Biblical News: 05/01/2007

Friday, May 25, 2007

Saudis arrest Christian for entering Mecca

Saudis arrest Christian for entering Mecca
By MICHAEL FREUND

Saudi officials have arrested a man in Mecca for being a Christian, saying that the city, which Muslims consider to be holy, is off-limits to non-Muslims.

Nirosh Kamanda, a Sri Lankan Christian, was detained by the Saudi Expatriates Monitoring Committee last week after he started to sell goods outside Mecca's Great Mosque.

After running his fingerprints through a new security system, Saudi police discovered that he was a Christian who had arrived in the country six months earlier to take a job as a truck driver in the city of Dammam. Kamanda had subsequently left his place of work and moved to Mecca.

"The Grand Mosque and the holy city are forbidden to non-Muslims," Col. Suhail Matrafi, head of the department of Expatriates Affairs in Mecca, told the Saudi daily Arab News. "The new fingerprints system is very helpful and will help us a lot to discover the identity of a lot of criminals," he said.

Similar restrictions apply to the Saudi city of Medina. In a section entitled, "Traveler's Information," the Web site of the Saudi Embassy in Washington states that, "Mecca and Medina hold special religious significance and only persons of the Islamic faith are allowed entry."

Lawmakers pass redefinition of 'sex'

Lawmakers pass redefinition of 'sex'
Bill threatens references to 'mom,' 'dad' at school
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By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

In a move with national implications, California's state Senate passed a bill today that establishes a new definition for "sex," threatens references to "mom" and "dad" and could restrict the presentation of scientific evidence to students.

The plan, SB 777, which actually would turn the state into a promoter for the homosexual lifestyle, is much like a bill approved by lawmakers last year but vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who said adequate legal protections against discrimination already existed.

The new measure passed on a 23-13 vote.

For more than a year, advocates for the homosexual lifestyle repeatedly have pressed lawmakers in California – which wields national influence as the biggest purchaser of curriculum – to adopt their agenda. The new plan now goes to the state Assembly, which approved a similar plan in 2006.

The newest legislation, sponsored by state Sen. Sheila James Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, a lesbian, would ban textbooks, references, teaching aids, activities, events, discussions, posters, announcements, workbooks and anything else within the public school system from anything that "reflects or promotes bias against" homosexuality, transgenders, bisexuals or those with "perceived" gender issues.

We blew sex seminar, school chief says

We blew sex seminar, school chief says
Superintendent concedes violations, then says forums will continue
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

It took multiple violations of school policy to allow a seminar at Boulder High School in Colorado to turn into an explicit sex rally in which a guest speaker told students as young as 14 to go have sex and use drugs, according to the superintendent.

However, Supt. George Garcia is defending the seminar anyway, and promised that they will continue.

"The existing partnership between the Conference on World Affairs and Boulder High School is a positive and beneficial one for engaging students in a thoughtful and thought-provoking discussion of often controversial issues," Garcia said in a statement released by the district.

Teachers rebel over atheism promotion

Teachers rebel over atheism promotion
District mandates handouts that violate religious beliefs
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Some teachers in the Albemarle School District in Virginia are rebelling against their managers' orders to hand out to students as young as kindergarten a promotion for a summer camp that advocates for "Atheists, Freethinkers, Humanists, Brights, or whatever..."

A representative of the teachers talked to WND only on condition that a name and school not be used, and said such advertisements provided by the district to hand out to children violate the teachers' religious beliefs.

It was the same school district that WND earlier reported was distributing publicity about a "Pagan Christmas ritual" being held in the community.

The newest brochure advertises Camp Quest.

A sample of the brochure district told teachers to hand out

Mosques awarded Homeland Security grants

Mosques awarded Homeland Security grants
CAIR urges Muslim clerics to cash in on federal funds
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

While the European Union investigates mosques for ties to Islamic terrorism, the U.S. government is giving mosques security grants that are designed to protect churches, synagogues and other nonprofit groups from Islamic terror.

Most recently, the Islamic Society of Baltimore landed a $15,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security to upgrade security at its Maryland mosque.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations since April has been urging leaders of mosques and Islamic schools across the nation to apply for the DHS grants, even though the agency's program was set up to help protect nonprofit facilities that are at high risk for attacks by Islamic terrorists.

'We must fine you because you're a Christian'

'We must fine you because you're a Christian'
Convert loses family, home, crops in Hindu crackdown
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

In a nation where 75 percent of the population is Hindu, there was a congregation of four Christians in his small village when Rajan expressed a faith in Jesus Christ. But that's back down to three after he lost his family and crops, and was forced to leave his home and village, because of his conversion, according to new documentation obtained by the Voice of the Martyrs.

Sources within Nepal, the mountainous nation sandwiched between India and China that holds Mt. Everest, have told the Voice of the Martyrs that the persecution campaign encompassed all parts of Rajan's life when he became a Christian.

"Hindu neighbors have dug up Rajan's cauliflower and potatoes," the VOM reported its sources confirmed. "He has lost his whole year's income."

Villagers took every opportunity to make life difficult for him, including their response when some water from his field inadvertently spilled onto a neighbor's land, the sources reported.

"He was recently fined 6,000 rupees (about $100, a large sum in Nepal), after water from his field spilled over into a neighbor's field," the VOM sources reported. "Normally, this would not be a problem, but the neighbors consider water from Rajan's field unclean because he is a Christian.

"Normally, we wouldn't fine you, but because you changed your religion and became a Christian, you need to pay 6,000 rupees," the villagers told him, according to VOM.

Armed student intervened to stop Idaho killer

Armed student intervened to stop Idaho killer
'People need to step up more, people turn their head too often'

MOSCOW -- While some people desperately dialed for help as gunfire rang out in Moscow, one young man sprang into action.

For the first time, an exclusive interview with the University of Idaho student who nearly became the fourth fatality in the Moscow massacre.

Pete Husmann, like many, heard the hail of gunfire Saturday night. Unlike most, he ventured into the night. It is a choice that nearly killed him.

In his hospital room, surrounded by family, 20-year old Pete Husmann tells an incredible tale of how his courage led him into the line fire.

Armed Intruders Break In Home, but Armed Friend Saved Family!

By ERICA ESTEP
6 News Reporter

KNOXVILLE (WATE) -- There is a new twist in the January murders of Christopher Newsom and Channon Christian. An East Knoxville woman says the suspects in the case broke into her home just a day before the couple was carjacked.

