Free Republic

HARRISONBURG, Va. (AP) — Eight persons are charged with conspiring to obtain bogus Ohio identification cards for illegal immigrants in Virginia and elsewhere, a federal prosecutor said yesterday. U.S. Attorney John L. Brownlee said the fraudulent IDs apparently were intended to help the illegal immigrants obtain employment and avoid deportation. "There is no terrorism at all," Mr. Brownlee said. "This is an immigration case." Four defendants are from Ohio: two employees of a state Bureau of Motor Vehicles office in Columbus and two interpreters who served as brokers for the conspiracy, according to an indictment handed up by a federal...

Putting Faith into Action The Forum invites you to participate in the following three events next month aimed at promoting faith, family, and freedom in our communities. It's a great way to start the New Year. For further information and reservations, email family@valleyfamilyforum.org or call 438-8966. · “Capstone” (Jan. 10 – March 13): This is a series of seminars on how to help reverse the moral decline in our culture and promote Biblical values in public policy. Resources include materials from Focus on the Family and field trips to Richmond and Washington. Sessions are held at Lake Shenandoah each Thursday...

SARASOTA COUNTY -- It was spring break on Siesta Public Beach, and these college students were living it up. Shirts were off. Bikinis and sunglasses were on. Lounging on their towels after a long game of Frisbee, a few of them reached into their cooler for some nice, cold peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, apples and carrots. "It's my last one," said Steve Christner, 21, a senior on spring break from Eastern Mennonite University. "So I'm really trying to soak it up." Sarasota gets a small share of Florida's spring breakers, and many are Mennonite students looking for a good...

HARRISONBURG, Va. (AP) - A 200-pound black bear charged into a home and went on a 40-minute rampage, attacking a dog and damaging a basement guest room as it tried to claw its way out. Rosie, a 3-year-old blue heeler, was treated by a veterinarian for puncture wounds, but her owners were not injured. Karla Irving said that when she let Rosie out Saturday night, she heard the dog barking and caught a glimpse of something small scurrying in the darkness. Her eyes followed a bear cub up a tree, and when she looked back down she saw more movement.

HARRISONBURG, Va. - A 200-pound black bear charged into a home and went on a 40-minute rampage, attacking a dog and damaging a basement guest room as it tried to claw its way out. The dog, Rosie, was treated by a veterinarian for puncture wounds, but her owners were not injured. Karla Irving said that when she let Rosie out Saturday night, she heard the dog barking and caught a glimpse of something small scurrying in the darkness. Her eyes followed a bear cub up a tree, and when she looked back down she saw more movement. "I think the...

HARRISONBURG - For years, the signs literally had been everywhere.Violent street gangs were gaining a presence in the Shenandoah Valley, and members were scrawling signature graffiti on buildings and bridges. But esoteric markings of letters and symbols meant little to local police beyond vandalism.Then, last year, authorities discovered in Shenandoah County the body of a young woman with ties to a violent Central American gang.Brenda Paz was a member of the violent Mara Salvatrucha or MS-13, living in witness protection last year and set to testify against members of MS-13 in a Northern Virginia murder case. Paz was abducted from...

E&P has learned that two major newspapers, both in the stable of William Dean Singleton, will do "flip-flops" on Sunday: the Denver Post, which backed Al Gore in 2000, will endorse President George Bush, while the Los Angeles Daily News, which backed Bush in 2000, will come out for Kerry. This reflects Singleton's stated avowal that local papers in his MediaNews empire can make up their own minds on endorsements. Singleton is known to be a strong supporter of Bush. The fact that he has become publisher of the Post probably explains it's change of heart since 2000. But this...

Christian college to discuss firings for homosexual acts By the Associated Press Published April 12, 2004 HARRISONBURG, Va. -- Eastern Mennonite University President Loren Swartzendruber has agreed to meet students to discuss the dismissal of two professors for homosexual acts and the resignation of another in protest. Swartzendruber agreed to attend the forum Tuesday at the request of a small group of students at the Christian school. "We will not tolerate bigotry, poor language, inappropriate comments about persons of any sexual orientation," he said. Eastern Mennonite is a private school founded in 1917. Most of its 1,400 students are...

Church relief agency disburses last of 9-11 grants From "NewsDesk" Date Fri, 24 Oct 2003 17:27:04 -0500 Oct. 24, 2003 News media contact: Linda Bloom7(212) 870-38037New York ALL-RM-I{509} By Linda Bloom* STAMFORD, Conn. (UMNS) - The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, have given United Methodists a new awareness of what it means to be prepared for a disaster. That's why one of the last round of grants to be approved from the denomination's "Love in the Midst of Tragedy" fund will be invested in the Seminars on Trauma Awareness and Recovery (STAR) program sponsored by Church World Service...

HARRISONBURG, Va. - Sculptor Gary Casteel has suggested the Upper Shenandoah Valley as a good location for a national Civil War memorial.Casteel pitched the memorial as a tourism draw as well of a place of reverence during a meeting recently with the Civil War subcommittee of the Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance, a nonprofit group working to revitalize Harrisonburg's city center."It was sort of a surprise for me and the group," said Eddie Bumbaugh, executive director of the organization.The subcommittee had been focusing on a series of signs providing information on the downtown's Civil War history, he said. Bumbaugh also said Casteel's...

Groups question validity of Va. law Sodomy law ruling sparks Va. debate The Texas court decision that overturned laws banning sodomy in private coincides with indictments in Virginia alleging public sodomy. By MATT CHITTUM THE ROANOKE TIMES When the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Texas anti-sodomy law in June, its ruling came in the middle of a three-month investigation by Harrisonburg police of alleged public sodomy at a city adult bookstore. Laws banning private sodomy are unconstitutional, legal minds quickly agreed, but the government can still prosecute for sodomy in public. So, three weeks after the ruling, Harrisonburg Commonwealth's Attorney...