The poisonous NY Times Refuses to Run Anti-Islam Ad… After Running Anti-Catholic Ad

The New York Times has rejected a full-page anti-Islam advertisement that mirrored a scathing anti-Catholic advertisement the newspaper published on March 9.

According to The Daily Caller, a March 13 letter sent by the Times to the parody’s sponsor, activist Pamela Geller, said the $39,000 anti-Islam ad was rejected because “the fallout from running this ad now could put U.S. troops and/or civilians in the [Afghan] region in danger.”

Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, accused the Times of having a double standard and told DC that The Time’s was based on “either [anti-Catholic] bigotry or fear [of Islamic violence], and they’ve painted themselves into that corner.”

DC adds:

Donohue said the frequent claims of intellectual honesty by Times employees would compel them to address the double standard if they weren’t “shameless.”

TheDC asked Robert Christie, the Times’ senior vice-president for corporate communications, if the Times’ decision is a surrender to violence and also an incentive for additional threats of violence.

However, Christie declined to discuss the paper’s decision, and referred TheDC to the letter sent by the Times to Geller and her organization, Stop the Islamization of Nations.

The original ad was created by the controversial, and often radical, Wisconsin-based Freedom from Religion Foundation. The ad, “It’s Time to Quit the Catholic Church” positioned itself as an “open letter to ‘liberal’ and ‘nominal’ Catholics.”

“Will it be reproductive freedom, or back to the Dark Ages?” it asks. “Do you choose women and their rights, or Bishops and their wrongs? Whose side are you on?”

“Not a single Catholic who reads this ad will be impelled to leave the Church. That is not the issue,” said Donohue in response to the ad. “The issue is the increase in hate speech directed at Catholics.”

CNA adds more information about the anti-Catholic ad:

The ad claims that the church is “an avowedly antidemocratic Old Boys club” and derides Catholic teaching that contraception use is sinful. It also blames the Church for causing misery, poverty, unwanted pregnancies and deaths and attacks Catholic teaching on the ordination of women, parochial schools, and the Church’s response to sex abuse.

The ad, which includes a disparaging cartoon of a Catholic bishop, claims U.S. Catholic bishops’ conference has made a “declaration of war against women’s right to contraception.”

SOURCE





Students hear a Christian message for once. Big shock!

Constant Leftist messages are much better, of course

Kicking off with a hard rock performance, it was clear this was not to be your average assembly. At first students at Dunkerton High School, Iowa, seemed grateful for this musical break from the norm - albeit with Christian-themed lyrics denouncing the evils of drugs, alcohol and violence.

But things took a turn for the worse when the event veered into an impassioned and unfocused rant against homosexuality, abortion and sex before marriage.

After his band Junkyard Prophet left the stage, drummer and preacher Bradlee Dean took the microphone, separating the crowd into boys, girls and teachers.

Mr Dean is the president of the ministry You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International, which is listed by civil rights organisation the Southern Poverty Law Center as an active anti-gay hate group.

The clip below - a segment on homosexuality - shows him launching attacks on the influence of the media and pop culture, taking aim mainly at Sir Elton John and Lady Gaga.

Before a packed school hall he projects a photograph of Sir Elton next to a quotation that reads: 'There's nothing wrong with going to bed with someone of your own sex. I just think people should be very free with sex... They should draw the line at goats.'

Mr Dean demands of his young audience: 'Is that a good moral standard? Would you allow your son or daughter to spend the night at Elton's house?'

He then picks apart Lady Gaga hits such as The Fame and Born This Way, taking exception to her placing the lyrics 'No matter black, white or beige' side by side with 'No matter gay, straight or bi'. He says: 'What she's saying is if you're black it's the same thing as being gay. Sexual deviancy is the same thing. 'You're born as a product of your parents. But your actions - listen to this - you do have control over it.'

And after an embittered rant in which Mr Dean claims music videos give a false impression of what love is, he asks: 'Did you know the average age death of a homosexual male is 42 years old? 'Yeah, his actions literally kill him and he lives about half his life out.'

He adds: 'Up until 1961 [homosexuality] was illegal in all 50 states. We protected that institution. 'In 1998 if you were busted in Rhode Island you'd go to prison for 20 years; in 1973 they thought it was a mental illness. 'Now what are they teaching you?'

Junkyard Prophet had previously visited the school without incident and staff were expecting them to return last week with a talk on bullying and making the right choices.

But instead, students found themselves faced with graphic images of aborted foetuses, while girls were instructed to obey their husbands.

Parent Jennifer Littlefield told the LaCrosse Tribune: 'They told my daughter, the girls, that they were going to have mud on their wedding dresses if they weren't virgins.' Her 16-year-old daughter Alivia was distraught when she called her after the event and was one of several to have left in tears.

Appalled parents complained to the school, which has since accepted responsibility. The district authority is trying to recover the fee paid to Junkyard Prophet, who are said to command a rate of $1,500 per show.

Members of the group have since returned to the area to explain their performance, addressing 75 people at a nearby church.

According to local network KWWL, Mr Dean, who was met by a small group of protesters, took to the stage to hit out at 'offensive' accusations and negative media coverage. He said: 'When I left, there was nothing wrong with anything. I get home and it's an anti-gay ministry. 'I'm tired of that. It wasn't brought up at all.'

SOURCE





Force them to work': British think tank calls on ministers to get tough on feckless fathers

Feckless fathers should be forced to take a job if they refuse to pay for the upkeep of their child, a think tank demanded last night.

