Free Republic

"Miss Rawlins, I Need Help"In 1999 the British Labour Party, in one of those boneheaded acts that the left excels at, made a seemingly minor adjustment to it's immigration policy that doomed many thousands of young girls to death, beatings, and a nightmare life. In January 2000 The Independent reported that thousands of young U.K. Muslim girls were being forced into marriages to foreigners, primarily Pakistanis. Many of these girls were third generation Brits, with only a rudimentary understanding of their new language. The groom was often a cousin, a visa seeker--or something worse. And it is not only her...

SOMETIMES when the earth shudders it doesn’t make a sound. That’s what happened in Harrisburg, Pa., recently. On April 30, a state Superior Court panel ruled that a child can have three legal parents. The case, Jacob v. Shultz-Jacob, involved two lesbians who were the legal co-parents of two children conceived with sperm donated by a friend. The panel held that the sperm donor and both women were all liable for child support. Arthur S. Leonard, a professor at New York Law School, observed, “I’m unaware of any other state appellate court that has found that a child has, simultaneously,...

Sin City bills itself as a New York "upscale cabaret club." Don't look for it in Times Square, or even in Manhattan. It has a Park Avenue address, but in the South Bronx. And when it chooses to promote itself, it describes itself as a "Las Vegas-style cabaret." You can still have a good time in New York, of course, but it's no longer synonymous with a term like sin city, the characterization it deserved and shared at times with, among other dens of unbounded bawdiness, Las Vegas, Tangiers, and, yes, upstate Utica. These days, you can't smoke in New...

Empire State Pride Agenda executive director Alan Van Capelle described Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) as "a complete disappointment" in a memo published on The New York Observer's Politicker website, because of her opposition to same-sex marriage, and refused to "lend [his] name and sell tickets" to any fundraiser for Clinton's Senate re-election campaign.

Ban Asian marriages of cousins, says MP By Marco Giannangeli (Filed: 16/11/2005) Marriages between cousins should be banned after research showed alarming rates in defective births among Asian communities in Britain, a Labour MP said last night. The report, commissioned by Ann Cryer, revealed that the Pakistani community accounted for 30 per cent of all births with recessive disorders, despite representing 3.4 per cent of the birth rate nationwide. "We address problems of smoking, drinking, obesity and we say it's a public health issue, therefore we have to get involved with persuading people to adopt a different lifestyle," the MP...

Identifying communities of frequent churchgoers, Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist Jonathan Gruber found higher incomes and education levels and less welfare participation, along with more marriages and fewer divorces than in the general population. Comparing national statistics on religion and income, Gruber found higher income and education levels in communities densely populated by a particular religion. In communities where the church attendance rate was double that of the general population, incomes were 9 percent higher, for example.

BOSTON, June 16 - More than a year after gay marriage became legal in Massachusetts, Gov. Mitt Romney said Thursday that he would support a newly proposed amendment to the state Constitution that would overturn that right. "My view is that marriage should be defined as a relationship between a man and a woman," Mr. Romney said at a news conference, adding, "I hope that this amendment will ultimately be the one which the citizens have an opportunity to vote on." Mr. Romney's endorsement of the amendment is likely to inject new vigor into the efforts of gay marriage opponents,...

BIRDS do it, bees do it. But not necessarily all of them. Among bees the sisters of queens do not engage in sex. And in certain species of birds - Florida scrub jays, for one - some individuals, known as helpers, do not breed but only help the breeders raise their offspring. But could indifference to sex extend to humans, too? An increasing number of people say yes and offer themselves as proof. They describe themselves as asexual, and they call their condition normal, not the result of confused sexual orientation, a fear of intimacy or a temporary lapse of...

Rojda was 13 when she was raped two years ago by a neighbor in this hardscrabble Kurdish province. In order to "cleanse" her honor, she was forced to marry her attacker in an unofficial Islamic-style ceremony. He later was convicted of raping a 7-year-old boy and has been imprisoned. But Rojda's troubles were far from over, according to an account of her ordeal provided by her family and attorneys. She allegedly was raped again in March by her father-in-law, who she said demanded she prostitute herself to earn her keep. When Rojda refused, the relatives and attorneys charge, a group...

