Vital Signs Blog
Vital Signs Blog
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Recent Posts
*It's Dickens, Decisions and Delightful Fellowship This Weekend - Vital Signs Blog Nov 20, 2009, 6:32 am
We're on the run today (what's new) with several errands and tasks to perform before heading down to a bed and breakfast (Whispering Pines) in Nebraska City for the annual retreat of our literary society, the Notting Hill Napoleons.We go there every November and take over the place from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning, enjoying each others' company and conducting our discussion of the year's Charles Dickens novel. This year it's Great Expectations.Actually, this is our second time with this n
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 20, 2009, 7:29 am
It's Dickens, Decisions and Delightful Fellowship This WeekendIf Cable TV Was Handled Like ObamaCareChickens Make "Chickens" of White Tigers"The Importance of a Divine Perspective"The Most Successful Woman We Will Ever Know In This Country?"This Is Politics at its Very Worst."
*"The Importance of a Divine Perspective" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 20, 2009, 6:18 am
Harold Berry sent over a message he had presented to the Board of Trustees at Back to the Bible. It was a captivating commentary on the necessity of aligning our lives to a "divine perspective" and he used King David's example (particularly chapters 16 and 17 of First Samuel) to illustrate his points.It's good stuff - inspirational, practical.And I sure hope this link will take you to it. Not knowing how Facebook works, I'm not sure if non-FB folks can get there. But try it.
Chickens Make "Chickens" of White Tigers - Vital Signs Blog Nov 20, 2009, 6:21 am
I'll let you decide on the moral of the following story.The Chongqing Wild Animal Park (China) has five rare adult white tigers which were originally trained to perform tricks for visitors...Keepers have been trying to encourage them to follow their natural instincts by throwing them live chickens - but without success.Feeder Shi Ruqiang said: They're supposed to be wild and scary, but due to their soft lifestyles and human care they have gradually lost their wild nature. "I have been trying to
*If Cable TV Was Handled Like ObamaCare - Vital Signs Blog Nov 20, 2009, 6:28 am
Here's another clever (and illuminating) video clip from CMPI.tps://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/12777490-2738901821733151426?l=vitalsignsblog.blogspot.com' alt='' />
The Most Successful Woman We Will Ever Know In This Country? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 20, 2009, 4:53 am
It's one of those statements that jolts you, revealing yet another decline of the once-noble American culture into the marshes of insipidity.For in the mind of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley (and probably many other celebrity worshipers), Oprah Winfrey, a New Age egotist who talks about mostly inane, irrelevant topics on a TV program, soars above all mothers, scientists, political leaders, doctors, educators, policewomen, missionaries, First Ladies, soldiers, philanthropists, writers, social activi
*"This Is Politics at its Very Worst." - Vital Signs Blog Nov 20, 2009, 4:42 am
Last Saturday night Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) forced through a vote on her 2,032 page health care bill only a few days after releasing it to the public. Now Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is poised for another Saturday night cram down, forcing a Senate cloture vote mere days before his 2,074 page bill was given to Senators. Yet again, Congress will be forced to vote on a bill that none of them have actually read. More importantly, as we pour through the details, it becomes obvious th
*Obama's Ego vs Real World Politics - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 6:03 am
...Obama evidently expected that his election would change not only America's image in the world but the policies of nations both friendly and unfriendly. In saluting the fall of the Berlin Wall, on videotape, he made no mention of Ronald Reagan or Margaret Thatcher, Lech Walesa or John Paul II, Mikhail Gorbachev or Vaclav Havel, but cited as a world-changing event his own election in the United States 19 years later.Obama has often said that all the world's nations have shared interests, and du
*Did You Have Any Doubts? Harry Reid Health Care Plan Requires Monthly Abortion Fee. - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 6:22 am
Straight from the web blog of House Republican Leader John Boehner comes these details he found in the Democrat's Senate-version of the health care bill.Just like the original 2,032-page, government-run health care plan from Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-NV) massive, 2,074-page bill would levy a new 'abortion premium” fee on Americans in the government-run plan. Beginning on line 7, p. 118, section 1303 under 'Voluntary Choice of Coverage of Abortion Ser
Govt. Printing Office Updates WWII Poster For Future Use - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 6:37 am
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 6:49 am
Govt. Printing Office Updates WWII Poster For Future UseDid You Have Any Doubts? Harry Reid Health Care Plan Requires Monthly Abortion Fee.Obama's Ego vs Real World PoliticsVital Signs' Book It! Discussions -- You Oughta' Get In On This.Is That Helen?Nothing "Religious" Is Allowed in Public SchoolsU.K. Government Official: 'Lesbians Make Better Parents Than a Man and a Woman.”The Reprobate Rush for "Inclusion""Health Care Hoops"
*U.K. Government Official: 'Lesbians Make Better Parents Than a Man and a Woman.” - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 5:05 am
Guess what? They have loopy czars in the British government too.The Times reports here on Stephen Scott, director of research at the National Academy for Parenting Practitioners (the U.K. government's parenting academy) claiming that "the latest research" shows that children of lesbian couples did better in life than kids who came from...well, you know...those old-fashioned, squares-ville marriage arrangements.His exact words? 'Lesbians make better parents than a man and a woman.”The Times re
*Nothing "Religious" Is Allowed in Public Schools - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 5:13 am
That's the determination of a New Jersey high school principal and, despite the clarity of the U.S. Constitution on the issue, it has become the determined belief on the part of school officials across the country.Therefore, when a student wants to speak of Jesus in a report or in a speech, when a student wants to pray or join in a Bible study or, as in this case, when a student desires to participate in a peaceful pro-life action, secularists in the system become tyrannical opponents of religio
Is That Helen? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 5:26 am
Vital Signs' Book It! Discussions -- You Oughta' Get In On This. - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 5:37 am
Earlier this week we had a terrific Book It! discussion over here (with the carpet finally in, we had moved our living room furniture back where it belonged) as we discussed C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters, his classic investigation of spiritual warfare, virtue, perseverance, prayer and so much more.One of my all-time favorites, I have probably read The Screwtape Letters a dozen times in the last 39 years and referred to it in bits and pieces a whole lot more. But among the treasures of discu
"Health Care Hoops" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 3:53 am
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*The Reprobate Rush for "Inclusion" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 19, 2009, 4:33 am
"Corpus Christi," Terrence McNally's infamous play which portrays Jesus as a homosexual was performed in Santa Ana, California last weekend -- in a church."That's why we're doing this," Pastor Michael Holland said, "for all those families out there who don't feel accepted. The Bible does not condemn homosexuality as an orientation, it condemns certain homoerotic acts which had nothing to do with people being in love, like we're doing today....Jesus was about love and inclusion and affirming peo
Your Wednesday Tea Break (Crystal Gayle) - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 5:30 am
*Lies, Damned Lies and White House Statistics - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 8:51 am
Jonathan Karl from ABC News reports, "Here's a stimulus success story: In Arizona's 15th congressional district, 30 jobs have been saved or created with just $761,420 in federal stimulus spending. At least that's what the Web site set up by the Obama administration to track the $787 billion stimulus says.There's one problem, though: There is no 15th congressional district in Arizona; the state has only eight districts."Rick Klein from ABC News adds this one: "More than $36 million in stimulus fu
*Local Bureaucrats Hassle Pro-Life CPCs, Leave Abortion Clinics Free - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 9:30 am
On Monday night, the Baltimore City Council, by a vote of 12 to 3, approved an ordinance requiring pregnancy care centers (PCCs) to posts signs indicating that they do not do abortions or provide contraception. Failure to comply with the ordinance will incur a $150 per day fine. A proposed amendment to require abortion clinics to post relevant disclaimers was defeated...Read the rest of Denise Burke's report on Americans United for Life web site here.
