The Planned Parenthood Shooting and Anti-Christian Hysteria

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As expected, no sooner had blood been spilled at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado than accusations of “Christian terrorism” began to fly across the internet, despite the fact that: 1) no motive had been announced; 2) there was no hint of a connection between the murderer and any pro-life organization; and 3) pro-life leaders immediately denounced the killings as soon as the news was released.

In the words of Jason Benham, posting on Twitter, “True pro-lifers care about all life, including employees and clients of #PlannedParenthood. Praying for those in #ColoradoSpringsShooting.”

Or, as stated by Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, “While the investigation into the shooting at the Planned Parenthood center continues, regardless of what the motive is determined to be, we strongly condemn this violence. . . . Only through peaceful means –not violence— can we truly become a nation that once again values all human life, born and unborn.”

In contrast, Bette Midler was quick to point a finger, also using Twitter: “Thanks to overheated screeds spewing from the mouths of the GOP, and in Congress, innocent people have died in CO, including a policeman.” And, “We share the concerns of many Americans that extremists are creating a poisonous environment that feeds domestic terrorism in this country.”

Others began to ask me on Facebook when I was going to denounce “Christian terrorism,” just as I regularly denounce Islamic terrorism, with one man asking me about “apparent Christian terrorist Robert Lewis Dear.” (Dear was the shooter, who ultimately surrendered to police.)

A blogger on the Patheos website went as far as stating that, “Christian terrorism is a bigger threat to U.S. freedom than Islamic extremism.”

He concluded his article with these startling (and, plainly, ridiculous) words: “Today’s attack is an act of religious terrorism, there should be no other words to describe it. Just as many demand we label terrorism carried out in the name of Islam as Islamic terrorism, we must do the same to Christianity and realize the Christian religion is just as dangerous and prone to incite violence as its younger brother, Islam.”

How do we respond to irresponsible and irrational rhetoric like this?

The respected Newsweek journalist Kurt Eichenwald even tweeted, “The time has come to hold @daviddaleiden accountable for violence spawned by his lying ‘baby body parts’ video. Indict him 4 manslaughter.”

Like many other leaders, as soon as I heard the news about the horrific shooting, I tweeted out, “In light of today’s news about a shooter at a Planned Parenthood, we state again that this is NOT the way of Jesus or the way of pro-life.”

Then, as I began to see the mounting charges of “Christian terrorism” or “Christian extremism,” I tweeted, “In light of some crazy rhetoric here re: pro-lifers wanting to kill abortion doctors, if that was the case, 1,000’s would be killed by now.”

The fact is that the pro-life movement is an overwhelmingly peaceful movement, despite our profound and deep objection to abortion on demand and despite the deplorable practices of Planned Parenthood. As blogger Matt Walsh noted, “Interesting fact: Planned Parenthood kills 100 times more people in a day than alleged ‘anti abortion extremists’ have killed in 40 years.”

As for those “anti-abortion extremists,” their actions have been condemned by all major pro-life groups as well as by all major Christian leaders involved in the pro-life movement, since, by murdering another human being, they violate the very spirit of being “pro-life.”

More importantly, there is not a single word in the teaching of Jesus or the New Testament that supports murdering an abortion doctor (or worker), nor is there anything in ancient Christian tradition or example that would support this.

That’s why it was no surprise to learn that the alleged shooter in last week’s tragic attack was completely unknown to the pro-life movement and that, according to one report, after a divorce in 2000, “he appears to have posted apocalyptic rants online and sought sadomasochistic sex and pot-smoking companions.” This is hardly Christian!

That’s why Christian leaders in Belgium are scratching their heads upon hearing the report that, “A menacing letter from the group called ‘Christian state’ has been sent to the major Belgian mosque Attadamoune. It threatens all Muslims will be killed, and their businesses destroyed.”

They too have no idea who this alleged “Christian” group could be – if the letter is even genuinely from such a group – since there is no connection between Christian teaching, in any recognized denomination or tradition, and threats like this.

And in stark contrast with radical Islamic groups, pro-life leaders in the Church and government have called for the defunding of our ideological opponents at Planned Parenthood whereas radical Islamists call for the beheading of their ideological opponents.

So, I have a challenge for everyone who wants to brand the tragic Planned Parenthood shooting an act of Christian terrorism: Find one verse in the New Testament, in context, or one example from the early Church, or one statement from a recognized pro-life organization that supports these murderous acts.