Connecticut is seriously considering giving gay couples the ability to have their relationships legalized in civil unions. A civil union bill took a critical step toward passage when it was approved, 25 to 13, by the Legislature's powerful Judiciary Committee recently, and supporters believe they have the votes in the House and Senate. Gov. M. Jodi Rell has said she supports at least the concept of civil unions. Gay rights advocates have mixed reactions, since they had hoped for a law that would give them the same rights and privileges as any married couple, and call it a marriage. Love...

OP-ED COLUMNIST Leo Tolstoy wrote a lovely novella called "Family Happiness," narrated by a young woman who goes out for a walk with a man she loves. They talk about nothing in particular - frogs, actually - but exchange looks and gestures. "He said goodbye as usual and made no special allusion; but I knew that from that day he was mine, and that I should never lose him now." They are married but grow apart. She likes parties, while he doesn't. Then one day they are sitting at home and her heart suddenly grows light. She looks around and...

UCC: "CBS, NBC refuse to air church's television advertisement" December 1, 2004 - According to a UCC press release, CBS and NBC have refused to air the new UCC television advertisement... and predictably, UCC leaders are going nuts. According to the release, CBS offered this explanation: "Because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples and other minority groups by other individuals and organizations," reads an explanation from CBS, "and the fact the Executive Branch has recently proposed a Constitutional Amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast...

the French team is confident they have identified a portion of a protein that is common to all types of HIV. It is called CBD1 and is part of the gp41 protein, which is important for helping the AIDS virus dock and infiltrate target cells. The researchers created a peptide chain, the building blocks of proteins, that corresponded to CBD1 and immunized a group of rabbits. The rabbits proved to be resistant to a range of subtypes of HIV-1.

Fearful that aggressive action could backfire and generate public hostility, gay rights groups are planning to limit the scope of their legal challenges to the constitutional amendments banning gay marriage that were passed by 11 states last week. The groups are making a temporary retreat from their most fundamental goal, winning the right for same-sex marriages, and focusing instead on those measures that addressed civil unions in some way. The groups say that broader suits seeking the right to marry could add fuel to President Bush's efforts to create a federal prohibition on gay marriage. Many of the state amendments...

The New York Times broke the media silence on the cause of Arafat's death Friday by suggesting the terrorist leader may have died from AIDS. In an article entitled "Secrecy by Aides and Silence by Doctors Persists, and What Killed Arafat Is Still a Mystery" the paper chronicled Arafat's rapid health decline and the mystery shrouding his illness. Two days before his death, aides revealed that Arafat was in a coma after having a brain hemorrhage. But the Times doubts this stroke was likely not the cause of Arafat's death. Another clue: "At the time of his medical evacuation to...

BERLIN - Germany's parliament Friday approved a bill expanding the rights of people in same-sex marriages to allow the adoption of children in some cases. Under the legislation a gay couple married under German law will have the right to adopt a child being brought into the marriage by either partner. About 5,000 homosexual couples have married in Germany and some 8,000 children are already growing up in such family structures, said German Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries. "Same sex couples are a reality in Germany," said Zypries. The new law also allows gay and lesbian couples to formally get engaged...

A Washington Times article was just pulled because the poster violated the copyright rules for our website. I was in the process of typing a response to the article and it was pulled prior to my posting. I went to the Times website and could not find it. There was something about his marriages that would be of interest to a number of Freepers, i.e., the article said he married Theresa Heinz BEFORE his first marriage was annulled. I think that may be new information. Is there a way to get this article, appropriately excerpted, back on the site.

There are speeches yet to go at the Republican Convention, as I write this. President Bush will speak tonight, and of course the most important speech given at any party convention is the one by its nominee. Still, without fear of being proven wrong, in my opinion the most powerful and evocative speech at this Convention was given yesterday. By a Democrat, Senator Zell Miller. The title which summarizes his work is just one letter different from the catch phrase made famous in the Oscar-winning performance of Peter Finch in the 1976 classic, Network. Finch played Howard Beale, the TV...

