreed to support or oppose legislation based on conservative principles. As one of the original members of the Commonwealth Caucus, I have become increasingly concerned over the last few years that the direction of the caucus has drifted from the original chartered course.
For instance, I have expressed to you my serious reservations regarding your push to increase the tax burden on Pennsylvanians through the multi-billion dollar surplus you have advocated for in your "Plan for Pennsylvania's Future." I have shared with you my concerns regarding the invisible and silent voting process that is used by the Commonwealth Caucus to determine policy direction.
One example of particular concern for me involves the recent pay raise vote. Even if it was possible for a legislator to justify voting for his or her own pay raise at a time when Pennsylvanians had to pay increasing taxes, the bill was clearly unconstitutional because of the provision for "unvouchered expenses."
Your vote for the clearly unconstitutional pay raise legislation, as chairman of a caucus portraying itself as the standard bearer for constitutional government and conservative values, causes me to officially notify you of my resignation from the Commonwealth Caucus. I will not continue to allow, by association, my conservative identification to be used to give any further credibility to an organization that is being led off of the path of constitutional government.
In closing, I will continue to honor my oath of office and I remain committed to working with each and every member of the legislature to protect the liberties of Pennsylvanians.
Serving the 12th District,
Daryl D. Metcalfe
State Representative
The Commonwealth Caucus was originally formed as a group of legislators who agreed to support or oppose legislation based on conservative principles. As one of the original members of the Commonwealth Caucus, I have become increasingly concerned over the last few years that the direction of the caucus has drifted from the original chartered course.
For instance, I have expressed to you my serious reservations regarding your push to increase the tax burden on Pennsylvanians through the multi-billion dollar surplus you have advocated for in your "Plan for Pennsylvania's Future." I have shared with you my concerns regarding the invisible and silent voting process that is used by the Commonwealth Caucus to determine policy direction.
One example of particular concern for me involves the recent pay raise vote. Even if it was possible for a legislator to justify voting for his or her own pay raise at a time when Pennsylvanians had to pay increasing taxes, the bill was clearly unconstitutional because of the provision for "unvouchered expenses."
Your vote for the clearly unconstitutional pay raise legislation, as chairman of a caucus portraying itself as the standard bearer for constitutional government and conservative values, causes me to officially notify you of my resignation from the Commonwealth Caucus. I will not continue to allow, by association, my conservative identification to be used to give any further credibility to an organization that is being led off of the path of constitutional government.
In closing, I will continue to honor my oath of office and I remain committed to working with each and every member of the legislature to protect the liberties of Pennsylvanians.
Serving the 12th District,
Daryl D. Metcalfe
State Representative
The Huffington (only if we like your comments) Post
I debated if I should even waste my time writing this because I don't like to promote insanity in any way. Well, it look like I lost the argument with myself.
Arianna Huffington hosts her own website/blog dripping in the kind of liberal speech and ideas that if ever fully instituted would get us killed or enslaved within a year. She allows other liberal heros, who were obviously deprived of oxygen at birth, to be guest bloggers and write their own rants and raves in an effort to spark a few desperate "attaboys" from those who read the posts.
One of her guest bloggers is none other then Cindy Sheehan, the mother of the Casey Sheehan who was killed in action in Iraq. She's the women who has been camped 5 miles down the road from President Bush's ranch.
Mrs. Sheehan posts her thoughts and updates on the 3 rings circus she calls a protest live from Crawford, TX. As with most blogs, readers are able to post their own comments. Or so it appears. There are comments from both for and against Mrs. Sheehan but PowerBlog! has discovered that not all posts appear on the site.
For example, Powerball posted a loving response to Mrs. Sheehan's question of what noble cause her son died for. It never appeared on the site. (It did appear on PowerBlog!) As one reads through the comments, it's clear that many posts do not ever appear as some readers post comments multiple times in and effort to get one to show up.
Is this a glitch or censorship. I do not know. Huffington has the right to post or not post whatever she likes on her site. Yet those who are so defensive of free speech against the President, appear not to allow the same when it goes against their agenda.
Arianna Huffington hosts her own website/blog dripping in the kind of liberal speech and ideas that if ever fully instituted would get us killed or enslaved within a year. She allows other liberal heros, who were obviously deprived of oxygen at birth, to be guest bloggers and write their own rants and raves in an effort to spark a few desperate "attaboys" from those who read the posts.
One of her guest bloggers is none other then Cindy Sheehan, the mother of the Casey Sheehan who was killed in action in Iraq. She's the women who has been camped 5 miles down the road from President Bush's ranch.
Mrs. Sheehan posts her thoughts and updates on the 3 rings circus she calls a protest live from Crawford, TX. As with most blogs, readers are able to post their own comments. Or so it appears. There are comments from both for and against Mrs. Sheehan but PowerBlog! has discovered that not all posts appear on the site.
For example, Powerball posted a loving response to Mrs. Sheehan's question of what noble cause her son died for. It never appeared on the site. (It did appear on PowerBlog!) As one reads through the comments, it's clear that many posts do not ever appear as some readers post comments multiple times in and effort to get one to show up.
Is this a glitch or censorship. I do not know. Huffington has the right to post or not post whatever she likes on her site. Yet those who are so defensive of free speech against the President, appear not to allow the same when it goes against their agenda.
Good Intentions, Bad Idea
Taiwan has withdrawn an anti-AIDS campaign ad featuring a smiling nun holding a condom after it sparked an outcry from Roman Catholics.
The poster, which shows the nun holding the condom with both hands and saying "Although I don't need one, even I know," had been removed from all condom machines in Taipei hospitals, subway stations and elsewhere. Yeah, that's probably a good idea. Since the Vatican considers all forms of contraception a sin, let's scrap the nun thing.
Reuters
The poster, which shows the nun holding the condom with both hands and saying "Although I don't need one, even I know," had been removed from all condom machines in Taipei hospitals, subway stations and elsewhere. Yeah, that's probably a good idea. Since the Vatican considers all forms of contraception a sin, let's scrap the nun thing.
Reuters
Porn Sunday at Church
On a blustery day early this year, 13,000 people showed up at Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids, Mich., for what became known as "Porn Sunday." Two young California pastors with a website called XXXchurch.com - "the No. 1 Christian porn site" - were in town with a silence-breaking message.
Their frank talk about the struggles many Christians are having with pornography has drawn huge crowds in several churches across the country, and now the Revs. Craig Gross and Mike Foster are planning National Porn Sunday for Oct. 9.
Surveys show that 40 million Americans regularly view Internet pornography, which accounts for $2.5 billion of the $12 billion US porn industry. Some 25 percent of search-engine requests are porn-related; 20 percent of men and 13 percent of women admit accessing porn at work.
Focus on the Family, a Colorado-based Evangelical group, was alerted a few years ago when its toll-free clergy-care line began lighting up with calls from ministers - and 25 percent were porn-related. Still, their experience shows that "probably about 20 percent of pastors have a pornography issue," and "many, many every year have to leave the ministry."
Focus on the Family has quietly spent thousands of dollars sending pastors to treatment centers. It also offers churchgoers help through its "Pure Intimacy" program on the Internet, and has set up a global referral network of Christian counselors.
The Christian Science Monitor
Their frank talk about the struggles many Christians are having with pornography has drawn huge crowds in several churches across the country, and now the Revs. Craig Gross and Mike Foster are planning National Porn Sunday for Oct. 9.
Surveys show that 40 million Americans regularly view Internet pornography, which accounts for $2.5 billion of the $12 billion US porn industry. Some 25 percent of search-engine requests are porn-related; 20 percent of men and 13 percent of women admit accessing porn at work.
Focus on the Family, a Colorado-based Evangelical group, was alerted a few years ago when its toll-free clergy-care line began lighting up with calls from ministers - and 25 percent were porn-related. Still, their experience shows that "probably about 20 percent of pastors have a pornography issue," and "many, many every year have to leave the ministry."
Focus on the Family has quietly spent thousands of dollars sending pastors to treatment centers. It also offers churchgoers help through its "Pure Intimacy" program on the Internet, and has set up a global referral network of Christian counselors.
The Christian Science Monitor
The War on Terror Expandes Beyond Iraq
According to Major General Douglas Lute, who as director of operations for Centcom is responsible for near-term planning, the long war amounts to an offensive from the Horn of Africa to the borders of Afghanistan to ensure that al-Qaeda and its affiliated terror organisations do not find a safe haven once they are forced out of their current bases.
On the most basic level, Maj Gen Lute said, that offensive was likely to include tracking Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian militant who has emerged as a leader of the Iraqi insurgency, once the war in Iraq is over. To Centcom, Mr Zarqawi is not in Iraq to die for the cause, but rather to build on his network and take the fight to the entire region.
For Centcom planners, those safe havens are both physical and virtual. On the physical side, the main concerns lie in the Horn of Africa, where vast ungovernable spaces would provide ideal homes for Mr Zarqawi and his associates.
From Yemen across the Arabian Sea into Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan, local forces have already seen stepped-up US efforts to train and strengthen elite counter-terrorist units to combat any al-Qaeda affiliate that might emerge. Their efforts also include work with border control and immigration agencies to modernise their approaches to tracking those moving across their borders.
But perhaps more interestingly, Maj Gen Lute noted that Centcom was increasingly looking to fight its campaign on the internet, where Islamic radicals have found ways to recruit, train, and raise funds for their cause. He said terror networks had become so sophisticated that they had begun to use otherwise prosaic commercial applications such as PayPal, the internet payment system, to collect donations to their cause.
FT.com
On the most basic level, Maj Gen Lute said, that offensive was likely to include tracking Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian militant who has emerged as a leader of the Iraqi insurgency, once the war in Iraq is over. To Centcom, Mr Zarqawi is not in Iraq to die for the cause, but rather to build on his network and take the fight to the entire region.
For Centcom planners, those safe havens are both physical and virtual. On the physical side, the main concerns lie in the Horn of Africa, where vast ungovernable spaces would provide ideal homes for Mr Zarqawi and his associates.
From Yemen across the Arabian Sea into Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan, local forces have already seen stepped-up US efforts to train and strengthen elite counter-terrorist units to combat any al-Qaeda affiliate that might emerge. Their efforts also include work with border control and immigration agencies to modernise their approaches to tracking those moving across their borders.
But perhaps more interestingly, Maj Gen Lute noted that Centcom was increasingly looking to fight its campaign on the internet, where Islamic radicals have found ways to recruit, train, and raise funds for their cause. He said terror networks had become so sophisticated that they had begun to use otherwise prosaic commercial applications such as PayPal, the internet payment system, to collect donations to their cause.
FT.com
As The Burg Turns: Forced Donations
Sherrif Pete DeFazio needs to resign. There, I said it. This guy has been at the helm of corruption in Allegheny County for far to long. Anyone with a set of eyes could see it. But the good ol' boy network is begining to finally crack as some begin to wonder where all the money went.
Several Allegheny County sheriff's deputies yesterday portrayed their department's "white shirts" -- the command staff -- as a cabal of loyalists to Sheriff Pete DeFazio who constantly pressured them into buying fund-raising tickets to finance DeFazio's re-election campaign.
Among those loyalists was Frank Schiralli, a captain who they said expected them to buy tickets for DeFazio's many fund-raisers, including his annual Mother's Day brunch, golf outings at Churchill Valley Country Club and other events, such as "Evenings with Pete DeFazio." Schiralli is now under investiagtion for using his influence to fix a DUI case in Texas.
They said Schiralli kept a list of those who contributed and those who did not, which was then given to DeFazio's No. 2 man, Chief Deputy Dennis Skosnik. Those who didn't contribute, they said, were punished with bad work assignments, undesirable hours or reprimands for misconduct for which others who had bought tickets weren't admonished.
Deputy William Kisner and other deputies testified in the second day of Schiralli's federal trial on perjury, the first charges to emerge from a grand jury probe of DeFazio's office that began in January.
Schiralli, 52, of McKees Rocks, was indicted in May along with Lt. Cmdr. Richard A. Stewart, 57, of Penn Hills. Stewart's case is pending. The case focuses on complaints that employees were coerced or threatened into buying fund-raising tickets and suffered retaliation if they refused.
In the meantime, prosecutors are examining other allegations.
The Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS is investigating whether sheriff's office employees pocketed fund-raiser ticket sale proceeds and didn't pay taxes on the income. Prosecutors have said some of the money collected for DeFazio's campaign never made it into his campaign account. In addition, prosecutors said in court papers this week that Schiralli ordered deputies to travel to Texas to fix a drunken driving case. No other details of that allegation have been revealed.
