Students For Life has released a new book, Courageous, that highlights the stories of 12 pro-life students and will serve as inspiration and encouragement for others to stand up against abortion.  Students around the country must deal with a constant barrage of pro-abortion messaging on campus.  Due to the fact that the majority of abortions in America are performed on college-aged women, they are actually targeted by Planned Parenthood.  According to Students For Life, 47% of women enter college pro-life but only 27% of them remain pro-life at graduation; a stunning statistic.  Despite the odds against them, the pro-life movement is overflowing with students who are working hard to end abortion.

Courageous begins with the story of Jason Jones, producer of the award-winning pro-life film Bella and Founder and President of Movie To Movement; an organization that seeks to change the culture of Hollywood by producing and promoting films that have positive messages and goals.  While his work in the pro-life movement is amazing, it is his personal story that is so moving it truly deserves it’s own movie.  To be quite honest, if I ever have the honor of meeting Jones, I will likely break down in tears and give the man a hug.  I don’t want to give anything away, but it is easy to see why the book starts with Jones.  Not only will the reader find Courageous impossible to put down from the beginning of Jones’ narrative, at one point he echoes what surely must go through the mind of every pro-life student: “You mean there’s a group? There are more of us?”  To the relief of Jones and the reader, there are more students with hearts for life and their stories are just as inspiring as his.

From Jones, we move to Rebekah Berg’s story that starts with rape and the subsequent abuse by her rapist.  Berg became pregnant as a result of the rape and her account of what she endured to keep her baby is the very definition of courageous.  With pro-choicers so often pointing to “the exception” of rape in defense of abortion and considering the fact that many Americans are swayed by their illogical argument, Berg’s experience is a powerful testimony of the truth concerning those babies conceived in circumstances beyond their control.

Courageous goes on with stories from students ranging from a med student to a pro-life male student to a post-abortive mom, who’s struggle to come to terms with her abortion is heartbreakingly similar to thousands of other women who’ve endured the same pain.  Fortunately, her story doesn’t end there and neither does the book.  As author and President of Students For Life Kristan Hawkins explains:

I can’t tell you how many times women have said to me that they wouldn’t have had their abortions if only one person had encouraged them not to.  Only a few kind words could have saved her baby.  And you can do that, you can be that person or you can help empower a young person or someone else to do it on your behalf.

The time is now to engage and engage courageously, because surrender is not an option.

The pro-life movement has never been stronger than it is today and, with books like Courageous providing stories of hope, the next generation may very well be the one to end the current Holocaust that has endured for far too long.

Students For Life is participating in the March For Life and will be hosting the Students For Life of America National Conference on January 26th.  Details can be found here.

It is troubling that the Democratic National Convention has decided to promote and lend its name and national political platform to the organizers of the “Jummah at the DNC”. The leaders of this event – Jibril Hough and Imam Siraj Wahhaj as advertised are no moderates. They are radicals. These individuals embrace Islamist supremacy and have demonstrated support for radical ideologies.

A quick Google search by the DNC would have shown them that Hough and Wahhaj are leaders in the separatist American Islamist movement. While they may be able to get a few thousand Muslims to attend the event, they are NOT going to be mainstream Muslims.  Most will likely come from Hough and Wahhaj’s radical networks that have long been entrenched in the Charlotte area. Make no mistake they are part of the Islamist movement.

This is not about their right of assembly; this group under a different name pulled the same stunt at the US capitol in 2009 claiming 20k and getting 2-3k. THIS IS ABOUT the DNC calling this an “official function” listing these radicals as typical of the DNC community and more importantly about this organization speaking out AS representing supposedly typical American Muslims (or “Mainstream”).

If that is who the DNC is consorting with then all Americans, Democrats should be concerned. There are many patriotic Muslims who are part of both parties, and when radical ideologues like this do a demonstration of “solidarity” in the name of our faith and choose an imam like Siraj Wahhaj who I saw with my own eyes in 1995 seditiously say it his duty and our duty as Muslims to replace the US Constitution with the Quran- then we need to speak up!

Their jummah (group) prayer is supposedly against the Patriot Act, the NYPD, and Islamophobia and is actually NOT about our democracy but about empowering their Islamist and MB (Muslim Brotherhood) sympathetic groups into the very fabric of the political system so that Americans become anesthetized. We need American Muslims to speak up and marginalize these radicals. The DNC needs to understand and reject them because of their radical history and ideas.

They use our American Muslim identity to speak as “one community” as a political unit or as a “bloc vote” – a political Islamist party when in fact most us Muslims don’t want that political unity and seek reform against their ideology that seeks to hijack our community. They do not represent us. (emphasis mine)

In fact, Zuhdi Jasser is correct, Jibril Hough and Imam Siraj Wahhaj have said and done radical things in their past.  Which means either the Democrats failed to utilize due diligence or they simply didn’t care.  In addition to the Muslims being misrepresented, Democrats and Charlotteans also have a right to know how the DNC has failed them before they even arrive in Charlotte.

Jibril Hough may be a name many in Charlotte are familiar with already.   He is the leader of a Sunni mosque, The Islamic Center of Charlotte, who is been known for being outspoken against Representative Sue Myrick – a North Carolina Republican member of the House Intelligence Committee.  Beyond calling her plan to fight against jihadist activity in America “a fear campaign” and the “new McCarthyism (or Myrickism)”, he confronted her in a Muslim Town Hall he organized in 2010.  According to Jasser, the language used by Hough as his Town Hall was strikingly similar to that of the Muslim Brotherhood when he stated, “As citizens of a non-Muslim country and as American Muslims, we have a contract with America and not a contract on America. This means that we must abide by the laws of this state and we cannot be at war with this state.”  As Jasser points out, “note the deep seeded separatism in this ‘we’ mindset. Basically he is saying that this system of laws is not his or the Muslims he represents but they will follow it-for now.”  Further, Hough commented on his support of laws that would mandate “Muslim” behaviors for American-Muslims, but wouldn’t affect nonMuslims; again Jasser notes Hough’s separatist tone that mimics political Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood mindset, which supports “separate legal paths for each faith” instead of “one law based in reason”.  Jibril has also stated he is the North Carolina head of the Islamic Political Party of America(IPPA), based in Charlotte, who in a 2002 press release claimed the Jews were behind 9/11.  As if that weren’t enough, IPPA is close to another organization known as Jamaat Al Muslimeen (JAM), The Islamic Peoples Movement, who (in addition to being Holocaust deniers) had this advice for President Obama:

He should ensure that those Muslims he talks to do represent authentic Islam. All Islamic movements oppose America’s policies. If Obama talks to Muslims who support America’s policies, it will be an exercise in futility.

In response to Hough accusing Rep. Myrick of being anti-Muslim, he was interviewed on the formerly conservative radio station WBT in Charlotte.  Radio host Keith Larson questioned him as to why his mosque was owned by The North American Islamic Trust (NAIT), an organization blacklisted by the U.S. Justice Department as an unindicted co-conspirator in the largest terror finance case in U.S. history.  According to the government, NAIT is also a front for HAMAS and the Muslim Brotherhood in America.  Hough, when presented by Larson with the documents, claimed he didn’t realize his mosque was owned by NAIT and was also unaware that they had been blacklisted.  Hough went on in the interview to defend HAMAS and accuse the U.S. and Israel of the only “real” terrorism.

Imam Siraj Wahhaj is imam of a mosque in Brooklyn, New York, the leader of The Muslim Alliance in North America, a member of CAIR, and an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. As a character witness for Omar Abdel Rahman (the Blind Sheik) who was convicted of plotting to blow up the World Trade Center and other New York City landmarks, Wahhaj described him as a “respected scholar,” and “bold, as a strong preacher of Islam.”  Wahhaj is also a Board of Trustee member of the North American Imams Federation (NAIF)(who’s website currently features an anti-Jewish, anti-black rant), a Muslim Brotherhood front organization, who (coincidentally) held a conference in Charlotte last year on Islamophobia.  Like Hough, Wahhaj is also connected to NAIT by way of his membership in the Islamic Society of North America(ISNA), which was also found by the government to be a front for HAMAS and the Muslim Brotherhood.  While Hough has been careful to play politics in Charlotte, Wahhaj has not hidden his hatred for America.  He is quoted as calling America, “a garbage can… filthy, filthy and sick.”  As an imam, he has stated, “Where ever you came from, you came to America. And you came for one reason – for one reason only- to establish Allah’s deen (a complete way of life).”  He believes that the only reason to get involved in politics is to use it as a weapon in the cause of Islam.  By his own admission, the question of why Wahhaj would be interested in hosting events at the DNC is obvious.

