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News
E-Alert 1.20.10
Wednesday January 20, 2010 - 09:41 AM
This Week's Topics: Scott Brown wins U.S. Senate election; MCFL Assembly for Life; 'Sexting' crackdown bill before the Legislature; Apple iPhone pornography applications available; Prayers and donations for Haiti; Critical marriage fight continues in CA; Supreme Court agrees to hear WA petition caseBe sure to click on eForce to receive our MFI eForce E-Alert in your Inbox every Wednesday.
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Scott Brown wins U.S. Senate election
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Tuesday night, state Senator Scott Brown was declared the winner of the Special Election for the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by the passing of Ted Kennedy. Brown, a Republican, surged in the final weeks of the campaign to pull off one of the biggest political upsets in the nation's history, defeating the heavily favored Attorney General Martha Coakley. Brown won 52% of the vote, compared to Coakley's 47%.
"Tuesday night, the populist anger and frustration came together in a perfect storm in the Bay State as the voters elected a Republican to fill the seat held by the 'liberal lion' of the Senate Ted Kennedy," said MFI President Kris Mineau. "Today is the one-year anniversary of Barack Obama's inauguration, and the people of a state that overwhelmingly supported him in 2008 have told him what they think of his agenda in Washington."
Senator Brown has been a longtime supporter of traditional marriage, speaking out in support of the Marriage Amendment throughout the fight over the definition of marriage in Massachusetts. Senator Brown also received the endorsement of Massachusetts Citizens for Life for his pro-life voting record. Martha Coakley attempted to make his pro-life voting record an issue in the campaign, but the voters soundly rejected her abortion-on-demand stance.
"Scott Brown has been a good legislative ally for the causes of life and marriage on Beacon Hill, and we are excited that Scott will take his pro-family record to the U.S. Senate," Mineau added. "Massachusetts voters don't want the current health care bill, and they have sent Scott Brown to Washington, D.C. to stop it."
Though MFI is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that cannot endorse or support any candidate for office, we are hopeful that the Voter Guides that we provided to individuals and churches around the state helped citizens cast a more educated vote yesterday.
MFI congratulates U.S. Senator-Elect Scott Brown for his historic victory. We encourage Harry Reid and Barack Obama to promptly seat him, and allow him to begin doing the work the voters of Massachusetts sent him to do. We are encouraged that he has been an outspoken opponent of the current health care takeover bill before Congress. We look forward to working with Senator Brown on the health care issue, along with numerous other federal bills important to families in Massachusetts.
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MCFL Assembly for Life
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Massachusetts CItizens for Life are having their annual Assembly for Life this Sunday, January 24, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. at Faneuil Hall in Boston. The speakers include Michael Clancy (The photographer who took the world-famous picture of "Baby Samuel" showing Samuel reaching out of the womb to grab the surgeon's hand), Michael Maloney (19-year-old TV star, composer and singer), Cardinal Sean O'Malley, Rabbi Henry Morse, Marilyn Bernie (winner of the Flatley Award) and Merry Nordeen (President of "Choose Life Massachusetts" license plates.
Information about the annual March for Life can be found at www.marchforlife.org.
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'Sexting' crackdown bill before the Legislature
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Two separate bills currently before the Legislature would crack down on 'sexting' as part of proposals to curb bullying, reports the Brockton Enterprise. Neither bill directly addresses 'sexting,' but rather the general 'cyber bullying.' This is the using of electronic media like cell phones and the Web to harass, intimidate or discriminate against other students.
"We certainly want it to be comprehensive and cover any type of intimidating activity that is going on or is new, so I think that would be entirely reasonable," said Senate bill sponsor Sen. James Eldridge (D-Acton). The Senate and House bills -- S.B. 228 and H.B. 483, respectively -- both require school officials to implement bullying prevention policies and develop strategies for reporting and investigating any cases.
Eldridge said his goal is to make sure schools are educating students on the dangers of distributing potentially harmful materials, either by text mess, on social networking sites or in any other way. Rep. John Rogers (D-Norwood) is the sponsor of the House bill. Neither bill has advanced out of committee for a floor debate, but Eldridge hopes that the issue will be addressed during this legislative session.
Source: Brockton Enterprise |
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Apple iPhone pornography applications available
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Apple has begun to allow the sale of pornography applications for the iPhone via its iTunes online store. Some of these applications are free to children and adults. There are also links to more explicit pornography available right on iTunes as well. The applications, both free and paid, are very popular. The #11 most popular FREE app is one called "Tasty Pasties 18+ Amateurs." Apple provides samples of the pornography right on iTunes for all to see.
People have begun to complain about these applications, and have experienced some success. One of the most egregious apps was removed last week by Apple, but some still remain. Help put more pressure of Apple using this brief FORM (Select: Enhancement Request) and by calling Apple Public Relations at 408.974.2042 (Press "0" and as for "customer relations." |
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Prayers and donations for Haiti
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Massachusetts Family Institute was saddened to learn of the devastating earthquake in Haiti, and were praying that God would surround the people of Haiti with His comfort, especially for those who were wounded or who lost loved ones.
We encourage you to give to a Relief Organization. Many of them are doing tremendous work in Haiti. Here are a few that Focus on the Family recommends:
If you have friends or family affected by the earthquake and would like to speak about this with a counselor (at no cost to you), Focus on the Family invites you to call 800-A-FAMILY (800-232-6459) weekdays between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Mountain Time. Just ask for a counselors' assistant, and don't be discouraged if she requests that you allow a counselor to call you back. One of them will contact you just as soon as they're able. |
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Critical marriage fight continues in CA
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This marks the second week of the epic trial to preserve traditional marriage in the federal court case of Perry v. Schwarzenegger. The opponents of traditional marriage are attempting to portray Proposition 8 as nothing but a continuation of past perceived discrimination against gays and lesbians. Their witnesses have testified about how they felt when Prop 8 passed, how they felt as couples, and how they felt receiving disapproving looks when walking down the street together. They have failed, however, to say how invalidating Prop 8 would provide a remedy for these perceived social slights.
The attorneys defending traditional marriage have scored some critical concessions from the "experts" put forth by the pro-homosexual crowd. For example, one academic had to admit that there are critical differences between how homosexual men view the importance of monogamy as compared to married heterosexual couples. For gay men, the witness acknowledged, sexual exclusiveness is the exception rather than the rule. The "experts" still maintain throughout their testimony that redefining marriage will have no impact on the institution of marriage itself.
To get an accurate reading of what is happening in court, be sure to visit Andy Pugno's daily blog postings at www.protectmarriage.com/blog. Please also consider donating to help offset the extraordinary financial burden put upon those seeking to defend traditional marriage.
Donate: https://www.completecampaigns.com/FR/contribute.asp?campaignid=Prop8Legal
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Supreme Court agrees to hear WA petition case
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The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that asks whether the Washington Secretary of State may release the names, addresses and other personal information of over 138,000 individuals who signed a referendum petition seeking to protect traditional marriage in Washington State. The availability of this information has led to harassment and intimidation in Washington, California, Massachusetts and other places including death threats and property damage.
Protect Marriage Washington asked the Court to hear the case to prevent the release of the personal information of those that signed their marriage petition, allowing Washington citizens the right to speak freely without fear of harassment or intimidation. There is no indication on when the Court will hear the case or release an opinion.
More: CitizenLink.com |
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