World Family Policy Center Newsletter
*News relative to protecting the family worldwide*
Volume 7 Issue 159 - August 31, 2007
* * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * *
Quote of the
Day: "Unless the Lord builds the house its
builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over
the city, the watchmen stand
guard in vain."
—Psalm 127:1
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Today’s Contents:
A. Featured Scholar: Scott Fitzgibbon
B. Featured News Articles
1. Judge strikes down Iowa gay marriage ban
2. Fathers Important Protection Against Poverty
3. Salvation Army Liaison Tackles Sex Trafficking
4. The Slippery Slope of ‘Hate-Crimes’ Laws
5.
Hotel Drops Porn, Invests Millions into Kid Channels
C. Coming Events
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
FEATURED SCHOLAR
Scott Fitzgibbon, Ph.D., Professor of Law,
Boston College Law School, Boston, USA
The following is an introductory paragraph from the chapter by Dr.
Fitzgibbons in the book The Family in the New Millennium, Vol. 2.
The Formless City
of Plato’s Republic: How the Legal and Social Promotion of Divorce and Same-Sex
Marriage Contravenes the Philosophy and Undermines the Projects of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The advent of no-fault divorce law, the promotion of a “divorce culture,”
the licensing of “marriages” between two men or two women, and the promotion of
homosexual couplings as a basis for rearing of children represent as drastic a
revision or deconstruction as has ever been attempted of the institution of the
family. It is not an exaggeration to say
that the United States, and much of the world, at lest the Western world, is
involved in a struggle of considerable scope as regards the nature and meaning
of marriage and the family. This chapter
presents the view that the purposes and principles of the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights invite us to join this struggle and to oppose the initiatives
of revision and deconstruction.
To obtain a copy of The Family in the New Millennium, Vol. 2
contact Praeger Publishers, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06991.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
FEATURED NEWS ARTICLES
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
1. Judge
strikes down Iowa gay marriage ban
By David Pitt, Associated
Press, August 30, 2007
Des Moines, Iowa - Less than
two hours after a judge struck down Iowa's decade-old gay marriage ban, two Des
Moines men applied for a marriage license as bride and groom, and county
officials said they expected to see more same-sex couples doing the same on
Friday
"I started to cry
because we so badly want to be able to be protected if something happens to one
of us," said David Curtis Rethmeier, 29, who was listed as the bride on
that first marriage form, with Gary Allen Seronko, 51, as his groom.
Polk County Judge Robert
Hanson cleared the way for the two men on Thursday when he ruled that a state
law allowing marriage only between a man and woman violated the constitutional
rights of due process and equal protection.
The judge ordered local
officials to process marriage licenses for the six gay couples who sued. With
the ruling, gay couples across the state can now apply for a marriage license
in the central-Iowa county.
County attorney John Sarcone
said the county would appeal to the state Supreme Court, and he immediately
sought a stay from Hanson that would prevent gay couples from seeking a
marriage license until the appeal is resolved.
To read entire article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070831/ap_on_re_us/same_sex_marriage;_ylt=AkgQ1BJyiKTiTInhnDY9d0VI2ocA
................................
2. Fathers
Important Protection Against Poverty
CitizenLink, August 30, 2007
New York mayor proposes tax
incentives to keep dads in the home.
In a speech at the National
Press Club, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said missing fathers contribute to
poverty and government should do what it can to bring them back into the home.
Bloomberg proposed
withholding tax refunds from deadbeat dads, increasing participation in the
Earned Income Tax Credit and doing away with the marriage penalty tax.
Gerald Prante, a staff
economist at the Tax Foundation, said the mayor's proposals make good economic
sense.
"The Earned Income Tax
Credit is probably one of the most highly defended anti-poverty methods in the
tax system," he told Family News in Focus.
And, Prante added,
eliminating the marriage penalty could encourage couples to stay together.
"Two single people
living together — say a single mom and a single dad, say they have the same kid
— they would be better off in some cases in filing separate returns than
getting married."
Glenn Stanton, senior analyst
for Marriage & Sexuality with Focus on the Family Action, said government
is not the best entity to address the problem of fathers leaving families in
poverty, but he said Bloomberg's proposed incentives are a step in the right
direction — although he said it will take more than a tax break to get them
home. And he emphasized that research shows cohabiting does not produce the
benefits of marriage.