How BIMA gained access to the DNC is more of a mystery.  Muhammad Heshaam Jaaber, the Executive Director, Jibril Hough, spokesman, and Captain James Yusuf Yee, BIMA National Representative for the DNC are the only publicly identified members and each one appears to be connected to U.S. Representative Keith Ellison; the first Muslim ever to be elected to Congress and a former supporter of Louis Farrakhan.  Ellison, who attended President Obama’s Iftar Dinner earlier this month, made the news last month when Representative Michelle Bachmann called for him (among others) to be investigated for ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.  Whether or not he has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, Ellison is not far from them having associates within BIMA.  Jasser points out that Hough sought advice from Ellison before proceeding with his Town Hall with Rep. Myrick.  Captain Yee (who will be speaking at the event) appears in BIMA’s promotional video for Jumah at the DNC quoting Ellison as saying, “If you’re not at the table, then you’re on the menu.”  Yee is described by BIMA as “a chaplain in the U.S. Military” and an “eye witness to to the unjust treatment of military detainees and prisoners of Guantanamo Bay” who was allegedly detained “when he took steps to prevent the injustice.”  However, BIMA fails to mention that Yee was charged by the military with sedition, aiding the enemy, spying, espionage and failure to obey a general order; charges ultimately dropped due to national security concerns about releasing evidence in the case.  Also speaking will be Hassen Abdellah, who BIMA has no problem admitting was “a lead defense attorney for the 1993 First World Trade bombing suspects”  Ellison has also appeared alongside Wahhaj on many speaking engagements for organizations such as ISNA and NAIF, despite both organizations being fronts for the Muslim Brotherhood.  If Ellison is the link between BIMA and the DNC, then can it be said that, not only does he not mind the questionable associations of those within the organization, but also the other speakers they will be bringing in?

BIMA has stated they have smaller events planned for the Republican National Convention, however when reached out to, GOP convention staff said they have no knowledge of any events planned in or around Tampa at the time.  With the Democratic National Convention only a couple weeks away, it will be interesting to see if the media chooses to cover what one would assume to be a controversial start to renominate President Barack Obama.

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While tens of thousands in the country have joined the Afghan police and army, the air force only had 5,600 personnel as of June.  Ads in newspapers last year attracted female recruits to the air force, in an effort to overcome a history of oppressing women that, according to Afghan President Harmid Karzai, still persists today.  For the new female pilots, breaking into the male-dominated military comes with technical challenges as well.
One of those challenges is purely physical.  According to British Royal Air Force Group Capt. Adrian Hill, deputy commander of the NATO Air Training Command-Afghanistan, stated that “quite a few” Afghan women would not be able to reach the switches in the cockpit due to their height and arm lengths.   New air craft are being considered but some present similar challenges.

For instance, the Brazilian Super Tucano aircraft, which has a bid in for a contract to create crafts for the Afghan Air Force, would exclude 81% of women pilots, according to the standards the U.S. Air Force currently employs for height and weight.  For example, a female pilot standing 5’3 and weighing 125 pounds would be unable to pilot the aircraft.

Not only does the Super Tucano severely limit the expansion of the Afghan air force, but working with the Brazilian company has potential security issues as well.  Included in Embraer’s by laws is a provision called the “Golden Share”.  According to Embraer:

The Golden Share provision empowers the Brazilian government with veto rights over: “Creation and/or alteration of military programs, whether or not involving the Federative Republic of Brazil;” “Development of third parties´ skills in technology for military programs;” and “Interruption of the supply of maintenance and replacement parts for military aircraft,” among other things.

In other words, the Brazilian government can control Embraer, which is troubling enough on it’s own and double so when considering their relationship with Iran.  

Embraer is not the only company bidding to make these aircrafts. There has been an ongoing issue between the U.S. Air Force and an American company, Hawker Beechcraft, who also bid for the contract.  After being inexplicably excluded from bidding last year after spending over $100 million working with the U.S. Air Force to develop the AT-6, Hawker sued and was subsequently allowed to reenter the competition. In addition to being an American company with none of the security concerns plaguing Embraer, Hawker claims that their Light Air Support aircraft  was designed to accomodate 95% of female pilots.

Bidding reopened this past April and for the Afghan women who are the first in their air force, the decision will determine their fate and that of many other women who have waited their entire lives to proudly serve their country.

“I haven’t been this happy waking up since I was 12 and got a BMX for Christmas,” said one top Democrat working for an outside group that is helping to reelect Obama.”

A former senior administration official agreed. ”I think we’re all licking our chops this morning,” the former official said. “The president has spent the last several months attacking the Republican budget and who better to be the VP pick than Ryan? Fits into our narrative in the best possible way.”

It wasn’t that long ago that the Tea Party was painted as radical, right wing, extremists.  Democrats and the media associated thousands of Americans with the Oklahoma City bombing, claiming their fight for gun rights was actually to incite a revolution.  Even after Tea Party candidates swept the polls in the November 2010 elections, the rhetoric continued.  As recently as last week, Real Clear Politics boasted the old familiar Radical Tea Partiers headline.  With the selection of Ryan, the Democrats believe they can achieve rhetorical perfection: weaving the old radical Tea Party with the new radical Paul Ryan.  It would be tired if it wasn’t so laughable.  As is usually the case with the Democrats, they fail to learn the lessons history has taught.

Our Founding Fathers, the original Tea Partiers, were also known as radicals.  They fought against an overgrown government that seemed to know no limits.  Their story is remarkably similiar to ours today, except without the vast ocean to separate the people from the tyrannical government.  Great Britain created a monopoly on a popular product, overtaxed it and then lost money when the people found ways around the heavy tax burden.  Seeking to make up for the loss of income, the British did what every fiscally irresponsible government does, they increased taxes.  This time they targeted the colonies who, by today’s standards, probably assumed could handle more taxes given their new prosperity.  Ultimately, as we know, the colonies decided they had had enough and the rest is our history.

The current administration has offered no solution to the unsustainable path we are on.  Our national debt is coming quickly upon 16 trillion dollars.  Paul Ryan brings to the fight that which the Democrats fear most: a budget.  His priorities harken back to those of our founders…

“I, however, place the economy among the first and most important virtues, and public debt as the greatest of dangers to be feared.” – Thomas Jefferson

“We must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt.  We must make our selection between economy and liberty or profusion and servitude.  If we run into such debts as that we must be taxed in our meat and drink, in our necessities and comforts, in our labors and our amusements… If we can prevent the Government from wasting the labors of the people, under the pretense of caring for them, they will be happy.” – Thomas Jefferson

“To say that the United States should be answerable for twenty-five millions of dollars without knowing whether the ways and means can be provided, and without knowing whether those who are to succeed us will think with us on the subject, would be rash and unjustifiable. Sir, in my opinion, it would be hazarding the public faith in a manner contrary to every idea of prudence.” – James Madison

“No pecuniary consideration is more urgent than the regular redemption and discharge of the public debt. On none can delay be more injurious or an economy of time more valuable.” – George Washington

“There are two ways to conquer and enslave a country.  One is by the sword.  The other is by debt.” – John Adams

We’ve been enslaved from within.  President Obama, blinded by statist ideals, doesn’t see the present situation in the same light.  He, and the those around him, believe Ryan is radical because they don’t aspire to the same principles.  While Ryan’s influences can easily be traced back to our founders, Obama’s can be found only linked to those that don’t exactly espouse the same sentiments -

“As an organizer I start where the world is, as it is, not as I would like it to be. That we accept the world as it is does not in any sense weaken our desire to change it into what we believe it should be — it is necessary to begin where the world is if we are going to change it to what we think it should be.” – Saul Alinksy

“The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing ‘God Bless America.’ No, no, no, God damn America…” – Jeremiah Wright

“I don’t regret setting bombs…I feel we didn’t do enough.” – Bill Ayers

“I get up every morning and think…today I’m going to end capitalism.” – Bill Ayers

Perhaps the Democrats’ assessment has been correct after all.  Paul Ryan (and the Tea Party) are radically American, and it’s about time we got back to that.

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It’s the age old rule, ingrained in our society since the left deemed it so: Discussing politics and religion in public is rude.  Chick-fil-A somehow missed the memo and this past week has suffered a constant barrage of attacks since their president, Dan Cathy, dared to voice the fact that his company has (gasp!) Christian values.  His unbelievable, hate-filled, bigoted, anti-gay, homophobic rant was as follows:

“I think we are inviting God’s judgment on our nation when we shake our fist at Him and say, ‘We know better than you as to what constitutes a marriage,’” Cathy said. “I pray God’s mercy on our generation that has such a prideful, arrogant attitude to think that we have the audacity to define what marriage is about.”

“We are very much supportive of the family — the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that … We want to do anything we possibly can to strengthen families. We are very much committed to that,” Cathy said.

If those radical views sound familiar to you, it may be because you’ve cracked open a Bible for more than just to find an out-of-context verse to throw in someone’s face.  Since Jesus made the declaration 2,000 years ago, Christians have never backed away from the belief that marriage is between one man and one woman.