The single mother is afraid for her safety, so 6 News is protecting her identity. She lives less than a mile from the crime scene of the gruesome double murder on Chipman Street.

Her home was invaded by armed men a day before Newsom and Christian were carjacked. She says they are connected.

"I heard a big boom...they kicked...they kicked the door in."

The scuff marks are still visible where her front door was kicked in. She couldn't believe what happened next.

"I ran back into the room and they start shooting my door down," the woman says.

She says the suspects tried to get inside her bedroom. The door to the room is now ripped at the bottom.

The young mother's 13-year-old son and two friends were just a couple rooms away.

"I was screaming... ya'll stay down," she says.

But there was someone else in the house. A male friend who had a gun of his own. He shot back and the suspects took off.

ACLU condemned for 'attacking' veterans memorials (Crosses) during time of war

Jim Brown
OneNewsNow.com
May 25, 2007

A constitutional attorney says instead of thanking American veterans for their service, the American Civil Liberties Union is "dishonoring" them by attacking their memorials across the United States.

The American Legion has announced that it is teaming up with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) and Liberty Legal Institute in a campaign to fight ACLU efforts to remove religious symbols from war memorials. The ACLU has already filed suit to remove crosses at veterans' memorials, like the Mt. Soledad cross in San Diego and the Sunrise Rock cross in the Mojave Desert, which is now covered by a box.

Final preparations under way for Creation Museum grand opening

Allie Martin
OneNewsNow.com
May 25, 2007

The Answers in Genesis Creation Museum is set to open this holiday weekend. Final preparations are under way for Saturday's ribbon-cutting ceremony and media preview day at the 65,000-square-foot facility in Petersburg, Kentucky.

The Creation Museum will feature life-sized, realistic animatronic dinosaurs and humans, along with a number of videos, a special effects theater, a mini-Grand Canyon exhibit and a planetarium. The facility also includes indoor waterfalls, a special effects theatre, two miles of nature trails, and a collection of minerals and pristine fossils.

Answers in Genesis (AIG) president Ken Ham says the new museum will focus on the truth of scripture. And when visitors come to the museum, he notes, "they recognize we're not just saying 'Here's what the Bible says.' We're also saying 'and we have this evidence to back it up -- evidence from geology, and biology, and astronomy and so on.'

Pro-life activist says South Carolina ultrasound bill is useless

Rusty Pugh
OneNewsNow.com
May 25, 2007

A South Carolina bill that would have required abortionists to show women a picture of an ultrasound of their unborn child before they could get an abortion has been altered in the State Senate. In the opinion of one pro-life group, the change has rendered the bill useless.

South Carolina's House approved a bill in March that required all women seeking an abortion to be shown a sonogram before undergoing the procedure to take the child's life. However, the Senate's version of the Informed Choice Act (H 3355) drops the requirement that the abortionist show women the pictures, and puts that burden on the woman seeking the abortion.

Woodwyk says abortion providers like Planned Parenthood have an agenda, as many abortions as possible, and they don't want women to know the truth.

"They're looking at their bottom line -- it's dollars and cents. You show a woman that it's truly a baby not just a blob of tissue and they're going to say, 'I can't kill this baby.'"

U.S. joins Arab allies in aiding Lebanese army

U.S. joins Arab allies in aiding Lebanese army
Five military planes deliver supplies to battle Islamic militants

TRIPOLI, Lebanon - Military aid from the United States and Arab allies began arriving Friday after Washington said it was rushing supplies to the Lebanese army battling al-Qaida-inspired militants barricaded inside a Palestinian refugee camp in the country’s north.

Sporadic gunfire exchanges early Friday punctured the lull in the fighting as the Lebanese army continued to build up around the Nahr el-Bared refugee camp near the port city of Tripoli.

The move appeared to be either a preparation to storm the camp — a maze of narrow streets and tightly packed homes where hundreds of Fatah Islam militants are holed up — or a tightening of the siege to force them to surrender. Thousands of Palestinian refugees are trapped inside.

Images depict al-Qaida torture techniques

Images depict al-Qaida torture techniques
Pentagon-released documents reveal horrors of 'safe house'
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Editor's Note: Images in the following, and in the link, are graphic.

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The Pentagon has released graphic images that reportedly were obtained by U.S. military personnel in a raid on an Iraqi safe house, showing prescribed methods of torture for victims, including dragging a victim behind a vehicle and amputating limbs with a meat cleaver.

The images [warning, they are graphic] have appeared on the Smoking Gun website and others, and participants in a chat forum at Jihad Watch simply noted that the treatments depicted, from using a blowtorch on human skin to extracting an eye with a sharp tool, make it clear the U.S. use of any coercive methods on inmates isn't even in the same league.

"The pictures … are worth … 100,000 words in knowing the creatures behind the events," wrote Lame Cherry. "This … is what real torture looks like and not what the MSM was trying to portray in people standing in a cell naked being humiliated as 'torture.'"

Ford tops sponsors on Pro Homosexual - approved TV shows

Ed Thomas
OneNewsNow.com

A pro-family group has completed a television monitoring project that focused on recording ads and sponsors on programs reportedly named by a major homosexual support group as giving positive portrayals of that lifestyle. Ford, the automaker that's already a target of conservative and pro-family groups, has emerged as the top sponsor of those pro-homosexual programs.

American Family Association (AFA), which started the year-old boycott against Ford last spring because of its support of homosexual media and organizations through advertising and financial donations, says it has concluded a 12-week network TV monitoring project that again points to Ford's support of the homosexual agenda. AFA spokesman Randy Sharp says his group did not set out to target the automaker this time.

"Even though we've got this boycott against Ford, we weren't looking at Ford," Sharp says. "We were looking to determine beyond a reasonable doubt and through scientific methods which company was sponsoring the most homosexuality on TV."

Sharp says they chose to monitor programs identified by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) as supportive of the homosexual lifestyle, and noted the advertisers for them. During the monitoring period, advertisements were tallied for shows such as Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, and Ugly Betty on ABC; and ER and The Office on NBC.

"Without any prejudice, it was clear from the results that the Ford Motor Company was the top corporate sponsor of pro-homosexual television shows on network television," the AFA spokesman says. "Not only did Ford top the list, but they topped the list by a wide margin over the number-two company."

Ford topped the top-ten list that includes Toyota at number two, followed by AT&T and Proctor & Gamble, with Revlon and GlaxoSmithKline tied at number five.