Post-Gazette
Several Allegheny County sheriff's deputies yesterday portrayed their department's "white shirts" -- the command staff -- as a cabal of loyalists to Sheriff Pete DeFazio who constantly pressured them into buying fund-raising tickets to finance DeFazio's re-election campaign.
Among those loyalists was Frank Schiralli, a captain who they said expected them to buy tickets for DeFazio's many fund-raisers, including his annual Mother's Day brunch, golf outings at Churchill Valley Country Club and other events, such as "Evenings with Pete DeFazio." Schiralli is now under investiagtion for using his influence to fix a DUI case in Texas.
They said Schiralli kept a list of those who contributed and those who did not, which was then given to DeFazio's No. 2 man, Chief Deputy Dennis Skosnik. Those who didn't contribute, they said, were punished with bad work assignments, undesirable hours or reprimands for misconduct for which others who had bought tickets weren't admonished.
Deputy William Kisner and other deputies testified in the second day of Schiralli's federal trial on perjury, the first charges to emerge from a grand jury probe of DeFazio's office that began in January.
Schiralli, 52, of McKees Rocks, was indicted in May along with Lt. Cmdr. Richard A. Stewart, 57, of Penn Hills. Stewart's case is pending. The case focuses on complaints that employees were coerced or threatened into buying fund-raising tickets and suffered retaliation if they refused.
In the meantime, prosecutors are examining other allegations.
The Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS is investigating whether sheriff's office employees pocketed fund-raiser ticket sale proceeds and didn't pay taxes on the income. Prosecutors have said some of the money collected for DeFazio's campaign never made it into his campaign account. In addition, prosecutors said in court papers this week that Schiralli ordered deputies to travel to Texas to fix a drunken driving case. No other details of that allegation have been revealed.
Post-Gazette
Pat Robertson Lied
Conservative religious broadcaster Pat Robertson said on CNN Wednesday that his remarks about the removal of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were taken out of context and that he never called for the killing of the Latin American leader.
"I didn't say 'assassination.' I said our special forces should 'take him out.' And 'take him out' can be a number of things, including kidnapping; there are a number of ways to take out a dictator from power besides killing him. I was misinterpreted by the AP [Associated Press], but that happens all the time," Robertson said on "The 700 Club" program. (Watch video)
Powerball says: Robertson used the word "assassination" and "assasinate" as well as "take him out". I rather see him stand behind his comments then deny them. To do so is to lie. His comments and his lie are not befitting of any Christian.
UPDATE: Pat Robertson Clarifies His Statement Regarding Hugo Chavez
"I didn't say 'assassination.' I said our special forces should 'take him out.' And 'take him out' can be a number of things, including kidnapping; there are a number of ways to take out a dictator from power besides killing him. I was misinterpreted by the AP [Associated Press], but that happens all the time," Robertson said on "The 700 Club" program. (Watch video)
Powerball says: Robertson used the word "assassination" and "assasinate" as well as "take him out". I rather see him stand behind his comments then deny them. To do so is to lie. His comments and his lie are not befitting of any Christian.
UPDATE: Pat Robertson Clarifies His Statement Regarding Hugo Chavez
John MacArthur - Grace to Who?
Before she became a Catholic, Rosalind Moss of "Catholic Answers" used to be a member of John MacArthur's congregation, Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California. He runs a ministry called Grace to You. Its motto is "Unleashing God's Truth One Verse at a Time." The unleashing is done chiefly through a widely-syndicated radio program.
In a June letter to his ministry's supporters, MacArthur wrote about John Paul II and the "amazing release of emotion" that accompanied his death. "From politicians and media pundits to Hollywood celebrities and everyday citizens, everyone had praise for John Paul II, his gentle ways and his social and political achievements as a world leader and statesman. I can understand that."What I cannot understand," continued MacArthur, "is the response of some Evangelicals to what matters most about the pope: his beliefs about God and the gospel. ... Influential leaders embraced the deceased pope as a brother in Christ and the Catholic church as just another Christian denomination. ..."During the Reformation, countless men and women died rather than deny the biblical truths of salvation. Countless others today are giving their lives as missionaries to people lost in the darkness and guilt of Catholicism."
I was sent a copy of this letter in which MacArthur goes on to write about the "damning error" that is Catholicism and notes that he has released a new 90-minute lecture called "Unmasking the Pope and the Catholic System." You can't get the tape unless you are a donor and have a special "code" to prove so. He says that "the church I pastor is loaded with people who were saved out of the Catholic church. ... A longtime Grace to You board member and dear friend of mine is a former Catholic. He speaks with great emotion about the bondage he and his wife lived under."
How many times have we heard these claims before? "The Catholic Church is not really Christian." "Catholics believe you 'earn' your salvation through good works." "Catholicism is based on guilt, not truth." "People are in 'bondage' to Catholicism--and we need to save them." I don't want to be saved by Mr. MacArthur, I've already been saved by Christ.
It is MacArthur who claims a divine commission: "I do have a mandate from God to compare what others teach to the gospel of the Bible." So God out him in charge of the gospel? He says, "'Does the pope teach the gospel?' is a valid question." And the answer is YES. Rosalind Moss left John MacArthur's church because she realized that, yes, the pope really does teach the gospel--and that John MacArthur does not.
Grace to You is built around one man. It may have many employees, but when John MacArthur dies, his ministry will die. His flock will scatter, taking with them the silly prejudices he has imbued them with. When Benedict XVI dies there will be another pope to succeed him, and another, and another, until the end of time. Each of them will demonstrate to those with open minds and hearts that, yes, the pope does teach the gospel.
Thanks to Karl Keating
In a June letter to his ministry's supporters, MacArthur wrote about John Paul II and the "amazing release of emotion" that accompanied his death. "From politicians and media pundits to Hollywood celebrities and everyday citizens, everyone had praise for John Paul II, his gentle ways and his social and political achievements as a world leader and statesman. I can understand that."What I cannot understand," continued MacArthur, "is the response of some Evangelicals to what matters most about the pope: his beliefs about God and the gospel. ... Influential leaders embraced the deceased pope as a brother in Christ and the Catholic church as just another Christian denomination. ..."During the Reformation, countless men and women died rather than deny the biblical truths of salvation. Countless others today are giving their lives as missionaries to people lost in the darkness and guilt of Catholicism."
I was sent a copy of this letter in which MacArthur goes on to write about the "damning error" that is Catholicism and notes that he has released a new 90-minute lecture called "Unmasking the Pope and the Catholic System." You can't get the tape unless you are a donor and have a special "code" to prove so. He says that "the church I pastor is loaded with people who were saved out of the Catholic church. ... A longtime Grace to You board member and dear friend of mine is a former Catholic. He speaks with great emotion about the bondage he and his wife lived under."
How many times have we heard these claims before? "The Catholic Church is not really Christian." "Catholics believe you 'earn' your salvation through good works." "Catholicism is based on guilt, not truth." "People are in 'bondage' to Catholicism--and we need to save them." I don't want to be saved by Mr. MacArthur, I've already been saved by Christ.
It is MacArthur who claims a divine commission: "I do have a mandate from God to compare what others teach to the gospel of the Bible." So God out him in charge of the gospel? He says, "'Does the pope teach the gospel?' is a valid question." And the answer is YES. Rosalind Moss left John MacArthur's church because she realized that, yes, the pope really does teach the gospel--and that John MacArthur does not.
Grace to You is built around one man. It may have many employees, but when John MacArthur dies, his ministry will die. His flock will scatter, taking with them the silly prejudices he has imbued them with. When Benedict XVI dies there will be another pope to succeed him, and another, and another, until the end of time. Each of them will demonstrate to those with open minds and hearts that, yes, the pope does teach the gospel.
Thanks to Karl Keating
Follow Up: Matt Barber Sues Allstate
The former Allstate manager who says he was fired for writing a column on his own time criticizing same-sex marriage and homosexuality has launched a new website to keep supporters up-to-date on his lawsuit against the insurance giant.
Matt Barber was a manager in Allstate's Corporate Security Division, its investigative arm, at the Fortune 100 company's headquarters in Northbrook, Ill. Besides working for the insurance provider, Barber was and is a professional heavyweight boxer, a jazz drummer and a Web commentator. His columns have appeared on TheConservativeVoice.com, MensNewsDaily.com and others.
The column in question was written and posted in December. After being called into a meeting with two human resources officials who confronted Barber about the column, he was fired effective Feb. 3.
Though the original column's bio line did not indicate Barber worked for Allstate, editors at one of the sites where it was posted added that information, and a complaint about the piece made its way to Allstate management.
WorldNetDaily.com
Matt Barber was a manager in Allstate's Corporate Security Division, its investigative arm, at the Fortune 100 company's headquarters in Northbrook, Ill. Besides working for the insurance provider, Barber was and is a professional heavyweight boxer, a jazz drummer and a Web commentator. His columns have appeared on TheConservativeVoice.com, MensNewsDaily.com and others.
The column in question was written and posted in December. After being called into a meeting with two human resources officials who confronted Barber about the column, he was fired effective Feb. 3.
Though the original column's bio line did not indicate Barber worked for Allstate, editors at one of the sites where it was posted added that information, and a complaint about the piece made its way to Allstate management.
WorldNetDaily.com
Cindy Sheehans' Answer
Her mother is ill, he son does not support her, her husband has filed for divorce and the left has used this woman for their own agenda. But I do have to say she is persistent.I'm talking about Cindy Sheehan. She is now heading back to Crawford, Texas to continue her protest.
It's sad to watch this woman and her life crumble to pieces. She says she wants to meet with President Bush. Well she already met with the President and said he was a kind and caring man. In fact the photo on the left is picture of President Bush meeting with Cindy and her family and giving Cindy a kiss on the cheek. The photo was posted on her own web page but was removed after she began her "protest".
She tells the news cameras she wants to ask the President what noble cause did her son die for? If I may be so bold, I'd like to answer that question (I know the President is busy with other things).
Mrs. Sheehan, your son joined the armed forces to answer his calling. Often that calling puts brave men and women in harms way. It's sad but true that even with the best training, weapons and prayers of Americans, some lose their life in the defense of freedom.
Those lives are not lost in vain. In fact, they are celebrated and remembered by countless generations. Generations who live in freedom and peace until the day returns once again when brave men and women hear that call to rise up and defend what we all hold so dear.
I can not imagine the pain you must feel from losing your child. Yet we are all invited to take comfort in our time of grief, knowing all of us are created and loved by God. It's God who calls us home. He does so according to his will and at a time of his choosing. No amount of tears, press statements or protest can change that.
The noble cause your son died for is FREEDOM. Your freedom to speak out against the President. My freedom to write these words. The freedom of an Iraqi mother, much like yourself, who no longer must worry if her and her children may someday be buried in a mass grave after being murdered by a brutal dictator. It's the freedom of a little girl to go to school and grow up to become a doctor.
Your son died so that that others may live. He is not the first person to do so, but you may take some comfort in knowing he is now with that person. Jesus gave us the gift of freedom through his death. Your son fought and died for the same. I can not dream of a more noble cause.
PETA Twists Religion
Americans are accustomed to the tactics of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, but the group's in-your-face advocacy is increasingly calculated to offend, provoke and otherwise show contempt for America's religious faithful, according to a new report released by the Center for Consumer Freedom.
Entitled "Holy Cows: How PETA Twists Religion to Push Animal 'Rights,'" the document claims that this animal rights group hijacks religious rituals and institutions in an attempt to impose its stated philosophy of "total animal liberation."
The report also chronicles PETA's controversial assaults on the scriptures and traditions of Roman Catholics, Protestant Christians, Jews, Mormons and Muslims and contains an inventory of scriptures contradicting PETA's assertion that only vegetarians can claim to be observant people of faith.
CNSNews.com
Entitled "Holy Cows: How PETA Twists Religion to Push Animal 'Rights,'" the document claims that this animal rights group hijacks religious rituals and institutions in an attempt to impose its stated philosophy of "total animal liberation."
The report also chronicles PETA's controversial assaults on the scriptures and traditions of Roman Catholics, Protestant Christians, Jews, Mormons and Muslims and contains an inventory of scriptures contradicting PETA's assertion that only vegetarians can claim to be observant people of faith.
CNSNews.com
Spain gets first married priest (with kids)
A Roman Catholic bishop on the Spanish island of Tenerife has ordained a man as a Catholic priest despite the fact that he is married with two children.
The 64-year-old former Anglican pastor, David Gliwitzki, was ordained in La Laguna on the Canary Island. The Bishop of Tenerife said the move was a unique exception within the Spanish Church. According to Church rules, priests are supposed to be celibate. But the ordination was approved by the Pope.