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’  and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

~ Matthew 19:4-6

Since Chick-fil-A opened 45 years ago they have never hidden the fact that they are a Christian company.  Anyone who has ever yearned for the best chicken sandwich on the planet on a Sunday can attest that they are closed so that employees can have a day to themselves and attend church if they’d like.  If being closed on Sundays wasn’t enough of a hint, they play Christian music inside their restaurants.  It must have been quite a surprise for Cathy that, after all these years of open Christianity, actually verbalizing the values Chick-fil-A was built on would cause such a firestorm.  The over-the-top response was immediate, with calls for boycotts spreading across social media and the Muppets choosing to deny Chik-fil-A children their toys.  To anyone that has previously broken the rule of being quiet (unless you agree with liberals), the reaction to Cathy’s statements was worthy of an eye roll; been there, done that.  What came next, however, took the issue to a whole new level.

It started with Chicago Alderman Proco Joe Moreno who decided, in these times of economic prosperity, he would abuse use his position to block a Chick-fil-A planning to open in his Ward.  Never mind the people he’s supposed to be representing who need jobs or may actually agree with Cathy’s traditional Christian values.  Mayor Rahm Emanuel defended Moreno’s decision, stating that Cathy’s views “are discriminatory against people who are our neighbors and our residents. Those aren’t our values,” he added.  Meanwhile, homicides in Chicago have gone up 38% over the last year and, had the police department not figured out a way to fudge their crime statistics and trick the FBI, Chicago’s “values” would earn them placement as one of the most dangerous cities in the country.  Quick to follow was Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, who wrote an open letter to Cathy letting him know that, in his city so representative of freedom, Chick-fil-A was not welcome; because nothing says freedom like attacking someone who dares to exercise their first amendment rights.  San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee jumped on the bandwagon last night, tweeting out a threat that he, “strongly recommends Chick-fil-A not come any closer to his city.” Fortunately for anyone that lives outside of Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco,  legal experts are in agreement that efforts by government to block Chick-fil-A from expanding their business is discriminatory and unconstitutional.

While satisfying to know that out of control government officials can be checked by the likes of the ACLU, the relief is fleeting when considering the bigger picture.  The mayors of three cities (thus far) believe it is within their power to tell a private citizen he cannot grow his business because his personal beliefs are not in line with theirs.  Put another way, liberal elected officials think they are dictators.  It shouldn’t come as a surprise, being that they are led by Obama who doesn’t appear to understand the limits of the office of the President.

Cathy ended his interview saying, “We know that it might not be popular with everyone, but thank the Lord, we live in a country where we can share our values and operate on biblical principles.”  Thank God, indeed, we still do live in a free country and if you’d like to support Chick-fil-A against those that wish to stifle their rights, Mike Huckabee has arranged a “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day” on August 1st.

Republicans in North Carolina will head to the polls Tuesday to choose their candidate for Lt. Governor and, while runoff elections usually have a smaller turnout, voters would be wise to participate in this race in the effort to take back the state from Democrats. Dan Forest, an architect from Raleigh and son of Sue Myrick, will be up against Tony Gurley, who is currently serving his third term on the Wake County Board of Commissioners. While both candidates claim to be the conservative for the job, closer inspection finds that Dan Forest is the better choice to ultimately defeat union backed Democrat, Linda Coleman.

For her primary, the State Employees Association and it’s associates spent almost ten times the amount Coleman spent on her own campaign. Tony Gurley has been employing the same tactic as Coleman, receiving new funding from a PAC formed for him at the end of last month. Meanwhile Dan Forest has been knocking on doors across the state, meeting with voters and getting a real sense of what is facing North Carolinians with Democrats in control. Forest aspires to make North Carolina “the most friendly state for business in America,” which resonates with the many unemployed with which he has spoken. As an entrepreneur with over 23 years business experience, Forest knows how to create jobs; despite Obama’s recent admission that he believes small business owners do not create their own success. In fact, Steve Forbes endorsed Forest early in the race and he’s also received endorsements from Eagle Forum PAC (a conservative public policy organization founded by Phyllis Schlafly) and Mike Huckabee.

I had the opportunity to ask Mr. Forest some questions about this important election in North Carolina -

1. What prompted you to run?
I believe we have a leadership crisis in America and in North Carolina and I didn’t want to sit by and do nothing to help improve the situation. My background is business, not politics. Many of the challenges our state faces are economic and I feel my background is well suited to help find solutions.

2. What are the biggest challenges facing North Carolina?
High unemployment, highest corporate tax rate in the Southeast, highest gas tax in the Southeast, one of the highest personal income taxes in the Southeast, over $30 billion in unfunded liabilities…. we either fix these problems or we don’t compete and create jobs.

3. What kind of mood are you encountering from the voters?
People are hungry for leadership. Unemployment is high and people want jobs. They don’t feel the current executive teams in Washington and Raleigh understand the depth of their anxiety and are incapable of putting forth solutions. They know things are broken and new leadership is needed.

4. What are your thoughts on school choice?
I support school choice. We need to turn the power and control over education back to the local level. We need to break the state run school monopoly so that competition and innovation make their way into our public school systems.

5. What will you do as Lt. Governor to push for education reform?
I will champion school choice. I will fight to end tenure. I will fight for merit based pay for excellent performance. I will be a strong advocate for vocational training and apprenticeship programs so that those children who do not want to go to college have a viable and productive option to pursue.

6. What will you do to reverse the high unemployment trend in NC?
I will work to level the business playing field between NC and its neighbors in the Southeast. We need to lower our gas tax to a rate competitive with our southern state neighbors. We need to begin eliminating the corporate income tax and lowering our personal income tax rate. I also want to push for the creation of a special tax bracket especially for small business owners so that they are no longer penalized at tax time for their efforts to create jobs. All these actions will make NC more competitive in recruiting companies to come to our state.

7. What effect do you think Unions will play in this election and what do you think their intentions are?
I am a strong advocate for NC remaining a “right to work” state. I think the unions will be active in NC, both in the Governor’s race and in my own, should I receive the Republican nomination. I believe their intentions are clear… to defeat those candidates who support NC being a “right to work” state. We must fight back and defeat them.

8. What is your position on Obamacare in light of the supreme court opinion and what advice would you give to the governor on this issue?
We need to elect leaders with the backbone to give the stiff arm to the federal government whenever the feds try to usurp powers that are not expressly given unto it. The current executive team in Raleigh has failed in this effort. We need a new President and new Congress to overturn Obamacare. And a new executive team in Raleigh to stand against any future federal encroachments.

You can find out more about Dan Forest here.
Contributions can be made here.

In the midst of planning for the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, organizers came upon a critical piece of information that had the potential to destroy the entire event: Liquor stores in Charlotte are closed on Sundays and are closed every year for the Labor Day holiday; which is on Monday of the convention.  Faced with the notion that convention goers could possibly be sober and make judgements in that state of mind, the Democrats snapped into action in the typical Democrat fashion.  They quickly went about working to change the law.  Their bill to “help North Carolina be a good host,” according to Democratic Gov. Beverly Perdue, sailed through the state House and is currently in the Senate.

According to a local bar manager, “It’s always a good thing when you can have access to liquor.”  Of course no one knows that better than the Democrats, especially when they’re coming back to Charlotte and had so much fun last time they were here.

Abby worked at Planned Parenthood for 8 years and was the 2008 Planned Parenthood employee of the year.  As she was moving up in her career there, she was called in to assist with an abortion.  As she details in her book, unPlanned, it was witnessing the tragic abortion of a 13 week old baby boy that helped her to see what Planned Parenthood was really all about; combined with her boss telling her she needed to increase the quota of abortions in the clinic, Abby became convinced she needed to quit the abortion industry.  The problem, however, was where to go.  She had been told by her boss, as so many others probably have, that no one would want her if she tried to find other work.  While her boss was clearly trying to manipulate her, Abby admitted, working in the abortion business is a big, black mark on your resume and finding other work is difficult.  It was at that point that she turned to the familiar faces she saw every day walking into work, one of which was David Bereit.  Along with the Coalition for Life and Shawn Carney, David helped Abby to leave Planned Parenthood. He stood by her side as they tried to silence her, through legal maneuvers, from speaking about what she witnessed inside the industry.  After a long legal battle, Abby was finally able to publish her book and has been a leader in the pro-life movement ever since.  During the webcast yesterday, Abby introduced her next ministry, And Then There Were None (ATTWN).

The goal of ATTWN is simple: No more abortion clinic workers, no more clinics, no more abortions.  Through her experience and speaking with many others who work in the abortion business, Abby knows that many employees stay because they simply do not know how to get out.  In the 40 years of the pro-life movement, there has never been a national outreach for abortion clinic workers until now.  ATTWN will serve workers who want to leave the abortion industry in four key areas.  They will assist workers with finding new jobs and help them financially in the interim.  Should the abortion provider try to silence the employee, as Planned Parenthood did with Abby, ATTWN will be there with lawyers to help fight back.  Perhaps most importantly though, Abby’s new ministry will provide emotional and spiritual support for the workers.  Two former abortion clinic employees, Annette and Sarah, were also on the webcast and shared their stories of what they experienced; highlighting the needs that ATTWN will be meeting.

