PEARL DIVER

Pearl Has Moved

2010-03-24T16:46:00.001-07:00

I will no longer be blogging at this blog address. I have moved to a new URL. Please make the necessary changes to your blog lists and come along with me!

~Pearl

New blog: PEARLS OF TRUTH

New URL: http://pearls-of-truth.blogspot.com/

"Willing to March into Hell for a Heavenly Cause."

2010-02-23T09:41:00.000-08:00

Children win as natural marriage wins in Maine today!

2009-11-03T22:55:00.001-08:00

Fox News has called it. New York Times has called it. Yes on Question 1 WINS, 53% to 47%, an almost identical percentage margin, I might add, to California’s Prop 8 results. Congratulations go to Mainers who GOT OUT THE VOTE and represented and protected the children who will ultimately be most affected by any marriage redefinition. It is clear that THE MAJORITY still recognizes the eternal and natural truth that children have a right to be raised by a mother and a father and that GOVERNMENT OUGHT TO DO ALL IN ITS POWER TO PROTECT THAT RIGHT.

Says Fox News, “Gay marriage has now lost in every single state -- 31 in all -- in which it has been put to a popular vote.” Apparently “We, the People” are JUST. NOT. HAVING. IT. And thank goodness for that. Way to go, Maine!

From Thomas Peters at NRO:

“Guilty confession: my favorite part of last night’s election coverage was watching Rachel Maddow’s demeanor go from exuberant, to smug, to infuriated over the results of the marriage referendum in Maine. And then she seemed to lose interest.

It now appears highly likely that, when all the votes are counted, Maine will join every other state in the union (which has had a popular vote on the issue) in rejecting gay marriage.

This result comes despite Maine being a liberal state, despite a 2-1 funding disadvantage, despite aggressive legal action against traditional marriage defenders, despite unusually high voter turn out, and despite Rachel Maddow and the elite press running interference.

Proponents of same-sex marriage, unlike in California’s Prop 8, can’t blame Maine on Mormons, on African Americans who turned out for Barack Obama, on confusing ballot wording. Their issue loses when the people decide. And it loses every time.

No doubt proponents of same-sex marriage will take this loss as a rallying cry to throw even more money into the basket, and to put more pressure on the White House.

The battle will move next to D.C., while harassment will escalate against ordinary folks who have voted against same-sex marriage (especially in California and Washington).

But for those who support tradition[al] marriage, as they move forward into the next chapter, let them never forget, but rather, let them Remember (the) Maine! Bully for them.”

— Thomas Peters is the communications director for the American Principles Project, where he also blogs.

Pearl blogs with peace tonight.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Stand for Marriage Maine,Yes on Question 1,Yes on 1,Maine,Same-sex marriage,Homosexual marriage,gay marriage,NRO,Thomas Peters,Election,Vote,Fox News,New York Times,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Donate to Natural Marriage in Maine!

2009-09-30T15:35:00.000-07:00

From the Digital Network Army:

You are probably aware of the marriage campaign going on in Maine as they're working to keep marriage defined as between a man and a woman. I started talking with Stand for Marriage Maine's campaign about a week ago and have become aware of the pressing need they have for cash donations. Their coffers have run completely dry and they still have a month to go in the campaign. Maine is the second state that has had the opportunity to actually vote on their marriage law. If we lose Maine, the opposition will be able to say that people voted it in.

I was on twitter yesterday and saw a link go by with the comment "I'm obsessively compulsively hitting refresh---donations are pouring in for equality!" I went to the link and they had a goal of 30,000.00 with a graphic showing how much had been donated. I looked at the number and hit refresh. Every time I refreshed, the number increased. In the five minutes that I monitored the page, the amount had risen thousands of dollars. Imagine what damage they can do with that kind of firepower unopposed.

The opposition is martialing it's forces and donations are pouring in to their coffers from gay marriage advocates all over California and other states nationwide. After their stinging loss in California, they can't afford to lose Maine. They're pouring all their attention and resources into the state hoping to tip the election. We need to help our brothers and sisters in Maine. There is a dire need for donations. We can't afford to lose this fight. You can't protect marriage with empty air. Please forward this message to friends, neighbors, churches, ANYONE who can help! and let's get them the help they need to win.

Stand for Marriage Maine's Campaign page is here, click to donate: http://www.standformarriagemaine.com/

It's our turn to help a neighbor! Send this out to anyone you know who also might be able to help! A little from many can go a long way.

Please donate whatever you can. Even $5 will make a difference! In truth, we can't afford to NOT help our neighbors in Maine. Should Maine follow California's example it would be a phenomenal message to the nation about how the citizens of this country truly view the sacred nature of marriage.

~Pearl

Maine Marriage Initiative - Grass Roots Fail, Fail, Fail!

2009-09-25T11:46:00.000-07:00

Beetle's got a great story going at her blog. Looks as though EQCA (that’s Equality CALIFORNIA) is single-handedly managing the campaign to thwart the MAINE ballot initiative that seeks to reclaim a natural definition of marriage for children and families. Equality CALIFORNIA waging a culture war in MAINE. CALIFORNIA – MAINE. Wow. EQCA has a loooooooong arm.

Read what Beetle is exposing here.

I remember well when the No on Prop 8 Campaign and EQCA were so sure that the Yes on 8 campaign was “busing” volunteers into the state of California to tip the scales and outcome of the great Prop 8 debate. They were livid at the imagined offense.

I guess not incensed and offended enough not to employ the previously-imagined tactic themselves as they plead for out-of-state phone bank volunteers and organize road trips to Maine.

It’s pretty darn hypocritical IMHO.

[click image to enlarge]

VOTE YES ON QUESTION 1, MAINE!

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: EQCA,Equality California,Grass Roots,Maine,Question 1,homosexual marriage,Yes on 1,natural marriage,Question 1 campaign,Maine same-sex marriage campaign,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Victor Guzman – Living Through the Refiner’s Fire

2009-09-11T09:08:00.001-07:00

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Mormon Messages,9/11,September 11 2001,9/11/01,Finding Hope,Victor Guzman,Twin Towers,World Trade Center,LDS,Mormon,Survivor,Father,God,Heavenly Father,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Kerry Pacer: Gay ‘Person of the Year’ Gone Straight.

2009-09-10T16:17:00.001-07:00

From Ron Prentice:

In 2005, The Advocate, a national homosexual magazine, named 17 year-old Kerry Pacer their “Person of the Year” after she successfully took her fight to a U.S. District court to permit the formation of a gay-straight alliance club at her Georgia high school. She claimed it was needed to teach tolerance of lesbians, gays and transgender kids because she had been bullied after having “come out” when she was 12.

Fast-forward four years, and we now learn that Ms. Pacer is living happily with…. her boyfriend and their baby daughter. This real life story doesn’t help the genetic argument for homosexuality. The champion of homosexual tolerance in Georgia high schools, self-declared lesbian and The Advocate’s youngest “Person of the Year” is straight.

For years, the homosexual community has asserted, “Being gay is not a choice. No one would choose to lead a life wrought with incessant harassment. We were born that way.” And, they’ve argued that being transgender is also a genetic condition. Backing this up with research seems important, doesn’t it?

Indeed, somewhere along the continuum between “choice” and genetic causation lies the truth. Few homosexuals, especially men, have chosen their sexual orientation. Yet it is also true that no reliable studies confirm the “born that way” claims. If we’re listening, we’ll hear an abundance of testimony from living, breathing former homosexuals such as Kerry Pacer. In fact, I’ve stood with hundreds of them, brought together by their shared experience of leaving homosexual behavior and finding freedom.

At a Los Angeles high school, a young man who claims a female orientation uses the girls’ locker room, alongside the girls, to dress for P.E. Across the country in Maine, the Human Rights Commission ruled that a fifth grade boy who sexually orients himself as a girl should be allowed to use the school’s girls bathroom.

According to another story quoting Dr. Tracy Marsh, a Walden University faculty member in the School of Psychology, transgender is "a dynamic experience on a continuum, not a fixed point,” and that “…it honors that there are many expressions of gender, not just two." This perspective promotes a free-for-all society and adds to “tolerance” as the new god to be worshipped, while the concept and practice of social order, religious freedom, and even disagreement, is silenced.

Through all of this, we keep coming back to the definition of sexual orientation having no primary biological cause. In the case of Ms. Pacer, her sexual orientation as a 17 year-old clearly has changed. In the case of the Maine elementary school child, who’s to say that he won’t have a different preference in the coming years?

[Read more . . .]

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: The Advocate,Kerry Pacer,Homosexuality,Sexuality,Sexual Orientation,Nature v. Nurture,Ron Prentice,Newsbusters,Person of the Year,ACLU,Judge Willian O'Kelley,White County,GSA,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Yoink! – ACORN Exposed

2009-09-10T15:10:00.001-07:00

Two questions:

1) Why is this not being broadcast all over the mainstream media?

2) Why are MY hard-earned tax dollars going toward this smut, deceit, and corruption?

It’s illegal. Done. Shut ‘em down and stop shoveling federal money into their pockets.

[Read more about this investigation here]

Why ACORN’s lies and deceit should concern us on more than just a financial and moral level: Inside Obama’s ACORN.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Big Government,Andrew Breitbart,ACORN,Prostitution,Corruption,Obama,Baltimore ACORN,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Ben & Jerry’s Hubby Hubby

2009-09-02T08:26:00.001-07:00

Poor kids these days. Even ice cream is being politicized. Let’s take our ice cream cravings elsewhere, America. We aren’t beholden to Ben & Jerry’s liberal agenda. They’ve most definitely lost my business.

Contact Ben & Jerry’s to let them know how disappointing this announcement is.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Ben & Jerry's Hubby Hubby,Hubby Hubby,Chubby Hubby,Ben & Jerry's,Ben and Jerry's,Ice cream,liberal agenda,homosexual marriage,gay marriage,Vermont gay marriage,Pearl Diver,Pearl

BBC on Homosexual Parenting

2009-08-28T09:23:00.001-07:00

In a quaint, little article published on the 14th of this month, BBC offers resources to parents for answering 10 Tricky Children’s Questions.

The last of the 10 is “Why does my best friend have two dads?”

The answer that knocks the wind out of me:

"A child always starts with one mum and one dad. When the child is born, the mum and dad are usually best friends. But just like children, adults can change their best friends. Sometimes, the mum or the dad finds a new best friend. When adults find a new best friend, they are often called 'step-mum' or 'step-dad' because they are a 'step' away from their first mum or dad. When we say someone has 'two dads', it might mean their mum was best friends with one of the dads when you were born, then became best friends with another man afterwards."
Mark Booth, Stockton on Tees

Now doesn’t this just ooze stability and security for a child? “Don’t worry little Billy (Susie), your primary caregivers may change frequently throughout your life as one or another authority figure makes a new best friend (or heck, maybe even friends, plural), but you’ll turn out all right in the end because ‘All you need is love.’” That’s reassuring. Check out the rest of the answers. Is there a clear bias? Is your opinion on same-sex parenting represented in these responses from various “coaches?” Do we put too much emphasis on LOVE in our society today? What about reason? Logic? Example?

Can love really conquer ALL?

I say no.

[Hat tip: On Lawn]

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: BBC Your Answers to 10 Tricky Children's Questions,BBC,Homosexual Parenting,Homosexual Marriage,Two Dads,Two Moms,The Opine Editorials,On Lawn,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Non-representing Representatives

2009-08-24T09:58:00.000-07:00

Deceptive little buggars lately, aren't they?

New legislation in Wisconsin has legalized a domestic-partnership registry which includes homosexual partners even though the state has a constitutional amendment defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman which was voted into law by the people of Wisconsin in 2006.

How did this new legislation come to be recognized in the face of such constitutional clarity?

"Governor Jim Doyle, a Democrat, lobbied for the legislation by including the
language in his biannual state budget approved by lawmakers." (Source)

Say what? He slipped domestic partnership registration legislation into his state budget proposal?!

Thank heaven for Wisconsin Attorney General, J.B. Van Hollen, who has refused to defend the new legislation.

"My duty to is to the people of the state of Wisconsin and the highest
expression of their will - the constitution of the state of Wisconsin," Van
Hollen said. "When the people have spoken by amending our constitution, I will
abide by their command. When policy-makers have ignored their words, I will
not." (Source)

One can only wish that more politicians would remember to defend the will of the people they supposedly represent.

~Pearl

Imagine the Potential Spot #3

2009-07-15T12:52:00.001-07:00

Marriage and Divorce

2009-07-14T01:21:00.000-07:00

Sabbatical

2009-06-24T22:49:00.000-07:00

Pearl is taking one; a much deserved, much anticipated, much appreciated sabbatical. In short, I'm taking a summer vacation to reconnect with my family, my neglected hobbies, my favorite books, and my Heavenly Father.

Never fear, I'll still be hanging around various social networking sites and keeping up on the latest threats to family and freedom, but my posts will be few and far between and will most likely be quick blurbs with links or videos for your viewing pleasure.

Don't forget me! :0)

~Pearl

P.S. You may have noticed a random picture of a random bike in my sidebar. It's an experiment in luck. I never win anything, but thought I'd participate in this particular giveaway for two reasons: 1) participation is easy with the simple addition of html to my blog, and 2) I am REALLY curious to see how well that would perform with two mischievous and wiggly toddlers in back. I'm dubious (imagining many painful wipe-outs). :0)

A Father’s Day Plea

2009-06-15T20:41:00.001-07:00

"Overall, fathers play a restraining role in the lives of their children. They restrain sons from acting out antisocially, and daughters from acting out sexually. When there's no father to perform this function, dire consequences often result both for the fatherless children and for the society in which these children act out their losses."

[Read more . . . ]

~ Pearl

P.S. Never forget: "Marriage between one man and one woman is the ultimate expression of equality as no gender is marginalized.”

Technorati Tags: Father's Day,Father,Fathers,Dad,Dads,No-fault Divorce,Pornography,Abuse,Homosexual Marriage,Homosexual Adoption,Gay Marriage,Natural Marriage,Gender Equality,Children,Family,Families,The Digital Network Army,DNA,Elijah Bossenbroek,MercatorNet.com,Pearl Diver,Pearl

The True Meaning of the “Day of Silence.”

2009-06-03T13:51:00.001-07:00

Do you like stories? Then you’ll like this blog post. It’s chalk full of stories. Of course, these aren’t exactly “happy ending” stories, though some might feel that way, but you ought to read them regardless. Some stories are important for the motivation to effect change. These are those kind.

The Day of Silence is taking on a whole new meaning these days. The email below, one of countless just like it, recently landed in the inbox of Brian Brown of NOM (National Organization for Marriage), an organization which, led by Maggie Gallagher, is currently fighting on the forefront of the marriage battles in multiple states.

There is something to be said for the fact that homosexual advocates want so badly to silence any and all opposition to their lifestyle that they will resort, over and over again, to threat and intimidation. What is it that homosexual advocates are so afraid of? The truth?

Brian,

I've had hundreds of my gay-friends subscribe to your newsletter, only so that we can mark it as Spam once it shows up in our In-Box. Now, on Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail, and Aol, your mailings automatically go into the Bulk or Spam folders of everyone across the USA.

:-)

We will continue to support our efforts to destroy your mailings.

Sincerely,

OA

1) Well, this is one young lady who is taking note. And I’ve got to be honest here, I’m not liking what I’m seeing. Homosexual advocates are busy in our country today, folks. We’ve got the CA Alameda School District announcing it’s plans to move forward with multi-sexual “tolerance” education for KINDERGARTNERS, despite an overwhelmingly large showing of very vocal parental opposition at a public forum. And, of course, this is non-opt out curriculum with no parental notification.

During the meeting, one school board member who voted against the curriculum inquired when the term “heterosexual” was introduced in school vocabulary and was told fifth grade, when parental notification and opt-out provision are mandatory. However, the term “homosexual” is introduced in fourth grade, and there will be no parental notification or opt-out provision. When asked about heterosexual family portrayals in school curriculum, the board was told students study the Donner Family. Those who were actually educated in their schools will remember the Donner Family is notorious for engaging in cannibalism when stranded on their pioneer journey to California in the 1800’s.

…

At one point during the meeting, the school board president admitted receiving more emails and letters in opposition of the curriculum than in support. At the numerous board meetings those in attendance regarding the curriculum were overwhelmingly in opposition. That is noteworthy considering many Alameda parents are still learning about the curriculum.

“It’s impossible to understand how these three school board members can sit there and listen to this compelling testimony from concerned parents and still put their radical agenda ahead of the good of their school district,” stated Karen England, who attended the meeting. “They can see first-hand this is dividing their community and yet they bow to the special interests groups who are pushing an indoctrination program at the expense of true education.”

(Beetle Blogger)

2) Also in California, the legislature is once again pushing through gay celebration legislation in the form of SB 572, Harvey Milk Day, which bill was defeated at the Governor’s desk just last year when he rightly declared that it had no place in public schools. However, Arnold’s position toward homosexual marriage has done a complete about-face since he defended Proposition 22, nine years ago, so California citizens aren’t holding their collective breath for him to veto Milk once again. Oh, and please take note that Harvey Milk Day would also be a non-opt out, no parental notification day.

Harvey Milk’s life was characterized not by contributions to this state, but by contributions to the LGBT movement. Therefore, dedicating a day to him would be dedicating a day to the LGBT movement, not to honoring a man who helped California. And as of right now, there are 16 student-led* days honoring the multi-sexual movement (everything from Day of Silence, Gay Pride Day, to the festivities surrounding Martin Luther King Jr Day). Do we really need to take another day away from school to teach about Harvey Milk?

If it’s just about the fact he was brutally murdered, why not have a Mayor Moscone Day? They were both killed for the same reason—they did not want Mr. White to have his position back as supervisor. Mr. Milk was not murdered because he was gay, so why are we even considering a state day of recognition for him that would promote the LGBT lifestyle?

(Pride of America)

*Note: I am not certain what the author means by “student-led,” but it is clear that the Day of Silence, at least, is sponsored by GLSEN, the ever-present LGBTQ “champions.”

3) In Ramona, CA, sixth grade Natalie Jones opted to do a class report on homosexual hero, Harvey Milk. The school’s principle informed Jones that permission slips would be sent home to parents first so that they could choose whether or not their children would be present for such a presentation honoring a man whose life work was to expand rights for those pursuing the LGBT lifestyle. Now the ACLU is suing the school district for “discriminating against her speech” when they didn’t do that with any other student’s report (like the one who was reporting on Platypuses, or the one who chose to highlight a baseball player, etc.). Parents are rightfully incensed at the lawsuit considering the fact that homosexuality is a very controversial subject for many families; and at least half of them were grateful for the advanced notification as six of the twelve children were opted out of the report. Six of twelve. Half. And in the quote below you will witness the ACLU spokesperson blatantly denying the right of parents and families to determine the level of acceptance and equivalence they will demonstrate, and teach their children to allow, toward homosexuality. In Blair-Loy’s mind, homosexuality and heterosexuality are equivalent, and so ought they to be regarded by everyone, “or we’ll sue . . . .” Nice “open-minded” mentality.

The district claims that incorporating the Milk presentation is equivalent to "sex education" so parents should be notified. But the ACLU disagrees.

"If you do a class on Shakespeare, that's not sex education, even though those two characters are in a heterosexual relationship," Blair-Loy said.