The Bishop of Tenerife says particular consideration was given to Father Gliwitzki's circumstances as an Anglican, which is a Church that permits priests to marry. The bishop says this is not a step towards the abolition of Roman Catholic celibacy. But it is a surprise - especially in Spain, where the Church is particularly conservative and very actively against any softening of existing doctrines.
The ordination of the former Anglican vicar also comes as Pope Benedict XVI calls on followers to hold fast to the core values of their faith.
BBC
The 64-year-old former Anglican pastor, David Gliwitzki, was ordained in La Laguna on the Canary Island. The Bishop of Tenerife said the move was a unique exception within the Spanish Church. According to Church rules, priests are supposed to be celibate. But the ordination was approved by the Pope.
The Bishop of Tenerife says particular consideration was given to Father Gliwitzki's circumstances as an Anglican, which is a Church that permits priests to marry. The bishop says this is not a step towards the abolition of Roman Catholic celibacy. But it is a surprise - especially in Spain, where the Church is particularly conservative and very actively against any softening of existing doctrines.
The ordination of the former Anglican vicar also comes as Pope Benedict XVI calls on followers to hold fast to the core values of their faith.
BBC
Mad Ad's
Pennsylvania Republicans are threatening the Young Conservatives of Pennsylvania (YCOP) for sponsoring a public information campaign exposing a hefty pay raise passed for lawmakers, judges and top executive-branch officials.On July 7 at 2 a.m., state legislators voted to give themselves a pay increase of more than 30% without debate. YCOP is demanding repeal.
Lawmakers offended by the group, made up of Pat Toomey supporters—whose efforts nearly ousted U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter last fall—want legal action to name those funding YCOP’s plans and stop the campaign.
The legislators also granted themselves access to “unvouchered expenses” as a part of the plan, which immediately went into effect.
YCOP’s project, InformedPA, was unleashed a week ago to educate voters of their lawmakers’ voting record on the pay raise. YCOP is posting black billboards with bold white type and red accents in the home districts of lawmakers who voted yes on the bill.
You can follow YCOP’s campaign at http://www.informedpa.com/.
Human Events
Don't Toss Those Expired Gift Certificates
By Patricia Sabatini, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Under a little-known Pennsylvania law, your expired gift certificates are still good. In effect, the law says gift certificates can't expire. If a business doesn't honor your expired gift certificate or card, it can't simply snicker and keep the money. The unused balance must be turned over to the state, where you can claim it.
If you'd rather use the expired certificate instead of receiving the money, you may be able to do that, too.
Technically, you can't force a merchant to accept an expired gift certificate or card. The law says only that the money must be forwarded to the state. But practically speaking, because businesses can't keep the money anyway, often they'll oblige you. First, it's cheaper to give a customer $50 worth of food or merchandise than to be out the money. Second, doing so is good customer relations.
Unfortunately, many businesses are unfamiliar with the law, or at least claim ignorance. If your certificate is at least two years past the expiration date, you may file a claim with the state Treasury Department's Bureau of Unclaimed Property at www.patreasury.org or by calling 1-800-222-2046.
See Full Story for More Details
Under a little-known Pennsylvania law, your expired gift certificates are still good. In effect, the law says gift certificates can't expire. If a business doesn't honor your expired gift certificate or card, it can't simply snicker and keep the money. The unused balance must be turned over to the state, where you can claim it.
If you'd rather use the expired certificate instead of receiving the money, you may be able to do that, too.
Technically, you can't force a merchant to accept an expired gift certificate or card. The law says only that the money must be forwarded to the state. But practically speaking, because businesses can't keep the money anyway, often they'll oblige you. First, it's cheaper to give a customer $50 worth of food or merchandise than to be out the money. Second, doing so is good customer relations.
Unfortunately, many businesses are unfamiliar with the law, or at least claim ignorance. If your certificate is at least two years past the expiration date, you may file a claim with the state Treasury Department's Bureau of Unclaimed Property at www.patreasury.org or by calling 1-800-222-2046.
See Full Story for More Details
Pat Assasin
Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson called on Monday for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, calling him a "terrific danger" to the United States.
Robertson, founder of the Christian Coalition of America and a former presidential candidate, said on "The 700 Club" it was the United States' duty to stop Chavez from making Venezuela a "launching pad for communist infiltration and Muslim extremism."
Chavez has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of President Bush, accusing the United States of conspiring to topple his government and possibly backing plots to assassinate him. U.S. officials have called the accusations ridiculous.
Breitbart
Robertson, founder of the Christian Coalition of America and a former presidential candidate, said on "The 700 Club" it was the United States' duty to stop Chavez from making Venezuela a "launching pad for communist infiltration and Muslim extremism."
Chavez has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of President Bush, accusing the United States of conspiring to topple his government and possibly backing plots to assassinate him. U.S. officials have called the accusations ridiculous.
Breitbart
Have Powerball host Your Next Party!
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For school events, fundraisers, weddings, car crusies, sock hops or any gathering let us provide the entertainment. Now booking for Back to School and Holiday events! For more information contact Echo Productions.
Our service provides you a music to satisfy almost any taste, quality sound production and presentation at at a price to fit your budget, all hosted by Shaun "Powerball" Pierce.
Packages can include a compact sound system or a full set up with professional lighting and sound. We can customise a playlist to match your event theme and are flexible enough to work alone or with other entertianment.
For school events, fundraisers, weddings, car crusies, sock hops or any gathering let us provide the entertainment. Now booking for Back to School and Holiday events! For more information contact Echo Productions.
Pope tells Muslims to fight 'new barbarism'
The Pope has told Muslim leaders they must help defeat terrorism and turn back the “wave of cruel fanaticism” that uses religion to incite hatred.
Pope Benedict, in his first address to Muslim leaders, said yesterday that the world would be exposed to “the darkness of a new barbarism” unless religions united to combat terrorism.
“Terrorism of any kind is a perverse and cruel decision, which shows contempt for the sacred right to life and undermines the very foundations of all civil society,” he told leaders of Germany’s Muslim communities.
Benedict said those who planned and carried out such attacks wanted to “poison our relations, making use of all means, including religion, to oppose every attempt to build a peaceful, fair and serene life together”.
Benedict, who had a meeting with Jews on Friday, is making good inter-religious relations one of the aims of his papacy.
Times UK
Pope Benedict, in his first address to Muslim leaders, said yesterday that the world would be exposed to “the darkness of a new barbarism” unless religions united to combat terrorism.
“Terrorism of any kind is a perverse and cruel decision, which shows contempt for the sacred right to life and undermines the very foundations of all civil society,” he told leaders of Germany’s Muslim communities.
Benedict said those who planned and carried out such attacks wanted to “poison our relations, making use of all means, including religion, to oppose every attempt to build a peaceful, fair and serene life together”.
Benedict, who had a meeting with Jews on Friday, is making good inter-religious relations one of the aims of his papacy.
Times UK
85% of U.S. Say They're Christians
Fifty-seven percent of Americans consider spirituality a very important part of their daily lives, according to a Newsweek/Beliefnet poll, conducted August 2-4, 2005.
But not all of those polled define spirituality in terms of a traditional religion. While the majority (55%) report that they are religious and spiritual, a significant number (24%) consider themselves spiritual, but not religious.
Of those who say they follow a religion (64%), 19 percent say that they are not traditional in how they practice it. That number jumps to 29 percent of those in the 18-39-age bracket, according to the poll, which is part of the August 29-September 5 issue (on newsstands Monday, August 22).
Thirty-three percent of Americans classify themselves as evangelical Protestants, while 25 percent say they are non-evangelical Protestants, and 22 percent are Roman Catholic. Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism each account for one percent of religious Americans. Of those with a religion, Catholics -- at 91 percent-are the most likely to believe that a good person from a different faith could achieve salvation, the poll found. Evangelical Protestants were the least likely to believe this, with 68 percent agreeing that someone outside their religion could go to heaven, while 83 percent of non-evangelical Christians and 73 percent of non- Christians agreed.
Newsmax
But not all of those polled define spirituality in terms of a traditional religion. While the majority (55%) report that they are religious and spiritual, a significant number (24%) consider themselves spiritual, but not religious.
Of those who say they follow a religion (64%), 19 percent say that they are not traditional in how they practice it. That number jumps to 29 percent of those in the 18-39-age bracket, according to the poll, which is part of the August 29-September 5 issue (on newsstands Monday, August 22).
Thirty-three percent of Americans classify themselves as evangelical Protestants, while 25 percent say they are non-evangelical Protestants, and 22 percent are Roman Catholic. Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism each account for one percent of religious Americans. Of those with a religion, Catholics -- at 91 percent-are the most likely to believe that a good person from a different faith could achieve salvation, the poll found. Evangelical Protestants were the least likely to believe this, with 68 percent agreeing that someone outside their religion could go to heaven, while 83 percent of non-evangelical Christians and 73 percent of non- Christians agreed.
Newsmax
Able Danger : Docs Disappeared
Documents detailing the work of a top secret military intelligence unit that identified lead 9/11 hijacker Mohamed Atta before the 9/11 attacks have disappeared, according to the Defense Intelligence Agency's liaison for the group, code named Able Danger.
"There's some troubling things that have happened both to me and the way the [Able Danger] information [was handled]," Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer told C-Span's "Sunday Morning Journal."
The Able Danger whistleblower had said previously that a member of the team had delivered two briefcases full of documents to the 9/11 Commission - but Commission spokesman have said they have found nothing that mentioned Atta by name.
NewsMax.com
"There's some troubling things that have happened both to me and the way the [Able Danger] information [was handled]," Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer told C-Span's "Sunday Morning Journal."
The Able Danger whistleblower had said previously that a member of the team had delivered two briefcases full of documents to the 9/11 Commission - but Commission spokesman have said they have found nothing that mentioned Atta by name.
NewsMax.com
Out of Style
I could never wear my jeans so low that 85% of my underware showed. At least not without falling on my face and feeling like a goof. Some say, "That's the style". Well count me out. With the newest "style" you can count me out and disgusted.
You've seen skintight jeans, low hip huggers, exposed boxers and open zippers, but now Dolce & Gabbana have dropped the boundaries several inches. Their fall 2005 menswear line, which debuted on the Milan runway in January and now appears in print ads and stores near you, includes jeans that plunge so low that they've been dubbed "pubic pants." You can guess what's showing now.
I'm no fashion expert but come on! I thought the purpose of clothing was to cover your body. I guess that's why I'm happy to be out of style.
Houston Chronicle
You've seen skintight jeans, low hip huggers, exposed boxers and open zippers, but now Dolce & Gabbana have dropped the boundaries several inches. Their fall 2005 menswear line, which debuted on the Milan runway in January and now appears in print ads and stores near you, includes jeans that plunge so low that they've been dubbed "pubic pants." You can guess what's showing now.
I'm no fashion expert but come on! I thought the purpose of clothing was to cover your body. I guess that's why I'm happy to be out of style.
Houston Chronicle
We Have Winners
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We Want a New Bishop
Six Episcopal congregations in Florida have asked Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams to let them report to another bishop. Williams is leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion, which includes the Episcopal Church USA. The parishes, with about 4,000 members, say they're "in serious theological dispute" with Florida Bishop John Howard because he did not oppose the 2003 consecration of Bishop V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, who lives with a homosexual partner after divorcing his wife. The rector of one of the dissident churches says they believe that getting another bishop would allow them to conduct their ministries "with a clean conscience." Last week, Bishop Howard rejected the congregations' request, saying it would amount to a divorce between the churches and the diocese.
1 in 6 base morality on Bible
Just one in six American adults say they make moral decisions based on the Bible, according to a new study. The evangelical Christian Barna Group, which conducted the research, said about half of adults make moral choices "on the basis of specific principles or standards they believe in."
The survey of 1,002 adults of all faiths aimed to find out how many Americans live by a "biblical worldview," described as a "life perspective on the basis of several questions about religious belief."Other common means of making moral choices, according to the study, include doing what feels right or comfortable, 24 percent; doing whatever makes the most people happy or causes the least conflict, 9 percent; and pursuing whatever produces the most positive outcomes for the person, 7 percent.
When asked whether they believe moral truth is based on absolute standards or is relative to the circumstances, Americans are divided into roughly equal segments, the California-based group said.
About 35 percent contend that moral truth is absolute, or not dependent upon the circumstances.
Thirty-two percent say that morality always is determined by the situation.