Annette shared that she was attracted to Planned Parenthood because she was interested in helping people, particularly Latino women.  She started as a volunteer then went on to work there as an educator.  Her job was to go to local high schools to speak to students about how to prevent pregnancy and STDs.  She was told by Planned Parenthood that when a woman came to one of their clinics, they were offered three choices in the exact order of having their baby, seeking adoption or having an abortion.  She felt confident that abortion was not the main goal of the company until she attended further training that revealed the truth.  Annette was given a script to help her facilitate “counseling” to women that came into the clinic to find out if they were pregnant.  She was told to withhold their pregnancy test results and ask them what they would do if they found out they were pregnant.  If the woman said abortion, she was instructed to then reveal to the woman she was pregnant, discuss abortion options and try to schedule an abortion.  Feeling betrayed by Planned Parenthood, Annette was at a loss for what to do.  However, after seeing Abby Johnson speak at an event, she was emboldened to quit her job and now works for a pro-life Pregnancy Center.

Sarah also told of how she struggled with the reality of the company’s abortion agenda.  She went to work for the company hoping to empower those in need of education.  As she was raised very pro-life, she tried to maintain her Catholic beliefs while assisting women with their decision about their baby.  Having a medical background, she was able to provide ultrasounds to women and, against the wishes of Planned Parenthood, used the word “baby” when discussing the ultrasound with women.  She broke rules and laws to help women who came to Planned Parenthood see the truth.  After 1 and 1/2 years, she was finally able to escape and is happy to support Abby Johnson’s newest effort to help others in her situation.

There are 9,000 workers in the abortion industry and in the four months prior to their official start, 17 of those workers have already been assisted by ATTWN.  Jenny Stone, who works at Live Action and will serve as Operations Director for ATTWN, summed up the new addition to pro-life efforts perfectly when she stated – The pro-life mission is not just about the unborn.  It’s about everyone affected by abortion.  Thanks to And Then There Were None, lives previously unconsidered will finally have a home in a movement that values all life.

In the wake of Chen Guangcheng arriving safely in the United States, after years of persecution in China for his anti-abortion activism, The House of Representatives will vote tomorrow on H.R. 3541 (also known as the Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act – PRENDA), a bill to ban sex-selection abortions in the United States.  Although the US has strongly condemned China for their sex-selection abortion practices, only four states (AZ, OK, PA and IL) currently have laws banning the procedure.  Sex-selection abortions have long been an issue around the globe, most notably in China and India, and studies show they are rampant in the US.  A series of videos, the first of which was released by Live Action this morning, exposes the role Planned Parenthood plays in America’s sex-selection abortion problem.

The first video, shows a woman visiting a Planned Parenthood facility in South Austin, Texas.  The woman, undercover for Live Action, spoke at length with a Planned Parenthood employee about how to proceed with an abortion should she find out that she is pregnant with a girl.  The employee’s instructions included how to use local OB/GYNs to find out the sex of the baby and how to defraud Medicaid to pay for all the costs associated.  She also advised the woman that many “regular” doctors would not provide an ultrasound should she indicate her desire to abort, as sex determination is usually made 5 months into the pregnancy and pretty much everything (including the brain) is already developed.

During Live Action’s investigation, Planned Parenthood became suspicious that their involvement in gendercide might be exposed.  Two representatives of the organization wrote at RH Reality Check last month about Planned Parenthood’s official stance on sex-selection abortion.

Gender bias is contrary to everything our organization works for daily in communities across the country.  Planned Parenthood opposes racism and sexism in all forms, and we work to advance equity and human rights in the delivery of health care. Planned Parenthood condemns sex selection motivated by gender bias, and urges leaders to challenge the underlying conditions that lead to these beliefs and practices, including addressing the social, legal, economic, and political conditions that promote gender bias and lead some to value one gender over the other.

The Huffington Post also came to the defense of Planned Parenthood, claiming that Live Action heavily edits their videos in their efforts to misinform the public. Yet, Live Action has also posted the original, unedited video that shows no conflict between it and the final video.

Further, when Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) first introduced PRENDA, Planned Parenthood was quick to come out in strong opposition of the bill.  While PRENDA only bans abortions used to discriminate based on the unborn baby’s gender or race, and it exempts the would-be mother from prosecution, Planned Parenthood claims the bill will “further isolate and stigmatize some women — particularly those in the Asian American and Pacific Islander and African American communities.”  In fact, a study of the 2000 US Census showed that, unless there was already a boy in the family, the number of boys born outnumbered girls by 50%.  The majority of sex-selection abortions in the US appear, according to the study, to be by Chinese, Korean and Asian-Indian women, in keeping with cultural heritages that traditionally favor boys.  In a 2011 study, 89% of Asian-Indian participants chose abortion when they found out they were carrying baby girls.  Many admitted to being victims of physical violence and starvation by their families in efforts to coerce the women into abortion.  Planned Parenthood’s willingness to provide sex-selection abortions only helps to further victimize these women.

A recent poll by the Charlotte Lozier Institute, the research arm of the Susan B. Anthony List, showed  that 77% of Americans (and 80% of women) would support a ban on sex-selection abortions in the U.S.  The passage of PRENDA will be in line with the views of the majority of Americans and, with the help of video evidence by Live Action, the abortion extremists at Planned Parenthood won’t force their opinions on the country.

You may have heard of them previously, unless you were hiding under a rock, as they exploded on the children’s book/app scene after CPAC.  See here, here, here and here!   Apparently I was not the only one looking for quality stories to share with my kids.  The Cherry Tree app hit number 3 in the App Store the first week it was released.  There are four story lines to choose from within the free app and multiple stories for each series.  Tex the T. Rex was born in a red, white and blue egg on the Fourth of July.  He learns, with your child, about American history. Special Hops are a group of rabbits that teach children about heroes, like our soldiers.  My son and I favor those stories.  They teach children that our soldiers are not scary and are actually here to protect us; a great find for anyone that appreciates the hard work of our military.  Our Town, USA is another storyline that teaches children about life skills; like the fact that money doesn’t actually grow on trees and hard work can earn you the things you want.  If there was a paperback version of that book, I’d seriously consider dropping off a few at my local Occupy nursery.  Finally, Cherry Tree has a series called The Eagles which is about a family of eagles with a sister and brother who learn that they have roles to play in the family too, beyond playing video games.  Our daughters enjoy these stories and have been looking forward to a camping trip (as seen in one story) which should happen if we can get Daddy to put down the video games…

Until such time, however, we have been thoroughly enjoying reading about all the different characters Cherry Tree offers. It’s been great having help teaching my children concepts that were once basic but aren’t near as prevalent as they should be now.  The app is also easy to navigate, so I’ve found my kids swiping through stories on their own.  Despite the difference in their ages (six, five and two),  all of my children enjoy the stories.  It’s been nice to hear that my six year old recognizes places like Mt. Rushmore; in typical kid fashion, she doesn’t exactly come home and tell me what she learned at school.  For us, it’s been too long since the stories were released.  My children read them unendingly for weeks.  So I was happy to hear that today Cherry Tree released their first book in a new storyline and will be releasing more books all summer!  The timing is actually better, despite my impatience, as any parent knows kids need a lot to keep them busy through the summer.  Tonight we’ll be enjoying a fuss-free story time since I already know we’ll be reading the book that came out today, “Young Patriots: America Counts.”  Personally, I’ll be counting the blessings that there is one less thing I have to worry about when it comes to my kids; which gives me more time to dedicate to saving the country that Cherry Tree so lovingly illustrates to them.

You can check out their website here for more information.

Other titles coming this summer:

“Special Hops and the Schoolhouse Flood” – available next week
“Young Patriots: Goodnight America” –  a bedtime story book, available in early June
“Our Town: The Pledge of Allegiance” – teaches kids the pledge, available the week of 6/11 in time for Flag Day (6/14)
“Young Patriots: Potty in the USA” –  which I’ve been looking forward to since I first heard of Cherry Tree, available near the end of June.
“Tex’s Birthday” – available at the end of June, in time for Fourth of July, Tex’s Birthday!
“Young Patriots: Oh Say, Can You ABC?” – available mid July.

“Guess what? His wife has actually never worked a day in her life,” Rosen said.  ”She’s never really dealt with the kinds of economic issues that a majority of the women in this country are facing, in terms of how do we feed our kids, how do we send them to school, and why do we worry about their future,” Rosen stated.

The criticism against her was quick and reached all the way to the White House, as noted by Erick Erickson this morning.  Rosen immediately went to Twitter to clarify her transparent remarks, stating “When I said @AC360 Ann Romney never worked I meant she never had to care for her kids AND earn a paycheck like MOST American women! #Truth”  She even has a nice background on her Twitter page that says, “My Mom Rocks!” Unfortunately for her, stay at home moms deal with children every day and we can see through desperate attempts to hide the truth.

