Federal Court Slams
Chicago for Zoning Abuse Against Church
A federal appeals court [December 30, 2009] rebuked
the City of Chicago for clout-laden practices against a small Christian
church. The three-judge panel of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals
delivered the decision in favor of the World Outreach Conference Center
(WOCC) in its case that claimed Chicago officials violated its
constitutional rights by preventing it from continuing to use a
168-single-room occupancy unit in a former YMCA building to house
Hurricane Katrina victims and other needy people.
In July 2005, the Roseland church purchased an old
YMCA building for recreational and residential use to fulfill its
religious mission to help the needy. When WOCC attempted to obtain a
single-room occupancy (SRO) permit, they were denied because Ninth Ward
Alderman Anthony Beale wanted the old YMCA structure sold to his friend
and financial backer. Beale caused the city council to rezone the
property to “Manufacturing” in an attempt to halt the church’s mission
and make room for his real estate developer friend.
“The City acted maliciously and oppressively in
rezoning the property. It intentionally discriminated against World
Outreach because a local alderman had an agenda that did not allow
compassion for those on the bottom rung of the housing ladder,” said
John Mauck of Mauck & Baker, lead attorney on the case. “Abusive Chicago
officials and their abusive zoning practices are finally getting the
exposure their conduct has deserved.”
—Christian Newswire
EDITOR’S COMMENTS: Once in a while the corruption
gets exposed, and the good guys are awarded the victory.
Planned Parenthood
Abortion Centers Closing at Faster Pace
Planned Parenthood is the largest abortion business
in the United States, doing 305,310 abortions in its own facilities, or
just under one-third of all American abortions. But the billion-dollar
abortion giant faced a tough year in 2009 as it saw abortion centers
close at a higher rate than normal.
Jim Sedlak, the director of STOPP International, a
watchdog group, told LifeNews.com,…“[W]e have seen the number of Planned
Parenthood nonexpress clinics fall from a high of 938 in 1995 to 797
today. More significantly, 2009 saw the rate of Planned Parenthood
closings go from one a month to over two a month,” he said.
“Although the organization reported record income
($1.04 billion) and a record number of babies killed in its own
facilities, there have been a number of signs that Planned Parenthood is
beginning to feel the relentless pressure from those…who will not stand
by and watch it take our money and kill our children,” he said.
—LifeNews.com
EDITOR’S COMMENTS: If the current healthcare
“reform” becomes law, these abortion centers would be a major
beneficiary of it.
Hillary Clinton
Barely Edges Out Sarah Palin as Most Admired Woman in Gallup Poll
Pro-abortion Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
barely edged out pro-life former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin
in a new Gallup poll asking respondents to name the woman they most
admired. Clinton continued her placement atop the list but barely beat
Palin 16 to 15 percent.
Talk show host Oprah Winfrey and First Lady
Michelle Obama finished third and fourth, with former Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice, Queen Elizabeth II, former British Prime Minister
Margaret Thatcher, and poet Maya Angelou—all regulars on the list—joined
by newcomers German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Elin Woods in the top
10.
The poll asked for people to name their first and
second choices of women living today whom they admired, and Winfrey
received 8 percent, Obama 7 percent and Rice and Queen Elizabeth 2
percent each.
Hillary Clinton has now been named Most Admired
Woman 14 times since 1993.…The three times she has not finished first
during that time, she earned second place.
—LifeNews.com
EDITOR’S COMMENTS: A poll such as this is quite
revealing about the philosophic divide that exists across the USA. And
it makes it quite clear that there is a shortage of visible role models.
Christian Witnessing
a No-No on Campus
Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) is appealing a decision
to permit a bad speech policy to stand while a lawsuit against Georgia
Southern University proceeds.
In March of last year, Benjamin Bloedorn visited
the campus to distribute tracts and talk about his faith with students
in a free-speech area of the school. ADF attorney Nate Kellum
[explains].
“Some officers affiliated with Georgia Southern
said basically he could either keep quiet, stop talking about Jesus or
be arrested—and while he was trying to confer with the officers about
this, they just decided to arrest him.”…
According to the attorney, Bloedorn was also told
he had to have permission from the university to exercise his
constitutional right to free speech.
Later a trespassing charge was dropped, but
Bloedorn was told not to return to the campus to share his faith. The
federal court refused to grant a restraining order to prevent
enforcement of the campus policies. Kellum expects that decision to be
overturned.…
Numerous court rulings in similar cases would tend
to back up that claim.
—OneNewsNow.com
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