(SanDiego6News)

4) Moving on. Quite recently in New Hampshire, we got a rare glimpse of the true homosexual agenda as pro-SSM legislators themselves ripped off the blindfolds in a move that shocked the entire country. They voted down an amendment (HB 73) to a same-sex “marriage” bill (HB 436) that would offer clear religious protections. It was the only requirement Governor Lynch had for staying a veto once the bill reached his desk. Why didn’t it pass? Why were the pro-SSM legislators unwilling to vote in favor of these religious protections?

raytmimer said,

“This is going to be an interesting point of contention. Hasn’t the whole point been all along that there is no threat to religion in these bills? How can they explain rejecting protections for religion and still keep a straight face when our concerns are raised over religious freedoms?”

Chairm said,

“Raytimner, it is because the SSM campaign refuses to grant that those who disagree have any moral standing. It is the first axiom of SSM argumentation that to disagree is itself an act of bigotry. Indeed, the line is usually far more pointed than even that — they declare axiomatically that it is a religious bigotry. Hence the rejection of freedom of conscience and the obvious assertion of supremacy for identity politics of the gaycentric variety.”

(raytmimer and Chairm at Beetle Blogger)

If we rewind even farther, we would note that Senator Sheila Roberge had initially offered three alternatives to the Committee of Conference on Gay Marriage Bill HB 73, “all of which were rejected. She suggested asking voters in a nonbinding referendum whether the Legislature should permit same-sex marriage, postponing the effective date of the legislation from January 2010 to July 2011 or allowing businesses and individuals to decline to provide wedding services if doing so would violate their ‘consciences or sincerely held religious beliefs.’”

“Because a compromise must receive unanimous support to survive, Roberge was then removed from the committee and replaced with Sen. Matthew Houde, D-Plainfield, who voted with the majority [by phone]. Roberge said she was disappointed she was removed.”

(Boston.com and Pomegranate Apple at Beetle Blogger)

Here’s the tally so far:

Silence organizations fighting for their belief in the traditional marriage ideal.
Silence parents in order to indoctrinate children.
Silence schools, who would honor parental rights, by suing them.
Silence children by creating allies out of them through misdirected “hero” worship.
Silence religion as evidenced by a failure to pass religious protections for those preaching against SSM.

Let’s do that one more time:

Silence organizations.
Silence parents.
Silence schools.
Silence children.
Silence religion.

Oh, and remember this:

“This door’s wide open now. It’s gonna happen. Whether you like it or not.” (Mayor Gavin Newsom)

Welcome to the true meaning of Day of Silence.

~Pearl

UPDATE (4:05 PM): New Hampshire Governor, John Lynch, signed the homosexual “marriage” bill (HB 436) today, making NH the sixth state in the US to recognize homosexual “marriages.” Like dominos they fall.

Technorati Tags: Day of Silence,GLSEN,New Hampshire,Governor John Lynch,Alameda School District,Multi-sexual Acceptance Education,Gay,Lesbian,Bisexual,Transgender,raytmimer,Chairm,Beetle Blogger,San Diego,San Diego 6 News,Ramona,Mount Woodson Elementary School,Natalie Jones,Same-Sex Marriage,Six Consequences,Freedom of Speech,Freedom of Conscience,Discrimination,Harvey Milk Day,SB 572,Governor Schwarzenegger,ACLU,David Blair-Loy,Pride of America,Brian Brown,Maggie Gallagher,NOM,National Organization for Marriage,Proposition 22,Proposition 8,Traditional Marriage,Gay Marriage Bans,Homosexual,Homosexual Marriage,LGBTQ,LGBT,HB 73,HB 436,Senator Sheila Roberge,Senator Matthew Houde,Pearl Diver,Pearl

“You Don’t Have to Yell” by Chris Rice

2009-05-27T16:41:00.001-07:00

I happily stumbled upon this song, “You Don’t Have to Yell,” while listening to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Radio mixed with a bit of Jon Schmidt on Pandora. I love it. This guy, Chris Rice, has a soothing, mellow voice and blends those excellent vocals with wonderful, timely messages.

A message for those who yearn to see traditional marriage safely and permanently elevated for the sake of children and society.* We can do this quietly, respectfully, and firmly – without contention:

“Draw your lines and choose your side
Many things are worth the fight
But louder doesn't make you right
You don't have to yell
You don't have to yell”

It is my belief that such level-headed reasoning will some day prove victorious. Thanks to Chris Rice for lending his beautiful talent to such a beautiful message of peace.

~Pearl

*This is purely my personal application and interpretation of the message of the song. I do not know where Chris Rice “draws his lines.”

Technorati Tags: Chris Rice,You Don't Have to Yell,Mormon Tabernacle Choir,Pandora,Jon Schmidt,Debate,Social Issues,Moral Issues,Conversation,Communication,Music,Homosexual Marriage,Same-sex Marriage,Traditional Marriage,Proposition 8,Prop 8,California Supreme Court and Prop 8,Pearl Diver,Pearl

California Supreme Court Upholds Proposition 8

2009-05-26T10:05:00.001-07:00

This morning the Supreme Court of California ruled 6-1 in favor of Proposition 8. I am immensely relieved that this state’s judiciary was inspired to reaffirm the right of the people of California to amend our own Constitution as we see fit. I am relieved that my Nov. 4th vote didn’t come to naught. I am relieved that, at least for a time, marriage is as it should be in the great state of California.

Democracy has ruled the day here in The Golden State.

As per the 18,000 homosexual “marriages” performed between last year’s judicial ruling against Prop 22 and the November 4th vote approving Prop 8, they will remain valid. I will be curious to learn how that is justified.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: California Supreme Court,California Supreme Court Justices,Proposition 8,Prop 8,Yes on 8,Vote Yes on 8,November 4th 2008,Homosexual Marriage,Gay Marriage,Same-sex Marriage,Traditional Marriage,Religion,Freedom of Religion,Free Speech,Freedom of Speech,Judicial Ruling,Democracy,Vote,Democratic Vote,Amendment,Constitution,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Mormons and Proposition 8: A PBS Episode

2009-05-25T00:29:00.001-07:00

On May 22, 2009, PBS, at Religion and Ethics News Weekly, released a segment about Mormons and Proposition 8. A timely subject considering the impending Supreme Court decision. The twist, however, is that the Mormons interviewed are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who consider themselves active, but disagree with the Church on the matter of same-sex “marriage.” I didn’t actually watch the video, but I read through the entire transcript and was quite astonished at a certain number the member’s opinions. I wrote my thoughts into a comment, but since they are moderated I am not sure if it will be posted. (I promise I didn’t use any foul language or get mean or anything). :0)

Because I feel passionately about this particular subject, I’ve decided to give voice to my opinions here as well. The following are some of the thoughts shared by interviewed members of the Church that I happen to strongly disagree with. I can imagine that some of what I say here might raise the eyebrows of those not familiar with the finer tenets of my faith, but, as always, I hope that mutual respect and tolerance will dictate the tone of any discussion that may ensue.

That said, let’s begin.

“Dr. CHAN: Our church is the church of Jesus Christ, first and foremost, and my understanding of the Gospel of Christ is that it’s a Gospel of love and acceptance. So it seems like a policy that’s about discrimination, which often goes hand in hand with fear and hatred, not about love and acceptance, and that for me is really troublesome.”

I believe* that members of the LDS Church who are okay with homosexual "marriage" do not actually understand the eternal nature of marriage and family. They do not understand the Lord's gospel as He has delivered it to us through ancient and modern-day Prophets. Why would any active member of the Church ever vote for or promote a measure that would encourage any of God's children to abandon the ONE UNION that can offer them exaltation and life with their Father again? According to our religious beliefs, celestial marriage, between one man and one woman, is essential to achieving the Celestial Kingdom and becoming Gods and Goddesses like our Heavenly Parents.

“The subject of marriage is debated across the world, where various arrangements exist for conjugal living. My purpose in speaking out on this topic is to declare, as an Apostle of the Lord, that marriage between a man and a woman is sacred—it is ordained of God. I also assert the virtue of a temple marriage. It is the highest and most enduring type of marriage that our Creator can offer to His children.

While salvation is an individual matter, exaltation is a family matter. Only those who are married in the temple and whose marriage is sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise will continue as spouses after death and receive the highest degree of celestial glory, or exaltation. A temple marriage is also called a celestial marriage. Within the celestial glory are three levels. To obtain the highest, a husband and wife must be sealed for time and all eternity and keep their covenants made in a holy temple.”

. . .

“We, as the Lord’s prophets and apostles, again proclaim to the world that ‘the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.’

We further proclaim that ‘all human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.’”

. . .

“That proclamation on the family helps us realize that celestial marriage brings greater possibilities for happiness than does any other relationship. The earth was created and this Church was restored so that families could be formed, sealed, and exalted eternally.”

. . .

“These truths are absolute. Members of this Church invite all people to learn them and to qualify for eternal life. We invite all to gain faith in God the Eternal Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ, to repent, to receive the Holy Ghost, to obtain the blessings of the temple, to make and keep sacred covenants, and to endure to the end.” [emphasis added]

[Celestial Marriage, Elder Russell M. Nelson, Nov. 2008]

So while these active members of the Church are promoting a belief that is directly contrary to the Lord's commandments as revealed through His Prophets and through "The Family: A Proclamation to the World," in truth, they are further facilitating and solidifying the sub-celestial or ignoble eternal existence of those who suffer from same-sex attractions. And this they are doing in the name of love and acceptance.

“Ms. COMPTON: This has not challenged my faith, no. My faith is independent of the morality or the politics of gay marriage. It’s deeper. My faith is in a Christ who loves everybody and wants everyone to come to him, and a God that loves the world no matter whether they are Mormon or Muslim or Jewish or Catholic, and wants all of us to be there and all of us to treat each other like we’re brothers and sisters and not like we’re them and us.”

Yes, Ms. Compton, Christ does want "everyone to come to him," but how can they when you and others are facilitating and promoting a union that, by it's very opposite-sex omission, actually takes them farther away from our Heavenly Father and our Savior?

“Ms. FAHEY: I even had some friends say that they still think that homosexuality is a choice. I don’t think the church leadership feels that way but members — some members feel that way, wrongly of course.”

To Ms. Fahey, who has decided that all those who believe homosexuality is a choice are wrong, I would suggest she read the latest statement from the APA on the nature of homosexual origins. No one can prove what causes homosexuality, though theories abound. Some say nature, some say nurture, and some say both. I believe the last, but my opinion cannot be proved as is the case with the other two opinions as well. That debate is beside the point, though, as is so well-expressed by Elder Oaks and Elder Wickman in the quoted interview excerpt following the APA’s statement below.

From the APA:

"There is no consensus among scientists about the exact reasons that an individual develops a heterosexual, bisexual, gay or lesbian orientation. Although much research has examined the possible genetic, hormonal, developmental, social, and cultural influences on sexual orientation, no findings have emerged that permit scientists to conclude that sexual orientation is determined by any particular factor or factors. Many think that nature and nurture both play complex roles...."

That contrasts with the APA's statement in 1998: "There is considerable recent evidence to suggest that biology, including genetic or inborn hormonal factors, play a significant role in a person's sexuality."

[Source: A Guy in the Window]

And from the LDS Church:

PUBLIC AFFAIRS: You’re saying the Church doesn’t necessarily have a position on ‘nurture or nature’

ELDER OAKS: That’s where our doctrine comes into play. The Church does not have a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction. Those are scientific questions — whether nature or nurture — those are things the Church doesn’t have a position on.

ELDER WICKMAN: Whether it is nature or nurture really begs the important question, and a preoccupation with nature or nurture can, it seems to me, lead someone astray from the principles that Elder Oaks has been describing here. Why somebody has a same-gender attraction… who can say? But what matters is the fact that we know we can control how we behave, and it is behavior which is important.

[Same-gender Attraction, LDS Newsroom]

Curious that the APA is backpedaling now, when liberal thought and homosexual marriage activists will spit upon them and sneer at them for it. I’d like to know the events and discoveries that led up to that statement.

“SEVERSON: As other states take up the issue of gay marriage, Mormon church leaders this time around have not asked members to get involved. Meanwhile, the California Supreme Court is once again considering the constitutionality of the ban on gay marriage. Their decision is expected soon.”

Severson, it is possible that Church leaders haven't asked members to get involved in other states because voters haven’t been given the chance to get directly involved in other states! It just so happens that California is the ONLY state in which the issue of same-sex "marriage" was put to a vote by the people. In all other states where it has been legalized, it has been pushed through by judicial fiat and sly legislatures meeting on the fly and giving little or no advanced notification to the people that the legislation was even being discussed. It's amazing what Tim Gill's money can buy. Amazing.

~Pearl

*All opinions expressed are my own. Doctrinal misinterpretations (if there are any), are my own and should not reflect poorly on the LDS Church. For official doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, please visit LDS.org.

Technorati Tags: PBS,Mormons and Proposition 8,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Mormons,LDS,LDS Church,The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,Mormon Church,Marriage,Celestial Marriage,Exaltation,Celestial Kingdom,God,Jesus Christ,Heavenly Father,PBS Episode,California Supreme Court Justices,Prop 8 Opinions,APA,American Psychological Association,President Spencer W. Kimball,Elder Russell M. Nelson,Dallin H. Oaks,Lance B. Wickman,LDS Newsroom,LDS.org,Same-gender attraction,Religion and Ethics News Weekly,Pearl Diver,Pearl

California Supreme Court to Issue Prop 8 Opinions Next Week

2009-05-22T13:46:00.001-07:00

According to the California court info website, the Supreme Court will “issue an opinion in three cases challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 8 at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26, 2009.”

Given that this final weekend before their decision just happens to be Memorial Day weekend, celebrating our country’s fallen heroes who died defending our Constitutional freedoms such as the Freedom of Religion and the Freedom of Speech, let’s hope that our esteemed Supreme Court Justices take time to reflect on the real-life threat that legalization of homosexual “marriage” poses to said freedoms.

Here’s to praying for the Court, the children, the future, and the future children of America.

Anxiously awaiting,
~Pearl

Technorati Tags: California Supreme Court,California Supreme Court Justices,Proposition 8,Prop 8,Opinions,Homosexual Marriage,Same-sex Marriage,Gay Marriage,Traditional Marriage,California,Voters,Constitution,Amendment,Freedom of Speech,Freedom of Religion,Memorial Day Weekend,Strauss v. Horton,Tyler v. State of California,City and County of San Francisco v. Horton,S168047,S168066,S168078,Pearl Diver,Pearl

NOM and CPR Action Present: “I’m Confused” – A Pro-Traditional Marriage Video Featuring Children of the Homosexual “Marriage” Future.

2009-05-21T23:05:00.001-07:00

This excellent sub-40 second commercial clip does an amazing job of bringing the entire marriage debate right back where it belongs – with the children.

Government regulates marriage for the benefit of society; to ensure the best possible emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual outcome for the potential posterity of the marital union. It doesn't matter that that union may be sterile or that it may end up in divorce. Just because the human execution is malfunctioning (sterility) or flawed (divorce) or even broken (abuse), does not make the divine institution flawed. Marriage is what it is and those who pretend otherwise are endangering not only themselves by exposing their tender feelings to more disappointment (marriage appropriation will not yield the acceptance they so yearn for), but our country's innocent future as well - the children.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: NOM,Nation For Marriage,National Organization for Marriage,CPR Action,Cornerstone Policy Research-Action,nhcornerstone,YouTube,Bill O'Reilly,Fox News,Laura Ingraham,Homosexual Marriage,Traditional Marriage,Confused Children,Confused,Commercial,New Hampshire,I'm Confused,Pearl Diver,Pearl

True Gender Equality

2009-05-19T10:40:00.001-07:00

“Marriage between one man and one woman is the ultimate expression of equality as no gender is marginalized.”

This is a thought I have recently adopted (and do eagerly disseminate) that was coined by my very good friend Pomegranate Apple (also writing now at Beetle Blogger). Ponder it. It is very profound.

Radical feminists would have us believe that the only way for women to achieve equality is to marginalize men. Some have even gone so far as to propagate the sentiment that true equality can only come as women embrace their supposed “inner lesbian” and categorically deny any need for the male gender.

"Feminism is the theory, lesbianism is the practice." -- Ti-Grace Atkinson
"The simple fact is that every woman must be willing to be identified as a lesbian to be fully feminist" (National NOW Times, January, 1988).
[Lesbianism is] an ideological, political and philosophical means of liberation of all women from heterosexual tyranny... " -- Cheryl Clarke, "Lesbianism, An Act of Resistance," in This Bridge Called My Back: Writing by Radical Women of Color
(Source: Opine Editorials)

When approached thoughtfully, this quite easily becomes transparently illogical. How can we ever be equal to those we’re attempting to rise above? Yes, it’s great that women can vote, own property, and wear pants. Fantastic, actually. But, demanding that women can (and should) do all that men do, actually denies the unique nature and contribution of man and instead sets woman at a contrived advantage by the forced combination of her innate, feminine characteristics and her socially-driven, male character acquisitions.

Radical Feminism = woman on a pedestal; man subservient. Does that seem like equality to you?

Male chauvinism, on the other hand, demands the exact opposite. Instead of recognizing and appreciating the unique abilities and contributions of women, machismo demands that women walk behind men, serve men, and eternally submit to men.

Male Chauvinism = man on a pedestal; woman subservient. Still not equal.

Not surprisingly, the only situation in which true gender equality can be achieved is marriage between one man and one woman, where cohabitation, daily interaction, respect for marital vows (life-long commitment), and the mutual care of physical, spiritual, and family assets (aka children) demands a cooperation the likes of which cannot and will not be required in any other situation. Successful marriage relies heavily upon the equal contribution of both sexes. Women and men balance each other perfectly: testosterone to estrogen, physical strength to spiritual strength, adoration to admiration, justice to mercy. Where one is lacking, the other steps up. Where one excels, the other observes, learns, and grows.

In parenting, the same applies. Children need the influence of a father and a mother, as both contribute different yet vitally essential lessons to developing minors. Two lesbian partners cannot possibly provide the necessary contributions of the male gender as they do not posses the inherent male characteristics and abilities with which to deliver such lessons. Textbooks, research, and education can only take one so far. It is strictly in hindsight that an individual recognizes which lessons were most vital to his development, so it is logical to conclude that a teenager will not, in the midst of his character development, approach his two “mommies” and say, “I really need you to teach me, by example, how a man should treat a woman.” That is a lesson that a good father will teach his son unconsciously as he goes about the course of his days interacting respectfully with his son’s mother. For a lesbian mommy to teach the same lesson unconsciously, she would have to abandon her femininity in favor of masculinity, effectively illustrating the unique importance of a male role model in the home through imitation of male behavior. Additionally, for mommies to try to teach the same lesson consciously would very simply be less effective as it has been proven that children learn more by the example of those in primary proximity than they do by lecture from the same. Think, “Do as I do; not as I say.”

Homosexual marriage/parenting/relationships = marginalization (sometimes even derision) of opposite gender = two left feet = unnatural imbalance = discord, anxiety, depression, confusion, dissatisfaction. Definite inequality here.

More examples of essential lessons taught by the unique presence of an opposite-sex parent in the home:

- A little girl learns from her daddy (through observation) what to look for in a future spouse.
- Children learn to nurture and serve others by watching an inherently sensitive mother do just that.
- Kids know their own strength and its appropriate use through roughhousing with dad.

