Free Republic

Yes, Virginia, there is a Christmas war -- or so the culture warriors would have us believe. It's all about "happy holidays" vs. "Merry Christmas" -- the politically correct vs. the religiously correct. One side goes too far by renaming the Christmas trees, while the other side goes overboard by attacking people who thought they were just being nice. This year the Christmas crusaders appear to be winning: holiday is out, Christmas is in. House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert got the message. By order of the speaker, the decorated tree on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol -- known...

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office initially labeled the attack on Professor Paul Mirecki a hate crime. But the office removed the title today, calling the labeling a mistake. Lt. Kari Wempe said that the error occurred Monday morning when the attack was reported. Officers wrongly transmitted the information over the police radio, she said. It is not classified as an aggravated battery. Capt. Schuyler Bailey of the KU Public Safety Office said the office met with Mirecki yesterday and told him to give them a call if anything happened on campus. The safety office is not involved in the investigation...

Key facts about the reported attack remained unclear Tuesday, including exactly where it happened. A report released by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said the location was “unknown” and listed it as south of 31st Street on either East 1400 Road or East 1500 Road. Louisiana Street turns into East 1400 Road outside the city limits. Haskell Avenue becomes East 1500 Road. Also, there was conflicting information about whether Mirecki reported it at the scene or at the hospital. In an interview Monday with the Journal-World, he said he called police from the side of the road, but sheriff’s officials...

Mirecki hospitalized after beating By Ron Knox, Eric Weslander (Contact) Originally published 05:37 p.m., December 5, 2005 Updated 06:31 p.m., December 5, 2005 Douglas County sheriff’s deputies are investigating the reported beating of a Kansas University professor who gained recent notoriety for his Internet tirades against Christian fundamentalists. Kansas University religious studies professor Paul Mirecki reported he was beaten by two men about 6:40 a.m. today on a roadside in rural Douglas County. In a series of interviews late this afternoon, Mirecki said the men who beat him were making references to the controversy that has propelled him into the...