Issues - links
Gay Groups Renew Drive Against ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
The three young men who tried to enlist at an Army recruiting station here appeared to be first-rate military material. Two were college students, and the other was a college graduate. They had no criminal records. They were fit and eager to serve at a time when wars on two fronts have put a strain on American troops and the need for qualified recruits is great. But the recruiter was forced to turn them away, for one reason: they are gay and unwilling to conceal it.
Sep 14, 2006
Topic: Family, Sexual Purity, Homosexuality, Citizenship, National
Baylor Survey of Religion
BSR-Baylor Survey of Religion
American Piety in the 21st CenturyAmerican Piety in the 21st Century
Most survey studies that include questions about religion only have space to ask about basic religious indicators such as church attendance and belief in God. This is understandable, as most surveys are focused on other topics such as crime or politics and space is at a premium. ISR has received a major three-year grant from the John M. Templeton Foundation, to conduct a nationally representative multi-year study of religious values, practices, and behaviors. After several years devoted to development and pretesting by Baylor faculty, the Baylor Religion Survey (BSR) was fielded during the winter of 2005 and the data were made available for analysis in the spring of 2006.
Sep 13, 2006
Topic: Family, Pop Culture, Citizenship, Christian Citizenship, Church and State, National, Religious Liberty
Americans May Be More Religious Than They Realize
Americans May Be More Religious Than They Realize
Many Without Denomination Have Congregation, Study Finds
By Michelle Boorstein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, September 12, 2006; A12
A survey released yesterday posits the idea that the United States — already one of the most religious nations in the developed world — may be even less secular than previously suspected.
The Baylor University survey looked carefully at people who checked “none” when asked their religion in polls. Sociologists have watched this group closely since 1990, when their numbers doubled, from 7 percent of the population to 14 percent. Some sociologists said the jump reflects increasing secularization at the same time that American society is becoming more religious.
But the Baylor survey, considered one of the most detailed ever conducted about religion in the United States, found that one in 10 people who picked “no religion” out of 40 choices did something interesting when asked later where they worship: They named a place.
Sep 12, 2006
Topic: Family, Pop Culture, Citizenship, Church and State, National, Religious Liberty
Immigration Movement Struggles to Regain Momentum Built in Spring Marches
For a moment, it sounded like one of the spirited crowds from this past spring. There, at the foot of the Capitol, flag-waving immigrants chanted and cheered and warned lawmakers in Congress to take notice. But this time, only a few thousand people protested, not the hundreds of thousands that organizers had expected at the rally here on Thursday.
Sep 11, 2006
Topic: Citizenship, Immigration, Legislation, National, Social Issues
To Hold Senate, G.O.P. Bolsters Its Most Liberal
With a barrage of television advertisements and the mobilization of its get-out-the-vote machine, the national Republican Party has lined up in Rhode Island to beat back a conservative primary challenge to the most liberal Republican in the Senate, Lincoln Chafee. The outcome on Tuesday could help determine whether Democrats have a shot at taking back the Senate.
Sep 11, 2006
Topic: Citizenship, Legislation, National
‘Embryo-Safe’ Experiment Just Another Fraud
None of the 16 embryos involved in the study by medical director Robert Lanza of Advanced Cell Technology (ACT) survived. All were harmed; none were viable; none were spared.
Sep 7, 2006
Topic: Life, Stem-Cell Research, Science
ON RADIO: An Absurd Invitation
On today’s broadcast, Dr. Land comments on the absurdity of the National Cathedral’s invitation to former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami. He’s been asked to speak at the cathedral on how Abrahamic faiths can promote peace, despite his abysmal human rights record. Hear all this and your phone calls on today’s For Faith and Family.
* Former Iranian President to Speak at the National Cathedral – uscirf.govSep 6, 2006
Topic: Citizenship, Church and State, Human Rights, Persecution, Religious Liberty, War
Sounding retreat
Urban legend has it that populations of wild rodents known as lemmings periodically commit mass suicide by throwing themselves off cliffs. In fact, these critters do no such thing. It remains to be seen, however, whether American voters will this fall do the functional equivalent of the lemming leap: electing politicians who seductively promise retreat from a strategy of forward defense, thus imperiling large numbers of our countrymen abroad and possibly at home.
Sep 5, 2006
Topic: Citizenship, Legislation, National
G.O.P. Sets Aside Work on Immigration
As they prepare for a critical pre-election legislative stretch, Congressional Republican leaders have all but abandoned a broad overhaul of immigration laws and instead will concentrate on national security issues they believe play to their political strength.
Sep 5, 2006
Topic: Citizenship, Immigration, Legislation, National
New Questions Emerge Over Stem-Cell Research Claims
Controversy continues to build over a claim that biotechnology researchers produced stem cells without harming embryos, as outside scientists question whether a fundamental element of the reported experiment undercuts the central contention of the research.
Sep 5, 2006
Topic: Life, Stem-Cell Research, Science