Radical Muslims can find plenty of support for their violent actions in the Quran, the life of Muhammad, early Islamic history, later Islamic history, and from the lips and pens of respected contemporary leaders, which is why I refer to it as radical Islam.

Radical Christianity, in stark contrast, stands for the giving of life and the preservation of life, not the taking of life. And while the term “Islamic terrorism” is hardly an oxymoron, the term “Christian terrorism” is absolutely oxymoronic and fundamentally self-contradictory. (For more from the author of “The Planned Parenthood Shooting and Anti-Christian Hysteria” please click HERE)

Hear this recent interview with the author:

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U.S. Government Reveals Breadth of Requests for Internet Records

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The Federal Bureau of Investigation has used a secretive authority to compel Internet and telecommunications firms to hand over customer data including an individual’s complete web browsing history and records of all online purchases, a court filing released Monday shows.

The documents are believed to be the first time the government has provided details of its so-called national security letters, which are used by the FBI to conduct electronic surveillance without the need for court approval.

The filing made public Monday was the result of an 11-year-old legal battle waged by Nicholas Merrill, founder of Calyx Internet Access, a hosted service provider, who refused to comply with a national security letter (NSL) he received in 2004.

Merrill told Reuters the release was significant “because the public deserves to know how the government is gathering information without warrants on Americans who are not even suspected of a crime.”

National security letters have been available as a law enforcement tool since the 1970s, but their frequency and breadth expanded dramatically under the USA Patriot Act, which was passed shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. They are almost always accompanied by an open-ended gag order barring companies from disclosing the contents of the demand for customer data. (Read more from “U.S. Government Reveals Breadth of Requests for Internet Records” HERE)

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NFL Star: Black Lives Don’t Matter When Politicians Enable Generational Dependency

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New Orleans Saints’ tight end Benjamin Watson used his Facebook account Tuesday to call attention to his views on the Black Lives Matter movement. A view that is critical of abortion, fathers who abandon their children and politicians who “enable generational dependency.”

Watson, the author of “Under Our Skin: Getting Real About Race – And Getting Free From The Fears and Frustrations That Divide Us,” is using social media to link people to a blog post where he discusses his thoughts on the Black Lives Matter movement.

“Some contention is with the very phrase itself. This is problematic, though, because ‘black lives matter’ in context is clearly comparative to them not mattering. It obviously does not exist in a vacuum thus a response of ‘all lives matter’ is disingenuous at best and outright insulting at worst,” Watson’s blog post from late August reads. “It SHOULD go without saying that ‘all lives matter,’ including black lives, unborn lives, elderly lives, affluent and poor lives, Christian and atheist lives. But, today, in light of our present societal struggles and racial tension the question is worth addressing. As Americans, do black lives matter to us?”

Later in the post, the outspoken Christian athlete focuses on some of the ways he feels Black lives don’t and do matter in this country. Here are some selected excerpts: . . .

“Black lives don’t matter when some politicians enable generational dependency, stifling individual responsibility while others completely deny the importance of programs that are needed to help the marginalized. A crutch is the vital friend of the injured, it’s ultimate purpose to one day be laid aside as it’s former dependent walks on their own. If it oversteps its purpose the user will no longer feel the need to walk. Erroneously, they may not even think they can ever do so. Consequently, a stagnant, hopeless life seems to matter less.” (Read more from “NFL Star: Black Lives Don’t Matter When Politicians Enable Generational Dependency” HERE)

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Black Friday Breaks Record with 185K Gun Background Checks

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More Americans had their backgrounds checked purchasing guns on Black Friday than any day in the on record, according to data released by the FBI this week.

The National Instant Criminal Background Check System processed 185,345 requests on Nov. 27, one of the largest retail sales days in the country.

“This was an approximate 5% increase over the 175,754 received on Black Friday 2014,” wrote Stephen Fischer, the FBI’s chief of multimedia productions. “The previous high for receipts were the 177,170 received on 12/21/2012.”

Previous spikes for background checks, conducted before a gun buyer can obtain a firearm, occurred after prominent mass shootings, like in December 2012 in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

Other Black Friday shopping days in 2014, 2013 and 2012 occupied the FBI’s “top 10” list of the most background checks processed in a 24-hour period. (Read more from “Black Friday Breaks Record with 185K Gun Background Checks” HERE)

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China ‘Clone Factory’ Scientist Eyes Human Replication

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The Chinese scientist behind the world’s biggest cloning factory has technology advanced enough to replicate humans, he told AFP, and is only holding off for fear of the public reaction.