The remaining one-third, 33 percent, indicate they don't know if moral truth is absolute or relative.
About 70 percent of evangelical Christians report believing that moral truth is absolute. Only 42 percent of non-evangelicals hold that view.
WorldNetDaily.com
Shame on Harrisburg
By now we all know about the extra money lawmakers decide to stuff in their pockets. they all assumed we would be to stupid to notice and to forgetful to remember if we did notice. I was asked what I would pay these elected officals. I would pay them 75% of what the guy on the front line in Iraq is making. That would change thing pretty darn quick.
Back in January, almost 100 Pennsylvania lawmakers signed on to legislation requiring the state to underwrite the cost of life insurance for active-duty National Guard soldiers and airmen.
But the proposal was quietly shunted aside -- in part over reservations about the precedent it would set -- and the General Assembly recessed in July without even holding a hearing on the idea.
These are the men and women who put their life on hold and on the line for all of us. Yet these yahoo's won't toss a dime to their family if they are killed. Eight other states, however, went ahead this year and enacted laws to subsidize life insurance for guardsmen but not PA.
This decision by Pennsylvania lawmakers not to follow suit came during the same session they decided to vote themselves pay raises of 16 percent to 34 percent, with no public debate or scrutiny, in the middle of the night. The subsidy would have cost Pennsylvania slightly more than $1 million a year. The legislative pay raises will cost at least several million dollars. Each and every one of them should hang their head in shame. Heck, I'm thinking of running now!
More than 3,350 Pennsylvania guardsmen are currently serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo. Eleven have been killed so far in Iraq.
Associated Press
Back in January, almost 100 Pennsylvania lawmakers signed on to legislation requiring the state to underwrite the cost of life insurance for active-duty National Guard soldiers and airmen.
But the proposal was quietly shunted aside -- in part over reservations about the precedent it would set -- and the General Assembly recessed in July without even holding a hearing on the idea.
These are the men and women who put their life on hold and on the line for all of us. Yet these yahoo's won't toss a dime to their family if they are killed. Eight other states, however, went ahead this year and enacted laws to subsidize life insurance for guardsmen but not PA.
This decision by Pennsylvania lawmakers not to follow suit came during the same session they decided to vote themselves pay raises of 16 percent to 34 percent, with no public debate or scrutiny, in the middle of the night. The subsidy would have cost Pennsylvania slightly more than $1 million a year. The legislative pay raises will cost at least several million dollars. Each and every one of them should hang their head in shame. Heck, I'm thinking of running now!
More than 3,350 Pennsylvania guardsmen are currently serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo. Eleven have been killed so far in Iraq.
Associated Press
Able Danger : Update
The Pentagon has launched an investigation to determine whether Clinton administration lawyers blocked a military intelligence unit code named Able Danger from sharing with the FBI critical information on Mohamed Atta and three other 9/11 hijackers a year before the 9/11 attacks.
Victims' Families Outraged, Want New 9/11 Panel:
The families of 9/11 victims are outraged that military spies were blocked from sharing key intelligence they believe could have averted the terrorist attacks – and are calling for a new commission to investigate.
This disturbing story continues to develop.
Newsmax
Victims' Families Outraged, Want New 9/11 Panel:
The families of 9/11 victims are outraged that military spies were blocked from sharing key intelligence they believe could have averted the terrorist attacks – and are calling for a new commission to investigate.
This disturbing story continues to develop.
Newsmax
Saints Removed from Bible
One of the world's most widely read Bibles, the New International Version, has been modernised by a team of 15 American and British scholars.
Gone is the word "aliens", which the academics thought was invariably associated in the minds of the younger generation with extra-terrestrials. It is replaced with "foreigners".Even the term "saints" is deemed to be too "ecclesiastical" and has been banished, to be replaced with "God's chosen people". The Virgin Mary is no longer "with child"; she is "pregnant".
And, to the dismay of traditionalists, who will suspect a feminist agenda, "inclusive" language has been introduced throughout.Where the original read: "When God created Man, he made him in the likeness of God"; the new version says: "When God created human beings, he made them in the likeness of God."
More than 45,000 changes - about seven per cent of the text - have been made. Even the title has been changed to Today's New International Version.
Editor's note: When we accept interpretation outside the authority of the Church, we open the door to many false interpretations presented as truth. We also lose the ability to determine such.
Telegraph
Gone is the word "aliens", which the academics thought was invariably associated in the minds of the younger generation with extra-terrestrials. It is replaced with "foreigners".Even the term "saints" is deemed to be too "ecclesiastical" and has been banished, to be replaced with "God's chosen people". The Virgin Mary is no longer "with child"; she is "pregnant".
And, to the dismay of traditionalists, who will suspect a feminist agenda, "inclusive" language has been introduced throughout.Where the original read: "When God created Man, he made him in the likeness of God"; the new version says: "When God created human beings, he made them in the likeness of God."
More than 45,000 changes - about seven per cent of the text - have been made. Even the title has been changed to Today's New International Version.
Editor's note: When we accept interpretation outside the authority of the Church, we open the door to many false interpretations presented as truth. We also lose the ability to determine such.
Telegraph
Welcome to GOPness Readers
A big PowerBlog! welcome goes out to those coming from GOPness. com PowerBlog! was part of thier "Today Show" story. Welcome and enjoy!
Viacom Chief Defends Catholic Bashing
Catholic League president Bill Donohue just received a hand-delivered letter from Viacom chief Sumner Redstone. Donohue's reply is as follows:
"After Showtime, a Viacom company, aired the most obscene attack imaginable on Mother Teresa last May (e.g., she was called Mother F---ing Teresa), we mobilized Catholic bishops, priests, nuns, religious and lay persons to protest. And not without success: the vile episode of 'Penn and Teller' that we objected to, 'Holier Than Thou,' will never air again. That should have been the end of the story, but now Viacom CEO Sumner Redstone has made matters worse.
"Redstone's letter (click here) reeks with arrogance. Showtime, he says, 'frequently airs programs with controversial, differing points of view.' So we are supposed to believe that calling nuns 'f---ing c---s' is just a 'differing point of view.' When he says that 'we as an organization are committed to artistic freedom,' Redstone is being deceitful: CBS is a Viacom holding and CBS refuses to air the reruns of 'Amos and Andy.' So much for artistic freedom. But nothing tops his remark that 'it is tolerance for that which may be uncomfortable, unpopular and perhaps even offensive to some that defines and protects the liberties that all of our society enjoys.' In other words, Viacom's intolerance of Catholics is really a demonstration of its commitment to tolerance. And by beating up on Mother Teresa and the Catholic Church, Viacom is defending the liberties of all Americans. Just like the Marines. Then why doesn’t Viacom bash gays and then promote it as a vital contribution to liberty?
"Of course, Viacom would never (nor should) bash gays. Indeed, it boasts on its website that it has launched a new gay and lesbian channel, LOGO, and even has a diversity program that includes 'same-sex partners financial counseling.' Now if only Viacom treated Catholics the way it treats gays, we could all enjoy 'differing points of view,' 'artistic freedom' and 'tolerance' without ever being the target of its hate speech. Come to think of it, we might even qualify for financial counseling."
"After Showtime, a Viacom company, aired the most obscene attack imaginable on Mother Teresa last May (e.g., she was called Mother F---ing Teresa), we mobilized Catholic bishops, priests, nuns, religious and lay persons to protest. And not without success: the vile episode of 'Penn and Teller' that we objected to, 'Holier Than Thou,' will never air again. That should have been the end of the story, but now Viacom CEO Sumner Redstone has made matters worse.
"Redstone's letter (click here) reeks with arrogance. Showtime, he says, 'frequently airs programs with controversial, differing points of view.' So we are supposed to believe that calling nuns 'f---ing c---s' is just a 'differing point of view.' When he says that 'we as an organization are committed to artistic freedom,' Redstone is being deceitful: CBS is a Viacom holding and CBS refuses to air the reruns of 'Amos and Andy.' So much for artistic freedom. But nothing tops his remark that 'it is tolerance for that which may be uncomfortable, unpopular and perhaps even offensive to some that defines and protects the liberties that all of our society enjoys.' In other words, Viacom's intolerance of Catholics is really a demonstration of its commitment to tolerance. And by beating up on Mother Teresa and the Catholic Church, Viacom is defending the liberties of all Americans. Just like the Marines. Then why doesn’t Viacom bash gays and then promote it as a vital contribution to liberty?
"Of course, Viacom would never (nor should) bash gays. Indeed, it boasts on its website that it has launched a new gay and lesbian channel, LOGO, and even has a diversity program that includes 'same-sex partners financial counseling.' Now if only Viacom treated Catholics the way it treats gays, we could all enjoy 'differing points of view,' 'artistic freedom' and 'tolerance' without ever being the target of its hate speech. Come to think of it, we might even qualify for financial counseling."
Pastor Urges Partnership Among Evangelicals, Catholics
The pastor of a Maryland church is encouraging black pastors to partner with white evangelical churches to help foster social and political change.
Bishop Harry Jackson is pastor of the 2,000-member Hope Christian Church in Bowie, Maryland. He spoke earlier this week at the "Justice Sunday II" event held at Two Rivers Baptist Church in Nashville, which was held to educate people about the role of courts in everyday life. Jackson said unity is crucial for moral and social victories.
"I believe that what God is doing today is calling for the black church to team with the white evangelical church and the Catholic Church and people of moral conscience," Jackson shared. "And in this season, we need to begin to tell both [major political] parties, 'Listen, it's our way or the highway.'"
Jackson, who also serves as chair of the High Impact Leadership Coalition, says all Christians must take action to stop the moral decline of the nation.
"We're not going to just sit back and let America go down this ramp of moral decline," he declared. "I'm not black alone; I am an American -- and beyond that, I am a Christian. You and I can bring the rule and reign of the cross to America -- and we can change America on our watch together."
The High Impact Leadership Coalition is seeking support for biblical principles of righteousness and justice in America via a petition on its website called the "Black Contract with America on Moral Values." The petition invites Christians and politicians of all races to advocate policies and legislation that promote family reconstruction, wealth creation, education reform, prison reform, health care, and African relief -- all issues the group says need to be addressed to improve the "plight of black America."
AgapePress
Bishop Harry Jackson is pastor of the 2,000-member Hope Christian Church in Bowie, Maryland. He spoke earlier this week at the "Justice Sunday II" event held at Two Rivers Baptist Church in Nashville, which was held to educate people about the role of courts in everyday life. Jackson said unity is crucial for moral and social victories.
"I believe that what God is doing today is calling for the black church to team with the white evangelical church and the Catholic Church and people of moral conscience," Jackson shared. "And in this season, we need to begin to tell both [major political] parties, 'Listen, it's our way or the highway.'"
Jackson, who also serves as chair of the High Impact Leadership Coalition, says all Christians must take action to stop the moral decline of the nation.
"We're not going to just sit back and let America go down this ramp of moral decline," he declared. "I'm not black alone; I am an American -- and beyond that, I am a Christian. You and I can bring the rule and reign of the cross to America -- and we can change America on our watch together."
The High Impact Leadership Coalition is seeking support for biblical principles of righteousness and justice in America via a petition on its website called the "Black Contract with America on Moral Values." The petition invites Christians and politicians of all races to advocate policies and legislation that promote family reconstruction, wealth creation, education reform, prison reform, health care, and African relief -- all issues the group says need to be addressed to improve the "plight of black America."
AgapePress
Terrorist Nabbed
Intelligence sources say Luai Sakra, a Syrian national, was captured in Turkey as he was preparing for an attack to target Israeli cruse liners. Reports claim that Sakra had information about the al-Qaeda leader, Osama bin Laden, and the triple London attacks on July 7. Sakra told Turkish police he sent many people to the United States (US), Britain, Egypt, Syria and Algeria to conduct various terrorist activities. More immediately, however, information found after a fire in an al-Qaeda cell house in Antalya, it was indicated that al-Qaeda was preparing a suicide attack on Israeli cruse ships.
The local police were dispatched to an apartment house rented by al-Qaeda terrorists because of a strong chemical odor. While there, the police found about a ton of explosives, all of which were filled with chemicals used for making detergents.
There were also six false Turkish passports in the apartment. One of the passports had the photo of Sakra, who had been wanted by Besiktas Judiciary Court for being the planner of the double attacks in Istanbul on November 15 and 20, 2004. Sakra was believed to have financed the attacks and also provided the bombing equipment for the attackers.
The local police were dispatched to an apartment house rented by al-Qaeda terrorists because of a strong chemical odor. While there, the police found about a ton of explosives, all of which were filled with chemicals used for making detergents.