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

25% of young U.S. Muslims OK suicide bombings

May 22 10:06 AM US/Eastern
By ALAN FRAM
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - One in four younger U.S. Muslims say suicide bombings to defend their religion are acceptable at least in some circumstances, though most Muslim Americans overwhelmingly reject the tactic and are critical of Islamic extremism and al-Qaida, a poll says.

The survey by the Pew Research Center, one of the most exhaustive ever of the country's Muslims, revealed a community that in many ways blends comfortably into society. Its largely mainstream members express nearly as much happiness with their lives and communities as the general public does, show a broad willingness to adopt American customs, and have income and education levels similar to others in the U.S.

Even so, the survey revealed noteworthy pockets of discontent.

While nearly 80 percent of U.S. Muslims say suicide bombings of civilians to defend Islam can not be justified, 13 percent say they can be, at least rarely.

That sentiment is strongest among those younger than 30. Two percent of them say it can often be justified, 13 percent say sometimes and 11 percent say rarely.

"It is a hair-raising number," said Radwan Masmoudi, president of the Washington-based Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, which promotes the compatibility of Islam with democracy.

He said most supporters of the attacks likely assumed the context was a fight against occupation—a term Muslims often use to describe the conflict with Israel.

U.S. Muslims have growing Internet and television access to extreme ideologies, he said, adding: "People, especially younger people, are susceptible to these ideas."

Federal officials have warned that the U.S. must be on guard against homegrown terrorism, as the British suffered with the London transit bombings of 2005.

'Have sex, do drugs,' speaker tells students

'Have sex, do drugs,' speaker tells students
'Men with men, women and women, whatever combination you would like'
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By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A guest speaker at an assembly at Boulder High School in Colorado has told students as young as 14 to go have sex and use drugs, prompting school officials to say they will investigate.

The instructions came from Joel Becker, an associate clinical professor of psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles.

"I am going to encourage you to have sex and encourage you to use drugs appropriately," Becker said during his appearance at the school as part of a recent panel sponsored by the University of Colorado's Conference on World Affairs.

"Why I am going to take that position is because you are going to do it anyway," he continued. "I think as a psychologist and health educator, it is more important to educate you in a direction that you might actually stick to. So, I am going to stay mostly on with the sex side because that is the area I know more about. I want to encourage you to all have healthy, sexual behavior."

WND also has reported on similar assemblies that have been used by schools to promote homosexuality, including one where parents were banned from the event, and a second where WND reported school officials ordered their 14-year-old freshman class into a "gay" indoctrination seminar after having them sign a confidentiality agreement promising not to tell their parents.

MOVIE SCUM GLORIFY SEX WITH HORSES; CANNES CROWD AGOG

Bestiality flick shocks Cannes
22/05/2007 12:42 - (SA)

Cannes - A semi-documentary about a group of US men who had sex with horses has taken the title as the most shocking movie at the Cannes film festival.

But while Zoo has drawn big, curious crowds at its screenings, the real unsettling quality about the movie is its approach: it depicts the men in a sympathetic light, one that tries to push the viewers to understanding their sexual perversion.

The documentary - in which actors recreate non-explicit scenes under audio interviews with some of the men involved - centres on a true-life incident.

In July 2005, a 45-year-old man died of internal bleeding after being anally penetrated by an Arabian stallion during a bestiality weekend in the US state of Washington.

The victim, a Boeing engineer working on top-secret defence projects named Kenneth Pinyan, suffered a perforated colon.

The ensuing investigation led police - and eventually much of the national media - to the farm where the interaction took place, outing the other members of the group.

Independent filmmaker Robinson Devor shies away from prurient imagery, instead enveloping the story in rich photography that gives it a dreamlike beauty overwhelming the sordidness of the subject matter.

Pictures of students doing drugs in yearbook spark outrage

JEFFERSON COUNTY - There are a number of things Karen Marshall does not like about her daughter's Conifer High School yearbook. Three pages in particular; pages 13, 33 and 71.

"On page 13, they have students smoking pot and using drug paraphernalia," she said. "I just don't want to see any more people get hurt or die and this book is actually helping towards the delinquency of minors."

It was just over a week ago that two Conifer students died when their Jeep rolled off the road.
The Colorado State Patrol believes drugs may have played a role in that crash.

Monday, the yearbook advisor, Amy McTague released a statement apologizing to the students, staff and community for the controversial images and quotes.

She says she discussed the photos at length with her editor and they agreed that some of the elements are completely inappropriate. She goes on to say "these issues detract from the many wonderful things that are included in the book."

Photos on three pages of the book show teens smoking marijuana, drinking and proudly displaying their minor in possession citations.

"There are some things in the yearbook I don't feel like I can defend," Conifer High Principal Pat Termin said, adding some parts of the book crossed the line.

"We didn't do the right thing in some of the activities we portrayed," she said. "I'm certainly not oblivious to messages here that we have this section in the yearbook that some students believe it was important for them to illuminate. I think it's an issue the community needs to examine."

Ex-KGB Agent Accused in Litvinenko Death

Ex-KGB Agent Accused in Litvinenko Death

May 22 08:45 AM US/Eastern
By TARIQ PANJA
Associated Press Writer

LONDON (AP) - Prosecutors accused a former KGB agent Tuesday of murder in the radioactive poisoning of fellow ex-operative Alexander Litvinenko and sought his extradition from Russia. The case is sure to challenge already-tense relations between London and Moscow.

Andrei Lugovoi had met with Litvinenko at a London hotel hours before the former agent turned Kremlin critic fell ill with polonium-210 poisoning. Lugovoi has repeatedly denied any involvement in interviews with the police and media.

A top deputy to Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett summoned the Russian ambassador to seek Moscow's cooperation in the case, but the Russian prosecutor-general's office said it will not turn over Lugovoi to British authorities.

"In accordance with Russian law, citizens of Russia cannot be turned over to foreign states," spokeswoman Marina Gridneva said in remarks broadcast on the NTV television channel. "A citizen of Russia, committing a crime on the territory of a foreign state, can, upon presentation of material by this state, can be brought to criminal responsibility, but only in Russia."

The politically charged case has driven relations between London and Moscow to post-Cold War lows. Prime Minister Tony Blair's spokesman said Britain had an extradition agreement with Moscow.

"Murder is murder; this is a very serious case," Blair's spokesman said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with government policy. "The manner of the murder was also very serious because of the risks to public health."