Boyalife Group and its partners are building the giant plant in the northern Chinese port of Tianjin, where it is due to go into production within the next seven months and aims for an output of one million cloned cows a year by 2020 . . .

Boyalife is already working with its South Korean partner Sooam and the Chinese Academy of Sciences to improve primate cloning capacity to create better test animals for disease research . . .

The firm does not currently engage in human cloning activities, Xu said, adding that it has to be “self-restrained” because of possible adverse reaction.

But social values can change, he pointed out, citing changing views of homosexuality and suggesting that in time humans could have more choices about their own reproduction. (Read more from “China ‘Clone Factory’ Scientist Eyes Human Replication” HERE)

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Islam USA: Inside America’s Only Muslim-Majority City, Where the Call to Prayer Echoes in the Streets

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By Ben Ashford. The rest of America may be agonizing over the security implications of taking in those fleeing the twin horrors of Bashar al-Assad and ISIS.

But Syrian refugees are being welcomed with open arms in Hamtramck, Michigan – America’s first and only majority Muslim city.

Once 90 percent Polish Catholic, the blue-collar enclave just outside Detroit has been transformed by successive waves of immigrants from Bangladesh, Yemen and Bosnia.

Muslims now outnumber non-Muslims, the council has a Muslim majority and the call to prayer echoes through the streets five times a day . . .

Residents, particularly senior citizens, have complained bitterly about being woken up each day by the 6am call to prayer. (Read more from “Islam USA: Inside America’s Only Muslim-Majority City, Where the Call to Prayer Echoes in the Streets” HERE)

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Cuellar: Syrians Already Entering the U.S., Plan Needed Now

By WOAI. Border Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) says as the U.S. debates the fate of Syrian refugees, the refugees are coming and will continue to arrive on our southern border, and rather than debate, the country needs to start deciding how to handle the coming flood of desperate people from the Middle East, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.

“They are going to try to short circuit that wait of 18 to 24 months,” Cuellar told News Radio 1200 WOAI in an exclusive interview. “They will come in here, make their claim, and if there is nothing to hold them, they will be released.”

Two groups of Syrians, mainly families, have already done that, arriving in the U.S. in the Laredo area and then immediately presenting themselves to Border Patrol officers, surrendering, and asking for political asylum.

The standard operating procedure right now is to place them into the family detention centers in Dilley or Karnes City, but many are released on bonds or on ankle monitors after a few months in the facilities. And Cuellar points out that once they are released, the demands of governor like Gov. Abbott that they not be housed in Texas are meaningless. They have the right to settle whenever in the U.S. they want, as long as they present themselves for immigration hearings, which could be set for several years in the future.

Cuellar says that has the effect of scrapping all of the talk of a lengthy wait and ‘vetting period’ for people seeking refugee status. (Read more from “Cuellar: Syrians Already Entering the U.S., Plan Needed Now” HERE)

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Pro-Life Leaders Slam Carson After His Planned Parenthood Shooting Comments

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Pro-life leaders are used to being accused of hate speech by Planned Parenthood, Hillary Clinton, and campus feminist activists. But they were surprised to hear Dr. Ben Carson seem to agree that they spewed “hateful” and “immature” rhetoric on Sunday.

When CBS moderator John Dickerson asked Dr. Carson whether Planned Parenthood was right that pro-life rhetoric had led to Friday’s shooting inside a Colorado Springs abortion facility, the doctor readily agreed. There is “no question the hateful rhetoric exacerbates the situation,” Carson said on “Face the Nation.”

Pro-life advocates quickly rebuffed the notion that they had pushed 57-year-old Robert Lewis Dear to kill three people.

“Dr. Carson is sorely misinformed,” Lauren Muzyka, the executive director of Sidewalk Advocates for Life, told LifeSiteNews.

“The only thing that’s extreme is Planned Parenthood’s desire to see abortion without restriction through all nine months of pregnancy while they capitalize off dismembering preborn children and parting them out for sale,” she said. (Read more from “Pro-Life Leaders Slam Carson After His Planned Parenthood Shooting Comments” HERE)

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Judge Just Made HUGE Decision in Case Against ‘Muslim-Free Zone’ Gun Shop Owner

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A U.S. district court has thrown out a lawsuit against a Florida gun store owner, Andy Hallinan, owner of Florida Gun Supply. The Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, brought the lawsuit against Hallinan for establishing a “Muslim-free Zone” at his gun store . . .

