Religion & Law

John Eastman and Erwin Chemerinsky on the Hugh Hewitt Show: Christian Legal Society v. Martinez

Posted on February 11, 2010
John Eastman and Erwin Chemerinsky appeared on the Hugh Hewitt Show to discuss Christian Legal Society v. Martinez. The MP3 runs just over 4 minutes. 1. CLS summary: http://www.clsnet.org/center/litigation/christian-legal-society-v-martinez-uc-hastings 2...

?Escalating Evidence on Charter Segregation?

Posted on February 11, 2010
EduationNews.org: Today the Education and the Public Interest Center (EPIC) at the University of Colorado at Boulder and the Education Policy Research Unit (EPRU) at Arizona State University released a study that examines enrollment patterns in schools operated by Education Management Organizations...

Milwaukee?s Voucher Graduates

Posted on February 11, 2010
NCPA: "President Obama's fiscal 2011 budget calls for a 9 percent increase in federal education spending, and he has famously said that the money should go to 'what works' in education. So he ought to take another look at Milwaukee, where the nation's oldest and largest publicly funded school voucher program is showing academic gains, says the Wall Street Journal...

Iran to Suspend Google?s Email

Posted on February 11, 2010
Wall Street Journal: "Iran's telecommunications agency announced what it described as a permanent suspension of Google Inc.'s email services, saying a national email service for Iranian citizens would soon be rolled out."

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Iran is now a ?nuclear state? says Ahmadinejad as thousands take to the streets

Posted on February 11, 2010
Daily Mail: Iran is now a 'nuclear state', President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced this morning. He spoke as tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Tehran to mark the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution. Despite fears of violence, opposition supporters found themselves largely overwhelmed by the clerical regime and pro-government demonstrators...

Ann Coulter: ?Obama is Owned ? You Can Bank On It?

Posted on February 11, 2010
Ann Coulter writes at Townhall: "How about just punishing the guilty? The Democrats can't do that because the list of Wall Street's biggest offenders may turn out to be eerily similar to the list of Obama's biggest campaign contributors. Employees from Goldman Sachs gave more to the Obama campaign than any other organization except the University of California -- with Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase quickly following in sixth and seventh place ...

Arizona Sheriff, U.S. in Standoff Over Immigration Enforcement

Posted on February 11, 2010
Wall Street Journal: "In an interview this week, Mr. Arpaio said he would ignore Washington's effort to clip his powers and would train all of his 881 deputies to enforce federal immigration law on the streets."

Netherlands: Geert Wilders and the Death of Free Speech

Posted on February 11, 2010
Robert Spencer writes at Human Events: "Wilders has stated the problem plainly: 'I am being prosecuted for my political convictions. The freedom of speech is on the verge of collapsing. If a politician is not allowed to criticise an ideology anymore, this means that we are lost, and it will lead to the end of our freedom...

NC: County moves to block abortion insurance

Posted on February 11, 2010
ABC: "A legal tussle over abortion is developing in Wake County that could drag in cities and counties across North Carolina. Wake County Commission Chairman Tony Gurley says it's illegal for the county's health insurance plan to fund abortions for county employees - citing the 30-year-old NC State Supreme Court ruling Stam v...

AZ Lawmakers Consider New System for Judge Picks

Posted on February 11, 2010
MyFoxPhoenix.com: ". . . For each judicial vacancy, nonpartisan commissions review applications and send the three most qualified candidates to the governor, who selects one. Voters decide whether to retain judges or remove them from office. Sen. Jack Harper, R-Surprise, proposes that judges instead be nominated by the governor and confirmed by the Senate, similar to the federal system...

Alliance Defense Fund Now on Google Buzz

Posted on February 11, 2010
ADF on Google Buzz here: http://www.google.com/profiles/alliancedefensefund Learn more about Google Buzz

Okla. Senate panel approves 3 abortion bills as lawmakers seek to comply with judges? rulings

Posted on February 11, 2010
KFSM.com: "The bills dealt with the use of the RU-486 "abortion pill," prohibited abortions based on the gender of the fetus and prevented discrimination against medical employees who refuse to participate in abortions."

David French: Liberal professors and unlawful discrimination

Posted on February 11, 2010
ADF Attorney David French writing at Phi Beta Cons: "Jere Surber's "explanation" for liberal bias in the academy has touched off quite a bit of commentary, both here and elsewhere, yet not much of it has examined the issue from a legal perspective. How much of the bias is the result of systematic and unlawful discrimination? And (more important) how do we identify discrimination in the absence of overt bans on conservative applicants?"

NC: Group pledges additional $100,000 for prayer suit

Posted on February 11, 2010
Winston-Salem Journal: "A group trying to get the county to appeal a court ruling against sectarian prayer pledged $100,000 to the effort today, in addition to the $55,000 the group raised last year. ... A national group called the Alliance Defense Fund is backing the county's defense financially, but will not pay judgments awarded to the ACLU should the county ultimately lose...