Litvinenko, 43, died Nov. 23 after ingesting the rare radioactive isotope. On his deathbed, he accused President Vladimir Putin of being behind his killing. The Russian government denies involvement.

Christian college claims discrimination in state grants

Christian college claims discrimination in state grants
Generic awards given to students attending anywhere but this school
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Posted: May 22, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A court ruling that a generic state college grant isn't available if you go to a particular Christian college will be appealed to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the school said.

Former U.S. Sen. Bill Armstrong, R-Colo., now president of Colorado Christian University, said the decision from federal district court that the school is "pervasively sectarian" so students do not qualify for state grant programs is just wrong.

"This is blatant religious discrimination," Armstrong told WND, as well as a violation of the 1st and 14th Amendments.

U.S. District Court Judge Marcia Krieger has ruled that the state constitution forbids the use of state funds to support religious schools, declaring the ban imposed on CCU by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education "is narrowly tailored to accomplish the state's compelling interest in complying with the anti-establishment clause of its own constitution."

'Anti-war vet' charged with fraud

'Anti-war vet' charged with fraud
Claimed he 'slaughtered' hundreds of civilians in Iraq
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Posted: May 22, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A man who claimed in an anti-war video to have "slaughtered" hundreds of civilians while serving with the Army Rangers in Iraq faces federal charges of falsifying his record.

Jesse MacBeth, 23, alleged in a 20-minute production by a 1970s antiwar activist he personally killed 200 civilians, many of them at close range, while on patrols with the Army Rangers during 16 months in Iraq before being discharged due to wounds.

But MacBeth's discharge form contradicted his claims, showing he never went to Iraq and was kicked out of the Army after six weeks at Fort Benning, Ga., because of his "entry level performance and conduct."

The complaint in U.S. District Court in Seattle charges him with one count of using or possessing a forged or altered military discharge certificate, and one count of making false statements in seeking benefits from the Veterans Administration, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

U.S. OKs talks with Syria, Gives green light to Israel to negotiate Golan Heights withdrawal

Report: U.S. OKs talks with Syria
Gives green light to Israel to negotiate Golan Heights withdrawal
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Posted: May 22, 2007
1:19 p.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – The U.S. has given Prime Minister Ehud Olmert the green light to negotiate with Syria regarding an Israeli retreat from the Golan Heights, according to diplomatic sources quoted today by Israel's Haaretz daily newspaper.

The Golan Heights is strategic mountainous territory looking down on Israeli and Syrian population centers twice used by Damascus to launch ground invasions into the Jewish state.

According to Haaretz, the Bush administration granted Israel permission to discuss vacating the Golan, but Washington reportedly stipulated Olmert must not agree to any negotiations, even indirectly, regarding a change in the U.S. position toward Syria.

The U.S. largely has attempted to isolate Damascus, which is accused of aiding the insurgency against U.S. troops in Iraq and generating instability in Lebanon.

Monday, May 14, 2007

Rev. Jerry Falwell dead at 73 Taken to hospital after being found unconscious in his office

Rev. Jerry Falwell died at 73
Taken to hospital after being found unconscious in his office
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Posted: May 15, 2007
1:28 p.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Rev. Jerry Falwell, founder of the Moral Majority and Liberty University, died today after being found unconscious in his office and taken to a hospital.

Falwell, 73, was found unconscious at about 10:45 a.m. after missing an appointment this morning, according to Ron Godwin, executive vice president of Liberty University.

He was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital, the News & Advance of Lynchburg reported.

Godwin said he didn't know what caused the collapse but pointed out Falwell had "a history of heart challenges."

"I had breakfast with him, and he was fine at breakfast," Godwin said. "He went to his office, I went to mine and they found him unresponsive."

Bio: Jerry Falwell

Bio: Jerry Falwell
Tuesday, May 15, 2007

A biography of Jerry Falwell:

The Rev. Jerry L. Falwell, television evangelist who was among the leaders of the so-called Religious Right — a movement that emerged in the late 1970s with the goal of getting Christian fundamentalists involved in politics.

Falwell's organization, the Moral Majority, was credited with helping elect Ronald Reagan president and with moving the Republican Party further to the right on social issues. The group's influence subsequently waned, however, and Falwell disbanded it in 1989.

Falwell was born on Aug. 11, 1933 in Lynchburg, Va.

From an early age, he excelled in school, graduating at the top of his high school class.

He was also a talented athlete. Falwell entered Lynchburg College in 1950 with the intention of earning a degree in mechanical engineering.

After becoming a born-again Christian in his sophomore year, Falwell transferred to Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri. Around the same time, Falwell turned down an offer to play for the St. Louis Cardinals major-league baseball team.

Dead Taliban Leader Was Training U.S. Recruits

Dead Taliban Leader Was Training U.S. Recruits
May 14, 2007 5:03 PM

Brian Ross and Christopher Isham Report:

Thirty-six hours before he was killed by U.S. forces, Taliban Commander Mullah Dadullah said he was training American and British citizens to carry out suicide missions in their home countries, according to a videotape interview to be broadcast on ABC News' "World News" Monday.

"We will be executing attacks in Britain and the U.S. to demonstrate our sincerity," he told an Afghan interviewer, "to destroy their cities as they have destroyed our cities."

A senior U.S. official told the Blotter on ABCNews.com that recent intelligence reports confirmed Dadullah's claim that U.S. citizens were being trained in Taliban and al Qaeda camps.

"The number is small, not large, but even once is dangerous," the official said.

In the interview, Dadullah said, "This is our religious and moral duty to train suicide bombers against the nuclear power of the infidels, and they will be used when they are needed, whether they are one, 10 or 20."

A day and a half after the interview, U.S. forces carried out a helicopter assault on Dadullah's hiding place in Afghanistan's Helmand Province. Dadullah's bullet-riddled body was put on display by Afghan officials to confirm he was dead.

The Terrorist Next Door

The Terrorist Next Door

By John Jessup
CBN News
May 14, 2007

CBNNews.com - In the beginning, concerns about terrorism were limited to sleeper cells, foreign agents of al-Qaeda, or other terror networks that made their way into the U.S. and were laying low until ordered to strike.

But counterterrorism is changing and - increasingly - investigators are looking within American borders for the so-called "terrorist next door."

"The trend we're seeing is that we are uncovering more instances of people here who have been radicalized … where there is not a direct thumbprint of al-Qaeda," USA Today quoted John Miller, the FBI's assistant director for public affairs.

Up until now, authorities have uncovered approximately a dozen cases involving homegrown terrorists.