There were also six false Turkish passports in the apartment. One of the passports had the photo of Sakra, who had been wanted by Besiktas Judiciary Court for being the planner of the double attacks in Istanbul on November 15 and 20, 2004. Sakra was believed to have financed the attacks and also provided the bombing equipment for the attackers.
Terri's Watch : Michael Schiavo to Discuss Terri at Conference
Terri's husband Michael will soon address a euthanasia conference in Minnesota.
Following his receipt of the guardian of the year award from the Florida State Guardianship Association, Michael has been invited to address a euthanasia conference at the Hennepin County Medical Center in Minnesota. The conference is titled, "33 Years of Clinical Ethics in Minnesota: Ron Cranford’s Stories of Heroes and Courage."
Cranford is infamous for his position in favor of assisted suicide and made headlines when he testified in court that Terri was in a persistent vegetative state, despite the view of doctors and neurologists who said otherwise.
Cranford is a member of the board of directors of the Euthanasia Society of America and has ties to the organization formerly known as the Hemlock Society, another pro-euthanasia group.
According to the Empire Journal, a brochure for the upcoming “ethics” conference says the presentations focused “on the development of clinical ethics in Minnesota through the words of some of ethic's greatest heroes. ” The case of Terri Schiavo is presented as one of the landmark euthanasia cases in the last 30 years.
Michael has recently announced he is considering filing a medical malpractice lawsuit against doctors who treated Terri for a bleeding esophagus in late 2003, despite his efforts to have a local judge stop the treatment so Terri would die.Michael is also working with a journalist on a possible book.
LifeNews.com
Following his receipt of the guardian of the year award from the Florida State Guardianship Association, Michael has been invited to address a euthanasia conference at the Hennepin County Medical Center in Minnesota. The conference is titled, "33 Years of Clinical Ethics in Minnesota: Ron Cranford’s Stories of Heroes and Courage."
Cranford is infamous for his position in favor of assisted suicide and made headlines when he testified in court that Terri was in a persistent vegetative state, despite the view of doctors and neurologists who said otherwise.
Cranford is a member of the board of directors of the Euthanasia Society of America and has ties to the organization formerly known as the Hemlock Society, another pro-euthanasia group.
According to the Empire Journal, a brochure for the upcoming “ethics” conference says the presentations focused “on the development of clinical ethics in Minnesota through the words of some of ethic's greatest heroes. ” The case of Terri Schiavo is presented as one of the landmark euthanasia cases in the last 30 years.
Michael has recently announced he is considering filing a medical malpractice lawsuit against doctors who treated Terri for a bleeding esophagus in late 2003, despite his efforts to have a local judge stop the treatment so Terri would die.Michael is also working with a journalist on a possible book.
LifeNews.com
Able Danger: UPDATE
This story gets a bit more twisted everyday. Two weeks after the 9/11 the attacks, the Bush administration was told that a special military intelligence unit code named Able Danger had developed actionable intelligence two years earlier that could have foiled the 9/11 plot, a member of the Able Danger team revealed on Wednesday.
Among the Able Danger evidence shared with the Bush National Security Council: a chart put together before 9/11 featuring a picture of lead hijacker Mohamed Atta.
Congressman Weldon has previously described three attempts by Able Danger to brief the FBI on the Atta intelligence, before being blocked by lawyers at the Clinton Pentagon. Those lawyers have yet to be identified.
We will continue to track this apparent gross breach of national security.
More from Newsmax
Among the Able Danger evidence shared with the Bush National Security Council: a chart put together before 9/11 featuring a picture of lead hijacker Mohamed Atta.
Congressman Weldon has previously described three attempts by Able Danger to brief the FBI on the Atta intelligence, before being blocked by lawyers at the Clinton Pentagon. Those lawyers have yet to be identified.
We will continue to track this apparent gross breach of national security.
More from Newsmax
RINO to Challenge Santourm
John Featherman, a Philadelphia real estate broker, plans to challenge U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum in the 2006 Republican primary. Featherman is a Republican (or so he says). Why do I doubt this claim?
Fetherman supports abortion rights, gay marriage and a flat tax. I'm with you on the tax thing Johnny but that's as far as I'll go. The other red flag is Featherman ran as the Libertarian Party's nominee in 2000. He also also ran unsuccessfully for Congress in a special election in 1998. Seems like the only thing he has won is a mention on PowerBlog!
Fetherman supports abortion rights, gay marriage and a flat tax. I'm with you on the tax thing Johnny but that's as far as I'll go. The other red flag is Featherman ran as the Libertarian Party's nominee in 2000. He also also ran unsuccessfully for Congress in a special election in 1998. Seems like the only thing he has won is a mention on PowerBlog!
IPIP-NEO/Political Compass Meme
Funky over at Ales Rarus has put the call out for blog readers to participate in a bit of a survey. Click on over to take the survey and post your results.
IPIP-NEO/Political Compass Meme
IPIP-NEO/Political Compass Meme
Terri's Watch: Australia
In a case that echoes Terri Schiavo's, a comatose Australian woman's recent death following the removal of her feeding tube put the focus on her husband for her injuries – now the husband, on the eve of being charged with her murder, has taken his own life.
Maria Korp, 50, died on August 5 following the July 27 removal of her feeding tube. Mrs. Korp had been diagnosed in a vegetative state for nearly six months following a February attack in her garage where she was choked and left for dead in a car trunk by her husband's lover, Tania Herman.
In April, doctors first suggested removing Mrs. Korp's feeding tube, saying treatment had been futile. Mr. Korp expressed his opposition and attempted to have his sister-in-law appointed as his wife's guardian since he, as a suspect in her injury, could not exercise those duties. The court, instead, appointed a public advocate as guardian.
Despite the fact Mrs. Korp had left no living will and the mother of two was a practicing Catholic, the court-appointed guardian announced his decision to deny her nutrition and hydration on July 26.
Worldnet Daily
Maria Korp, 50, died on August 5 following the July 27 removal of her feeding tube. Mrs. Korp had been diagnosed in a vegetative state for nearly six months following a February attack in her garage where she was choked and left for dead in a car trunk by her husband's lover, Tania Herman.
In April, doctors first suggested removing Mrs. Korp's feeding tube, saying treatment had been futile. Mr. Korp expressed his opposition and attempted to have his sister-in-law appointed as his wife's guardian since he, as a suspect in her injury, could not exercise those duties. The court, instead, appointed a public advocate as guardian.
Despite the fact Mrs. Korp had left no living will and the mother of two was a practicing Catholic, the court-appointed guardian announced his decision to deny her nutrition and hydration on July 26.
Worldnet Daily
Water Everywhere
Downtown Pittsburgh right now is a mess. A water main break near Fort Duquesne Boulevard forced police to barricade streets around Gateway Center in Downtown Pittsburgh today, and at least one building was evacuated.
Avoid the area until further notice.
Avoid the area until further notice.
"Today Show" Bombs in Iraq
When The Today Show sprung a surprise this morning - an unannounced trip to Iraq by Matt Lauer - one US soldier had a little surprise of his own for Today and the media at large.
Lauer interviewed a group of soldiers at Camp Liberty in Baghdad, and at one point asked about the state of morale. After getting two responses to the effect that morale was good, Lauer had this to say:
"Don't get me wrong, I think you're probably telling the truth, but there might be a lot of people at home wondering how that might be possible with the conditions you're facing and with the insurgent attacks you're facing."
Asked Lauer: "What would you say to people who doubt that morale could be that high?"
Captain Sherman Powell nailed Lauer, the MSM and the anti-war crowd with this beauty:
"Well sir, I'd tell you, if I got my news from the newspapers I'd be pretty depressed as well!"
Powell went on to add that, while acknowledging the difficulties the media face in getting out into the field in Iraq,
"For those of us who have actually had a chance to get out and meet the Iraqi Army and Iraqi police and go on patrols with them, we are very satisfied with the way things are going here and we are confident that if we are allowed to finish the job we started we'll be very proud of it and our country will be proud of us for doing it!"
A PowerBlog! salute to Capt. Powell for that comeback.
Which church is the best? ... part 2
By Jim Rutz
Republished from WorldNetDaily.com
Last week, I bequeathed to history my very best "fair and balanced" view on the Catholic Church, and was duly rewarded with a barrage of e-mails wanting to know why I was so soft on Catholicism ... and an even larger barrage stating that I am an ill-informed, Catholic-hating dweeb.
(***sigh***)
I'll attempt to respond to all of that in the near future, but today I must move on to the other 37,000 denominations in the world. You need to have a feel for the religious landscape in America, because if you don't, the liberal press will eventually distort the picture in your head – totally. And if you don't know the landscape, you won't know the battlefield.
With so much acreage to cover, I can't hope to give you much "color commentary" on each one. In fact, I'll just barely have room to outline the basic categories for you.
The broadest categories are Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Protestant – plus a few thousand unclassifiable groups like Messianic Jews, Muslim-background Isahis, New Agers, heresies and cults, and fringy syncretisms in Third World countries. I'll try to thumbtack a few words onto each:
The Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox both claim to be the original church. Each insists that the other is a split-off. (The Baptists also say they're the original church, claiming lineage from John the Baptist.) Note: All evangelical mission organizations regard any large Catholic or Orthodox population as a legitimate and needy mission field.
Springing from Martin Luther in 1517, the three main branches of Lutheranism in the United States are:
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (5 million members, pretty liberal)
Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod (2.5 million members, conservative)
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (1.1 million members, Lake Wobegon conservative).
Reformed churches have 75 million people scattered throughout 107 countries. They are the spiritual descendants of Calvin, Knox and Zwingli. In the United States, they range from cold-but-correct (rather like the churches of the Pilgrims) to so ultra-liberal that they would have been burned at the stake in Geneva. I won't mention any names, but you know the liberals from the endless headlines about their painfully slow surrender to the gay, feminist and pro-choice agendas.
In the United States, the state churches are transplants from overseas, most notably the Episcopal Church (from the Church of England). The biggest difference between a Presbyterian and an Episcopalian is that the Episcopalian has made better investments.
Then you have about 33 million Baptists, led by:
The Southern Baptist Convention, with 16 million members, which includes 5 million "home Baptists," who on a given Sunday morning are out at the lake or just washing their cars. SBC folks are split between conservative and moderate, but they refuse to separate because that would make them smaller than the Methodists, perennially lurking in third place.
The black counterparts of the SBC (total 16 million members with overlap): the National Baptist Convention USA, National Baptist Convention of America, National Missionary Baptist Convention of America, and Progressive National Baptist Convention.
Other black denominations are the Pentecostal Church of God in Christ (8 million members), African Methodist Episcopal Church (2.5 million members), African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (1.5 million members), and the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (850 million members).
Overall, we should be very grateful for the tenacity of the black churches, hanging on and witnessing faithfully, as you see by the numbers. Without their persevering influence, most inner cities and ghettoes in America would be a deadly Hell. On the downside, most black churches are as pyramidal and control-driven as they come. They must heal the clergy-laity split and learn to empower their members for the coming megashift in ministry.
The other main liberal denominations are the United Methodist Church (8.3 million members), the Presbyterian Church USA (3.4 million members), and the United Church of Christ (1.3 million members), which is a merger of Congregational churches, the Evangelical and Reformed Church, the Christian Church, and the Disciples of Christ. There is a fair amount of variety in this mix, and each liberal denomination has growing conservative caucus groups, but overall, liberal churches have been shrinking for about 40 years.
The fizzling out of mainline liberal churches is well-deserved. Those listed above all started as solid, Bible-based networks, but most have devolved into institutions whose beliefs are the exact opposite of conservative churches on the main half-dozen beliefs of classical Christianity. And generally, their theological liberalism bleeds over into political and economic liberalism, thus feeding an ongoing stream of righteous-sounding balderdash.
Next Tuesday: A look at evangelicals, emerging churches, house churches, charismatics and others.
James Rutz is chairman of Megashift Ministries and founder-chairman of Open Church
Ministries. His recent book, "MEGASHIFT: Igniting Spiritual Power," announces major upgrades in human life and a coming transformation of society.
If you'd rather order by phone, call WND's toll-free customer service line at 1-800-4WND-COM (1-800-496-3266).
Republished from WorldNetDaily.com
Last week, I bequeathed to history my very best "fair and balanced" view on the Catholic Church, and was duly rewarded with a barrage of e-mails wanting to know why I was so soft on Catholicism ... and an even larger barrage stating that I am an ill-informed, Catholic-hating dweeb.
