Religion & Law

Texas sues feds over $830M in education aid

Posted on September 23, 2010
Associated Press: "Texas officials filed a lawsuit Thursday against the U.S. Department of Education, seeking to overturn the federal agency's rejection of the state's application for more than $830 million in aid that has been tied up in political wrangling...

Law Review: Canadian Church Sanctuary and the Rule of Law

Posted on September 23, 2010
Sean Rehaag, Bordering on Legality: Canadian Church Sanctuary and the Rule of Law (September 22, 2010). Refuge, Vol. 26, No. 1, p. 43, 2009. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1681043 "This paper examines church sanctuary incidents in Canada involving unsuccessful refugee claimants seeking to avoid deportation...

Law Review: Applying a Rational Approach to Judicial Independence and Accountability on Contemporary Issues

Posted on September 23, 2010
Thomas Tinkham, Applying a Rational Approach to Judicial Independence and Accountability on Contemporary Issues (September 22, 2010). William Mitchell Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2010-17. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1681100 "This article begins with a review of the purposes of judicial independence and judicial responsibility...

Chris Christie aborts Planned Parenthood, but state-funded abortion continues

Posted on September 23, 2010
Washington Examiner: "Planned Parenthood is closing doors at its Cherry Hill center in Southern New Jersey as the result of Gov. Chris Christie?s line-item veto, which cut off $7.5 million in state taxpayer funding of the organization, according to LifeNews...

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Same-sex ?marriage? gets financial boost from Wall Street led by ?Republicans?

Posted on September 23, 2010
New York Times: "With scores of first-time donors in the room, many of them from Wall Street, the AFER [American Foundation for Equal Rights] raised more than $1.2 million ? with $100,000 coming in during and after last night?s event. The reception was chaired by three Republicans: Ken Mehlman, left, of private equity giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Company; Paul Singer of hedge fund Elliott Management; and Peter Thiel of hedge fund Clarium Capital...

Fla. judge blocks GOP quest for Crist refunds

Posted on September 23, 2010
Associated Press: "Circuit Judge Jack Schoonover in Naples refused class-action certification for the Republican donors seeking refunds. That means at least 2,000 GOP contributors would have to pursue individual lawsuits to get back money they gave the Crist campaign before he became an independent...

NJ: Point Beach Council mulls alternatives to prayer

Posted on September 23, 2010
Asbury Park Press: "Four secular blessings are to be considered as alternatives to reciting the Lord's Prayer at the start of Borough Council meetings, said Kevin B. Riordan, the municipal attorney . . . One week ago, the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey filed a lawsuit on behalf of Sharon Brenner Cadalzo, 57, of Atlantic Avenue, who is Jewish and believes the prayer is an unconstitutional government endorsement of Christianity and thus a violation of her civil rights...

CO: Church?s effort to collect $1.5M from Pitkin County fails

Posted on September 23, 2010
The Aspen Times: "The Grace Church of the Roaring Fork Valley isn't entitled to $1.5 million in damages from Pitkin County for delaying construction of a place of worship in Emma, a federal district judge has ruled . . . The church claimed its rights under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act was violated ...

Unvaccinated Ind. kids barred from classes

Posted on September 23, 2010
ABC: "Northwest Indiana school systems today begin excluding students who have not yet received three new immunizations mandated by the state and federal government."

Porn creates devastating emotions in most women

Posted on September 23, 2010
Mormon Times: "For women who learn their husbands have a pornography problem, emotions come rushing in, sometimes out of the blue and other times as an explanation for behavior that was never adequately explained . . . Research shows the majority of people grappling with Internet porn are married heterosexual men with an average age of 38, according to Jill Manning, a researcher and author who has examined the impact of pornography on marital relationships...

Indonesia: Setara makes case to revise ?discriminatory? house of worship rules

Posted on September 23, 2010
The Jakarta Globe: "The Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy on Thursday outlined why a controversial decree on building houses of worship should be revised."

Malaysian tribe wins damages for church demolition

Posted on September 23, 2010
The Canadian Press: "A Malaysian court has awarded damages to indigenous villagers after ruling that authorities unlawfully demolished their Christian chapel, their lawyer said Thursday . . . The High Court ruled Wednesday that authorities had trespassed on their land and failed to honour a pledge made in 2001 to list the site as customary native land, lawyer Steven Thiru said...

WA: Muslim inmates suing Pierce County Jail

Posted on September 23, 2010
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (AP): "Two Muslim inmates from the Pierce County Jail in Tacoma are suing, claiming they are banned from practicing their religion. The lawsuit was filed this week in federal court in Tacoma with the help of the ACLU and Public Interest Law Group, The News Tribune reported Thursday...

N.Y. Judge?s second bid to retry child pornography case rebuffed by 2nd Circuit

Posted on September 23, 2010
Law.com: "Eastern District of New York Judge Jack B. Weinstein's second attempt to order a new trial for a man convicted of possession and receipt of child pornography has been rebuffed by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals . . . Weinstein had ruled last October that a 2009 circuit decision reducing the number of counts of receipt and possession of child pornography made Polouizzi's insanity defense potentially more viable and, therefore, a new trial was required...