They said that unemployed fathers on benefits who no longer live with their partner should be put on compulsory work experience schemes if they fail to take financial responsibility for their offspring.

Policy Exchange called on ministers to target these individuals and fast-track them on to compulsory work experience schemes to try to get them back into the labour market.

If they fail to stick with the work experience to the end, they would lose state payments, under the scheme being pushed by the centre-right think tank.

Centre-right Policy Exchange called for a job placement programme which would be similar to the controversial scheme that last month sparked accusations that young people were being forced into 'slave labour'. After a wave of protests last month ministers announced youngsters would no longer be sanctioned for quitting placements.

But despite the problems, Policy Exchange said a mandatory programme for fathers would make it more likely claimants would leave benefits and take paid work. Its report shows that absent fathers on benefits typically contribute just £5 a week in child maintenance payments.

The study estimates there are up to 65,800 men who have been out of work for six months or longer and claims the Child Support Agency focuses on collecting payments from working parents.

The think tank also demanded that fathers are named on birth certificates.

And it called for single parents claiming income support to be exempted from paying a fee to use the CSA under changes being introduced by the Government, warning it will deter the poorest from chasing payments.

Report author Peter Saunders said: 'Most fathers want to do all they can to help and support their children, even when they find themselves unemployed. But a minority persistently evade their responsibilities. 'This is unfair on their children, their former partners, other fathers who are doing the right thing, and taxpayers, who have to pick up the tab.

'Organising work activity for tens of thousands of men, many of whom may have forgotten or never learned routine work discipline would be expensive. 'In the longer term, however, such a policy should reduce the burden on taxpayers, by getting at least some of these men back into useful employment. 'If they refuse to enrol on to these work schemes then benefits should be withdrawn.

SOURCE




Australian bricklayer sparks row over Irish ban



The advertiser was saving both himself and others time and trouble as experience had obviously moved him not to hire Irish people. The ban on such advertising won't remove discrimination. It will just make it less visible. Even if he cannot advertise what he wants he can still hire on that basis as long as he keeps that basis to himself. This is a ban on speech, not a ban on discrimination

AN online job ad stating "no Irish" should apply has forced the Australian embassy in Ireland to defend the country's commitment to diversity and racial tolerance.

The ad posted on website Gumtree stated: “Bricklayer needed ASAP. $250 a day, no part-time workers and NO IRISH”, reports the Irish Independent.

The ad sparked immediate reader outrage after the Independent reported the ad was “in language reminiscent of the discrimination against the Irish in British cities in the 1950s”.

It has since been removed, but not before the man responsible - known only as “Simon” - defended his position stating he was sick of Irish people applying for jobs they were not qualified to do.

“I have no trouble with Irish people,” he told the Independent. “But I’ve had to fire a number of people. I’ve had lots of Irish people say they have experience bricklaying but come over and have no clue how to lay bricks. “I’m very busy and don’t have time to be watching over them.”

A spokesman for the Australian embassy told the Independent online: “The Government has an unwavering commitment to a multicultural Australia and greatly welcomes the contribution made by people of all backgrounds, regardless of origin, gender, or colour, to Australia's culture, society, and prosperity.”

He said Australia had no tolerance for racism and discrimination reflected in a broad range of anti-discrimination legislation.

Orla Tunney of the Irish Embassy in Canberra said they are very concerned at any instance of discrimination against Irish people in Australia. "We understand that the advertisement in question was illegal and has now been removed from the website where it appeared," said Ms Tunney.

"Thankfully, incidents of this type are very rare and in general we are aware of a very high level of respect in Australia for Irish workers. We very often receive positive feedback about the level of education and training of Irish workers and their ability to adapt well to Australian workplaces."

Race Discrimination Commissioner Helen Szoke confirmed with news.com.au that this was a clear cut case of discrimination. “What’s important is that people understand that it is unlawful to advertise in this way and that there are grounds for people to bring a complaint of discrimination to the Australian Human Rights Commission,” Dr Szoke said.

“But it’s also unhealthy. With a job like bricklaying it’s pretty easy to ascertain what the requirements of the job are without being abusive on the basis of race.”

Dr Szoke said employment was the single largest area of racial complaints in Australia. “Section 16 of the Race Discrimination Act states that an advertisement could be understood as being unlawful if it treats people unfavourably on the basis of race,” she said. “This is a pretty clear cut case. It’s a clear exclusion of Irish people both in the advertising and in the employment practice – so there would seem there are grounds for lodging a complaint.”

The economic downturn in Ireland has led to a surge of Irish emigrating to Australia in search of work.

SOURCE

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Political correctness is most pervasive in universities and colleges but I rarely report the incidents concerned here as I have a separate blog for educational matters.

American "liberals" often deny being Leftists and say that they are very different from the Communist rulers of other countries. The only real difference, however, is how much power they have. In America, their power is limited by democracy. To see what they WOULD be like with more power, look at where they ARE already very powerful: in America's educational system -- particularly in the universities and colleges. They show there the same respect for free-speech and political diversity that Stalin did: None. So look to the colleges to see what the whole country would be like if "liberals" had their way. It would be a dictatorship.

For more postings from me, see TONGUE-TIED, GREENIE WATCH, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, GUN WATCH, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, DISSECTING LEFTISM, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN (Note that EYE ON BRITAIN has regular posts on the reality of socialized medicine). My Home Pages are here or here or here. Email me (John Ray) here. For readers in China or for times when blogger.com is playing up, there is a mirror of this site here.

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