The most recent incident of homegrown terror involved a plot to kill soldiers at Fort Dix.

"I think this highlights and emphasizes the threats we face in our new world," said Ray Kelly a Fort Dix, New Jersey commissioner.

Additionally, there is also the case against José Padilla in federal court Monday.

The former Chicago gang member and two others are accused of supporting Islamic extremists around the world.

Officials told USA Today these cases reveal a disturbing trend: Several of the accused plotters are American-born citizens who converted to Islam.

Investigators now believe there is a growing threat of U.S.-based Islamic terrorists who are operating with no connection to al-Qaeda or other terrorist groups.

Homosexuals head to court to demand marriage rights

Stephanie Reitz - Associated Press Writer
OneNewsNow.com
May 14, 2007

HARTFORD, Conn. - Connecticut's civil unions law, the first in the nation passed without court intervention, faces a stern test in the state Supreme Court.

Eight homosexual couples say the state's refusal to grant marriage licenses violates their constitutional rights and denies them the financial, social and emotional benefits of marriage.

A ruling in their favor could have nationwide implications for states that have adopted or are considering civil union-like legislation. Connecticut in 2005 passed a civil unions law, which state officials say gives same-sex couples the equality they seek.

The court takes up the issue Monday.

Currently, only Massachusetts allows same-sex couples to marry. Connecticut, Vermont, California, New Jersey, Maine and Washington have laws allowing either civil unions or domestic partnerships. Hawaii extends certain spousal rights to same-sex couples and cohabiting heterosexual pairs.

Debate over God's existence shed light on anti-Christian bias in society, says evangelist

Debate over God's existence shed light on anti-Christian bias in society, says evangelist

allie martin
OneNewsNow.com
May 14, 2007

Evangelist Ray Comfort says last week's debate between himself, fellow Christian Kirk Cameron and two atheists was a unique opportunity to present the message of salvation to millions. The debate was moderated by Nightline host Martin Bashir and broadcast on ABCnews.com, with highlights played on the show.

The debate was taped in New York City by ABC's Nightline and was billed as a battle to prove the existence of God. During the debate, Comfort was able to present the biblical plan of salvation by using God's moral laws, the Ten Commandments, to show the reality of sin and mankind's need to accept Christ's payment.

During the debate, both Comfort and Cameron used creation, DNA, the conscience and conversion to prove God's existence, while the two atheists spoke of evolution as proof that God does not exist. However, Comfort has recently launched a website on intelligent design versus evolution, which looks at the facts.

"On that site, we offer $10,000 for anyone who can offer any living transitional forms," the evangelist points out. "So it's just another interesting site people can go to," he says, "to see how evolution is a fairy tale for grownups. There's no scientific evidence for evolution whatsoever."

Afghan 'super-madrassas' built by U.S. military

Afghan 'super-madrassas' built by U.S. military
'We have to give the religious leaders the respect they feel they deserve
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Posted: May 13, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

In a move that echoes the hearts-and-minds strategy of the Vietnam War, the U.S. military is planning to build two "super-madrassas" in Afghanistan in an effort to win over religious leaders and to convince parents not to send their children to madrassas in Pakistan run by Islamic extremists.

The planned super-madrassas, under construction in the border town of Paktika, Afghanistan, will accommodate 1,000 boys each, the London Telegraph reported.

Madrassas – Islamic religious schools – provide not only religious education, but room and board for children. During the period when the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, most conventional schools were closed down. For many parents, the choice has been between a religious education or no education at all.

For many in the border regions, the madrassas of Pakistan have been the only option. Those schools, often under the control of hardline clerics, have often been little more than incubators for hatred against the West and, at times, recruiting centers for jihad.

Christians use debate to offer proof of God

Christians use debate to offer proof of God
ABC broadcasts matchup with 'Rational Response Squad'
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By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Christian evangelist Ray Comfort and former child actor Kirk Cameron have used a televised debate with a pair of atheists to present the Gospel message to an audience estimated in the millions.

"I'm very, very encouraged," Comfort told WND after the first part of the 90-minute program was broadcast at ABCNews.com. A shortened version of the program was aired on the network's "Nightline" as well.

"I don't think you can argue people into the Kingdom of Heaven," Comfort said. "It's a moral issue. People love their sins and they're going to hold onto them. But we're talking about eternity and it's not to be trifled at."

But he said he takes seriously the biblical instructions to preach the word. "Our agenda is just to preach the Gospel, to make a very clear Gospel proclamation that people can understand," he said.

As WND reported, the idea for the debate developed after several atheists launched the Internet site Blasphemy Challenge, which offers to send people a DVD if they post on Youtube.com a video of themselves condemning themselves to hell.

The self-described "Rational Response Squad" said its DVD, "The God Who Wasn't There," was described by the Los Angeles Times as "provocative – to put it mildly."

"There's only one catch: We want your soul," the website said. "It's simple. You record a short message damning yourself to Hell, you upload it to YouTube, and then the Rational Response Squad will send you a free 'The God Who Wasn't There' DVD."

"You may damn yourself to Hell however you would like, but somewhere in your video you must say this phrase: 'I deny the Holy Spirit,'" the website instructed. "Why? Because, according to Mark 3:29 in the Holy Bible, 'Whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.'"

ABC told of the website and the hundreds of responses in a story, getting Comfort's attention.

He contacted the network and offered a debate challenge to the atheists.

He was given 13 minutes in the debate to present his proof of God, and he used the simple illustration of a soda can. Holding it up, he asked if there had been a design and manufacture process to reach that stage – a cylindrical container with a message printed on the outside and a product on the inside.

If so, there must have been a designer and maker, he concluded.

He said a similar proof is available with a painting: Take a dozen scientists into a lab and show them a painting, then ask whether there was, in fact, a painter, he said. Looking at the creation the world is documents the Creator, he said.

"You cannot have a creation without a Creator," he suggested.

He also offered the proof of a conscience, which every person has, and third, a conversion.

"The greatest truth is when God reveals himself to you," he said.

He said the underlying problem was significant. "There is something more sinister here than a few people not believing in God," he said. "Why would so many be so bitter against Christianity in particular?

"Why aren't they making videos that blaspheme Buddha or Muhammed or Gandhi?" he asked. "We made our own video clip and posted in on Hollywoodblasphemy.com to expose why."

The debate was moderated by Martin Bashir.