Have at him!

Rush is reporting that the docs came from the Kerry campaign and that the campaign knew that were fakes.

This is outside my usual area of discussion, but (1) living in Michigan, I was intrigued by the historic role Detroit played in John Kerry's "aid and comfort to the enemy" saga, and (2) my late father was a U.S. Marine who survived Pearl Harbor and served during both WWII and the Korean War, which means I was raised to have strong feelings about that "aid and comfort" stuff. If those Swift Boat guys remain on the ball as they have so far, I'll bet the information below eventually becomes the subject of one of their ads. It certainly should....

Michael Hoffman, of the Iraq Veterans Against the War, recently interviewed on Fox News, advocates the same violence promoted by Malcom X and finds friends among Marxist Socialists. In his strange interview on the Fox News Oreilly Factor, Hoffman said he opposed the war before it started because he knew that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction. Now just how did he know that since even current opponents of the war agreed with the President before the war that Iraq had WMDs?... Remainder of Story at: http://www.grassboots.org

Another Disgruntled Democrat <![if !supportLineBreakNewLine]> <![endif]> Betsy Newmark had "blogger withdrawal" because Blogger would not let her post all day. I had "Betsy withdrawal" because Blogger would not let her post all day. She has lots of good stuff up, so check her out. The words of this Democrat posted at Betsy's Page probably say what many Democrats are thinking. Speaking as an embarrassed and fed-up Democrat, I have to say to the national leaders of my own party: What were you thinking when you nominated this man!? Is there really no one better than this that the Democratic...

WASHINGTON (AP) — A television writer and fund-raiser for John Kerry is the first six-figure donor to a new group that is criticizing President Bush's National Guard service during the Vietnam War. Daniel O'Keefe, a writer/producer whose work includes such sitcoms as "The Drew Carey Show" and "Seinfeld," donated $100,000 this week to Texans for Truth, an Austin-based group that plans to run anti-Bush television ads starting Monday. The group spent about $100,000 on its first ad buy, an anti-Bush commercial that starts Monday in the presidential battleground states Arizona, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon and Pennsylvania. In addition to his Texans...

Bush skipped out on his National Guard duty. He also snorted coke, and was a drunk. I don’t care. He is defeating fascist Islam, and that’s all that matters. CBS is running a story showing that Bush missed some of his National Guard duty. Let me cut to the chase and spare you the spin. Let’s say that Bush skipped all of his National Guard duty, that he never even put on the uniform once. Hell, let’s say he torched his draft card and moved to Canada from 1968-1974. It doesn’t matter at all. Bush is not running on his...

Pardon, the vanity, but for those of us in the Long Island/NY area who are on the right-of-center and are familiar with the pinko-rag known as "Newsday", you will know what I mean... More baseless rantings from Newsday columnists... Political ranting is fine. Most of us interested in the political realm are us little people who go blogging and do a lot of ranting on our little political soapboxes in the 'blogosphere'. But professional columnists really need to do a little more research - especially when they are writing for major newspapers - like Long Island's leftwing, environmental rag 'Newsday'. Blind...

I am John Kerry. I was against the first Iraq war, I am against the second Iraq war, but I voted for it. Now I'm against it but I was for it. I support the UN. I'm against terrorism and against the Iraq war. But I voted for the Iraq war. So, I voted against the first war and supported the second war, wait... I'm against gay marriage but for gay unions. I support gays but think the San Francisco mayor is wrong. I support gay marriages. No, wait, gay unions. I'm Catholic. Wait, I'm Jewish. My dad was Jewish,...

WASHINGTON -- Sen. John Kerry and the Democratic Party are limiting television advertising to just 14 states as the fall campaign opens, curbing their ambitions for a broader playing field against President Bush. The shift reduces Missouri, Colorado, Arizona and four Southern states to second-tier status. The Republican incumbent is likely to follow suit, perhaps by pulling money out of those same seven GOP-leaning states and shifting it to traditionally Democratic battlegrounds.