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 9:55 am
Local Bureaucrats Hassle Pro-Life CPCs, Leave Abortion Clinics FreeLies, Damned Lies and White House StatisticsThe Epidemic of STDs Is Getting WorseFrom Whence the Health Care Bill? Another Muslim "Honor Killing?" The Media Dares Not Report the Facts.A Closer Look at Animal Rights OrganizationsWhy Does the Media So Spitefully, Irrationally Hate Sarah Palin?Your Wednesday Tea Break (Crystal Gayle)
*From Whence the Health Care Bill? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 7:03 am
Rich Terrell's cartoons can be found at AfterMath.Describes Terrell about his new career, "Now retired from teaching high school economics and math (thus 'AfterMath”) I turned my hand to Photoshop cartooning. My cartoons are unabashedly conservative. This conservatism comes from experience as much as from studying conservative philosophers and economists like Hayek, Smith, Sowell, Milton Friedman. Living in Berkeley , California for seventeen years cured me of any lingering illusions about
*The Epidemic of STDs Is Getting Worse - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 7:35 am
Politics isn't the only disease rampant in Washington, D.C.It also has the dishonor of having higher rates of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis than any of the 50 states!The District's chlamydia rate of 1,177 cases per 100,000 people was almost three times the rate of its neighbors, Virginia and Maryland. For gonorrhea, D.C.'s rate was 451.5 cases per 100,000, almost twice that of second-ranking Mississippi and more than three times the rate of neighbors Virginia and Maryland. (And more than 13
A Closer Look at Animal Rights Organizations - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 6:21 am
Today's animal rights movement has never wavered from its ultimate aim: the complete abolition of a long list of consumer choices that most Americans enjoy. These include meat, dairy foods, hunting, fishing, zoos, aquariums, circuses, rodeos, fur, leather, wool, and silk.Activists even want to do away with vital medical research that uses animals. PETA co-founder and president Ingrid Newkirk once proclaimed: 'Even if animal research resulted in a cure for AIDS, we'd be against it.” And PCRM re
*Another Muslim "Honor Killing?" The Media Dares Not Report the Facts. - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 6:51 am
Another Muslim "honor killing" that the press refuses to identify as such?It sure looks like it. A 28-year old British Punjabi woman, mother of two children, died after being found in a London street, bleeding from extensive head injuries and from having her right hand chopped off. 6 men have been arrested -- including the woman's estranged husband.The dismemberment appears to be a symbolic horror related to the practice of Sikhs wearing the kara, a metal bangle which adorns the right wrist. The
*Why Does the Media So Spitefully, Irrationally Hate Sarah Palin? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 18, 2009, 5:54 am
Newsweek devoted its latest cover story to attacking Palin -- a refreshing change of pace from Newsweek's weekly cover stories praising Barack Obama. According to Newsweek, she's a "problem" in need of a solution, perhaps because she looks good in shorts.There seems to be a media competition at work, a sort of championship tournament. Every reporter, anchor, and pundit in America is engaged in a frantic effort to be the hero who fires the silver bullet that slays the Republican werewolf from Wa
*Barack Obama and Harry Reid Want This Radical Leftist on the Court of Appeals - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 6:55 am
With Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's announcement that he will move forward this week with the process of confirming the outrageously liberal David Hamilton to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, it is time for you to:1) Revisit this Vital Signs post from last April.2) Re-read this Power Line post from last March.3) Then jot down a couple of the biggest scandals associated with this fellow and let your Senator know you definitely don't want this guy on the 7th Circuit!
*Will Iran Stop the Persecution of Christians? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 7:22 am
There may be freedom in the futures of Marzieh Esmaeilabad and Maryam Rustampoor, two Iranian Christians who I mentioned to you earlier this month. But prayers are still very much needed for their release from an Iranian prison and for safety from future persecution because of their Christian faith.Here's the latest.Two young Christian women who faced execution or at least life imprisonment in Iran for converting from Islam to Christianity were to be released as early as Tuesday, November 17, af
*Why Does the Democrat Party Fear These Women So? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 7:33 am
...Women like Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachmann -- attractive, conservative, content in their marriages, devoted to God, family and country -- are as comfortable in politics as they are in their homes, caring for their families. They are a new breed of woman, and they are a threat to the liberal orthodoxy. They are the true representation of American women, as evidenced by the fact that the last time a Democrat presidential candidate won a majority of white women was 1964.Liberals are angry and
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 7:52 am
Why Does the Democrat Party Fear These Women So?Will Iran Stop the Persecution of Christians?Barack Obama and Harry Reid Want This Radical Leftist on the Court of AppealsPrenatal Development, Pregnancy Education and More at EHDShrugging Off Ayn RandAn Encouraging AWANA ResponseAttention Facebook Users: Beware the Hackers Posing as FriendsHow Low Will Our President Go? Putting Obama's Bow to Akihito "In Context"
*An Encouraging AWANA Response - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 5:53 am
I received in my e-mail this morning a very encouraging note regarding my speaking last week to three groups of AWANA kids up at Country Bible Church in Blair, Nebraska. I have maintained for several years that this is my favorite speaking engagement of the year. And it remains so. After all, I have connections to Blair that go back as far as when I first hitchhiked into Nebraska back in...oh my...1970. And I really love these kids and deeply respect the AWANA leaders there.And maybe, like anyth
*Shrugging Off Ayn Rand - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 6:34 am
Peter Wehner has some refreshingly honest and perceptive comments (plus tossing in a few from others you'll want to hear like Whittaker Chambers and William F. Buckley) about Ayn Rand, that third-rate novelist and audaciously self-centered "philosopher" who has received way too much applause from members of the conservative movement.Very good stuff, Peter.Objectively, Ayn Rand Was a Nut According to Politico.com, Ayn Rand — the subject of two new biographies, one of which is titled Goddess of
*Prenatal Development, Pregnancy Education and More at EHD - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 6:40 am
Arizona lawyer and pro-life activist extraordinaire John J. Jakubczyk recently recommended to his Facebook friends the web site of The Endowment for Human Development. John said that not only is it an "amazing" site, it provides "the perfect answer to anyone who falsely charges you with using religion to prove the humanity of the unborn child."He was right.Check it out right here.