ABCNews said the taping, which took place last weekend, was done before "a mixed crowd of atheists and Christians at Calvary Baptist Church in Manhattan.

"It wasn't long before temperatures began to rise inside the auditorium," ABCNews said.

How to outlaw Christianity (Step 1) Exclusive: Chuck Norris slams atheistic agenda

How to outlaw Christianity (Step 1)
Exclusive: Chuck Norris slams atheistic agenda

Posted: May 14, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

This past week which pitted popular theists against Internet atheists. While I'll have more to say about that battle of wits in my next article, it testifies to the growing number (30 million Americans) of those who profess there is no God. Add to that what I believe is possibly three times the number of those who believe in a God but practically don't show it, and America is facing a new religious horizon in which atheism is becoming a formidable foe.

Though the majority of Americans continue to claim to be Christians, discovered 45 percent of us would support an atheist for president, 55 percent would support a homosexual candidate and 72 percent would support a Mormon candidate.

Such a survey is a clear indication that most Americans are simply confused about what it means to be Christian. It also shows that the secularization of society is alive and well, especially when almost half would endorse an atheist president.

The opponents of God

Once upon a time, years ago, it seemed that the only major fire for atheism burned from the anti-Christian work of Madelyn Murray O'Hair and the American Atheist organization, whose claim to fame was the banning of prayer and Bible reading in public schools in 1963.

Today many more antagonist groups and individuals to theism abound, and they are using every means possible for global proliferation – from local government to the World Wide Web. Such secular progressives include the Institute for Humanist Studies, Secular Coalition of America, American Atheists, American Humanist Association, Internet Infidels, the Atheist Alliance International, Secular Student Alliance, Society for Humanistic Judaism, Freedom From Religion Foundation, Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, etc. Of course no list of atheistic advocates would be complete without mentioning the ACLU and Planned Parenthood, as well as the anti-God militancy of men like Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris.

Though the U.S. Constitution outlaws religious discrimination, these organizations and individuals would love nothing more than to help society look with distain upon Christianity and, ultimately, make its components illegal. In fact, right now, they are coalescing and rallying at least 5 million of their troops to mount counter offensives to Christianity.

For that reason I believe theistic patriots need to be wise to atheists' overt and covert schemes, exposing their agenda and fighting to lay waste to their plans.

Step 1: Initiate restrictions and legislation against theism and Christianity

In God we bust

For these liberal groups to win the war of ideological dominance, they know they must minimize the effects of Christianity, which many are doing (unbeknownst to others) behind the scenes through lobbying and legislation. In fact, two significant actions occurred on the National Day of Prayer just two weeks ago!

Bush avoids 'Christianity' at Jamestown celebration

Bush avoids 'Christianity' at Jamestown celebration
Makes no mention of directions to 'propagate' Gospel of Jesus
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Posted: May 13, 2007
6:54 p.m. Eastern

By Joe Kovacs
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

President Bush commemorated America's 400th anniversary during a ceremony at the Jamestown Settlement in Virginia today, but made no specific mention of the Christian faith, the spread of which was the primary purpose for creation of the settlement.

"The story of Jamestown will always have a special place in American history," Bush said. "It's the story of a great migration from the Old World to the New. It is a story of hardship overcome by resolve. It's a story of the Tidewater settlement that laid the foundation of our great democracy."

As WND has reported, the Jamestown settlement, which predated the Plymouth, Mass., Pilgrims by 13 years, was founded with the primary instruction from King James of England that its members propagate the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This year is the celebration of the 400th anniversary of that founding.

"Today we celebrate that moment as a great milestone in our history," Bush said, "yet the colonists who experienced those first years had little reason to celebrate. Their search for gold soon gave way to a desperate search for food."

"I am just floored with the president's behavior," said one WND reader, who was anxious to see if Bush would mention the Christian heritage.

'Gay' cowboy love scenes 'traumatize' schoolgirl, 12

'Gay' cowboy love scenes 'traumatize' schoolgirl, 12
Family sues district for $500,000 after 'Brokeback' shown in class
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Posted: May 13, 2007
5:26 p.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A 12-year-old girl who says she was traumatized when her teacher showed the film "Brokeback Mountain" featuring love scenes with homosexual cowboys is suing the Chicago Board of Education for $500,000.

"What happens in Ms. Buford's class stays in Ms. Buford's class," is what the substitute teacher told eighth-grade students at Ashburn Community Elementary School after showing the R-rated movie, according to a lawsuit filed Friday in Cook County Circuit Court.

According to reports, the student, Jessica Turner, claims she suffered psychological distress after watching the movie, which stars Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal as two cowboys who fall in love and includes love scenes between the two men and between the men and their wives.

"It is very important to me that my children not be exposed to this," Turner's grandfather and guardian, Kenneth Richardson, told the Chicago Tribune. "The teacher knew she was not supposed to do this. ... It's like I told the principal, she should have better control over her teachers."

World Watch: Updates on the Global Church

World Watch: Updates on the Global Church
By CWNews

CWNews.com – Christian World News brings you updates on the church around the globe in our World Watch segment.

Iraq Christians Flee Persecution

CWNNews.com - In Iraq, nearly half of that country's Christians may have fled the country because of persecution from radical Muslims.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom says that the Iraqi Christian community should be protected or resettled.

Christians make up about just three-percent of Iraq’s 26-million people.

Many churches are now almost empty, as the faithful have fled or are afraid to attend services.

Some Islamic insurgents call Christians "Crusaders."

Group distributes 'Know Your Rights' guide to illegal aliens

Chad Groening
OneNewsNow.com
May 14, 2007

An immigration reform organization is calling an immigrant advocacy group to task for distributing guidebooks instructing illegal aliens how not to cooperate with federal authorities during job-site raids.

According to the Washington Times, the guidebooks are being distributed by a group known as CASA of Maryland Incorporated, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization formally known as Central American Solidarity and Assistance of Maryland. The book, which contains cartoon-like drawings, is the product of CASA working with other organizations.

The book lists what rights people who are not citizens of the U.S. have when they are detained by immigration agents, served with a warrant, or charged with a crime. The book also urges them to remain silent if they are arrested, and even refuse to provide authorities with any information about their immigration status.

Hindus force Christians to 'reconvert'

Hindus force Christians to 'reconvert'
Attack is just a part of increasing worldwide antagonism
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© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Hindus have confronted a group of Christian evangelists, forcing them into a nearby village temple to perform a ritual to "reconvert" them to the Hindu religion, according to a new report from the Voice of the Martyrs which is documenting some of the increasing persecution by Hindus around the world.