Incidentally, it is extremely interesting to note that more often than not, one individual in a homosexual partnership will take on the role of male (dominant, commanding, and butch) while the other adopts the role of female (emotional, meek, and effeminate) in an attempt to imitate and recapture nature where the natural has ceased to exist. And still more desperate attempts for the unnatural to imitate the natural include increasingly convoluted, gender-confusing actions and behaviors such as estrogen/testosterone injections, sex changes, and transvestite fetishism. On a greater level, this desperate imitation can be interpreted as lending profound importance to the institution of marriage as homosexuals demand the acquisition and redefinition of a uniquely heterosexual union which currently provides a protected platform for the essential blending of opposite genders and, therefore, healthy continuation of society.

Marriage between one man and one woman = true gender equality = balance = peace. Who wouldn’t want that?

Please note that bringing up skyrocketing divorce rates and spousal abuse does not provide a logical basis for abandoning the singular encouragement of the heterosexual marital ideal. It merely points out a problem with the humans involved in the institution, not the institution itself. And there are many ways to deal with such problems (counseling, elimination of no-fault divorce, beheading . . . just kidding) that do not include devaluation through redefinition.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Gender Equality,Gender Inequality,Homosexual Marriage,Traditional Marriage,Feminism,Male Chauvinism,Machismo,Parenting,Homosexual Parenting,Heterosexual,Same-Sex Marriage,Character Development,Appropriation,Imitation,Radical Feminism,Radical Feminists,Pomegranate Apple,Pearl Diver,Pearl

What Has Happened to Public School?

2009-05-16T15:49:00.001-07:00

With Harvey Milk Day sitting on the Governor’s desk and Alameda School District attempting to introduce homosexual acceptance education in kindergarten curriculum, I am left breathlessly wondering, “WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO PUBLIC SCHOOL?!”

(And I’m sure I am not the first person to so lament.)

Take a look at this . . . .

2009 Official California Public School Event Calendar

Race recognition in our schools:

January 19 – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
February 20 – Frederick Douglass Day
March 5 – Black American Day
March 21 – International Day for Elimination of Racial Discrimination
June 11 – Race Unity Day
September 25 – Native American Day
February – National African American History Month
May – National Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
September – National Hispanic Heritage Month
October – Filipino American History Month
November – National American Indian Heritage Month

Environmentalism in our schools:

March 7 – California Conservation, Bird, and Arbor Day
April 12-18 – National Environmental Education Week
April 21 – John Muir Day
April 22 – Earth Day
May 3-9 – Be Kind to Animals Week
June 5 – World Environment Day

Women’s rights in our schools:

February 15 – Susan B. Anthony Day
March 8 – International Women’s Day
August 26 – Women’s Equality Day
March – National Women’s History Month

Other Days of Note:

March 31 – Cesar Chavez Day
April 1-7 – Labor History Week

(source)

Don’t get me wrong, nothing is inherently wrong with childhood awareness of each of these, but my goodness, what happened to the good old days of simple public instruction in reading, writing, and arithmetic? Why are parents being steadily denied the opportunity to teach their children the essential moral lessons of all time? To honor women in a manner deemed appropriate by them whether that includes traditional roles or not? To teach about civil rights without mandatory instruction of newly contrived “rights”? To present the Constitution as our Founding Fathers designed it? To teach respect for the earth with whatever level of enthusiasm they wish to instill? To impart that true tolerance demands only respect for differences, not acceptance of them? What gives government the right to decide that parents are performing inadequately simply because children’s opinions do not align with those of popular culture, Hollywood, and Liberalism?

I think David Kupelian, author of The Marketing of Evil, hit the nail square on the head when he said:

“Today’s culture is so poisonous that your only hope is to literally create (or plug into) another culture entirely – a subculture. Just as today’s homosexual culture, for example, used to be a miserable subculture lurking in public toilets and seedy clubs, but today has become the sophisticated culture of the “beautiful people” and Hollywood, so must your true American culture – if it’s ever to come back – begin again as a subculture.

The best solution I know of for accomplishing this is to homeschool your children and network with other like-minded parents in your area. Trust me, it’s already being done, you’re not reinventing the wheel. Sports, music, drama, Scouts, 4-H, whatever extracurricular activities you want are all available to homeschoolers. You can literally pick and choose the culture in which your children grow up, and you can actively participate in its creation. I believe homeschooling today represents the single most important and promising avenue for the true rebirth of American Judeo-Christian culture. The real America is now being reborn in families where children are raised with real understanding and insight and protected from the insanity of the popular culture until they’re big enough and strong enough in their convictions to go out in the world and make their mark. May it only grow.”

He later goes on to say:

“Of course, the main factor keeping most American children in government schools is that they’re free. So isn’t free schooling a good thing? Sure. Free food is great too, but not if it’s been poisoned.

The government’s schools are free in the same way everything else the government does is free – you’re forced to pay for it with your hard-earned taxes or you go to prison. Still, it costs a lot to raise kids these days, and if you’ve had thousands of dollars extracted from you in taxes to pay for these schools, shouldn’t you get your money’s worth by sending your children there – for “free”? Although that’s a powerful magnet, there’s also a hidden cost, as John Taylor Gatto points out.

Beyond all the other reasons it might be unwise to entrust your children to the government, Gatto points to one more, which he considers the core problem. When all is said and done, he doesn’t dwell on the grotesque psychological experiments and failed pedagogic approaches, and school crime sprees that steal headlines. Rather, Gatto points to the subtle, soul-killing power of forced government schooling, the devastating effect on each child’s not-so-hidden genius of sitting at a desk in a classroom all day for one’s entire youth.”

. . .

“The net effect of holding children in confinement for twelve years without honor paid to the spirit is a compelling demonstration that the State considers the Western spiritual tradition dangerous. And of course it is.

The bottom line, says Gatto:

Spiritually contented people are dangerous for a variety of reasons. They don’t make reliable servants because they won’t jump at every command. They test what is requested against a code of moral principle. Those who are spiritually secure can’t easily be driven to sacrifice family relations.

Please understand. The people responsible for this disaster – both then and now – are not deliberately trying to hurt children. They are people who fervently believe, with a religious zeal, in a radically different world view than the one in which most Americans believe – indeed, radically different from the one on which this nation was founded.”

What is the moral of this story?

If you choose to enroll your children in public school education, don’t do it blindly. Don’t do it with a singular anticipation of the hours of free time it will afford you. Know what you’re up against. Stay involved. Be prepared to address any negative education from teachers and peers that your children may receive throughout the course of each 7-hour day. After extracurricular activities, you will most likely only have about three hours before bedtime in which to do damage control.

If you have a desire to homeschool, but don’t know where to start, just get researching. Yes, there is so much information out there that it is easy to get overwhelmed and give up. Just don’t. Empower yourself through education. Know your rights as a parent. Don’t get stressed out. You can do it.

Here’s to homeschooling and safeguarding the next generation!

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Homeschool,Homeschooling,Elementary Education,Education,Public School,Harvey Milk Day,Alameda School District,San Francisco,Homosexual Agenda,Parental Rights,Big Brother Government,John Taylor Gatto,David Kupelian,The Marketing of Evil,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Hot Air

2009-05-08T18:24:00.001-07:00

In my e-mail today:

A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude
and spotted a man in a boat below. She shouted to him,

"Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an
hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The man consulted his portable GPS and replied,

"You're in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation
of 2,346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north
latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.

She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Republican."

"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically
correct. But I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm
still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."

The man smiled and responded, "You must be an Obama Democrat."

"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"

"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you are
going. You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air.
You made a promise you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to
solve your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in
before we met, but somehow, now it's my fault."

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Hot Air,Barack Hussein Obama,President Obama,Republican,Democrat,Hot Air Balloon,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Sex Instruction Book Aimed at Toddlers

2009-05-07T10:52:00.001-07:00

“A BOOK which teaches children about lesbian mums getting pregnant using sperm donors is being pitched at kids as young as two.
The controversial publication, Where Did I Really Come From?, also features a drawing of two gay men holding a baby in a chapter about surrogacy.
The publisher's marketing spruiks the book, which includes in-depth descriptions of sexual intercourse, as suitable to be read to two-year-olds."

This shouldn’t even need any commentary, but I’ll forge ahead just in case you missed the obvious. “IN-DEPTH DESCRIPTIONS OF SEXUAL INTERCOURSE” and it’s supposedly suitable for two-year-olds?! Under the guise of teaching about our origins, which, when it comes right down to it includes, WITHOUT EXCEPTION, one man’s contribution and one woman’s contribution, this author believes that she is well within “the appropriate.”

Author Narelle Wickham defended the book, describing it as a mainstream publication which just went further about ways of conceiving children.
"It is just trying to normalise to children that there are many ways to conceive a child," she said.

Ah, okay, that makes it all better. Don’t worry, folks, she’s just trying to “normalise” sex for toddlers. Lovely. What do you think? Yea or Nay?

[Read entire article here]

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Where Did I Really Come From?,Narelle Wickham,Lesbian Parents,Lesbian Mothers,Surrogacy,Homosexual Fathers,Sperm Donors,Sex Education,Toddlers,New South Wales Attorney General's Office,Normalization,Desensitization,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Maine, D.C., and Milk: The Homosexual Agenda Steams Forward.

2009-05-06T16:35:00.001-07:00

It’s old news by now, I’m sure. But just in case any of you missed your daily rounds amongst the alternative media outlets reporting accurate local and world news on the Internet, let me fill you in.

MAINE’s governor John Baldacci has signed a same-sex “marriage” bill into effect today, which brings the tally of states recognizing genderless marriage to a grand total of five. All five states, not surprisingly, have brought about legalized homosexual “marriage” by circumventing a vote by the people. In the ONLY state where the matter of homosexual “marriage” was turned over to the people it would affect, Californians got it right, preserving the traditional definition of marriage in order to preserve the future health of children and society.

But hope is not lost for Maine. Read on.

Update: Maine has a “People’s Veto” Option
“The law the governor signed today does not go into effect until 90 days after the adjournment of the legislative session. When the session ends, the people can file for a “People’s Veto.” If they get 60,000 signatures before the 90 days are up, the law does not go into effect and the bill goes to a statewide referendum.”
(Pomegranate Apple)

D.C., our nation’s grand capitol, has seen fit to ratify legislation which recognizes out-of-state homosexual “marriages.” Lawmakers there openly admit to a desire for this legislation to eventually lead to legalized same-sex “marriage.”

“The interesting part is that Congress must approve the city’s laws. They have 30 days. This will not only decide whether the law stands, but will show where congress stands on the DOMA.”
(Pomegranate Apple)

And Harvey MILK Day is winding its way through the ranks of the California legislature now in session in Sacramento. Despite being vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger last year, proponents of SB 572 are doggedly pushing the measure through once again. Today, the Senate Education Committee signed off on the bill.

“The governor vetoed this identical legislation less than a year ago saying that support of Harvey Milk and his policies were not a part of public school education.”
(Beetle Blogger)

THIS IS A NON OPT-OUT DAY, FOLKS!!

“Schools, children and parents will have no choice but to celebrate this man and the radical agenda of his political movement.”
(Beetle Blogger)

Whew! Things are heating up. Will the homosexual activist cry of “6 by 12!” (six New England states by the year 2012) ring true before the year 2009 even comes to a close? I certainly hope not. Will the people stand up and demand to be accurately represented by their elected politicians? I certainly hope so. And will homosexual activists succeed in legally indoctrinating our children through forced celebration of non-academic persons? Who knows. Not my children, though. They’ll be homeschooled, as is the growing trend these days (not surprisingly). But the answer is a definite yes if all we do is read, wring our hands, and lament the demise of our nation, then shut off our computer and settle down in front of the TV with a bowl of popcorn. Go call your representatives. Right now. In fact, you can do it while your popcorn is popping, it’s really that simple.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Maine,D.C.,John Baldacci,Governor of Maine,same-sex marriage,homosexual marriage,Harvey Milk Day,SB 572,Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger,California Education Code,No opt-out,legalization of homosexual marriage,traditional marriage,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Beetle Blogger,Pomegranate Apple

How Can I Find Happiness? A Message of Hope.

2009-05-01T09:25:00.001-07:00

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Mormon Messages,The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,LDS Church,Mormons,Mormon Church,LDS,Elder Richard G. Scott,Happiness,Hope,Traditional Marriage,Family Values

Should Carrie Prejean Lose Her Miss California Crown Over The Opinion She Was Asked to Give?

2009-04-30T23:32:00.001-07:00

Apparently there have been some rumors circulating that Carrie Prejean might lose her Miss California crown because of her opinions on homosexual “marriage.” Granted, they are just rumors at this point, but let’s return briefly to the day after her daring and blessed response, when Pearl first blogged about Miss Prejean. I did predict that this very thing would happen:

Monday, 4/20/09 – Miss California, Carrie Prejean, on Gay Marriage

“How much do you want to bet Carrie Prejean gets impeached due to pressure from seething, gay activist mobs before the year is out? I wouldn’t be surprised.”

So check out this extremely slanted LA Times blog post. The author writes with clear derision when she amends her article to include Carrie’s scheduled stop at some Gospel music awards, and mocks the warm reception Carrie will receive:

“This just in: Prejean will introduce Mercy Me’s hit song "I Can Only Imagine" at Thurday night’s Gospel Music Association Dove Awards, airing live on the Gospel Music Channel.

Bet she'll get a warm welcome there!

Set your DVRs, folks.”

And what does Carrie have to say about losing her crown? Well, let’s just say that intimidation and vitriol is not working on her either, THANK GOODNESS! She’s stickin’ to her guns (beliefs) and walking tall through the gauntlet.

"If they want to take my crown away from me, by all means, that's fine. If you don't think that I am representing the state of California the way that you want me to, that's fine. I think that I am staying true to myself and that is what a Miss California should do; a Miss California should have her own opinions and be able to state them."

I. am. just. so. proud.

AND LOOK AT THAT COMMENTS SECTION, YA’LL! People are not being fooled by the “contrived human rights” argument. Hilton showed his true colors and folks are not impressed. Carrie is the people’s champion right now because she stayed her ground knowing that the results would not be pretty. And boy did Perez Hilton show his ugliest side during his rant following the show.

Here is my favorite comment:

“Perez Hilton asked her for her opinion. That question had two answers. Her opinion did not favor his. What is wrong about her being able to state her beliefs?”

And here is one that is so very . . . well . . . true:

“Thankfully, gay people allow the perez hiltons, rosie odonnels, the anti-mormon protesters and the "gay pride parade" people represent them in the media. Even the ultra liberal state of Kalifornia voted down gay marriage simply because of who the normal gay population lets represent them.”

Well, I guess I’ll hop on over to the article and leave my own encouragement for Carrie. You go girl!

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Carrie Prejean,Miss California,Perez Hilton,LA Times,Miss California Crown,Gay Marriage,Homosexual Marriage,Same-Sex Marriage,Traditional Marriage,Miss USA Pageant

Standing for Something – Defend Marriage Alliance, UFI, NOM, DNA

2009-04-30T10:07:00.001-07:00

The late President Gordon B. Hinckley of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wrote a little book called Standing for Something. Of this book, President Hinckley wrote, “I hope to accomplish some good in reaching out to people who may not be interested in our theology but would be interested in our position and stance on some of these values that are of everlasting benefit to this nation and people across the world.”

I have this book.

I love this book.

On the inside flap it states:

“No nation can be greater than the strength of its individual homes or the virtue of its people. Sadly, many today would say ours is a nation in crisis. Families are splintering around us, our children are becoming alienated from their great cultural heritage, and our leaders seem increasingly out of touch. Yet, according to Gordon B. Hinckley, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, one cannot lose hope. The solution lies not within our governments, schools, or symbols of popular culture, but rather within ourselves, our families, and our faith.”

Drawing on anecdotes from his own life, as well as from our nation today, he examines ten virtues that have proven through the ages to provide the most profound path to a better world: love, honesty, morality, civility, learning, forgiveness and mercy, thrift and industry, gratitude, optimism, and faith. He then shows how the two guardians of virtue – marriage and the family – can keep us on that path, even in difficult times.”

This book was published in 2000.

How timely a message for our day. So, without further adieu, I’d like to feature four groups who are doing just that – standing for something. These groups advocate for marriage between one man and one woman. They defend traditional, natural marriage in the face of increasing, and often virulent, opposition to such a message.

The first is the Defend Marriage Alliance. Reverend Brewer and his son are currently on a tour of Iowa, meeting with religious leaders and marriage proponents across the state to collect signatures on a petition to repeal Iowa’s new gay “marriage” legislation. They have worked tirelessly, creating Facebook groups and raising awareness for traditional marriage through the creation of marriage seals and wristbands, physical tours, and additional web outreach with Meetup groups, etc. The Defend Marriage Alliance is reputedly millions of members large and growing.

The second is United Families International who just recently launched their 25 for UFI campaign. Here’s what they have to say about it.

“For more than 30 years United Families International (UFI) has fought against the anti-family opposition. UFI representatives have traversed the globe defending the unborn and protecting the traditional family. Local UFI chapters watch state legislatures and work with pro-family lawmakers to ensure that the family has a voice inside statehouses across the country. Our ECOSOC status at the UN allows UFI to collaborate with UN delegates to insert pro-family language into UN treaties and resolutions. At times when others are weak, UFI stands their ground and protects the family values that we hold dear.

25 for UFI is your chance to join United Families International in the fight for the family. 25 for UFI seeks to find 1,000 individuals who will give $25 for the protection of motherhood, fatherhood, marriage, life, liberty and family. The 25 for UFI campaign has almost zero overhead, so you may rest assured that your donation will go directly to the international battle for the family. Join us, stand with UFI, and be a part of this worthy cause.”

CLICK HERE TO DONATE AT www.25forUFI.org

Your financial contribution keeps the work moving forward (and as a bonus, is 100% tax-deductible).

The third group standing for marriage is NOM. The National Organization for Marriage has recently gone out on a limb, provoking the ire of homosexual “marriage” advocates the nation over by releasing a commercial spot defending marriage and warning against the consequences of legalizing gay “marriage.” Unfettered by the vitriolic minority public opinion, they charge bravely forward in their fight to protect our nation’s most valuable assets – our future – our children.

Watch their newest ad focusing on the Carrie Prejean controversy, here . . . .

(UPDATE: This video has been removed due to copyright claims made by Mario Lavandeira, aka Perez Hilton *Go figure*. You can still view the spot at NOM’s website by clicking here.)

And the last, but definitely not the least, is the rag tag yet powerful organization which has brought so many of my fellow marriage bloggers and me together. The Digital Network Army was born during Proposition 8. Still in its infancy, the group has gained rapid popularity by its unofficial, power-to-the-people productivity. Virals are sent out regularly to inform members of the most recent attacks on marriage and family. A great list of independent bloggers then disseminates the information to the vast worldwide web and yet other members work in concert with those bloggers to Facebook and Twitter marriage updates. Still other members create YouTube videos, defend marriage apparel and bumper stickers, and graphic images for use on websites and blogs. All this is done completely by volunteers. How inspiring!

Go ahead, click around, join one or all! Marriage needs you. Children need you. The future needs you.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: 1flesh,Defend Marriage Alliance,Reverend Brewer,25 for UFI,United Families International,UFI,NOM,Nation for Marriage,Gathering Storm,Carrie Prejean,DNA,Digital Network Army,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Marriage,Traditional Marriage

Miss California + Carrie Prejean + Mormon

2009-04-20T15:15:00.001-07:00

I just had to post this because it’s too interesting to pass up. So Miss California makes a statement about believing marriage is between a man and a woman, I blog about it, and suddenly traffic to my blog jumps by the hundreds. And guess what people are searching for? You got it, variations of “Miss California + Mormon” and “Is Carrie Prejean Mormon?”