You see Rosen only said what conservative women know the left thinks.  Raising kids is easy and if you don’t get a paycheck then the work you do isn’t real.  On top of that, you really can’t comment on the current economic situation because you don’t know anything beyond the suburban bubble you live in.  Well Ms. Rosen, let me tell you a little about the truth.

Being a stay at home mom is one of the most difficult jobs in the world.  The fact that a paycheck isn’t involved only makes it more difficult.  At the end of the day/week/month/year, our rewards are intangible and difficult to convey to a world that only speaks in a monetary language.  It is a largely thankless job, wherein you find yourself praying every night that you did it right because you won’t know the results of your tireless labor for 18 years.  It’s a lonely job that, before the internet, I’m not sure how stay at home moms survived.  It’s a taken for granted job that we mostly are fine going about behind the scenes unless we are directly attacked; a mistake that the majority of politically savvy Democrats don’t make above whispers.  The truth, Ms. Rosen, is that deep down Democrats know how difficult a job being a stay at home mom is and that is why they advocate abortion.  They look back at their mothers and shudder at the lifestyle they don’t want to be “stuck” in.  A baby is a real responsibility, a difficult one that can’t be walked away from.  The fact is that most women abort because they think babies are inconvenient and an expense they can’t afford; and I’m not going to link that one because it’s time you did some homework on your own.

For those of us that do choose to do the difficult work of raising children, made more difficult by those in power today, thank you very much, we know intimately the economic struggles of today!  You may have seen us in the grocery store, looking frazzled with screaming children impatiently waiting for us to decide which brand of peanut butter to buy because the prices seem to go up every time we’re there.  I’ll give you a pass on the school thing though.  When we are blessed with a choice (that is we’ve overcome your party’s attempts to bury school choice) we stress over that decision around the kitchen table; which is usually where we work on the family finances, something I guess you aren’t familiar with.  Why we worry about their future though, Ms. Rosen, you should know.  You’re advising the administration hell bent on destroying it.  It’s a lengthy list that I don’t have time to go into right now, screaming kids and all, but it’s summed up nicely by the ever-climbing $15 trillion debt for which each of my children owe $189,000 and counting.  You don’t speak for us, Ms. Rosen, and we aren’t going to be silent on the issue anymore.

As a mother of four, the first of which entered public school last year, keeping up with my children’s education is extremely important to me.  I’ve heard the stories of children fearing the end of the world due to global warming and seen the history books that exclude any Republican or Conservative from the important events that have shaped our country.  My husband and I moved to a small town in South Carolina due in part to the notoriety of the schools.  I immediately joined the PTA, looking forward to communicating and working with other parents to help our children achieve the high standards to which we hold them accountable.

Unfortunately, as is so often the case, this PTA had an agenda and used its access to my email address to push that agenda.

Action needed
Please contact your House representative by 1 p.m., Tuesday, March 20, 2012 and urge him to vote against the tuition tax credit/voucher bill, House bill 4894 (see contact information below).

Background

Having completed the budget, the full House may take up the tuition tax credit/voucher bill this week. To see a longer summary of the bill from the March 14 Day At The Capitol handout, click here. Basically, the bill would
Provide a state income tax deduction of up to $4,000 for tuition (fees for attending the school and school?related transportation) paid by a parent or legal guardian for their child or ward to attend an independent school defined as a school, other than a public school.

Provide a state income tax deduction of up to $1,000 for tuition (fees for attending the school and school?related transportation) paid by a parent or legal guardian for their child or ward to attend a public school outside the child’s or ward’s resident school district.

Provide a state income tax deduction of up to $2,000 per home school student per year for instruction related expenditures.

Provide a dollar-for-dollar credit on state income tax, insurance premium taxes or bank license fees for contributions made to non-profit scholarship funding organizations that would provide “grants” to low-income students in public schools to attend an qualifying independent school.

After providing this fairly benign review of some of the specifics related to H.4894, the email turned into what amounted to a Democrat party spam email as the PTA laid out the position echoed by the South Carolina School Board Association (SCSBA) which apparently the school PTA is on board with.

Position statement

SCSBA opposes state or federally-mandated efforts to directly or indirectly subsidize elementary or secondary private, religious or home schools with public funds.

After giving contact info for representatives, the PTA helpfully  provides talking points for any parents who don’t have any idea why they should care about this.

Talking points

How can the General Assembly consider a bill that would result in a loss of $37 million in state revenues (just in the first year alone) when:

public schools have had their funding cut by more than $700 million;

the base student cost is presently at $1,880 per student but should be at $2,790 per student;

fully funding the BSC would require some $600 million

the state cannot meet existing obligation to adequately fund vital state agency and services, including law enforcement, healthcare, local government funds, etc.

Tuition tax credit/voucher programs are unaffordable, unaccountable to taxpayers and unproven.

The proposal is inconsistent with recent calls for comprehensive tax reforms, including the elimination of some sales and service tax exemptions by creating four more exemptions.

The proposal is inconsistent with conservative principles including the creation of a government entitlement program for private schoolers and home schoolers and grows government by adding new duties for the Department of Revenue and the Education Oversight Committee. Funding for public schools must be a top priority! Until we meet our financial commitment to public school students, there must be no consideration for a plan that would divert public tax dollars to private schools for tuition.

Even a sample message to send!

Sample message

Dear Representative :

I urge you to vote against the private school tuition tax credit/deduction/voucher bill, H.4894. The bill’s negative fiscal impact to the state’s general fund of $37 million is staggering when our state cannot meet its existing obligations to K-12 education and other vital state services, including local government funding. In addition to the significant funding cuts to education in recent years, the base student cost (BSC) under the Education Finance Act is presently at $1,880 per student when it should be $2,790 per student by state law. In fact, fully funding the BSC would require some $600 million.

Finally, lawmakers’ recent calls for the need to eliminate certain tax exemptions and loopholes and supported by businesses, citizens, and educators seems to contradict a proposal that would create yet another special-interest tax exemption through for paying tuition to a private school or for homeschooling with no accountability equivalent to the public schools. Another tax credit program would only add to the horribly unbalanced tax system already in existence in South Carolina.

In addition to emailing us, you can see the whole thing at their FaceBook page.

Immediately I wrote back to them, including the school principal and the local chairman of the Republican party, expecting quickly to receive an apology and a promise not to misuse the PTA email privileges again; or at the least a response from the Republican leader that he would look into the matter.  Apparently, however, the issue was so important that no one even bothered to email me back.  While it’s never happened to me before, I am left to assume that inserting one’s personal political agenda into official school emails is so commonplace that it is unworthy of discussion.  It was a big surprise for me personally.  Our area in South Carolina is very red and our schools are among the best in the state.  Surely, I thought, no one local would have a problem with people in other areas working to provide the best education for their children.  Once again, I sadly underestimated the selfishness of Democrats.

The School Choice Bill in my home state of South Carolina, H.4894, is the latest in a decade long battle to give parents control over the education of their children.  While the SC Board of Education chooses to use my tax money to advocate that each child needs $2,790 allotted to ensure a successful education, one needn’t look any further than right over our border to see that more money does not equate to better results.  In Charlotte, North Carolina inner city schools receive $12,000 per child.  With that money, the schools decided to spend $10 million to buy iPads for their classrooms; after spending $1.2 million to purchase iPads for administrators of course.  Money spent, despite the fact that even the NY Times had to admit that increased technology has not proven to increase test scores.  Additionally, the latest research out of Harvard University indicates what many conservatives have always known: a school that cultivates a culture focused on student achievement and high academic expectations (rather than small classroom size, meritless teacher pay & more money per student) yields a higher level of academic success.  Perhaps it’s time to bring back the red markers?

As for the lack of response from my local Republican party chairman, maybe he’s friends with Jenny Horne – the Republican representative who continuously crosses the aisle to stand in the way of education reform in South Carolina.

Once again, South Carolina Representative Jenny Horne (R-94) is standing in the way of statewide education reform. In a last ditch effort to block education reform bill H.4894, Representative Horne is attempting to delay a vote on the House floor until after the filing deadline for state house elections in order to prevent the vote from being an “election litmus test” for conservative legislators.

I’m not planning on taking my kids out their public school but I fully support the right of other parents to choose a different option; and they shouldn’t have to pay for my children in addition to theirs.  School Choice is something that people from both sides of the aisle should be able to agree on as it does nothing but promote competition for tax dollars and gives families much needed choices.  I’m fortunate that my kids attend a school that gets high marks, but many schools do not.  Let’s stop rewarding them and focus on what’s best for the children: having options in education.

Help end the public education monopoly.  Please contact Rep. Jenny Horne and tell her to stop delaying, stop playing political games and start thinking about the children of South Carolina.  If we can get this going in SC we can get the ball rolling in other states too.

CALL REP. JENNY HORNE – 803.212.6871. TELL HER TO DO THE RIGHT THING!!

Here are the reps that were targeted by the PTA email. Call these state reps to let them know they ARE doing the right thing!