While this most recent physical attack was reported by VOM sources inside the Indian state of Orissa, other attacks – albeit verbal – also have reached into the United States.

WND recently reported that Hindus have been launching a series of attacks against Christian organizations dedicated to promoting the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

A report from the Hindu American Foundation accused a long list of Christian organizations, including some providing aid in India, of promoting hatred.

Thursday, May 10, 2007

New York state jail to hire Muslim chaplain

New York state jail to hire Muslim chaplain
Decision follows furor over pastor who distributed anti-Islamic cartoons

NEW CITY, N.Y. - The county jail where a Christian minister handed out anti-Islamic cartoons announced it will hire an imam for its Muslim inmates.

The Rockland County Jail also said it will provide religiously appropriate food.

Rockland Undersheriff Thomas Guthrie said Tuesday that the imam will work one day a week, joining the jail’s priest and rabbi.

The Christian chaplain, the Rev. Teresa Darden Clapp, was suspended with pay last month after inmates complained she was passing out anti-Islam booklets.

Gaza clan (army of islam) admits holding BBC reporter

Gaza clan admits holding BBC reporter
'Army of Islam' demands Britain free Muslim prisoners
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Posted: May 9, 2007
12:24 p.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – A group controlled by a family clan in the Gaza Strip today announced it is holding kidnapped BBC reporter Alan Johnston, posting a photo of his identity card and demanding the release of an Islamic cleric who is being held in a British jail after being accused of supporting terrorism.

The Army of Islam, headed by the powerful Gaza-based Dugmash clan, released a recording demanding the British government immediately free "our prisoners and particularly Sheik Abu Qatada the Palestinian in exchange for Johnston."

Abu Qatada, a Jordanian of Palestinian origin, is accused of having links to terror groups and is currently awaiting deportation to Jordan from Britain.

WND first reported last month senior Palestinian security officials believed Johnston was being held by the Dugmash clan.

The Dugmash statement released today included an al-Qaida-style diatribe against the West, posting a slideshow of images from the war in Iraq, Muslim prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and Western soldiers praying before a cross. Islamic music plays in the background, and pictures glorifying Abu Qatada are shown repeatedly.

Fort Dix 'terrorists' smuggled into U.S.?

Fort Dix 'terrorists' smuggled into U.S.?
Reports suggest 3 brothers accused in plot have no record of 'regular border crossing'
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Posted: May 9, 2007
5:30 p.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Three brothers held in connection with an alleged terror plot at Fort Dix, N.J., may have been smuggled across the southern U.S. border, according to broadcast reports.

Dritan "Anthony" or "Tony" Duka, 28; Shain Duka, 26; and Eljvir "Elvis" Duka, 23, were in the United States illegally.

According to Fox News, "Because the three men entered the United States without inspection, there is no legal record of their entry. A federal law enforcement source said the three entered the United States near Brownsville, Texas, in 1984. They would have been children at the time, ranging in ages from 1 to 6. The source said there is no record of them entering though a regular border crossing, so they are investigating whether they were smuggled into the country."

Brothers Charged in Terror Plot Lived Illegally in U.S. for 23 Years

FORT DIX, N.J. — Three brothers charged in the alleged Fort Dix terror plot have been living illegally in the U.S. for more than 23 years and were accepted as Americans by neighbors and friends who had no idea they would scheme to attack military bases and slaughter GIs.

A federal law enforcement source confirmed to FOX News that the three — Dritan "Anthony" or "Tony" Duka, 28; Shain Duka, 26; and Eljvir "Elvis" Duka, 23 — also accumulated 19 traffic citations, but because they operated in "sanctuary cites," where law enforcement does not routinely report illegal immigrants to homeland security, none of the tickets raised red flags.

The brothers entered the United States near Brownsville, Texas, in 1984, the source said, which would put their ages at 1 to 6 when they crossed the border.

The source said there is no record of them entering by way of a regular border crossing, so they are investigating whether they were smuggled into the country.

The brothers plus three other suspects in the alleged plot — Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer, 22; Serdar Tatar, 23; and, Agron Abdullahu, 24 — were ordered held without bail for a hearing Friday.

Five were charged with conspiracy to kill U.S. military personnel; the sixth, Abdullahu, was charged with aiding and abetting illegal immigrants in obtaining weapons.

Four of the arrested men were born in the former Yugoslavia, one was born in Jordan and one came from Turkey, authorities said. Three were in the United States illegally; two had green cards allowing them to stay in this country permanently; and the sixth is a U.S. citizen.

Federal investigators are now checking whether the latter three lied on their immigration paperwork to remain in the United States.

How clerk played key role to expose Fort Dix terror plot

By Wayne Parry
The Associated Press

FORT DIX, N.J. — Ever since Sept. 11, U.S. authorities have asked the public to be vigilant, urging, "If you see something, say something."

In January 2006, a store clerk in New Jersey saw something.

A group of men had brought him a video showing them firing assault weapons and chanting "God is great!" in Arabic. They wanted him to dub the footage to a DVD.

So the clerk called the Mount Laurel Police Department, which in turn contacted the FBI.

As a result, six men from Yugoslavia and the Middle East were charged Tuesday with plotting to slaughter scores of American soldiers at Fort Dix and perhaps other military installations in the Northeast.

FBI agent J.P. Weis saluted the unidentified Mount Laurel store clerk as the "unsung hero" of the case.

The suspects' images and words were captured on more than 50 audio and video recordings. Their comings and goings were recorded by law-enforcement agents who monitored the alleged plot for 15 months, hoping more terror ties would become apparent.

The defendants, all men in their 20s, include a pizza deliveryman suspected of using his job to scout out Fort Dix. They sought "to kill as many American soldiers as possible" in attacks with mortars, rocket-propelled grenades and guns, prosecutors said.

"Today we dodged a bullet. In fact, when you look at the type of weapons that this group was trying to purchase, we may have dodged a lot of bullets," Weis said.

Terror Suspects Tried Dubbing Tape at Circuit City

By Cathy Gandolfo

FORT DIX, N.J. - May 9, 2007 - There are new details about the clerk whom the FBI is crediting for exposing the terror plot.

The suspects allegedly tried to have a video transferred onto a DVD at the Circuit City on Nixon Drive in Mount Laurel.
Circuit City officials confirm that an employee at the store alerted local police in January 2006.

He was concerned about the images being transferred from videotape to DVD.