Why is it that we’re still stuck here, folks? Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not the only ones who donated to Proposition 8. And Mormons are not the only ones who worked to ensure the passage of Proposition 8. In fact, Mormons were the last faith-based group invited to join the Protect Marriage coalition! Granted, I take pride in defending marriage, but that doesn’t mean I was the only one doing it and maybe, just maybe, there are some other folks out there who would like their fair share of intimidation, intolerance, vandalism, and vulgarity. Just a thought . . . .

So here is some of what I found in my StatCounter shortly after posting about Carrie.

Num Perc.     Search Term
44     15.60%   carrie prejean mormon
20     7.09%     Miss California Mormon
17     6.03%     carrie prejean lds
10     3.55%    is carrie prejean mormon
7       2.48%    IS cARRIE pREJEAN A mORMON
6       2.13%    Carrie Prejean mormon ?
2       1.09%    +"Miss California" +mormon
2       1.09%    Is Miss California Mormon?
2       1.09%    is carrie prejean mormon?
2       1.09%    miss california lds
1       0.54%    is miss california mormon
1       0.54%    carrie prejean+lds
1       0.54%    Carrie Prejean, mormon
1       0.54%    miss california 2009 mormon
1       0.54%    carrie prejean's mormon?
1       0.54%    Miss California 2009 LDS
1       0.54%    Miss California usa mormon
1       0.54%    Prejean miss california lds
1       0.54%    carrie prejean miss california +religion +mormon
1       0.54%    Carrie Prejean mormon or not
1       0.54%    Carrie Prejean mormon?
1       0.54%    is miss california a mormon
1       0.54%    carrie+prejean+lds
1       0.54%    carrie prejean's mormon
1       0.54%    Carrie Prejean is she mormon
1       0.54%    Carrie Prejean is a Mormon
1       0.54%    is miss california a mormon?
1       0.54%    miss california lds?
1       0.54%    "Carrie Prejean" mormon

Obviously, there are other searches not associated with the infamous Miss California that are bringing hits to my blog, but I chose to omit them here in order to emphasize this mindboggling occurrence of massive, misdirected assumption. This just blows my mind!

Does anyone else see the frightening ramifications of such convoluted reasoning (or lack thereof)? Let me break it down for you. The tentative idea, conscious or unconscious, is this: “If you believe marriage is between a man and a woman, you must either be LDS or have some connection to the LDS Church.”

Huh.

Eh?

Whether that idea is generating from a homosexual marriage advocate hell-bent on finding fault or from a member of the LDS Church seeking for validation by association, the assumption is equally misdirected.

What was that about members of the LDS Church making up a whopping 2% of the entire population of California? Boy, if I was Catholic, or Evangelical, or even “just” a mere concerned citizen wielding sound social sciences research in defense of 1man/1woman marriage, I’d be pretty darned upset that my beliefs were being categorically ignored as the Mormons receive all the vitriolic glory! :0)

~Pearl

P.S. I have no idea if Carrie Prejean is Mormon or not. And frankly, it doesn’t concern me. What I do find refreshing, is her willingness to candidly state her belief in marriage between one man and one woman on international television and in response to a very cynical gay marriage advocate.

UPDATE: Since beginning this blog a couple of hours ago (sorry peeps, gotta take time to put the kiddos down for naps), my blog hits have jumped another several hundred and numbers are climbing for all of the searches above. *Sigh*

Technorati Tags: Mormon,LDS,Miss California,Carrie Prejean,Gay Marriage,Miss USA,Donald Trump,Perez Hilton,Intolerance,Hypocrisy,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Marriage,Family,Prop 8,Proposition 8

Miss California, Carrie Prejean, on Gay Marriage

2009-04-20T08:51:00.001-07:00

So Miss California got baited and reeled in at the Miss USA Pageant. And, of course, now she’s being fried by the oh-so-neutral mainstream media we’ve all come to know and love. I am so proud to be a Californian right now! First, We the People speak our minds and establish that in California, marriage is between one man and one woman. Then, our “little Miss,” responds to a loaded question posed by gay blogger, Perez Hilton, with a very diplomatic, but firm response, “I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised.”

It makes me laugh that she’s receiving heat over this as if she wasn’t asked the question in the first place. What was she supposed to do, tell a lie? Or not respond? Or apologize for her opinion? Yeah that’s tolerance for you. And gays in the audience responded so vehemently as if to suggest that by supporting the show they have some sort of dibs over all the opinions expressed by contestants, “I think it's ridiculous that she got first runner-up. That is not the value of 95 percent of the people in this audience. Look around this audience and tell me how many gay men there are.”

How much do you want to bet Carrie Prejean gets impeached due to pressure from seething, gay activist mobs before the year is out? I wouldn’t be surprised.

GO MISS CALIFORNIA!

[Read more . . . .]

~Pearl

[Hat tip: A Banner is Unfurled]

Technorati Tags: Miss California,Gay Marriage,Proposition 8,Prop 8,Perez Hilton,NBC,Keith Lewis,Carrie Prejean,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Why Do I Defend Marriage?

2009-04-20T05:46:00.000-07:00

I wrote this response to a friend on Facebook recently and felt that it was a fairly succinct summary of my reasons for defending marriage. The first part is clearly religious and has its roots in my faith and membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But the second part outlines my secular/social science reasons for defending marriage.

T:

"I'm suggesting that we debate the merits of this Initiative [Prop 8], given that it was NOT a commandment of God."

Pearl:

Marriage between a man and a woman is a commandment of God. Take a hard look at The Family: A Proclamation to the World. Are you suggesting that God vacillates? I think it is clear that while we fickle humans invent moral relativity and political correctness, there are still absolutes. God is absolute. While practices and rituals have changed over centuries and ages, principles have not. And never will, no matter what we mortals believe. Good is good, bad is bad, white is white, black is black, and people who choose black and then attempt to pass it off as white will always be upset and unhappy and disillusioned when the general population sees right through the guise.

Following the Prophet is the best defense we have against the confusion of moral relativism. The Prophet asked the Saints to defend marriage between a man and a woman. Seems pretty simple to me. We don't just follow the Prophet when it is convenient for us or when his mandates, commandments, and supplications align with our own thinking. We do it no matter what we believe and it is after the test of our faith that we receive confirmation of the truth. For whatever reason, this concept is harder for some to grasp than others. We see it in the scriptures all the time, people demanding that God show them a sign before they are willing to proceed with His commandments. And always the answer is the same; they are chastised for having so little faith. Yet for those who humble themselves and follow "blindly" (having God as a guide hardly makes us blind), the reward is beyond our limited comprehension.

I have digressed.

Your whole premise (in your post) that Proposition 8 is "cementing bigotry" into the California Constitution is based solely on the fact that you don't believe upholding marriage between a man and a woman is a commandment of God. But you fail to recognize the myriad social reasons for which we uphold marriage. One could debate against homosexual marriage all day and still never touch upon a religious argument. Research, experience, and history all defend the institution of marriage between one man and one woman. And all you can come back with is yet another emotional appeal, vividly ignorant of reason, "cause pain to millions of people and leave thousands of families in doubt." Yes, their pain is real, but what of their choice to pursue the lifestyle and seek special status in the face of illegality in the first place? Why are they being released from the responsibility and consequences of their actions? And why is blame for disillusionment and disappointment being projected onto the so-called "oppressors"? A little quiet introspection is in order here, I think. There is a pernicious sense of entitlement that flows through our society that has risen to such soaring heights that natural laws and Constitutional freedoms are threatened by it.

Marriage, when executed properly (let's get rid of no-fault divorce), benefits children, families, society, and government by being the most basic and wholesome springboard to the future. When marriage is undermined by senseless and selfish redefinition, that springboard falters and crumbles. In the case of homosexual marriage, children grow up in gender confusion denied, by design, access to one opposite-sex parent through which important life lessons and character traits would have been learned, and through the observation of which, future decisions of career, spouse, family, and civic involvement are heavily influenced. A mother is vitally important for different reasons than a father is vitally important, but it is amply clear that the absence of one or the other has a definite, negative development effect on children that no amount of love can compensate for. Love, T, contrary to popular belief these days, is not all you need. If love is all you need, why do we have boundaries, rules, and discipline for our children? If love is all you need, why do we have so many people divorcing even while they proclaim their mutual love for each other? I love my brother. I love my father. I love my cousin. But I cannot legally marry them (and thank goodness for that). Government regulates marriage for the benefit of society; to ensure the best possible emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual outcome for the potential posterity of the marital union. It doesn't matter that that union may be sterile or that it may end up in divorce. Just because the human execution is malfunctioning (sterility) or flawed (divorce) or even broken (abuse), does not make the divine institution flawed. Marriage is what it is and those who pretend otherwise are endangering not only themselves by exposing their tender feelings to more disappointment (marriage appropriation will not yield the acceptance they so yearn for), but our country's innocent future as well - the children.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Marriage,Family,LDS Church,Mormon,Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,Proposition 8,Prop 8,Religion,Social Sciences,Children

Vermont Vetoes the Veto and Marriage is Neutered Once Again.

2009-04-07T11:41:00.001-07:00

Just a quick thought here today. And a link to more thorough coverage of the Vermont vote.

I have been thinking lately how curious it is that as a word of warning during Proposition 8, many people (including me) rattled off this quote: “As California goes, so goes the nation.” Since Prop 8’s November 4th victory, however, two more states (Iowa and Vermont) have, through legislative and judicial activism, legalized same-sex marriage.

Isn’t it curious that in the one state where the question of homosexual marriage was put to a vote by the people, marriage was upheld? I think this clarifies why homosexual activists seek to legalize their pretend marriages by circumventing the people and pressuring the judiciary and the legislature.

The only way for them to be stymied on all fronts is for citizens to make sure they are voting moral and principled people into government positions.

That’s just my two cents.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Vermont,Same-Sex Marriage,Gay Marriage Bans,Homosexual Marriage,Traditional Marriage,Iowa,Judicial Activism,Legislative Activism,Governor Jim Douglas,Prop 8,Proposition 8,California,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Marriage . . . it’s that simple.

2009-03-26T22:14:00.001-07:00

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Marriage,Family,Marriage Video,YouTube,Marriage . . . it's that simple,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Traditional Marriage,Same-Sex Marriage,Gay Marriage,Homosexual Marriage,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Yes on 8,No on 8,Equality California,EQCA,Digital Network Army,DNA,Mormon,LDS,Catholic,Evangelical,Freedom of Religion,Freedom of Speech,Freedom,Parental Rights,Husband,Wife,Bride,Groom

The Blessings of the LDS Temple – A Second Video Response to HBO’s “Big Love” Mormon Temple Episode

2009-03-20T17:39:00.001-07:00

I hadn’t realized that the Mormon / LDS Church released a second, follow-up video showing images from inside Temples and presenting individual member testimonies of the importance of the Temple. I may be biased, but HBO’s got nothing on this. Attempted sensationalism and exposé fall far short of their intended result when one having authority comes right out and declares simply:

“No unclean thing may enter His hallowed house . . . yet . . . anyone is welcome who prepares well.” - Elder Russell M. Nelson, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

So much for the sensational allure of “those secretive Mormons.”

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Mormons,Mormon Temple,Temples,LDS,Latter-day Saints,The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,HBO,Big Love,Polygamy,Tom Hanks,The Blessings of the Temple,Mormon Messages,Mormon Videos,YouTube,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Don’t Forget! It’s Today!

2009-03-19T12:32:00.001-07:00

Don’t forget to tune in to Voice of the Nation today at 2pm PST (5pm ET). Just under two hours to go until the show makes its brilliant debut with hosts Angela Rockwood (DNA) and Drew Conrad (UFI), and the presence of a promising guest from United Families International to discuss marriage happenings around the country.

If you have questions, don’t hesitate to call in. As I understand it, the purpose of this show is to increase awareness on all levels from the global powers that be, to the President of the US, to the hard-working husband admired for his determination to provide a better world for his children, to the beleaguered stay-at-home mom wondering what she can do to change the current direction of our country and spare her precious children the pain and anguish that accompanies marriage and family devaluation and dissolution.

TUNE IN HERE
Dial in at 347.215.6801

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Marriage,Family,United Families International,Digital Network Army,UFI,DNA,Drew Conrad,Angela Rockwood,Beetle Blogger,Voice of the Nation,BlogTalkRadio.com,Blog Talk Radio,Same-Sex Marriage,United Nations Commission on the Status of Women,CSW,UN,Gay Marriage,Homosexuality,Divorce,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Voice of the Nation – Family Values Blog Talk Radio

2009-03-17T21:44:00.001-07:00

This is one of those happy posts; a post in which I get to announce something really great, really exciting, and really promising. Voice of the Nation: Family Values Blog Talk Radio will make it’s debut on the worldwide web at BlogTalkRadio.com, this Thursday the 19th at 2pm PST (5pm ET). The show is a joint venture between United Families International (UFI) and the Digital Network Army (DNA) and will be hosted by UFI Media Director, Drew Conrad, and DNA Director, Angela Rockwood (our very own Beetle Blogger!).

With A-List family defense celebrities this large, Voice of the Nation is sure to be fast-paced, hard-hitting, and very, very well-documented and educational. UFI brings with it to the virtual airwaves an extensive knowledge of the challenges facing marriage, family, and children on the international level and the DNA, with its mass of relentless grassroots Internet activists, has a finger on the marriage and family pulse of the unique and vastly informative virtual black hole that is the www. I think it is clear that this particular marriage blogger will be anxiously listening in this Thursday.

Voice of the Nation
TUNE IN HERE
Thursdays, 2pm PST
Dial in at 347.215.6801

“The Family Values Blog Talk Radio show is a joint effort between United Families International, the Digital Network Army, and other Pro-Family organizations. The show highlights current Family Values news and discusses the logic behind the Pro-Family Movement.

UFI International Policy Director, Laura Knaperek, who was one of several UFI representatives at the UN during CSW, will be a guest on the show. Prior to joining UFI, Mrs. Knaperek served in the Arizona State Legislature for ten years. During her tenure as a State Representative, she established herself as an advocate for children, families and the disabled.”

Happy listening!
~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Blog Talk Radio,BlogTalkRadio.com,Voice of the Nation,Family Values,UFI,United Families International,DNA,Digital Network Army,Drew Conrad,Angela Rockwood,Beetle Blogger,Marriage,Family,SSM,Same-Sex Marriage,Gay Marriage,Divorce,Abuse,Family Breakdown,Defend Marriage,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Laura Knaperek,UN,United Nations,UN Comission on the Status of Women,Pearl Diver,Pearl

Same-Sex Marriage in Vermont . . . Next Week?

2009-03-16T18:35:00.001-07:00

The Salt Lake Tribune published an article today heralding a week of hearings in Vermont over legalizing same-sex marriage. If you live in Vermont and you value marriage for the protection of children and society, please stand up and speak up. Call your legislators to let them know that you will not accept runaway politicians who act and speak according to their own agendas rather than representing the people who voted them into office.

[Read more . . .]

For more information, visit the Defend the Natural Family: Stop Gay Marriage in Vermont! Facebook group.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Gay Marriage,Vermont,Defend the Natural Family,Same-Sex Marriage,Salt Lake Tribune,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Bill S 115,Legislation,Legislative Hearings,Gay Agenda,Defend Marriage,Facebook Group

Glenn Beck’s “We Surround Them” and The 9.12 Project

2009-03-13T18:50:00.001-07:00

Today Glenn Beck unveiled the first step in the “We Surround Them” strategy to take back our country for the people. With a packed New York City studio and huge groups of participants and viewers in cities across the nation, he spoke right to the heart of America, but even more importantly, he provided incentive, opportunity, and encouragement for Americans to speak to each other.

Beginning with a chronicle of the events leading up to and following September 11, 2001, Glenn described how the nature of Americans changed drastically within a three-day period. On 9/10, American’s had their heads in the sand, busy going about their business. On 9/11, Americans were running scared, frightened, confused, and vulnerable. On 9/12, the strength of America emerged from the wreckage in the form of it’s average, everyday citizenry as we joined together to voice our outrage, our patriotism, and our sympathy for those whose lives were sacrificed to treachery.

Today Glenn asks, “Which kind of American are you?”

Are you a 9/10 American with your head stuffed into the sand?

Are you a 9/11 American, fearful and immobilized?

Or are you a 9/12 American, strong, united, and plenty intelligent enough to know what you want for your country and to know that we’re headed in the wrong direction to preserve our Constitution and the freedoms sanctified therein?

I hope I am a 9/12 American, but I feel just as helpless as many of my friends have noted lately, that even though we vote and take part in the political process on an individual basis, being a concerned citizen in this country, believing in principles and values not lauded by our mainstream media, feels a bit lonely at times. Glenn noted that people feel shut up, afraid, and alone because of political correctness. We have strong beliefs, but are encouraged by visible political figures and celebrities to keep quiet in the name of being politically correct.

So Glenn brings in Ben Sherwood, author of “The Survivors Club,” who has engaged in extensive research with the intent of discovering exactly what encourages an individual and a society to survive. His conclusions? Survivorship is about community. And when Sherwood interviewed the ultimate in ultimate survivors, a man living in Pensacola, FL (if I followed the dialogue correctly), he responded, without hesitation, that the most influential factor for which he accredits his survival, was his faith in God.

And so the challenge begins (and I paraphrase), “Start meeting with your friends around the kitchen table. Talk about the country . . . . Talk about the principles . . . . Talk about our Founding Fathers,” says Glenn. Discard the shackles of political correctness and engage in open, honest dialogue about the issues you see facing our country today. And educate yourself. Throughout the course of this television hour, Beck provided a litany of book titles for those with a desire to learn and absorb the true meaning of democracy:

The Five Thousand Year Leap, by Cleon Skousen

The Real George Washington, by Parry, Allison, Skousen

The Survivor’s Club, by Ben Sherwood

Black Belt Patriotism, by Chuck Norris

Lone Survivor, by Marcus Luttrell

Says Glenn, “Our government told us to go shopping [to save the economy]. . . . but what we need is to reconnect with these nine principles and 12 values.”

The Nine Principles

1. America is good.
2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.
3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.
4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.
9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.

12 Values

Honesty

Reverence

Hope

Thrift

Humility

Charity

Sincerity

Moderation

Hard Work

Courage

Personal Responsibility

Gratitude

During the report, Glenn also announced a new website, powered by the largest server Fox News could find, which after one commercial break had been completely overloaded. :0) I believe it is actually still inaccessible due to the large volumes of beleaguered Americans desperate for a glimmer of hope.

www.the912project.com

So, in the name of fostering open dialogue, here are some of the upcoming events I will be attending to stand up and make my voice heard. I encourage you to find patriotic demonstrations in your own area, attend, and be heard. Besides attending the following rallies, I will also be attempting to organize a regular meeting of the minds for my friends and neighbors interested in discussing the challenges our nation faces today. Again, I echo Beck and encourage you to do the same in your neighborhood. Let’s start the discussion and keep the dialogue going.

1. Send a tea bag to Washington on April 1st. We are no fools. This will cost you no more than 2 minutes, an envelope, a spare tea bag, and a stamp. You can do this. For more information, click here.