*How Low Will Our President Go? Putting Obama's Bow to Akihito "In Context" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 4:39 am
Democrats who are trying to defend Barack Obama's most recent bow to a foreign figure (in this case, the Emperor of Japan) are using the line, "You've got to put it in context."Well, that's just what Hot Air Pundit has done by posting photographs showing the moment of greeting between the Emperor and, respectively, 8 other heads of state and high-level dignitaries.None of them bowed to the Emperor.It is interesting to note that the goofball move of President Obama is being noted this time around
*Attention Facebook Users: Beware the Hackers Posing as Friends - Vital Signs Blog Nov 17, 2009, 5:10 am
Julie Schmit-Albin sent along a very important HACKER WARNING last night geared to Facebook users. And it proved timely for me -- this morning the very attack Julie described was attempted on me. Yipes!Here's the deal as Julie described it, "There is a new way to hack your Facebook. A notification will be sent to you that one of your friends has commented on your status, it will open a new page and tell you to re-enter your Facebook user name and password. The page looks just like the FB login
May Fr. Tony Have a Word? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 16, 2009, 7:03 am
Having received this morning a letter obviously intended for me but nevertheless addressed to "Fr. Anthony Hartford," I have had to deal all morning with Claire calling me "Fr. Tony" and teasing me in all sorts of other ways -- "Do your vows allow you salsa on your egg burrito?", "What is the Latin for dust mop?", "What's Pope Benedict really like?", and so on.What fun we have over here.But this post really has another purpose besides eliciting your sympathy at what I'm enduring today. What I ac
A Technology Stretch - Vital Signs Blog Nov 13, 2009, 7:41 am
Okay, explain this to me one more time.The Russian Antonov 225, nicknamed by NATO as "Cossack," is the largest fixed-wing aircraft ever built. You tell me it weighs 650 tons and can carry another 275 tons in its cargo hold or 220 tons on top of its fuselage.Okay, I've got that.But I still don't understand -- How does the doggone thing get up in the air, let alone stay there!
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 13, 2009, 8:12 am
A Technology StretchThe Overlooked Victim in the Ft. Hood Terrorist MurdersA Man Who Despises America Is, Uh...In the White HouseObama's Embrace of Islam: Let's Go to the VideotapesNYC High School Students: "What's an Algebra?"After Giving Away the Farm, Obama Wants to Recover a Couple of Chickens
*The Overlooked Victim in the Ft. Hood Terrorist Murders - Vital Signs Blog Nov 13, 2009, 7:37 am
Mary Rose Rybak writes in First Thoughts (one of the blogs run by First Things magazine) about the 14th murder victim of Islamic terrorist, Nidal Hassan:The suspect for the Fort Hood shootings, Nidal Malik Hasan, has been charged with thirteen counts of murder, the AP reports. "The officials said it is not yet decided whether to charge Hasan with a fourteenth count of murder related to the death of the unborn child of a pregnant shooting victim."Well of course they're not yet decided. That the u
NYC High School Students: "What's an Algebra?" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 13, 2009, 5:44 am
Amid all the talk of higher property taxes to pay for education, teacher's unions who demand more money but oppose merit pay, a needlessly burgeoning educational bureaucracy, and curricula heavy on self-esteem, sex education, political-correctness and basket weaving courses, one topic is usually left out -- the kids aren't learning anything.During their first math class at one of the City of New York's four-year colleges, 90% of students tested couldn't solve a simple algebra problem. Two thirds
*Obama's Embrace of Islam: Let's Go to the Videotapes - Vital Signs Blog Nov 13, 2009, 6:20 am
Seeing and hearing is believing -- that's why the old guard media (who so dishonorably sold out their profession for the chance to put an ultra-liberal in the White House) has refused to let you see and hear what Barack Obama himself has had to say (in numerous venues) about Islam, Muslim culture, the denial of America's Christian heritage, and more.I urge you to watch this 10-minute clip -- and then forward this post to everyone you know. For, after all, this isn't punditry; this is Barack Obam
*A Man Who Despises America Is, Uh...In the White House - Vital Signs Blog Nov 13, 2009, 6:23 am
Barack Obama despises America.When people who voted for Obama in 2008 -- including registered Democrats -- start speaking in normal conversational voices at dinner parties, neighborhood gatherings and PTA meetings that the over-inflated ego from Chicago has it "in for America," then it's clear most reasonable people have reached the same conclusion.The central conviction of Obama's ideology is that America is guilty of limitless moral failures and is the chief architect of the world's ills. Obam
*After Giving Away the Farm, Obama Wants to Recover a Couple of Chickens - Vital Signs Blog Nov 13, 2009, 5:25 am
"Obama has spent more money on new programs in nine months than Bill Clinton did in eight years, pushing the annual deficit to $1.4 trillion. This leaves little room for big spending initiatives."Ya' think?"It will be tough for many Democrats to sell themselves as deeply concerned about spending after voting for the stimulus, the bailouts, the health care legislation and a plan to address global warming, four enormous government programs. 'Democrats have to reassure voters we are not being reckl
Your Wednesday Tea Break (A Day Late) -- McCartney & the Frogs - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 4:20 am
On this date back in 1984, Paul McCartney re-released for the Christmas season "We All Stand Together," sometimes referred to as "The Frog Song." It had originally been a part of the animated film made the year before, Rupert and the Frog Chorus, which is shown in this clip. The choral voices, by the way, were provided by the King's Singers and the choir of St. Paul's Cathedral.The song, playful, fun and melodic as so many of McCartney's songs have been over the years, reached Number 3 on the Br
*The Nebraska Coalition for Ethical Research Needs Your Help in Keeping UNMC from Going Deeper Into the ESCR Mess - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 6:49 am
A recent statement from the Nebraska Coalition for Ethical Research (an organization I'm very honored to be associated with) reviews the situation regarding the University of Nebraska Medical Center's policy on experimenting with human embryos and the insistent push from some of the NU Regents to expand that immoral research yet further. I encourage you to read this brief statement and then follow through with the actions NCER advises."As you know, the University of Nebraska Board of Regents is
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 7:47 am
The Nebraska Coalition for Ethical Research Needs Your Help in Keeping UNMC from Going Deeper Into the ESCR MessJihadist Motives Ignored: "Victimology Gives Major Hassan a Pass"Do Your Kids Really Know What Thanksgiving Is All About?ObamaCare From an Insider's View: Yikes! It's Worse Than What You ThoughtA Russian Cop On A Mission"White Privilege" Conversation Goes Violent: Columbia Prof Arrested After Punching a WomanPublic School Sells Test Points for CashPssst...Did You Hear?Your Wednesday Te
"White Privilege" Conversation Goes Violent: Columbia Prof Arrested After Punching a Woman - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 5:41 am
This New York Post story about a prominent Columbia University professor punching out a female colleague in a discussion over "white privilege" has several lessons:1) Never discuss sensitive or controversial issues in a place where alcohol is consumed in large quantities.2) Whatever the disagreement, a man hitting a woman in the face with a punch so hard that it knocks off her glasses and is heard in the next door kitchen...well, that's bad form.3) It is particularly wicked when the woman did no
A Russian Cop On A Mission - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 6:14 am
Is the Russian police brutal and corrupt?If you need to think about the answer, you haven't traveled in the country nor have you been paying much attention to the endless news reports.It is.So guess what's going to happen to a Russian cop who makes a couple of You Tube videos telling just how corrupt, directed and otherwise messed up it is. That's right. Now let's pray that being fired is all that happens to him.For remember, whistle blowers in Russia do not get spots on The Today Show. They get
*ObamaCare From an Insider's View: Yikes! It's Worse Than What You Thought - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 6:29 am
The typical argument for ObamaCare is that it will offer better medical care for everyone and cost less to do it, but occasionally a supporter lets the mask slip and reveals the real political motivation. So let's give credit to John Cassidy, part of the left-wing stable at the New Yorker, who wrote last week on its Web site that "it's important to be clear about what the reform amounts to."Mr. Cassidy is more honest than the politicians whose dishonesty he supports. "The U.S. government is maki
Do Your Kids Really Know What Thanksgiving Is All About? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 6:35 am
Charles Colson doesn't think so. At least, not if your kids are dependent on what they've learned about Thanksgiving from the government schools or on TV.But here is a reprise Breakpoint program transcript ("Putting the Thanks Back into Thanksgiving") that is a great corrective to get us started back in the right direction -- for our kids and for us too!