Ohio House Speaker Backs Down, Will Allow Pro-Life Teen to Receive Award

Posted on February 11, 2010
LifeNews: "After an outpouring of opposition from pro-life advocates across the state, Ohio House Speaker Armond Budish will allow a pro-life teen to receive an award form the legislature."

Bishop Vasa Cautiously Concerned Over USCCB Membership in Pro-Abortion Coalition

Posted on February 11, 2010
LifeSiteNews: "Bishop Robert Vasa of Baker, Oregon has cautiously expressed concern after reports this week that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is listed as a member of a coalition that promotes homosexual 'rights' and access to abortion...

Brian Raum: Religion on trial in California marriage amendment case

Posted on February 11, 2010
" . . . the plaintiffs, who want to redefine marriage, have focused unabashedly on a systematic attack of orthodox religious beliefs."

AZ: No quickie divorce under Republican?s bill

Posted on February 11, 2010
East Valley Tribune: "Rep. Nancy Barto, R-Phoenix, the sponsor of HB2650, said she believes that requiring couples to wait 180 days will result in more people deciding they should stay together. As proof, she said the divorce rate is lower in states with longer waiting periods than it is in Arizona, where a marriage can be ended in as few as 60 days...

Kenya chiefs block Mombasa ?gay wedding?

Posted on February 11, 2010
BBC News: "Local chiefs and Kenyan officials have prevented a planned 'gay wedding' in Kenya - where such unions are illegal."

Prayer Before Public Meetings Is Common, but Practice Has Its Critics

Posted on February 11, 2010
TheLedger.com: On Sept. 7, 1774, at the request of Benjamin Franklin, the Continental Congress asked an Episcopal rector, the Rev. Jacob Duché, to give an invocation. Duché prayed for the success of the independence effort, that God would "unnerve" the hands of British soldiers and concluded with the words, "All this we ask in the name and through the merits of Jesus Christ, thy Son and our Savior...

Georgia billboard campaign says abortion makes black children an ?endangered species?

Posted on February 11, 2010
CNA: "A pro-life billboard campaign has caused controversy in Georgia for saying that black children are an 'endangered species' because of the disproportionately high abortion rate among African-American women."

Feds push for tracking cell phones

Posted on February 11, 2010
CNET.com: "Even though police are tapping into the locations of mobile phones thousands of times a year, the legal ground rules remain unclear, and federal privacy laws written a generation ago are ambiguous at best."

Kansas: ?Bill would require extra insurance for abortion coverage?

Posted on February 11, 2010
State Rep. Virgil Peck, R-Tyro, said House Bill 2564 would require people who want health insurance that covers abortion to pay extra for that and get a separate rider for their policy."

Polygamy: Mala in Se or Mala Prohibita

Posted on February 11, 2010
Rob Vischer writes at the Mirror of Justice Blog: "The fact that this practice is now forbidden to Christian believers reflects the higher standards of holiness prevailing under the new dispensation. In terms of legal language, polygamy is a mala prohibita offense, something forbidden by law in some societies but not others, rather than something evil in itself, mala in se, which all reasonable people know to be wrong ...

Illinois: ?Ban gay marriages, Republican gov hopeful says?

Posted on February 11, 2010
Chicago Sun-Times: "The GOP gubernatorial front-runner [Sen. Bill Brady (R-Bloomington)] Wednesday proposed changing the state Constitution to ban same-sex marriages, make it more difficult to pass state tax increases, impose term limits on lawmakers and overhaul the process of redrawing legislative boundaries...

Christian Leaders Urge House, Senate to Reconcile and Pass Iran Sanctions Bills

Posted on February 11, 2010
Christian Newswire: "As thousands of Iranian opposition activists take to the streets, Christian Leaders for a Nuclear-Free Iran are calling on Congress to reconcile the two versions of the Iranian sanctions bills they have passed and get a single version to President Obama's desk ...

Haitian Judge Might Free American Baptists, Sources Say

Posted on February 11, 2010
Christian Post: "The Haitian judge overseeing the case is expected to rule mid-afternoon on whether to release the ten Americans who attempted to transport 33 Haitian children to the Dominican Republic without permission."

Pontifical Academy for Life to discuss bioethics and natural law

Posted on February 11, 2010
CNA: "The Pontifical Academy for Life began its 16th plenary meeting Thursday afternoon under the theme of 'Bioethics and Natural Law.' The sessions of the congress will seek to "regain" an understanding of natural law."

Utah: ?Instead of morning prayer, gay legislator reads poem written by gay poet?

Posted on February 11, 2010
ABC 4: "But Wednesday, it was a poem instead of a prayer. And it was read by openly gay legislator, Christine Johnson who is pregnant and carrying a baby for two gay men."

Georgia: Two More Districts To Sue State Over Charter Schools

Posted on February 11, 2010
Georgia Public Broadcasting: "The State Board of Education has upheld recent approvals of charter schools by the state's Charter School Commission. That means two more school districts will be suing the state over charter school funding."

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