(***sigh***)
I'll attempt to respond to all of that in the near future, but today I must move on to the other 37,000 denominations in the world. You need to have a feel for the religious landscape in America, because if you don't, the liberal press will eventually distort the picture in your head – totally. And if you don't know the landscape, you won't know the battlefield.
With so much acreage to cover, I can't hope to give you much "color commentary" on each one. In fact, I'll just barely have room to outline the basic categories for you.
The broadest categories are Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Protestant – plus a few thousand unclassifiable groups like Messianic Jews, Muslim-background Isahis, New Agers, heresies and cults, and fringy syncretisms in Third World countries. I'll try to thumbtack a few words onto each:
The Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox both claim to be the original church. Each insists that the other is a split-off. (The Baptists also say they're the original church, claiming lineage from John the Baptist.) Note: All evangelical mission organizations regard any large Catholic or Orthodox population as a legitimate and needy mission field.
Springing from Martin Luther in 1517, the three main branches of Lutheranism in the United States are:
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (5 million members, pretty liberal)
Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod (2.5 million members, conservative)
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (1.1 million members, Lake Wobegon conservative).
Reformed churches have 75 million people scattered throughout 107 countries. They are the spiritual descendants of Calvin, Knox and Zwingli. In the United States, they range from cold-but-correct (rather like the churches of the Pilgrims) to so ultra-liberal that they would have been burned at the stake in Geneva. I won't mention any names, but you know the liberals from the endless headlines about their painfully slow surrender to the gay, feminist and pro-choice agendas.
In the United States, the state churches are transplants from overseas, most notably the Episcopal Church (from the Church of England). The biggest difference between a Presbyterian and an Episcopalian is that the Episcopalian has made better investments.
Then you have about 33 million Baptists, led by:
The Southern Baptist Convention, with 16 million members, which includes 5 million "home Baptists," who on a given Sunday morning are out at the lake or just washing their cars. SBC folks are split between conservative and moderate, but they refuse to separate because that would make them smaller than the Methodists, perennially lurking in third place.
The black counterparts of the SBC (total 16 million members with overlap): the National Baptist Convention USA, National Baptist Convention of America, National Missionary Baptist Convention of America, and Progressive National Baptist Convention.
Other black denominations are the Pentecostal Church of God in Christ (8 million members), African Methodist Episcopal Church (2.5 million members), African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (1.5 million members), and the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (850 million members).
Overall, we should be very grateful for the tenacity of the black churches, hanging on and witnessing faithfully, as you see by the numbers. Without their persevering influence, most inner cities and ghettoes in America would be a deadly Hell. On the downside, most black churches are as pyramidal and control-driven as they come. They must heal the clergy-laity split and learn to empower their members for the coming megashift in ministry.
The other main liberal denominations are the United Methodist Church (8.3 million members), the Presbyterian Church USA (3.4 million members), and the United Church of Christ (1.3 million members), which is a merger of Congregational churches, the Evangelical and Reformed Church, the Christian Church, and the Disciples of Christ. There is a fair amount of variety in this mix, and each liberal denomination has growing conservative caucus groups, but overall, liberal churches have been shrinking for about 40 years.
The fizzling out of mainline liberal churches is well-deserved. Those listed above all started as solid, Bible-based networks, but most have devolved into institutions whose beliefs are the exact opposite of conservative churches on the main half-dozen beliefs of classical Christianity. And generally, their theological liberalism bleeds over into political and economic liberalism, thus feeding an ongoing stream of righteous-sounding balderdash.
Next Tuesday: A look at evangelicals, emerging churches, house churches, charismatics and others.
James Rutz is chairman of Megashift Ministries and founder-chairman of Open Church
Ministries. His recent book, "MEGASHIFT: Igniting Spiritual Power," announces major upgrades in human life and a coming transformation of society.
If you'd rather order by phone, call WND's toll-free customer service line at 1-800-4WND-COM (1-800-496-3266).
Praying School Board Likened to Terrorists
A local ACLU director equated al-Qaida terrrorists with members of a Louisiana school board seeking to open their meetings with prayer.
Joe Cook of the ACLU of Louisiana spoke on camera with WAFB-TV, Baton Rouge, La., while staff and teachers of the Tangipahoa Parish district in New Orleans were at a seminar being informed of their free-speech rights by a member of the Alliance Defense Fund.
Referring to the school board, Cook said, "They believe that they answer to a higher power, in my opinion. Which is the kind of thinking that you had with the people who flew the airplanes into the buildings in this country, and the people who did the kind of things in London."
Worldnet Daily
Joe Cook of the ACLU of Louisiana spoke on camera with WAFB-TV, Baton Rouge, La., while staff and teachers of the Tangipahoa Parish district in New Orleans were at a seminar being informed of their free-speech rights by a member of the Alliance Defense Fund.
Referring to the school board, Cook said, "They believe that they answer to a higher power, in my opinion. Which is the kind of thinking that you had with the people who flew the airplanes into the buildings in this country, and the people who did the kind of things in London."
Worldnet Daily
That Pay Raise Is Now LARGER!
The salary hike for state lawmakers elected in November 2006 will be even bigger than the previously reported 16 percent to 34 percent increase because legislators included an automatic cost-of-living adjustment that will be added on.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Able Danger: UPDATE
A military intelligence team repeatedly contacted the F.B.I. in 2000 to warn about the existence of an American-based terrorist cell that included the ringleader of the Sept. 11 attacks, according to a veteran Army intelligence officer who said he had now decided to risk his career by discussing the information publicly. The officer, Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer, said military lawyers later blocked the team from sharing any of its information with the bureau.
Colonel Shaffer said in an interview on Monday night that the small, highly classified intelligence program, known as Able Danger, had identified the terrorist ringleader, Mohamed Atta, and three other future hijackers by name by mid-2000, and tried to arrange a meeting that summer with agents of the Washington field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to share its information.
But he said military lawyers forced members of the intelligence program to cancel three scheduled meetings with the F.B.I. at the last minute, which left the bureau without information that Colonel Shaffer said might have led to Mr. Atta and the other terrorists while the Sept. 11 attacks were still being planned.
The Defense Department did not dispute the account from Colonel Shaffer, a 42-year-old native of Kansas City, Mo., who is the first military officer associated with the program to acknowledge his role publicly.
At the same time, the department said in a statement that it was "working to gain more clarity on this issue" and that "it's too early to comment on findings related to the program identified as Able Danger." The F.B.I. referred calls about Colonel Shaffer to the Pentagon.
In related news, word now is State Department analysts warned the Clinton administration in July 1996 that Osama bin Laden's move to Afghanistan would give him an even more dangerous haven as he sought to expand radical Islam "well beyond the Middle East," but the government chose not to deter the move, newly declassified documents show.
Two years after the State Department's warning, with Mr. bin Laden firmly entrenched in Afghanistan and overseeing terrorist training and financing operations, Al Qaeda struck two American embassies in East Africa, leading to failed military attempts by the Clinton administration to capture or kill him in Afghanistan. Three years later, on Sept. 11, 2001, Al Qaeda struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in an operation overseen from the base in Afghanistan.
New York Times
Colonel Shaffer said in an interview on Monday night that the small, highly classified intelligence program, known as Able Danger, had identified the terrorist ringleader, Mohamed Atta, and three other future hijackers by name by mid-2000, and tried to arrange a meeting that summer with agents of the Washington field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to share its information.
But he said military lawyers forced members of the intelligence program to cancel three scheduled meetings with the F.B.I. at the last minute, which left the bureau without information that Colonel Shaffer said might have led to Mr. Atta and the other terrorists while the Sept. 11 attacks were still being planned.
The Defense Department did not dispute the account from Colonel Shaffer, a 42-year-old native of Kansas City, Mo., who is the first military officer associated with the program to acknowledge his role publicly.
At the same time, the department said in a statement that it was "working to gain more clarity on this issue" and that "it's too early to comment on findings related to the program identified as Able Danger." The F.B.I. referred calls about Colonel Shaffer to the Pentagon.
In related news, word now is State Department analysts warned the Clinton administration in July 1996 that Osama bin Laden's move to Afghanistan would give him an even more dangerous haven as he sought to expand radical Islam "well beyond the Middle East," but the government chose not to deter the move, newly declassified documents show.
Two years after the State Department's warning, with Mr. bin Laden firmly entrenched in Afghanistan and overseeing terrorist training and financing operations, Al Qaeda struck two American embassies in East Africa, leading to failed military attempts by the Clinton administration to capture or kill him in Afghanistan. Three years later, on Sept. 11, 2001, Al Qaeda struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in an operation overseen from the base in Afghanistan.
New York Times
Could "Pregnant" Women be the Next Terrorists?
One of the more insidious methods is to utilize a willing female to fake a pregnancy and place explosives into the empty womb cavity. The aim is to exploit political correctness in the U.S. and elsewhere. Who would dare question the authenticity of a pregnancy?
Gaza
Do you support the pullout of Israelis from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank? Post your comments.
Louis Farrakhan is Back UPDATE
I spoke with Rev. Harold Moore, Pastor of Mercy Memorial Baptist Church in Milwaukee yesterday, and asked him about the church involvement and why he would allow a Baptist Church to be a public platform for the Nation of Islam.
Moore said Christianity is inclusive to all. He supports the Millions More Movement, scheduled for October in Washington.
When asked about the Nation of Islam and it's leader Louis Farrakhan (who has blamed America for the 9/11 attacks) he said "No Comment" and refused to answer any futher questions. He then abruptly ended the call.
Original Post:
As the tenth anniversary of the Half-Million (or so) Man March approaches, Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan is going to try it again this October, according to remarks he made at Mercy Memorial Baptist Church in Milwaukee yesterday. Don't ask me why the "Nation of Islam" leader was allowed to speak at a Baptist Church. Calls to Rev. Harold Moore have not been returned as of this post.
Milwaukee is the first of several cities Farrakhan is planning to visit to promote the Millions More Movement, scheduled for October in Washington. He described the former and upcoming march as a unifying event for men of all, well at least some faiths and backgrounds. The latest march will include women and homosexuals. Under the color of this unification, however, Farrakhan is promoting once again divisiveness and cultivating hatred.
In a blatantly racist statement made by Farrakhan yesterday, he called on blacks to provide goods and services within their communities “instead of giving their money to merchants of different races.” Not much has changed with Farrakhan, who subtly blamed American foreign policy for the 9/11 attacks while the twin towers were still smoldering.
Moore said Christianity is inclusive to all. He supports the Millions More Movement, scheduled for October in Washington.
When asked about the Nation of Islam and it's leader Louis Farrakhan (who has blamed America for the 9/11 attacks) he said "No Comment" and refused to answer any futher questions. He then abruptly ended the call.
Original Post:
As the tenth anniversary of the Half-Million (or so) Man March approaches, Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan is going to try it again this October, according to remarks he made at Mercy Memorial Baptist Church in Milwaukee yesterday. Don't ask me why the "Nation of Islam" leader was allowed to speak at a Baptist Church. Calls to Rev. Harold Moore have not been returned as of this post.
Milwaukee is the first of several cities Farrakhan is planning to visit to promote the Millions More Movement, scheduled for October in Washington. He described the former and upcoming march as a unifying event for men of all, well at least some faiths and backgrounds. The latest march will include women and homosexuals. Under the color of this unification, however, Farrakhan is promoting once again divisiveness and cultivating hatred.
In a blatantly racist statement made by Farrakhan yesterday, he called on blacks to provide goods and services within their communities “instead of giving their money to merchants of different races.” Not much has changed with Farrakhan, who subtly blamed American foreign policy for the 9/11 attacks while the twin towers were still smoldering.
Lutherans Reject Ordination of Gays
national meeting of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America yesterday denied ordination to gays and lesbians in committed relationships.
The assembly also voted to encourage clergy and congregations to offer pastoral care for ''all to whom they minister." An earlier proposal had specifically mentioned people in same-sex relationships, language that was interpreted as allowing pastors to conduct the informal blessing of gay unions without certain sanction.
Some gay-rights advocates said they resented the change in language -- which passed 491 to 484 on an earlier vote -- saying it stripped the proposal of its purpose and put pastors in jeopardy of censure if they perform the blessings.
The assembly turned down the ordination proposal by a vote of 503 to 490, another snapshot of the deep divide in the 4.9 million-member church over issues of homosexuality. The proposals require approval by two-thirds of the assembly to take effect.
Two years ago, the Episcopal Church consecrated its first openly gay bishop, to the dismay of a large portion of the worldwide Anglican Communion. And last month, the United Church of Christ became the first Protestant denomination to support gay marriage. The United Methodist Church, with whom the Lutheran assembly agreed to share the Eucharist earlier this week, bars non-celibate gay pastors.