*Jihadist Motives Ignored: "Victimology Gives Major Hassan a Pass" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 6:47 am
The Washington Times editorial "When the Shooter Becomes the Victim: Victimology Gives Major Hassan a Pass" is one of the best responses I've read so far. It's certainly one to pass along to friends.A disturbing story line is taking shape in the wake of the Fort Hood massacre. Some are trying to explain suspect Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan's motives for reportedly gunning down 13 people in cold blood by ignoring the ideology of hate that sanctified the killings. Instead, we're supposed to seek out the
*Pssst...Did You Hear? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 4:23 am
* From Karl Rove (Wall Street Journal) "Republican victories in New Jersey and Virginia governors' races last week—despite eight campaign appearances in the two states by President Barack Obama—have unnerved Democrats.Instead, the narrative Obama White House officials are writing about themselves is that they are uncompromising, ungracious, and ready to run roughshod over popular opinion. They have mastered the Chicago way of politics: reward friends, punish enemies, and jam the opposition.
Public School Sells Test Points for Cash - Vital Signs Blog Nov 12, 2009, 5:28 am
From the "You Gotta Be Kidding" Department comes this remarkable item.A Goldsboro, North Carolina middle school has been forced by the school district to stop selling grades for cash. The decision, however, only occurred after the local newspaper outed them.A $20 donation to Rosewood Middle School would have gotten a student 20 test points - 10 extra points on two tests of the student's choosing. That could raise a B to an A, or a failing grade to a D. Susie Shepherd, the principal, said a pare
Being Proactive About Drinking - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 6:04 am
What extremely dangerous activity is it that nearly half of American college students engage in regularly?Binge drinking.Certainly binge drinking (downing 5 or more alcoholic drinks at one sitting) encourages irresponsible, even hazardous behavior: crime, sexual promiscuity, drunk driving, etc.But it's a very dangerous act in itself. For not only are alcohol-related deaths continuing to increase in this age group, young people who binge drink are causing serious and frequently irreparable damage
You Don't Need a Mayan Calendar to Know the Future - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 6:19 am
I'm sure you've seen the trailers for the new movie 2012. You may have even heard the talk going around about the end of the world the movie portrays -- the end of the world purportedly prophesied by the ancient Mayans.Well, our British colleague Stuart Cunliffe would like to offer you a quick primer on prophecy that will serve you much better than Entertainment Tonight discussions of Mayan calendars, Nostradamus rumors or Jeanne Dixon horoscopes. It's a neat column and you'll find it right here
Ft. Hood Murders: The Concern Over Backlash Trumps Concern Over the Crime - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 6:31 am
Journalist, author and TV host Greg Gutfeld has a few remarks about the political/media response to the mass murders at Ft. Hood....When a fundamentalist kills thirteen innocent people while shouting 'allahu akbar,” Islam isn't just a small player ' it's got a starring role. And now that U.S. intelligence admits Hasan tried to contact al Qaeda, it should make it increasingly hard for anyone to say otherwise.I say it 'should,” but it won't.Look at the news.Over at Time, thoughtful types specu
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 6:41 am
Ft. Hood Murders: The Concern Over Backlash Trumps Concern Over the CrimeYou Don't Need a Mayan Calendar to Know the FutureBeing Proactive About DrinkingChris Matthews Hopes Planned Parenthood Has Their Way With the Health Care BillWill America Become Europe? Or Is There a Way Back?What to Think of Ellen and Her "Wife"The Spell Is Wearing Off Ben Nelson Sounds Good to Pro-Lifers. But He's Got to Seal the Deal.
*What to Think of Ellen and Her "Wife" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 5:02 am
The lavish wedding ceremony of comedienne/talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres and her 'wife,” actress Portia di Rossi, was the theme of an Oprah show a couple of days ago. Among the viewers was Sue Bohlin, a speaker and writer who, among her many other Christian responsibilities, serves on the board of Living Hope Ministries, a Christ-centered organization that helps people struggling with unwanted homosexuality. Sue's cogent and compassionate response to that program makes for very insightful read
*Will America Become Europe? Or Is There a Way Back? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 5:28 am
The stuff of life -- the elemental events surrounding birth, death, raising children, fulfilling one's personal potential, dealing with adversity, intimate relationships -- occurs within just four institutions: family, community, vocation and faith. Seen in this light, the goal of social policy is to ensure that those institutions are robust and vital. The European model doesn't do that. It enfeebles every single one of them...Call it the Europe Syndrome. Last April I had occasion to speak in Zu
*Chris Matthews Hopes Planned Parenthood Has Their Way With the Health Care Bill - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 5:43 am
House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) is joining other high-ranking Democrats (see this Vital Signs post from yesterday) who promise that the pro-life protections that were part of the health care bill that squeaked out of the Congress last weekend will be removed."I think that's what's gonna happen," Clyburn said during an appearance on MSNBC when asked if Rep. Bart Stupak's (D-Mich.) amendment would be removed.Clyburn said that many other House Democrats supported the having a vote on the
*Ben Nelson Sounds Good to Pro-Lifers. But He's Got to Seal the Deal. - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 4:03 am
I'm sending a note to Ben Nelson this morning -- no, I think I might call his office instead -- and thank him for the gumption he's showing on the health care bill. I'm going to tell him I read the ABC News story about him (excerpts below) and really appreciated his comments. I'll ask him to stand behind those words in the days ahead when the President and the Democrat party starts increasing the pressure.I'm also going to remind him of some of the the statements of his fellow Democrats promisin
The Spell Is Wearing Off - Vital Signs Blog Nov 11, 2009, 4:42 am
*Can Love Survive Long Marriage? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 8:10 am
As a fellow who celebrated his 38th wedding anniversary last week, I was particularly interested in Connecticut Judge Howard Owens' opinion about long marriages.Owens delivered his views at the conclusion of the Jim and Ann-Lorraine Nantz divorce trial. Nantz, who Owens believes is "our nation's most prominent sportscaster" (Sorry, Al Michaels) was ordered to give his now ex-wife about a million a year, a home and condominium in Connecticut, half of all their joint assets and accounts, continued
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 10:41 am