2. Attend a Tax Day Tea Party or start one if there hasn’t been one organized for your city already. One hundred and fifteen cities around the nation have already signed up to be a part of this. That’s 1-1-5, folks! If that doesn’t send a clear message of discontent and a need for real “change,” I cannot imagine what else will. Someone please remind me why America voted this guy into power in the first place? Please?

My own dear city of San Diego will be having a Tax Day Tea Party first on Saturday, April 11, 2009, in order to allow the hard-working people of this gorgeous place to rally for their voice and their money and their way of life, then again on Wednesday April 15, 2009, at post offices around the county. Click on the links to view more information about location and contacts. See you there!

~Pearl

MegnCali “The 912 Project” Apparel
Official Nationwide Tea Party Store
Sto Pro Verum Store – Stand For Truth

Watch the whole show. Double click and the video will open up in YouTube. From there you will be able to view all parts of the show in succession. Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: Tax Day Tea Party,Tea Party,Tax Revolt,Glenn Beck,We Surround Them,The 9.12 Project,the912project.com,Tea Bags,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Ben Sherwood,Chris Winston,9 Principles,12 Values,Democracy,Patriotism,Chuck Norris

HBO’s Big Love and the LDS / Mormon Temple Video

2009-03-12T19:31:00.001-07:00

With HBO’s controversial Mormon Temple, Big Love episode set to air this weekend, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has created and released a timely video discussing the nature of its temples. Calm, reassuring, and succinct, this video maturely approaches the sacred and spiritual nature of temples and their personal meaning to Latter-day Saint attendees across the globe.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: HBO,Big Love,Mormon Temple,Mormons,LDS Church,Latter-day Saints,The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,Temples,Thomas S. Monson,Tom Hanks,Time Warner,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Mormon Church

Maureen Mullarkey Responds

2009-03-11T16:57:00.001-07:00

This is an article worth reposting everywhere. In The Weekly Standard, Maureen Mullarkey, a self-described “painter who writes on art and culture,” brilliantly addresses her accusers, effectively exposing the behind-the-scenes, rabid face of the virulent homosexual movement.

I regretfully admit that back in February, when I first wrote about Maureen, I too fell victim to inaccurate media reporting by adopting the AP’s sensation-inducing label/title of “Chappaqua Artist of Gay Themes.” In reality, Maureen relates:

To make sense of this, backspace to the early '90s and a series of paintings I exhibited called Guise & Dolls. It was a singular body of work based on images from New York's annual carnival, the gay pride parade. I could have used a New Orleans Mardi Gras or Munich's Fasching, but Manhattan was closer. At times funny and poignant, the parade was also--in the age of AIDS--tinged with sexual danger. The spectacle of it made a splendid analogy to the medieval danse macabre.

Festive misrule and the politics of carnival, deeply rooted in cultural history, are a compelling motive for painting. Think of Bruegel the Elder's Fight Between Carnival and Lent. The flamboyant Dionysian heart of the gay pride parade was the subject of Guise & Dolls, not homosexuality itself and certainly not any policy agenda. A public event free for the watching, it is staged to provoke audience response. I responded with a suite of paintings; they bore no relation to my prior or subsequent work. All suggestion that I "make a living on the back of the gay community," as my mail insisted, was a hysterical fantasy brewed in the grievance industry's fever swamp.

But no matter. I was up there now with Halliburton and Big Oil, a class enemy. The brownshirts came out in force.

When her donation was first made public, along with all the other millions of donations to Proposition 8, here is a sampling of the response she received from homosexual activists via email and snail mail:

Suddenly, I was "a vampire on the gay community" who should be put out of business. As one note put it: "Your career is over, you nasty piece of s--. F-- off! WHORE!"

My home address and email were repeated in comment sections in which readers egged each other on to "make the b---- pay." Militants trawled for editors and gallerists I had worked with to warn them that "the Gay Community is looking at our adversaries and those who may support them." (One former editor blind-copied me his exchange with an aspiring storm trooper who threatened a boycott for those "having an association" with me.)

Reprimands flooded in, all based on the false premise that fat slices of proprietary gay imagery were being creamed off the urban spectacle for my personal profit:

1. “You should apologize for your deceit. Stop using us as your subject matter in this incredibly exploitative manner. You must realize that your actions are no different than an artist depicting the black community contributing to white supremacist organizations.

How dare you use gay people as inspiration and then stab these people in the back by fighting to limit their rights. You are a disgusting, pitiful, opportunistic b----.”

2. “I don't understand why you would want to deny love in this world, no matter what form it takes. I can't imagine your motives, can't imagine your hate.

Our parades are not the only place you can fulfill your artistic vision. . . . You could visit the Hasidic community. You know, them? They wear "unusual" clothes, too. There are so very many freak shows you can enjoy in this world.”

3. “Homosexuals rule the World of Creativity, and that is whom you just f--ed with!

You represent the most despicable type of artist and human being. I do hope that you feel the financial pain your actions will bring. May God bless you with financial ruin for your treacherous deed.

Because I love delusional bigots, I hope you never see another dime, b----.”

4. “The grave ungood you have done is not only to us, lesbians and gays who expect no less than full civil rights in our own country, but ironically to your own art career. Unless you don't mind showing at Reverend Rick's or perhaps at Brigham Young University.”

5. “At first I thought there should be a special place in hell for people like you. But then I thought, maybe purgatory! A dull, nothing kind of Catholic nowhere. Just like you!”

6. Rick0564 wrote: "If God makes us Gay, then please let us love one another through marriage. It's what Jesus would do." Tina K inquired: "If I believed that Catholics should not vote, and managed to get a proposition passed to that effect, would that be fair to you?"

7. “Eat sh-- and die, c—.
Eat c-- and die, b----.
You right-wing, heterosupremacist t--.
You are the moral equivalent of a Jewish Nazi. Roast in hell, you filthy c—.”

It is one thing to read hate-filled mail on a computer screen. It is something else to have it in hand. At the end of the week, when it started coming to my house, I filed a police report.

After it all, I appreciate Maureen’s summary:

“My opposition to same-sex marriage does not originate in the pew. However much sympathy, affection--indeed, love--I have for certain gay persons, "gay marriage" burlesques a primal institution rooted in nature. Marriage, as a unique bond between male and female, predates all politics and religious doctrines. And no one has to believe in God to see social anarchy, with children adrift in the wreckage, at the end of the same-sex marriage road.”

Maureen Mullarkey, “painter who writes on art and culture,” is courageous. I appreciate the dignity and intelligence with which she faces her unruly oppressors.

~Pearl

[hat-tip Opine-Editorials]

Technorati Tags: Maureen Mullarkey,Artist,SSM,Same-Sex Marriage,Homosexual Activists,Gay Activists,Hate Mail,Gay Pride Parade,Pride Festival,New York,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Opine-Editorials,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Democracy,Anarchy

Glenn Beck: The Proposition 8 Oral Arguments

2009-03-06T22:54:00.001-08:00

Glenn Beck:

“You know the history of the progressive movement, Jonah. If the supreme court says it is constitutional, then what happens on the streets of California? .… What happens with progressives, usually, when they don’t get their way?”

Jonah Goldberg:

“The history of progressivism is going wherever the field is open. If they can win it at the ballot box with elections then all of a sudden progressives are all about democracy. If they can’t win at the ballot box, they go to the courts and say we’re all about the courts. If they can’t win at the courts, they use the executive branch. It’s wherever they have open field. They’re going to keep going at this until they win.”

Glenn Beck:

“Can you ban civil rights?”

Jay Sekulow:

“Well sure you can. I mean, not in the sense of a fundamental right. No courts recognize that this is a fundamental right. And that would be under what’s called the Supremacy Clause. The idea that the US Constitution, if it’s a right in the US Constitution a state can’t get rid of say the right of freedom of religion, the free exercise of religion, or can’t get rid of the freedom of speech, or the freedom of the press. But no federal court, and certainly not the supreme court of the United States, has recognized in this particular case whether it’s a protest on donuts or whether it’s an issue involving the definition of marriage - if that’s a fundamental constitutional right. So when you’ve got a situation like this where it’s strictly up to the States to make the determination, it’s up to those citizens of the States to make that determination . . . . No federal claim involved here.”

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Prop 8,Proposition 8,Supreme Court,Oral Arguments,Prop 8 Oral Arguments,Glenn Beck,Jonah Goldberg,Jay Sekulow,Fox News,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Fundamental Right,Civil Right,Same-Sex Marriage,Gay Marriage,Jerry Brown,Attorney General

Reactions to California Prop 8 Oral Arguments

2009-03-05T16:01:00.001-08:00

Today I am happy. There seems a chance that democracy and justice might truly prevail against relativism and emotionalism. As soon as Prop 8 opposition “took the stand,” justices lit into them on the issue of revision vs. amendment, firing question after question. Then, Justice Kennard nobly defended the people’s right to amend the Constitution, recognizing her own limitations as a Supreme Court Justice:

"And what I'm picking up from the oral argument in this case is this court should willy-nilly disregard the will of the people," she said.

…

"I think what you are overlooking is the very broad powers of the people to amend the constitution," Kennard told Marshall as he finished up his arguments.

[Read more…]

So while it appears, reasonably, that Proposition 8 will be upheld, what remains in question is the fate of the 18,000 couples who were “married” before California voters confirmed that marriage between one man and one woman was the definition they would firmly defend. Ken Starr, Prop 8 counsel, reminded the California Supreme Court justices that Proposition 8 was well on its way to the ballot before the judges issued their ruling on May 15, 2008. With the knowledge that Prop 8 would be on the ballot in November, the Supreme Court justices were asked to stay the effects of their May 15 ruling until after the will of the people was made known on November 4th. They declined, couples were joined, Prop 8 passed making the sovereign will of the people known (for the second time) on this matter. I pray the justices will accept full responsibility for their actions and accept Starr’s compromise that 18,000 “married” couples can retain the privileges and protections of Domestic Partnerships while surrendering the sacred title of marriage reserved for the union of one and one woman.

From Maggie Gallagher of NOM

We will know for sure in 90 days, but if I were a Prop 8 opponent, I'd be very discouraged right now. The argument that a 14-word definition of marriage is a wholesale revision of the constitution is legally and logically absurd and at least two of the pro-same-sex marriage justices expressed pretty profound skepticism.

Justice Kennard, in particular, seemed to be open to the idea you could not take away sweeping equal protection guarantees from gay and lesbian citizens through the amendment process--but could not wrap her head around the idea that protecting the meaning of the word "marriage" was such a radical sweeping thing to do.

From Beetle Blogger

To start off, the justices hardly let the opposition’s lawyers even get their hellos in before they started ripping them with questions. They seemed completely uninterested in speeches and pontifications, and unimpressed with the emotional aspects of the opposition’s most loved rhetoric. Two hours later, the court still had questions.

By far the worst lawyer and arguments were for Jerry Brown’s case. All I can say is THANK GOODNESS FOR PROTECTMARRIAGE.COM bringing in Ken Starr!! Jerry Brown’s case was TERRIBLE.

He argued that Prop 8 was a legal amendment, but a bad one and the judges shouldn’t allow bad laws to be made. The justices looked blank for a minute and then open season began as they ripped into his “novel theory”. Justice after Justice quoted to him from the constitution which itself says: Power comes from the people. Judges get their power from the people. Not the other way around. Jerry Brown’s counsel, tripped up early and never really got his footing back. It was a complete disaster. Um….uh…I don’t know….yep. Lawyer fail.

I think Starr’s approach was much cleaner. He came across as your favorite grandpa, not trying to sell you on something you don’t need, and not trying to guilt you into reacting, just telling it the way it was.

With less than half the time allotted the opposition, Ken Starr hit home run after home run.

We owned the hearing today, in no small part to an honest case articulated perfectly by Starr who rattled off answers to every question posed. By the time he finished, the justices had no more questions. That’s saying a lot for judges who seemed full of questions.

[Read more…]

Hip, hip hooray! I know it’s premature, but I’m celebrating nonetheless. It’s been a hard-earned and long-anticipated optimism I’ve looked forward to.

Happy March 5th, Pearl People.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: California Supreme Court Justices,California Supreme Court,Justice Joyce Kennard,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Maggie Gallagher,Kenneth Starr,ProtectMarriage.com,NOM,National Organization for Marriage,Beetle Blogger,Beetle,Shannon Minter,Prop 8 Oral Arguments,Prop 8 Oral Argument Reactions,Raymond Marshall,DNA,Digital Network Army,No on 8,Yes on 8

Sto Pro Verum – Clothing and Merchandise

2009-03-04T20:59:00.001-08:00

STO PRO VERUM – STAND FOR TRUTH

Besides being a great blog, Sto Pro Verum is also the name of a new one-stop shop for marriage defense clothing and merchandise. Want to sport a t-shirt proclaiming your marriage support for all the world? Easy, just visit Sto Pro Verum. Want to put a “California Voted” button on your tote, purse, or diaper bag? Easy, just visit Sto Pro Verum. Or maybe you’d like your darling babe to rock a “Got Democracy” onesie. Simple, just visit Sto Pro Verum. In our failing economy, we are all picky about where we spend our hard-earned, precious dollars. Well, I’ll tell you what, this shop is definitely one of those places worthy of your money! So spend away. And, even better, all proceeds go to ProtectMarriage.com!

I’ve got my sights set on this one with its “sticking it to the man” flare. :0)

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Sto Pro Verum,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Marriage Supporter Here,H8 Maps,Eight Maps,California Voted,Clothing and Merchandise,ProtectMarriage.com,Defend Marriage,DNA,Digital Network Army

Wake Up America! Opine-Editorials Breaks Big, Big News!

2009-03-03T10:15:00.001-08:00

Remember that statement from Rahm Emmanuel? It goes something like this "Never let a serious crisis go to waste...it's an opportunity to do things you couldn't do before." Well, it looks like homosexual activists are taking this to heart and making a pointed attack on the DOMA through the federal courts. America needs to wake up before it’s too late. Opine Editorials’ Fitz, attorney and blogger, says “It is the first time a federal court has been appealed to by a major organization.”

From the Hartford Courant:

"Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, the Boston-based legal group that successfully sued to bring same-sex marriage to Connecticut, is filing a lawsuit in federal district to challenge the federal Defense of Marriage Act."

"GLAD is expected to hold a press conference later today to detail the lawsuit."

What is perhaps most chilling is the fact that homosexual activists and organizations are very selective about which cases they will embark on, making it a point to feel confident they will win a case before they pursue it. They avoid negative rulings like the plague so as not to cast homosexuals in a negative light by settling or losing.

“Bringing the wrong suit in the wrong way, even for the right objective, could do serious injury not only to our right to marry, but also to the broader range of lesbian and gay rights. The wrong case, wrong judge, or wrong forum could literally set us all back years, if not decades.”

Evan Wolfson, Crossing the Threshold: Equal Marriage Rights for Lesbians and Gay Men and the Intra-Community Critique, 21 N.Y.U. REV. L. & SOC. CHANGE 567, 611 (1994).

An attorney with the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund notes: “The lawsuits we have done that have succeeded have been carefully planned and brought in states where we have already had the legal building blocks by doing work on other issues.”

S.F. CHRONICLE, Jan. 3, 2006, at A1 (quoting Lambda senior counsel Jennifer Pizer).

As Fitz so bluntly relates, “It looks like they’re going for it….This seems like the BIG ONE.” Time to whip out our DOMA buttons, folks. Every blog and website that defends marriage ought to have one. We need to contact our Representatives, Senators, etc. What else can we do? Fitz? What can we do? In my own mind I’ve always envisioned a march similar to the Martin Luther Civil Rights march. Can you imagine the impact that seven million Californians defending their vote would make on the California Supreme Court? Likewise, imagine the potential of filling the streets of Washington with marriage defenders from all across the country, calling for a federal marriage amendment to protect our families, our children, and our society. Would you go? Would you answer the call? Do you ever feel like sitting at a desk blogging is just not enough in today’s politically and morally decrepit climate? Homosexual activists sure don’t limit themselves and their activist activities to a desk and a computer. The Pomegranate Apple contacted a California Senator and got hung up on by an aid. I send email after email and never get a response. Beetle and I attended an open legislative hearing and discovered that our representatives have no regard for the people anymore. But is this fight really as hopeless as all this? I can’t believe that. I have to believe that it will simply require educating the people of the United States as to the urgent nature of this fight; lighting the fire, so to speak. But just as throughout history, the people need one voice to respond to that they trust. Who is that voice? Michelle Malkin? Glenn Beck? Mitt Romney? It sure isn’t me. I don’t have a large enough audience, though at times like this I wish I did. What does it take to help someone feel the burn, experience the urgency? What does it take to get people to look beyond their immediate pocketbook woes to focus on the future of society?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. In the meantime, be aware. Keep your eye on this lawsuit introduced by GLAD.

~Pearl

UPDATE 1:59pm: Senator John Kerry Backs Lawsuit Over Marriage Law (DOMA)

Technorati Tags: GLAD,Federal Lawsuit,Same-Sex Marriage,DOMA,Challenge DOMA,Gay Marriage,Opine-Editorials,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Fitz,SCOTUS,California Supreme Court,Democracy,Rahm Emmanuel,Hartford Courant

California Supreme Court Prop 8 Oral Arguments

2009-03-02T15:52:00.001-08:00

Prop 8 hearing is this Thursday, March 5th, 9am in San Francisco. Supreme Court Prop 8 Oral Arguments can also be viewed online at The California Channel, and their list of television carriers can be found here. Join this Facebook event to learn more about how to rally for marriage locally.

As per the revision v. amendment argument, my personal thoughts are that the Equal Protection Clause has not been violated in the least. Proposition 8 does not represent a “substantial change to the underlying principles of the constitution.” Nor does it single out one particular group of people for discrimination; rather, “Proposition 8, which supports marriage for all legal adults regardless of distinction, grants access to the institution of marriage for all citizens equally” (Beetle Blogger). It is not just a rule excluding homosexuals. Whether we have homosexual tendencies, heterosexual tendencies, bisexual tendencies, incestuous tendencies, polygamous tendencies, polyamorous tendencies, or pedophiliac tendencies, this amendment applies to us all equally; we are equally mandated, equally addressed, and equally protected whether we recognize and appreciate that protection or not. Marriage is between one man and one woman. Marriage is regulated for the well-being of children and the preservation of society. And contrary to popular, selfish thought these days, children’s rights do indeed come before adult preferences, urges, and attractions.

Remember this segment, also known as the Preamble, from the Constitution of the United States of America? I’ve added my own clarifying bit here:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare [NOT THE MINORITY SEXUAL BEHAVIORS], and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity [YES, WE DO HAVE A DUTY TO PROTECT OUR CHILDREN], do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

And embedded in the California State Constitution, also established by the people, is the following preservation:

“All political power is inherent in the people. Government is instituted for their protection, security, and benefit, and they have the right to alter or reform it when the public good may require.”

Here is another take on this matter featuring Andrew Pugno’s response to Shannon Minter as taken from an article in the Sacramento Bee:

"This is now about whether a majority can take away an inalienable right from one group of Californians," Minter said. "If the court were to say it's OK … then no one's rights would mean very much."… Folsom attorney Andrew Pugno, disagreed with Minter's contention that Proposition 8 should never have been on the ballot.

"Minority rights exist only because the majority decided to protect them by adopting a constitution," Pugno said. "If the court misinterprets those rights, it's the people's job to correct that by clarifying the constitution."