CORUNNA, MI – Sam Burwell, third generation UAW member and autoworker, Local 362, today issued the following statement: "President Bush has presented a clear agenda for a more hopeful America and a more prosperous economy, but John Kerry has responded with nothing but cynicism and false attacks. John Kerry's plans for higher taxes, increased regulation and more government spending would devastate Michigan's economy. “Kerry's proposal for higher CAFE standards would kill 450,000 jobs and has been criticized by the UAW for its harmful impact on the American auto industry. Michiganders aren't going to trust a candidate who cares more about...

Foes fear ballot issue will take away benefits GRAND RAPIDS - At least one poll shows solid support among Michigan residents for a constitutional ban on gay marriage, but a clergyman says that doesn't guarantee voters will endorse the idea. The state Court of Appeals ruled Friday that a proposed constitutional amendment defining marriage in Michigan as a union between one man and one woman should appear on the Nov. 2 ballot. Opponents including the Rev. Doug Van Doren, pastor of Plymouth Congregational Church in Grand Rapids, fear the amendment will be used to take away benefits for same-sex partners....

"Politics in a Time of War" in the latest USNews shows liberal Sen. John Kerry on a war footing with President Bush, as a possible prelude to a presidential run by eternal hopeful Kerry in 2004. Kerry is a Vietnam War hero, as he reminds us every chance he gets. According to US News: “Democratic Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts sat at his Senate office desk next to the bullet-punctured American flag that used to fly from the gunboat he commanded in Vietnam and implied that anybody who tried to question his patriotism was going to run into a buzz...

Kerry to Bush: 'We're coming, you're going' 12:12 AM CST on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 From Wire Reports DES MOINES, Iowa – John Kerry's voice was so hoarse when he woke at 4:45 a.m. Monday that he sent stand-ins to three get-out-the-vote rallies. But by late afternoon he hopped back on his campaign bus, the Real Deal Express, saying he wanted to see undecided Iowa caucusgoers one last time to "fight for every vote." Those four words became the Massachusetts senator's political vow in the final weeks before the nation's first presidential caucuses – which Mr. Kerry won easily over...

There is a “hate crimes” bill that has already passed the U.S. Senate. The House will soon vote on the bill. If the bill passes, the ultimate result could be that it is a federal crime to publicly criticize the homosexual lifestyle. It is urgent that you contact your Representative today to oppose this dangerous “hate crimes” amendment that could lay the groundwork for persecution of Christians. Can’t happen, you say. In Canada, one cannot publicly criticize homosexuality. Because of a “hate crimes” law that includes sexual orientation, even the quoting of Scriptures that condemn homosexuality can be illegal. Because...

SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that San Francisco's mayor overstepped his authority by issuing same-sex marriage licenses this spring. The court also voided all the marriages of gay and lesbian couples sanctioned by the city. The court said the city violated the law when it issued the certificates and performed the marriage ceremonies in a monthlong wedding march that began Feb. 12, since both legislation and a voter-approved measure defined marriage as a union between a man and woman. The court, however, did not resolve whether the California Constitution would permit a same-sex marriage, ruling instead...

Lockyer: SF officials violated separation of powers in gay marriages By: LISA LEFF - Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO -- Attorney General Bill Lockyer told the California Supreme Court Thursday that in issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, San Francisco authorities violated the separation of powers doctrine by assuming for themselves "more power than the Governor, or the Supreme Court, or the Legislature." The seven justices are considering whether San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom had the legal authority to direct his administration to sanction marriages of gay and lesbians even though the state's Family Code in at least three places defines...

The rape of California Jen Shroder March 4, 2004 The people voted against gay marriage. It's the law. Yet Lady Justice has been violated, bruised and bloodied in the muck and mire of San Francisco. Mayor Newsom was the first to openly rape her, breaking the law and forcing gay marriage upon her. Floods of gay activists followed, deliberately falsifying marriage documents, ignoring the will of the people as they scratched out "bride" and "groom" on the form. The people cry out for Justice, but nobody in California hears. So far, Governor Schwarzenegger has remained on the sidelines along with...

