Religion & Law

Sen. Mitch McConnell: Americans want us to focus on jobs

Posted on September 30, 2010
The Hill's Congress Blog: "If Americans needed any further proof that Democrats haven?t been listening to them, this past week has provided all the evidence they need. Americans want us to focus on jobs, and our friends on the other side focused on preserving their own jobs and spending more taxpayer dollars...

Supreme Court looks at military funeral protests

Posted on September 30, 2010
Associated Press: "The court is set to decide whether members of a fundamentalist church in Kansas who picketed Matthew's funeral with signs bearing anti-gay and anti-Catholic invective have a constitutional right to say what they want."

Poll: Rubio leads Crist big in Fla. Senate race

Posted on September 30, 2010
Associated Press: "Rubio, a tea party favorite, was favored in the three-way contest by 46 percent of 1,151 voters surveyed by Quinnipiac University between Sept. 23 and 28. The poll was Quinnipiac's first limited to the likely voters for the Nov. 2 general election and claimed a margin of error of plus or minus 2...

The race is on in Wisconsin to determine abortion policy agenda

Posted on September 30, 2010
Wisconsin Family Action: "This state-level targeting is a relatively new political strategy employed by liberal activists?called the Colorado Model?and outlined in detail in the book The Blueprint: How the Democrats Won Colorado (And Why Republicans Everywhere Should Care) ...

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Alan Sears: Ignoring the evidence supporting Prop. 8

Posted on September 30, 2010
"The district court . . . simply ignored the controlling legal precedent and the pile of evidence that dominates the trial record."

KY: Mayfield panel to reconsider permit for mosque

Posted on September 30, 2010
The Courier-Journal: "The Mayfield Board of Zoning Adjustments will meet Oct. 12 to discuss a request from the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky to reconsider its denial of a permit for a mosque." For more information, see this ADF Alliance Alert compound tag: http://www...

40,000 Nigerian women found in Mali ?slave camps?

Posted on September 30, 2010
Business Day: "Up to 40,000 Nigerian girls are being forced to work as prostitutes in Mali 'slave camps', Nigerian officials have said. The girls have often been promised jobs in Europe but ended up in brothels in the capital or mining towns, said the government?s anti-trafficking agency...

Illinois: Green Senate candidate backs marriage redefinition

Posted on September 30, 2010
Chicago Tribune (AP): "Green Party candidate LeAlan Jones says he would vote to legalize same-sex marriage if he's elected to the U.S. Senate."

MA: Public hearing on adult entertainment Tuesday night in Lynn City Hall

Posted on September 30, 2010
Lynn Journal: "After weeks of discussion and study the Lynn City Council is set to discuss an ordinance intended to severely restrict adult entertainment in the city. A public hearing will be held Tuesday evening in city hall."

Page affirms GOP Pledge on life, marriage

Posted on September 30, 2010
Baptist Press: "The president-elect of the Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee [Frank Page] is applauding a new Republican document that opposes taxpayer funding of abortion and stands up for 'traditional marriage,' and he says he longs for the day when both major parties take such stances...

David French: Who?s anti-intellectual?

Posted on September 30, 2010
ADF Attorney David French writing at Phi Beta Cons: "Professor Pannapacker is correct that professors 'have become increasingly condescending, sanctimonious, and shrill' because they shut down the marketplace of ideas on campus. Large segments of the population are hungry for knowledge, but less hungry for the postmodern, race/gender deconstruction that dominates much of academic thought...

Greg Baylor: CLS v. Martinez discussion at Duke Law School

Posted on September 30, 2010
ADF Attorney Gregory S. Baylor writing at Speak Up Movement / University: Today I participated in a panel discussion at Duke Law School regarding the Supreme Court?s decision in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez. The event was sponsored by the Federalist Society...

Study: Birth control pills appear to remodel brain structure

Posted on September 30, 2010
Scientific American: "[T]here are millions of cases of steroid use that occur daily with barely a second thought: Millions of women take birth control pills, blithely unaware that their effects may be subtly seeping into and modulating brain structure and activity...

Castle won?t run in Delaware

Posted on September 30, 2010
Washington Times: "Rep. Michael N. Castle, Delaware Republican, said he will not pursue the state's U.S. Senate seat as a write-in candidate . . . 'While I would have been honored to represent Delaware in the U.S. Senate, I do not believe that seeking office in this manner is in the best interest of all Delawareans...

More activists band together to fight child sex trafficking

Posted on September 30, 2010
USA Today: "A crackdown on child sex trafficking is being pushed by a growing movement of women's groups, celebrities, human rights activists and state officials . . . In New York City last week, actors Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher announced their 'Real Men Don't Buy Girls' campaign against child sex trafficking at the Clinton Global Initiative meeting...