Beetle Blogger has a great response to homosexual activist, Senator Leno, discussing this same issue as well. Read it here.

What chaps my hide is that I have voted, and so have seven million other California citizens. And we didn’t just vote. We worked hard, we campaigned, we educated, we called, we walked, we waved, we sacrificed. And now all that effort is balancing on a judicial tightrope. And you know what? I don’t care. I just care that marriage remains protected, that children remain protected, and that society remains protected from chaos, democratic usurpation, improper and misguided interpretation of the Constitution, and redefinition. It seems that ALL THREE branches of government here in California have gone AWOL and even when the people step in to establish guidelines through a democratic process, our AWOL “leaders” are trying desperately to supplant us. If they succeed, California may as well secede from the United States of America because they will no longer be represented democratically. What a terrible shame that would be. Time to take back California, people.

On a parting note, I share a quote from an impassioned Matt Barber, following the Supreme Court decision that struck down Proposition 22 on May 15th, 2008:

"The California Supreme Court has engaged in the worst kind of judicial activism today, abandoning its role as an objective interpreter of the law and instead legislating from the bench," said Matt Barber, policy director for cultural issues for the group Concerned Women for America, in a written statement.

"So-called 'same-sex' marriage is counterfeit marriage. Marriage is, and has always been, between a man and a woman. We know that it's in the best interest of children to be raised with a mother and a father. To use children as guinea pigs in radical San Francisco-style social experimentation is deplorable."

How will you show your support for and defense of Prop 8, marriage, and your vote this Thursday, March 5th, 2009?

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: California Supreme Court Justices,California Supreme Court,Prop 8,Proposition 8,We the People,Constitutional Amendment,Constitution of the United States of America,Constitutional Revision,Constitution,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Beetle Blogger,Beetle,Prop 8 Hearing,Prop 8 Oral Arguments,Oral Arguments,March 5th,The California Channel,Matt Barber,Concerned Women for America,Marriage,Family,Democracy,Vote,Elections,Campaign,San Francisco,Homosexuality,Homosexual,Same-Sex Marriage,Gay Marriage,Yes on 8,No on 8,Rally,Rally for Marriage,Facebook,Facebook Event,"Support Prop 8" Statewide Rallies

San Diego Tea Party Pictures

2009-02-27T20:51:00.001-08:00

We went, we saw, we conquered. Or at least I’d like to thing we made some sort of impression on the people who claim to represent us. Over at TCOT Report, they are being swamped with images and reports from around the country and estimates currently stand at somewhere around 25,000 poor fiscal policy protestors. What an impressive number for a widespread and spontaneous grassroots uprising.

In San Diego, I was impressed by the size of the crowd in attendance. SD Police estimated the number to be near 600. I was also impressed by the diversity of the crowd. Families, moms with strollers, kids running around, elderly, businessmen, concerned citizens all. Respectful yet relentless. These are the people who recognize and live financial responsibility and are chilled by the deficit-increasing scheming being pushed through government these days.

Here’s to good fiscal policy, or as Michelle Malkin says, “Fiscal responsibility is the new counterculture….A grass-roots revolt against the culture of entitlement. The spendzillas in Washington do not speak for us.”

Here are a few pictures I took while I was “revolting.” There are many more pictures and accounts to be viewed and read at Michelle Malkin and TCOT Report. The turnout has been inspiring!

“Repeal or Retire”

“We’re being set up for Socialism!”

Rally for the American Stars and Stripes North of the Star of India

These are the grassroots; America’s hope. Good, clean, regular everyday folk. I heard this lady mention that her children were the future leaders of America and one man suggested that he wished they could be our leaders right now; that they’d probably do a better job than our current ones. I’m with him. I am impressed by mothers everywhere who are recognizing the need to train up future civic leaders with strong morals and standards. These kids will have a heaping mess to clean up if we don’t stand up and do our part to stay the hand of fiscal irresponsibility right now.

“No, no – B.H.O. No taxation without showing your birth certificate.”

My personal favorite: “Commander in Thief.” Ha ha!

That’s all for today, Pearl People. Much love and success. Thank God for your job if you still have one!

~Pearl

More pictures from the San Diego Tea Party here.

Technorati Tags: Pearl Diver,Pearl,Nationwide Chicago Tea Party,Tea Party,San Diego Tea Party,Barack Hussein Obama,Commander in Chief,POTUS,Stimulus Bill,Mortgage Bailout,Bank Bailout,Bailout,Auto Bailout,2009 Budget,$3.6 Trillion,Deficit

Tips for a Great Tea Party

2009-02-27T00:06:00.001-08:00

For all of us attending Tea Parties around the country tomorrow (“today,” depending on when you read this), here are some great tips found at Instapundit:

SOME ADVICE ON FUTURE “TEA PARTY” PROTESTS, from a media producer who attended the Overland Park affair:

I attended the invigorating protest outside Congressman Dennis Moore’s Overland Park, Kansas office yesterday.

I hoped 10-15 souls might show up. I was thrilled to see hundreds. Here are some suggestions. I don’t really want my name used. Sadly, it could really hurt my business, which is already hurting.

As a professional media producer, here are my concerns:

1. Incoherent message - the signs were all over the place. There were lots of agendas. That’s fine. The color and signage look good on TV.

But, when it came to the microphone - the overall message was tepid and unsure.

2. Create a theme - like “We want Senator So-and-So to resign for voting for this bill.” Or, “We want the Stimulus Repealed!” “Start Over.” Have a definitive purpose to your Assembly. A central theme will also help public speakers to focus. And don’t be afraid to personalize this. Put it on your Senators, Congress people, and the President. That’s what they are doing to anyone who objects.

3. Speakers not prepared for the media - the organizer was asked to name some specific objectionable items in the stimulus. She couldn’t do it. I doubt many of us could.

If you are an organizer, or the “face” of the event - take an hour to prepare. You don’t need to know everything about the stimulus. Just find 2 or 3 things - hard facts - you can point to and credibly say - these are wrong, wasteful spending items. Or, these items grow government, not the economy. It is critical.

4. Pass out talking points, just in case Joe or Jane Protestor gets buttonholed by a reporter.

5. This is all about image. If we don’t present the media with a professional, organized and, unfortunately, scripted image, they are going to make their own, and it won’t be favorable.

6. Recruit some help to pack the area around people being interviewed for background. God love the guy in the crazy Uncle Sam suit, and we certainly need the Minute Men, but these folks will quickly become THE story because they are colorful or controversial i.e., Good TV. Welcome their support. Maybe give them a minute on the mic. But I recommend trying to pack in mainstream, boring looking, and diverse Americans around the camera. No offense to anyone. Anytime a TV camera comes out, a certain number and type of attention seeker will flock to it. Now is the time for Grandma and Grandpa, the Plumber, the Young Executive, and the Homeschooling Mom to flock to the camera as background. Don’t be shy. Remember, how do you want your cause to be presented by the media? As crazies? Or as Concerned Neighbors?

7. Have an Agenda and a Time. We’re going to Assemble at this Time. We’re going to have a Sign-In Table. We’re going to have a Sign-Making Area. We’re going to have speakers at 10:30. We’re going to March to the Senator’s Office at this time and demand she resign. We’re going to end with Chants, and a Call-to-Action for the next Protest. That, and Protestors want to know what’s going on. If they become unsure, they leave. Organization wins, and it also intimidates the opposition. And the opposition is going to start showing up.

8. Share the Day’s Agenda with the Media. You have to create your own press. The event in Overland Park was HUGE, but only one news station came out to cover it, and there’s not even a photo in today’s Sunday paper. Sell it to them. They love good stories.

That’s it. I hope this helpful. These things are only going to get bigger, and people need to realize that a great responsibility comes with this wonderful opportunity. Get a Message. And Get It Out.

Happy protesting folks! I’ll see you there.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Pearl Diver,Pearl,Instapundit,Pajamasmedia,Tea Party,Stimulus Bill,President Obama,Barack Hussein Obama,Tips

I LOVE this. It is so accurate.

2009-02-25T22:54:00.001-08:00

Democracy got stomped on. Squashed. Ignored. Disregarded.

I also find this comment from The Rainbow Reclaimed to be very telling:

This comment is in reference to SR 7, so the sister resolution to HR 5

I just called leno's office to make sure he was the author of sr 7. He is.

I couldn't help asking the staffer: Why does senator Leno think prop 8 violates the equal protection clause?

She mumbled off some answer.

I said: "The prop 8 definition covers everyone regardless of sexual
orientation, race, gender, etc.

Then I asked: How come siblings can't get married, but it's okay for
same gender couples?

She laughed.

I said: Really, why don't we let siblings get married?

She said: Well, I think it's unhealthy.

I asked: Why?
Then I started to explain, that measures could be taken to prevent the
birth of children with birth defects.

Then she went on a rant. And then she hung up.

I plan on telling my own reps this story, and asking them to ask Leno and other Dems why this resolution is even taking up CA legislature time.

If you'd like to ask Senator Leno the same question (or different):
916-651-4003

Well, go to it, people. Let’s take our “representatives” to task.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Pearl Diver,Pearl,California Voted,Democracy,Legislators,Representatives,HR5,SR7,The Rainbow Reclaimed,Senator Leno,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Senate Judiciary Committee,Assembly Judiciary Committee,California Supreme Court,Resolution,Hearing,Statement

Speechless: Silencing Christians; 12-yr-old Pro-Life Speech; CNN Rejects Pro-Life Ad; HR5 Makes Waves; Jonathan Lopez Sues LA City College Over Same-Sex Marriage Speech

2009-02-20T17:12:00.001-08:00

Attacks on freedom of religion, freedom of speech, democracy, and family are heating up. We live in increasingly troubled times. Are you prepared for what’s to come if you fail to speak up and stand out?

Watch Speechless: Silencing Christians. This new TV special has yet to find a home on-air as station after station refuses to allow it. In today’s atmosphere of media bias and betrayal, if you discover that a station doesn’t want you to hear something, I’d suggest you actively seek it out as it is probably something worth hearing that contains something worthy of awareness. This is long, but not too long. Grab some popcorn, a soda, and your significant other. Cuddle by the computer. Make it a date and stick it out. It is well worth watching if you’d like to be educated about the gay agenda that homosexuals eternally and sarcastically claim does not exist. (For more on the gay agenda as outlined in After the Ball, click here, here, and here).

Watch this 12-year-old, 7th grader speak out on the issue of abortion. She is a superb advocate for life.

And in another case of screaming media bias, CNN has now joined the ranks of TV stations boycotting the amazing CatholicVote.org Pro-Life ad. Again, if the media doesn’t want you to hear it, you’d better tune in, because it’s probably something important for the regular, Joe-shmoe, American public to hear. What was CNN’s reason for rejection, you ask? Here’s a direct quote: “Thank you for your patience. We have decided to pass on this creative. CNN doesn't accept advocacy ads that portray personal decisions in a manner that suggests a position in favor of the advocacy message, without having permission of the persons involved.” The only thing is, it’s not true. It’s a blatant lie as exposed by CatholicVote. See here:

The standard CNN used to reject our ad did not prevent the network from airing a 2005 ad sponsored by the pro-abortion group NARAL that suggested that then Judge John Roberts supported violence against abortion clinics.

FactCheck.org described the NARAL ad this way: "An abortion-rights group is running an attack ad accusing Supreme Court nominee John Roberts of filing legal papers ‘supporting . . . a convicted clinic bomber' and of having an ideology that ‘leads him to excuse violence against other Americans' It shows images of a bombed clinic in Birmingham, Alabama. The ad is false.'"

Several prominent pro-abortion supporters condemned the ad, including President Clinton's Solicitor General Walter Dellinger. The commercial, which attributed views to John Roberts that were not his, was ultimately pulled from the air not by CNN, but by NARAL.

At the time CNN issued a statement saying: "CNN accepts advocacy advertising from responsible groups from across the political spectrum who wish to express their views and their opinions about issues of public importance."

CNN is willing to run ads insinuating that a federal judge supports violent criminal activity, but it won't allow an ad celebrating the potential of all human life, including Barack Obama? Not to mention, we are fairly sure NARAL didn't get permission from John Roberts to run their ad.

So, what do we do? Write to CNN President Jonathan Klein at jon.klein@turner.com. And, of course, watch the ad again! :0)

HR 5 is making waves among supporters of democracy. Watch our non-democratic, love-touting California legislators in action right here! (And don’t forget to hone your ears for the lovely derision with which opponents of HR 5 are treated by member of Equality California (EQCA) – psst, it’s not that hard to catch).

And last, but certainly not least, is the case of Jonathan Lopez who is suing his city college over his stumped 1st Amendment rights to free speech. Reports the LA Times article:

Student Jonathan Lopez says his professor called him a "fascist bastard" and refused to let him finish his speech against same-sex marriage during a public speaking class last November, weeks after California voters approved the ban on such unions.

When Lopez tried to find out his mark for the speech, the professor, John Matteson, allegedly told him to "ask God what your grade is," the suit says.

Lopez also said the teacher threatened to have him expelled when he complained to higher-ups.

[hat tip: Kingfisher Column]

Well folks, that’s quite the line-up if you ask me. Religion, speech, democracy, and family; they’re all being attacked with increased fervor. We would be wise to be aware. Is awareness enough, though?

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Pearl Diver,Pearl,HR5,Jonathan Lopez,Freedom of Speech,religion,speech,family,marriage,Life: Imagine the Potential,life,CatholicVote.org,Catholic Vote,CNN,NBC,Speechless: Silencing Christians,12-year-old Pro-Life Advocate,LA City College,LACC,NARAL,FactCheck.org,After the Ball,Marshall Kirk,Hunter Madsen,John Matteson,Kingfisher Column,Barack Hussein Obama,President Obama,POTUS

Lobbying in Sacramento – HR 5 Passes

2009-02-18T23:27:00.001-08:00

I’m back. We’re back. I took a lobbying trip up to Sacramento with my blogging buddy, Beetle. The drive was lengthy, but the company was the best. My boys made some best friends out of Beetle’s kiddos, and Beetle and I got to yakkity yak for the duration of our loooooong round trip. :0)

So, the 17th dawned cold and rainy. No one was positioned outside the capitol building, No or Yes. The Assembly Judiciary Committee room filled up quickly and flowed over into a balcony room which also filled to the hilt. We were in the third, yes third, overflow area located in the cafe: 90% Equality Network America, 10% Prop 8 supporters. We watched the entire proceeding on a television.

I wish I had good news to report, but, not surprisingly, it’s just more of the same. As I watched gay “marriage” supporters approach the mic and listened to their heart-wrenching pleadings in support of HR 5, my stomach was turned by the extreme emotionality of it all. Story after story surfaced about love this and love that. And then came the Prop 8 supporters, and the appeals were for our legislators to respect the vote of the people…the people they represent.

90% emotionality
10% democracy

Also not surprising was the fact that the HR 5 supporters, advocates of gay “marriage,” had to be chastised on three separate occasions for their disrespect during opponents’ testimonials. Too much snorting and snickering throughout. When one woman introduced herself as a mother of eight, our overflow area erupted rudely with all-out, mocking laughter. I was perturbed by the lack of respect. And, in the end, it was clear that while the legislators were adamant about maintaining a respectful atmosphere during the proceedings, they didn’t actually care one whit about democracy. As was predictable, their vote followed precisely along party lines and the resolution passed with flying colors (pun intended).

Pearl’s summary:

I loved meeting Beetle’s family; they are awesome. I enjoyed being present for a process I’ve never witnessed. And I just want to remind everyone that our government is not in the business of governing based on what’s “fair” (or it didn’t used to be, anyway). In fact, I’m 99.99999% certain that the word “love” is not present anywhere in our Constitution. What it absolutely is built on is democracy, and yesterday democracy was categorically ignored…again. Bummer. Big bummer for our state.

~Pearl

P.S. The senate hearing was cancelled due to ongoing and pressing budget discussions. Having just arrived home, I have not had a chance to research whether that has occurred or not. Though I can imagine that the results will be similar, if not identical, I would like to hear nonetheless. If you have any updated info, please post it in the comments section!

Technorati Tags: Assembly Judiciary Committee,HR5,SR7,Senate Judiciary Committee,Lobbying,Lobby,Democracy,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Rally,Protest,Sacramento,California,Capitol Resource Institute,Capitol,UFI,United Families International,Digital Network Army,DNA

Gay Rights “Lobbyists” to Descend on CA Capitol

2009-02-15T15:18:00.001-08:00

From SFGate

Gay rights supporters have won key victories in the state Legislature in recent years, including two approvals of a law giving same-sex couples marriage rights. Both were vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

On Tuesday, thousands of those supporters will come to Sacramento from around the state for what they are calling "lobby day."

Their goal: win support of lawmakers for a resolution opposing the legality of Proposition 8, the constitutional amendment passed by voters in November that bans same-sex marriage.

The resolution states that the Legislature "opposes Proposition 8 because it is an improper revision, not an amendment, of the California Constitution."

That is one of the arguments being made to the California Supreme Court in a bid to overturn Prop. 8.

Both houses will hear the resolution Tuesday. It was written by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano and state Sen. Mark Leno, both San Francisco Democrats.

Equality California, a statewide gay rights organization, is sponsoring the lobbying day as it has in the past and expects the largest crowd ever, said Vaishalee Raja, a spokeswoman for the group.

She said the goal of the day is not to persuade the court, but that the passage of Prop. 8 "is one of those things that how could the Legislature not go on the record about?"

From Beetle Blogger

The Digital Network Army, United Families International and Capital Resource Institute are joining forces this Tuesday to rally for families at the Capitol Building in Sacramento. Both state houses are drafting official resolutions condemning the passage of Proposition 8 and urging the Supreme Court to overturn the will of the people AGAIN.

Two statewide elections with the majority voices of millions were not loud enough to turn the heads of our representatives in Sacramento, so we’re bringing the voice of the people to Sacramento. Come Rally with us for Marriage and Families! Help remind the Senators and Assemblymen that we are watching…because there’s nothing more important to our nation than its families.

Protect Marriage! Protect Families! Protect Democracy!

If our representatives are going to turn their backs on the people who voted for them, let them do it to our faces in the light of the cameras, not in a silent corner.

From DNA Team Captain

Team,

Ok, so the most recent word is that the opposition is going to be busing people in from San Francisco for the hearings so seating at the actual hearing may be limited, come early. If you have kids, bring water bottles and a few snacks, comfortable shoes. Security is tight there, so remember, no pocket knives etc.

If we have more people come to the hearing than we can fit in the room, we’ll hold a concurrent rally outside the capitol building with a petition signing. No body will be wasted! Kids and families are welcome! Come and be heard! Wear your yellow shirt if you like! If it rains, bring an umbrella, we’ll rally in the hallways!

Proposition 8 Hearings will be held in these rooms:

HR 5
Tuesday, February 17
10:30am
State Capitol
Room 4202

SR 7
Tuesday, February 17
12:30pm
State Capitol
Room 4203

Pearl’s take:

Looks like it’s going to be “fun.” I remember my Prop 8 sign waving days with No on 8 sign wavers and adherents harassing, intimidating, threatening, hollering, cussing out, and goading Yes on 8 folks. Let’s hope that this time protestors on the No side are a bit more civilized.

Please don’t forget that even if you cannot make it to the Capitol to personally represent your Yes vote, you can still phone your legislative reps to let them know exactly how you feel about these resolutions. Kingfisher has an easy-to-read list here.