FRC hosts symposium on relationship between economic and social conservatism

Posted on September 23, 2010
Family Research Council: "Family Research Council is hosting a symposium to discuss the relationship between economic and social conservatism on Friday, September 24 from 1-3 p.m. ET at FRC's headquarters at 801 G Street, NW, Washington, D.C. WHO: Ross Douthat, New York Times columnist; Lawrence Reed, Foundation for Economic Education president; Bob Patterson, Howard Center for Family, Religion & Society adjunct research fellow and The Family in America editor...

Moscow: Muslims may end up praying in churches?

Posted on September 23, 2010
The Institute on Religion & Public Policy: "Muslims in Moscow may be forced to pray in Orthodox churches because of a lack of mosques, though they would prefer not arrive at such an 'extreme' decision. The warning comes from the imam of the main mosque in the Russian capital Ildar Ayautdinov, responding to citizens' protests against the planned construction of a place of Islamic worship in the district of Tekstilschiki...

Governors for abstinence education

Posted on September 23, 2010
OneNewsNow: "According to a report released by the National Abstinence Education Association (NAEA), 30 governors applied for the Title V funding by the August 30 deadline. Executive director Valerie Huber tells OneNewsNow that both Republicans and Democrats accepted the funds and jointly contributed to the highest number of requests in years...

European nations reject ban on deep-sea drilling, Norwegian affluence based on it

Posted on September 23, 2010
FindLaw (AP): "Oil-producing countries on Thursday rejected a German proposal for a moratorium on deep-water drilling in the Northeast Atlantic that reflected environmental concerns after the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill."

Administration asks faith groups to do outreach on healthcare law

Posted on September 23, 2010
Politico Pulse: "With health reform?s popularity steadily slipping, top administration officials turned to faith-based groups that supported the law to do their part explaining it. On an hour-long conference call Tuesday, they outlined the Patients? Bill of Rights and asked faith-based and community groups to get the word out on the new provisions...

?Pledge to America? unveiled by Republicans (text and more)

Posted on September 23, 2010
CBS News: "CBS News has obtained a final draft of House Republicans' legislative agenda for the next Congress, a 21-page 'Pledge to America' that they will formally unveil Thursday morning at a Virginia hardware store." CBS includes a link to the text...

Robert George: Uniting social and economic conservatives

Posted on September 23, 2010
Robert George writing at American Principles Project: "My thesis is straightforward: basic shared principles should lead serious social conservatives to become economic conservatives as well. And those same principles should lead serious economic conservatives to become social conservatives at the same time...

Number of unmarried, live-in couples jumps 13% in 2010

Posted on September 23, 2010
Associated Press: "The number of opposite-sex unmarried couples who shared living arrangements jumped 13 percent this year to 7.5 million, the Census Bureau reported Thursday. That's compared to a 2 percent decrease between 2008 and 2009."

Abortion an issue among women in Senate races

Posted on September 23, 2010
Fort Wayne News-Sentinel: "An unusually large contingent of female Republican candidates with strong anti-abortion views is heating up debate on the issue and could change the political equation in the next Congress."

At the U.N., Turkey asserts intention to become leading Islamic power with close ties to Iran

Posted on September 23, 2010
"In a flurry of speeches and meetings ? and one meeting that did not happen ? the Turkish president, Abdullah Gul, defended his country?s close ties to Iran, proclaimed Turkey?s intention to become a leader in the Muslim world . . . "

CA: Transitional kindergarten is a bad idea

Posted on September 23, 2010
Katrina Trinko writing at National Review Online: "California, thanks to a bill that?s awaiting Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger?s signature, may be about to launch a program to provide 'transitional kindergarten.' The program seems harmless enough: It?s just a year of pre-kindergarten education available to children whose fifth birthday occurs in the fall ...

The sharia-compliant American left

Posted on September 23, 2010
George Neumayr writing at The American Spectator: "Vladimir Lenin said that westerners too dumb to recognize his plans to 'hang them' would 'sell me the rope -- on credit.' And they did, engaging in decades of excuse-making for Communist totalitarianism...

Doug Napier on the Janet Mefferd Show: Countering the ACLU fundraising machine

Posted on September 23, 2010
ADF Doug Napier appeared on the Janet Mefferd Show to discuss ADF efforts to counter the ACLU fundraising machine. | MP3 audio 18:50 mins | Related: ACLU announces historic fundraising success | ADFonJanet.org

Daniel Blomberg on Currents TV: Religious liberty threatened by DADT repeal

Posted on September 23, 2010
ADF Attorney Daniel Blomberg appeared on Currents to discuss the effect of DADT repeal on religious freedom. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0htIbjhyyE8

Doug Napier on the Mike Gallagher Show: Campus freedom; ACLU raises $400M; ADF University Matching grant

Posted on September 23, 2010
ADF attorney Doug Napier appeared on the Mike Gallagher Show to discuss campus freedom, the ACLU's $400 million fundraising campaign, and ADF's University matching grant. | MP3 audio 7:43 mins | Related: ACLU announces historic fundraising success | ADFonMike...

Pastors ready for third-annual Pulpit Freedom Sunday on Sept. 26

Posted on September 23, 2010
100 pastors to preach sermons involving biblical perspectives on electoral candidates, officeholders despite IRS rule muzzling speech in the pulpit

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