Chicago Tribune
The assembly also voted to encourage clergy and congregations to offer pastoral care for ''all to whom they minister." An earlier proposal had specifically mentioned people in same-sex relationships, language that was interpreted as allowing pastors to conduct the informal blessing of gay unions without certain sanction.
Some gay-rights advocates said they resented the change in language -- which passed 491 to 484 on an earlier vote -- saying it stripped the proposal of its purpose and put pastors in jeopardy of censure if they perform the blessings.
The assembly turned down the ordination proposal by a vote of 503 to 490, another snapshot of the deep divide in the 4.9 million-member church over issues of homosexuality. The proposals require approval by two-thirds of the assembly to take effect.
Two years ago, the Episcopal Church consecrated its first openly gay bishop, to the dismay of a large portion of the worldwide Anglican Communion. And last month, the United Church of Christ became the first Protestant denomination to support gay marriage. The United Methodist Church, with whom the Lutheran assembly agreed to share the Eucharist earlier this week, bars non-celibate gay pastors.
Chicago Tribune
"Able Danger" Update: Witnesses to Go Public
Rep. Curt Weldon said Monday that one or more members of an elite team of military intelligence officers who had identified al Qaeda hijacker Mohamed Atta as a terrorist threat two years before he led the 9/11 attacks are prepared to go public.
"When the American people see the credibility of this guy and what he's done for our country, along with the others, you become convinced that we have some major problems here," Weldon said.
He also addressed questions that arose over the weekend about whether the claims of the team, code named Able Danger, amounted to "much ado about nothing."
"Like any patriotic American, if I'm confronted with career senior military intelligence officials who have information that they felt the 9/11 Commission should have looked at, because it directly impacted the events leading up to the attack against us, then I would want that to be taken seriously."
The House Armed Services Committee member also revealed that an FBI witness has confirmed attempts by the Able Danger team to share information about Atta.
The House Republican indicated he was aware that the Able Danger revelations could have severe political consequences, but he said that the full story was too important to keep from the American people.
NewsMax.com
"When the American people see the credibility of this guy and what he's done for our country, along with the others, you become convinced that we have some major problems here," Weldon said.
He also addressed questions that arose over the weekend about whether the claims of the team, code named Able Danger, amounted to "much ado about nothing."
"Like any patriotic American, if I'm confronted with career senior military intelligence officials who have information that they felt the 9/11 Commission should have looked at, because it directly impacted the events leading up to the attack against us, then I would want that to be taken seriously."
The House Armed Services Committee member also revealed that an FBI witness has confirmed attempts by the Able Danger team to share information about Atta.
The House Republican indicated he was aware that the Able Danger revelations could have severe political consequences, but he said that the full story was too important to keep from the American people.
NewsMax.com
Roberts Once Wrote of 'Abortion Tragedy'
As a young lawyer in the Reagan White House, Supreme Court nominee John Roberts concluded that a group's memorial service for aborted fetuses was "an entirely appropriate means of calling attention to the abortion tragedy."
Roberts' wrote the advice in an October, 1985 memo after he was asked to review a proposed telegram from President Reagan to the memorial service promoted by the California Pro Life Medical Association.
The memorial service came at the end of a three-year battle over how to dispose of some 16,000 fetuses discovered in February 1982 in sealed plastic bags of formaldehyde and stored in a bin outside the California home of a man who had managed a medical laboratory. The then-closed laboratory routinely examined aborted fetuses for clinics and hospitals.
The Feminist Women's Health Center of Los Angeles, which endorsed women's right to abortion, had sued to stop Los Angeles county from giving the fetuses to the Catholic League for religious burial.
The dispute reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld lower court decisions that the county could bury or cremate the fetuses but could not arrange or join in religious services.
WASHINGTON (AP)
Roberts' wrote the advice in an October, 1985 memo after he was asked to review a proposed telegram from President Reagan to the memorial service promoted by the California Pro Life Medical Association.
The memorial service came at the end of a three-year battle over how to dispose of some 16,000 fetuses discovered in February 1982 in sealed plastic bags of formaldehyde and stored in a bin outside the California home of a man who had managed a medical laboratory. The then-closed laboratory routinely examined aborted fetuses for clinics and hospitals.
The Feminist Women's Health Center of Los Angeles, which endorsed women's right to abortion, had sued to stop Los Angeles county from giving the fetuses to the Catholic League for religious burial.
The dispute reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld lower court decisions that the county could bury or cremate the fetuses but could not arrange or join in religious services.
WASHINGTON (AP)
Trouble in Print
An advertising campaign designed to bring attention to the joining of two Scranton area newspapers has instead focused attention on the relationship between the newspapers' publishers and Bob Casey, Jr., according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
One of the ads, appearing on TV, pamphlets, billboards and buses in Northeast PA, shows an 'old' paper with the headline 'Casey to Run for Senate'...only one problem. The headline never actually appeared in the paper. In fact, the managing editor of the new Scranton Times-Tribune has even admitted to making up the headline. The result: Bob Casey gets free publicity for an article that never was.
Could it be just a coincidence that the publishers of the paper were shown to have given $120,000 to Bob and Pat Casey's campaigns over the years?
Click Fest This Week
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Click Fest is going on all this week. Make sure you drop by a sign our guestbook. Include your email address so we can contact you if you are a winner. Then click on the PowerBlog! sponsor ads. You can do so as often as you like. The more you click, the better your chance of winning.
Those that register and click on the ads will be eligible to win everything from CD's to Dinner for Two. There is no purchase required and winners will be chosen at random. So click away and you could be our next winner!
Tracking the Axis of Evil ; #2 Threatens
For those of you following all this, President Bush in his "Axis of Evil" speech listed 3 countries the U.S. must confront. 1. Iraq, 2. Iran, 3. North Korea.
Number 2 on the list, Iran has now warned President Bush that he would be making a mistake to use force against the Islamic republic over its nuclear program.
"Bush should know that our capabilities are much greater than those of the United States," foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters. "We don't think that the United States will make such a mistake."
On Friday, Bush refused to rule out the use of force against Iran over its resumption of nuclear activities, saying "all options are on the table."
The warning from Iran's foreign ministry came as ultra-conservative President Mahmood Ahmadinejad unveiled his new cabinet, most of whom are members or former members of the secret police or Revolutionary Guard.
The new minister of defense of Iran has direct ties to the suicide bombing in Beirut that killed 241 Marines in 1983. Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar, a veteran commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, was named today to the top military post by the new government.
Eighteen of the 21 new members of the new Iranian cabinet have backgrounds in the Revolutionary Guards or secret police.
WorldNetDaily.com
Number 2 on the list, Iran has now warned President Bush that he would be making a mistake to use force against the Islamic republic over its nuclear program.
"Bush should know that our capabilities are much greater than those of the United States," foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters. "We don't think that the United States will make such a mistake."
On Friday, Bush refused to rule out the use of force against Iran over its resumption of nuclear activities, saying "all options are on the table."
The warning from Iran's foreign ministry came as ultra-conservative President Mahmood Ahmadinejad unveiled his new cabinet, most of whom are members or former members of the secret police or Revolutionary Guard.
The new minister of defense of Iran has direct ties to the suicide bombing in Beirut that killed 241 Marines in 1983. Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar, a veteran commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, was named today to the top military post by the new government.
Eighteen of the 21 new members of the new Iranian cabinet have backgrounds in the Revolutionary Guards or secret police.
WorldNetDaily.com
Still Fuming Over Those Pay Raises
Most of our elected officals are hoping that we will all forget how they robbed us in the middle of the night by the time re-elction rolls around. PowerBlog! pledges not to let that happen.
We have been digging into the compensation packages a bit deeper. Let's consider the"extra" stuff lawmakers get outside of stright pay. Here are some of the Benefits and other perks available to Pennsylvania legislators:
Health care: State pays entire premiums for more than 3,200 legislators, staffers and their families. Plan covers medical, prescription-drug, dental and vision expenses, with certain deductibles and copayments, and includes life and long-term disability insurance. The annual cost of insuring legislators, who unlike staffers also receive long-term care insurance, is $13,500 for each of the 203 representatives and $14,280 for each of the 50 senators.
Pensions: The latest pay raises also will increase future legislative pensions, just four years after lawmakers approved a 50-percent boost in their pensions. A rank-and-file legislator who retires in 2008 with 20 years' service now will receive as much as roughly $50,000 a year - 62 percent of his or her salary. Lawmakers contribute to the pension plan, with most paying between 6.25 and 7.5 percent of their salaries. Taxpayers also chip in; they contributed about $2,000 per lawmaker last year.
Capitol offices: Legislators get offices in the Capitol complex and staffs in their Harrisburg and districts offices that are paid out of caucus accounts controlled by Republican and Democratic leaders
Expenses: House members are reimbursed for as much as $19,800 a year for rent, utilities and other costs of running local offices in their home districts around the state. They also can recover an additional $20,000 a year in those and other costs, such as professional services and insurance on their leased vehicles, through a separate expense allowance and they get a postage allowance of $4,000 a year. Senators have an annual expense account of $25,000 a year and a postage allowance of $26,500 a year. Members who live more than 50 miles from the Capitol receive $128 a day for meals, lodging and incidental expenses whenever they are in Harrisburg on legislative business.
Vehicles: Lawmakers are reimbursed for car lease payments and other vehicle expenses. Representatives receive as much as $7,800 a year, while senators get a $7,200 allowance.
Party leaders: In addition to extra salary, party leaders in both houses get enhanced expense allowances, ranging from $7,000 a year for floor leaders to $2,000 for the lowest-ranking leaders. Committee chairmen. The chairmen of Senate committees get an additional $15,000 for committee-related expense, while their House counterparts get $2,000 to $4,000.
Sources: Senate clerk's office, House Bipartisan Management Committee, Pennsylvania State Employees Retirement System
We have been digging into the compensation packages a bit deeper. Let's consider the"extra" stuff lawmakers get outside of stright pay. Here are some of the Benefits and other perks available to Pennsylvania legislators:
Health care: State pays entire premiums for more than 3,200 legislators, staffers and their families. Plan covers medical, prescription-drug, dental and vision expenses, with certain deductibles and copayments, and includes life and long-term disability insurance. The annual cost of insuring legislators, who unlike staffers also receive long-term care insurance, is $13,500 for each of the 203 representatives and $14,280 for each of the 50 senators.
Pensions: The latest pay raises also will increase future legislative pensions, just four years after lawmakers approved a 50-percent boost in their pensions. A rank-and-file legislator who retires in 2008 with 20 years' service now will receive as much as roughly $50,000 a year - 62 percent of his or her salary. Lawmakers contribute to the pension plan, with most paying between 6.25 and 7.5 percent of their salaries. Taxpayers also chip in; they contributed about $2,000 per lawmaker last year.
Capitol offices: Legislators get offices in the Capitol complex and staffs in their Harrisburg and districts offices that are paid out of caucus accounts controlled by Republican and Democratic leaders
Expenses: House members are reimbursed for as much as $19,800 a year for rent, utilities and other costs of running local offices in their home districts around the state. They also can recover an additional $20,000 a year in those and other costs, such as professional services and insurance on their leased vehicles, through a separate expense allowance and they get a postage allowance of $4,000 a year. Senators have an annual expense account of $25,000 a year and a postage allowance of $26,500 a year. Members who live more than 50 miles from the Capitol receive $128 a day for meals, lodging and incidental expenses whenever they are in Harrisburg on legislative business.
Vehicles: Lawmakers are reimbursed for car lease payments and other vehicle expenses. Representatives receive as much as $7,800 a year, while senators get a $7,200 allowance.
Party leaders: In addition to extra salary, party leaders in both houses get enhanced expense allowances, ranging from $7,000 a year for floor leaders to $2,000 for the lowest-ranking leaders. Committee chairmen. The chairmen of Senate committees get an additional $15,000 for committee-related expense, while their House counterparts get $2,000 to $4,000.
Sources: Senate clerk's office, House Bipartisan Management Committee, Pennsylvania State Employees Retirement System
NARAL Communications Chief Resigns
Just 24 hours after last Thursday night's announcement that an anti-John G. Roberts ad was being pulled from the airwaves, David E. Seldin, NARAL's communications director, sent an e-mail to friends saying that he was leaving his job, according to a report in the Washington Post.
The NARAL Pro-Choice America's ad outraged conservatives, who claimed it was false and misleading.