According to the federal complaint, the video shows 10 men, including the six now under arrest. On the tape, they called for jihad and yelled 'God is great' in Arabic.

While praised by law enforcement, the tipster's name has not been made public.

Terror Suspect Called Bin Laden 'His Uncle Benny'

Terror Suspect Called Bin Laden 'His Uncle Benny'

Maddy Sauer Reports:

One of the men suspected of helping the plotters of a terror attack on Fort Dix would jokingly refer to Osama bin Laden as "his Uncle Benny," a co-worker told WPVI, the ABC News affiliate in Philadelphia.

"He used to make jokes about how the U.S. government could not find his Uncle Benny," Bob Watts, who worked at a Shop Rite bakery with Agron Abdullahu, told WPVI's Dann Cuellar.

Watts also told WPVI that Abdullahu would bring in recipes for making bombs that he had downloaded from the Internet, and that he would experiment with homemade explosives that he used to remove tree trunks.

United Nations attacked for spreading Christianity

United Nations attacked for spreading Christianity
Terrorists claim international group is 'converting Muslims under cover'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – A deadly attack yesterday against a United Nations school in the Gaza Strip was carried out by an Islamist extremist group, according to a statement faxed to WND claiming the U.N. was targeted because the international body was "spreading Christian missionary activity."
"The UN is spreading Christian missionary activity. We will keep hitting them and trying to kill them. They are trying to convert our Muslims under the cover of an international organization," said the statement, signed by the group Jihadia Salafiya.

Until now, Jihadia Salafiya has operated in Gaza as an Islamic outreach movement seeking to make secular Muslims more religious, but the overall leader of the organization, Abu Saqer, confirmed to WND today his organization recently opened what it called a "military wing" to target individuals, establishments and groups it claims are "corrupting Islam."

One person was killed yesterday when unidentified attackers hurled grenades at a U.N.-run school in the Gaza Strip after announcing on loudspeakers they were angry over the participation of boys and girls in a sports event.

Starbucks markets more 'anti-God' coffee cups Company welcomes national dialogue despite boycott threat by some patrons

Starbucks markets more 'anti-God' coffee cups Company welcomes national dialogue despite boycott threat by some patrons

Posted: May 9, 20078:38 p.m. Eastern
By Joe Kovacs© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Coffeehouse giant Starbucks is standing by its campaign to put thought-provoking messages on its coffee cups despite a national uproar and threat of boycott over a message some felt was "anti-God."

Controversy erupted this week after a customer became steamed reading a quote that stated:

"Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength and help? As cognitive beings, why would we ask something that may well be a figment of our imaginations for guidance? Why not search inside ourselves for the power to overcome? After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to endure."

The quote was written by Bill Schell, a Starbucks customer from London, Ontario, Canada, and was included as part of Starbucks' "The Way I See It" campaign to collect different viewpoints and spur discussion.

A WND story posted Sunday afternoon publicizing the cup became a hot topic on national radio shows this week including Rush Limbaugh and Laura Ingraham.

One reader, Ken Peck of Lakeland, Fla., has since purchased a coffee with another message he felt was a slam against his Christian faith, and snapped a photograph of it.

The message reads:

Heaven is totally overrated. It seems boring. Clouds, listening to people play the harp. It should be somewhere you can’t wait to go, like a luxury hotel. Maybe blue skies and soft music were enough to keep people in line in the 17th century, but Heaven has to step it up a bit. They're basically getting by because they only have to be better than Hell. -- Joel Stein, columnist for the Los Angeles Times.

"There's absolutely no reason to put that out on a cup," Peck told WND. "From a marketing standpoint, it blows me away. I don't put a picture of Christ of my business card."

Peck says the issue has energized him to push for a boycott of Starbucks in favor of other local coffeehouses in Polk Co., Fla.

"Everyone I've shown the cup to has been flabbergasted, whether they have a faith in Christ or not," he said.

Seattle-based Starbucks, meanwhile, is making no apologies about the God-related messages, nor its campaign.

"We are committed to this program," Starbucks communications manager Tricia Moriarty told WND, noting that quotes about matters of faith make up only a small fraction of the printed quips.

Why Americans need to carry guns

FIREARMS AND FREEDOM
Why the Second Amendment is more important than ever
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Although the constitutional "right to keep and bear arms" is often ridiculed as an archaic relic from America's past, the May issue of WND's acclaimed Whistleblower magazine shows why private gun ownership is actually more crucial to Americans' freedom and security today than at any time in history.

Titled "FIREARMS AND FREEDOM: Why the Second Amendment is more important than ever," this eye-opening and spine-straightening Whistleblower edition documents how the contentious issue of gun rights – considered by many to be the linchpin of all Americans' rights – is dramatically coming to a head:

The string of horrendous mass murders in "gun-free zones" – most recently at Virginia Tech, and before that October's slaughter of Amish schoolgirls in rural Pennsylvania as well as similar massacres at other schools around the nation – has fueled a furious debate over gun control, "gun-free zones" and "lax gun laws."

Just like the Virginia Tech massacre, most violent crimes cannot be stopped by police, but only by citizens present during the commission of the crime. And research now shows conclusively that armed, law-abiding citizens have a huge impact on deterring and stopping violent criminal acts.

Meanwhile, with terror attacks up 25 percent worldwide in the last year and top U.S. leaders confirming that major, devastating attacks on innocent Americans are inevitable, the armed and observant citizen is now absolutely essential for protecting America's communities from terror attacks.

Alongside the increased focus on private gun ownership, a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., has now ruled that the decades-old handgun ban in the nation's capital is unconstitutional and a direct violation of the Second Amendment. That case, in turn, has set the Second Amendment on a direct course to the United States Supreme Court, which has largely avoided the gun issue for decades.
"FIREARMS AND FREEDOM" digs up and reports all the amazing and little-known developments in this debate – and then cuts to the core issues in a powerful and compelling way.

"Only one thing could have stopped the Virginia Tech disaster," says WND Managing Editor David Kupelian. "Imagine Cho Seung-Hui walking into a classroom, threatening people with his guns, making them line up, preparing to shoot them. Now freeze-frame that scene and think for a moment: There isn't anyone or anything in this world that could have stopped Cho in his tracks at that point and averted the hellish slaughter that followed – except a single student or professor with a firearm, trained to use it effectively and responsibly."

Friday, May 25, 2007

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Monday, May 14, 2007

Thursday, May 10, 2007

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