"Only 10 percent of
children living with a married mother and a father lived in poverty. Those
numbers skyrocket when a child is living with his own mother and father who
aren't married," he said. "What's the difference between those? It's
simply, as some people like to call it, 'a mere piece of paper,' a marriage
license. But that marriage license really does matter and makes a dramatic
difference — between 10 percent and 28 percent — in the poverty level for
children."
To read from the source:
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000005371.cfm
.....................
3. Salvation
Army Liaison Tackles Sex Trafficking
by Jennifer Mesko,
CitizenLink, August 22, 2007
'Where the sex industry
exists, and where prostitution is tolerated, that's where you're most likely to
find victims of trafficking.'
Nearly 10 years ago, Lisa
Thompson prayed that God would give her a cause to fight for, a passion. It was
a prayer that was answered in an amazing way. Today, Thompson is the liaison
for the abolition of sexual trafficking at The Salvation Army National
Headquarters in Virginia. This week, she's touring Ohio to spread awareness. In
a phone interview with CitizenLink, she uncovers the scourge of sex
trafficking.
Human trafficking, most
people would think of it as a thing of the past. How can this be happening in
the world today?
A lot of people do think that
slavery is something that ended when we fought the Civil War. But the reality
is that trafficking, which is a route into slavery, does continue. And
actually, it's flourishing. There might be as many as 27 million people in
slavery in the world today.
Trafficking, it's really what
you can think of as a process. It's the means by which a lot of people end up in
these conditions of slavery. You have traffickers who recruit, they harbor,
they transfer, they obtain, they sell people. They might use coercion, they
might use fraud, they might force someone, they might exploit a person's
position of vulnerability. It's very important to understand that the reason
why traffickers do all of this is they have a very specific purpose — and that
purpose is exploitation.
What makes Ohio a hub for
modern-day slavery and what prompted you to go on a tour of this state?
Ohio has quite a
preponderance of sexually oriented businesses. And when you're talking about
sex trafficking, you have to make the connection between sex trafficking and
the purpose — why these women are being trafficked in the first place. They are
being trafficked for prostitution and various forms of other commercial sex.
That means you have to take a look at the various venues where sex is sold.
About a year or so ago, the
Toledo Blade ran a series about a sex-trafficking ring that was recruiting
young girls from Ohio for a prostitution network that extended well beyond
Ohio, into Pennsylvania, and to many other states. People were shocked to find
out that these pimps were recruiting and actually considered Toledo to be a
prime place for recruiting girls for their sex-trafficking ring.
The number of people being
trafficked each year appears staggering.
The Department of State has
an office to monitor and combat trafficking of persons, and they issue an
annual report which gives a global survey of trafficking. By their estimation,
800,000 people are trafficked across borders each year. In the United States,
we really don't have a good handle on the annual incidents of trafficking. We
do know that approximately 200,000 to 300,000 children are very much at risk of
being lured and recruited into sex trafficking rings. Missing children, runaway
children, children in group homes.
It's estimated that roughly
14,500 to 17,500 people are trafficked into the United States each year. It's
been estimated that anywhere from 100,000 to 150,000 people are in a condition
of slavery in the United States.
To read entire article:
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005323.cfm
.....................
4. The
Slippery Slope of ‘Hate-Crimes’ Laws
by Stephen Adams, CitizenLink,
August 29, 2007
Congress is about to take up
a bill that would establish special protections for homosexuals.
So-called hate-crimes laws
could be the textbook case of a slippery slope:
Today, it’s special
protections for homosexuals. Tomorrow it’s protections for radical Islamists.
And after that, who knows? Rotarians? Sex workers? Abortionists?
Far-fetched? Well, actually
that last one has already happened. California has had an “Anti-Reproductive
Rights Crimes” law for several years that provides stiff fines and jail time
for those who violate the rights of clients or providers of abortion services.
Does that include offensive
speech? It depends how you interpret the broader hate-crimes statute, which
includes “threats, intimidation and coercion” — all very subjective in the eye
of the beholder. So far, most prosecutions have been for things like vandalism
of clinics.
