Noteworthy News Notes

January 22, 2010
 

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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