And join the “Support Prop 8 Rally” Facebook Event here!

See you at the Capitol on Tuesday!
~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Digital Network Army,DNA,Team Captain,Pearl Diver,Pearl,United Families International,UFI,Capitol Resource Institute,HR5,SR7,Senate Judiciary Committee,Assembly Judiciary Committee,Proposition 8,Prop 8,Rally,Protests,California Supreme Court

Support Prop 8 Rally! Sacramento, CA - Tuesday Feb. 17th.

2009-02-13T18:54:00.001-08:00

From Beetle Blogger

Go! Rally! Bring Your Signs and Spread the Word!
Sacramento, CA – Tuesday Feb. 17th, 10:30am
State Capitol

This resolution would put the Assembly on record as supporting the repeal of Proposition 8 and declaring that the initiative was an improper revision to the California Constitution. -Equality California Website

Dear California Supporters of the Family,
State Assembly and Senate Considering Resolution Encouraging State Supreme Court to Overturn Prop 8!!!

SR7 and HR5

On Tuesday, February 17th at 10:30 am, The Assembly Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing followed at 12:30 pm by a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Proposition 8. The committees will be considering crafting a joint resolution encouraging the California State Supreme Court to overturn Prop 8. By issuing the resolution the Assembly will officially express its opposition to Proposition 8, calling for its repeal, and stating that it was an “improper revision” to the state constitution.

Read HR5 and Read SR7

Passing these resolutions flies in the face of the will of the voters. Prop 8, was passed by a clear majority of California voters in November 2008. Fifty-two percent of California voters stood up to protect the family, which is the lynch pin of civilization. William Glaston, a former policy advisor to President Clinton, is quoted in the UFI Marriage Advantage Family Guide. He states, “Marriage is an important social good, associated with an impressively broad array of positive outcomes for children and adults alike….Whether American society succeeds or fails in building a healthy marriage culture is clearly a matter of legitimate public concern.”

Don’t let the Assembly take your vote away. Join us in protecting marriage, children and the future of family and our society.

What You Can Do

Attend the hearing. It is taking place Tuesday, February 17th at the state capitol in Sacramento. The Assembly hearing will be in room 4202 at 10:30 am. The Senate hearing will be in room 4203 at 12:30pm. We encourage you to make the trip. By attending you will send a visible signal to the committee members in support of the family. To get driving directions and parking information follow the click on the links below:

For directions
For parking information

Call the members of the committees and fax letters asking them to vote no on HR5 and SR7

Assembly Judiciary Committee-Vote NO on HR5

Julia Brownley
Phone: 916 319 2041
Fax: 916 319 2141

Noreen Evans
Phone: 916 319 2007
Fax: 916 319 2107

Mike Feuer (Chair)
Phone: 916 319 2042
Fax: 916 319 2142

Dave Jones
Phone: 916 319 2009
Fax: 916 319 2109

Steve Knight
Phone: 916 319 2036
Fax: 916 319 2136

Paul Krekorian
Phone: 916 319 2043
Fax: 916 319 2143

Ted Lieu
Phone: 916 319 2053
Fax: 916 319 2153

Bill Monning
Phone: 916 319 2027
Fax: 916 319 2127

Jim Nielsen
Phone: 916 319 2002
Fax: 916 319 2102

Van Tran
Phone: 916 319 2068
Fax: 916 319 2168

Senate Judiciary Committee-Vote NO on SR7

Ellen Corbett
Phone: 916 651 4010
Fax: 916 327 2433

Dean Florez
Phone: 916 651 4016
Fax: 916 327 5989

Tom Harman
Phone: 916 651 4035
Fax: 916 445 9263

Mark Leno
Phone: 916 651 4003
Mimi Walters
Phone: 916 651 4033
Fax: 916 445 9754

Please forward this to your friends and family members. We believe that through a grassroots movement, we can secure a safe future for families in our state.

United Families California

I’ll be there. Will you?
~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Prop 8,Proposition 8,Prop 8 Rally,HR5,SR7,Assembly Resolution,Senate Resolution,Sacramento,California State Capitol,Marriage,Family,Vote,Will of the People

Freedom to Marry Week?

2009-02-12T01:46:00.001-08:00

From silive.com

Same-sex couples set to rally for marriage rights

2/12/2009, 4:13 a.m. EST
By VERENA DOBNIK
The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of same-sex couples nationwide are prepared to apply for marriage licenses on Thursday — an exercise in legal futility.

The attempts are being undertaken to protest court and voter decisions restricting legal matrimony to opposite-sex couples.

Activists geared up for rallies at marriage bureaus or county clerks' offices in communities large and small — from New York, Arkansas, California and Florida to Kentucky and Nevada.

This week, which encompasses Lincoln's Birthday and Valentine's Day, marks the 12th annual Freedom to Marry Week, usually celebrated with marriage-license protests.

Same-sex partners and their non-gay friends, families and allies are demanding that no couple in a consensual, committed relationship be denied permission to marry — complete with the rights, protections and benefits the government assigns to the legal ritual.

This year's protests are more important than ever, said one New York organizer, because they come in the wake of California's Proposition 8 vote and just as New Yorkers look to their state Senate to pass legislation that could lead to legalized gay marriage.

"I want to have that option," said 23-year-old J. Heath Tucker, who doesn't want to get married now, but "when I find the person I fall in love with, I want to be able to get married."

He is a member of Join the Impact, a national community-based group that helped organize hundreds of people seeking licenses at the marriage bureau in lower Manhattan on Thursday.

This year's event "is more important because people had something given to them, then had it stripped away," Tucker said of California, where more than 18,000 same-sex couples were married last year.

[Read more…]

As per that last paragraph, I think it is important to remember that the fate of the “marriages” of those 18,000 same-sex couples has yet to be decided.

So, throughout twelve years of “Freedom to Marry Week” observances, how has legalized homosexual “marriage” fared? Perhaps this chart will give folks an idea of just how important marriage between one man and one woman is for Americans:

States With Voter-Approved Constitutional Bans on Same-Sex Marriage, 1998-2008

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Prop 8,Proposition 8,Same-Sex Marriage,Gay Marriage,Gay Marriage Bans,Freedom to Marry Week,Pearl Diver,Pearl,Marriage Rights,Rallies,Protests,Marriage License

Save Our Millions of Modern-Day Thumbelinas!

2009-02-10T11:11:00.001-08:00

Thumbelina: a beloved children’s character, fairy wannabe, field-traveler with a thumb-sized stature. She was loved, very loved, cherished, and sought after. Kidnapped from her home by enamored Latino frogs, Thumbelina found herself wandering through a rugged and unforgiving world, thinking no one loved her and that she would never find her way back home and back to her handsome Prince Cornelius. Cornelius, in the meantime, was romantically braving the frigid onset of winter to find and rescue his beloved Thumbelina. The real-life tragedy here is that the cartoon character Thumbelina was and is more beloved than her infant, human, thumb-sized cohorts who are being aborted by the hundreds, even thousands each week around the globe.

Time to mount your loyal bee and draw your princely sword to fly through the storm to the defense of our modern-day Thumbelinas who are being literally thrown to the terrible toads, beetles, and moles.

From United Families International

On December 10, 2008 a Pro-Life coalition including United Families International gathered at the UN to present a Pro-Life petition. The reason for the petition was two fold:

To celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

In response to a Pro-Abortion petition presented by Planned Parenthood and Marie Stopes International

The Pro-Life petition contained over 340,000 names gathered over a 60 day period, while the opposition petition claimed 651 names in nearly a year of work. Due to the relatively short amount of time that the Pro-Life petition was available, United Families International and the Pro-Life coalition have decided to keep the petition open until September 2009 when it will be re-presented to the UN. We invite all who believe in the sanctity of life to add their names to the International Petition to Protect Life.

The petition requests that all member nations and states interpret the UNDHR to mean that:

The right to life, liberty and security is for every person; that each child born or unborn, has the right to birth and a full, natural life. That a child has the right to a mother and a father, of full age, within the bonds of marriage defined as between a man and a woman. And, that the parents have the right to raise and educate their children without any limitation due to race, religion, culture or nationality.

CLICK HERE to add your name to the petition and join Pro-Lifers around the globe in protecting life.

There is an immense possibility for a much happier ending for these sad, neglected Thumbelinas.

I signed. Have you?
~Pearl

Technorati Tags: United Families International,Thumbelina,Toad,Beetle,Mole,Abortion,Thumb-sized,Fetus,Pro-Life Petition,Pro-Life Coalition,Universal Declaration of Human Rights,UNDHR,Planned Parenthood,Prince Cornelius,International Petition to Protect Life

Stimulis: The Medical Prescription for Stimulating the Economy and Response to Obama’s Stimulus Bill.

2009-02-08T20:45:00.001-08:00

Please forgive the brief, profane text at the very end of this clip.

Stimulis: Because all economies have performance issues.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Stimulus Bill,Barack Hussein Obama,President Obama,Mr. Obama,POTUS,President of the United States of America,Economy,Stimulate Economy,Stimulis,Pearl Diver,Pearl

David Ogden, Pres. Obama, and the Rude American Awakening that Lurks Around the Corner.

2009-02-06T11:20:00.001-08:00

You know, I think Obama is utilizing Kirk and Madsen’s “jamming” technique, from After the Ball, to flash flood America with the most vile and corrupt of politicians and public officials. In the few months since he was voted into the formerly-esteemed office of the President of the United States, he has succeeded in desensitizing a nation to the most despicable of people by placing them and their wild ideas, in rapid succession, into high-ranking positions of influence in our government. This whole David Ogden appointment has me on edge (almost over the edge, really). I realized today that nothing Obama does is going to surprise me anymore, and that’s not a good thing. Don’t get me wrong; I’m still outraged. Just not surprised. And losing that sense of expectation is akin to losing the demand for Obama’s personal accountability and responsibility, and the ambition and drive to effect change. Getting to know our president’s public persona and agenda – his MO, his causes, crusades, etc. – and having it jammed down our throats on a regular basis through family-threatening, life-devaluing presidential appointments we have no control over, feels creepy and forced and…well…not so surprising anymore. But this is how bad people defeat and control everybody else. They make empty promises that speak right to the most central fear of an individual, converting that person by taking advantage of and manipulating their fear for personal gain. Then, once they have stolen the confidence of the fear-blinded little people, schmoozed the elite, and aspired to the highest position in the land, they power punch their agenda into existence and completion before anyone has even had a chance to blink, let alone squeak out an objection loud enough to be heard over the blind fervor of the masses. Sound familiar? Whole countries have been this dumb over and over again. Why do we Americans think we are immune to being conned and swindled just as the huddled and weary masses of other countries have been? How can we believe our Constitution, our democracy, is what will save us when we refuse to uphold our Constitution anymore?

We aren’t. And it won’t.

Pearl’s sworn statement of awareness, 2/6/2009:

I will not lose my sense of indignation over the intentional and selfish breakdown of marriage and family no matter if it comes from my fellow citizens, the president, or his “official” thugs.

I will not lose my sense of indignation over the devaluation of life no matter if it comes from my fellow citizens, the president, or his “official” thugs.

I will not lose my sense of indignation over the total disregard for parental and children’s rights no matter if it comes from my fellow citizens, the president, or his “official” thugs.

I will not lose my sense of indignation over the marketing of pernicious evils no matter if it comes from my fellow citizens, the president, or his “official” thugs.

I will not lose my sense of indignation over the increasingly overt attacks on religion no matter if they come from my fellow citizens, the president, or his “official” thugs.

I will not lose my sense of indignation over attempts to rewrite, nullify, or ill-interpret our nation’s sacred Constitution no matter if they come from my fellow citizens, the president, or his “official” thugs.

And I will take all that burning indignation, ball it up into a great, heaping, fiery wad of activism, and hurl it with a fury at breakdown, devaluation, disregard, marketing, attack, and subversion.

Essentially, I vow to never stop being surprised, indignant, and outraged at evil. And I vow to never stop exposing those people (and their agendas) who would lull Americans into a false sense of security just before slapping on the hand-cuffs, delivering them to a room devoid of all things pure and innocent, and declaring them eternal captives of “progression” and “free-thinking.”

I choose to remain a humble servant of tradition, value, and morality rather than a prisoner to the oxymoron that is “enlightenment.”

Advocating Awareness,

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Barack Hussein Obama,David Ogden,Deputy Attorney General,Dictator,POTUS,President of the United States of America,Awareness,Marriage,Family,Life

Maureen Mullarkey, Chappaqua Artist of Gay Themes, Defends Prop 8 Donation.

2009-02-05T01:13:00.000-08:00

Atlas Empress, by Maureen Mullarkey

From LoHud.com

CHAPPAQUA - Artist Maureen Mullarkey, known in the gay community for paintings depicting drag queens and scenes inspired by gay pride parades, responded to criticism of her donation to the campaign to ban gay marriage in California this week by attacking the intimidation of artists who supported Proposition 8.

Mullarkey said she supported the measure, which passed in November overturning an earlier court ruling legalizing gay marriage in California, because she believes "marriage is the union of husband and wife - a premise so simple, so fundamental that nature and civilization itself both testify to the truth of it."

Gay rights groups and Web commentators said Mullarkey was hypocritical to make money off gay people and then donate it to a cause that denying them what they consider a fundamental legal right.

Mullarkey likened the attacks to Nazi "brownshirt tactics."

"Artists are not in the habit of imposing ideological conformity on one another or demanding it from others," she said. "Moreover, regard for individual gay persons does not require assent to a politicized assault on bedrock social reality and the common good."

Bravo Maureen! I echo that last bit, “politicized assault on bedrock social reality and the common good.” So true. By the way, if you’re wondering why someone would want to paint images from a Pride Parade (because I did…wonder, that is), this is what she says on her website:

Why the Gay Pride Parade as a source of imagery?

Because it is marvelous spectacle, an iconographic lode. There is so much to look at. Art is not about “appreciating.” It is about looking. People get accustomed to viewing art through a filter of words: theories, press releases, the pieties of art appreciation. Spectacle cuts through the static.

But wouldn’t any parade do the same thing?

Not for me. I’ve never really like parades that much. How many marching bands can you take before your eyes glaze over? But when the majorette is a middle-aged man in a tutu and sneakers you know you are not in Kansas and you might want to stay awake.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: LoHud.com,Maureen Mullarkey,Gay Pride,Pride Parades,Gay Themed Art,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Prop 8 Donation,Nazi Brownshirt Tactics,Chappaqua,Drag Queen

Canadian Child Has Two Mommies and a Daddy: “Known Donors” and Recognized Parenthood Issues.

2009-02-04T10:55:00.001-08:00

“The precedent-setting court ruling that the agreement is not enforceable could open the door for a child to have three or four recognized parents in "known donor" situations.” *

Talk about confusing children….

Court Backs Parental Rights of Known Sperm Donor
Shannon Kari
National Post

For the first time in Canada a court has ruled on the legitimacy of a donor contract in determining the competing parental rights of a lesbian couple and a gay man who was the sperm donor.

The precedent-setting court ruling that the agreement is not enforceable could open the door for a child to have three or four recognized parents in "known donor" situations.

At the same time, it may also have a chilling effect on lesbian couples seeking a specific donor and who want their child to know the identity of the father.

The legal dispute involves a lesbian couple in Toronto and a gay man who agreed to be their sperm donor and play an active role as a parent. (The parties cannot be identified because there is a ban on any information that could identify the child.)

The couple and the man signed a "donor contract" before the child was born in 2002, which set out his rights as a "co-parent" including regular access as well as full custody if both women were to die. The agreement included a promise to try for a "three-way" adoption, which would have required a court challenge under the Charter of Rights, although this was never followed through.

The two women and the man are all highly educated professionals and the couple wanted the child to know her father and intentionally sought out a gay man as the donor.

"Given their options to have children, what we were offering might be interesting to [gay men], might be attractive to them, I mean their options are in some ways much bleaker than ours," one of the women told the court.

The friendship has deteriorated and the two women have tried to reduce the father's access to the child.

[Read more….]

*Note: This could also be the case when a woman adopts lesbianism after a particularly traumatic divorce, resulting in a child having two mommies and a daddy and a step-mommy. Or, vice versa, two daddies and a mommy and a step-daddy. Or, let’s consider if both parents in a marriage decided to become homosexual (because, you know, society says it’s “okay”) causing a one man, one woman marriage to become two mommies and two daddies for baby Peter. My goodness. How can one possibly think any of these options are healthy for kids? Let’s strive to perfect marriage not by adding more factors to the equation, but by perfecting the equation that already exists. Let’s keep marriage between one man and one woman and let’s make divorce harder and provide more counseling services to struggling couples!

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Known Donor,Parenthood,Lesbian Parents,Gay Donor,Homosexual Parenting,Confused Children,Parental Rights,National Post,Canadian Court

Should the LDS / Mormon Church Lose Its Tax-Exempt Status Over In-Kind Prop 8 Donations?

2009-02-03T08:55:00.001-08:00

This write-up comes in the wake of a comment made on this previous post regarding the LDS Church’s recent statement correcting erroneous news reports by various mainstream media tyrants.

*Note: All opinions shared in this article are just that, opinions, my opinions. Any reference to the Church is merely my understanding and any mistake or misrepresentation is mine and not representative of or reflected on the Church. For official Church policy, doctrine, or statements, please visit the LDS Newsroom, LDS.org, or contact LDS Church Headquarters in Salt Lake City directly.

Alllllrighty then, let’s talk tax-exempt status. Mind you, I am no tax expert, but I can research and read, and I’m sure the IRS is as good a place as any to get to the bottom of this tax-exempt status debate involving the LDS Church.

The most debated clause in the 501(c)(3), especially in the case of the LDS Church’s in-kind donations to defending marriage, is the designation of a tax-exempt organization having “no substantial part of the activities of which is carrying on propaganda, or otherwise attempting, to influence legislation (except as otherwise provided in subsection (h)), and which does not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office” (frwebgate.gov).

First, let’s establish the fact that the 501(c)(3) does not have a definitive monetary substantiality test by which to weigh the lobbying contributions of churches. Furthermore, “there is no statutory or regulatory definition of the amount of legislative activity that would constitute a ‘substantial part’ of an organization’s activities” (stblaw.com).

There are, however, two cases which have set precedents to which judges refer when scrutinizing the lobbying activities of a tax-exempt entity/organization/charity (in this case, a church).

In Seasongood v. Commissioner, the ruling “held that attempts to influence legislation that constituted five percent of total activities were not substantial.” This case, however, provides “limited guidance because the court’s view of what set of activities were to be measured is no longer supported by the weight of precedent. Moreover, it is not clear how the court arrived at the five percent figure” (IRS.gov).

In Haswell v. United States, “the Court of Claims cited percentage figures in support of its determination that an organization’s lobbying activities were substantial. (The amount of the organization’s expenditures for lobbying activities ranged from 16.6 percent to 20.5 percent of total expenditures during the four years at issue.) While the court stated that a percentage test is only one measure of substantiality (and not, by itself, determinative), it held that these percentages were a strong indication that the organization’s purposes were no longer consistent with charity.” (IRS.gov).

