Religion & Law

Labor?s coming class war: Private sector v. public sector unions

Posted on January 06, 2011
William McGurn writing in the Wall Street Journal: "The notion that Wall Street and Main Street are fundamentally at odds with one another remains a popular orthodoxy. So much so that we may be missing the first stirrings of a true American class war: between workers in government unions and their union counterparts in the private sector...

California bishop appointed chairman for Catholic Marriage Defense Committee

Posted on January 06, 2011
Catholic News Agency: "The new president of the U.S. Catholic bishops' conference, Archbishop Timothy Dolan, announced Jan. 5 that he appointed Bishop Salvatore Cordileone of Oakland, California as chairman of the conference's Ad Hoc Committee for the Defense of Marriage...

Jewish lawyer?s refusal to grant wife a ?get? stirs public dispute

Posted on January 05, 2011
New York Times: "Mr. Friedman, an Orthodox Jew, finds himself scrutinized in the Jewish press, condemned by important rabbis, and attacked in a YouTube video . . . [over] Mr. Friedman?s refusal to give his wife, Tamar Epstein, 27, a Jewish decree of divorce, known as a get ...

West Point graduates: Why our best officers are leaving early

Posted on January 05, 2011
Tim Kane writing in The Atlantic: "Why are so many of the most talented officers now abandoning military life for the private sector? An exclusive survey of West Point graduates shows that it?s not just money. Increasingly, the military is creating a command structure that rewards conformism and ignores merit...

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ADF files federal suit against Ohio city for blocking Christian school from using its own building

Posted on January 05, 2011
Alliance Defense Fund attorneys filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday on behalf of Tree of Life Christian Schools against the city of Upper Arlington after it refused to grant the school a permit to use its own new building.

NH Supreme Court to hear arguments in case of home-schooled girl Thursday

Posted on January 05, 2011
Alliance Defense Fund allied attorney John Anthony Simmons and ADF Senior Counsel Tom Marcelle will be available for media interviews following oral argument Thursday before the New Hampshire Supreme Court in the case of a home-schooled girl ordered into a government school by a state judge.

The Economist: Comparing contraception usage and U.S. and Europe: Availability isn?t the issue

Posted on January 05, 2011
The Economist / Democracy in America: "I don't think it's true that the pro-life movement would gain any converts among liberals by dedicating itself to increasing adoptions (even more than it already has), even if adoptions weren't already widely available...

Anti-Christian drumbeat loud before Egypt attack

Posted on January 05, 2011
Associated Press: "In the weeks before the New Year's Day suicide bombing of an Egyptian church, al-Qaida-linked websites carried a how-to manual on 'destroying the cross,' complete with videos on how to build a bomb and the locations of churches to target - including the one that was attacked...

China plans marriage database

Posted on January 05, 2011
Pioneer Press: "China's exploding wealth has created a culture of secret mistresses and second wives. Now officials are putting marriage records online so lovers and spouses can check for cheaters."

China media report mystery stealth fighter photos

Posted on January 05, 2011
Associated Press: "Photos leaked online that appear to show a prototype of China's first stealth fighter jet were discussed in state media Wednesday - a move that supports claims the country's military aviation program is advancing faster than expected...

Turkey seeks to overhaul courts

Posted on January 05, 2011
Associated Press: "Turkey promised to speed up its judicial system on Wednesday after a new EU-inspired law forced the government to free alleged Islamic militants accused of torturing and killing dozens, as well as suspected rapists, murderers and mobsters whose trials have lasted for years...

Focus on Family may pull out of CPAC

Posted on January 05, 2011
Associated Press: "Colorado-based Focus on the Family is considering ending its sponsorship of a national conservative political action rally because of the involvement of a gay conservative group."

Catholic bishops of Chile oppose weakening abortion ban

Posted on January 05, 2011
LifeNews: "According to the Catholic News Agency, the bishops released a statement on December 28 through the Bishops? Conference of Chile saying there is never a justification for an abortion and that it is never medically necessary for women."

UK: Secret sperm donor fathered aunt?s children

Posted on January 05, 2011
"The lesbian couple agreed to keep Charlie's true identity as the father under wraps. However, his death forced his aunt to confess the situation to her sister."

Alberta political move: Homosexuality removed from list of disorders

Posted on January 05, 2011
LifeSiteNews: "The Vancouver Sun reported December 21 that 'homosexuality' was still listed in the Alberta Health and Wellness Diagnostic Codes under 'Mental Disorders: Sexual Deviations and Disorders.' It appeared there alongside bestiality and pedophilia...

President of Chile calls for the ?defense of life? as abortion legislation advances

Posted on January 05, 2011
LifeSiteNews: "Chilean President Sebastián Piñera is urging his ministers to stand firm in their defense of pro-life values as the nation?s congress confronts two new legislative proposals to decriminalize the killing of unborn children."