Call State Rep. Ralph Norman at 803.212.6888

Call Deborah Long at 803.212.6874

So where is the Charlotte Department of Transportation spending all of their Charlotteans money?  On light rail of course!  Charlotte received a grant for $18 million in early December 2011 and will spend an additional $4 million of taxpayer money to upgrade the existing light rail.  They have also been awarded an additional $70 million by the Obama administration to extend the light rail.  Upon learning of their favoritism with the administration, Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) chief executive, Carolyn Flowers said, “It was a very good day for us.”  Never mind previous research conducted by the Department of Transportation that showed the gradual cost of sidewalks, bike lanes, and other features are far less than the normal annual costs of construction.  Research that proved right, according to a recent Charlotte City Council meeting in which discussion included spending $6.5 million to ship each rail car (only in service for 4 years) to California for routine maintenance that the city is unable to perform.  In fact, the cost of Charlotte’s light rail is only predicted to rise and no plans have been forthcoming as to how to keep it under control.  In 2012, the cost per hour to run just one rail car in Charlotte is projected to be $332.32, or nearly $3 million per year.  Curiously, in 2010 Federal Transit Administrator, Peter Rogoff, said that rail systems nationwide had billions in deferred maintenance. He questioned whether the federal government should financially help cities to build new rail lines when those cities are struggling to maintain the rail lines they already have.  However, on the subject of the $70 million grant Charlotte (a city in a key swing state) received, Rogoff had nothing but praise for the light rail extension. ”We are very supportive of this project. We don’t see any show-stoppers,” Rogoff said last month.  He also expects the federal government to sign off later in the year on an additional $530 million to further the project, which the city desperately needs to help cover the $1.07 billion total price tag.  Previously Charlotte passed a half-cent sales tax to help cover costs, however, the sales tax is projected to provide nearly $476 million less over the next decade than originally planned.

Fortunately for  Charlotte, the generosity of the Obama administration goes beyond giving the city millions of dollars in grant money.  Charlotte will play host to the Democratic National Convention in September and will be raking in money from thousands who will undoubtedly be using the light rail while in town.  If anyone was even considering using the bus, whose main station is located conveniently within walking distance from the arena where Obama will be reelected, the city has removed that option by relocating the transit station to a temporary location yet to be announced.  That also means that the many locals who rely on the bus to get to and from work downtown will also be forced to use the light rail or find another mode of transportation.  The removal of the bus station may play a duel role for the city of Charlotte as it not only forces many people on the light rail, thereby providing them with extra money they need, but it also hides the growing crime problem and the many homeless people that congregate at the station.

For all their efforts to accommodate the DNC, the people of Charlotte would be right to wonder if they now can expect sidewalks to be funded; considering the large influx of money the city has promised will be coming with the DNC.  Unfortunately, the city, beholden to their light rail money pit, does not seem as if they will be coming through for the people.  Even if they moved the West Tyvola sidewalk project to the top of their priority list, which they have stated they cannot do, the Charlotte Department of Transportation still claims it would take them two to three years to complete the sidewalk.  As for those left in the neighborhood struck by such a tragic accident, neighbor Hilda Bynum is hoping for more taxes, which she believes would be worth it if that’s what will keep them safe.

I’ve been in the anyone but Romney camp since the beginning; apologies to those that are in the Romney camp who I know and love.  I simply can’t get behind a guy who couldn’t even beat McCain.  While he seems smoother and slightly less robotic after 6 years of campaigning, he still stands behind his government mandated healthcare.  America just isn’t going to care about the nuances between RomneyCare and ObamaCare and that gives the Democrats a huge strategic advantage.  One of the biggest issues facing our country today will be off the table for discussion; unless you can get a country full of politically disinterested people to hone in on the intricacies of federalism when most are already tired of politics not even midway through the primary season.  It shouldn’t go unnoticed either that the media has been working extra hard to beat us into the submission that Romney is, in fact, our eventual candidate and we should fall in line as quickly as possible or risk being alienated (since we don’t know what that feels like). Anyone backed by the media is worthy of a healthy dose of skepticism.

Very much not backed by the media is Santorum and I’ll admit to having been on the fence with the guy.  I love the role his faith plays in his everyday life.  He understands what it means to be a Christ follower and he’s unafraid to stand firm in his beliefs; a rare find in the political world.  He also gets conservatism and what it stands for.  Unfortunately, he follows that up with big government solutions that would further confuse the public, many of whom already think Bush represents conservatism.  So while Santorum gets it … he kind of doesn’t.  What really threw me over the fence, however, was the difference between his public persona and his personal one.  People that I know (and trust) who have met him in person have found him to be as whiny as his reputation.  I haven’t personally met Santorum, which is funny because I was supposed to at two different times during CPAC.  Only, while he said he was going to be available for the little people like me, he stood us up; not once, but twice.  I can take a hint.  You love Jesus, but you don’t love me.  It’s cool.  You’ll be stuck with me in Heaven, maybe we can chat then.

That leaves me with Newt, who I voted for in my primary.  His personal life has never been an issue for me.  As a Christian, I understand the power of redemption and I stand with Newt and everyone else on the planet as a sinner.  If you don’t understand the concept of Jesus’ saving grace, I’d be happy to discuss it with you. ‘Nuff said.  As for his record, he presided over the first Republican congressional majority in decades.  Budgets were passed, taxes were cut, welfare was reformed.  But like Perry, the people simply aren’t responding.  The reaction to him at CPAC was tepid and it comes as no surprise that he placed third in the straw poll. Overall it seems he has the credentials, but for some reason he’s just not that exciting.

So I’m left in nobody’s camp.  It’s becoming a comfortable place actually.  I don’t mind my friends criticizing each other’s candidate, I’m not married to anyone.  I can still hope for a VP that may infuse some excitement into the race; as long as the media doesn’t rape them as they did Palin.  Unlike the lackluster McCain candidacy, this campaign doesn’t have to blow away the competition.  America has lived in Obama-Land for some time now and many are ready to reclaim the freedoms, and jobs, they’ve lost over the last four years.  I look forward to backing whoever wins the GOP nomination and, in that sentiment, I know I’m not alone. Being ready for this dreary primary season to be over is the only camp we all seem to agree on.

“Christianity has not, and does not profess to have a detailed political program. It is meant for all men at all times, and the particular program which suited one place or time would not suit another.”

This morning, in the middle of his campaign National Prayer Breakfast speech, President Obama delighted those of us who love irony by quoting C.S. Lewis.  It was an interesting moment in a speech that put forth the notion that taxing the wealthy is right in line with the teachings of Jesus. I mean, Jesus did hang out with tax collectors, right?  The idea that government welfare is somehow the fulfillment of Jesus’ teaching on charity is a common misconception that many people make, Christians included, and it’s the main reason that liberals believe conservatives are Christian hypocrites. Perhaps if the president visited church more often than only during campaign seasons, he might not be so confused. See, not only do we spend time praising God in church, we also gain insight from our pastors who have surely spent more time in the word of God than we have.

While Obama may have been correct in saying that government mandated, shared responsibility is equal to the Islamic belief that those who’ve been blessed have an obligation to use those blessings to help others, he is incorrect to group in Jesus’ teaching, “for unto whom much is given, much shall be required.”  Aside from the fact that Jesus was discussing requirements from God, not the government, he was actually teaching his disciples that they were stewards of God’s gift of Revelation. Their requirement was to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. It’s the crux of Christianity that Obama seems to miss. Jesus came because we are imperfect.  We could never fulfill all the requirements that the pharisees loved to lord over the people. Jesus’ coming ended the rule of law and the began the acceptance that our only way to God was through Him. Yes, Jesus very much emphasized the importance of giving to the poor, but as a reaction in joy to what we’ve been given; not because of a law. Giving out of obligation is not truly giving, it’s merely following the rules.  Just ask anyone who’s ever written a check to pay their taxes, I doubt you’d find them excited.

The Bible also teaches that everything we have, including money, belongs to God. We are called to be good stewards with His money.  The government is the epitome of  mismanaging money. If you truly want to help the poor, you should probably seek out charities; but that would require a bit of work on the part of the giver and a great many find it easier to just let the government run every aspect of their lives. So it is that welfare money ends up spitting out of strip club ATMs, and those same people who paid their charity to the government wonder why government hasn’t solved the issue. Perhaps they should ask the 27 Democrats who voted against stopping welfare checks from being used at strip clubs, casinos and liquor stores.

Another highlight in Obama’s speech was his proud proclamation that his administration has partnered with Catholic charities to help those in poverty. I wonder if those charities are among the ones begging the Obama administration, to no avail, to change the recent ObamaCare edict requiring them to cover birth control costs in their healthcare even though it is against their religious beliefs to do so. Really, slapping them across the face would take less time and probably hurt less.

I also really enjoyed when the president mentioned the half a million Americans who exercised their religious freedom to March for Life recently. Oh wait, he didn’t mention that.