CAIR sued Hallinan alleging religious discrimination, claiming that Muslims were not allowed to purchase guns at Florida Gun Supply. The case was brought about when Hallinan used Youtube as a medium to announce that he would not arm terrorists who were intent on harming Americans. The YouTube video, where Hallinan makes his case, can be seen by clicking here . . .

The reason the judge threw out the case was the fact that CAIR had not proved that its organization nor any of its constituents were harmed as a result of the establishment of Hallinan’s “Muslim-free Zone.” According to Fox13 News, Judge Beth Bloom said CAIR, “insufficiently alleged imminent harm,” and that, “There are simply no facts grounding the assertion that Plaintiff (CAIR) and/or one of its constituents will be harmed” . . .

Hallinan said, “I have never denied a Muslim the right to buy guns here because they’ve never tried to buy guns here…We laid out the facts. We laid out the evidence, and the evidence very clearly showed that I did not discriminate.” (Read more from “Judge Just Made HUGE Decision in Case Against ‘Muslim-Free Zone’ Gun Shop Owner” HERE)

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Mayor of Juneau Found Dead in His Home; UPDATE: Foul Play Not Ruled Out

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By Fox News. The mayor of Alaska’s capital city, Juneau, was found dead in his home Monday less than than two months after he was elected.

Juneau police said in a brief statement that Greg Fisk, 70, was pronounced dead at the scene. The statement added that an unidentified male caller had reported finding Fisk’s body at 3:34 p.m. local time (7:34 p.m. EST) . . .

Fisk was elected mayor of Juneau on Oct. 6, defeating incumbent Merrill Sanford by a 2-to-1 margin. Prior to entering politics, he had worked as a self-employed consultant for area fisheries. (Read more from “Mayor of Juneau Found Dead in His Home” HERE)

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Juneau Police Department Press Release

Summary: On November 30th, 2015 at about 3:34pm, the Juneau Police Department received a 9-1-1 call from a male reporting he had found a deceased subject inside a residence in the 400 block of Kennedy Street.

JPD officers and Capital City Fire/Rescue responded to the area. 70 year old Stephen “Greg” Fisk, the Mayor of Juneau, was pronounced deceased on scene. The investigation continues.

Update 11/30/2015 21:05

The man who found Greg Fisk in his Juneau residence and called 9-1-1 was Fisk’s adult son.

JPD is aware of rumors that an assault occurred in connection with Fisk’s death. Those rumors are speculation. Detectives are actively investigating facts of the incident and all evidence is being preserved and documented.

The Medical Examiner’s Office has authorized an autopsy. Results of the autopsy are expected within several days and will be used to determine the cause of death. The investigation is ongoing and more information will be released as appropriate.

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UPDATE: Foul Play Not Ruled Out in Death of Mayor of Juneau

By M. Alex Johnson. Police haven’t ruled out foul play in the death of Juneau, Alaska, Mayor Greg Fisk after they said Tuesday they had discovered undisclosed injuries on his body.

Fisk, 70, who was elected mayor in October, was found Monday afternoon at home by his son, Juneau police said. They wouldn’t speculate on a cause of death, saying an autopsy was pending.

Police said they have ruled out suicide — but they wouldn’t rule out foul play. Fisk was found alone, and there was no evidence of forced entry, they said.

Juneau Police Chief Bryce Johnson said in an interview on KINY radio of Juneau that “injuries” were discovered on the mayor’s body. He wouldn’t discuss the location or nature of the injuries, saying they could be “consistent with a fall.”

Juneau police spokeswoman Erann Kalwara also wouldn’t discuss the injuries. . . (Read more about the death of the mayor of Juneau HERE)

Ted Cruz: Majority of Violent Criminals Are Democrats

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GOP presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz told conservative talk radio host Hugh Hewitt that “the simple and undeniable fact is the overwhelming majority of violent criminals are Democrats” during an interview on Monday.

The Republican presidential candidate was discussing the shooting in Colorado Springs at a Planned Parenthood building where three people were killed.

According to Politico, “The suspect’s reported mention of ‘baby parts’ at the time of the shooting —as well as the location of the shooting — has linked the incident to the nation’s ongoing debate on abortion. It also led some people to blame the incident on the ugly rhetoric surrounding Planned Parenthood.” (Read more from “Ted Cruz: Majority of Violent Criminals Are Democrats” HERE)

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