A murder in Islamabad; roses sent to murderer

Posted on January 05, 2011
WSJ editorial [full text via Google News]: "Pakistan's radical Islamist parties?which have never had much success at the polls but know how to dominate a street?are now treating Taseer's killer as a hero. As for the rest of Pakistan, this is the time to honor the fallen governor by demanding the government release Ms...

US State Department worried by rising anti-Christian attacks

Posted on January 05, 2011
"MR. CROWLEY: I?d be very wary at this point about making any sweeping statements about whether what?s happened in Iraq has a bearing on what?s happening in other countries such as Egypt or Nigeria. These are all being investigated. Clearly, there are pressures on minority groups in these countries, and we would hope and expect that in ? those respective governments will fully investigate these attacks and bring those responsible to justice...

Do lesbians earn more than heterosexual women?

Posted on January 05, 2011
NYT / Bucks: "Most people are familiar with the pay gap between women and men, but here?s a gap you may not have been aware of. According to a recent post on the blog BoingBoing, lesbian women are paid more than heterosexual women."

Colleges nationwide recruit home school grads

Posted on January 05, 2011
LifeSiteNews: "As the modern-day homeschool movement confidently marches forward into its fourth decade, colleges and universities are opening wide their doors to welcome its mature, prepared graduates to their ranks. Homeschoolers score an average of 37 percentile points above the national average on standardized achievement tests and typically score above average on the SAT and ACT, statistics that apparently have caught the eye of college admissions personnel...

Obama Admin removes death panels after pro-life backlash

Posted on January 05, 2011
LifeNews: "Democrats dropped the idea during consideration of the health care law in Congress after significant public pressure and now the Obama administration has followed suit ? just days after the new rules went into effect on January 1. Though Obama administration officials cited procedural reasons for the decision, the New York Times indicates political considerations ? the enormous outpouring of opposition ? played a role...

Over two million children homeschooled in U.S.

Posted on January 05, 2011
LifeSiteNews: "In a new study released today the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI) estimates there are over 2 million children being homeschooled in the U.S. in 2010." | The NHERI research is available for download here.

Feminists up in arms over Scalia?s 14th Amend remarks

Posted on January 05, 2011
SCOTUSblog's Adam Chandler has a roundup of reactions to Justice Scalia's comments on the Fourteenth Amendment?s equal protection guarantee in a California Lawyer interview.

MI: Snyder?s pick to head agency has major Supreme Court implications

Posted on January 05, 2011
Detroit Free Enterprise: "Gov. Rick Snyder's expected appointment of state Supreme Court Justice Maura Corrigan to head the Department of Human Services could be stalled by pressure to quickly name a conservative replacement on the court, or not make the appointment at all...

Christie?s budget battle over education funding reemerges

Posted on January 05, 2011
Wall Street Journal: "One of the most controversial cases in the New Jersey Supreme Court's history will be back before justices Wednesday, as an advocate for urban-school funding challenges Gov. Chris Christie's education budget cuts. The landmark school-funding case, Abbott v...

NJ: $115K in casino fines for cheating, underage cases

Posted on January 05, 2011
Associated Press: "New Jersey casino regulators are set to hand out $115,000 in fines Wednesday to Atlantic City casinos who failed to immediately catch a cheating dealer and customer, had a malfunctioning alarm system that let a robber walk away with $8,000 after holding up a cashier, allowed someone other than the winner to fill out tax forms for five slots jackpots, and allowed underage patrons to gamble and drink...

NYT discussion: Do home schoolers deserve a tax break?

Posted on January 05, 2011
NYT Discussion: "Will the idea succeed in the new Congress, given some conservatives' longtime opposition, on the grounds that the credits might open the door to more government regulation of education? How would such a system work? Is it a threat to public education, as its critics claim?" See especially the contribution of the Home School Legal Defense Association's William A...

The Recorder: Prop 8 standing now in California Supreme Court

Posted on January 05, 2011
Ginny LaRoe writing in The Recorder (Law.com): "At oral argument, David Boies said state law should have no effect on the court's Article III standing analysis, but the judges in their per curiam order seemed to disagree . . . [i]f the state justices agree to answer the question ? they don't have to ? it could detour the appeal for months...

SCOTUSblog: Right-to-appeal issue looms in Prop 8 case

Posted on January 05, 2011
Lyle Denniston reports at SCOTUSblog: "The issue is whether the backers of so-called 'Proposition 8' have any right, under state law, to defend the measure?s validity when state officials refused to do so. Only if the state court answers 'yes' to that question would the backers of Prop...

Egypt?s Christians fear new attack on holiday

Posted on January 05, 2011
Associated Press: "Egyptian Christians say they fear a repeat attack against their community on Coptic Christmas Eve Thursday despite authorities planning heavy security following a New Year's suicide bombing of a church in Alexandria that killed 21."

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