Overall, the president’s National Prayer Breakfast speech was much of what we have become quite familiar with hearing, but sprinkled with some Bible quotes that ultimately fail to give credibility to Obama’s socialist leanings.  Thankfully, President Obama did get it right in the end – God will continue to lead our nation, even after those that wish to tax us all into poverty use His word to do so.

Follow @BreeanneHowe

Imagine you work in a hospital and you find a newborn wrapped up and abandoned outside the entrance. What would protocol have you do? Probably bring the child inside to receive immediate medical attention. Now what if you found that same baby in a soiled utility closet inside the hospital? Well, if you worked at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, IL before 2001 the protocol would have been to let the baby die.

At least five babies spent their last hours left to die in the soiled utility closet at Christ Hospital in 2001 alone; one even managed to live for almost 8 hours. Untold numbers suffered the same fate across the nation while Barack Obama sat on legislation to stop these horrendous acts of infanticide.

On March 27, 2001, Jill Stanek testified before the Illinois Senate Judiciary Committee on her experience with babies who survived an abortion procedure at Christ Hospital.

State Senator Patrick O’Malley of Oak Lawn introduced the first draft of the state’s Born Alive Infant Protection Act, using language identical to that of federal legislation introduced in 2000 by Rep. Charles Canady, R-Fla., who had drafted his wording using that of the World Health Organization and the United Nations: The term “born alive,” with respect to a member of the species homo sapiens, means the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of that member, at any stage of development, who after such expulsion or extraction breathes or has a beating heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles, regardless of whether the umbilical cord has been cut, and regardless of whether the expulsion or extraction occurs as a result of natural or induced labor, cesarean section, or induced abortion.

Barack Obama objected (pgs. 86-87) (PDF) to the idea that babies born alive in this particular manner are anything more than pre-viable fetuses because as persons they would be protected by the constitution; and in his mind that would lead to the barring of abortions. Furthermore, he didn’t want to burden doctors with having to keep a “pre-viable child” alive since the Supreme Court has determined viability and a doctor might have to actually use judgement. Although Obama voted present, the legislation passed in the Senate; but it didn’t in the House.

So Rep. O’Malley reintroduced the bill in 2002 and again, Obama objected (pgs. 31-34)(PDF). Even though the bill had been altered so an attending physician would be brought in to assist and advise on the issue of viability, Obama believed the bill would do nothing more than burden women and physicians. He also stated that if the children were, indeed, being born alive he had confidence that the doctors performing the procedures would be sure the infants were looked after. How Obama misunderstood the testimony given by Jill Stanek in 2001 is a mystery, especially considering that in 2002 she testified again and described the “comfort room” the hospital had set up in response to her first testimony.

Four months ago, Christ Hospital unveiled its “Comfort Room.” So now I can no longer say that live aborted babies are left in our Soiled Utility Room to die. We now have this prettily wallpapered room complete with a First Foto machine, baptismal gowns, a footprinter and baby bracelets, so that we can offer keepsakes to parents of their aborted babies. There is even a nice wooden rocker in the room to rock live aborted babies to death.

  

After voting no on the bill in 2002, Barack Obama was, for a third time, faced with the Born Alive Infant Protection Act when it was sent to the Health & Human Services Committee in 2003 – which he chaired. This time he held the bill from even being voted on; and stopped the senate sponser from adding to the bill to make it identical to the federal bill that had been signed into law by President Bush the year before. Finally, in 2005 (after Barack Obama left the state Senate) the Born Alive legislation was passed.

It has been suggested that Obama may have been influenced by his fellow Trinity United Church of Christ members who were also on the board of Christ Hospital’s parent company, Advocate Health Care, such as Dr. Jane Fisler-Hoffman and Rev. Dr. Ozzie Smith Jr., former associate pastor at TUCC under Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Wright, Obama’s 20 year mentor and spiritual advisor, was also on the board of Christ Hospital’s parent company from 1986-89. Also attending Obama’s church was Christ Hospital CEO, Carole Schneider. Perhaps they also influenced him on his opinion that babies are punishment for unprotected sex.

Recently, Senator Obama has made overtures to the middle on abortion. But he is, in fact, as far left as they come. In Illinois, Obama sealed the fate of infants who managed to survive abortion across the state. No matter what they did, how hard they tried; despite grasping for life that others were denying them and fighting for their first breath, the choice had been made. Why? Because Barack Obama thinks as so many on the left do – A person is the property of the state, and the baby is the property of the mother, each to be disposed of when inconvenient. Even in a soiled utility room.

UPDATE: Steven Ertelt, at LifeNews.com, confirmed my suspicion that Susan G. Komen has an interest in embryonic stem cell research.  His article covers the fact that Komen Sends Millions to Embryonic Stem Cell Research Centers.

Every year thousands of women train and prepare to Race for the Cure organized by Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the world’s largest breast cancer nonprofit.  During October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, almost every product on the shelves, from batteries to blenders, turns pink and contributes a portion of their sales to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.  One needs not see the name to know who is behind the pink ribbon.  Most people, however, do not know what is beyond the ribbon and the name for which it stands.

$731,303.  That is the amount donated to Planned Parenthood by Susan G. Komen for the Cure in 2009 alone.  The relationship between Planned Parenthood and Susan G. Komen has been documented and objected to for so long that Komen actually has an explanation letter on their website.

“Komen provides funding for local community health programs through our network of more than 120 affiliates across the United States.  Each Affiliate is responsible for assessing the breast health service needs—including education, screening, treatment and support—for the residents within its region as well as identifying and providing funding to organizations that can meet those needs. Annually, Komen Affiliates fund programs that provide breast health education and breast screenings for hundreds of thousands of low-income, uninsured, or medically under-served women via nearly 2,000 local organizations, including 19 Planned Parenthood programs.

The decision to fund any breast health and screening program is based on a thorough assessment of a community’s breast health needs and resources. In some areas of the U.S., our affiliates have determined a Planned Parenthood clinic to be the best or only local place where women can receive breast health care.

In all cases, Komen funding is used exclusively to provide breast cancer programs, including clinical breast exams conducted by trained medical personnel. When symptoms indicate a need for further screening, patients are provided with a referral to obtain a mammogram. Depending on local resources, that mammogram may be paid for using a Komen grant. It’s important to note that Komen will only make grants to non-profit organizations. As many mammography providers are for-profit entities, we are only to fund mammography services through grants made to local non-profit service providers.

Twice each year, Komen affiliates conduct a thorough review of their community health grant programs to ensure that funds are being used only for breast health services. Under no circumstances are Komen funds used to fund abortions or other non-breast services, and any service provider shown to violate those rules would be immediately terminated from the Komen grant program.

During the past five years, Komen Affiliate grants to Planned Parenthood have funded 139,000 clinical breast exams and nearly 5,000 mammograms, enabling the detection of 177 breast cancers. Our mission is to help save lives by increasing screening rates among all populations of women across the U.S. and around the world.  As long as there is a need for health care for vulnerable populations, Komen will fund the facilities that can best meet those needs.”

While some have doubted the accuracy of Komen’s statement regarding the lack of facilities available in rural areas for breast cancer services, Texas, unfortunately, serves as a prime example.  The rural counties surrounding Dallas are littered with Planned Parenthoods, many of which only have Planned Parenthood to serve their needs.  Planned Parenthood of El Paso even managed to receive federal stimulus funds, despite the President requesting Planned Parenthood be removed from the stimulus bill. Instead of contributing money to build clinics in the many underserved areas of rural Texas, which would be more in line with their supposed life-affirming goals, Susan G. Komen curiously chooses to give money to the Planned Parenthood facilities instead. As Komen surely understands, money is fungible, and their contributions to Planned Parenthood allows money that would have been used for breast cancer services to, instead, be used for their more popular and nefarious practices.

One needn’t look further than Live Action’s recent phone calls to 30 different Planned Parenthoods who all admitted they don’t offer mammograms to wonder where Susan G. Komen’s money is going.  In fact, as far back as 2003, according to Planned Parenthood’s 2003-2004 Annual Report, abortions increased by 14,000 in 2002-2003, while breast exams decreased by more than 141,000.  Yet, in 2003 Planned Parenthood of Dallas, of which Nancy Brinker, founder of the Susan G. Komen Foundation, has served on the advisory board, built a new $5 million dollar facility.  In Houston, Planned Parenthood recently opened the largest abortion facility in the world, second only to China, which is 78,000 square feet and has an entire floor dedicated to late-term abortions of up to 25 week old babies.  Thankfully, the state of Texas has fought back against those seemingly bent on making Texas the abortion capital.  Four Texas Planned Parenthood centers had plans to close after the state took away taxpayer funding.

As if supporting Planned Parenthood wasn’t bad enough because they are the antithesis of life, abortion has long been thought to increase the risk of breast cancer.  The first cancer study that included a possible link between abortion and breast cancer was in 1957.  While many studies since then have sighted abortion as a key risk factor for developing breast cancer, Susan G. Komen firmly denies even the possibility of a link between the two.  In 2002, the Bush administration created a furor when it altered the National Cancer Institute’s official statement concerning abortion and breast cancer on their website to read:

The possible relationship between abortion and breast cancer has been examined in over thirty published studies since 1957. Some studies have reported statistically significant evidence of an increased risk of breast cancer in women who have had abortions, while others have merely suggested an increased risk. Other studies have found no increase in risk among women who have had an interrupted pregnancy.