Can Love Survive Long Marriage?"Too Sick to Survive?" -- The Death Wish of American CultureMethinks They Protest Too Much: Abortionists' Complaints About the Pelosi Bill Disguise Their Private GleeQuick HitsWhat? You Don't Believe in Homosexual Marriage? You're Fired!White House Cooks the Books Again -- But This Time, the Press Is NoticingUh, Mr. President; These Conclusions Can Be "Jumped To"
*Quick HIts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 6:21 am
* Did you see this video clip of a raving mad Nancy Pelosi, complaining on the House floor about how unfair and irresponsible it is to require a vote on bills that haven't been read yet? Of course, the clip comes from a few years back -- before Pelosi herself was the gal changing the rules and running roughshod over common sense and justice. Pelosi would definitely be squirming at the uncovering of this clip...if, that is, she was still capable of being ashamed. I don't think she is.* "Reality h
*Methinks They Protest Too Much: Abortionists' Complaints About the Pelosi Bill Disguise Their Private Glee - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 6:43 am
Here's an interesting case of a fired-up, pro-abortion feminist complaining that Planned Parenthood and NARAL were not pro-abortion enough given their latest efforts with the Obama/Pelosi health care bill.Hmm.My take is that this is just another way for radical pro-abortionists like Jane Hamsher to spin the boondoggle bill. Specifically, it spins it in such a way that "moderate," supposedly pro-life Democrats are given an excuse to vote for the bill -- when everyone on the inside knows it will e
"Too Sick to Survive?" -- The Death Wish of American Culture - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 7:53 am
Mark Steyn looks at just a few of the remarkable items which were ignored by the military brass (and others) involving Major Nidal Hassan's windup to mass murder. Those items include this one:Danquah assumed the military's chain of command knew about Hasan's doubts, which had been known for more than a year to classmates in a graduate military medical program. His fellow students complained to the faculty about Hasan's "anti-American propaganda," but said a fear of appearing discriminatory again
*What? You Don't Believe in Homosexual Marriage? You're Fired! - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 5:34 am
You want yet another example of how the Constitutional freedoms of speech and freedom of religion are being overthrown by a decadent, intolerant culture? How about this young Christian who was fired from his job simply for stating his opinion to a lesbian who had repeatedly boasted to him about her recent "marriage" to another homosexual?Peter Vadala, 24, told FoxNews.com he was terminated in August from his position as second deputy manager at a Brookstone store at Boston's Logan Airport after
*Uh, Mr. President; These Conclusions Can Be "Jumped To" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 5:04 am
President Obama took another pass at commenting on the Fort Hood massacre in the Rose Garden this morning:"This morning I met with FBI Director Mueller and the relevant agencies to discuss their ongoing investigation into what caused one individual to turn his gun on fellow servicemen and women. We don't know all of the answers yet, and I would caution against jumping to conclusions until we have all of the facts.""Don't jump to conclusions" is an all-purpose tautology, like "Don't panic." It's
*White House Cooks the Books Again -- But This Time, the Press Is Noticing - Vital Signs Blog Nov 10, 2009, 5:12 am
One of the blogs run by the Daily Mail gives a rundown on a few of the newspapers that bothered to do a little fact checking on the White House claims regarding how many jobs were "created or saved" by the stimulus bill.And, lo and behold, it turns out that Team Obama was lying through their collective teeth.That, of course, isn't surprising to conservatives or, for that matter, anyone else plugged into the new media. After all, this administration has lied more than a 5-year old who got into th
*Will Barack Obama Sign Away U.S. Sovereignty Next Month? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 6:08 am
A couple of weeks ago, Lord Christopher Monckton was in St. Paul, Minnesota to speak not only about the bad science (and even "badder" political purposes) behind the global warming hype, but also about the imminent danger of America signing away her sovereignty to global socialists at the United Nations Climate Change talks in Copenhagen next month.The following video clip is only about 4 minutes long but I'm sure you'll find it riveting, inspiring...and scary. (Thanks to Jesse Bagwell for alert
*Vital Signs Ministries: Come Join Us for "Pro-Life First Saturdays" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 6:36 am
Tomorrow morning (Saturday, November 7) Claire and I will be joining several of our Christian pro-life colleagues for a special demonstration outside the Council Bluffs Planned Parenthood at 1604 2nd Avenue. (That's 2 blocks south of Broadway on 16th Street.)This is the PP center where we used to regularly picket and sidewalk counsel before they stopped committing surgical abortions there last year. We now do our sidewalk counseling on Monday mornings at the Bellevue abortion clinic.However, the
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 6:47 am
Vital Signs Ministries: Come Join Us for "Pro-Life First Saturdays"Will Barack Obama Sign Away U.S. Sovereignty Next Month?The Media's Complicity in Forcing ObamaCare Down Our ThroatsObamaCare Is Free Health Care for Illegal Immigrants, Abortion, and the Bankrupting of America. You Got a Problem with That?Obama Plan Fails -- Jobless Rate Soars -- Media Goes MuteDon't Buy that "Pro-Life Amendment" to the Pelosi Bill -- It's Counterfeit.Pelosi Health Care Bill Is "The Worst Ever"
*Don't Buy that "Pro-Life Amendment" to the Pelosi Bill -- It's Counterfeit. - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 4:59 am
Mary Harned, writing on the Americans United for Life blog, deftly dissects that bogus "pro-life amendment" which is expected to be introduced today. Known as the Ellsworth Amendment, Democrats are touting it as an important victory for pro-life forces.They're lying. It isn't that at all.In this post Harned lists the specifics of the Ellsworth Amendment and gives a brief commentary on how they will affect you. It is an excellent analysis, one that you'll need to counter the false claims that wil
*Obama Plan Fails -- Jobless Rate Soars -- Media Goes Mute - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 5:16 am
The Department of Labor announced today the economy shed another 190 thousand jobs in October, pushing the unemployment rate to 10.2 percent and the running Obama jobs deficit to 5.7 million. Earlier in the week the Obama Administration released figures purporting to show the Obama stimulus had saved or created 640,000 thousand jobs. Only in Washington can jobs be saved by the thousands while being lost by the millions.(J.D. Foster, "Obama Jobs Deficit Hits 7.7 Million and Climbing," The Foundry
*ObamaCare Is Free Health Care for Illegal Immigrants, Abortion, and the Bankrupting of America. You Got a Problem with That? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 5:36 am
Don't let your "moderate" Democrat Congressmen and Senators fool you with their blather, lies and knowingly false promises. Even the Washington Post openly admits that the 1,990 page monstrosity that is the Obama/Pelosi "health care reform" bill requires abortion coverage that taxpayers must finance AND free health care for illegal immigrants.