Bill to protect CA against ?threat? of new TX curriculum vetoed

Posted on September 30, 2010
Christian Post: "Calif. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has vetoed a bill seeking to ensure that recent changes to Texas? social studies curriculum in no way affect California?s. In his veto message Tuesday, the governor said he was returning [Senate Bill 1451] without his signature because it 'is duplicative and unnecessary...

Military physicians oppose abortion mandate

Posted on September 30, 2010
National Catholic Register: "Christian physicians in the U.S. military are concerned that Congress may soon vote to require them and their colleagues to participate in elective abortions at U.S. military bases domestically and overseas . . . The bill, which was rejected by all 41 Republican senators in September due to concerns over the military abortion provision and other controversial items it included, will be brought up for another vote after the midterm elections...

The Obama Administration?s approach to RLUIPA: Not very different from the Bush and Clinton Administrations

Posted on September 30, 2010
Marci A. Hamilton writing at FindLaw: "[I]n this column I will reference RLUIPA for a different reason: to reflect on the disappointments of the Obama Administration . . . when it came to choosing between fidelity to the Constitution's church/state line and catering to religious interests, Obama has chosen religious interests over constitutional principles...

VA: Manassas pursues rules for sexually oriented businesses

Posted on September 30, 2010
Washington Post: "The Manassas City Council gave city staff members the go-ahead Monday to draft regulations for adult businesses in Manassas and hire legal experts, one of whom will help determine what, if anything, city officials can do about an adult store set to open next month in Old Town...

At TN mosque hearing, plaintiffs claim Islam isn?t a religion

Posted on September 30, 2010
Talking Points Memo: "Opponents of a proposed mosque in Murfreesboro, Tenn., spent the last two days arguing in court that Islam is not a religion and that the leaders of the mosque -- which has been in the town, in a different location, for decades -- preach jihad and a Sharia law takeover...

Netherlands to ban the burqa, says anti-Islam MPs

Posted on September 30, 2010
AFP: "The Netherlands will ban the burqa and halve immigration under measures agreed in a pact to form a minority coalition government, anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders announced Thursday."

NY Dems use abortion to mobilize base against GOP

Posted on September 30, 2010
WWLTV (AP): "In the race for a U.S. Senate seat once viewed as a possible Republican pickup, incumbent Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand pressed the issue Wednesday against Republican Joe DioGuardi. DioGuardi, a former congressman, is a longtime abortion foe, though his campaign says he recognizes exceptions in the case of rape or incest or if a mother's life is in danger...

PA: Stowe man charged with assault of unborn child

Posted on September 30, 2010
The Mercury: "A West Pottsgrove man was arrested following a domestic incident early this morning and charged with that incident, as well as an incident in July where he allegedly punched his then-girlfriend in the stomach when she was five months pregnant with their child, according to court papers...

Hong Kong Catholics say prayer meeting blocked

Posted on September 30, 2010
Boston.com (AP): "Roman Catholic activists accused Hong Kong's government on Thursday of trying to block an upcoming prayer meeting aimed at showing solidarity with underground believers on the Chinese mainland."

Sioux City pastor responds to calls for IRS investigation

Posted on September 30, 2010
"Christians 'do not and cannot recognize, with regard to the definition of marriage, the imaginary authority of the Iowa Supreme Court. . . ."

KY: Lap dances, nudity to end at Louisville strip clubs

Posted on September 30, 2010
Fox 41: "After years of legal battles, big changes are coming to Louisville strip clubs. The adult entertainment ordinance will soon be enforced . . . The ordinance requires dancers to stay at least six feet away from customers and they must be on at least an 18-inch platform...

Indian teacher moved to safety as parents threaten for spreading Christianity

Posted on September 30, 2010
Haveeru: "An Indian female teacher suspected of spreading Christianity among Shaviyani atoll Foakaidhoo students was moved to safety after parents tried to cast her out of the island."

Scotland: Police pledge preferential treatment for ?hate crimes?

Posted on September 30, 2010
The Christian Institute: "Police officers in Scotland should treat crimes against homosexuals and minority groups more seriously than general crimes against the public, according to controversial new 'hate crime' guidance."

UK MP: Labour can?t afford not to engage with faith

Posted on September 30, 2010
MP Stephen Timms writing in The Guardian: "The number of people in Britain who identify with religious faith ? who see faith as the starting point for thinking about the world and their judgments about right and wrong, indeed as the key to their whole identity ? remains very large...

Iowa: National group asks IRS to investigate Sioux City church

Posted on September 30, 2010
Des Moines Register: "Americans United for Separation of Church and State alleges that Cornerstone World Outreach, a Sioux City congregation, is sponsoring a church-based campaign to unseat the justices. The campaign violates a federal ban on political activity by tax-exempt groups, the group said in a statement...

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