The Left likes to claim
hate-crimes laws are only for violent crimes and conservative Christians are
being alarmists to warn of the muzzling of pastors and religious expression.
But there are already plenty of laws dealing with violence. Plus, in other
countries that have adopted hate-crimes laws, “hate-speech” bans generally go
with the package.
For example:
• Ireland prohibits words or behaviors that
are “threatening, abusive or insulting and are intended or … are likely to stir
up hatred” on the basis of one’s sexual orientation.
• Iceland forbids “ridiculing, slandering,
insulting, threatening” protected classes, including homosexuals.
• Sweden’s hate-speech law bans even
expressing “disrespect.”
• In Italy, an atheist is taking a priest
to the European Court of Human Rights on a complaint of “religious racism” for
teaching that Jesus existed.
To read entire article:
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005365.cfm
..........................
5. Hotel Drops Porn, Invests Millions
into Kid Channels
Family Leader, Aug 15, 2007
LifeSiteNews.com
reports that Travelodge, one of the largest UK hotel chains, has decided to cut
out its pornography option and replace the "adult" channels with
family friendly material in order to encourage the growing
number of parents and children who stay at its budget hotels.
With
branches in Spain, Ireland and the United Kingdom, Travelodge is the
fastest growing and most recognized UK budget hotel chain, boasting a
total of 20,000 bedrooms. The company recently announced its decision to
"appeal to the ever-growing number of families" staying in its hotels
by removing the "pay per view" pornography option from its hotel room
televisions. In its place Travelodge is investing $10 million in new digital
televisions that will offer 18 free, family-friendly channels in order to
attract more families.
Travelodge's
chief operating officer Guy Parsons stated in a press release, "We have an
ever-increasing number of families staying with us and it's appropriate that we
remove adult TV." He continued, "Our other customers tell us
that they would prefer to use a hotel without adult content available so we
have responded to meet their needs."
"We
talk to our customers about all of these issues and often take the lead in
delivering what they ask for."The release also noted, "Despite losing
another potential source of sales by removing the adult channel, Travelodge
believes that this move, along with its recent pledge on a smoking ban in all
rooms will undoubtedly attract more customers in the long term."
The
number of families and children staying at Travelodge hotels have doubled since
2003. Those staying for "leisure" reasons accounts for 70% of the
customers, whereas the other 30%, comprised of people staying on business, are
thought to be the main consumers of hotel pay-per-view pornography.
"Our
other customers tell us that they would prefer to use a hotel without adult
content available so we have responded to meet their needs."
The Texas-based hotel chain, Omni Hotel, also decided to do away with
its pornography option in its North American hotel rooms in 2000 at the request
of its owner Robert Rowling.
Spokesperson for Omni Hotels, Caryn Kboudi, was reported as saying, "Our
owner Robert Rowling, felt he should not make money from adult movies. People
have choices about where they stay but for us-from a pro-family standpoint-it
wasn't right."
The
removal of adult material to increase family clientele is supported by findings
showing that easily available pornography causes a number of negative
effects in hotels.
To read entire article:
http://familyleader.net/Home/servlet/viewArticle;jsessionid=148F6E276B4AD7A01B107C660C96AE32?contentId=802&subsite=
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * *
COMING EVENTS
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * *
NINTH WORLD
FAMILY POLICY FORUM
July 7 - 9, 2008
Provo, Utah
Sponsored by the World Family Policy Center, Brigham Young
University. Participation and attendance
at the Forum is by invitation only. For
further information, contact Sarah Stewart
801-422-5192
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Note: The Featured Articles excerpts are highlights of current events
and
do not necessarily represent the views of the World Family Policy Center
or Brigham Young University.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Newsletter created and distributed by:
World Family Policy Center (www.worldfamilypolicy.org)
J. Reuben Clark Law School
Brigham Young University
Acting Managing Director: A. Scott Loveless
Newsletter Editors: Joy S.
Lundberg and Gary B. Lundberg
If you have any articles, editorials, or papers you would like
circulated through the WFPC News network, you may submit them to
lundberg@lawgate.byu.edu
If you do not wish to receive a copy of WFPC News you may unsubscribe
by sending an email to listserv@listserv.byu.edu. The subject should be
left blank and the body should read, "unsubscribe wfpc-news".