A New York Times editorial called the statement an “egregious distortion,” and 28 members of Congress complained to the Secretary of Health and Human Services.  In response, the National Cancer Institute held a 3 day workshop and concluded not only that there was no link between abortion and breast cancer, but that the issue was resolved.  However, in January 2010 the chief organizer of the workshop, Dr. Louise Brinton, reversed her opinion to say abortion does raise a woman’s risk of breast cancer.  An April 2009 study found that abortion increases breast cancer risk by 40%, and oral contraceptives can multiply the risk by 4.2 times.  Still the National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society, and Susan G. Komen for the Cure have ignored the findings.

The stated goal of Susan G. Komen for the Cure is to find a cure for cancer.  In October of 2005, researchers at the University of Minnesota successfully used human embryonic stem cells to kill cancer cells; a study that surely didn’t go unnoticed by Susan G. Komen.  Could it be that Susan G. Komen continues to financially support Planned Parenthood because they may hold the key to a possible cure for cancer?  When they aren’t harvesting baby body parts for money, Planned Parenthood has offered women the option of donating tissue from their aborted babies to medical research.  In their words, “Most agree that such decisions reflect generosity, courage, and the hope that some humanitarian good may come out of an unintended pregnancy.”  Humanitarian good from unnecessarily killing an unborn baby?   The truth is that adult stem cells have been treating all kinds of cancers, among many other diseases and conditions, for years.  So why use embryonic stem cells instead of adult stem cells?  According to the National Institute of Health, Human embryonic stem cells are thought to have much greater developmental potential than adult stem cells.  In other words, they want to explore the possibilities because it could lead to something; ethics be damned.  Yet, the NIH website also states that adult stem cells have recently been found to be more flexible than previously thought.  It would appear that continuing to explore all the uses of adult stem cells might be a little more difficult and embryonic stem cells could be an easier route.

Whatever their reasons for financially supporting Planned Parenthood, Susan G. Komen is thankfully not the only option for those dedicated to life for women with cancer and babies.  The National Breast Cancer Foundation also provides funding for free mammograms and cancer research and has no affiliation with Planned Parenthood.  The Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy recently made national news for using HIV to completely eradicate cancer.  The Breast Cancer Society focuses on providing help for women currently battling breast cancer.  Susan G. Komen for the Cure would like to do everything in their power to end breast cancer forever, an idea with which no one would disagree.  However, a strong message should be sent that our greatest ideals don’t have to be realized through compromise.

Life is precious, be it the beautiful, familiar faces of the women we love, or the new faces of the babies we’ve yet to meet.

Follow @BreeanneHowe

The Awakening

When I moved to small-town America in high school, I was immediately struck (dumbfounded if you will) by how many people openly supported the Republican party. “How could they all be so fooled?” I thought. They were mostly farmers and no one was wealthy; they were the furthest from my definition of a Republican. I couldn’t understand how they could vote for a party that was so selfish and certainly didn’t care about their needs.

Upon graduation, I drove as quickly as I could back to the city for college. I chose a small, private, Christian-based school because I benefited from the small class sizes that small towns afford. I had accepted Christ in my small town too, but not the Republicans. I was not surprised to find many Republicans at my college; they fit the profile – they had always attended private school and were just continuing on in that tradition because they could afford it. I aligned myself with those that had attended public school and were there on scholarship. I only talked politics with those who agreed with me.

My first real discussion on politics was when I met my husband-to-be. He was the first person to really challenge what I thought I knew and it was one year after college. He introduced me to the word Conservative and accused me of being one. Our discussions were tense, to say the least, but he was hot and smart so I stuck around. My conversion, that wasn’t really a conversion, was gradual. I’d give him my opinion of a topic and he’d enlighten me to the fact that the Republican party agreed with me and the Democrats did not. In other cases, maybe more than I care to admit, it was simply a case of following logic through to conclusion. Thinking logically took some getting used to; it’s not as pretty. After many, many discussions I was finally ready to admit that maybe Bush was not the anti-Christ; and I stepped forever away from the child I was when I voted for him in his re-election.

The Re-Awakening

Two children and many happy years later, I have found my perception of reality challenged once again. Not long after my original awakening, I began to deal with the continual slap in the face of my oh-so-open-minded friends and family who were not so thrilled about my “going over to the dark side.” Having been a Christian, Conservative for at least a little while now, I’ve come to expect a certain amount of hatred being thrown my way; and I’ve learned to appreciate the humor in the irony. Being a woman and a mother has never entered the battlefield until now; and now I find everything I thought the other party stood for under attack by those very people.

I always wanted to be a mother, there was no higher calling or greater honor in my opinion. As a mother, I have, of course, worried about the world I’m tasked with in which to raise my children. I have, however, prayed almost daily in thanks to God that I am so blessed to raise my family in the United States. At the very least I could rest assured that our family values, of Christian origin, would not be challenged by the establishment. My husband and I had worked hard to achieve the American Dream and looked forward to providing for our children not only the luxuries our parents hadn’t been able to afford, but a solid foundation upon which they could launch their own dreams. The freedom to live and achieve as we pleased was a right which we didn’t think twice about; until 2009.

I followed the Presidential election with an ever-growing sense of doom. How could anyone beat such a charismatic, young, inspiring man? The field of choice on the Republican side was pathetic, to be blunt. It was a given that the Democrats would win and the future was too depressing to consider. Before the election I wrote about the large part Barack Obama played in allowing newborn infants to die after “accidentally” living through abortions in his hometown of Chicago. I knew the kind of “man” I was dealing with. I sat back for a while, too overwhelmed with the task of how to save my country from the grip of Socialism I watched growing more everyday.

However, hell hath no fury like that of a mother. At some point I realized that it wasn’t about me and my dreams that had been disrupted; the change that I saw may well be endured by my children. Quietly trying to keep the dream alive in the suburbs would no longer do. I took to the streets, quite literally. The tea party my husband and I attended was a launching pad. It was reassuring to know we weren’t alone and a relief to see a family-oriented crowd. I even found another pregnant woman wearing the same t-shirt I was, describing our unborn babies already in debt. I began to research U.S. history for the first time. I found the rights I believed I had did indeed exist and I found a new appreciation for the genius of our forefathers. They were every bit as great as I was told and even more. When not changing diapers and learning to balance a much tighter budget, my husband and I attended more functions, discovered local politics, gave to candidates and blogged.

Recently we attended the RedState Gathering in the great state of Texas; which is, incidentally, a really great state. I hadn’t known we’d be previewing Fire From The Heartland at the Gathering, but I knew once I saw the trailer that I might cry during the movie. While I’ve learned a great deal about the history of my country and what I have to fight for, I’ve also learned that the rules of engagement are different for a conservative woman in the fight. I’d never seen a family viciously attacked before Sarah Palin came on the scene. I’d never heard of threats of death and rape for speaking out politically until I met other conservative women. The message had been received and my biggest concern was how to protect my family while working to protect their future.

Watching Fire From The Heartland was a renewal of the spirit for me. I learned there are inspirational women of the past that I know nothing about who paved the way for me. I saw familiar and unfamiliar faces of women across the country fighting the same fight as me. We share the same values and struggles. Most importantly though I saw that the Conservative American Woman has not been defeated. From the women of the past, washing clothes by hand (washing clothes by hand!!!) to the women of today, still standing tall after being ripped apart in the media; our spirit is still so very alive. The American Dream dies without us. We are an integral part of our country and freedom is indeed not free. I look forward to sharing this film with every woman I know and, someday, sharing it with my daughters. It’s a celebration of a beautiful creation by God that, like the history of our country, should not be glossed over. It’s an awakening, or a re-awakening, of the strength we as American women have within us to fight the fight we have always been fighting. The fight for freedom is not only off in far-away countries, as many have been led to believe, but right here in the heartland.

This year, for the first time since the 1980s, when Congress last overhauled Social Security, the retirement program is projected to pay out more in benefits than it collects in taxes – nearly $29 billion more.

Since the government has nothing but IOUs to pay the $2.5 trillion in debt that is Social Security, it will have to, once again, borrow money.  However, Moody’s Investors Service warned today that the U.S. is at the brink of losing it’s “AAA” credit rating; which sent stocks falling on Wall Street.  In order to keep U.S. credit in good standing, Moody’s recommends harsh and potentially unpopular policies that will test social cohesion.  According to their report, the U.S. could face a downgrade in rating by 2013; and that’s without the current healthcare bill that the CBO has yet to even give a cost estimate.  Once downgraded the cost of borrowing money would increase, making the $2.5 trillion in Social Security debt a drop in an alarmingly overflowing bucket.

Time to cue the snow God…