Okay, so what we have discovered so far is that if a church’s lobbying activities make up only 1% - 15% (to be safe) of its overall activity, its tax-exempt status is safe. As a general rule, then, looking to the Haswell precedent, any amount of activity falling at the 16% mark or above would be considered “a substantial part.” If, as was the case in Haswell v. United States, we were to judge based on “total expenditures during [time] at issue,” the LDS Church’s total in-kind donations would have had to have been in the hundreds of millions (if not billions) of dollars considering first an annual gross income of $6 billion (in 1997 - Deseret News Archive) and second, the colossal expenditures necessary to operate a worldwide church, remembering the hundreds of land acquisitions and building projects they sign and complete throughout the world each year (temples and chapels, renovations, remodels, etc.) and multiple charitable projects such as the Perpetual Education Fund and world-wide disaster relief response. Given this knowledge, $190,000 does not even come close to signifying “a substantial part” based solely on a monetary inspection of lobby-related activities.

So what else is there? If we do not base the Church’s continued access to tax-exempt status purely on their non-monetary, in-kind donations to the promotion of moral principles through the adoption of legislation, then truly, what other measurement will the IRS employ to determine this matter?

“Churches… are evaluated by the “less precise ‘substantial activity test’” that is “based upon all relevant facts and circumstances”—in other words, the IRS has no openly available standard that it must follow and can therefore do whatever it wants. There may be a more codified procedure in the future, or there may not be. It may be more or less restrictive. The IRS has free reign, since all 501(c)(3) status churches have already agreed that no substantial part of their activity will be “carrying on propaganda” (propagating information) about anything” (Servants News).

=========

“The IRS has used other factors to determine substantiality:

Time spent by employees and volunteers;

Money spent in relation to the organization’s entire budget;

The amount of publicity the organization assigns to the activity;

Continuous or intermittent nature of the activity.”

(stblaw.com)

Please note that the first qualifier speaks of employees and volunteers, not members (who acted on an individual basis after being asked once, in a letter, by their president, and once in a satellite broadcast with members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, to get involved). And if the amount of money allotted to compensate employees for their time spent on the promotion of Proposition 8 is any indication of how much time was actually spent, then I think we can safely say the LDS Church has not violated that qualification. With regard to money and Church budget, I think we’ve adequately dismissed any concern of violation there (remember $190,000 v. hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars). Publicity provided by the Church came in the form of one satellite broadcast to members of the Church in California, a website, and various YouTube videos. And only a couple of specific activities were continuous in nature (YouTube videos and website) from the time that the LDS Church joined the Protect Marriage coalition in June of 2008, until the vote on Nov. 4, 2008.

Now, if you hold up the roughly four and a half months of mild and intermittent lobbying for marriage engaged in during the year 2008 (speaking strictly of the Church here, not of its members) against its nearly 179 years of missionary work, proselytizing, disaster relief aid, and building of temples and meetinghouses, then again I would suggest that the Church has in no way violated its allowable lobbying by meeting or exceeding that highly debatable phrase “a substantial part.”

Frankly, I find this whole debate rather comical as it is well know that the Church has a superb legal team not to mention the brilliant minds easily found among its very leadership: Dallin H. Oaks, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, former professor of law, President of Brigham Young University, and Utah Supreme Court Justice; Russell M. Nelson, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “internationally renowned surgeon and medical researcher”; Quentin L. Cook, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, former “vice chairman of Sutter Health System….President and CEO of a California healthcare system….Business lawyer and managing partner of a S.F. Bay Area law firm.” And the list could go on. (LDS Newsroom – Leader Biographies). These people are not dumb. They are business and legal savvy. And besides knowing the law, they also don’t break the law!

To wrap up this discussion, let’s not forget what was written of the LDS Church by Time Magazine in 1997:

“And as long as corporate rankings are being bandied about, the church would make any list of the most admired: for straight dealing, company spirit, contributions to charity (even the non-Mormon kind) and a fiscal probity among its powerful leaders that would satisfy any shareholder group, if there were one.” (Deseret News Archive)

Now, barring the possibility of top-level extortion, blackmail, or bribery of IRS officials (which is never an impossibility in this morally tepid climate we live in), I think it’s safe to say that the LDS Church will successfully retain its tax-exempt status.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Tax-Exempt Status,LDS Church,Mormon Church,Mormons,Prop 8,Proposition 8,In-Kind Donations,501(c)(3),a substantial part

LDS / Mormon Church Issues Statement Regarding In-Kind Prop 8 Donations; Corrects Erroneous News Reports.

2009-02-02T20:47:00.001-08:00

From the LDS Newsroom

Church Clarifies Proposition 8 Filing, Corrects Erroneous News Reports

SALT LAKE CITY 2 February 2009 Today The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints clarified erroneous news reports following the filing of its final report on donations to the ProtectMarriage.com coalition.

On Friday, 30 January, the Church filed the final report of its contributions (all of which were non-monetary) to the ProtectMarriage.com coalition. The report, submitted in advance of the 31 January deadline, details in-kind donations totaling $189,903.58.

The value of the Church’s in-kind (non-monetary) contribution is less than one half of one percent of the total funds (approximately $40 million) raised for the “Yes on 8” campaign. The Church did not make any cash contribution.

Because media coverage about this filing ran without a comment from the Church, the following statements of fact from the Church add context to this story and should help correct the record:

Fox13 (Utah): “The documents show the amount spent by the Mormon Church is greater than what was initially stated.”

Fact: The Church, like other organizations on both sides of the ballot issue, was required to publicly file these donations by the 31 January deadline. The Church has been filing required contribution reports throughout the campaign. Those earlier donations “initially stated” were filed for specific time periods prior to this last reporting period, as required by law. Other groups are also filing their final contribution reports to meet the same deadline.

…

San Francisco Chronicle : “Mormon church officials, facing an ongoing investigation by the state Fair Political Practices Commission, Friday reported nearly $190,000 in previously unlisted assistance to the successful campaign for Prop. 8, which banned same-sex marriage in California.”

Sacramento Bee : “The disclosure comes amid an investigation by the state's campaign watchdog agency into whether the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints violated state laws by not fully disclosing its involvement during the campaign.”

Fact: This filing is in no way prompted by an investigation by the California Fair Political Practices Commission. Many organizations are filing this week to meet the deadline required by law. We believe we have complied with California law.

…

KFMB 760 AM (San Diego) :
“Mormon Church Misstated How Much It Spent in Prop 8 Fight.”
“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints previously claimed only about $2,000 was spent in support of the measure.”

365Gay : “Mormon Church admits it spent 100 times more for Prop 8 than reported”

Fact: Again, the previous disclosure of an in-kind donation was to meet an earlier deadline. In fact, previous filings detailed over $50,000 out of the total non-monetary contribution of $189,903.58.This week’s filing reported donations that fell within a different time period and required reporting by the 31 January deadline. Other groups also made their final contributions reports this week.

Understanding the extent of donations from other organizations may help the media and the public better understand the context in which the Church’s donations were made.

Pearl’s take:

This is just more evidence of the dubious partiality and bias that plagues the mainstream media today. Apparently the MSM is in the business of vilification and false accusation rather than accuracy in reporting.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: LDS Church,Mormon Church,LDS,Mormon,Latter-day Saints,In-kind Donations,Prop 8,Proposition 8,Biased Media,Mainstream Media,Standard Proceedure,Deadline

American Psychoanalytic Association and Homosexuals in the Military: Mental Health Associations Are Promoting Homosexuality for Political Reasons.

2009-02-02T06:45:00.001-08:00

By Kathleen Gilbert
LifeSiteNews

NEW YORK, January 30, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A recent statement from the American Psychoanalytic Association (APsaA) supporting the inclusion of open homosexuals in the military admits that the medical group's position on homosexuality is guided by an impetus for social action, rather than medical or scientific data.

"Though it's not widely known, psychoanalysts as a professional group are proactive on a number of social issues including homosexuality," began a press release from the American Psychoanalytic Association (APsaA), detailing their new "position statement" regarding homosexuals serving in the military.

The statement goes on to affirm that the APsaA rejects the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy prohibiting open homosexuals in the military, a policy Mr. Obama has promised to undo.

"It is the position of APsaA that sexual orientation is not germane to any aspect of military effectiveness, including unit cohesion, morale, recruitment or retention," writes the APsaA.

The statement includes an assertion that the issue amounts to overcoming bias equivalent to racial discrimination: "The U.S. military is capable of integrating members of groups historically excluded from its ranks, as demonstrated by its success in reducing both racial and gender discrimination."

The repealing of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy constitutes another major step in the Obama administration's agenda to normalize homosexuality, one that has met criticism from those who agree with the U.S. Department of Defense's traditional policy that same-sex attractions among military personnel are incompatible with the unique circumstances of military service. (http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/aug/06081604.html)

The APsaA's recent statement is consistent with the epidemic of pro-homosexual social activism that has run rampant among American mental health organizations in recent decades, in tandem with the growing influence of homosexualist groups.

[Read more…]

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: APA,APsaA,"Don't Ask Don't Tell",Homosexuality,Military,US Department of Defense,Barack Hussein Obama,Political Agenda

Let’s Show NBC What Life Means to Millions of Average Joes!

2009-01-31T23:13:00.001-08:00

I HAVE A PLAN! Okay, so it’s probably not original, but it’s still a great plan. ;0)

Whether we are Republican or Democrat, Libertarian or Constitutional Party, we can all appreciate a video that moves us and reminds us to recognize the amazing potential of life. NBC, however, does not feel the same and has chosen to drop a powerful Pro-Life ad, falsely claiming that they do not "allow political issue or advocacy advertisements." PETA also submitted an advocacy ad (filled with lingerie-clad women doing sensual things with vegetables and a text overlay claiming that vegetarians have better sex) and it was not rejected on those same grounds but rather because it "exceeded the level of sexuality" allowed on NBC. They were given a list of things to do to make it more acceptable for resubmission. No mention of advocacy.

Here's what I propose. When you get up for the half-time break during your amazing Super Bowl party (TOMORROW!), gather your friends round the computer and watch Life: Imagine the Potential . Let's show NBC just how much life matters to us. Pass this post along in email, on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, blogs, etc. and let's get a Super Bowl movement for life going as viewers abandon the half-time show to take up a worthy cause on the Net.

This is one half-time show I think God will be watching. Will you be in front of the TV absorbing humorous beer commercials or actively fighting for an infant's right to life in front of your computer?

You know where I'll be! :)

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Super Bowl,Pro-Life,Life: Imagine the Potential,CatholicVote.org,Catholic Vote,PETA,Vegetables,Vegetarians,Children,Babies,Life,NBC

Samuel L. Jackson Calls Mormons Supporting Prop 8, “Misinformed.”

2009-01-30T16:03:00.001-08:00

Well that was rude, Mr. Jackson, not to mention categorically untrue. I guess it wasn’t as rude as Tom Hanks’ “un-American” comment, but that doesn’t make it any less mistaken. I personally don’t take kindly to being called an ill-led sheep, though I suppose I’ve been called worse (much worse). The funny thing is that in calling Mormons misinformed, he has also labeled any other religious, non-religious, black, Asian, Hispanic, poor, rich, young, or old person who voted for Prop 8, “misinformed.” Why? Because we all voted yes for the same reason. We all believe that marriage between a man and a woman is deserving of special recognition and protections over any other attempted redefinition. So, Mr. Star-Studded Samuel L. Jackson, you’ve just called 6,838,107 Californian citizens “misinformed” simply because you disagree with them. How brilliantly “celebrity” of you.

[Read the report here]

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: Samuel L. Jackson,Mormons,Prop 8,Misinformed,Religion,Celebrity,Hollywood

NBC Sacks CatholicVote.org, Pro-Life Super Bowl Ad

2009-01-30T15:11:00.001-08:00

I got this in my email inbox today. It’s very interesting.

Dear CatholicVote.org Member,

We broke this news yesterday, but wanted to make sure you have the full story - NBC has slammed the door on running our ad during the Super Bowl!

After several days of negotiations, a representative in Chicago told us that NBC and the NFL are not interested in advertisements involving ‘political candidates or issues.’

We were in the midst of raising the money needed, and had confirmed interest from several very generous pro-life benefactors. Airing the ad would have been very expensive, and a 'Super' opportunity.

But NBC’s rejection is calling even more attention to the ad. We have been appearing on radio programs across the country for the past two days, and NBC’s New York affiliate (imagine the irony), is covering the controversy. Bill O’Reilly of the FOX News Channel featured the ad on his program Wednesday night calling it “brilliant” and “genius.” His show alone reached nearly 4 million people.

All of this is driving more traffic to the commercial online. We reached almost 1 million online views in less than two weeks!

So why did NBC reject the ad?

The network claims that they do not allow political or issue advocacy advertisements during the Super Bowl, but that’s simply not true.

The network was willing to air an ad by PETA, which is definitely an advocacy group, if PETA would tone down their ad’s sexual suggestiveness.

Also, the first ad scheduled to run during the Super Bowl is a creative spot about Pedigree’s pet adoption drive. The ad ends with the line: “Help us help dogs.”

In recent years, some Super Bowl advertisements have caused controversy. But there’s nothing objectionable about our positive, life-affirming advertisement. We show a beautiful ultrasound, something NBC’s parent company GE has done for years. We don’t attack Barack Obama, but focus on him becoming the first African-American President. We simply ask people to imagine the potential of each human life.

What now?

We’re not intimidated by NBC. We plan on getting this ad out so that many millions of Americans can imagine the potential of each human life. Here are some things you can do:

We are preparing a virtual protest of NBC’s decision. We want other networks to know that hundreds of thousands of people want to see this ad aired, and we will not give up easily. Stay tuned for our plan on this in the next few days.

The Catholic television station EWTN will be airing the commercial before, during and after the Super Bowl. Feel free to turn your channel to EWTN during halftime and watch our ad there.

You can still share the commercial with friends and family. Tell them to go to CatholicVote.org and watch the ad NBC doesn’t want them to see! Heck, show it at your Super Bowl party!

We’ve been humbled by the donations we’ve received to help get this ad out. We are especially grateful to the group of very generous benefactors that agreed to help if we got air time for the Super Bowl.

We aren’t certain they will still help, but we will use any funds we receive from you and others to air the ad in the most prominent and cost-effective venues available.

Perhaps the ad should run during the Academy Awards or maybe American Idol, which is popular with the youth. Maybe we should run it following President Obama’s first State of the Union address?

If you have ideas, tell us what you think.

Brian Burch
CatholicVote.org

P.S. You may recall that this is the first ad in our new “Life: Imagine the Potential” campaign. We are having a huge impact with our campaign already! Our message is positive, life affirming, and hope-filled. And it is reaching audiences that normally don’t listen to us.

We are grateful for all your support and prayers.

Like I said, interesting. So apparently NBC objects to life. *Great* And babies are not as deserving of advocacy as dogs. *Fantastic* So troops, here’s the plan while we’re waiting for the plan….Let’s all show NBC just what we think of their clear prejudice against life by contacting to let them know our disapproval of their censorship.

E-mail NBC Sports at nbcsports@nbcuni.com

Meanwhile, here’s the ad. Show your friends, your family, your neighbors, and your dog that NBC favors over children.

~Pearl

Technorati Tags: NBC,Super Bowl,CatholicVote.org,Life: Imagine the Potential,Anti-Abortion,Super Bowl Ad

PEARL DIVER

Pearl Has Moved

"Willing to March into Hell for a Heavenly Cause."

Children win as natural marriage wins in Maine today!

Donate to Natural Marriage in Maine!

Maine Marriage Initiative - Grass Roots Fail, Fail, Fail!

Victor Guzman – Living Through the Refiner’s Fire

Kerry Pacer: Gay ‘Person of the Year’ Gone Straight.

Yoink! – ACORN Exposed

Ben & Jerry’s Hubby Hubby

BBC on Homosexual Parenting

Non-representing Representatives

Imagine the Potential Spot #3

Marriage and Divorce

Sabbatical

A Father’s Day Plea

The True Meaning of the “Day of Silence.”

“You Don’t Have to Yell” by Chris Rice

California Supreme Court Upholds Proposition 8

Mormons and Proposition 8: A PBS Episode

California Supreme Court to Issue Prop 8 Opinions Next Week

NOM and CPR Action Present: “I’m Confused” – A Pro-Traditional Marriage Video Featuring Children of the Homosexual “Marriage” Future.

True Gender Equality

What Has Happened to Public School?

Hot Air

Sex Instruction Book Aimed at Toddlers

Maine, D.C., and Milk: The Homosexual Agenda Steams Forward.

How Can I Find Happiness? A Message of Hope.

Should Carrie Prejean Lose Her Miss California Crown Over The Opinion She Was Asked to Give?

Standing for Something – Defend Marriage Alliance, UFI, NOM, DNA

Miss California + Carrie Prejean + Mormon

Miss California, Carrie Prejean, on Gay Marriage

Why Do I Defend Marriage?

Vermont Vetoes the Veto and Marriage is Neutered Once Again.

Marriage . . . it’s that simple.

The Blessings of the LDS Temple – A Second Video Response to HBO’s “Big Love” Mormon Temple Episode

Don’t Forget! It’s Today!

Voice of the Nation – Family Values Blog Talk Radio

Same-Sex Marriage in Vermont . . . Next Week?

Glenn Beck’s “We Surround Them” and The 9.12 Project

HBO’s Big Love and the LDS / Mormon Temple Video

Maureen Mullarkey Responds

Glenn Beck: The Proposition 8 Oral Arguments

Reactions to California Prop 8 Oral Arguments

Sto Pro Verum – Clothing and Merchandise

Wake Up America! Opine-Editorials Breaks Big, Big News!

California Supreme Court Prop 8 Oral Arguments

San Diego Tea Party Pictures

Tips for a Great Tea Party

I LOVE this. It is so accurate.

Speechless: Silencing Christians; 12-yr-old Pro-Life Speech; CNN Rejects Pro-Life Ad; HR5 Makes Waves; Jonathan Lopez Sues LA City College Over Same-Sex Marriage Speech

Lobbying in Sacramento – HR 5 Passes

Gay Rights “Lobbyists” to Descend on CA Capitol

Support Prop 8 Rally! Sacramento, CA - Tuesday Feb. 17th.

Go! Rally! Bring Your Signs and Spread the Word! Sacramento, CA – Tuesday Feb. 17th, 10:30am State Capitol

Freedom to Marry Week?

Save Our Millions of Modern-Day Thumbelinas!

Stimulis: The Medical Prescription for Stimulating the Economy and Response to Obama’s Stimulus Bill.

David Ogden, Pres. Obama, and the Rude American Awakening that Lurks Around the Corner.

Maureen Mullarkey, Chappaqua Artist of Gay Themes, Defends Prop 8 Donation.

Canadian Child Has Two Mommies and a Daddy: “Known Donors” and Recognized Parenthood Issues.

Should the LDS / Mormon Church Lose Its Tax-Exempt Status Over In-Kind Prop 8 Donations?

LDS / Mormon Church Issues Statement Regarding In-Kind Prop 8 Donations; Corrects Erroneous News Reports.

American Psychoanalytic Association and Homosexuals in the Military: Mental Health Associations Are Promoting Homosexuality for Political Reasons.

Let’s Show NBC What Life Means to Millions of Average Joes!

Samuel L. Jackson Calls Mormons Supporting Prop 8, “Misinformed.”

NBC Sacks CatholicVote.org, Pro-Life Super Bowl Ad

Go! Rally! Bring Your Signs and Spread the Word!
Sacramento, CA – Tuesday Feb. 17th, 10:30am
State Capitol