*The Media's Complicity in Forcing ObamaCare Down Our Throats - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 5:44 am
The liberal media wants ObamaCare to pass almost as much as Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi and George Soros do. That's why the newspapers and network news shows are splashing around the AMA's endorsement of Congress' 1,990 page health care reform bill.But they are being careful to avoid telling you that the AMA represents only 17-24% of the profession.Indeed, as I pointed out from an Investor's Business Daily poll last September, two of every three practicing physicians opposed the medical overhaul
*Pelosi Health Care Bill Is "The Worst Ever" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 6, 2009, 4:20 am
This Wall Street Journal editorial is a must-read.And not just for you.In fact, I encourage you to forward this post to everyone on your e-mail list. We must take seriously our responsibility as American citizens (and, I should add, as citizens of heaven also) to oppose this horrendous and immoral power grab.Speaker Nancy Pelosi has reportedly told fellow Democrats that she's prepared to lose seats in 2010 if that's what it takes to pass ObamaCare, and little wonder. The health bill she unwrappe
*Quick Hits - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 7:01 am
* A New Zealand politician is proving once again that you can't talk out loud about elitist, eugenics philosophy. That stuff is apparently okay to motivate population controllers and Planned Parenthood officials who are still carrying out the racist claptrap of their founder Margaret Sanger. But you can't go on the radio and openly talk about paying the "appalling underclass" not to breed.* Al Gore is poised to become the world's first "carbon billionaire," reaping huge profits from the global w
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 7:49 am
Quick HitsDestroying Human Embryos for Immoral, Counter-Productive ExperimentsYes, Abortion Is In the Democrat Health Care Bill. What Are You Going To Do About It?Another Case of Hollywood's "Brave New People" Cowering to Islamic FanaticismV as an Allegory for Obamamania?Man Commits Murder to Pay for a MurderCNN Spirals Downward While Fox News Soars
Another Case of Hollywood's "Brave New People" Cowering to Islamic Fanaticism - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 6:04 am
When I interviewed director Roland Emmerich a few months ago about his upcoming disaster flick "2012," the first question I asked was, "Why do you like killing the world?" His response: "It makes for a good story."Over the past fifteen years, Emmerich has crafted some great tales about global doom, featuring some spectacular scenes of destruction. He had aliens zap the White House in "Independence Day," he let a massive lizard flatten New York City in "Godzilla," and he sent killer tornadoes thr
*Yes, Abortion Is In the Democrat Health Care Bill. What Are You Going To Do About It? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 6:30 am
Just like we knew it would be...just like we've been saying all along...there's abortion coverage in the Democrat health care reform bill.And it's not in the nuances. It's not in the penumbra. It's right there in plain English (well, as plain as legalese ever is) that the President Obama/House Speaker Nancy Pelosi government-run health care bill will require a monthly abortion premium.Here is the straight skinny as posted in the House Minority Leader John Boehner's blog, "On line 17, p. 110, sec
*Destroying Human Embryos for Immoral, Counter-Productive Experiments - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 6:44 am
Chip Maxwell, the executive director of the Nebraska Coalition for Ethical Research, fires both barrels (and hits both targets) with splendid op/ed columns for both the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal Star. They are both well worth reading so do check them out.* "Let Ethics Drive Research Debate" * "Find Other Stem Cell Research Options"
*CNN Spirals Downward While Fox News Soars - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 5:07 am
* "For the first time in more than two years, CNN fell out of the top 30 cable channels last week in prime time (total viewers). Fox News ranked 3rd, behind USA and ESPN, while MSNBC was 26th. It was the 43rd consecutive week Fox News finished in the top 5 cable channels in prime time. In total day, FNC was #5, CNN #27 and MSNBC #31." (Mediaite.com, yesterday morning)* "Highlighting even further the ratings erosion at CNN in prime time, the 'Most Trusted Name in News” finished in fourth place
*Man Commits Murder to Pay for a Murder - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 5:41 am
Alveda King points out the horrid irony in this San Antonio case wherein a teenager is accused of burglarizing the home of a neighborhood restaurateur and brutally killing her with an arrow -- all because he wanted $300 to pay an abortionist to kill his girlfriend's baby.The murderer, openly and without duress, confessed to the crime and to the motive.But sleazy lawyers are trying to get him off on absurd technicalities.For instance, the defense attorneys want the court to 1) throw out the murde
*V as an Allegory for Obamamania? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 5, 2009, 5:44 am
Chalk up Glenn Garvin, entertainment writer for the Chicago Tribune, as another fan of V...and another who perceives just how uncomfortable the new ABC series might be making Team Obama.Imagine this. At a time of political turmoil, a charismatic, telegenic new leader arrives virtually out of nowhere. He offers a message of hope and reconciliation based on compromise and promises to marshal technology for a better future that will include universal health care.The news media swoons in admiration
*Love Lasts! Denny & Claire Chalk Up #38 - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 7:02 am
38 years and counting, Claire and I commemorate our marriage anniversary today.And as we celebrate we remember:* Being married in the county courthouse with a few friends standing by.* Home Bible studies throughout the 70s with dear friends like Jim and Jeannie Lawson, Linda Scheffler, Pat Osborne and others.* Tough economic times. Living in cheap apartments with cheap furniture...but precious friends, a vibrant faith and each other.* Working as a commercial silk screen printer, Claire as a nurs
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 7:44 am
Love Lasts! Denny & Claire Chalk Up #38Stan Parker Remembers "The Eye in the Sky"Isn't Spending Money Fun? Just Look at What We Bought with the Stimulus Bill!Another Muslim "Honor Killing." Another Yawn from the Press."Dare We Say It, Socialism"A Public Pulse Letter You Won't Read in the WHWith Republican Victories, MSM Sings a Different TuneYour Wednesday Tea Break (Again with the 1960s!)