But Seldin defended the ad's linking of Roberts to violent abortion opponents as "100 percent accurate." He had also pushed for a more aggressive approach to heating up the Roberts debate than others favored at NARAL.
Seldin wrote in the e-mail, "I've been thinking for a while that I would most likely leave after the Supreme Court nomination fight was over, and by leaving now I can spend the next two weeks in Cape Cod with my family relaxing, instead of trying to find a place with good cell phone reception."
Seldin's e-mail reportedly included ways to contact him, ending, "You'll no doubt be hearing from me when I get back to town at the end of the month and start thinking about what I do next."
The 37-year-old worked in the White House press office under President Bill Clinton and was communications director for Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.
NewsMax.com
The NARAL Pro-Choice America's ad outraged conservatives, who claimed it was false and misleading.
But Seldin defended the ad's linking of Roberts to violent abortion opponents as "100 percent accurate." He had also pushed for a more aggressive approach to heating up the Roberts debate than others favored at NARAL.
Seldin wrote in the e-mail, "I've been thinking for a while that I would most likely leave after the Supreme Court nomination fight was over, and by leaving now I can spend the next two weeks in Cape Cod with my family relaxing, instead of trying to find a place with good cell phone reception."
Seldin's e-mail reportedly included ways to contact him, ending, "You'll no doubt be hearing from me when I get back to town at the end of the month and start thinking about what I do next."
The 37-year-old worked in the White House press office under President Bill Clinton and was communications director for Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.
NewsMax.com
Pope Calls For Public Crucifixes
Pope Benedict XVI has backed the display of crucifixes in public buildings, saying that God should be present in public life.
"It is important that God is present in public life, with the sign of the cross, in homes and public buildings," the Italian news agency ANSA quoted the pontiff as saying during his homily in a parish church in Castel Gandolfo, the hill town outside Rome where the Vatican has its vacation retreat.
He made no reference to specific disputes, but the issue of whether religious symbols have a place in government buildings has been a divisive one in Italy and elsewhere. A Muslim activist in Italy in past years had turned to the courts to seek the removal of crucifixes from public schools in Italy, which is officially secular.
Eitb24.com
Should these displays be allowed in public buildings?
"It is important that God is present in public life, with the sign of the cross, in homes and public buildings," the Italian news agency ANSA quoted the pontiff as saying during his homily in a parish church in Castel Gandolfo, the hill town outside Rome where the Vatican has its vacation retreat.
He made no reference to specific disputes, but the issue of whether religious symbols have a place in government buildings has been a divisive one in Italy and elsewhere. A Muslim activist in Italy in past years had turned to the courts to seek the removal of crucifixes from public schools in Italy, which is officially secular.
Eitb24.com
Should these displays be allowed in public buildings?
A Soldiers Baptism
May God Bless and Protect our Troops
What does ACLU stand for?
American Crying Liberals Union - submitted by Andrew from Florida
Anti Christian League United - submitted by Betty of Oklahoma
Anti-Christ Loyalist United - submitted by Jon of Tennessee
Anti-Christian League Undeniably - submitted by Carroll of Washington State
American Communist Lackeys Unveiled - submitted by Stephen of Tennessee
Atheists, Communists & Lesbians United - submitted by Michele of South Carolina
Anti-Christian Legal Ultimatums - submitted by Dave of Massachusetts
American Communist Loser Union - submitted by Jason of Texas
Anti Christian Losers United - submitted by Nick of Minnesota
Anti Christ Lawyers United - submitted by Tom of Arizona
Anti Christian Liberals Union - submitted by Megan of Tennessee
Amazingly Crazy Litigious Usurpers - submitted by Joe of Tennessee
Anti-Christ Legions United -submitted by Dave of Missouri
Anti-American Communist Law Usurper - submitted by Greg of Missouri
Anti Christian Liberties Union - submitted by John of Texas
Atheists, Communists, Liberals, Unrelenting - submitted by Clayton of Washington State
Alternative Clan of Lawyers (for the dissolution of the) Union - submitted by Rex of Nevada
Association of Clueless Lunatics United - submitted by Georgina of California
American Criminal Liberties Union - submitted by Craig of Washington state
American Communist Legal Usurpers – submitted by Rudy of Virginia
Anti-Christian Law Union - submitted by Frank of Pennsylvania
Atheists, Communists, Lunatics United - submitted by Ruth of Wisconsin
Anti Christian Liberals Union - submitted by Carl of California
American Communist Lawyers Unioin - submitted by Steve of California
American Center of Lucifer's Underlings - submitted by Dr. Frank of California
Check out the New Stop the ACLU link!
Anti Christian League United - submitted by Betty of Oklahoma
Anti-Christ Loyalist United - submitted by Jon of Tennessee
Anti-Christian League Undeniably - submitted by Carroll of Washington State
American Communist Lackeys Unveiled - submitted by Stephen of Tennessee
Atheists, Communists & Lesbians United - submitted by Michele of South Carolina
Anti-Christian Legal Ultimatums - submitted by Dave of Massachusetts
American Communist Loser Union - submitted by Jason of Texas
Anti Christian Losers United - submitted by Nick of Minnesota
Anti Christ Lawyers United - submitted by Tom of Arizona
Anti Christian Liberals Union - submitted by Megan of Tennessee
Amazingly Crazy Litigious Usurpers - submitted by Joe of Tennessee
Anti-Christ Legions United -submitted by Dave of Missouri
Anti-American Communist Law Usurper - submitted by Greg of Missouri
Anti Christian Liberties Union - submitted by John of Texas
Atheists, Communists, Liberals, Unrelenting - submitted by Clayton of Washington State
Alternative Clan of Lawyers (for the dissolution of the) Union - submitted by Rex of Nevada
Association of Clueless Lunatics United - submitted by Georgina of California
American Criminal Liberties Union - submitted by Craig of Washington state
American Communist Legal Usurpers – submitted by Rudy of Virginia
Anti-Christian Law Union - submitted by Frank of Pennsylvania
Atheists, Communists, Lunatics United - submitted by Ruth of Wisconsin
Anti Christian Liberals Union - submitted by Carl of California
American Communist Lawyers Unioin - submitted by Steve of California
American Center of Lucifer's Underlings - submitted by Dr. Frank of California
Check out the New Stop the ACLU link!
"Able Danger" Update
This story keeps on growing. If you have not read the two other posts on this you may want to do so. They are here and here.
Here is the latest: A 1995 memo from a top terrorism prosecutor warning that a directive by Clinton administration Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick "could cost lives" is being concealed by the 9/11 Commission.
Compounding the cover-up - Gorelick herself was a prominent member of the Commission and refused to recuse herself from parts of the 9/11 investigation that covered the now notorious "wall" she erected that prevented intelligence and law enforcement agencies from cooperating in the war on terror.
In June 1995, U.S. Attorney for New York's Southern District Mary Jo White warned the Justice Department that Gorelick's prohibition against intelligence sharing would hamper U.S. counterterrorism efforts.
The revelation that the 9/11 Commission covered-up White's full account comes on the heels of news that Gorelick's wall may have prevented the FBI from learning that lead 9/11 hijackers Mohamed Atta and Marwan al-Shehhi had entered the U.S. and had been identified by military intelligence as terrorist threats a year before the attacks.
Newsmax.com
Here is the latest: A 1995 memo from a top terrorism prosecutor warning that a directive by Clinton administration Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick "could cost lives" is being concealed by the 9/11 Commission.
Compounding the cover-up - Gorelick herself was a prominent member of the Commission and refused to recuse herself from parts of the 9/11 investigation that covered the now notorious "wall" she erected that prevented intelligence and law enforcement agencies from cooperating in the war on terror.
In June 1995, U.S. Attorney for New York's Southern District Mary Jo White warned the Justice Department that Gorelick's prohibition against intelligence sharing would hamper U.S. counterterrorism efforts.
"It is hard to be totally comfortable with instructions to the FBI prohibiting contact with the United States Attorney's Offices when such prohibitions are not legally required," White wrote on June 13, 1995 in a memo reported Friday by the New York Post's Deborah Orin.
"The most effective way to combat terrorism is with as few labels and walls as possible so that wherever permissible, the right and left hands are communicating," advised White, who was then in the midst of prosecuting the 1993 World Trade Center bombers.
The revelation that the 9/11 Commission covered-up White's full account comes on the heels of news that Gorelick's wall may have prevented the FBI from learning that lead 9/11 hijackers Mohamed Atta and Marwan al-Shehhi had entered the U.S. and had been identified by military intelligence as terrorist threats a year before the attacks.
Newsmax.com
Church Desecration Video Makes a Great Jihad Fund-Raiser
Thanks to Cyber Cast News Service for this story.
A violent video showing the desecration of a church and the murder of a Serbian soldier is one of many "jihad" videos currently making the rounds in Western countries to raise funds for Muslim terrorists, according to counter-terrorism experts interviewed by Cybercast News Service. The graphic footage, stamped Sept. 16, 1995, was videotaped approximately two months before the Dayton Peace Accords, which brought an end to the civil war in Bosnia.
Darko Trifunovic, deputy director of the Center for Security and Investigation of Terrorism at the Belgrade Institute for Political Studies, provided Cybercast News Service with a copy of the video during his recent visit to Washington, D.C. Cybercast News Service has edited the video to remove portions dealing with the killing of the Serbian soldier and other grisly images of corpses.
What the video does show is the deep hatered for Christianity as one combatant throws down what appears to be a vial of incense before others mock sacred items, break up the altar and vandalize Byzantine-style icons while smiling and singing. One combatant raises his rifle and fires at the cross atop the altar.
"The video was shot in western Bosnia," said Trifunovic. "It has been shown in Germany, Austria, Norway, Sweden and North America for fund-raising purposes."
The video opens with mujahedeen interrogating a Serbian soldier. The soldier was recognized by a relative as 32-year old Rade Rogic, said Trifunovic. According to a translator consulted by Cybercast News Service, the lead captor asks Rogic, "Do you know who we are?" "You're the mujahedeen," Rogic replies on the video."That's right, we're the mujahadeen." When questioned about his duties, Rogic insists he serves in the "workers' battalion" and only digs ditches. After repeatedly striking the soldier in the face, the interrogator then pressures him to say "Allah is great," before telling the videographer to turn off the camera.Subsequent footage shows one of the mujahedeen armed with a machine gun and then preparing the weapon for what appears to be a planned execution. Rogic is then shown bloodied and lying face-down on some rocks, apparently having been killed by his captors.
The scene is followed by images of an elderly civilian dead by the roadside and a tractor dragging the body of what appears to be a civilian through the village.
You Can See the Edited Video Here
A violent video showing the desecration of a church and the murder of a Serbian soldier is one of many "jihad" videos currently making the rounds in Western countries to raise funds for Muslim terrorists, according to counter-terrorism experts interviewed by Cybercast News Service. The graphic footage, stamped Sept. 16, 1995, was videotaped approximately two months before the Dayton Peace Accords, which brought an end to the civil war in Bosnia.
Darko Trifunovic, deputy director of the Center for Security and Investigation of Terrorism at the Belgrade Institute for Political Studies, provided Cybercast News Service with a copy of the video during his recent visit to Washington, D.C. Cybercast News Service has edited the video to remove portions dealing with the killing of the Serbian soldier and other grisly images of corpses.
What the video does show is the deep hatered for Christianity as one combatant throws down what appears to be a vial of incense before others mock sacred items, break up the altar and vandalize Byzantine-style icons while smiling and singing. One combatant raises his rifle and fires at the cross atop the altar.
"The video was shot in western Bosnia," said Trifunovic. "It has been shown in Germany, Austria, Norway, Sweden and North America for fund-raising purposes."
The video opens with mujahedeen interrogating a Serbian soldier. The soldier was recognized by a relative as 32-year old Rade Rogic, said Trifunovic. According to a translator consulted by Cybercast News Service, the lead captor asks Rogic, "Do you know who we are?" "You're the mujahedeen," Rogic replies on the video."That's right, we're the mujahadeen." When questioned about his duties, Rogic insists he serves in the "workers' battalion" and only digs ditches. After repeatedly striking the soldier in the face, the interrogator then pressures him to say "Allah is great," before telling the videographer to turn off the camera.Subsequent footage shows one of the mujahedeen armed with a machine gun and then preparing the weapon for what appears to be a planned execution. Rogic is then shown bloodied and lying face-down on some rocks, apparently having been killed by his captors.
The scene is followed by images of an elderly civilian dead by the roadside and a tractor dragging the body of what appears to be a civilian through the village.
You Can See the Edited Video Here
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