California Gay Marriages in Legal Limbo 2 hours, 11 minutes ago By DAVID KRAVETS, Associated Press Writer SAN FRANCISCO - Many of the more than 3,000 same-sex couples who obtained marriage licenses from the city said getting married was among the most joyous events in their lives. But because of legal uncertainty and political controversy, the certificates don't appear to be worth much more than sentimental value at this point. Until the legal fog lifts, businesses being contacted by gays and lesbians seeking new benefits probably won't acknowledge their marriages. Corporate counsels, employment law consultants and human resource departments already...

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (BP)--I received an e-mail from a member of our community about a sermon I had preached concerning homosexuality. "Why do you feel you can speak with such authority on this subject when Jesus is quoted not one single time on the topic of homosexuality?" he asked. If you are a connoisseur of the cable news channels, you probably heard the same question posed to those who opposed the election of a homosexual bishop in the Episcopal Church last year or Massachusetts' supreme court declaring that "marriage" rights must be extended to homosexuals. "If Jesus had nothing to...

Primates may push for separate province Conservative primates, or national leaders, of the worldwide Anglican Communion are preparing to pressure the Archbishop of Canterbury this month to create a new province for traditionalist Anglicans, according to published reports. Some may call upon Archbishop Rowan Williams to expel the Episcopal Church of the United States (ECUSA) from the communion after it confirmed in early August the election of its first openly-gay bishop and gave tacit approval to the blessing of homosexual relationships, the reports said. The Anglican Communion consists of 38 provinces (each of which may contain one or more countries)...

Sept. 26— On your wedding day you assume you'll have a long future together filled with love, intimacy, maybe kids, and of course, sex. Cheryl Wolfe assumed sex would be part of her marriage. Watch John Stossel's full report on 20/20 this Friday at 10 p.m. She was mistaken. "Marriage was never consummated … The day we got married there was no sexual relationship at all, no honeymoon night and from that point forward — nothing," Wolfe said. She isn't alone. Marriage therapists estimate as many as 20 percent of couples are mired in low-sex or no-sex marriages, and surprisingly...

Today, the 15th of Av in the Jewish calendar, is "destined for engagements and marriages," according to Jewish tradition (Bnei Yissaschar). A record number of wedding were registered in the Jerusalem Rabbinate last night - 33 - and another 24 will be married today and tonight. Although the day has been secularized to a degree - some even call it Jewish Valentine's Day - it has been rooted in Jewish tradition for 3,300 years. The Mishna explains that on this day, which it calls one of Judaism's most festive, Jewish maidens used to go out to the fields wearing borrowed...

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush indicated Wednesday he opposes extending marriage rights to homosexuals, saying he believes marriage "is between a man and a woman." Bush said it is "important for society to welcome each individual," but administration lawyers are looking for some way to legally limit marriage to heterosexuals. "I believe marriage is between a man and a woman, and I think we ought to codify that one way or another," Bush told reporters at a White House news conference. "And we've got lawyers looking at the best way to do that."

Should gay marriages be legal? Yes or No

Bill would legalize same-sex marriages in state By COURTNEY LOWERY Gazette State Bureau HELENA -- A hearing on a proposal to legalize same-sex marriages attracted a crowd Wednesday, with one lawmaker saying the measure would solidify Montana's historic "live and let live" philosophy. Rep. Tom Facey, D-Missoula, brought the issue forward with his House Bill 607, which would strip all gender references to married partners from Montana law, leaving the door open for same-sex couples legally to marry. A similar measure did not pass during the 2001 session. Proponents of the bill, which was heard before the House State Administration...

Sexless marriages 'rampant' in Asia November 14 2002 at 11:33AM Singapore - Sex education in Asia is hobbled by social, religious, and cultural barriers, with even university-educated couples not consumating their marriages because they don't know how, experts say. There are also couples who believe a woman can become pregnant from mere kissing and cuddling, the experts attending an international congress on sexuality told a news briefing on Thursday. The lack of sex understanding in Asia runs so deep, they want a regional strategy to address the problems. "In the Asian context, there are more myths and misconceptions surrounding sexuality,...