*Your Wednesday Tea Break (Again with the 1960s!) - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 4:00 am
The first selection for your midweek tea break is one of the very best from the One-Hit Wonder Department, The Left Banke's lovely "Walk Away, Renee." It's a terrific song. And check out the little guy belting out that deep bass voice. Man.The second comes from Three Dog Night. Sure, it's a lip-sync performance but they usually were in the TV performances of that day. The song is "Eli's Coming."And the third is "Be My Baby" by the incomparable Ronnie and the Ronettes. 60's music doesn't get any
*Isn't Spending Money Fun? Just Look at What We Bought with the Stimulus Bill! - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 6:17 am
Yesterday's Facebook browsing yielded a tip from Tim Nobles to check out Susan Ferrechio's priceless (pun quite intended) list of items that your tax dollars are paying for -- thanks to Barack Obama, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and the Democrat Party.The article can be read in full (and should be) in the Washington Examiner.But I'll print here just a few of my favorites."The $787 billion stimulus bill was passed in February and was promised as a job saver and economy booster. Here is where some of
Stan Parker Remembers "The Eye in the Sky" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 6:30 am
One of the frequent blessings of being on Facebook is to read and then ponder for awhile the devotionals shared there by Stan Parker, co-founder and co-Director of Mission Nebraska. I asked Stan if I could re-print this one, an illuminating and memorable reflection on Hebrews 4:13 that emerges from Stan's days as a standout football player for the the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers. I think you'll like it, quite possibly enough to ask to be his Facebook friend too!"And no creature is hidden
*A Public Pulse Letter You Won't Read in the WH - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 5:00 am
Over the weekend, Pat Osborne sent me a copy of a note he wrote to the Omaha World-Herald in response to the sophomoric yet vicious attack on pro-lifers which they published by staff writer Robert Nelson. (See "Nebraska Newspapers Are In the Tank for ESCR -- Is It Time for You to Cancel Your Subscription?" from last week's Vital Signs Blog.)The newspaper won't print Pat's note. But that doesn't mean you have to miss it. It's acerbic, no doubt, but witty and spot on about just how unprofessional
*"Dare We Say It, Socialism" - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 5:23 am
Where's that valiant, principled and independent press that we depended upon for fair, thorough coverage of the news?They're still traveling in Team Obama's bus.How else can you explain the media's ignoring this?A new video of Jeremiah Wright has surfaced, showing Barack Obama's pastor of 20 years praising Marxism and discussing his ties to communists in El Salvador and Nicaragua and the Libyan government. Equally important, Wright is being introduced in the video by Robert W. McChesney, co-foun
*Another Muslim "Honor Killing." Another Yawn from the Press. - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 5:37 am
20-year old Noor Faleh Almaleki will never see her 21st birthday.The pretty young Iraqi woman is dead after succumbing to massive injuries caused by her father who deliberately ran her down with his Jeep because she had become "too westernized."Police said her father mowed down both Ms. Almaleki and her boyfriend's mother as they were walking in a parking lot in Peoria, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. It was, by his own admission, a Muslim "honor killing."Comments Mark Steyn, "If there were a Matt
*With Republican Victories, MSM Sings a Different Tune - Vital Signs Blog Nov 4, 2009, 4:10 am
What a difference a day makes.The AP's Liz Sidoti told us yesterday that Republicans were making way too much out of polls that showed substantial strength for their gubernatorial candidates in New Jersey and Virginia. In fact, Sidoti carefully explained that even if the Republicans could win one (or even both) contests, it really wouldn't matter much. They were too divided, too far behind the pace the Democrats had established nationally with Barack Obama's historic win last year.But after the
*If Pelosi "Health Care" Plan Doesn't Include Abortion, Why Is Leroy Carhart with Her at the News Conference? - Vital Signs Blog Nov 3, 2009, 6:53 am
From Concerned Women for America comes this bit of evidence that the Congressional version of ObamaCare does indeed promote and require payment for abortion.The abortionist who failed to overturn a ban on partial-birth abortion prominently sported a sign at a press conference in support of Nancy Pelosi's health care bill that she unveiled today. LeRoy Carhart is currently under investigation by the Nebraska Attorney General for unsafe medical practices.CWA President Wendy Wright spotted Carhart
*Today's Posts - Vital Signs Blog Nov 3, 2009, 7:08 am
If Pelosi "Health Care" Plan Doesn't Include Abortion, Why Is Leroy Carhart with Her at the News Conference?Nebraska Ultrasound Law Means More Women Visit Pro-Life CPCsA "Bombshell" Presentation from Gardasil ResearcherRemember Their Chains: Christians Imprisoned for Their FaithPro-Choice Advocates Flunk Out on a 2nd Grade Science QuestionTeam Obama's Remarkably Misplaced PrioritiesWhile Conservatives Show Renewed Power, the Liberal Media Spins
*Remember Their Chains: Christians Imprisoned for Their Faith - Vital Signs Blog Nov 3, 2009, 5:52 am
Elam reports that early last month a more promising development had been made in the case of Maryam and Marzieh, two young Christian women who have been in an Iranian prison Iran for their faith since March. They had been charged with propagation of the Christian faith, apostasy, and anti-state activity.But a new judge dropped the last charge. That's very good news because it means their case will now be transferred from the revolutionary court to the general court. But they are still in great n
A "Bombshell" Presentation from Gardasil Researcher - Vital Signs Blog Nov 3, 2009, 6:14 am
Dr. Diane Harper, lead researcher in the development of two human papilloma virus vaccines, Gardasil and Cervarix, said the controversial drugs will do little to reduce cervical cancer rates and, even though they're being recommended for girls as young as nine, there have been no efficacy trials in children under the age of 15.Dr. Harper, director of the Gynecologic Cancer Prevention Research Group at the University of Missouri, made these remarks during an address at the 4th International Publi
*Nebraska Ultrasound Law Means More Women Visit Pro-Life CPCs - Vital Signs Blog Nov 3, 2009, 6:38 am
The effects of Nebraska's new ultrasound law (LB 675, the Mother's Right to See Her Unborn Child) are already having life-saving effects. As Michelle Sullivan of the AAA Center for Pregnancy Counseling describes on her Facebook page, "Because of a new law in Nebraska, the abortion clinic is referring patients to the CPC for the free ultrasound that is required by the new law.""The abortion clinics do have ultrasounds [but] the new law requires that they give the patient the name of a provider th
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*"American Popular Culture Seems Determined to Obliterate Innocence" (271 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Jul 27, 2007, 3:46 am
Wendy Shalit is loathed by a certain kind of feminist. When as a twentysomething college graduate she published her first book, A Return to Modesty, she was scorned by The Nation's Katha Pollitt as a "twit," a "professional virgin" who should be given the task of designing "new spandex chadors for female Olympians." Others were less civil.Shalit, who had raised eyebrows even while at Williams College for opposing co-ed bathrooms in student dorms, has now probably put herself even further beyond
*More Hillary Clinton Money Problems (236 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 8, 2008, 7:43 am
Here's the latest installments of "Hillary's Money Woes."1) First off, there's Barack Obama's call for Hillary to come clean on her income taxes which got a surprisingly candid treatment from ABC News:"I've released my tax returns," Obama said today on his campaign plane, noting that Presidential candidates have a duty to be transparent and accountable. He said, "The American people deserve to know where you get your income from."Back when Bill Clinton was an office-holder, Hillary Clinton's bus
*In Vitro's Monstrous Secret (149 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Oct 8, 2005, 5:55 am
Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have argued in a study just made public that 85% of the embryos transferred during in vitro fertilization never make it to birth.
Now, when you ponder that over a million kids have been born through IVF methods (as was boasted last year by specialists in the field), you get a glimpse of the horrible reality that is generally unseen and unspoken of; namely, the nearly 6,000,000 embryos who have not survived.
This report prompts me to repeat my comments from
*Leftist Magazine Slurs World Congress of Families, Dismisses Europe's Demographic Winter (149 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 18, 2008, 4:49 am
The Nation ' the oldest and largest circulation leftwing periodical in the U.S. ' has just published an extraordinarily inept attack on World Congress of Families and those concerned about plummeting birthrates worldwide ('Missing: The ‘Right' Babies” by Kathryn Joyce, which will appear in the March 3 issue and is currently available online at www.thenation.com).The article attempts to paint the Congress and others sounding the alarm about the coming demographic winter as concerned only with
*Patricia Heaton at Pepperdine (144 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Mar 28, 2006, 3:41 pm
Actress Patricia Heaton, who rose to national fame through the television series "Everybody Loves Raymond," spoke to a few hundred students at Pepperdine University in California and told them to support life. Heaton discussed ways that both sides in the abortion debate could work together to reduce the number of abortions. She said students should focus on providing resources for pregnant students on campus so they don't feel forced by career or finances to have an abortion.
Heaton, a spoke
*Today's Posts (122 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Aug 7, 2007, 4:22 am
"Pimping Surrender" Is Getting Harder To DoEuthanasia Legislation Effectively Defeated by Disability Rights Groups"Why Abortion Is Wrong"Let the Games Begin: Communist China vs the PressGiuliani Promises Major Adoption ReformLosing Place; Losing Face; Losing Control: What's Happening to Russian Foreign Policy?The New Republic Stands By Its Source...But the Source Crumbles
*Flipsyde's "Happy Birthday" Is a Powerful Challenge (122 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 21, 2008, 5:10 am
For those of you who haven't heard Flipsyde's remarkable rap song, Happy Birthday, or seen the music video, I urge you to do so right here on You Tube.It's very sad but also compelling, radiant and important.
*Edwards Campaign Stars Abortion Extremist (97 hits)- Vital Signs Blog May 1, 2007, 6:12 am
Elizabeth Edwards said Monday her husband will do more to help women than any other candidate, including the one hoping to become the nation's first female president."If you want to make a difference in women's lives by your vote in 2008, vote for John Edwards," she in a brief interview with The Associated Press between campaign stops."That is not intended as an anti-Hillary statement of any kind," she added...That sentiment was echoed by Kate Michelman [shown at left], a senior adviser to the J
*Today's Posts (96 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 8, 2008, 8:31 am
Liberalism vs Liberty: The Left Always Resorts to CoercionMore Hillary Clinton Money ProblemsEmbryonic Stem Cell Research and Cloning: Do We Really Need Them?Did Conservatives Listen to John McCain Yesterday?Protests Swell Over Archbishop of Canterbury's Comments About Sharia Law...But Sharia Law Is Already UnderwayLeniency or Lunacy?
*Today's Posts (91 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 13, 2008, 4:06 am
Communist China (Our Gracious Olympic Hosts) Caught in 2 New Espionage CasesMarketing Lent as the Christian RamadanObama Won't Wear an American Flag Pin...But His Houston Office Displays Cuban Flag with Che GuevaraWhatever Happened to Coach Pressler, the Man Unjustly Fired In the Fabricated Duke Lacrosse Case?Nebraska: The New Cloning Capital?You Tube Caves In To Planned ParenthoodOliver North: "We Need John McCain as Commander in Chief"
*Embryonic Stem Cell Research and Cloning: Do We Really Need Them? (89 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 8, 2008, 7:36 am
"I just heard Michael J. Fox on television and he was saying how desperately we need ESCR and cloning if we're ever going to cure diseases like the terrible one he has. He sure sounded like he knew what he was talking about and, gosh, he is as sincere as can be!"It's a fair question to ask -- Do we still need embryos and cloning? Some politicians and scientists are telling us that the many treatments using adult stem cells (impressive and numerous as they are) are just not the full answer. And n
*Adult Stem Cells Hold Hope for CLI Victims (88 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 20, 2008, 3:20 am
Though without the media fanfare that is due them, scientists and doctors using adult stem cells in medical treatments just continue to score successes.Here's a brief item about a new procedure being used at the Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago that offers hope to patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI), or severely blocked leg arteries -- a devastating condition that leads to unhealing wounds, gangrene, and eventually the loss of toes, feet or legs. Indeed, CLI results in more than
*In Vitro Doctor Sued: Lesbian Couple Have An "Extra" Kid (79 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Sep 20, 2007, 5:44 am
Here's a squalid little story about a lesbian couple in Australia who wanted a baby to raise and, naturally (no, that hardly seems the right word, does it? Make that "unnaturally"), went to a friendly doctor and a Danish sperm donor for an in vitro fertilization procedure. But the doc inserted two embryos into the lesbian's womb instead of one. And so the gal gives birth to two girls. Now, because of career pressures, the "couple" only want one baby but they refuse to consider allowing one of th
*31 Years of Involvment with Amnesty International Ends: Catholic Bishop Renounces Organization's Promtion of Abortion (78 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Aug 20, 2007, 6:51 am
The Rt. Rev. Michael Evans, Roman Catholic bishop of East Anglia (Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk in the United Kingdom), has ended his 31 year membership with Amnesty International because of the organization's recent move to champion "the human right to access abortion."Several of the news reports have heavily spun the story to be favorable to Amnesty International -- what else is new? -- so I suggest you read the announcement that Bishop Evans himself published at the Diocese web site. I
*Barack Obama's Disconcerting Past (75 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Jan 8, 2008, 5:08 am
...When Obama first undertook his agitating work in Chicago's South Side poor neighborhoods, he was un-churched. Yet his office was in a Church and most of the folks he needed to agitate and organize were Church people -- pastors and congregants -- who took their churches and their church-going very seriously. So, this became a problem for the young agnostic, who had been exposed to very little religion in his life. Again and again, he was asked by pastors and church ladies, "Where do you go
*Has Abortion Made America a More Violent Place? (74 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Aug 11, 2007, 1:47 am
A study conducted by a researcher at the University of Maryland shows that legalized abortion has led to higher rates of crime and increased murder rates. The occured because a higher percentage of children grew up in single-parent homes during the years following Roe v. Wade. The findings have been published in the April 2007 issue of the academic journal Economic Inquiry and are part of a new book written by researcher John R. Lott.According to Lott, the high court's decision ultimately result
*Bankrolling the Attack Against Marriage (72 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Aug 13, 2007, 8:58 am
Michael Foust reports for Baptist Press:When opponents of a proposed constitutional marriage amendment in Florida run ads next year encouraging a "no" vote, there's a good chance one man -- Colorado homosexual activist Tim Gill [pictured at left] will have helped bankroll them.Gill's name may not be widely recognized by the general public, but it is well-known by leaders on both sides of the "gay marriage" debate. Last year alone, he gave $3.8 million to help finance opposition to marriage amen
*Here Comes Juno...And the Abortion Lobby Will Hate It. (72 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Dec 19, 2007, 4:09 am
Jill Stanek's review, "Juno': The Movie Pro-Aborts Will Hate" is up over at World Net Daily. Here is it's opening:The movie "Juno" will be released in six days, on Christmas, and I can't wait. I previewed the movie a month ago and loved it. Pro-aborts will hate it. "Juno" is a great story that undermines almost all their talking points."Juno" is the third in an unplanned pregnancy movie trilogy, the others being "Waitress" and "Knocked Up," in which a girl undergoes a crisis pregnancy but heroic
*Today's Posts (71 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Feb 29, 2008, 6:10 am
China's Communist Party is Rife with Corruption, Violence and Crime: And That's from the Chief Communist!Obama's Zealous Commitment to Homosexual InterestsRussian Orthodox Bishop Riles State Action Against MethodistsDoing Nothing Can Kill You: Nancy Pelosi's Foolish Delays on the Protect America ActBarack Obama: Abortion's Consummate CollaboratorDeja Vu Villainy: The Ongoing Racism of Planned ParenthoodTea with Castro? President Bush Responds to Barack Obama's Personal Diplomacy Plans
*Alexandra Pelosi's Film About Evangelicals Coming to HBO (70 hits)- Vital Signs Blog Jan 19, 2007, 8:45 am
Yes, as in that Pelosi.Alexandra is the writer/filmmaker daughter of the Speaker of the House and so one might be excused for thinking that the documentary might be, oh...at least a little biased. Here's a look at "Friends of God: A Road Trip with Alexandra Pelosi" from ABC News which includes a few real head-scratching moments, including the ones I print below about the rock musician Moby, Ted Haggard, et al...."The political aspect of it makes me crazy," says Moby, who says he used to be an ev
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